The Caretaker Santa, and her Reindeer Kigurumi

Is the spirit of Christmas something that you can just willingly break for the sake of revealing a harsh truth?

 "Wait, don't tell me you're still...?"

Apparently not for the trio Yuzu, Yuri, and Sumire, whose sole mission for that night is to protect a young boy's dream. Especially Yuzu, who is determined to keep Shiina, at least for that specific Christmas, in believing that Santa is real.

raindeer kigurumi having a conversation

"Why not come back then? It's not like the dorm is full anyway."

So what was their solution? Why dress up in reindeer kigurumi of course! Actively preventing Shiina from actually finding out the real identity of "Santa". It sounds like an easy task, given that you only have to sneak up on him until the presents are placed. But then he had just revealed that he typically never sleeps on Christmas Eve.

Thus, the plan was set into motion to force him to... all the while wearing their own version of a reindeer kigurumi.

raindeer kigurumi lining up

"I'm really starting to get worried for Shiina now."

While all three of them are wearing reindeer kigurumi, Yuzu and Yuri are technically out of the equation, as their kigurumi is more of a dress-type. Our points all directly go to Sumire, being that she was the only one who actually wore a onesie-type. In fact, at a glance hers already seems kind of familiar, doesn't it?

"Yuzu worked really hard not to break his dream you know."

"So...Santa looks just like...Miss Caretaker?"

In any case, Yuzu was the one who got to sleep with our vigilant boy Shiina to let him sleep. Unfortunately, he eventually woke up anyway, albeit at a groggy daze, and saw our beloved apartment caretaker Ayaka as she left the room. Her response? She ends the night with a precious, dazzling smile.

And so, Shiina's second entry into dreamland begins...

Miss Caretaker of Sunohara-sou (すのはら荘の管理人さん) has this really subdued atmosphere that is very easy to feel relaxed to compared to most chill slice-of-life series out there. Development and plot-wise, it is not the best. After all, it is just but one of the numerous anime out there that is directly based on a 4-panel comic series.

But there is just a bit of magic sprinkled in its episodes that makes it such a simple joy to watch. Especially with a heartwarming Christmas finale episode such as this.

Well... there might be juuuuust a bit of "extra" reason to the enjoyment of the series than what is apparently visible.