Beastars
Fuji TV • Mar 7 • 2019The story takes place in a world of modern, civilized, anthropomorphic animals with a cultural divide between the carnivores and herbivores. The series takes its name from the in-universe rank of Beastar, an individual of great talent, service, and notoriety. Legoshi, a large gray wolf, is a timid and quiet student of Cherryton Academy where he lives in a dorm with several other carnivorous students including his outgoing Labrador friend, Jack. As a member of the school's drama club, Legoshi works as a stagehand and supports the actors of the club headed by the star pupil Louis, a red deer. Out of nowhere, Tem the alpaca is brutally murdered and devoured in the night setting a wave of unease and distrust between the herbivore and carnivore students. At the same time, Legoshi has a fateful encounter with Haru, a small dwarf rabbit, and begins developing complex feelings for her.
Beastars keeps the same guarded-student tension as The Ramparts of Ice, where closeness costs something and every social move has emotional consequences. High school scenes run on restraint, desire, and uneasy danger, so the thaw feels earned, but the danger is sharper and the mood turns darker.
