On April 10, 2010, YouTube user SoapOpera46, also known as Yoli-chan, dropped the pinnacle of modern- day animation. The animated series, titled “Nyan~ Neko Sugar Girls,” follows a young Neko named Raku-chan in her epic quest to find love. The term “nekomusume,” often shortened to “Neko,” generally refers to a female character with cat traits, such as cat ears and a tail. Fittingly, the opening song for the series is a “Dance Dance Revolution” track titled “TRUE LOVE.” A student at the Mississippi School of Arts described the series in a blog post as being “an American classic,” although it is unknown whether the series originated in America.
“Nyan~ Neko Sugar Girls” falls into a niche genre known as “fanime,” a now obscure genre of 2000’s YouTube. Fanime refers to a “type of Web Animation typically created by young amateur artists that originated on YouTube around 2006, a year after the site’s launch.” Indeed, according to the same source, “Nyan~ Neko Sugar Girls” has “gained a certain amount of infamy in some circles just for existing.”
In the opening episode, viewers are introduced to the main character, Raku-chan, and her best friend, Koneko-chan. “Koneko” is a Japanese word literally taken to mean “kitten.” Raku-chan is notable for her particularly interesting, grating voice. On the other hand, Koneko-chan is soft-spoken and, at times, difficult to hear. After eating their beloved mochi ice cream, Raku-chan and Koneko-chan head outside, only to be approached by Hitoshi-san. This scene has become a large meme on the internet, with many individuals redrawing the scene with different characters. Raku-chan immediately falls head over heels for Hitoshi-san, wondering at the end of episode one if he would like to “play at the park” with her and hoping that she can see him again.
Episode two sees the kidnapping of Hitoshi-san. It also introduces a new character, Hitoshi-san’s kidnapper. The next episode follows the character’s subsequent rescue by the Neko girls.
Episode four marks a noticeable shift in the plot of the series, as Raku-chan is bitten by a squirrel and contracts rabies. The scene in which Raku-chan is bitten by a squirrel is also incredibly infamous on the internet, as the voice actor releases an ear splitting shriek for about a solid minute before coughing loudly into the mic. Rabies in squirrels is incredibly rare, according to the United States Department of Health, no person in the United States has ever gotten rabies from a squirrel.
In the subsequent episode, Raku-chan is taken to the vet by Koneko-chan and Hitoshi-san. This episode sees the introduction of a new character, Vet-sama. Her character is defined by the earth-shattering volume of her dialogue, as she speaks directly into the microphone.
In the sixth episode, Raku-chan runs away from home, believing that she is a burden on Koneko-chan and Hitoshi-san. In the next episode, she is transformed into a small gray cat, something that is never truly explained outside of being caused by a “neko demon.” Hitoshi-san and Koneko-chan, now worried about Raku-chan, work together to find her.
The tenth and last episode of the series was published on December 24, 2012, but I will not spoil how the saga ends. For the best experience, I think that viewers should go into this fanime without knowing how it ends, as the ending is quite comical.
The internet debate over whether or not “Nyan~ Neko Sugar Girls” is a satirical work goes on to this day. Though the series is nearly fifteen years old, it is shrouded in mystery. The creator has no real digital footprint outside of creating “Nyan~ Neko Sugar Girls.”
To give my two cents on the matter, I fully believe that “Nyan~ Neko Sugar Girls” is a hilarious parody of early 2000s internet culture. Details such as the end credits giving the creator’s thanks to “voice actores,” SoapOpera46 stating in one video description that “Raku voice actore has the sick in cancer or somthing” or even SoapOpera46 stating in her YouTube bio that “if ur not kawaii/sugoi or desu or u dont like my awsum animes, then u dont belong in japan n u can go away ^_^” clearly reveal the fact that this series is a work of satire.
To this day, showing people that have not heard of “Nyan~ Neko Sugar Girls” clips from the series is one of my all time favorite hobbies. I will always recommend this series because it is absolutely hilarious, in my opinion, and has a cult following online.
Regarding “Nyan~ Neko Sugar Girls,” Mississippi School of the Arts student Kerri Bland wrote in a blog post about the series, “I think it’s something everyone should watch at some point. Personally, I would watch it again. Not because it’s good, but rather because I’m in pure shock that it even exists.”
