TVTropes Now available in the app store!
Open

Follow TV Tropes

Following

It's Not My Fault I'm Not Popular!

Go To

kiukiuclk from 3.1415926535897932384626433832795028841971693 Since: Feb, 2013 Relationship Status: My TiMER is ticking
#576: Jul 16th 2013 at 7:00:23 AM

I heard of Yandere No Onna No Ko so I figured they just gender flipped it. (I've only been around anime for 2 years ish, so it was a terminology question)

[up][up][up] The fact that it exists both raises and lowers my faith in humanity at the same time. [lol]

grahav Desgraça from Mist Mountain Since: Mar, 2011
Desgraça
#577: Jul 16th 2013 at 8:11:40 PM

I am guessing there will be a Broken Base regarding which is the superior downer: Manga or Anime.

For me and to at leastone more person, the manga strikes harder because of its unforgiving nature. The black and white colors, the original artist's design of Tomoko, and the lack of a cute voice really set it for us.

But the anime has appropriate music, and the happier atmosphere contrasting with Tomoko's sadness.

So, watch both. Or just the one who makes you sadder. Unless you are suicidal. So don't watch any.

edited 16th Jul '13 8:13:05 PM by grahav

Realidade
AnotherDuck No, the other one. from Stockholm Since: Jul, 2012 Relationship Status: Mu
No, the other one.
#578: Jul 16th 2013 at 8:30:41 PM

Well, having seen this episode too, I don't think it's for me. I don't necessarily need to have relatable characters, but they need to at least have something that makes me care about them, or find them funny or interesting.

Check out my fanfiction!
Clownboss INFP scum. from Belgrade, Serbia Since: Mar, 2010 Relationship Status: It's not my fault I'm not popular!
INFP scum.
#579: Jul 17th 2013 at 1:56:01 AM

[up][up] Yeah, there'll probably be divisions like that. I really like the stark black-and-white artwork of the manga and how sketchy some of Tomoko's faces look. Her eyes are always drawn in such exaggerated ways with so many expressive strokes and that just isn't kept in the anime. Nico just lets her pen run wild all over the place, like it's an alternative comic.

So yeah, check out both the manga and anime for different stylistic approaches to the same story and premise. The manga scans have more hilarious pieces of dialogue that are very quotable IMHO and has some cool grungy artwork. The anime is very unsettling though, because it has a high-budget visual approach similar to any other slice of life anime, but since it doesn't fit the mold of the average slice of life it feels very unsettling and creepy(the music falls apart, Tomoko's voice constantly breaks and groans, she makes occasional Gonk faces...), and sometimes feels like a Deconstruction of the genre and how hideously the awkward shy moe girl archetype plays out in real life, which is, of course, the point of the series.

edited 17th Jul '13 2:16:20 AM by Clownboss

"With great power comes great responsibility" - Kurt Cobain, Nickelback (2003)
grahav Desgraça from Mist Mountain Since: Mar, 2011
Desgraça
#580: Jul 17th 2013 at 4:13:49 AM

[up][tup]

Good post.

Adding. I like how a lot (heck, all of them) of Tomoko's troubles are also relatable to a male audience. It hits me as a very gender balanced fiction in regards of its main plot (shyness, isolation, depression...). Better for giving a reality feel of those issues.

A lot of series that have awkward or shy characters (both genders)give the wrong impression on how easy it is to deal with it and how much it hurts.

edited 17th Jul '13 1:48:13 PM by grahav

Realidade
AceOfScarabs I am now a shiny stone~ from Singapore Since: Jan, 2001 Relationship Status: Drift compatible
I am now a shiny stone~
#581: Jul 17th 2013 at 7:38:23 AM

Tomoko's character strikes me as a serious NEET-to-be. Hope she gets a happier ending ._.

The three finest things in life are to splat your enemies, drive them from their turf, and hear their lamentations as their rank falls!
fillerdude Since: Jul, 2010
#582: Jul 18th 2013 at 8:12:49 AM

Episode 2: Oh man, actually getting turned on by yandere CDs. This girl needs help.

I confess that I was distracted by Kana Hanazawa's godly voice in the second half. I was half-expecting Yuu to have some jerkass ulterior motive for meeting up with Kiruko, so phew, it "only" turned out to be her having a boyfriend.

To think I would see Generic Cuteness save someone's soul. Bless ye who does not draw distinctive faces.

JakesBrain Since: Jul, 2010
#583: Jul 18th 2013 at 3:47:49 PM

@Another Duck: I think the best way to warn people about this show is to ask them whether they like Curb Your Enthusiasm. If they hate that show they'll probably hate Watamote, and for much the same reasons.

A lot of people just don't see the attraction of Schadenfreude.

UltimatelySubjective Since: Jun, 2011
#584: Jul 18th 2013 at 4:42:20 PM

[up]I really haven't minded the show so far, but the way you guys are talking about the appeal makes me wonder if I will continue to enjoy it.

KirigayaKazuto TWO YEARS OF from Saitama Since: Nov, 2012
TWO YEARS OF
#585: Jul 18th 2013 at 4:55:09 PM

sometimes feels like a Deconstruction of the genre and how hideously the awkward shy moe girl archetype plays out in real life, which is, of course, the point of the series.

