Fifteen-year-old Tomoko Kuroki believed that she would become popular upon entering high school because she had become well-versed in the world of otome games. In reality, she finds that she has become an unsociable loner and she is forced to take a long hard look at herself for the first time in years. The story follows Tomoko as she attempts to improve her social status as she progresses through high school.
Yes i have just stolen the plot from wikipedia because i just really want to get into talking about this anime and i'm not even too sure where to start. I guess i will start with Characters, the main one being Tomoko Kuroki. Now for this style of anime where we only focus on one character and only see what she sees (We don't get any one else's perspective, every scene involves her) you have to have a pretty likable character to keep people's interest, and in fact Tomoko is not overly likeable, she is in fact quite the opposite of many main protagonists in anime. She is not an attractive character and she dresses differently to the characters i'm used to seeing, It is also abundantly clear that Tomoko has social anxiety and at the very beginning of the anime is in denial about it, she blames everyone else often referring to people as "Bitches" and implying that they are slutty.
SPOILER ALERT !!
part way through the series she realizes she is in denial and tries to sort herself out without blaming anyone else and realizes that she doesn't want to be popular, She just doesn't want to be alone.
This is an anime that really does hit home with me and i will be pulling specific scenes out in a bit to display why because i think this anime was depicted anxiety very well. I really did relate to Tomoko and her need for companionship yet the struggle to socialize, more specifically it took me back to my school years where all i wanted was a friend, and i'll be honest, a few parts made me cry (Maybe im just hormonal though)
1. Red Light District
Now there are a lot of scenes where Tomoko is shown to be overwhelmed and become rather scatter brained and can't decide what to do or what to say to make herself sound cool (Which often comes out wrong) however this scene i think depicts true anxiety as someone who has experienced this many times. A point where all you can do is run and hope you make it to safety where you can catch your breath and clear your mind
2. Phone call to Yuu
There is a Scene where Tomoko gets a phone call from her childhood "Bitch Friend" Yuu to cancel their meeting up for a movie (Which Tomoko was vastly over prepared for) because she has to work. Without hearing her explanation Tomoko immediately jumps to the conclusion that she has done something wrong and Yuu hates her and no longer wants to be her friend because Yuu is too good for her now. Of course this is not the case, it is Tomoko's fear of being alone taking over.
3. Watch Me Light Fireworks
After missing out on watching the fireworks after school ends Tomoko wants to see some so she asks her brother to come light some. When he refuses she asks if he could just watch her do it from the window because she just doesn't want to be alone. I think this demonstrates when Tomoko realizes that she just wants some company regardless of weather she is liked or not.
4. Escaping Reality
Tomoko will often put herself into a fantasy to pass the time while she is alone (To make things more bearable) Normally her appearance will be altered slightly to an older looking girl without bags under her eyes. Now this one really did bring back memories for me as i would do the same when i was younger (And even now, putting myself into my own fantasy is the only way i can actually sleep) and in similar form too, putting a more attractive version of myself in anime and such. I don't know if anyone else related as much as i did though.
I don't really know what else to say about this anime only that it may not be for everyone but give it a try, although it does deal with the topic of social anxiety there is some pretty good satire in there too.
I give it a 9/10
I wont give it a 10 because i'm completely undecided on the ending. I wont tell what happens however i cannot tell if she had taken a big step forward or a step back, it seems pretty open to interpretation
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