This anime is about a girl who has no friends at school, and does her best to try to make friends. The only problem is, she can't talk to people without getting extremely nervous. She has just started high school, and wishes to be popular. This anime includes some hilarious plots and subplots. It is often relatable, and most people will be able to empathize with her. She looks on the internet for ways to become popular, but all of them hilariously backfire and she is left back where she left off. It's a hilarious anime (yet sometimes inappropriate) that I definitely recommend for those who want to feel better about their own lives.
11 Reviews
Really Funny Show!
mercfma3 January 2015
So when i first saw Watamote being released in North America i read the thumbnail and looked at the DVD/BD art work and was like hmm this could be interesting or terrible, anyways it went on sale for Black Friday this year and i decided to pick it up and give it a shot. I'm really glad i did, instantly it was very funny gave me a few honest good laughs just in the first episode. Watamote is about a awkward 15 year old girl that doesn't really know how to fit in, and i think theirs a part of everyone that can relate to some part of her, maybe not to her extent but at least a little bit and i think thats what makes it so much of a better anime. Cause even if its only a little bit i think 4/5 people will be able to relate on some level with some of her troubles and problems and thats what makes it good, cause its real! These things really happen to some people and there really are people that are really close to her level of socially awkwardness, i've met a few when i was in school. Maybe that makes me a little bias cause i've really seen people with these problems/weirdness. After finishing the series i recommended it to a friend and he watched some of it later that night and texted me saying how funny it was and how relate-able some aspects were from when we were back in middle school and that made him like it even more. The story line is pretty good for what its suppose to be about i really don't know what could of been added to make it better, i found it very enjoyable. The main characters voice was a little annoying at times but i think it did a very good job at portraying her awkwardness so i don't think it could of been better, Its a pretty hard thing to make your voice sound weird in general imo. The character design was very good imo, i loved the main character and her friend and the background characters were all appealing as well. The music was awesome especially the opening! The main opening is one of my favorites of any show, the animation in it is amazing as well.
4/5 Why not 5/5? It was good, it didn't blow me away but i found it very enjoyable, funny, and relatable in some ways. Definitely something i think everyone can enjoy and get some good laughs out of, i'd say 10/12 episodes made me laugh and about 2 were just like yeah OK. Also their is an OVA episode that i've yet to watch but plan to so technically theirs 13 episodes with 12 being English at the time of writing this. I'd love to see a season two, i'd definitely pick it up if it were to be released! Give it a shot you won't regret it!
4/5 Why not 5/5? It was good, it didn't blow me away but i found it very enjoyable, funny, and relatable in some ways. Definitely something i think everyone can enjoy and get some good laughs out of, i'd say 10/12 episodes made me laugh and about 2 were just like yeah OK. Also their is an OVA episode that i've yet to watch but plan to so technically theirs 13 episodes with 12 being English at the time of writing this. I'd love to see a season two, i'd definitely pick it up if it were to be released! Give it a shot you won't regret it!
watamote is pretty good
Nutterbutty30 March 2022
Warning: Spoilers
If your looking for a wholesome fun slice of life, then you should probably look elsewhere. Watamote is about a first year high school student who recently had an epiphany and realizes she might not be as popular as she thought she was, so the series recounts her countless attempts at gaining the attention of her peers and generally being accepted by them, these attempts include: changing up her look, trying to get patted in the head, becoming a cabaret girl and much more which all fail flat at her face.
There are two ways to interpret this series, first is being offended at the clear jabs at the titular character Tomoko Kuroki's life, who is a shut that has trouble communicating people who aren't relatives and has many perverted thoughts. Some people might find her feelings, situations, and actions to be somewhat relatable and be put off by the series because of it.
The other way of interpreting the series is to see Tomoko Kuroki as a sort of commentary on lonely shut ins, but these people unlike the other group see this in a good light, as seeing such a character fail in social situations like they did might bring them a sense of acceptance. Seeing other people fail like you do (even fictional characters) could make you feel at ease that those problems you faced were faced by other people too.
