Assassins Kazuki Kurusu and Rei Suwa meet Miri, a girl looking for her father on Christmas Day.
Kazuki, Rei, and Miri unexpectedly end up living together.
Follows Kazuki Kurusu, a criminal contractor/coordinator who lives with his best friend, Rei Suwa, a
professional assassin who has been raised from childhood to be a contract killer. Kazuki is outgoing
and loves gambling and women, while Rei is a man of few words who spends his off time playing video
games. One day, the two buddies end up caring for Miri Unasaka, a four year old girl whose father is a
mafia boss, after Miri accidentally wanders into a firefight in a hotel while looking for her father.
I know, the first thing anyone brings up when talking about Buddy Daddies is that it’s like Spy X Family, and while I get that sentiment, there are quite a few fundamental differences between the two. If you value more slice of life, over the top comedy, Spy X Family will be more of the anime for you. If you value more of a focus on child-rearing, Buddy Daddies may the anime for you. Buddy Daddies does have its share of plot development, which was a common complaint for Spy X Family, but I can’t say that the plot development was particularly ground-breaking or well done overall, but it did nail some of the emotional moments nicely. To provide a gist of the story, four year old Miri Unasaka wanders through modern day Japan one day looking for her father, and ends up smack dab in the middle of an assassination plot that goes wrong, and ends up being taken in by the two assassins, Kazuki Kurusu and Rei Suwa. This newfound task of balancing taking care of a child while continuing on their jobs as assassins is understandably difficult, but they make it work, and raise Miri well. Needless to say, they work in a dangerous environment, and the moral ambiguity of keeping Miri around even when she would be increased danger was an effective theme that was explored as well. The effort at a meaningful plot was there, but I think the season was too short get through all the conflict that was explored. The main thing I did appreciate about this show was that it’s decently realistic, especially with Miri just being a normal little kid. Yes, she was a little annoying at the start, but many kids are loud and obnoxious when they’re little, and Miri portrays a semi-realistic little kid. Kazuki and Rei also slowly grow into their father roles, and I did enjoy the slower development for them in terms of taking care of a child. They started out lazy and not wanting to take care of Miri, but little by little they come around to love her, and likely would willingly lay down their life for her. The cast definitely grew on me as it went along, which made the increased stakes near the end of the show more effectively executed due to that. I genuinely felt worried for them at times. There’s a good mixture of themes at play here, as there’s a balance between comedy, action, slice of life, and a bit of suspense as well. The strongest themes to me were probably the slice of life comedy aspect, as the moments where Kazuki, Rei, and Miri just hang out together were quite wholesome, but the underlying assassin plot did play its role as well, and while it got a little darker than I expected, the villains weren’t all that great, as their motives aren’t all that interesting. Production for this show was alright, with some decent animation and direction overall. The sound direction was a little weird at times, as some of the action scenes, especially at the beginning, had very goofy music that didn’t really fit the tense atmosphere, but it got better with time. OP and ED are also quite good. Overall, a relatively enjoyable series with its ups and downs story-wise, but I still had a good time with it. If you’re looking for a wholesome comedic series, you’ll get that, but if you’re also looking for some action and emotion mixed in, it’ll deliver as well. It’s not anything insanely special or ground-breaking, but it’s something I’d recommend for sure.
The gap in between a child character turning from cute to annoying is ABSOLUTELY tiny. No other show personifies this better than Buddy Daddies. With one of the most obnoxious characters I have ever had the displeasure of watching. Buddy Daddies starts off with a criminal contractor Kazuki and a professional assassin Rei finding a child called Miri while doing an operation. They end up saving her during the operation which forces them to take care of her until they can find her mother. Now Miri definitely crosses the line and is horribly annoying. She is loud, incompetent and very obnoxious. Compared to Spy x Family (this is the most direct comparison, so get ready for a lot more SxF comparisons), Anya is also very incompetent and childish, but to a lesser degree which makes her actually funny. She even sometimes crosses the line and becomes annoying as well, which proves how razor thin this line is. As opposed to Miri, Anya understands her parent’s jobs and tries to help them by formulating absolutely ridiculous plans which obviously won’t work for shit. Miri on the other hand just watches her “parents” straight up murder people and does not question it even slightly and keeps walking into their operations, thus “ruining” them (Rei just shoots them, so not really). She genuinely feels like ChatGPT tried to be a human, eerily human, but lacking sentience. Rei and Kazuki also lack the comedic aspect of Loid and Yor, both fully know each other’s jobs and in fact co-operate all of the time, which removes the entire aspect of each other panicking after doing something that could spoil their cover. They are also very incompetent, especially Kazuki and ESPECIALLY when it comes to parenting. Whenever Kazuki is around Miri he somehow manages to match the annoying nature and becomes a parent who lacks the ability to look after her in every possible way and just enables her annoying nature. Rei just never talks, so he’s fine. Which is cheap as fuck to say someone is fine when the character speaks in 1-liners all of the time. Kazuki is fine as well, whenever he is not around Miri. To say the ending is rushed is an understatement. With the show reducing its episode count from 13 to 12 the ending had some major cuts made to it in order to restore the status quo in between Miri, Kazuki and Rei so they could possibly push out another season of this garbage. Certain plot lines were extremely abruptly ended to also fill the episode count. Speaking of Spy x Family comparisons, these shows are so similar, Buddy Daddies could just be called a cash-grab clone of Spy x Family, but is entirely lacking in the comedy, charm and actual character writing departments. Instead of making money from anime by creating a wonderful show with good characters and story, just copy another good show and hope your’s makes a profit. Overall this show’s character and story writing is absolutely abhorrent. The animation is pleasant, but that doesn’t change the fact that every time Miri or Kazuki appears on screen I want to shoot myself due to their combined wave length designed to annoy me. At least this show still contains a few moments that do not make it completely irredeemable.
