Anime Review: WATAMOTE

Another series I've been watching with my uni club. Here are my thoughts...

Kuroki Tomoko is a super popular high-school girl...on the romance games she plays. In real life she suffers from crippling social awkwardness and struggles to even speak to anyone. But as she begins her first year at high school, she becomes determined to change her image and become the most popular girl in the school, for real this time...

Some series are practically made for a certain audience. Obviously every series has its target, but some series are specifically designed to resonate with a particular group of people. WATAMOTE (or to give its full translated name, No Matter How I Look At It It's You Guys' Fault I'm Not Popular) is definitely one such series, and to be frank, your enjoyment factor is going to depend on whether or not you are a part of that audience.

Needless to say, I most certainly am.

I'll get the easier, technical stuff out the way first. First off this anime looks really nice; while the animation itself isn't anything special the art style and direction is suitably deranged, turning this normal environment into something claustrophobic and oppressive, yet still giving it a certain colour. There's a lot of clever things to be seen in the use of colour and lighting, particularly in the way the light forms boxes around Tomoko wherever she is, further emphasising her isolation. The music serves its purpose well; light and poppy in most places but again screeching to a deranged halt when the wacky situation falls apart into complete chaos. Honestly though the main OST is nothing particularly noticeable, but the real strength in the soundtrack comes with the OP and EDs. There are five endings, each portraying a different tone and fitting the mood perfectly, especially the main one which has the heartbreaking tone of Tomoko's VA trying to sing along to an upbeat karaoke song, and virtually breaking down in the process. The opening is probably my favourite from any anime I've watched. Seriously. It's that good. Speaking of VAs, Tomoko's seiyuu in the sub is easily the standout; she has about 80% of the dialogue and she nails every line with the insanity and desperation that the character needs. That alone is reason enough to stick to the original voice track for me.

Now as for the show itself, the entire premise goes something like this. Tomoko realises she has a major problem. She decides to try and fix it in an unorthodox manner. It doesn't work. Hilarity ensues. Rinse and repeat. That makes it sound far worse than it actually is though, since this really is a very funny show. While the show never really delves into true black comedy it is quite happy to dump a load of misery on our poor main character; some deserved, some not. Tomoko's reactions to the whole thing are probably the funniest things, that and the multitude of references to other anime are completely on point and perfectly placed. From an objective standpoint, the show turns what should get really old really fast into something consistantly hilarious.

Now, you can probably work out from my description of the show whether or not you'll like it; after all, all comedy is subjective. That said, there are two complaints about the show that I keep hearing that I'd like to address.

Firstly is the complaint that Tomoko's actions are in many ways unrealistic and can't be taken seriously. In a way this is true; they are certainly exaggerated for comedic effect. But that said, I can say objectively that her actions are never unrealistic, though cringeworthy they may be. I can say this because I have done pretty much all of these myself. Not to the same extent (that would probably be illegal), but I was the boy who came up with elaborate strategies to try and gain friends. I was the boy who overcriticised every word I said and overthought every response I received. I was the boy who dreamed up fantasy situations where I was more important than I actually was, for better or for worse. This is the thought process of people like me; sad, lonely dweebs who care far too much about the silliest little things.

The second complaint is the more interesting one, and that's the idea that Tomoko's character never develops; she's exactly the same at the end of the series as she is at the beginning. Again, I would disagree, but I can see the confusion. The thing is, Tomoko is never going to change. She will almost certainly always be quiet, easily embarrassed, anxious and a tad awkward. That is how it goes; sometimes things happen and you become a new person, but most of the time you just carry on as you are. And that's what this anime does completely right; at the end of it all, though we're still at the same place, in the end, it doesn't matter. Tomoko has accepted who she is, and while she may not be completely satisfied and will almost certainly screw up again in the future, she is no longer completely panicking about her future, merely determined to find her own way. And if you're like me and can see the world through her eyes, there are tonnes of subtle little heartwarming moments throughout the series, just to give that extra little motivation that perhaps things are better than you thought.

Sometimes, all we need is a little support. And sometimes the best way to get that support is to see what we do from an outside perspective. See how everybody else sees us. Maybe then, we'll realise that we aren't doing quite as badly as we thought.

WATAMOTE is a show which I personally resonate with greatly, and as such I have a personal love for it. If you don't resonate as strongly though, it's a little harder to recommend; it can be repetitive and lacks in much 'proper' development throughout the series. Even so, it's still a cute little highschool comedy with perhaps just a little extra sweetness for those who really need it. Make your own judgements, and if you ever feel like you're struggling to fit in, just remember; you are noticed, and you are appreciated for every little thing you do, even if you don't always see it. Stay strong.

My score: 7/10