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Shimizu Apartment Tenants
Kotaro Sato
Kotaro Sato
Voiced by: Rie Kugimiya (Japanese), Cherami Leigh (English)
A polite and self-sufficient boy who lives alone in an apartment suite. Behind his chivalrous and professional front lies a traumatized boy who's overcome various forms of abuse and wishes to be stronger.
- Dark and Troubled Past: He suffered one as a victim of parental abuse. His mother was openly neglectful and rarely made an effort to care for him, even wearing cleaning gloves when touching him. His father turned into a "bad guy" who physically assaulted his mother for reasons unclear and openly declared that he doesn't love Kotaro anymore. When he was taken away to live at an orphanage, his father decided to pursue him while being needlessly violent towards anyone who stood in his way. Suffice to say, this kid had it rough...
- Goal in Life: He has two dreams.
- The first to become a strong and independent child so his father can love him again.
- The second is to own a house where he and all his friends can live together.
- Iconic Item: His toy samurai sword.
- Love Martyr: He still believes that he can win back his monster father's love by becoming strong enough to live on his own.
- The Protagonist: The show revolves around him and his slice of life adventures.
- Replacement Goldfish: He's fully aware that Isamu is coddling him to cope with him being legally separated from his own son and he refuses to take part in it.
- The Stoic: Played for Drama. Kotaro presents himself as a serious, diligent boy that can take care of himself. But as the adults learn, the reason for this is because he was forced to grow up so he can survive on his own without showing weakness.
- Troubled Child: Kotaro could count as the poster child of this trope given the suffering he endured in his young life.
- Wise Beyond Their Years: Deconstructed. Kotaro is very perceptive about how adults behave and his random acts have significant meaning. However, all of this is the result of his past as an abuse victim and his need to read the room in order to survive.
- Ye Olde Butcherede Englishe: In the original, his manner of speaking is considered formal and traditional. This is in part to crafting his identity on Tonosaman cartoon which is based on feudal Japan.
Shin Karino
Shin Karino
Voiced by: Toshiki Masuda (Japanese), Michael Sinterniklaas (English)
A dispassionate manga artist who's struggling to keep up with his work and personal life. But after a bizarre encounter with his young neighbor, Shin finds himself looking after the little boy to make sure he lives a good life.
- Brilliant, but Lazy: Before the story began, he once won a contest for his manga (his boss even mentions that his strength is story-telling). But in the present, he struggles to follow through with another best-selling story.
- Dogged Nice Guy: Downplayed with his crush on Mizuki. He never actively pursues her and only treats her as a friend. And while Mizuki does value his friendship, she's quick to criticize him if necessary.
- Orphan's Ordeal: He admits to Kotaro's kindergarten teacher that he lost his parents when he was in middle school and tried to suppress his emotions as a coping mechanism. He brings this up stating that Kotaro is doing the same to deal with the disappearance of his parents.
- Parental Substitute: Slowly but surely, he accepts his destiny as Kotaro's new "father" by keeping up to date with his daily life and education.
- Perpetual Frowner: Is always shown with a frown on his face.
- The Pig-Pen: Cares little for his physical appearance and doesn't keep his apartment very clean. It was worse before Kotaro came into his life.
- Secret Secret-Keeper: In the Series Finale, he learns that Kotaro's mother is long dead and decides to keep it a secret from the boy out of fear of crushing his spirit.
- Significant Wardrobe Shift: He starts the show wearing mainly his pajamas and sandals to show how lazy he is. But after becoming one of Kotaro's guardians, he starts to dress more modestly whenever he goes out.
Mizuki Akitomo
Mizuki Akitomo
Voiced by: Saori Hayami (Japanese), Stephanie Sheh (English)
A kind-hearted young woman who becomes a close friend to Kotaro. At night, she works as a hostess and harbors serious relationship issues that she doesn't want her friends to know about.
