Chainsmoker Cat

Set in a modern-day world where cat-people, known as "beastfolks", co-exist with humans, the series follows the daily misadventures of Yaniko, a beastfolk who lives in a small apartment building in Nyagamihara (based on Sagamihara), Japan, and is addicted to smoking, regardless of the damage to her environment, her psyche, or her family. The series also features her interactions with her oddball neighbors, each with their respective issues, and their cranky human landlord who tolerates their antics.

Yaniko Sato (佐藤 ヤニ子, Satō Yaniko) / Yanineko (ヤニねこ) Voiced by: Yūko Natsuyoshi (Japanese); Rebecca Wang (English) A freeter with a morbid addiction to cigarettes, but no financial literacy or everyday skills. Almost all money Yaniko receives goes towards buying new cigarettes, and when she cannot buy new packs, she often resorts to reusing spent cigarette butts or salvaging loose smokes off the street. Her need for nicotine often leads her into absurd and humiliating situations, and her attempts to quit never last long. Oya Otani (大谷おう也, Ōtani Ōya) / Landlord (大家, Ōya) Voiced by: Tetsu Inada, Yui Tsukada (young) (Japanese); Michael Sorich (English) The landlord of the apartment building where most of the main cast lives. Despite his intimidating appearance and gruff demeanor, he is a caring man, though he is often the victim of his tenants' actions. He has a dog-like sex doll in private, and he often experiences erections due to certain things happening while he is around female beastfolks. Imoko Sato (佐藤 妹子, Satō Imoko) Voiced by: Rina Honnizumi (Japanese); Reba Buhr (English) Yaniko's younger sister who is a respected and responsible high school student. She often takes care of Yaniko's well-being despite her constant frustrations. Yakuko Etsushimaru (越司丸 益子, Etsushimaru Yakuko) / Yakuneko (ヤクねこ) Voiced by: Misato Matsuoka (Japanese); Colleen O'Shaughnessey (English) A beastfolk who has looked up to Yaniko as her senior since her high school days. Among all the residents of the apartment, she is the one Yaniko hangs out with most often. She secretly uses harder drugs in her apartment, including marijuana, though she always vehemently claims to be sober. It is also implied that she is an ex-convict. Despite this, Yakuko is much more social and well-adjusted in her life outside of her drug use. Hameko Easygoing Anal Angel (ゆるふわ＊天使 ハメ子, Yurufuwa Anaru Tenshi Hameko) / Hameneko (ハメねこ) Voiced by: Yurie Funato (Japanese); Lauren Landa (English) Yakuko's high school classmate who is a gamer and runs a livestreaming channel, "Hame Channel". Born without a legal last name due to being a pure beastfolk, she decided to register Easygoing*Angel (ゆるふわ＊天使, Yurufuwa*Tenshi) as her last name. However, a city hall worker mistook the asterisk symbol for anus, hence giving her a rather awkward last name. Hameko gets easily angered and flustered when things do not go her way, and has a tendency to urinate when stressed. Kaoruko Nishi (西 薫子, Nishi Kaoruko) / Kansaineko (カンサイねこ) Voiced by: Ayaka Shimizu (Japanese); Lauren Amante (English) A college student, fellow smoker and amateur comedian from the Kansai region who is one of the more put-together members of the apartment building. While passionate about making others laugh, she lacks genuine talent in comedic delivery and her attempts at humor often lead to awkward reactions. Kaoruko speaks with Kinki dialect; in the English dub, she speaks with a Southern accent. Aruko Sakai (酒井 アル子, Sakai Aruko) / Aruneko (アルねこ) Voiced by: Shiori Izawa (Japanese); Victoria Grace (English) Kaoruko's roommate, a fellow college student who is sometimes mistaken as a elementary school student due to her short stature. She is an alcoholic, spending most of the day drinking and sleeping in her room, to the point of affecting her academic performance. She also often wanders off to distant places when she drinks outside her home. Saori Tatsuno (辰野 沙織, Tatsuno Saori) / Ochinpo Tatsuro (おちんぽ達郎) / Mankasu (マンカス) Voiced by: Riko Akechi (Japanese); Chantelle Barry (English) The only human resident in Oya's apartment building, as well as a fellow smoker. She works as a hentai manga artist under a pseudonym, though her manga does not sell well. Yaniko sometimes acts as her unofficial assistant.

