It's rare to see any metal in pop culture and — let’s be honest — it's not hard to see why. The raw aggressive energy behind it doesn't always hit the average person unrefined ears as smoothly as we metalheads. But, I think there may finally, at long last be a solution. Please allow me to introduce you to Aggretsuko!
Who is Aggretsuko? Well I'm glad you asked!
Aggretsuko, or Aggressive Retsuko, is a Japanese anime franchise based on the eponymous character created by "Yeti" for the mascot company Sanrio (the same guys who created the slightly less metal Hello Kitty).
Here is how Sanrio describes the Aggretsuko:
“She is a cute Red Panda, working as an office associate in the accounting department of a highly respected trading company. She works in one of the biggest metropolitan areas of Tokyo. It's always been a dream of hers to work in this field, especially in this part of the city. But in reality, her bosses are unsympathetic and give her harsh deadlines.
She ultimately has become a pushover within the company. When she gets pushed to the limit, she goes out after work and takes out her frustration and stress with heavy metal Karaoke sessions!”
The strange combination of relatability, comedy, & death metal has already won over much of the internet and has even spawned a Netflix series that has dropped this April.
So. If you are the type who hates your job, can't stand your annoying co-workers, and has either embraced or repressed the need to scream it all out... don't worry, Aggretsuko is there to help you out. And by extension, further infect the unassuming masses with the most awesome disease of all: heavy metal fever.