- But Now I Must Go: Because her abusive ex knows where she lives and how the police are unable to arrest him for his depravity, Mizuki is forced to move away for her own safety.
- The Cameo: She shows up in the "Where Are They Now?" Epilogue living near a coastal city and with a bright demeanor.
- Clothing-Concealed Injury: Tries to wear a face mask after her abuser strikes her. Though she discards it after she confesses to her friends.
- Domestic Abuse: An unfortunate victim. She admits that her ex only pursued her for her money and would turn violent on her when he didn't get his way.
- Drowning My Sorrows: One of her early scenes showed her getting drunk near her apartment, no doubt to cope with her abusive relationship.
- Friend to All Children: She instantly gets along with Kotaro and the boy is quite fond of her company.
- Host Club: Her prime occupation was working as a professional hostess.
- Parental Substitute: Zigzagged. At first, Mizuki takes on the role of a mother figure to Kotaro by spending time with him, caring for his health and partaking in his interests. But after her abusive situation worsens, she's forced to flee from her home along with forgoing her caregiver role.
- Perpetual Smiler: Is always shown in a happy or cheerful mood. Even after she reveals her abusive situation and her inevitable move, Mizuki makes an effort to see off Kotaro and her adult friends with a smile.
- Rose-Haired Sweetie: She has light pink hair and is a wonderful person to be around.
Isamu Tamaru
Isamu Tamaru
Voiced by: Jun'ichi Suwabe (Japanese), Kayleigh McKee (English)
A gruff man who looks like he's part of the yakuza. Despite his brash tendencies, he holds a soft spot for Kotaro and showers him with unwanted affection whenever he can.
- Ambiguous Situation: The reasons for why he and his wife are divorced in the first place and why she forbids their son from seeing Isamu are unclear.
- Face of a Thug: His face and one outfit bring to mind a gang member who can gut you like a fish if you look at him wrong.
- Green-Eyed Monster: Acts comically jealous towards Karino for getting to spend so much time with Kotaro.
- Hot-Blooded: Is very quick to anger, mainly whenever Kotaro is involved, and is quick to threaten physical violence at anyone he deems deserves it.
- Mistaken for Pedophile: Whenever he goes on an outing with Kotaro, most of the adults assume he's one (or a sketchy adult) given his yakuza image and how the little boy constantly rebukes his physical acts of affection.
- O.O.C. Is Serious Business: While normally he's super pleasant and affectionate towards children (or Kotaro), he turns surprisingly serious towards his son after learning that he went behind his mother's back to sneak a visit with him.
- What, Exactly, Is His Job?: Despite resembling a yakuza, it's never confirmed that he's an official one nor is it established what his exact job is.
Aota
Aota
Voiced by: Soma Saito (Japanese)
A cheerful young man who wishes to get close to Kotaro. In truth, he's a private detective hired by Kotaro's father to learn of his whereabouts.
- Abusive Parents: He confesses that he grew up with an abusive father who would burn his arms with his cigarettes. This is the reason why he doesn't go through with telling Kotaro's monster father his whereabouts.
- Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: He pretends to act super cheerful and friendly towards Kotaro, even offering to replace Karino when it comes to escorting the boy to school. It's all a lie as he wants information from Kotaro so he can report back to his father. Or so it seems. He grows to actually like the kid.
- Everyone Has Standards: Despite being assigned to hunt down Kotaro on behalf of his abusive father, Aota is aware that giving his exact location would be heartless. So he gave the monster a fake address.
Adults
Ippei Fukuno
Ippei Fukuno
Voiced by: Chiharu Sawashiro (Japanese), Brent Mukai (English)
Karino's dreary editor who keeps him on task with his manga and his relation with Kotaro.
- Benevolent Boss: Ippei's criticisms towards Karino are always constructive as he genuinely wants him to give his best work possible. He also takes the time to help him when it comes to his adopted son (Ex. helping take part in his school's festival, giving him a tour of his workplace).