What?

If anything, Yuu would be closer to a "deconstruction" of an "awkward shy moe girl" whatever the main character's name is is just a pile of social issues(external) + twisted perversion(internal) which is also why I seriously can't get why anyone can feel sorry for the MC, as well.

I do think the manga is better for the purposes of this kind of show, though. Mostly because it's just faster for me to read so the timing of the MC's misfortune is better for me to laugh at. I do sometimes feel sorry for the MC's brother though.

edited 18th Jul '13 4:56:03 PM by KirigayaKazuto

MMORPGs are serious business.
RJSavoy Reymmã from Edinburgh Since: Apr, 2011 Relationship Status: I'm just a poor boy, nobody loves me
Reymmã
#586: Jul 18th 2013 at 4:56:06 PM

I like the animé, partly for the artistry and care put into it (notice her very distinct way of moving, and how the popular ones are drawn in a much more conventional style) and partly because I do recognise something of myself whilst I can also feel happy I'm not quite that bad. Right now that is. When I was her age I was just as isolated but not yet at the stage where I realised this was odd. Though I never blamed anyone else.

She's not so much a character as an amalgation of all the worst not fitting in traits. It gives that mix of relatability and schadenfreude.

Quick question: this manga seems to be popular on /a/ (they even want to believe they helped it be animated). Why is she so popular when Shinji Ikari has much the same traits and was widely hated?note 

A blog that gets updated on a geological timescale.
KirigayaKazuto TWO YEARS OF from Saitama Since: Nov, 2012
TWO YEARS OF
#587: Jul 18th 2013 at 5:04:05 PM

Well, Shinji is male, and there's how he has more serious, less mundane issues, and he isn't really shown to have perverted thoughts that often. That is lower on the character desirability scale for the kind of audience /a/ may be, so...

MMORPGs are serious business.
UltimatelySubjective Since: Jun, 2011
#588: Jul 18th 2013 at 5:12:41 PM

It's obviously a matter of context and genre.

The role implied by the genre brings expectations.

In Wata Mote there's no real expectations to fail to meet. Right off the bat we know what this person is.

Well, unless there ends up being a completed lack of development in character or circumstance in Wata Mote :(

So what I'm saying is that certain people may be comfortable seeing what is basically a caricature of themselves falling at life, but may be unhappy seeing their representation fail in a far more anime situation.

edited 18th Jul '13 5:22:49 PM by UltimatelySubjective

Kiefen MINE! from Germany Since: Nov, 2010 Relationship Status: It's not my fault I'm not popular!
MINE!
#589: Jul 18th 2013 at 5:26:29 PM

Shinji wasn't nerdy, so I would say it is the lack of "Geek-apeal". Plus the MC is female so there might be a Double Standard here.

edited 18th Jul '13 5:27:14 PM by Kiefen

Recon5 Avvie-free for life! from Southeast Asia Since: Jan, 2001
Avvie-free for life!
#590: Jul 18th 2013 at 10:11:13 PM

[up][up] Only she's not failing at life. She's attending her classes, passing her exams and paying her dues, albeit she's otherwise just drifting along. That's probably what really makes her relatable rather than any of her problems.

UltimatelySubjective Since: Jun, 2011
#591: Jul 18th 2013 at 11:23:58 PM

[up] I question any more objective measures of failure at life. Tomoko wanted to excel, so in that sense, she failed.

It's true she's not a NEET, but there is a lot of NEET potential there.

grahav Desgraça from Mist Mountain Since: Mar, 2011
Desgraça
#592: Jul 19th 2013 at 6:53:33 AM

New chapter is up. A short one this time.

I am really eager for the spin-off chapter. I like her interactions there.

I wonder if we will have an anime episode of said spin-off.

Realidade
Prime32 Since: Jan, 2001
#593: Jul 19th 2013 at 5:26:02 PM

@Kiefen, it's been said that you could completely invert how people see the cast of NGE by flipping their genders (girl!Shinji becomes Moe, guy!Asuka becomes a "healthy Alpha Male", and guy!Rei becomes creepy).

edited 19th Jul '13 5:28:18 PM by Prime32

RJSavoy Reymmã from Edinburgh Since: Apr, 2011 Relationship Status: I'm just a poor boy, nobody loves me
Reymmã
#594: Jul 19th 2013 at 6:44:42 PM

[up] Which is just another way to state that NGE does precisely that, as noted on this very wiki. Asuka is the hot blooded hero, Rei is the calm and stoic foil to the hero (think of the two brothers in Blue Exorcist), and Shinji is the Shrinking Violet love interest. Invert them and you get something much more audience pleasing.

But I don't think gender has much to do with it, if only because neither of them is strongly gendered (though they are sexed). There's the fact that NGE lures in mecha fans expecting something more conventional. But I think the strongest factor is that we expect protagonists in high school to do what we might do, whereas if there are giant robots and alien monsters about we unconsciously hold the heroes up to a larger-than-life standard to fit the setting.

