Among the underrated classics of anime, Welcome to Dr. Irabu's Office deserves more attention. Toei's 2009 adaptation of Hideo Okuda's novels is unique in every way, in both visuals and subject. While definitely bizarre, prospective viewers shouldn't write it off as being gimmicky or too weird; its focus on mental health conditions and treatment is something rarely broached upon in Japanese media.

It really isn't hyperbole to say there isn't anything like Irabu's, known as Trapeze in Japan. While its psychadelic visuals are a good conversation starter, its true strength is its storytelling, thanks to a surprisingly nuanced look at psychological issues and self-improvement. No other anime to date seems willing to broach the topic, which is what makes this show so special.

Irabu's Office is a psychedelic tour through the realm of psychology

At first glance, Irabu's seems weird for the sake of weirdness: a "patient of the week" enters the abstract office of Ichiro Irabu, a bear-headed doctor aided by Mayumi, a chain-smoking nurse. After an odd injection, the patient's head turns into an animal of appropriate metaphor, while Irabu inexplicably starts appearing in two more personas: a sly young man and a calculating boy. All the while, background characters are literal cardboard cutouts, and Irabu's blends in live-action performers, their faces attached to hand-drawn bodies. It's an absurd world that makes you doubt if anything is going to be taken seriously.

Ironically, it is the visuals and the sniggering doctor that helps inject humanity into each story. Each patient has anxiety disorders, obsessive compulsions, addictions, and phobias; the hyper-stylized animation helps convey the stress of fearing that the stove has been left on, or the possibility of being stabbed. Just to assure audiences that mental health is no laughing matter, the anime even has an actual psychologist intermittently chime in with facts and advice. It's an in-depth, yet surprisingly approachable examination of mental health that requires Dr. Irabu's tomfoolery to keep the edge off of some of the more serious cases.

Perhaps the best part of the story is that while Irabu might be a miracle doctor, handling eleven cases in a single week, the solutions are always understated, and never treated as magic bullets. Indeed, one episode subtly mocks the idea of a momentous catharsis, as the patient daydreams that screaming at his ex-wife will grant him a standing ovation. More than a few patients simply learn to live their lives with newfound confidence and tools to manage their problems. That is perhaps the best message to take from watching Welcome to Dr. Irabu's Office: don't be afraid, nobody's perfect.