The Reality Within Welcome to the NHK

[@savingthrows719]

When I was in university, I had finally moved out of my parents place to live closer to campus and get my own independence. But after a month of being there, I realised I couldn't go through with the commitment I gave to myself. I felt like I didn't belong there, and after spending the six months leading up to my first semester convincing my folks why I wanted to do it, I felt it was all in vain. I hated the way things were so strictly laid out for me, leading me to close myself off from my family, friends, tutors and cohorts. I never left my room, only ever to get food or visit the shop which was a stones toss away. With all the time in the world, I felt I should give anime a shot. After discovering a show I love, I wanted that hit of dopamine again. watching disappointment after disappointment until I almost lost interest. I liked "slice-of-life", finding characters more down to earth and the comedic beats more hard hitting. But everything I watched would always end unfinished and it almost made me lose faith in the medium I had spent countless sleepless nights watching. Don't get me wrong there are a ton of hidden gems I cherish to this day, and the whole experience led me understand what it is I truly want out of a show. Even if I hadn't found it yet. That's when I discovered "Welcome to the NHK". Without knowing anything about it besides it being a "dark comedy/slice of life". I just had never EVER felt a connection towards any piece of fiction the way I did. I was isolated, constantly dazed and going through a depression I had never thought to identify. As the show would wrap up and almost every episode feeling like a different perspective of human psyche, I dreaded the ending getting closer. I couldn't fathom the idea of it ending. And, well. It did, but in a way I could never have predicted. There was no tease of more to come, no lingering plot threads. You see the characters go through so much, and you end up learning so much about yourself and society, just for things to remain the same. But it shouldn't stop you from having to keep moving forward, giving it the best you can, in any way possible. At that point it was a lot to take in for such a miniscule ending. But I had to know more, understand why I felt so connected to this story. So I bought the original novel. And although the book was a lot more ramped up with its vulgarity. It carried just as much weight in the way things were addressed, it wasn't until I finished the story and the book ends with two afterwords from the author Tatsuhiko Takimoto. He put himself through hell to create the story, becoming a hikikomori and reliving old memories that filled him with nothing but suicidal tendencies and the feeling that it was all so pointless. He did everything he could possibly do, and through it all he made a story he views as something " you wont lose anything by reading". And 9 years later, I still think about that. I lost nothing from my experience, I only really learned about myself and gained so much in that time. It remains my favourite story for that reason, in any form (not just the novel). I may never get the same feeling again, the same way I did the first time I experienced Welcome to the NHK. But I know for certain, It was exactly what I needed to move forward. And I can't watch anime the same way ever again. You're intro really reminded me of the person I was before discovering the show. And I will never stop looking back at that time fondly, regardless of how destructive I was. Thank you.

[@kartikkumarsah4799]

Do you still watch anime?

[@helloish12321]

To anybody that likes the anime I strongly recommend you find a pdf of the original light novel and read it. It's much better than the anime with how it portrays the misery and sadness of the story. Also misaki isn't portrayed as a savior, but is more obviously a scarred and miserable person herself. It's much more real and loses all the goofy comedy from the anime and is better for it.

[@gurrenmed5319]

The show is way way better, it's very realistic and how they portray Misaki perfectly as a person who wants to save him

[@toongamer2810]

The light novel or the manga? Or which came first idk

[@helloish12321]

@@toongamer2810 the novel came first. It got adapted once it became popular. The English translation is pretty good

[@ellusiv5121]

tbf, the anime also doesn't portray her as a savior. Her incessant clinging to Sato comes off as suspicious even before we learn about her backstory.

[@dixcy_parashar]

@helloish12321 any recommended site for pdf, I cannot find it

[@pkavenger9990]

I used to be a hikikamori for 3 years and I watched this anime after 2 years since recovery and i wised i would have watched it sooner. The most relatable thing was when he went out and felt like everyone was watching him and secretly laughing at him. man this was so relatable but in my case it was bad bacteria in my gut that can make you crazy, as soon as i fixed my gut after 3 years, I started recovering, the situation can not be always psychological, it can also be a health issue. And then i started jogging at morning when few people were around, I was Muslim so i started going to mosque to pray, slowly i start regaining confidence and start doing little achievements and I also started learning about people psychology and emotional intelligence. And i realized that life is like a game of chess, sometimes an unusual event happens and instead of logically analyzing the situation, you Blunder and then you feel stupid. Basically people who are hikikamori have bad health and low emotional intelligence and they get paranoid because of it. The truth is you can never be sure about anything, anyone can betray your trust but that does not mean that you don't give anyone a chance, look for red flags and if they are too many red flags then that person is bad for you. Just like Misaki was not bad but she also had issues, she thought she was bad so she looked for someone who is more miserable than her and when she told it to Sato when he was about to die shows that she also have issues but she was not completely selfish a part of her really loved Sato and cared about him that is why she was crying. Sato also had low emotional intelligence and he did not realized that and started hating Misaki but at the end both of them realized that they both have issue and they can help each other out. If I knew them I would help both of them and advise them to just get married as soon as possible.

