There is no doubt that Doma Umaru is an otaku in many ways. Umaru would rather be indoors playing video games and watching anime than go outside. Unless, of course, Umaru goes outside to play in the arcades! Is there any other reason to go outside? As an otaku, Umaru can get pretty competitive to the point that she will talk down to Taihei for not besting her in a video game. Isn’t Umaru a sweet imouto? However, can you blame her for having skills?

Himouto! Umaru-chan is an anime that will leave you in envy as Umaru clearly lives the perfect life of an otaku. Once Umaru is home, she slips into her himouto mode and lazes around doing nothing except what makes her happy while leaving all the chores for Taihei to complete. Umaru does not have anything to worry about as Taihei takes care of her. Isn’t that the life? If only we could have such a carefree life like Umaru!

Alright, we take it back: there is another reason to leave the house: food! Specifically, junk food! Despite her slim figure, Umaru loves her junk food so much so that she has inner himouto personalities that debate on what the perfect snack would be for any activity! Umaru has even worked out the chemistry between pairing different junk foods to make the ultimate combinations. Of course, Umaru’s snacking sessions wouldn’t be complete without cola! It’s the ultimate drink for Umaru. Umaru will even drink cola after a nice bath. If only Umaru was careful with it; that stuff is sticky!

As you grow up, you never get to enjoy junk food the way you used to, but Umaru still allows herself to enjoy the best (or worst) things in life! Actually, Umaru turns eating junk food into a science. Who would not love to pair foods like dried squid and cheese? Now does that not sound delicious? Umaru takes her junk food so seriously that she will not hesitate to reprimand Taihei for grabbing the wrong flavor of chips. It just ruins everything! You just can’t get good help these days.

Although Himouto! Umaru-chan is nowhere near being a shoujo anime, Umaru is capable of befriending everyone, like many shoujo heroines. While Umaru can be secretive about her himouto side, Umaru is not afraid to open herself to others. Kirie first appears to Umaru as a potential stalker, due to her social awkwardness, but Umaru befriends Kirie as Komaru, going so far as to take Kirie as her pupil. Then of course, we have Sylphynford who is Umaru’s self proclaimed rival. Sylphynford is always quick to challenge Umaru to a competition and show off in ridiculous manners, but Umaru never treats Sylphynford with anything less of respect. As UMR, Umaru even applauds Sylphynford , who also refers to herself as TSF, for having fun and awards her a pin in honor of winning because it means more to TSF to win than it does to Umaru. This act of kindness helped bridge the gap between UMR and TSF so that they could become friends.

We, as a society, are often quick to judge others, however Umaru naturally befriends everyone no matter what circumstances they may have. Whether they may come off as strange or creepy, Umaru never lets preconceived notions affect how she treats them, which allows her to befriend people like Kirie and Sylphynford. Some of us can learn a thing or two from Umaru. Sometimes, you just have to give people a chance, which many of us are more hesitant to do. You never know; you might make a new lasting friendship!

Umaru may not seem like the most philosophical character, but Umaru proves us wrong yet again! In episode 5, Umaru is quoted as saying “You never appreciate the irreplaceable things in life until they’re gone. Like summer vacation… or brothers.” Of course, it would not be Umaru if she did not make such a deep comment in an off the cuff manner that catches you off guard. It sounds so easy going, you might have missed the importance altogether. Nonchalantly, Umaru continues to teach the viewers lessons. Here, Umaru reminds us to appreciate things in life like time and our family, which are not always guaranteed.

Sometimes we need to be reminded of what is more important. Yes, Umaru may be referring to the freedom that is her summer vacation, but what if we apply this lesson to something like our youth? Umaru is constantly enjoying her youth, but how many of us actually do this? Do we take advantage of every moment given to us or do we waste time as if it is expendable? Take note from Umaru, learn to appreciate the irreplaceable things in life before they are gone.

By a scale, we are not referring to the one that you stand on to weigh yourself before ruining your day. Forget that! What we mean is that Umaru is constantly trying to evenly balance her two personas: the perfect one that everyone sees and the himouto that Taihei and Kirie see, also known as “Komaru”. Umaru knows that there has to be a balance between her two sides as she cannot spend all her time working or playing. This is the reason why Umaru does bother with things like studying for school; she knows that it is important. Both personas sit on the scale but Umaru must work hard to keep the balance to keep the scale from tipping in favor of one persona.

Again, Umaru plays the part of role model for the viewers as she emphasizes the need for balance. Yes, we as the viewer get to see Umaru in all of her goofy antics, but we also see when Umaru comes back to reality. Umaru finds that she has to leave the house to play with her friends, study for exams, or eat her vegetables. Umaru shows us, as the viewers, that we can’t always do what we want; sometimes we must do things that we do not want to do. It is all a part of growing up, and that is just what Umaru does from time to time.