{
  "id": 7261627,
  "title": "Two New Anime Tackle Smoking in Polar-Opposite Ways",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/14/two-new-anime-tackle-smoking-in-polar-opposite-ways",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-09-14T06:55:30.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Tokyo Weekender",
    "slug": "tokyo-weekender",
    "url": "https://www.tokyoweekender.com/entertainment/anime-and-manga/chainsmoker-cat-smoking-behind-the-supermarket-with-you-review/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Two new anime have started a conversation about smoking, but they take very different approaches. Chainsmoker Cat, produced by Bibury Animation Studios, is a gross-out comedy that intertwines addiction, fantastic racism, and graphic scenes of smoking. The main character, Yaniko, is a heavy smoker facing dire consequences when she tries to quit. Smoking is portrayed as an unavoidable reality in her life, making the show an intense health warning without being condescending.\n\nOn the other hand, Smoking Behind the Supermarket with You, created by Asahi Production, is a slice-of-life rom-com that romanticizes smoking. The anime focuses on an office worker, Sasaki, and a supermarket employee, Yamada, who develop feelings for each other while smoking behind the store. Smoking is depicted as an innocent stress-reliever, with no negative consequences for the characters. The show emphasizes how smoking takes away their basic human rights and makes them sad.\n\nWhile Chainsmoker Cat aims to serve as a harsh reminder of the dangers of smoking, Smoking Behind the Supermarket with You tries to make smoking appear socially acceptable again. Both anime have found a place in Japanese pop culture, with about 1 in 7 people smoking regularly. However, it is clear that Chainsmoker Cat uses smoking as a framing device to deliver a powerful health message, while Smoking Behind the Supermarket with You takes a more light-hearted and romantic approach to the subject.",
  "summary": "Japanese people used to be one of the heaviest smokers on the planet, so cigarettes have always appeared in anime. But rarely as an object of focus. They were simply too commonplace for that, so they became part of the background until Japan did a 180 on its smoking culture, heavily regulating all things tobacco, […] The post Two New Anime Tackle Smoking in Polar-Opposite Ways appeared first on…",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": "The contrasting approaches of the two anime reflect a nuanced conversation about smoking in Japanese pop culture, where one show serves as a health warning and the other romanticizes it as a stress-reliever.",
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}