I've watched several Watamote episodes now.
Believe me I have empathy with the character too Tek but whether she is ugly or not has a pretty big effect on where the story can go. On one hand if she is not ugly then the whole thing is in her head and she can have a "magical" transformation. The droll Naruto transformation path of working hard to be accepted until you are. She could work hard and become the head of a vast Christian organization with a beautiful spouse and daughter
. Being actually ugly is far more interesting. You just have to live with it and how you do so has the ability to make meaningful social statements. Now when the art style itself portrays her as "cute" to the audience it already partially negates this. I'll simplify it this way it's a story about being rejected but they don't draw her as ugly (just symbolically ugly) for fear people would reject watching it, it's hypocritical.
Furthermore I'm not convinced she is ugly. Her brother says she is average. Yes maybe he is being nice but he is supposed to be popular and he has the same dark eyes. Then her dark circles disappear when she puts on glasses. The series has time to break from the average but I'm not convinced yet. Typical anime tropes get in the way of me taking it quite as serious as it should be. Sexual subjects seem contrived to shock as much as show her thoughts, absences of her parents and the ubiquitous brother syndrome. Don't tell me it doesn't lose points just for the brother sister thing Tek. Would it kill this anime to have two sisters or her as an only child? I do still hold out hope though. The most interesting part was the Father putting her to bed and if they expand on her relationship with her parents my interest will grow. What loving parents would neglect showing love to their child if they knew she was having a tough time?
You raise several good points. I concede that I'm unable to comment on the show from an objective perspective because it hits so close to home, but that (its personal relevancy) is also why I continue watching the show.
Regarding the sister and brother relationship: Having watched (and been completely disappointed by the ending of) an anime series that focuses on a brother-sister relationship, I feel safe predicting that Watamote will not venture into "potential incest" territory. Later episodes show that Tomoko and her brother used to have a healthy relationship, but it's clear that their current relationship is strained at best and hostile at worst. It begs the questions, "What happened to damage the relationship?" and "Will they repair it?" While I find myself hoping for a reconciliation between brother and sister, the tone of the series and the depth of Tomoko's depravity suggests such restoration is highly unlikely. Watamote is at times a tragedy and at times a comedy. Sometimes it's hard to tell which it is.
And yes, brother-sister relationships are a common feature and focus of anime series. Even the Japanese creation myth features sibling-spouses (Izanagi and Izanami-no-Mikoto, a couple whose relationship did not end well, to put it mildly). Incest is a theme found more often in Japanese stories than in Western fiction (George R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire series is the only example I can think of); I'm not familiar enough with Japanese history or modern Japanese culture to posit a theory as to why.
Regarding Tomoko's parents: Her mother seems like a reasonably well-adjusted person, though her father isn't around (perhaps he's a workaholic salaryman?). The mother is a flawed character herself, but still well within the bounds of "normal." She seems distant from her daughter in that she doesn't seem aware of her sorrows and teen angst, but remember that island nations tend to develop a less confrontational approach to conflict resolution (very unlike the West or digital space, where physical distance allows people to leave and family reputations hold less significance). Distance between parent and child certainly isn't exclusive, but may be motivated by different drives in the West (such as self-obsession. individualism, and a weakening grasp on moral absolutes).
Regarding Tomoko's physical appearance: On further reflection, I don't think the series would work as well if she were very ugly instead of simply not cute or "kawaii" because then she could legitimately blame her situation on her physical appearance.
And that's the common thread between the 3 points mentioned above: Fault, or the lack thereof. So far in the story, there is no evidence of trauma. Her brother and mother seem like well-adjusted people, her father's absence has been treated as a non-issue thus far, and while she's not cute, she is (probably) average. There's no one thing that you can look at in Tomoko's life and say, "This is why she's like this way; she is justified in her abnormal behavior and thoughts." The other characters in the series are normal: The brother could have been more persistent in maintaining a healthy relationship with his sister, but at some point, he gave up. The mother could be more involved with her daughter's life, but she's not mean or hostile. The friend (Yuu) could be more sensitive and see that Tomoko is hurting, but she's a sweet and polite person (and, to be fair, Tomoko makes every effort to hide her suffering). The culture idolizes the cool, the trendy, and the cute, but don't all cultures? Misplaced cultural priorities don't excuse Tomoko's behavior.
I understand I'm approaching a Japanese story from a Western (specifically, Christian) viewpoint, but one could easily argue that the root issue of Tomoko's suffering is her own sin nature (note the difference between "sins" and "sin nature"). Her self-obsession, her selfishness, her laziness, her insistence on blaming others for her social standing (or lack thereof), her refusal to take responsibility all stem from her fallen nature. An agnostic viewpoint would likely point to Tomoko as a victim of a flawed culture--the same culture that witnessed the rise of the
hikikomori phenomenon. Whether West or East, human nature seeks to blame others for our faults. That is one way in which Christianity violently breaks with culture: We recognize our sin as our own, we recognize we are not only sinners but also unable to stop sinning without the redeeming work of Christ, and we recognize Christ as our savior--past, present, and future.
I think the reason why I empathize with Tomoko and simultaneously can lay the blame at her feet, where it rightly belongs, is that her sins are my sins. I have the same tendencies as she does. I even enter into situations thinking, "This will make me feel better" or "This will fix what's wrong," just as Tomoko does in taking a job at a cake factory in episode 9.
So my criticisms of this character--of this imaginary person--are not leveled at a distance. I see in Tomoko my own faults, but with the tragic absence of a Savior. And I think that, in the end, is what makes the series so tragic. There may be a "resolution" at the end, but a "broken things stay broken" ending would be a better fit absent a legitimate spiritual redemption (which is extremely unlikely in a Japanese story), in my opinion.
And while I walk away from most episodes feeling sad, I can take a step back, recognize (once again) my utter dependence on Christ, and give thanks that Christ, in His amazing mercy, did not leave me in my sin.
I'm sure it seems odd to turn a discussion on a tragic comedy anime series back around to Christ, but if human history itself centers on his life, death, and resurrection, I suppose it's not as far as leap as some might think.
