Anime loves catgirls too. Whether it’s a shonen series, a sci-fi comedy, a magical girl show, or more, chances are there will be one woman with a kitty theme going on. But which ones stand out the most over the rest? Here are some suggestions from some popular anime.
8 Neferpitou, Hunter X Hunter
Neferpitou technically shouldn’t be here. Not because they’re actually an insect, as the ‘Chimera’ part in ‘Chimera Ant’ explains their human and cat looks fair enough. The issue is that they don’t have a set gender. Sometimes they’re outright called ‘female’ like in the Hunter X Hunter Battle Collection game. Other times, they refer to themselves with male pronouns, as do others. Though this also could be due to a lack of gender-neutral terms in Japanese.
Still, they did gradually present themselves as more feminine across the series. So, consider them an honorary mention as an iconic cat-femme than a straight-up girl, as they’re one of Hunter X Hunter’s stand-out villains. They were one of the first Chimera Ants to master Nen, the series’ magical power source, and using it to manipulates the bodies of the living and dead. If that wasn’t freaky enough, they use their surgical skills to interrogate subjects by manipulating their brains directly.
7 Yoruichi, Bleach
The former commander of the Onmitsukidō can transform into a cat, and turn back into a person, but she doesn’t usually combine the two forms. Not until she breaks out her Felicia-esque Thunder Beast form anyway. Nonetheless, that suits her fine, as she’s rather fond of her regular cat form. Mostly because she freaks people out when she transforms into it.
She can still speak in cat mode, but she gets a scary man voice when she goes. So, it shocks people when she switches back and reveals herself to be a woman. This can backfire on her though. For example, when she first changed from cat to person in front of Ichigo, she had gotten so used to her cat-form’s fur that she forgot to get dressed. Needless to say, she made a significant first impression on the guy.
6 Neko-Musume, GeGeGe No Kitarō
The popularity of catgirls in anime might also lie in Japanese folklore. It’s full of animal spirits who take on other forms to mess with people, from kitsune (foxes) to tanuki (raccoon dogs). The same goes for cats, as there are tales of them becoming bakeneko (monster cats) if they’re raised by people for too long. They could speak, manipulate the living and dead, and shape-shift into humans.
GeGeGe no Kitarō is full of cartoon takes on folklore figures and urban legends, and the bakeneko is no exception. Neko-Musume spends most of her time as an ordinary-looking girl. But when she gets angry, her eyes turn feline, she grows cat ears, and gets cat claws and fangs. She has a crush on Kitarō, but he doesn’t feel the same way back. He’s got to find a way to let her down gently, or she’ll use him as a new scratching post.
5 Eris, Cat Planet Cuties
Speaking of fanservice, Cat Planet Cuties isn’t exactly a classic or a hidden gem. But this list would be incomplete without mentioning it. Catgirls are in the name, and catgirls are their game. Hence, the show’s co-lead, Eris. She’s from a whole planet of cat people, or Catians, and has come to Earth to learn more about its people. Which she does by turning up half-naked in bed next to Kio, the other co-lead.
It’s certainly cat-like, though she doesn’t force him to make breakfast afterwards like a real cat. He doesn’t know what to make of her, but he does his best to look out for her safety from the Secret Service, Dogisians (dog people), and more. She’s a friendly, polyamorous catgirl, so it helps to stay on her good side.
4 Ichigo Momomiya, Tokyo Mew Mew
Again, Tokyo Mew Mew is such an obvious inclusion that it would be harder to ignore it. It was a magical girl show where its five heroes took on ‘Mew-Mew’ forms to save the world from aliens. Early 2000s kids may remember it popping up on 4Kids with Sonic X and Yu-Gi-Oh! While they all had ‘Mew-Mew’ forms, only one of them was a catgirl: their leader, Ichigo Momomiya.
Like the other Mew-Mews, she was bathed in a strange light that merged her DNA with that of an endangered animal. In her case, it was the Iriomote Cat, which has given her a bundle of new, kitty-based features. She makes cat puns, gets cat ears and a tail when she’s excited, and turns into a cat when she gets kissed or kisses someone. Compared to her, Spider-Man got off lucky.
3 Blair, Soul Eater
Soul Eater has a snake woman, a scorpion woman, and a spider woman (but not Spider-Woman). So, why not a cat woman (but not Catwoman). Except the Gorgon Sisters were witches that had snake/spider/scorpion-like powers. Blair isn’t a witch, even though she wears a pointed hat, and uses magic, including pumpkin-based spells.
It also looks like she turns into a black cat, but it’s actually the other way around. She’s a black cat by default that turns into a woman. Still, that was evidence enough for Soul and Maka to accidentally take her soul anyway. Luckily for them, she survives because she has 8 other lives left. Unluckily for them, she moves into their place without their permission. Which is proof enough she was always a cat to begin with.
2 Millianna, Fairy Tail
It’s a good thing Millianna grew up to be a cat-lover, otherwise her cat-like features would get her into trouble. She has a cat’s eyes, nose, and mouth, which she complimented with whisker-style tattoos and hair fashioned into cat ears. Plus, she even wears a little collar with a bell on it and decked her room with a plethora of cat decorations.
She’s a mage for the all-women’s guild Mermaid’s Heel, where she largely uses rope and tube-based binding spells. Which isn’t particularly feline, as cats are more likely to entangle themselves instead. But she does also scratch foes up with her sharp nails, and pummel them with her Cat Punch technique. So, she still has some kitty-based tricks up her sleeve.
1 The Puma Sisters, Dominion Tank Police
Annapuma and Unipuma don’t get mentioned much among the collection of kitties nowadays. Maybe it’s because Shirow Masamune made another manga that combined cops and tanks that got popular. More likely, it’s because the original Dominion Tank Police OVAs are pretty old, as they were originally made across 1988-1994. Still, older anime fans can remember this series turning up alongside other cult classics like Demon City Shinjuku and Ninja Scroll.
If its catchy intro theme didn’t stick in their head, these sisters’ scantily clad forms on the DVD cover did. Despite the fan service, they’re a duo of strong androids. They broke their ‘love doll’ programming to become criminals, becoming a regular pain in the proverbial for the Tank Police. Even though they’re not the main villains, their wiles and chemistry make them an unforgettable team.
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