Buddy Daddies
Childcare Meets Organized Crime
Buddy Daddies is a childcare/organized crime anime. As you may have guessed from the title, it’s about two buddies who are also daddies. And by that, I mean the main characters are partners in a crime syndicate and they adopt a child together.
Now, I went into this series knowing basically nothing about it. I assumed the two male main characters were in a same-sex relationship. That’s not the case, at all. They’re coworkers and roommates. And we know one of them is very straight. So, I’m sorry, yaoi enjoyers.
But, if you really want to, you can still pretend that the main characters are in a relationship. They, along with their adopted daughter, are a family, after all. And, more than anything else, family is what Buddy Daddies is actually about. Specifically, it’s about how family doesn’t have to be defined by blood relations.
In the first episode of the series, we see Kazuki and Rei on an assassination mission. Their mission results in success. But, there’s a little, 4-year-old problem. Miri, the daughter of the man they assassinated, is now an orphan.
The good news is that Miri doesn’t know her father is dead. She had never met her father before and was on a journey to find him when he was killed. And because Kazuki felt bad about leaving this girl alone, he decided to bring her home like a lost cat.
And that’s how Kazuki, Rei, and Miri became a family. The rest of the series follows Kazuki and Rei as they try to balance their work and family lives. It involves things like finding childcare so they can work and staying home when Miri is sick. You know, normal things every mob hitman has to deal with.
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Main Characters
Kazuki Kurusu is the outgoing half of the hitmen pair. He likes gambling and having fun with women. But, he’s also a nice guy at heart, despite the nature of his job. Kazuki also specializes in disguises and gathering information.
Rei Suwa is the opposite of Kazuki in pretty much every way possible. He’s not outgoing at all and prefers to spend his free time at home playing games alone. Rei is the actual assassin of the pair — he’s the one who’s proficient with firearms and actually does the killing. Oh, and he’s the son of the head of the Suwa crime family.
Miri Unasaka isn’t a hitman. She’s 4 years old and the illegitimate daughter of whoever the guy who died in Episode 1 was. Her mother is some woman who sings in a bar and also may or may not be a prostitute. But, Miri loves both her mother and her two new dads equally.
Kyuutarou “Kyu-chan” Kugi is a bartender who also works as a handler for the Suwa crime family. He’s the one who gives Kazuki and Rei their missions. And if they fail, he’s the one who’ll have to get another hitman to take them out.
Misaki Unasaka is Miri’s mother. As I mentioned, she’s a singer. And, I also said she’s a potential prostitute because of who her current boyfriend is. I believe he’s the owner of the bar she sings at and he acts like he’s her pimp. Misaki gave up Miri because she felt that having a child was preventing her from having fun.
And the last character I’ll mention is Anna Hanyuu. Anna is Miri’s preschool teacher. She’s just an ordinary preschool teacher. That’s it. That’s all there is to her character.
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Buddy Daddies vs. Spy x Family
Alright, I’ve put off mentioning the elephant in the room long enough. Anyone who’s seen both Buddy Daddies and Spy x Family will notice the similarities. In a lot of ways, they’re the same series. But, how are they different? And which is better?
There are a few key differences between these series. For one, Spy x Family has Yor while Buddy Daddies has two dads. That might not seem like a big deal. But, I think it shows the differing demographics for these series. Spy x Family is a shounen series while Buddy Daddies seems like it would have more female fans.
Another key difference is that Spy x Family has more of a focus on comedy. Buddy Daddies plays more into the childcare aspect. Both series involve both comedy and childcare. But, they prioritize them differently.
So, which series is better? Well, if you’re going off their average ratings, Spy x Family is better. And, I might have to agree with that. I actually rated both seasons of Spy x Family and the one season of Buddy Daddies the same. However, there might be a bit of bias at play in my answer.
You see, like most people, I watched Spy x Family first. So, by the time I watched Buddy Daddies, the whole concept was stale. If I watched Buddy Daddies first, I have a feeling I would have liked it more. Keep that in mind if you haven’t watched either series.
Additionally, which series you like more will depend on what you’re looking to get out of them. If you’re more into comedy, Spy x Family might be better to you. And if you’re more into wholesome family stuff, Buddy Daddies might be better to you. They’re very similar, though.
Conclusion
Overall, I gave Buddy Daddies a 7/10. It was a good anime. And, I like that it’s not going to get a sequel season. The end of the series isn’t set up for that to be the case. But, that’s good because sometimes it’s better to end a series on a high note.
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