Even in the very first episode, you can tell that My Deer Friend Nokotan Ep. 1 “GIRL MEETS DEER” is one of the more…oddball anime series out there. Wit Studio has produced quite the odd comedy anime here, all revolving around deer. In particular: an eldritch deer girl who bends reality to her will purely for comedic purposes in the vein of a Looney Tunes episode. It’s enough to make you go “Oh deer” about once per minute.

My Deer Friend Nokotan Ep. 1 “GIRL MEETS DEER”: Details

My Deer Friend Nokotan NA key visual 1.
When there’s photorealistic deer in your anime, then you know something weird is going on here.

My Deer Friend Nokotan Ep. 1 “GIRL MEETS DEER” is the very first episode of this comedy slice-of-life anime series. Said anime is the anime adaptation of the manga of the same name by Oshioshio. Wit Studio (Ranking of Kings, Spy x Family, Suicide Squad Isekai) is the animation studio behind this anime. Remow is the company licensing this anime for its worldwide debut, allowing Amazon Prime Video, Anime Onegai, ADN, and Crunchyroll to stream it.

Masahiko Ohta is the director and storyboarder behind My Deer Friend Nokotan Ep. 1 “GIRL MEETS DEER”, with Takashi Aoshima as the writer. As for the My Deer Friend Nokotan anime as a whole: Masahiko Ohta is the director behind that anime. Takashi Aoshima is the writer for that anime, while Yasuhiro Misawa composed the music for it.

Speaking of music: the opening theme song of this anime is “Shikairo Days” (シカ色デイズ, Deer-Colored Days) by Megumi Han, Saki Fujita, Rui Tanabe, and Fūka Izumi. Meanwhile, “Shika-senbei no Uta” (シカせんべいのうた, The Deer Food Song) by Megumi Han and Saki Fujita is the ending theme song.

Voice Cast

My Deer Friend Nokotan Ep. 1 “GIRL MEETS DEER” features the voices of Saki Fujita (Roo Ryder in English dub) as Torako Koshi / Koshitan and Megumi Han (Trina Deuhart in English dub) as Noko Shikanoko / Nokotan. The other notable voice role in this episode is Rui Tanabe (Sarah Thomas in English dub) as Anko Koshi.

When and Where to Watch

My Deer Friend Nokotan Ep. 1 “GIRL MEETS DEER” made its airing and streaming (aka. simulcast) debut on July 7, 2024. You can watch this episode on Crunchyroll or Amazon Prime Video. In fact, you can watch the entire anime either on Crunchyroll or Amazon Prime Video.

My Deer Friend Nokotan Ep. 1 “GIRL MEETS DEER”: Synopsis

If this trailer confuses you, then deern’t worry. You’re not alone.

Alas, My Deer Friend Nokotan is an ongoing anime series. In fact, My Deer Friend Nokotan Ep. 1 “GIRL MEETS DEER” only just premiered 10 days ago as of this writing. Thus, I will be giving you Crunchyroll’s official synopsis of this episode in place of a spoiler-filled plot summary. You can read that synopsis below:

Hiding her past as a former delinquent and living as an honor student, Torako Koshi encounters a mysterious girl with horns hanging from a telephone pole. This mysterious girl, Noko Shikanoko, becomes the source of turmoil that disrupts Torako’s life.

That’s not all, folks! Because this is the first episode of My Deer Friend Nokotan, I will also give you the official synopsis of the anime as a whole, also from Crunchyroll. You can read that other synopsis below:

Koshi Torako has everyone fooled. Her classmates see her as the perfect honor student, unaware of her secret delinquent past. But her new picturesque school life is thrown into chaos when she bumps into Shikanoko Noko, a girl with antlers! Mayhem seems to follow this strange doe-eyed girl. Who, or what, is she?

My Deer Friend Nokotan Ep. 1 “GIRL MEETS DEER”: The Good

My Deer Friend Nokotan Ep. 1 "GIRL MEETS DEER" screenshot showing Nokotan with the longest trail of snot coming out of her nose.
I deern’t even know what’s happening here.

Okay, I have no idea where to even begin with My Deer Friend Nokotan Ep. 1 “GIRL MEETS DEER”. The story…does it even count as a story? I mean, yes, there is a story, and it’s the best part of it. However, that story is just absolutely bonkers. None of it makes even the least bit sense, and there are even moments in which characters will break the fourth wall.

Then there’s Nokotan herself. She’s like if someone pulled a Looney Tunes out of the show, and put that character into an anime. Everyone she does is incomprehensible, and every fiber of her being is the same. She frequently bends reality to do things like pull the entire top half of her skull off of her head, just for gags. This is not a story one should take seriously, and that’s why I so intrigued by it. The hints of yuri littered throughout this anime only makes me even more intrigued.

Then of course, there’s the animation. My god, the animation. Wit Studio’s animators are just going insane for this anime. The animation is just utterly bonkers, with characters frequently changing faces into an almost JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure-like aesthetic along with other face styles that do not belong in this anime. Again, this is like watching an anime version of Looney Tunes, but just starring a whole bunch of deer (photorealistic deer, at that), and I love it for that.

My Deer Friend Nokotan Ep. 1 “GIRL MEETS DEER”: The Bad

My Deer Friend Nokotan Ep. 1 "GIRL MEETS DEER" screenshot showing Nokotan booping Koshitan in the cheek with her antler.
Those antlers haunt my nightmares.

If you’re looking for an action-packed anime or even just a serious one, then My Deer Friend Nokotan Ep. 1 “GIRL MEETS DEER” isn’t for you. Nothing about this anime is serious in the slightest. Even the brief serious moments of genuine emotion are very brief indeed. If you want action, then might I suggest Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, Solo Leveling, and/or Kaiju No. 8. Those anime should have more than enough action to satisfy any action junkie.

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