__-This review will contain plenty of spoilers__, so either go to the last part for the TLDR, or if you just want a quick opinion, then mine is that this show is worth a watch. Agree to disagree but for me, this show is better than _Spy x Family_. Hell, if you did enjoy _Spy x Family_, you more than likely will enjoy this one. -I shit on _Spy x Family_ so much that you may even think this is a review for it. I can't apologize , so just a heads up. I am going to be comparing them a lot. -When watching this show you may have to apply suspension of disbelief towards some of the stuff that happens like: avoiding bullets with a tray, or dodging a shit ton of bullets coming from both front and back, all while running and carrying both a toddler and a grown ass man. ___ ~~~img500(https://i.imgur.com/fnonMTX.png) ~~~ ~~~__If someone asks you what the plot of Buddy Daddies is, show them this.__~~~ ___ The sole reason I wanted to watch this, is because I knew I hated _Spy x Family_, but I liked the concept it had. I wanted two not so good people, to for some reason have to raise a kid on their own, and to watch them struggle while doing so. Why? because it is fun to watch people try to do things they've never done before and _Buddy Daddies_ felt like a second chance to have that, after having my fantasies ruined by the boring sitcom that was _Spy Family_ (the X is a pain, I'm gonna remove it from here on out). Before the show even aired, there were a lot of people everywhere saying it was just the gay version of _Spy Family_, a cheap copy, just another way to make money after something that was successful. Boy, were people wrong. I cannot deny _Spy Family_ being an inspiration to this show, I am not in the production commitee after all, but it is very obvious when a show has been given love. If this was simply a copy made in hopes to rake in the money by following the footsteps of the Forgers, you would be able to tell. There was a good amount of love put into this. I can tell they tried to tell their story the best they could with the resources they had. It is a story about two men, who either lost love or didn't know it, who got a second chance to start over after meeting a tiny girl. The main reasons I enjoyed _Buddy Daddies_, is because the characters feel like real people, things actually happen, the comedy is pretty good, and because the amount of BS was minimum. _Spy Family_ issues for me were many, among them: __NOTHING __ever happening, no repercussions for people's actions, hollow and cheap war speeches whilst never showing me how the war was affecting their world (the only reason I can think of it sucking is cuz they are in like the late 50's or early 60's mind you, not because of the show particularly showing anything for its claims. Want an actual good speech about war and to see how war affects a whole country? _Gintama_, a fucking gag manga written by a Gorilla did it better.) It is boring, dull, and majority of characters are just walking tropes. Not even good ones mind you. That grey haired woman was an even worse Mikasa. How the fuck can you be worse than the worst? and Anya is just a fanservice character (fanservice isn't always titties and nipple-less sculpted male torsos. I know, amazing.) All of this added up for a very dissapointing watch after episode 1. Feels good anime doesn't have to equal mediocrity. You can't just slap three people smiling on screen and call it a day. In contrast to this, in _Buddy Daddies_ a lot of what I hated in _Spy Family_ was unexistent. Things happened, characters were for the most part fleshed out, people faced repercussions for their actions and we got to see the consequences of Kazuki and Rei's job, being hitmen. There are no speeches about war, just two dudes trying to take care of a little girl, and facing ordinary real life struggles, like having your partner not help with chores, and dealing with annoying paperwork. I was very happy to get to watch an episode of this every Friday, and even looked forward to it. I would love for this show to have more episodes. It feels like they needed either more time, or better direction to make the story flow a bit better. I very much enjoyed from episodes 1 to 10 , but in episode 11 I think it is when I felt things were being rushed, hence my reasoning for why I think more episodes would have helped. Miri's mom, Misaki, is one of the key parts of this story. She is very important. Unlike many people, I cannot dislike her. To me, she always felt like an abused woman, and even after her speech on why she hated Miri, I just couldn't hate her, I pitied her. She was neither right nor wrong. Did she want to have Miri? Was she assaulted and Miri was the result? did she have her at a time in her life when she was not in a good mindset to raise a child? I don't think it is ever really confirmed, but that information would have helped so much to see where she was coming from. Misaki was a character that the staff could have done a lot with, and it feels like they honest to god gave up on her. Her coming back for her daughter in episode 10 didn't feel odd, what did was her crying about not being a good mom for her and cooking and caring for Miri in episode 11. I don't think a show has to spoon feed you on a character's growth, but this is a woman who when we last saw her, was dating a jackass and who looked very miserable and heartbroken over being a mother, even saying that her "dreams were ruined". It would have made more sense if we had seen her at least make a change while on screen way earlier, not to just say she had cancer, and then kill her off two episodes before the finale. There was so much wasted potential for her character, truly a pity. As a result, when she passed away I didn't feel much for her. What I did feel