Tanaka-kun is Always Listless

In most animes, if a character is lazy then they usually have some extraordinary dormant power and only get involved when things get "serious". In contrast to this, Tanaka-kun is Always Listless explores a character who simply wants to avoid having to put forth any effort, ever. Packed into a light slice of life framework, Tanaka-kun presents a character who plays out the indolent fantasies in the back of our minds, all while being quite ordinary.

What makes Tanaka-kun worth watching is that he has not given up on life. His lackadaisical lifestyle is a choice, rather than a resignation. As such, the comedy revolves around Tanaka-kun's daily ~~efforts~~, (though for someone who would prefer to be sedentary, he is surprisingly hard-working). A main character whose only goal is having an uneventful, slothful life, however, is not on his own very interesting. Enter Oota, Miyano, Shiraishi, and Echizen. Much of the anime revolves not around Tanaka-kun's lethargy, but around his participation, typically unwillingly, in their conflicts and antics. At the same time it shows how the characters slowly adapt to and support him in his torpid state.

A show like this cannot afford to be languid, though. It finds itself in a difficult situation: Amidst the hypersaturation of one-off, episodic, slice of life, comedy animes it is hard to stand out. Tanaka-kun succeeds in two areas: 1. It keeps a narrow focus and 2. The characters are not one dimensional. There are no moments in the show where you forget the theme, they simply won't let you forget. Even when a side character gets an arc, Tanaka-kun is always there being languorous. Despite this, by the end of the twelve episodes Tanaka-kun and all of the supporting characters have each made actual progress over who they were at the start of the series.

Tanaka-kun is, however, not able to completely overcome its genre. It rests alongside shows like: Sakamoto Desu Ga?, Handa-kun, and Clean Freak Aoyama-kun. And, while it certainly is the best rated of these shows, at its peak it still tends to unambitiously depend on the same tropes. Remove the main character's unique attribute and suddenly you have an ordinary and mediocre slice of life series. Along with this, it lacks any other special or outstanding elements. The animation is simple, the voice acting is average, and the story is the minimum required for an anime in this genre.

In the end, Tanaka-kun is definitely worth adding to your list. It is the perfect laid back anime to watch when you are feeling lethargic. You may even find yourself wanting to rewatch it once in a while. Don't set your expectations too high, sit back, relax, and enjoy it. Overall this anime is a 7.4/10.