Throughout the entire review until this point I have been mostly talking about the main character Tomoko, this is because she is heavily featured and we see the world through her eyes and perspective, but there are other characters such as Tomoki which is her brother. Tomoki is very reserved and cold especially towards his sister, unlike his sister Tomoki is actually shown to be popular with his peers as we see a girl coming to his house to give a leaflet. Tomoko is not devoid of friends though, as they introduce Yu Naruse during the second episode. Yu was a plain girl during middle school who was friends with Tomoko, but between middle school and high school she has a change in appearance and becomes a popular girl, all to Tomokos dismay. More minor character include Tomokos mom who accepts Tomoko but will try to discipline her when she becomes too much, Kiko, Tomokos cousin who looks up to her but slowly realizes she isn't as popular as she thought her to be, The group of popular kids, who Tomoko loves to inwardly berates and criticizes as she calls them the derogatory term "normies" Megumi Imae, who is a second year high school student in Tomokos school, she appears to be very popular with the other second year high school students and she tries to help Tomoko in her quest to gain friends, lastly there Kosaka, a boy who gave Tomoko a umbrella during a rainstorm, as that is the first nice thing a boy has done to her (aside from relatives) she has a crush on him, a conversation with him is also the final straw to Kikos respect towards Tomoko.
In conclusion Watamote is not for everybody, it will make many people uncomfortable either by how hard it is to stomach a few scenes or by how perverted her thoughts and actions can get. But I believe if you could handle and push through, you can find many heartwarming moments in this show and how surprisingly funny these situations could get for her. In heart though, this show is meant to remind you of socially awkward situations during your past, but that's what makes it special in my opinion. Embarrassing moments are a part of life and it shouldn't be taboo to talk about them and even make jokes or make fun of how dumb you were back then.
There are two ways to interpret this series, first is being offended at the clear jabs at the titular character Tomoko Kuroki's life, who is a shut that has trouble communicating people who aren't relatives and has many perverted thoughts. Some people might find her feelings, situations, and actions to be somewhat relatable and be put off by the series because of it.
The other way of interpreting the series is to see Tomoko Kuroki as a sort of commentary on lonely shut ins, but these people unlike the other group see this in a good light, as seeing such a character fail in social situations like they did might bring them a sense of acceptance. Seeing other people fail like you do (even fictional characters) could make you feel at ease that those problems you faced were faced by other people too.
Throughout the entire review until this point I have been mostly talking about the main character Tomoko, this is because she is heavily featured and we see the world through her eyes and perspective, but there are other characters such as Tomoki which is her brother. Tomoki is very reserved and cold especially towards his sister, unlike his sister Tomoki is actually shown to be popular with his peers as we see a girl coming to his house to give a leaflet. Tomoko is not devoid of friends though, as they introduce Yu Naruse during the second episode. Yu was a plain girl during middle school who was friends with Tomoko, but between middle school and high school she has a change in appearance and becomes a popular girl, all to Tomokos dismay. More minor character include Tomokos mom who accepts Tomoko but will try to discipline her when she becomes too much, Kiko, Tomokos cousin who looks up to her but slowly realizes she isn't as popular as she thought her to be, The group of popular kids, who Tomoko loves to inwardly berates and criticizes as she calls them the derogatory term "normies" Megumi Imae, who is a second year high school student in Tomokos school, she appears to be very popular with the other second year high school students and she tries to help Tomoko in her quest to gain friends, lastly there Kosaka, a boy who gave Tomoko a umbrella during a rainstorm, as that is the first nice thing a boy has done to her (aside from relatives) she has a crush on him, a conversation with him is also the final straw to Kikos respect towards Tomoko.
In conclusion Watamote is not for everybody, it will make many people uncomfortable either by how hard it is to stomach a few scenes or by how perverted her thoughts and actions can get. But I believe if you could handle and push through, you can find many heartwarming moments in this show and how surprisingly funny these situations could get for her. In heart though, this show is meant to remind you of socially awkward situations during your past, but that's what makes it special in my opinion. Embarrassing moments are a part of life and it shouldn't be taboo to talk about them and even make jokes or make fun of how dumb you were back then.
Tomoko is best girl
Quizzical-Panda26 March 2016
I've never seen a show that can so quickly move from heartbreaking to hilarious and not skip a beat. The best thing about the show is unquestionably it's main character, Tomoko Kuroki, a 15 year old asocial girl (who I personally suspect has undiagnosed Asperger's Syndrome) as she attempts convoluted schemes to try and make herself popular. On paper she should be horrible, with an unquestionably vindictive side, and a deep-rooted tendency to pass responsibilities. However, she possesses an unquestionable resilience, that no matter how dark and lonely it feels, she's still in control, with a fantastic tenacity to continue in her pursuit of social acceptance. Both English and Japanese voice-actors perfectly sell her anxiety and naivety. When she acts cruelly, the Universe usually punishes her for it, so she never reaches the point of her being unlikeable. These flaws allow us to laugh as she winds up in calamitous and embarrassing situations none of which I will spoil.
