Puniru is a Kawaii Slime

This show does something similar to Dekiru Neko wa Kyou mo Yuuutsu in that the main characters are very close to each other, but because one of the main characters is a literal slime, there's not really a romantic pairing. Yes, this definitely has a lot of rom-com themes, and contains tropes regarding them. Yet, at the same time, Puniru Kawaii Slime is a nice change of pace and fun to watch. Everything about this show carefully crafts a more immature rom-com circling around Puniru. You see this in multiple instances of the show. First of all is the age. Everyone is in middle school! Nothigh school but middle school. People are young, like 13 year old. Everyone's quite immature still, and characters reflect that. Nanpa's addicted to playing Monsura and other games that you would associate with kids, Kawaii Kotarou is still obsessed with plushies, Alice the same. The theme of the show is more of a comedic slice of life with some rom-com elements in the setting of a middle school because everything is more laid back and thus, the story has a lot more breathing room. The only clear romance in the show is between Kotarou and Mami, and I mean potentially Puniru I guess. However, even this is clearly explained unlike other rom-coms which keep the status quo. Mami shoots down Kotarou so it's one sided and yet the story continues. It's not a song and dance between a mutual romance that never comes to fruit like Ramna 1/2 or something, but rather an established setting that Kotarou is just chasing Mami and that's the plot. In many ways, this show has a lot of rom-com elements, but in reality, it steers away from some of the most tropey and cringe aspects of them. Of course, the main star is Puniru. What's not to like? First off is just the voice acting. It's distinct, bratty, and full of confidence in her "kawaii boku desu" self. I've never really heard of Sasahara Yuu and it does seem to be her breakout main character role. It's not a generic loli voice but one that has a lot that personifies Puniru. Puniru can transform, she throws temper tantrums, acts a bit stubborn, stays true to her desires, and also loves Kotarou and anything cute! Definitely reminiscent of something like Squid Girl, where it's a very boisterous kid with some levels of powers and personality that carry the entire show. Puniru only wants to act cute and wants to be called cute and doesn't care too much about. Yet, you can convince her do just about anything for some cream soda...Puniru's also physically seven and she acts the part. She's like a spoiled imouto to Kotarou and acts like it. She's not particularly smart and annoys him in typical sibling fashion. She doesn't really grasp the romance between a man and a woman..and why would she? She's a slime, technically androgynous, and also like seven years old. And that's why Puniru is also endearing. In similar rom-com fashion, Kotarou also clearly deeply cares for Puniru despite his outward appearance of saying that she's "not cute at all." He's a bit embarrassed at Puniru's acts of affection and want for attention and generally acts a bit indifferent, yet when push comes to shove he still backs her up. It's not about what he says, but what he does I guess, and the relationship is cute since all Puniru wants is the verbal confirmation haha. Finally, we have the actual comedy. It's good. Even the old-fashioned manzai where characters will yell "DOJYAAN" as a physical tsukommi by flipping themselves upside down and falling down is such a classic. You'll have Kotarou reacting to Puniru's boke and so on and so forth. Overall, if you enjoy the middle-school setting between kids having slice of life with an energetic kid main character like Puniru then you'll like the show. Bonus points for also the ED being a cover of "Show," initially sung by Ado and written by Giga and TeddyLoid, it's a very good song and the voice actor does a great job of making it her own. Personally though, the transformation sequence that Puniru does just wastes time every episode and clearly there just to save animation budget since it gets reused every episode. Anyways, excited for season 2.

