Though it’s cute and funny, it becomes a multi-layered, all-too-relatable mind fuck if you stop and think about it for too long. This focus on accessibility and millennial appeal is exactly what makes Aggretsuko work. Despite her daily struggles, Retsuko clings to the security provided by her lame, but stable, job. When her patience reaches its limit, Retsuko resorts to her preferred form of emotional release: death metal karaoke. Five years later, her corporate enthusiasm has been worn down by a grinding combination of a tiny apartment, a crowded commute, a real murderer’s row of co-workers (a gossiping hippo, an appearance-obsessed deer, a sociopathic fennec fox), and a chauvinist hog (literally, he is a pig) of a boss.
When Retsuko, a red panda fresh out of university, finds an office accounting job, she’s brimming with optimism. Based on one of the many characters by Sanrio, a Japanese company known for its cute merch centered around personality-driven animal cartoon characters (Hello Kitty, anyone?), Aggretsuko is basically branded content, but it’s good branded content.