But this becomes the chief tragedy as well as a source of humour. As we see how warm and nice she was at the very beginning of childhood, to slowly see her devolve into isolation and rejection, from being almost transparent in Middle School to totally transparent in High School is hard to watch. To see that happiness drained from her face to one of cynical desperation can be hard to watch, but what is harder still is the main perversion of her character; her twisted sense of priority. Despite having the unquestionable love of those in her family, she appears almost ignorant of it, instead frantically pursuing the next scheme to somewhat increase her social standing for a brief few years at best. Her life has flown far off course and she doesn't even really understand why.
If you have a problem watching people in embarrassing situations, especially if you can relate to them, you won't find much enjoyment in the comedy. Tomoko's antics produce more 'Spaghetti' than the entirety of Italy. I found my cheeks physically hurting from the amount of cringe that was upon me, even as I laughed uproariously. We feel bad for her, but none of it is serious enough that we feel bad for laughing. We know she's going to come back with some poorly thought-out scheme next time and get right back on with it.
An obvious reason that the show took off was the similarity of the main character with many Anime viewers, who would have similar niche interests, as well as unsatisfactory social lives. It was ultimately 4chan who revived the Manga, and kept it from falling into the ether, igniting a wave of popularity in the West before the translation even came about (the creator would write a subtle thank-you to 4chan when the English edition came out). Tomoko is one of my favourite characters precisely because she is so flawed, while possessing all the right traits to keep me rooting for her, which is the basis of good writing.
I haven't even talked about the great opening which perfectly sells her anger at her isolation in the grimy prison she finds herself, the ED, which provides a magnificent dissection of her character in lyrics, and the animation, which uses colouring, and the lack thereof, to express the draining of her individuality beneath the crushing losses she finds herself enduring. Frankly, if I could have any form of interaction with her, I would simply give her a hug; she clearly needs some.
But this becomes the chief tragedy as well as a source of humour. As we see how warm and nice she was at the very beginning of childhood, to slowly see her devolve into isolation and rejection, from being almost transparent in Middle School to totally transparent in High School is hard to watch. To see that happiness drained from her face to one of cynical desperation can be hard to watch, but what is harder still is the main perversion of her character; her twisted sense of priority. Despite having the unquestionable love of those in her family, she appears almost ignorant of it, instead frantically pursuing the next scheme to somewhat increase her social standing for a brief few years at best. Her life has flown far off course and she doesn't even really understand why.
If you have a problem watching people in embarrassing situations, especially if you can relate to them, you won't find much enjoyment in the comedy. Tomoko's antics produce more 'Spaghetti' than the entirety of Italy. I found my cheeks physically hurting from the amount of cringe that was upon me, even as I laughed uproariously. We feel bad for her, but none of it is serious enough that we feel bad for laughing. We know she's going to come back with some poorly thought-out scheme next time and get right back on with it.
An obvious reason that the show took off was the similarity of the main character with many Anime viewers, who would have similar niche interests, as well as unsatisfactory social lives. It was ultimately 4chan who revived the Manga, and kept it from falling into the ether, igniting a wave of popularity in the West before the translation even came about (the creator would write a subtle thank-you to 4chan when the English edition came out). Tomoko is one of my favourite characters precisely because she is so flawed, while possessing all the right traits to keep me rooting for her, which is the basis of good writing.
I haven't even talked about the great opening which perfectly sells her anger at her isolation in the grimy prison she finds herself, the ED, which provides a magnificent dissection of her character in lyrics, and the animation, which uses colouring, and the lack thereof, to express the draining of her individuality beneath the crushing losses she finds herself enduring. Frankly, if I could have any form of interaction with her, I would simply give her a hug; she clearly needs some.
Watamote: No Matter How I Look at It, It's You Guys Fault I'm Not Popular
Tweekums1 October 2013
Warning: Spoilers
This series' protagonist Tomoko Kuroki starts off as a shy middle school girl but she is certain that when she progresses to High School her shyness will pass and she will become popular
especially with the boys. Inevitably when she gets there she is just as shy as ever. Over the course of the series we see her wanting to get involved with others and make friends at her new school but her shyness prevents this and she just comes across as weird. She does have one friend but she now attends a different school so she doesn't get to see much of her.