Yomuko Kaku (賀来 詠子, Kaku Yomuko) / Jikakineko (字書きねこ) Voiced by: Niina Nakabayashi (Japanese); Natsuki Henderson (English) Imoko's classmate who dreams of becoming a professional writer. She frequently visits the apartment building where she asks Saori and Yaniko for advice, though she often claims her work is written by her "friend" due to insecurity, and she spends more time on social media than she does with her creative writing. Kazushi (カズシ) Voiced by: Minoru Hirota The yakuza-esque editor-in-chief of Nyan Magazine, in which Saori's work is serialized. Lani (ラニ, Rani) Voiced by: Mariya Ise (Japanese); Sarah Natochenny (English) The chief of Alpha Tribe, a local primordial beastfolk tribe that cultivates tobacco. She has two tails akin to that of a nekomata. Nazuna Kujou (九条 ナズナ, Kujō Nazuna) / Penpenneko (ペンペンねこ) Voiced by: Yū Kobayashi (Japanese); Kaitlyn Robrock (English) A homeless beastfolk who lives in a tent near a river. Claiming to be one with nature and often speaking in an aloof, philosophical manner, she is very sensitive and emotional in private. After her original tent is swept away by a flood, she squats in the yard of Oya's apartment building. It is later revealed that she actually comes from a wealthy industrialist family, but she ran away to seek freedom. Shizue Sato (佐藤 静江, Satō Shizue) Voiced by: Yumi Hara The widowed mother of Yaniko and Imoko. She herself is a chain smoker as well, though she manages to hide her habit from Imoko. Shunran Nishi (西 春蘭, Nishi Shunrun) Voiced by: Mashiro Kentarō Kaoruko's younger brother who enjoys teasing her.

Written and illustrated by NyanNyanFactory, Chainsmoker Cat started in Kodansha's seinen manga magazine Weekly Young Magazine on February 20, 2023. Kodansha has collected its chapters into individual tankōbon volumes, with the first one released on August 4, 2023. As of August 6, 2026, thirteen volumes have been released. In February 2025, Seven Seas Entertainment announced that it had licensed the series for English publication, with the first volume released in December that same year.

An anime television series adaptation was announced on February 2, 2026. The series is produced by Bibury Animation Studios and directed by Taku Kimura, with Takashi Aoshima writing the scripts, Riki Matsuura designing the characters, and Keiichi Suzuki composing the music. It premiered on July 3, 2026, on Tokyo MX and BS11. The series is being released in two versions: the clean "On-Air" version for terrestrial TV broadcast, and the uncensored "Evil Dragon Unleashed" version, which airs on the premium TV channel AT-X (from July 25, 2026), and is being released on selected Japanese streaming platforms such as Netflix, Hulu, AnimeFesta, and Anime Times; the latter two carries both the clean and uncensored versions. The opening theme song is "Nanmonee" (なんもねえ; lit. 'Nothing at All'), performed by Wasureranneyo, while the ending theme song is "Kemuri to Blue" (煙とブルー; lit. 'Smoke and Blue'), performed by Necry Talkie. Netflix began streaming the series outside of Japan on July 2, 2026. OceanVeil is also streaming the series uncensored. Medialink initially licensed the series in Asia-Pacific for its Ani-One Asia YouTube channel. However, it was later pulled mid-season to "comply with local government regulations in relevant markets."

Due to its depictions of "tobacco advertisements, including repeated clear displays of tobacco products and brand names", Hong Kong's Department of Health warned that the anime adaptation violated the Smoking (Public Health) Ordinance, which bans online ads for smoking products. Bahamut Animation Crazy, one of the platforms streaming the series in Hong Kong, complied with the order and suspended its broadcast on August 17, 2026. Medialink also announced the series would no longer be available to watch on its Ani-One Asia YouTube channel. An official from Taiwan's Health Promotion Administration said images from the series might contravene the Tobacco Hazards Prevention Act, and the agency had asked local health departments to investigate the issue. On August 21, 2026, Health Minister Shih Chung-liang said the series failed to comply with the guidelines. Several local streaming platforms subsequently removed the series.