Puniru wa Kawaii Slime is a show which initially frustrated me at with its predictable "insecure anime boy" jokes, though as the show progressed I began to genuinely enjoy the show and I have gained an appreciation for it. The humor, while on its surface is pretty predictable and doesn't really push the envelope much, is always quite well executed and was for the most part enjoyable!What really makes this show's humor click form me is the titular slime herself, Puniru as well as her relationship with Kotaro, her creator. Puniru in general is a delightful character and she really carries the show forme! Her cheerful yet abundantly selfish nature is very endearing. She has an air of childlike innocence and naivete which come from her being a slime and nonhuman which comes off as very sweet and makes her feel so genuine in every moment, even when played for laughs. Her obsession with her own cuteness and getting Kotaro to acknowledge said cuteness is as fun as it is kinda depressing xD. My absolute favorite part about Puniru is how malleable and creative she is as a slime creature! The artists and writers do so many fun and unique transformations with her and utilize the fact that she is a slime in so many cute and imaginative ways! Be it mixing glitter into her body to make a gyaru form or slicing in half like jello, there is no shortage of wonderful visual comedy with Puniru. Its genuinely one of my favorite parts of the show and all of her forms are so silly and fun, seeing what she'll turn into next was a thing that got me excited and I always looked forward to! Aiding this is the animation! Every time Puniru transforms there is a whole transformation sequence which I never got tired of watching even if it did feel a little over played some episodes. Puniru wa Kawaii Slime has tons of extremely expressive and well drawn character animation that gives these characters so much personality! The effective animation combined with the immensely appealing simplistic art style and character designs with exaggerated shapes and candy colors not only aids the animation, but makes the show a consistent treat for the eyes. There were absolutely times where the animation felt only meh, but never bad and that's a big accomplishment! On the other hand, Kotaro was a surprisingly interesting character for the archetype he embodies. He is your standard middle school boy who has a girl in his life who he's constantly annoyed with and whom he denies constantly but deep down there is a genuine love between the two. Initially this was all I expected him to be, the same stock character that every anime like this has who's just kinda there for the audience of teenage boys to self insert into. Dont get me wrong, Kotaro totally fits into this categorization but the writers of this show actually go in a really interesting direction with it! You see, the reason Kotaro pushes away Puniru and cute things in general even though he loves them both deeply is because of the deep seeded social norms demanding to him that its wrong to like cute or "girly" things as a boy. That fact alone gives Kotaro genuine depth (even though I wish they pushed it just a little further) and contextualizes a lot of the humor that frustrated me initially! Its a very real issue many middle school boys go through and seeing it acknowledged here in a respectful way is genuinely nice to see. Some of my other thoughts are that the side characters are functional but often feel one note. None of them are amazing but they serve their roles and function well enough and there were times where I found them genuinely funny. The music was something I remember feeling super unique about this anime, its nothing I'll remember in specific but it gave the show such a spunky and goofy vibe befitting our focal slime girlie. ;P THE ED IS SO GOOD!!!! One of my favorites in a long time, its so unique and captures the charm of Puniru and her series extremely well! In the end Puniru wa Kawaii Slime is a wholeheartedly comedic and silly series which could have been run of the mill and uninteresting but its saved from this due to its underlying and unabashed sincerity. Even in scenes that are wholly comedic, there is often an undercurrent of sincerity and frustration for not being able to express that sincerity or receive said sincerity back. Puniru as a character oozes this sincerity and it really makes me enjoy the series so much more. Add on top the appealing visuals and inspired use of Puniru'd shapeshifting slime traits and it all makes for an enjoyable time! If you like slime girls this would be worth watching for Puniru alone, she's great!

I'm not good at writing long pieces, so this is a short review that's as subjective yet objective as possible. Puniru wa Kawaii Slime is a comedy anime, so naturally, its storyline isn’t anything remarkable. The lack of focus on the plot makes it suitable for casual watching and passing the time. What makes this show good in my eyes is the cuteness of the characters and the animation. I really like the colors in the anime compared to the manga. The vibrant but not overly bright colors, combined with the cute art style, work perfectly together. Additionally, the humor in the anime is quite decent, asthe adorable characters and lighthearted jokes make the show relaxing to watch. The only thing I dislike is Puniru's transformation scene. It seemed interesting at first, but having more than 30 seconds of it in every episode feels like a waste of time. In conclusion, this is a show suited for pure entertainment. Alongside its humorous moments, it also has wholesome scenes, making it a family-friendly anime that you can enjoy with anyone. This anime has also announced a season 2, so let's look forward to what will be featured in the next part!