Key the Metal Idol
KEY THE METAL IDOL
“Robot girl Key seeks 30,000 friends to become human while rival scientist threatens her existence.”
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Synopsis
Robot girl Key seeks 30,000 friends to become human while rival scientist threatens her existence.
Tokiko Mima, nicknamed "Key," is a 17-year-old girl living in the Japanese countryside who, despite her human-like appearance, is a robot. When Key's grandfather Dr. Murao Mima passes away, he leaves her a dying message, telling her that she can become a real girl if she is able to make thirty thousand friends. Thus, Key moves from the quiet Mamio Valley to the busy streets of Tokyo, where she soon runs into her childhood friend Sakura Kuriyagawa. Key quickly becomes enamored with idol singer Miho Utsuse and wonders if becoming a singer will allow her to make the amount of friends needed for her to become human. But Miho carries a ominous secret: she is connected to Jinsaku Ajou, an old rival of Dr. Mima trying to make new a breakthrough in robotic weaponry. As Key works to become a real girl, Ajou sets a dangerous plan into action, and it turns out there's much more to Key than meets the eye.
[Written by MAL Rewrite]
What people say
Community consensus
Derived from 16 sampled reviews
7.0/10
Score distribution
Agreement
SplitPolarized
σ 1.87 · split reception
The polarity gap
4.2 ptsRecommenders 7.9 · others 3.7
Score over time
0.00Verbosity
Snap verdicts · shortest highly-rated reviews
- 9/10 “This anime hooked me from the title alone and kept me intrigued even when the story felt confusing, because every question was satisfyingly answered by the end. Despite my boyfriend constantly...”
- 8/10 “Key the Metal Idol is a cerebral and interesting 90s sci-fi anime that evokes feelings similar to Lain, with unexpected developments that make it highly interesting despite not being masterful....”
- 8/10 “A slow-burning but deeply intricate story rewards patience with powerful character development and a moving lullaby finale. While the 17-year-old animation and music show their age, they remain...”
Watch order & related
A self-contained story.
No sequels, spin-offs or alternate tellings — Key the Metal Idol begins and ends here.
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Reel · 01 Cat. №BS-1324
- Format
- 15 × 34′
- eps × min
- Total runtime
- 8h 30m
- all episodes
- Aired
- Dec 1994 – Jun 1997
- Fall 1994
- Source
- Ova
- media type
- Rated
- R+
- Mild Nudity
- Ref.
- BS-1324
- catalog