What’s Michael?

What’s Michael? was a popular manga by Makoto Kobayashi that ran in Japan from 1984 to 1989. It spun off two original video animations (OVAs) and an anime series that contained 45 episodes. The basic premise of the manga (and its animated counterpart) was one of two types of stories: either a slice of life featuring the cat Michael and his human owners/people that surrounded him, and the second were fantasy/parody versions of something that now feature anthropomorphic cats and other animals instead of humans. The cartoons also boasted a terrifically bizarre theme song.

One segment from What’s Michael? has gained some sort of Internet infamy through the sheer WTF-ery on display. In the second OVA (released in 1988), there is a bit called “Michael Bets On The Ring” in which the titular tabby faces off in the squared circle against “Abdullah the Catzilla.” This bit combines impressive animation of wrestling moves with pretty weaksauce jokes about cat behavior (not wanting to engage, landing on their feet, etc.). It’s still a fun slice of the weird with a helping side of the adorable and worth checking out.