[@solitarycrow]

You give new a perspective on NHK. I'm glad to see more and more channels giving their takes on this hidden gem of an anime. This show really helped me out during the worst phase of my life during my Freshmen year of college. Your last words in the latter half of the video really meant a lot to the show and me. Yes, at the end of the day, it's all up to ourselves to function properly in society. However, I like how this show also acknowledges that, yes, human connections and bonds are also important too since we are social animals. I thought the scene with Misaki and Sato's final contract was so masterful since it acknowledges that they do have issues to sort out by themselves, but at the same time, they are in it together and are not alone in their struggles. I just hope that they eventually resolve their issues enough for them to actually get together as a stable couple, and possibly a married one at that. I just pray that one day that there would be an OVA of pretty much all the main characters(Misaki, Sato, Hitomi, Yamazaki, maybe Kobayashi) getting together for a reunion party after all of them resolved their issues enough. But, of course, this would be pretty far into the future in NHK's universe.

[@AN-jz3kf]

Welcome to the NHL will stick with me. Watched it last year and it's up there in my all time favorite anime. Glad to report I found more meaning in my life since and will be getting my own place :) Edit: OHHH and when he goes off to the island with his old high school friend it was weird how pleasant it was considering what they were there to do (won't spoil), but yeah so many themes in this show

[@benjaminpeters6729]

Welcome to the NHL...lol

[@AN-jz3kf]

@benjaminpeters6729 mistyped lol

[@FemaleRepellent1]

Beautiful review for one of my favorite anime shows out there. I've always found Welcome to the NHK to be a one of a kind, and the way it delivers it's story so concisely and relatively satisfactory is what makes it so great. I've tried to find other manga/anime that's similar to NHK, but they just don't hit the same as NHK does. I bet nobody is going to see this comment, especially not the creator of the video as it's been 2 years and he hasn't uploaded since; but man, life kinda hurts sometimes doesn't it?

[@ew1472]

well, uhh idk why im commenting but i think i just want to talk to you or something lol. welcome to nhk is really special to me. i came across it while watching the anime, "Sing "yesterday" for me" and though the setting and the layout is quite similar to welcome to the nhk , it's still different. i saw this anime just 2-3 months ago and it provided me with solace when i was suffering. it also gave me a crazy obsessive friend lol (surprisingly from the comment section of a purupururin video lmfao) anyway, i hope the best for you.

[@FemaleRepellent1]

@@ew1472 Interesting, i'll have to check out that anime later sometime; it does seem interesting. Best of luck to you stranger.

[@StarshipMaximus]

My favorite part in the novel is when they had cocaine and went to church lmao! Forever one of the most powerful stories of all time.

[@fan4every1lol89]

What volume?

[@inkoinfinity2]

​@@fan4every1lol89it's not a light novel it's a regular novel, there's only one book

[@ErenAurelius27]

I'm 23 now and I've been living like this for 3.5 years since I was 20. No job, boring and depressing life, no girlfriend, no friends, skinny, no skills whatsoever. I used to go to college, but I stopped when I was in my 4th semester because I experienced something that I only found out some time later that it was depression. Since then, my days have only been spent watching Anime, KZbin, playing social media, and all sorts of things on the Internet. The only time I stop playing on my cellphone or computer is when I sleep, and even then my sleep hours are chaotic, maybe I only sleep 4 hours a day. I use those things as distractions for my useless life. My daily food is only junk food, I rarely go out of the house. I just lock myself in my room every day. I tried to commit suicide several times but failed because I was afraid of the pain. I've tried many times to get up and change, but for some reason maybe because I'm weak so I always fail and that makes me always feel hopeless. But deep down in my heart, I don't want to live like this forever. Now I want to try again, I want to change completely. I want to start over from zero. Starting today, I promise to take action for my life.

