Based on the popular manga series of the same name, The Ice Guy And His Cool Female Colleague follows Fuyutsuki, a human woman who is a bit of an ice queen, and Himuro, a young man whose feet are frozen in ice. Will these co-workers fall for each other, or go their separate ways? Find out in…
THE ICE GUY AND HIS COOL FEMALE COLLEAGUE: STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?
Opening Shot: The show opens up with blue skies and bright pink cherry blossoms blowing through the air, with a petal blowing into an open apartment and landing on a cat before a young woman kneels before the cat.
The Gist: A young woman named Fuyutsuki-san (Yui Ishikawa) has just started a brand new job. She heads there by train each day, clad in professional attire, with the same stoic attitude she had from her high school days. On her first day, while making her way to the office, it suddenly begins snowing around her. She comes upon a white-haired man whose legs are frozen solid to the ground, trapped in a block of ice. When Fuyutsuki asks if he’s okay, he simply replies that he’s nervous about his new job, and looking at cherry blossoms calms him down.
Fuyutsuki’s solution to the situation is to try to pour her hot tea on the ice, but that doesn’t do anything. Instead, she offers it to the man to share as they stand together and sip tea while eating seaweed snacks. Little by little, the ice melts, and the pair enjoy a nice moment together. Himuro reveals to Fuyutsuki that he’s actually the descendant of a “yuki onna”, or a “snow woman”. He produces ice when he’s nervous and winter isn’t his favorite season, but spring instead. After their chance meeting, Fuyutsuki heads off to work, where she comes face to face once more with Himuro, who’s delighted that she showed up there with him.
As they work together, Himuro reveals some of the other emotions that bring out the chill in him. When he gets angry, he starts producing blizzard-like conditions. When makes a mistake, he envelops himself in an ice cave. The pair get to know each other and little by little Fuyutsuki looks for ways to make Himuro feel good, happy, and secure while trying to solve some of the issues his snow power cause.
What Shows Will It Remind You Of? This heartwarming anime will undoubtedly bring to mind series like Bokura ga Ita with how positively comfy and adorable it is. There are brush strokes of other shows like My Dress Up Darling as well given that the romance undertones feel so charmingly earnest.
Our Take: This is a romance guaranteed to melt anyone’s heart, snow woman descendant or not. Fuyutsuki and Himuro are guaranteed perfect couple material, and you see that from the very first moment where Fuyutsuki goes out of her way to do things to help Himuro.
When he can’t touch flowers because they freeze up, she brings a special kind of straw to keep that from happening. Himuro mentions he’s never been able to touch a cat, so she brings him some of her own cat’s whiskers as the next best thing.
All of these actions send Himuro into fits where he summons snow and causes flurries of the cold around him in an instant. But naturally, he wants to bring happiness to the unusually stoic Fuyutsuki too, so one day he brings her a limited time chocolate orange pistache a la mode snack that’s sold out everywhere — that he sought out for over a week. He also crafted tiny snowmen using his snow powers to accompany his gift.
But there’s more to the show than just watching Himuro and Fuyutsuki falling for each other. There are so many wholesome moments throughout the show that it’s hard not to fall in love with it yourself. Himuro helps his coworker by taking over some of his work so he can head home early, for example, and everyone gets along while on the job together. It’s this kind of warmth, kindness, and happiness that permeates every scene that makes The Ice Guy and His Cool Female Colleague such a fun and cozy watch.
Sex and Skin: Absolute none. This is one of the cleanest, most wholesome series you’ll likely ever seen in the anime world.
Parting Shot: The office boss gathers all the workers to tell them the location for their new employee workshop has been chosen, and it’s in Okinawa. As Himuro, Fuyutsuki, and the rest of the employees get excited about Okinawa, Himuro looks terrified and thinks about something “terrible” that will happen to him if he goes there before the episode ends.
Sleeper Star: Komori is an upbeat, kind woman who works with Fuyutsuki and Himuro. Voiced by Yumi Uchiyama, she’s a sprightly, energetic presence that offers some color where the office needs it, given that everyone is usually quiet and serious. She’s a fun, silly fox girl who adds some bright, sparkly dialogue whenever she appears on screen.
Most Pilot-y Line: “The truth is…I’m actually descended from a snow woman,” Himuro abruptly tells Fuyutsuki moments after they meet with his legs frozen to the ground. “When I get emotional, I produce ice.” That’s just about everything you need to know about this series to get into it, and the stage is set from there.
Our Call: STREAM IT. The Ice Guy and His Cool Female Colleague feels like throwing on a warm blanket and sipping hot chocolate from your favorite mug, ironic as that seems. It’s some of the sweetest, kindest programming you’ll see on this year’s slate of anime, and that’s saying something. If you just want to kick back, relax, and watch something indubitably kind and adorable, make sure you add this series to your anime viewing list.
Brittany Vincent has been covering video games and tech for over a decade for publications like G4, Popular Science, Playboy, Variety, IGN, GamesRadar, Polygon, Kotaku, Maxim, GameSpot, and more. When she’s not writing or gaming, she’s collecting retro consoles and tech. Follow her on Twitter: @MolotovCupcake.
