12-Days of Anime, Day 2: Welcome to the NHK!
In my 3 years of watching anime, I haven’t actually seen a lot of shows that focuses on the most stereotypical description of a traditional otaku: shut-ins with horrible social skills and aversion to the outside world. And while a lot of western otakus would say that their ability to socialize isn’t at an optimal level, I’m quite sure that shut-ins within the community are still present, just not prevalent. Most of us wouldn’t even dare tread the concept of a hermit lifestyle simply because its just a very feared state to be in.
However, shut-ins do exist, and they themselves have gotten quite a bit of criticism from the general communities for being “good-for-nothing”, lazy, and unproductive members of society.
But is that all there is to it?
Enter Welcome to the NHK, an anime whose central story focuses on multiple social issues, most notably those going on in Japan, including the hikikomori lifestyle (essentially a person who becomes reclusive from society by totally shutting himself/herself in isolation), suicide, mental health issues, and otakuism, and while us westerners don’t necessarily have all of these to the same extent, these are all issues that we are all definitely asked to think about.
What’s up, everyone, my name is Ken, from thebuttonsmashers.com, and today, I present to you Day 2 of the 12-Days of Anime, featuring my immediate two-cents on the whimsical, wry whammy of an anime: Welcome to the NHK.
The show mainly follows the story of Tatsuhiro Sato, a 22-year old, unemployed university dropout. Oh, and he’s also a hikikomori who has shut himself away in his apartment, free from the pressures of society, for about 4 years now. His reason for being a hikikomori? A conspiracy made by the Nihon Hikikomori Kyokai (NHK) to use addictive anime on TV to create more hikikomoris across Japan (of course, that’s just in his head). Things are going as well as he could imagine, being a NEET so to speak, when one day he meets a mysterious girl by the name of Misaki Nakahara, who coerces him into being her test subject so that she can somehow “cure” him of being a hikikomori and ultimately find his way back to society again. Over the course of the series, other characters are introduced, each with their own set of social and mental “issues”
Now, a gentle reminder that this show is listed under “dark humour” for a reason. It tackles all of these mental and social issues that are currently more prevalent than one might think, but adds its own little comedic spin to keep things from being dull and depressing, so there may be some people who get offended from how the show portrays these issues, and that’s fine.
Personally though, I think that the comedy of the show is quite spot-on. Sure, the theme is sort of depressing, but it adds just a pinch of comedic value in each scene involving Sato’s overactive imagination regarding either his reasoning for his reclusive tendencies or his interactions with the outside world to make it at least a bit more easier to take in. But what I like about the show is how it does handle its theme. Nothing is too saturated in comedy and it keeps the real, complicated aspects of mental health in mind, giving the viewer a realistic approach as to how people with social anxieties view society as a whole. Every point presented are from how each character perceives the world and society as a whole, oftentimes being a nihilistic approach, hence why this show can be depressing at times.
The characters are all really complex and amusing to watch so far. Each one is unique in their own right and have their own “issues” that all converge into the theme that the show is portraying. The interactions between these characters are also what makes them an integral part of the plot, as each one of them, through these interactions, show a part of them that isn’t necessarily shown at face-value: some of them hold the same feeling of isolation that Sato has, others experience the sting of loneliness, while others are on a deeper sense of depression. All in all, it’s the characters that carry the plot forward, making this character-driven aspect a welcome part of the show.
Soundtrack doesn’t deserve too much mention except for one thing:
WTF is that ending theme?
So what recommendation do I give this show?
Check out the first few episodes. If the comedy appeals to you, then go ahead. If you don’t like how they implement comedy, then you might just wanna stop, as it doesn’t get any lighter from there.