was a sort of sadness for Kazuki, who once again was seeing a woman dying in front of him, and because of him, in a way. The cast of characters is not very big, which is fine to me, but I wish we had more time with side characters like Miri's teacher Anna or Kyutaro. They seemed likeable and interesting enough. This is not to say that our main people are bad, because honestly the main joy for me in this show were both the dads, Kazuki and Rei. On the poster, I thought Kazuki would be that good guy with the doormat personality who was a complete airhead, and that Rei would be the dominant personality who would solve everything. I didn't completely guess. Kazuki does have some clumsiness but he also seems to be the one in charge, while simultaneously being a total drama king and very naughty, like when he was flirting with the casino prostitutes early on. Rei surprised me by being a sweaty gamer who had no real life social skills, and being the actual airhead of the two. It is a very nice feeling, when the cliche you expect, turns out to be something completely different. Both of them were able to have character growth and it was done very subtly with each episode. It was fun watching them cry and yell at simple things like sewing or having to play with a baby, to then see them slowly but surely catch on to what they needed to do. Small actions like Rei wanting to cook for Miri, or finally helping Kazuki out with both Miri or the house brought a smile to my face. Seeing the character change while on screen feels rewarding, but so is seeing two people, Rei and Kazuki, who have probably never known what a family is, to be experiencing it for the very first time. Miri saved part of their soul. They did things after meeting her that they would never have done otherwise. Kazuki let go of his grieving to try to achieve normal happiness. He was afraid of change, of "being fullfilled by something else", in this case his newfound family consisting of both Rei and Miri, after the heartbreak that he went through of losing his girlfriend and unborn child. In regards to Rei, he as he says, was like a statue. Not truly living, never even trying. It was a very big win in my book to see him be, for the first time, the one to take charge and say, " I want to do this. I want to try, and we CAN do it." As the saying goes, "Being deeply loved by someone gives you strenght, while loving someone deeply gives you courage.", I think this can sum up Miri, Kazuki , and Rei's bond. All I will say in regards to the animation is that the quality of the artwork is nothing to write home about, average I guess, but sometimes the characters looked a bit too wonky for my taste. The opening and ending theme are both very nice and the music throughout the show isn't bad, minus Misaki's song. As for Kazuki and Rei's past actions, AKA, being mostly responsible for the deaths of Miri's parents, I think that their repentance and atonement was raising her. Them dying would have been too easy and would have also left me with a bad taste. It is funny, but almost all of the P.A. Works shows I've tried, I've dropped at the first episode. They feel lacking. This is one of the few that I think I will remember and for good reasons. Despite only having 12 episodes it gave me 3 characters who I love, and whose happiness I very much wished for. It made me laugh, it made me sad, it made me cry, and above all it gave me what I wanted and never got from Spy Family. Three people who in many ways, saved and helped eachother. No games, no stupid bravado, no hollow morality choices, and no dumb character tropes. _Spy x Family_ could never. You can't pay me to watch another season of the boring Forgers. __TLDR__; _Buddy Daddies_ is a story about two killers killing a girl's dad, and then raising her as their own daughter, and learning how hard parenthood is while also changing their ways, and it has a banger song as the opening theme. If you watch it I hope you have a fantastic time just like I did. ___ img5000(https://i.imgur.com/H7FzUUY_d.jpg?maxwidth=520&shape=thumb&fidelity=high) __~~~Their smiles survived. I am overjoyed.~~~__
__This review contains major spoilers for the show, don't read it if you haven't watched it or proceed with the awareness that you're going to get spoiled!__ # The introduction — SpyxFamily references and the confusing I actually have a lot of things i want to say about this. At first, when I heard people calling Buddy Daddies a weaker version of SpyxFamily that tries to give people something they can choke themselves up with, while waiting for another SxF season, I felt like they're just being too harsh, but I just watched the last episode and understood this mindset, I may even share the sentiment with them at some point. Buddy Daddies isn't a bad anime, not at all. I had a lot of fun while watching it, but now that I'm finished, I feel so underwhelmed and it's the first time in forever I was actually reminded that an anime I just watched doesn't have manga behind it, what explains a lot of things. First of all, I need to get it out of my chest, the storywriters' decisions made me believe that they were expecting to get more episodes than they were given to, while also getting too many episodes to make this anime stay as good as it was at the beginning. Sounds like I'm contradicting myself? We're just getting started. # Wasted potential There's the rub, the lack of decision whether the storywriters want to go with the funny skits from daily life of two dudes taking care of the kid when they're both horrible at managing their own lives, or some psychological drama about two adults with still fresh wounds from their past, trying to overcome their issues to give an idea of home to a kid that is yet to learn what being a family actually