In the Beastars manga, Paru Itagaki presented us with a world where all beings were anthropomorphized carnivorous and herbivore animals living together and told a love story set against a murder mystery and societal class divides. Now she’s back again with a series with similar themes. Paru Itagaki presented us with more animal people, this time alongside humans, dealing with additional murder mysteries and moral issues in Taika’s Reason. Yet, while there are some commonalities, the differing tone and inclusion of humans and interspecies interactions means this new series’ first volume feels quite different.

Editor’s Note: There will be no spoilers for the second half of the first volume of the Paru Itagaki manga Taika’s Reason below. 

In the world of Taika’s Reason, pets can be put through a humanization process to deal with decreasing human birth rates and population decline. Ao Minami and her father, however, were very against the process. The two were exceptionally close, and we also see how both loved the family pitbull Taika. However, one day Ao comes home to see her father dead, his face eaten off, and Taika nearby with blood on his muzzle. Previously, her father had mentioned to her about “animals going wild” and being uncontrollable, then euthanized as a result. Since he was there and his fate would be death, and she can’t bear to lose him too, she takes her father’s body to a river and disposes of it. Taika joins her as she does, and oddly enough he isn’t acting like an animal that’s “lost it.” To ensure he isn’t euthanized, she agrees to have him go through the humanization process. 

Naturally, things don’t go entirely smoothly. After he’s turned into an anthropomorphic animal-person and the two get a chance to talk away from her mother, he suggests the two of them turn themselves in. (Innocently.) She is against it, and also explains the consequences. She tries to find out if he was responsible, but being as things are, he doesn’t know. But in the meantime, it is decided he’ll attend school alongside her as they work things out.

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Just like the Beastars murder mystery and questions that come up, there are uncertainties in Taika’s Reason. Who killed Ao’s father? Why? Once the two are attending school, is there someone who could be aware of what happened? Could Ao herself be in danger somehow? It feels like Paru Itagaki is setting the stages for further investigations in the manga as the duo search for answers.

There is also a sense of competition here. Taika isn’t the only humanized animal attending the school. A number of other dogs and cats are present. Most notable is Tsunayoshi Seki, a humanized German Shepherd and former police dog who is in the class with Taika, Ao, and his master Tatsunari. There’s an immediate rivalry between the two dog people, with the one being a threat. Which also involves a sense of determining who might be the best. This also ties in to Taika’s general protective nature of Ao.

We’re also seeing some initial harassment and discrimination, which might be familiar for those who read the mangaka’s other series. In this case, we see both Ao and Taika as the victims of bullying. It’s handled a bit differently than Beastars, but I do wonder if we could see more examples of intolerance by humans towards humanized pets like Taika and Tsunayoshi later on. Especially since, once those two are alone at one point, Tsunayoshi seems to suggest humans might not be able to be trusted. 

I suppose you could also say there’s a romantic element to Taika’s Reason, much like Beastars, though it comes across quite weird and far less welcome than that of Legoshi and Haru. Taika was completely devoted to Ao when he was a dog and standard pet. Almost immediately after being turned into a human, there are references of him showing interest in being her mate and preoccupation with knowing if her friend and classmate Yoichi is also interested in being Ao’s mate. To  Paru Itagaki’s credit, I feel like it is presented as being awkward each time it comes up. 

Taika’s Reason seems like a good follow up for people who liked other Paru Itagaki manga like Beastars. In the first volume alone, it feels like a lot of similar themes come up. Not just with the idea of humanized animals being major characters. But there’s also the sense of Taika perhaps needing to prove himself, not unlike Legoshi, and there being a mystery surrounding a murder. Still, though there are those commonalities, it does feel unique and will be interesting to see how things go.

Taika’s Reason volume 1 is available via Viz Media, and volume 2 of the manga will appear on September 15, 2026. 

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