The Everyday Tales of a Cat God falls right in line with what I usually expect from anime. This isn’t a terrible thing since the series is still enjoyable, if a bit simplistic and not very memorable.
Episodes, which are more standalone stories rather than season-spanning arcs, focus on an antique shop run by a young girl named Yuzu. The shop is also home to Mayu, a disgraced god. Before taking up residence in the shop, Mayu was kicked out of the land of the gods and stripped of her powers. Her crime? She’s lazy and enjoys the excesses of life.
Mayu also happens to be the god of lost and forgotten things, so the antique shop seems like a perfect place for the blemished god to redeem her good name. Or, at least, you think it would. As it turns out, Mayu isn’t exactly phased by her punishment, nor does she seem to have much interest in any sort of redemption. Instead she’d rather hang out at the shop, do as little work as possible, and play videogames.
Mayu and Yuzu are surrounded by numerous other gods, most of which are just around for color and to provide plot points for each episode. Much of the show is built around character relationships, not the build up of major story arcs. Instead, character interactions are meant to set up comedic situations. The show is very gag-heavy; some are great, while others fall flat. The ratio between "great" and "flat" will obviously rest with the viewer’s sense of humor. I personally found most jokes landed on the "flat" side, but am also first to acknowledge The Everyday Tales of a Cat God isn’t exactly my style.
My biggest issue with the series as a whole is there isn’t much meat to it. Every episode follows the same basic premise: Mayu tries to do the right thing, but her laziness ends up causing even more trouble. A few characters show up to add some jokes and the problem is solved. Not to knock the series too much – after all, sometimes simple is good -- but I always felt like the show was leaving lots of things on the table. I would have loved more background on the supporting cast, or maybe some sort of larger plot to keep me hooked over the long run. Instead, I could usually do two or three in a row before deciding I wanted a break.
Perhaps more disappointing is there are flashes of something larger happening in the background. A few plot points manage to appear that make it seem like something bigger is about to happen, but are either quickly dealt with or just sort of dissipate in the space between episodes.
Although the show doesn’t pack in a lot of action or plot, it still looks really good. The Blu-ray transfer is incredibly clean, which works for the show’s modest style. Colors are vibrant and generally pop, especially during more kinetic moments.
The Everyday Tales of a Cat God ships with a couple of extras. In addition to clean versions of the opening and closing, the series comes with a set of shorts called "Cyber Wanderers." Each of these short episodes follows Mayu’s adventures in one of her video games. The shorts don’t add much to the overall series, but are fun for quick doses of the show. A full-color artbook, "The Everyday Tales of Antiques Unlimited," is also included. The book offers pages of character sketches, as well as some artwork and brief synopses of each episode. A bulk of the book is presented as a sort of keepsake book, with character notes/ comments scrawled on each page. It’s a small detail, but one I wish more artbooks included.
The Everyday Tales of a Cat God is by no means something that needs to find its way into your collection, though it is worthy of your attention if you’re a fan of nonsensical comedy and don’t require larger plotlines or memorable characters. In truth, this is the sort of show you can watch after a long day and just chill out. While it doesn’t aim for the same tone as other NIS releases, The Everyday Tales of a Cat God does go for simple fun.