means. I'm pretty sure they could've managed to do both, but the storywriters are just extremely (and unreasonably so) dramatic and they are either going to get on with the most wholesome comedy based on the skits that will make most people laugh purely out of the cuteness of the kid that is a part of them, or make people die the most heartwrenching way you can imagine. I've enjoyed how the first episodes were still funny skits despite the gun violence and I have a feeling that they just shouldn't have gone with the serious. A crossover between happy and grim makes things inconsistent and hard to get into. # Rei's case Whole Rei's backstory still feels extremely wasteful to me. We got that one little scene with him being forced to kill a dog and I guess it was their way of showing how he was the victim of a child abuse. You can see that he's genuinely terrified by this whole situation, you can see that his dad orders him to regard him as a "boss", which is such a clear trauma enabler, I'd say even a symbol of Rei losing the grasp of what family looks like. I'd expect him to be more tense to meet his father again at some point..? If that one scene was just an example of the abuse he went through, you'd expect him to be so stiff that he's unable to speak a word in his presence. It's extremely implied that Rei's current state, which reminds depression is an aftermath of him being trained purely to assassinate and his coping with games only shows how he does the bare minimum to keep himself alive. How he's just so caught up on getting himself busy with games that he neglects everything else. To see him being so chill about meeting his father, without even trying to potray some kind of fear while facing his abuser feels so unnatural and just shallow. Even if they wanted to show how Rei's so tired and ripped out of life that he's being indifferent, they failed at that too. Rei's emotionally repressed mess, but there's no attempt at showing how exactly that mess looks like. # Kazuki's case On the other hand, Kazuki's backstory feels shallow, merely because of the fact how it was written, his character is so one-dimensional that the peak of his personality is the fact that he had a wife once, but they attempted at exploring it, so I stayed silent until Karin was in a picture. Kazuki feels responsible for his wife's death, he's still mourning, but instead of exploring that grief of his, he literally sets aside all his feelings very fast, just because of his dead wife's sister telling him to "live on". I may surprise you, but it's not that easy and sure, Karin's words may've been enabler for Kazuki to stop dwelling in his past, but it shouldn't have been this easy! In addition of his backstory being lack of memories..? It's almost ridiculous for his issues to be solved that conveniently. I liked him wondering if he deserves the life he's living on currently and how Miri's appearance in both his and Rei's lives made them both reconcile with their pasts, but I still think it could've been executed with much more emotional depth than the actual thing. # Addressing the queerbait — what irked me up The last thing I'm upset about is that one scene after the timeskip. I was sure they won't make the main duo a canonical relationship from the beginning and felt a little bad for people who started watching the show in hopes for queerbait getting canon, because it was clear for me that it's not happening. I could understand how they stated that Kazuki uses the service of sex workers in the first episode, it built up the image of him being just some guy who's by no means ready to become a parent. His wife was also a relevant plot point since it's the only thing making him have some kind of personality, so no ill feelings towards this as well. The timeskip teenage Miri's comment "I heard you were with a girl last night" though, irked me up a lot. There was no reason for them to bring this theme up, which made me feel like they just viciously wanted to "make it clear" that these guys are just friends like it wasn't something clear from the beginning. Being so desperate at denying any "gay allegations" when your show got any attention, because of the queerbait to begin with is such a trashy thing to do, like, who do you think is your target audience? And you won't bullshit me into thinking that it was a needed addition, especially since it was a high school girl bringing this theme up and I can assure you that high school girls aren't really interested in sexual escapades of their parents at all. # The summary — the okayish show All these things brought me to 7. It may be surprising to see it after me counting up so many things I'm upset about, but ultimately, I think what counts is the fun you're experiencing during watching. I'm not some kind of professional critique and I may have my own issues with this anime, but I won't deny the amount of joy I felt during watching. The skits were funny, Miri's the sweetest girl in the world and I'd do absolutely anything to protect her happiness, Kazuki may've made me upset at some point, but he got redeemed in my eyes as watching just Rei taking care of Miri would've been horrifying. Rei got my untlimited affection and despite feeling a little bitter towards the fact that him being a child abuse victim was tossed aside so easily, I still find him the babygirl of the babygirlest babygirls. Honestly? The only reliable thing that can be said about Buddy Daddies that compares it to SpyxFamily is that it's a good "choke up". If you like father-daughter relationships, have daddy issues, like mentally ill men or you're just missing SpyxFamily, I'd say Buddy Daddies is a great choice for you, but remember to take everything with a grain of salt as you may end up a little battered like yours truly.
