This wholesome short anime was a delight to watch because of the useful life hacks taught by Baby Grandma Koume/Ume.
By: Nicole S. Castro on July 21, 2022 at 13:26 PHT
Busy and stressed? How about a quick throwback with a short anime in the form of Baby Baachan?
This short anime about Amika and her baby sister/reincarnated grandmother Koume/Ume gave us family feels and useful life hacks in 2002!
About
Baby Baachan is a comedy/slice-of-life anime that aired in short segments of 7 minutes from April 8, 2002 to Dec. 4, 2002. It ran for a total of 53 episodes. Viewers outside of Japan were able to watch it on Animax Asia.
Plot and Throwback (anime)
The series stars elementary school girl Amika Jinguuji (CV: Honoka Fujino), the granddaughter of the late Ume Jinguuji (CV: Keiko Yamamoto). At the beginning of the series, we see Amika learning Ume has passed away. But Amika is surprised to learn that her mother has gotten pregnant and given birth to a baby sister named Koume who talks and behaves just like her late grandmother!
It turns out Ume's soul will not leave for the afterlife until she finds a rightful heir to inherit her remote island. She then urges Amika to join the Perfect Jinguuji Contest for a shot at the inheritance.
Amika, who dreams of becoming an idol, couldn't care less about Ume's inheritance. But through their daily bonding moments (with Amika desperately trying to hide from her parents that her baby sister is now her grandmother), Amika and Ume grow closer and adjust to each other's personalities.
The bulk of the series also shows Amika learning life hacks from her grandmother like covering her nose so she doesn't cry while slicing onions.
How did the anime end?
Amika eventually agrees to join the Perfect Jinguuji Contest and wins. With Ume's wish granted, her soul leaves the baby's body and returns it to the actual baby sister Koume. Amika celebrates a bittersweet victory because she didn't get to say goodbye to Ume properly. Life goes on and Amika keeps Ume in her thoughts while taking care of Koume.
Summary
This wholesome family anime was a delight to watch because of the useful life hacks taught by Ume. It makes us appreciate our own older family members more. The show also convinces us that there really is a lot of wisdom to learn from those who have come before.
Thank you for the memories!
Digest by AniradioPlus
NICOLE S. CASTRO
Author
Nicole is based in the Philippines and works as a freelance Japanese Translator/Interpreter and copywriter (English). She is a JLPT N2 passer who watches anime to "study" for N1. She has a long career history on LinkedIn (with primary focus on media and translation), but her anime watchlist is much, much longer.
