Tomoko's problems simply caused by financial extravagance?

No Matter How I Look at It, It's You Guys' Fault I'm Not Popular!

Dec 28, 2017 3:09 AM

Offline

Dec 2017

225

An issue has been bothering me with regards to the underlying realism of Watamote:

The Kuroki family is rather wealthy, at the upper edge of middle class or even higher. Their suburban house is visibly modern and both kids have large rooms large by japanese standards. Father is likely a high pecking order sarariman, who always works long into night and is seen just once in the anime. The money he earns largely disappears in a black hole called Tomoko.

In the anime she buys a 6970 yen date-sim game on a whim, orders a HD webcam from Amazon and shelves it after just one try, throws multiple 200 yen coins at arcade consoles as if zinc buttons and frequents a rather expensive cafe chain. Her smartphone has unlimited data plan and she wastes gigabytes on pr0n. Her younger brother is in a soccer club, which indicates a higher societal / financial status compared to e.g. baseball (in America: soccer mom -> big SUV).

Also in the Watamote manga chapters which take place after the anime's conclusion Tomoko's seen wearing a whole artic fox hide for a shawl during graduation ceremony, which likely cost its weight in gold. She is also buying the 150 USD Vocaloid2 "Hatsune Miku" software and when the mail order arrives her mother receives it who doesn't even blink an eye. Daughter than shelves Miku after just one afternoon of trial and error frustration, without any repercussions for being wasteful.

(That last item is rather bizarre. I've seen adolescents from well-off countries like USA and Western Europe apologize on webforums for using an Utau or pirated "Pocaloid" for months while they saved up to buy their Miku idol and when they did they posted photos of Vocaloid product box like it was a portable shrine. It's impossible to consider 150USD as pocket change even in Japan!)

Let's compare that luxurious aspect of Watamote to something recent, say Tsuki ga Kirei. There the protagonists, similar age to Tomoko, constantly struggled with finances. Even Akane, whose upper middle class family is visibly well-off, had only a minimal personal allowance and had to compromise on a present she got for Kotaru, while the boy was only able to take her out on a date due to an 1000 yen tip from the shrine's keeper. There was a rich girl side character in that anime and she was constantly escorted by 2-3 friends.

This contradiction begs some questions on Watamote (note the pun, begs!):

1. Shouldn't it be easy to cure Tomoko's symptoms by relocating her to a more down-to-earth place, like a japanese rural equivalent of the amish community? If she's allergetic and sensitive to Sun than agriculture in the field is out of question, but she could turn hutterite pottery in a barn, etc. In a setting where money doesn't fall from the sky like manna, skills of communication and cooperation become a question of learning fast vs. fasting.

2. Considering her visible wealth how can Tomoko be lonely even in the city? One could argue the rich can afford be lonely, since purchasing power of professional services replaces thy neighbour's compassion in problem solving, but on the other hand if you have the money people will gravitate towards you (even if only for selfish, materialistic reasons).

For example in the manga Tomoko brings yet another newly published light novel to class every single day for two weeks and reads them in plain sight, hoping to initiate discussion about the stories, but nobody cares and she just discards the tankobon as if toilet paper. Shouldn't classmates ask Tomoko, even if totally uninterested in her personality, to borrow her manga read or fur or her gold-tipped MontBlanc fountain pen to compose an exclusive love letter?

This issue makes Watamote somewhat unrealistic, even though the story touches on very real problems of social phobias and dangers of weaboo culture. BR

Jan 14, 2018 12:17 AM

Emirinn

Offline

Sep 2016

Are you basing it all on american standards or japanese standards?
Well in any case, no matter how much money you got, if you're socially awkward it's just hard to make friends.
simple as that.

May 17, 2018 8:22 PM

KuroudoAkabane

Offline

Jun 2015

5754

also.... that 2nd last ep, she thinks of herself as misaki mei from another.

she think everyone is proactively ignoring her.

and it rings true. I felt the class was kinda ignoring that small creepy girl before she had that actual thought in ep 11.

I dont go talkin to ppl and am [not to that extent] kinda like her... I'll sit in a corner mindin ma own business, but ppl actually approach me on thier own accord. that happened in school, at camp, in junior college, at work, at another workplace and then some.

also I can relate to her in so many ways..... I had a bug sqaushing incident too!

except it did turn out like how she wanted it too, I got mad props! so its more like the classmates fault for making her situation worse.

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