~~~___Major Spoilers Ahead___ You won't understand a good chunk of my review if you haven't seen _Buddy Daddies_, so go give it a watch! I'll mostly be jumping from point to point about the series. Final ratings will be based on my overall enjoyment, as that’s what seals the deal for me. img(https://www.siliconera.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/buddydaddies.jpg) __Brief Synopsis__ Partners in-crime Kazuki Kurusu and Rei Suwa live that assassin life by taking out bad guys for some sweet moola from The Organization. After saving a five year-old girl from a near-death experience, the two _buddies_ end up becoming _daddies_, as they take care of the energetic Miri Unasaka. There's just one problem... they don't know the first thing about parenting! __Initial Thoughts__ Picture this... it's late December 2022 and I am browsing AniList to find some fresh titles to watch in the coming winter season. I then stumble across this gem of a title, and think to myself, _"No way.. another ambiguosly queer anime? In (almost) 2023??? And it has the Boys' Love tag? This can't be real!"_ And I'm right because.. it's definitely not real. I mean who am I kidding, with a name as obvious as "Buddy Daddies" is, I know they're going to pull the no homo card, they always do. But will I still have hope? Yes. Because I am that painfully desperate. Yearning aside, I was ready for _Buddy Daddies_ when it got announced. _SPY x FAMILY_ already left me in the dust last season, and none of Anya's adorable faces could save me. So whether or not _Buddy Daddies_ exceeded my expectations when it came to those rainbow implications, I was hyped. And no homophobic internet troll could stop me.~~~ ~~~img(https://i0.wp.com/butwhytho.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Buddy-Daddies-But-Why-Tho-1.jpg?fit=800%2C410&ssl=1) __The Meat of the Review__ Let's be real... you saw this review coming. In fact, you saw this entire obsession coming. If you've been keeping up with the Mars Cinematic Universe (or the better MCU for short), you looked at _Buddy Daddies_ and thought to yourself, _"Yeah. This is definitely some shit Mars would like."_ And you would be right. _Buddy Daddies_ isn't groundbreaking by any means, but what it does well is balance. There's a lot of opposing things in this series, opposing personalities, opposing ideals, opposing narratives, but it is all tied together efficiently, and nothing really feels out of place. This show is a master at shape-shifting, it can go from heartwarming slice of life, to serious drama, to just as crazy high-speed chases, and that's what makes it such a fun ride. While there definitely are a few issues I have when it comes to pacing, which we'll get into later, there is never anything _missing_ from _Buddy Daddies_, and I'm glad that's the case. Having well-rounded characters, superb animation, a solid story and ending, while still being equally as funny and cheesy is what this anime pulls off. And boy howdy, it pulls it off well. Now, before you go and hit that dislike button because, _"Gosh darnit! This review is a love letter!"_ Lemme hit you with what needed to be fixed. I'll admit this show can be a little on the ridiculous side when it comes to its fight scenes. A couple character deaths and moments feel a bit too convenient for its plot, mainly the death of Miri's mother. An episode and a half of development for her, and then POOF! She's gone. Now, this didn't totally destroy my viewing experience, as it definitely sets up the necessary steps for development of Kazuki and Rei, but it for sure rushes things. And if I'm being real, an extra episode or two would've been better than the quick turn-around we got, but I'm not mad. Because what this show delivers in the end makes up for it. Let's circle back to our mains. All three of them have lost their biological families. Kazuki is implied to have been an orphan who then lost his wife, Rei's father was never there for him to begin with, and Miri's parents were neglectful. But when they are all together, it's like they've been a family for years, but they just.. never knew. And that my friends, is the found family trope at play. Sure, these three don't have any blood relation, but it's their love for each other that is more powerful than anything. Rei, the most cold-blooded looking guy you'll see on the street, who started off unenthusiastic about being a parent, grew to hold this time dear. _"Miri, Kazuki, and I share a bond stronger than blood. I want to believe in that."_ This then cements the best thing about _Buddy Daddies_, it's believable. Not in the fight scene sense, or the fact that Miri could've totally died but didn't sense, but in the sense of heart. The bond that Kazuki, Rei, and Miri all share, the bond that carries them in the years to come, is a simple representation of something very real in this world. A family, and nothing more. And that's pretty darn special if you think about it. img(https://64.media.tumblr.com/4f24ef5525a4673611131475386148ab/d2c316845a54690e-27/s2048x3072/92e84e7d2e4a8a615c48ca893b29a403c8da2cd1.pnj) __Overall Thoughts__ _Buddy Daddies_, as unbelievably crazy as it is, reminds us of the importance of family, and does so in a highly engaging way.~~~
