A kid whose mother just died finds himself cleaning a stranger's mansion, and somewhere between the dust and the cooking, grief stops being something he's surviving and becomes something he's sharing. The show knows exactly when to cut the jokes and let you sit with Chihiro realizing he's not alone anymore. It moves quietly, asks nothing of you except to watch two people learn how to be a family, and that simplicity is everything.

Chihiro Komiya is a lively elementary schooler whose mother lived by one rule: if you don't work, you don't eat. He is remarkably skilled at chores. When his mother dies suddenly, a rich, carefree man named Madoka Takatori turns up, says he is Chihiro's uncle, and invites the boy to live with him. Chihiro refuses at first, but the filthy state of Madoka's mansion sets off his neat-freak instincts, and he begins cleaning. Madoka then proposes a deal: Chihiro can stay if he takes care of the housework. Chihiro agrees, and soon finds himself in a frilly maid outfit his uncle sewed himself, earning a salary as the maid of the house. The result is a gentle slice-of-life comedy.