[@Sindrella.]

How has your progress been? This was the show that made me realize I need to start working to make my life better, that we as humans are so stuck in assuming that someone will come along, like Misaki, and help us. But the reality is that the responsibility is pretty much entirely on us alone.

[@theperson4yearsago565]

God speed, I believe in you Eren

[@ShoXwavee]

I hope you progressed in life

[@flyingchimp5012]

You popped up in my recs. Welcome to the NHK is an impact. Thanks for raising your voice bro. I hate bocchi, I hate watamote, NHK is for real n**gas. I wish more anime wouldn't shy away from showing life "as is". Love ya, Man.

[@sinisis_sinisis]

watamote is… Hillarious… nhk is better but watamote is… Hillarious

[@gansmith]

Always welcome seeing new reviews on this cult classic. To this day, Welcome to the NHK remains a unique anime that focuses on exploring the inner struggles of depression from different perspective and backgrounds to teach us that we are all vulnerable to extreme anxiety and depression on which we search for our own unique ways to cope/escape from our reality. Be it through games, work, drugs, conspiracy theories, patronizing others we believe to be below us, or just extreme isolation. Great video, I would suggest to read the manga, it is it own separate beast with a separate plot and a great read.

[@zachariahtuttle3543]

Severely underrated

[@hawkeyenextgen7117]

I already feel like I can relate to the protagonist's struggles. Being born with Autism, even though I am high functioning, I was often ostracized, pigeonholed from the rest of my age group by peers and adults alike merely due to my diagnosis. I was expected to work harder and behave more strictly than the others simply because of my label, while the rest of them got off scot-free. Many of my social skills camps and special education classes were disorderly and dysfunctional, as many of the teachers there were unqualified, unskilled, and neglectful, as they expected us Autists (and other Neurodivergents) to figure things out on our own though we were still kids, rather than taking responsibility themselves for our development. I was conditioned to be self-conscious of my mental disorder, and overly caring about what others think of me in the name of self-improvement. I was taught that if I was disliked or mistreated, that I was doing something socially unacceptable. In a manner of speaking, I was set up to fail in my youth. To this day, I still suffer PTSD from being psychologically abused by my peers and staff alike. Even as an adult, I was still mistreated by fellow adults. I can't help but feel paranoid that some people are out to get me, as I've been stalked, doxed, and threatened to be hunted down and killed by people online who wished me grievous harm since Lockdown. I want to watch this anime, but I am afraid of being triggered and spiraling into a relapse. Can anyone help?

[@aementl3387]

Well on the topic of if you should watch the anime or not. I’ve struggled alot with social anxiety in the past and there were many times I felt like a failure in general to the point where I felt like I could’ve ended up like the protagonist. So while watching the anime there were absolutely moments that really reminded of my own personal experiences of crippling social anxiety. But I’m still glad I watched it though. It helped me a bit to feel like continuing to push through the complete bs that is life. I’m not sure how it would affect you but I think you might get something out of it at least.

[@hawkeyenextgen7117]

@@aementl3387I’m afraid of watching the anime, because I’m afraid it will trigger my PtSD, and force me to relive my darkest memories

[@aementl3387]

@@hawkeyenextgen7117 I don't know what you went through so I don't know if it will trigger your PTSD. Maybe its best if you don't watch it for now if you don't want to risk it.

[@hawkeyenextgen7117]

@@aementl3387 Well, I was psychologically abused by my peer sin 10th grade. They called me a "retard" because of my Autism and treated me like one. They used my Autism as a scapegoat to blame me for how they mistreated me and gaslighted me by saying my Autism was making me hallucinate their abuse. Whenever I went to the adults for help, my peers would usually say, "he doesn't know what he's saying, he's a retard" These kids were unhinged, and my world was literally turned upside down. Whenever i did a good thing, they'd punish me for it. Whenever I did a bad thing, they'd reward me for it. My moral compass was out of control, and I thought I was going completely insane. They even sexually assaulted me in the showers, and claimed it never happened. But the worst thing they did, was blackmail my only friend there to betray me by treating us like a homosexual couple.