# “Wholesome”, “spoiler-free” (vague) review for those with short attention span: Buddy Daddies has great emotional beats and some good character dynamics. There are also a few things that it delivers quite well given its non-traditional family setting and its more grounded approach to child raising. However, the series also drastically fails to fully commit to its setup and often reverts to convenient plotlines for emotional impact. Restricted to only 12 episodes to show its full take on the recently popular crime-childcare genre, it still managed to somehow stick the landing but also ended with a lot of missed potential. Perhaps, it could be so much more if it has more episodes but given what we have, nothing really stood out in the end. It doesn't mean it is unworthy of being watched though. Buddy Daddies is still an enjoyable and often heartwarming show with its own charm to deliver in the found family trope. # For those who want me to elaborate (yes, there will be __spoilers__): __Being a child in anime__ When it comes to shows where a little kid is set as one of the story’s main characters, I usually look forward to how they will write the child since, most of the time, younger children are placed on the sidelines while the whole story revolves around the adults. Of course, this is just fine depending on the story’s purpose but I also appreciate it if the narrative actively includes children without them being mere plot devices. After all, children are smarter than they seem. However, having this type of younger child main characters may often be difficult to portray in media (if you are writing an isekai, you can probably just cheat and put an adult into a child's body). Stories like these would require kid characters with their own motivation and perspective in the story without losing a significant part of their childishness or any distinguishable trait in their personality. Watching Buddy Daddies, I was led to believe that Miri is one of the most realistic kids in anime. I partly agree with these claims on a surface level. In a way, Miri is pretty spot-on as a 4-year-old kid -- which may be due to how P.A. Works had incorporated the actual experiences of their staff and their kids into the show. She is cute, annoying, and adorable as most children can be and as the plot demands it. However, and this is where my disappointment starts, I also felt that the writing for her lacks the characterization I initially expected from her role in the show. Throughout the series, the best way I can describe Miri is that she is a caricature of a real child. She can be more cute, more annoying, and more adorable exactly because she is oftentimes an exaggerated representation of what we usually attribute children to be. Even her often illogical cheerfulness and ignorance despite her surroundings are also part of this exaggeration (it is also convenient to the plot as it avoids difficult questions from the child). This makes it harder to pinpoint what makes Miri her own unique character outside of her just being a “realistic” kid. In fact, she often felt like an amalgamation of all the obvious things we see in children packed into one. And it worked. We have another child who is quite believable as a kid but also does not actively become anything more than a convenience. Of course, this is not entirely a bad thing. As I’ve said, it depends on the story and the story of Buddy Daddies only needs a “realistic” child to work around the energy it’s going for, and Miri as a plot device seems to work well enough in the show itself. However, given this and the way she is written, Miri's behavior will undeniably be shoved down to the viewers since she is also made to appeal using her "realism" as a kid. That's her whole schtick. Understandably, less tolerant viewers might not find her as adorable as the creators expected her to be, but for others, Miri, as a more general depiction of a 4-year-old, might actually be more relatable. __Family story of two hitmen and a girl__ With how Miri is written, Buddy Daddies expectedly centers its narrative around Kazuki and Rei’s struggles as parents and as individuals while Miri drives their motivation for change. This brought the series into a more grounded and familiar territory. Kazuki and Rei are hitmen and both are inexperienced at parenting (Rei more so) but the charm of the series lies within these moments, too, where the parents struggle to be parents. The series is at its best when Kazuki and Rei interact with Miri. Both of Miri’s papas have rather good and heartfelt moments with her which solidifies a lot of the blooming relationship between parent and child. The shenanigans which ensue and the often emotional moments which it brings are what really shine in the show. Buddy Daddies also dwells on the more realistic aspects of parenting and this helps bring more of that sense of relatability to the show, especially for viewers who are parents or who are looking to be one. Buddy Daddies also introduces a more non-traditional family setup given how two same-sex parents are taking care of a child. I find the concept of this quite refreshing within the anime childcare genre. Moreover, Kazuki and Rei being both Miri’s fathers weren’t made fun of or made to be different by other characters within the show. One can expect that sending Miri to daycare would bring in more questions and the typical homophobic remarks, but there was none of that. They made it feel normal because it is and I like that kind of representation (however, as I would tackle more below, the show also comes with quite a few issues of its own in this regard). __Entertaining and spontaneous adoption__ Buddy Daddies started with high energy and some absurd action moments in its first two episodes. P.A. Works fight scenes are mostly good and viewers might be reminded a bit of Akiba Maid War (another P.A. Works original from last season) whenever Kazuki and Rei do their hitman job. The show’s jazzy, spy-esque music also adds a lot to the energy of the series. There might be some minor gaps in the animation and the backgrounds are sparse especially when there are more movements but P.A. Works did a great job with the budget they had. Going back to the story itself, Buddy Daddies seemed like a pure comedy at first glance. Indeed, the first two episodes give the