This was my favourite series of the current anime season; despite the many awkward moments I laughed until I cried more than once. Tokoko is a likable protagonist and one can't help wanting things to go well for her even though they rarely do. There are also plenty of cringe-worthy moments; such as when she is convinced that she is being molested on a train and when she falls asleep in class and has an erotic dream! The fact that things like this occur means it isn't really suitable for younger viewers. While the character design is similar to many other series Tomoko has a distinctive look that perfectly captures her near permanent state of stress; this is further helped by the way she is voiced by Izumi Kitta; she does a really great job.
These comments are based on watching the series in Japanese with English subtitles.
This was my favourite series of the current anime season; despite the many awkward moments I laughed until I cried more than once. Tokoko is a likable protagonist and one can't help wanting things to go well for her even though they rarely do. There are also plenty of cringe-worthy moments; such as when she is convinced that she is being molested on a train and when she falls asleep in class and has an erotic dream! The fact that things like this occur means it isn't really suitable for younger viewers. While the character design is similar to many other series Tomoko has a distinctive look that perfectly captures her near permanent state of stress; this is further helped by the way she is voiced by Izumi Kitta; she does a really great job.
These comments are based on watching the series in Japanese with English subtitles.
A cute outlook on social anxiety
markoeve19 October 2015
This show is somewhat difficult to rate and recommend, mostly because it has very specific and mature qualities, rather than being straight up exciting like some expect out of anime. It's about a bitter, socially awkward 15 year old girl that tries her hardest to fit in and become more sociable, but her fear and misunderstanding of people cause her to fail at it over and over again.
If you are the person that gets a lot of second hand embarrassment from witnessing awkward situations you are in for quite a ride. Feeling strongly related to the heroine, personally, this is what attracted me to the show so much. If it can make you feel things, than you know it is real, relevant, and it is refreshing to experience it from a third point of view. The people who made the show understand deeply what it means to be a shut-in.
If that sounded scary, don't worry! The whole show is done in a light comedy tone. If it wasn't, watching it would be downright unbearable. There are a ton of hilarious references to other popular anime.
I would strongly recommend it to people who experienced some degree of social anxiety while growing up, or people who want to understand it better.
If you are the person that gets a lot of second hand embarrassment from witnessing awkward situations you are in for quite a ride. Feeling strongly related to the heroine, personally, this is what attracted me to the show so much. If it can make you feel things, than you know it is real, relevant, and it is refreshing to experience it from a third point of view. The people who made the show understand deeply what it means to be a shut-in.
If that sounded scary, don't worry! The whole show is done in a light comedy tone. If it wasn't, watching it would be downright unbearable. There are a ton of hilarious references to other popular anime.
I would strongly recommend it to people who experienced some degree of social anxiety while growing up, or people who want to understand it better.
Respected, but not enjoyed
apaustinproux6923 August 2013
I saw an article on Kotaku from a "writer" claiming this anime to be incredibly mean about people with social disorders. He went on and on about how these things shouldn't be made fun of, and that the creators are generally mean people. What he also mentioned, was that this show is a comedy. In true false humility, someone has taken it upon themselves to get uppity about jokes. Again. The problem isn't that these things could be considered offensive, it's that this isn't the type of comedy that appeals to some people. Now about the actual anime, and not why I enjoy the creators. I didn't find it very funny, the jokes were okay but never really stood out to me. The only reason I'd remember this is because of the kotaku article. The faces were funny, I've often taken screen shots and photoshoped them into inside jokes which I would distribute among my friends. Other than that, the show was surprisingly boring. In the end, I appreciate the idea more than the product.
Kuroki relates to myself so much!
Irishchatter11 September 2018
Warning: Spoilers
Some people might think this anime is giving such a negative aspect of being a social outcast. However I'm the opposite to this because it shows the reality of what having social anxiety is really about, and her personality reminds me so much of me when I was in secondary school (except having the 2-D bfs on the Nintendo haha). I have to add that to college as well folks lol.
Anyways it is sad to see someone like Kuroki to not have friends of her own and that it is a pure struggle in finding the right ones to hang out with. I know there was a 4 group of people in her class that would be potentially be her friend but I mean, people may look and act the part of being a good friend but deep down, they could be rotting apples at the same time. I'm not saying everyone is like that but I understand how tough it is to find friends you click with regardless if you're a shy person or a pure chatterbox. Kuroki should've talked to them at least to able to know them better and that way she could possibly be best friends with them down the line. But she didn't take the chance in her own favour so yeah it's not easy trying to make friends definately!
I think this was a pretty great anime, it did have some funny bits even the references to popular anime like Whisper of the Heart, Death note, etc. I even loved the English dub cast doing the anime, Monica Rial was spot on playing Kuroki!