[@edwardsuou]

@@hawkeyenextgen7117this anime is not for weak stomachs I can assure you that. At the same time if you think you’re suffering due to difficulties with your peers you have nothing to be ashamed of There are a lot of people who help people just like you as their job, which may be more than you can imagine they are. I just graduated to become a psychologist myself so I know how seriously problems like the ones you seem to have are treated. Did you ever went to a dentist? It’s a lot similar to psychological treatment. Maybe you got really hurt from a specific difficult event (let’s say you got punched and broke a teeth or someone humiliated you) , maybe living with bad unresolved problems (let’s say you developed a caries or you had a toxic relationship and you feel a burn out). You may also want to polish your condition so you feel happier or learn something which could make you more confident and resistant for future challenges which scares you. If you say you are suffering from difficulties you had with past events and you are afraid even watching a piece of media could open some wounds (which usually isn’t the case) then I would recommend you to, at the very least, meet someone who can make a check up on your psychological condition like you would do with a dentist if your teeth slightly hurt. Maybe you already did that but many people just don’t consider it. Many search for easier “solutions” which only creates much more suffering.

[@Jack-j4j4f]

This analysis was so good!!

[@derpherp1810]

Here is my takeaway from the anime, the NHK represents alot of things to me but I see it as a reason to continue on living. Call it god, the world, capitalism, the NHK puts a name to our suffering an external factor that we have little to no control over but repeatedly fucks us all over and it makes life almost not worth living. Misaki and all of Sato's friends and the people he meets represents the reason why we need to keep going, there is always other people out there who face similar struggles and in that suffering there is a comradery. We can't wait for the revolution or the rapture or something to come so that we can live our best lives. Escapism can bring us comfort or even inspire us to keep going but its not sustainable to hide behind those fantasies, the real world always comes calling and when we choose to die isn't our choice. We don't get dramatic deaths, that's not our choice. This show brings alot of comfort to me, so many people who say it makes them depressed don't get it. Yes these characters are flawed like all human beings but to see them live and pick eachother up when facing the brink of oblivion is beautiful to me. Things will always get better and sometimes things suck but the fact that this world sucks motivates us to live in it not only to spite the NHK, capitalism, god, or the world itself but so that we can forge a better path for others who will come after us, after all that is what history is, evolution. Instead of feeling hopeless I felt cathartic and understood. Its not my fault, but I can't just sit here and do nothing, I need to live because fuck this world and fuck capitalism and I give two shits about some people. We can't isolate ourselves, its when we do this is when we suffer the most, all we have is eachother.

[@alanway5]

at the end of the day we are all sonny boys, insignificant and that is fine

[@АБВГДЯЮЭЬЫ]

Great video!

[@aa898246]

great video

[@Nukedphone]

misaki will not come to your door

[@sauravbharti7421]

Wow! Amazing review I have recently rewatched it and this time it hits harder than before, maybe in future nhk will be popular . Btw I have subscribed you

[@kittideree]

whats the bg music around 13:10

[@drthvdr2802]

great vid subbed :)

[@Remeii]

Appreciate it!

[@Matagatsu]

Amazing approach from your perspective would love to see more of these

[@Remeii]

@@Matagatsu Many thanks! Appreciate the words!

[@fwra1234]

great review bröther

[@adilbek.ermekov]

Underrated

[@azureburst1496]

He’s back

[@1-lil_nico]

facts misaki house and satou apartment exist in real life

[@SwissCr7]

I gotta have a smoke at the park there before I die

[@1-lil_nico]

@@SwissCr7 did you find the location on Google map?

[@theperson4yearsago565]

​@@1-lil_nico🤓

[@SepZ5]

ur channel looks inactive, but great video bro

[@theperson4yearsago565]

Man

[@theperson4yearsago565]

699 likes

[@billyarduino]

No hate, I love this series, and I'm happy to hear anyone talk about it, but this video was a little too heavily inspired by "Hiding In Public's" video. It bugged me the entire time, I don't doubt that your sentiment is real. I just wish you said the same thing in a different way, maybe you copied the delivery of that video too hard. Goodluck, I really mean no hate. Usually if you want to use an idea of someone else, its best just to reference their idea in the in the video, and credit them or it comes across as a bit of a clone..

[@gansmith]

While the delivery has a bit of Hiding in Public's vibe, the overall expression of his ideas are unique to him including the use of key quotes to conclude the themes of his perspective on the series. Exploring the author's notes on the series alone is something almost all the Welcome to the NHK other videos fail to mention despite the author's own shut-in life was key in making the series what it became. Not sure what differences you were expecting, but I do not believe this was a lazy emulation of Hiding in Public's video.

[@Requiem8040]

Yooooo trails of cold steel ost nice man