- Exhausted Eyebags: He always carries these, which makes sense given his profession.
- Flat Joy: His moments of laughter contain the same dull energy he always emits.
- Happily Married: To everyone's surprise, he's a married man with kids.
Ayano Kobayashi
Ayano Kobayashi
Voiced by: Yumiri Hanamori (Japanese), Heather Gonzalez (English)
An excitable but jittery lawyer who is assigned to grant Kotaro money from his mother's insurance company.
- In Vino Veritas: At Kotaro's urging, she ends up drinking four cans of beers. This is enough for her to express her truths about what she really thinks about his singing and games. Surprisingly, she's able to keep the truth about his mother's death a secret from him.
- Nervous Wreck: Tends to act very nervous whenever around Kotaro and goes all out with showing she's totally composed.
- No Indoor Voice: As part of her jittery nature, Ayano has a habit of talking really loudly.
- Reasonable Authority Figure: Zigzagged. On one hand, she's a lawyer who does care for Kotaro's case and is quick to show suspicion towards anyone who wants to exploit him for his money. On the other hand, she gives in to his offering of beer and loses it.
- Secret Secret-Keeper: She's fully informed about Kotaro's mother having died but keeps it a secret from him.
Ryota
Ryota
Voiced by: Kaito Ishikawa (Japanese), Kyle McCarley (English)
A mellow 18-year old who grew up in the same foster facility as Kotaro. He acts as a sort of older brother to the boy because of how close they were during their time in foster care.
- Cool Big Bro: An unofficial one to Kotaro who happily indulges in his love of Tonosaman and is eager to hear about his new life outside the foster care system.
- Conveniently an Orphan: It's never specified what type of life he lived before becoming an orphan. But he comes off as fairly well adjusted and is able to provide for himself thanks to his construction job.
- Hidden Depths: His special interest is stargazing.
Mr. Sato
Mr. Sato
Voiced by: Kazumasa Nakamura (Japanese), Kyle McCarley (English)
Kotaro's abusive father, who is looking for his whereabouts.
- Abusive Parents: He emotionally abused Kotaro, which caused a lot of the boy's issues.
- Domestic Abuse: While he's a horrible father, it's also apparent he abused his wife just as much.
- Hate Sink: He's a massive asshole who cares for no one but himself and makes it clear he will do anything to get what he wants.
- It's All About Me: He tried to get in contact with his son not because he wanted to reunite with him, but to get his inheritance.
- Knight of Cerebus: Anytime he shows up in a flashback, things will get darker.
- Psychopathic Manchild: What does he do when he discovers his son's whereabouts? Cause a commotion at the orphanage Kotaro is in.
- Took a Level in Jerkass: Before becoming an abusive monster, Kotaro remembers how he was a decent father and had pleasant memories of him.
- The Unfought: Even though he's regarded as a significant danger to Kotaro's life, especially when the boy was in foster care, he never actually confronts Kotaro's new guardians in the present.
Sayori Wamiya Unmarked Spoilers
Sayori Wamiya
Voiced by: Hibiku Yamamura (Japanese)
Kotaro's mother, who eventually left him in their old apartment. She told him that if he managed to continue to live well, she'd come back.
- Abusive Parents: Of the emotionally neglectful type. She tried to take care of her son as well as she could, but with her own issues, Sayori often lied to him or left him alone a lot. And then she eventually abandoned him completely.
- The Faceless: Her face is rarely ever shown. It does get shown for the time she was living in the Shimizu Apartments herself, but she wasn't known to be Kotaro's mother at the time.
- Parents as People: What little is shown of her makes it clear that she was just as badly affected by her husband's abuse, having taken the beatings and doing her best to keep Kotaro protected. After the divorce, she's shown to be depressed and often couldn't handle going outside, suffering from severe self-deprecation.
- Post Humous Character: Turns out she died some time ago in a hospital, with the weekly money Kotaro is given being payments from her life insurance.