Anyways it is sad to see someone like Kuroki to not have friends of her own and that it is a pure struggle in finding the right ones to hang out with. I know there was a 4 group of people in her class that would be potentially be her friend but I mean, people may look and act the part of being a good friend but deep down, they could be rotting apples at the same time. I'm not saying everyone is like that but I understand how tough it is to find friends you click with regardless if you're a shy person or a pure chatterbox. Kuroki should've talked to them at least to able to know them better and that way she could possibly be best friends with them down the line. But she didn't take the chance in her own favour so yeah it's not easy trying to make friends definately!
I think this was a pretty great anime, it did have some funny bits even the references to popular anime like Whisper of the Heart, Death note, etc. I even loved the English dub cast doing the anime, Monica Rial was spot on playing Kuroki!
Heart-wrenching
ecvoid5 April 2020
This anime was delightfully bitter. Something I truly never expected to find in this genre of all things.
Let's get the bad out of the way first: the claim that this anime is offensive. That's somewhat true. Sexual assault is trivialised with humour voiced by the female MC. There is also some fan service - a minuscule amount but totally ill-suited for the scenes they're in. Also the show gets very preachy, over using the "woman of loose morals" slur to make a point. This is hypocritical considering we're dealing with the nation that took objectification to an art form.
And now for all the good aspects. Regarding this anime as offensive towards people who suffer from social anxiety is actually a plus in my book. Not because it's actually true but because it proves the show pulled no punches when it came to how it dealt with the subject. The anguish, embarrassment and loneliness the heroine experiences were impactful for me. Tomoko's habit of conceiving plans to quickly rise to popularity at times got her comically humiliated. As a loner myself, this had the effect to thoroughly relate to her. Her witty inner monologue, sprinkled with anime and video game references, presents her as a reclusive nihilist. However she quickly morphs into a shy optimist every time one of her harebrained schemes to get accepted might have a chance to work.
And this is how the show tugged at my heartstrings... Tomoko transitions from resenting the happiness of others to briefly being hopeful for her own happiness and ultimately to deep sorrow, as things don't go her way. Stylised animation and the music score are sometimes used to emphasise these emotions. This unbearable sadness becomes bittersweet in the rare moments when Tomoko skips that whole emotional roller coaster and is sincerely acknowledging her pure need to be desired. When all of these pieces come together they make for one hell of a show.
As a final commendation for this anime all I can say is that I've never felt such a need to give a hug to a fictional character before. It absolutely deserved a more rewarding conclusion!
Let's get the bad out of the way first: the claim that this anime is offensive. That's somewhat true. Sexual assault is trivialised with humour voiced by the female MC. There is also some fan service - a minuscule amount but totally ill-suited for the scenes they're in. Also the show gets very preachy, over using the "woman of loose morals" slur to make a point. This is hypocritical considering we're dealing with the nation that took objectification to an art form.
And now for all the good aspects. Regarding this anime as offensive towards people who suffer from social anxiety is actually a plus in my book. Not because it's actually true but because it proves the show pulled no punches when it came to how it dealt with the subject. The anguish, embarrassment and loneliness the heroine experiences were impactful for me. Tomoko's habit of conceiving plans to quickly rise to popularity at times got her comically humiliated. As a loner myself, this had the effect to thoroughly relate to her. Her witty inner monologue, sprinkled with anime and video game references, presents her as a reclusive nihilist. However she quickly morphs into a shy optimist every time one of her harebrained schemes to get accepted might have a chance to work.
And this is how the show tugged at my heartstrings... Tomoko transitions from resenting the happiness of others to briefly being hopeful for her own happiness and ultimately to deep sorrow, as things don't go her way. Stylised animation and the music score are sometimes used to emphasise these emotions. This unbearable sadness becomes bittersweet in the rare moments when Tomoko skips that whole emotional roller coaster and is sincerely acknowledging her pure need to be desired. When all of these pieces come together they make for one hell of a show.
As a final commendation for this anime all I can say is that I've never felt such a need to give a hug to a fictional character before. It absolutely deserved a more rewarding conclusion!
I Finally found a character that resembles myself
tasin-4741727 May 2022
Watamote is full of comedy and has a unique introverted funny protagonist who is a girl and she wants to be popular, to be loved by everybody,she also wants a boyfriend .This slice of life and comedy based anime has a wonderful plot and a perfect storyline. You will not detest it. I guarantee it.
See also
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