vibe of a darkly comedic show with how nonchalant Rei kills off people, especially in the first episode where he killed Miri's father while the child happily jumped into Kazuki's arms. Killing off the father is a wild and spontaneous set of circumstances that contributed to the comedy and tone of the show but also added flimsiness to the "adoption" excuse, at least in the first two episodes. Around Episode 3, we are introduced to Miri’s mother, Misaki, who sent her daughter alone to find her father. The writers show Misaki as regretful of her motherhood due to her difficult situation in life which gives her more nuance and promises a lot more from her character in future episodes (or perhaps not). Anyway, the main point of this episode is that it establishes the found family by giving a more valid reason why they should stay together. Behind the scenes, both Kazuki and Rei’s past played a role in their eventual decision. Kazuki decided to take in Miri due to his own wife and unborn child dying in the past while Rei, as shown in the flashback in the same episode, is reminded of his abusive father and how much he doesn’t want to be like him after Miri stated that the role of fathers is to protect their child. Since Miri’s mom won’t have her, Kazuki and Rei (although not explicitly) made the decision to take care of her in Episode 3 which solidifies the family right from the start. I think Episode 3 is one of the show’s strongest episodes although I also felt that the family was easily established together by convenience and lack of commitment. For a show which focuses on parenting more realistically, I expected more struggle from Kazuki and Rei from letting Miri stay with them given their job and their past. I should say that the emotional attachment from the main trio is rather quick to establish without much constraint (more so for Kazuki who settled willingly into the “mother” role in the family) but I also acknowledge that this isn’t really a major gripe in the first part of the show. It also goes along with Buddy Daddies’ spontaneity and overall tone. However, this convenience and lack of commitment also reared its head stronger than before at the latter part of the series, and I think that’s where the show began to be quite disappointing. __Rushed, sloppy and convenient drama__ The latter part of the series is where the story shifts gears and ventures into a more serious route. Kazuki and Rei’s conflict as hitmen centers around whether they can change for the better. How they decide on this is the main focus of this part of the series. However, the convenience and lack of commitment I mentioned before are more apparent here since outside of its family and child-raising dynamics, everything feels less cohesive in terms of writing the more dramatic, hitmen aspect of the show. What really disappointed me is how it handled its last few episodes. Frankly, the show started to reveal more of its loose structure in Episode 7 where it speedruns through Kazuki’s past and character conflict without much of the buildup. This episode also included two female characters, Kazuki’s wife and his sister-in-law, who are introduced within a single episode (with Kazuki’s wife revealed to die from a tragic incident) to just help resolve Kazuki’s grief and then promptly forgotten for the rest of the series. However, the final nail in the coffin is Miri’s mother, Misaki, being re-introduced in the latter part of the show. Misaki came back after almost a year only to be revealed that she is now dying from cancer. The last time she was seen was in Episode 3 and although that episode gave a bit of nuance in regards to the role of a mother, especially in contrast to how Kazuki willingly became the “mom” of the household, it also felt like it leaned towards a more antagonistic view of the “irresponsible” mother. Anyway, not only did the show give Misaki cancer but also made her regret her choices and wish for change in regard to sending Miri away. The writers opted for a cheap sympathy move which became truer for Misaki since after giving the woman cancer, they also shoot her off in the next episode she was re-introduced! Episode 11 is one of the worst episodes of the show because none of what happened there is necessary. Meaning, the family can still stay together without the already dying Misaki being killed off by another assassin. It just felt so much like tragedy for tragedy’s sake. It felt almost emotionally manipulative. But it was convenient, isn’t it? Now, Misaki cannot take away Miri from Kazuki and Rei. Now, the family can stay together without any difficulty or complexity. This also made me rethink the whole purpose of the show. There is nothing wrong with plot devices but when you have the majority of female characters in the story like Miri, Misaki, Yuzuko (Kazuki’s wife), and Karin (Kazuki’s sister-in-law) be mere plot devices to drive the development of the two male leads, I have to admit some bullshit. I can say the writing is bad especially when the choice to avoid the easy, convenient but problematic path is an option. But what now? In the same episode, Kazuki and Rei announced that they are now going to become a real family! Very apt. The woman's body is not cold yet. But we shouldn’t care about how the family came together again this time (first by killing Miri’s dad, now by killing her mom). The most important thing is the found family being together again (we have to stay wholesome here, people!). Okay, so let's leave it as it is for the time being and discuss the finale of the show. Rei’s final confrontation with his father leaves a lot to be desired. For context, Rei’s father was never shown to care about his son in the entire series (not like he’s present much anyway). But in the finale, Rei’s father seemed to