A blog that gets updated on a geological timescale.
grahav Desgraça from Mist Mountain Since: Mar, 2011
Desgraça
#595: Jul 19th 2013 at 8:00:13 PM

I guess both NGE and Watamote did a halfway miracle.

Make an awkward, shy male character sympathetic. At least to some people.

Effectively show the ugly, faulty side of an awkward, shy female character to some people.

Of course there are people that just label Tomoko as moe and Shinji as a pussy, ignoring a lot of dimensions in both chars.

Realidade
JakesBrain Since: Jul, 2010
#596: Jul 19th 2013 at 10:46:58 PM

I’ve thought a lot about this series since watching the premiere last week, which was one of the strangest experiences I’ve had with any anime. Here’s the thing with Watamote, as I see it… This is really two different series, depending on the audience. Everyone is going to get that this is a dark, dark comedy –- they’re going to feel the awkwardness and the conflicted emotions when wanting to laugh at what happens to Tomoko. But there’s a second track playing here -– Watamote is actually written in code.

What do I mean by that? It has nothing to do with how smart you are, or how much anime you’ve watched –- it’s just a question of whether you’ve had someone in your life (or you yourself) suffer from clinical depression and/or a social anxiety disorder. I now know that mangaka "Nico Tanigawa" is actually a female artist and male writer –- and I can say, with certainty, that writer has dealt with the above and knows exactly what he’s doing in writing this series. It’s full of coded messages to those of us who likewise grew up with this in our families -– things Tomoko says, how she acts. If you don’t recognize the signs -– and if you’ve never had someone close to you with a serious depression/anxiety disorder there’s no reason you should -– Tomoko’s life comes off as painful but "anime funny". She can be seen as an amusing loser, or a "hikikomori" (though she isn’t) and laughed at -– compassionately, no doubt, but laughed at just the same. But some of us can’t see her that way.

The final tipoff for me –- and the most painful moment in two episodes -– was when Tomoko threatened to kill herself unless her brother Tomoki "practiced" conversing with her for an hour per day. Here’s the thing about people like Tomoko –- they make victims out of people that love them, and it’s not their fault. They can’t help it, but it puts family members and close friends in a terrible position –- ignore their suffering and live with the guilt, or be drawn into the pain themselves. Someone like Tomoki –- a kid, and seemingly a nice one at that -– simply has no clue how to deal with Tomoko, or how she makes him feel. He just wants to be "normal", but for her, that’s the cruelest thing he can do. Of Tomoko’s Father we’ve seen nothing, and with her Mom we’ve seen no evidence that she has any idea to what extent her daughter is socially dysfunctional and suffering for it -– denial being a very common recourse for parents in these situations. Teenagers are so fucked up generally that it’s easy to convince yourself that if yours is like Tomoko, she’s "just going through a phase" or some such reassuring lie.

[...]For Tomoko this is the agony of her situation –- she can watch those around her do things she can’t do herself, not because they’re impossible but because they’re impossible for her. This is part of the coded message from the mangaka -– Tomoko’s wounds are almost entirely self-inflicted, yet she’s helpless to stop inflicting them. It’s rare for anyone to be mean to her, and she’s not bullied -– but because she’s built a wall around herself, most people simply ignore her altogether (which her family cannot do). She stays hunkered down in her foxhole and lobs missiles of derision at the rest of the world, mocking them for their conformism and idiocy, and secretly wishing she could have a taste of what their lives are like.

edited 19th Jul '13 10:58:48 PM by JakesBrain

asellus111 Dragon meido Since: Nov, 2011 Relationship Status: [TOP SECRET]
Dragon meido
#597: Jul 19th 2013 at 11:02:21 PM

[up]Hmm...nice review.

Thorn14 Gunpla is amazing! Since: Aug, 2010
Gunpla is amazing!
#598: Jul 23rd 2013 at 12:07:41 AM

That scene where she forgets her textbook and is caught and practically starts crying....

God damn. This VA is too good. It actually make the awkwardness worse...

edited 23rd Jul '13 12:12:54 AM by Thorn14

kiukiuclk from 3.1415926535897932384626433832795028841971693 Since: Feb, 2013 Relationship Status: My TiMER is ticking
#599: Jul 23rd 2013 at 6:25:40 AM

Was anyone else expecting her to NOT take the umbrella?

Also, I found it amusing that she used the wrong eye for sniping in her own fantasy.cool

Filled the creepiness quota with her brother. On one hand, her having like every possible dysfunctional hangup helps make it a bit less cringworthy.

Her interactions with Yuu are the best. (even if it was obvious this time).

MyssaRei Since: Feb, 2010
#600: Jul 23rd 2013 at 8:15:16 AM

Oh wow, I'm not sure if the anime will even get to that point, but Yuu's little answer to Mokocchi will serve as a good bit of foreshadowing for the time they meet again prior to Tomoko starting her second year. You know, the one where Yuu does the "You see, this happened to a friend of mine..." routine but it's so obvious it happened to her, and the topic was obviously about sex.

At that, I realized that I was still a child. Why yes indeed, Tomoko.

edited 23rd Jul '13 8:15:45 AM by MyssaRei


Total posts: 1,483
Top