have a change of heart. I understand Rei’s choice of not killing his father (defying the cycle of violence and all that) but one of my major criticism is that his father still feels unpunished, especially in contrast to how the story had treated Misaki. It is also assumed that after that confrontation, Rei’s father never bothered with the family again even though he had been shown as strict in acting on the organization’s ideals and had been a significant part of Rei’s trauma. Again with the show’s convenience and lack of commitment. It is quite disappointing from a writing standpoint, especially when it could have been more. __The “Buddy” Daddies__ There’s quite good development between Kazuki and Rei as individuals (Rei more so) and as parents to Miri. However, I felt like the show barely show us Kazuki and Rei growing together or caring for each other outside of being co-parents to Miri, even just platonically. To explain further, Kazuki and Rei had been living together even before Miri came into their lives. When Misaki came and took Miri away, I thought they will continue to stay together since even without the child, the two can be a family unit. I mean, what were those family developments for? But, disappointingly, the first thing they thought was to leave and pursue their separate goals. This made previous family moments ring hollow. There seemed to be no care between them. Not even a struggle to let the other leave. I know we are not going to get an actual gay couple. P.A. Works had been forcing the narrative of Kazuki liking women from the first episode until the last (of course, bisexuality exists but given how P.A. Works had been shoving this narrative I don’t think so). However, I also felt that them being queerplatonic or just “buddies” (for the straights) was barely explored well enough either, especially given the way P.A. Works seemed afraid to depict them as “too gay” by not giving them actual moments to acknowledge their care for each other. It is just frustrating. The writers just can't commit to anything. In fact, almost all emotional moments in the show centered between Kazuki or Rei being with Miri but almost never without Miri. There are some moments in the end but it also felt sudden and half-baked given how unexplored it is in previous episodes. I also expected a bit more balance and less heteronormative view in the household roles. I mean, Rei did improve, to be fair, but for most of the show, Kazuki is obviously given the role of the stereotypical mother in anime. It did lend to the comedy but again, it could have been more. __Honestly, everything could have been more in this show, and I wish it did since I actually enjoyed it overall. But it ended without lasting impact. There is no feeling of it being earned. The lack of commitment and the extreme amount of conveniences just made me disappointed.__
_I am not going to define the plot of the story but just express my cute feelings after watching this really KAWAI anime. Put spoiler alert just in case!_ This definitely has to be one of the cutest and warm animes I have watched so far besides __SpyXFamily__. Anya has been my favoutire but now the cute girl of this __Buddy Daddies __anime Miri-Chan is mew new favoutire. __Short summary of the anime :__ _"Buddy Daddies centers on a family of three who aren't related to each other: Kazuki Kurusu and Rei Suwa, assassins who live under one roof; and Miri, the daughter of Kazuki and Rei's assassination target who ended up being picked up by Kazuki, who she thinks is her biological father"_ img700(https://i0.wp.com/anitrendz.net/news/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/Buddy-Daddies.jpg?resize=1024%2C524&ssl=1) I started watching this out of boredom and I dont regret it now. Completed the whole anime in one sitting because it was just way too sweet. The characters are really funny and well written. Other than Miri, both the daddies have to be the highlight of the show. Its really funny and amazing how they blended two completely different characters with polar opposite personalities without messing it up. You find that whole symphony between the characters. img700(https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMjVjYmZhZjYtN2RiMC00N2ExLTg1MDEtNGMzMzg2NzU1NzU2XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMTEzMTI1Mjk3._V1_FMjpg_UX1685_.jpg) Each episode has its cute and funny moments. It shows the struggle of raising a child in a really sweet manner. The ending got me for good. I really had to hold back my man tears. Ufff, I need tissues. I am just overwhelmed with really positive feelings and I just want to be like aweeeeeeee. If you are looking for an anime like SpyXFamily or something that is down to earth, cute and sweet, then this is must watch. I really wish I could just forget everything so that I could start watching this again and experience the cuteness all over again. The ending theme song is really cute too and I have been looping it for some time now. The concept is definitely good, praises to the writers. The animation is upto the mark and really satisifying. The story paces nicely and ends with a sweet note. Personally could not find anything within the 12 episodes to hate at all. I was really hoping the story would end with a cliffhanger of sorts and there could be a second season. I really wish that but I don't want to ruin the good ending I guess so might as well as live with this sad fact. img700(https://staticg.sportskeeda.com/editor/2023/04/2c619-16803404108438-1920.jpg) __My score for this anime : 95/100__ Worth the time, definitely!!!!!! and yes its something you can definitely watch with your friends or family. Best time would be to watch it during Christmas. I just wanted to express my overwhelming feelings about this while they were fresh.