Welcome to the N.H.K.

Plot

Story

Welcome to the N.H.K. revolves around the lives of several young adults all living in or around the city of Tokyo. Many different lifestyles are shown though most of the time the story focuses on the concepts of being a hikikomori (a reclusive individual who withdraws from society), anime otaku, and having most of the characters experience intense feelings of depression and loneliness.

The main protagonist is Tatsuhiro Satō, a university dropout entering his fourth year of unemployment. He leads a reclusive life as a hikikomori, ultimately coming to the conclusion that this happened due to some sort of conspiracy. One day, just when his life seems entirely unchanging, he meets Misaki Nakahara, a mysterious girl who claims to be able to cure Tatsuhiro of his hikikomori ways. She presents him with a contract which states that once a day they would meet in the evening in a local park where Misaki would lecture to Tatsuhiro in an effort to rid him of his lifestyle. During these outings, many subjects are discussed, though they almost always pertain in some way to psychology or psychoanalysis. One of their first meetings in fact deals with interpreting Tatsuhiro's recent dreams. Both Tatsuhiro and Misaki, however, have a tendency of over-doing things, such as hiding the truth, especially from each other and themselves. Despite Misaki's offer and pressing attempts at salvation, it is Tatsuhiro's neighbor and high school friend, Kaoru Yamazaki, whom Tatsuhiro often turns to in moments of need and support. Despite his own idiosyncrasies, Yamazaki is one of the more stable characters in the story.

The plots within the novel, manga and anime are each rather different from one another, and many themes and personalities differ between each. The novel also regularly mentions drug use by the main character, and later, his friend, Yamazaki. This element of the story is downplayed in the manga (drugs Satō uses are referred to as "legal psychedelics purchased off the internet"), and, asides alcohol, left out of the story altogether in the anime (with the exception of Hitomi). This is likely due to several reasons, including a more public-friendly rating, as well as ultimately being unneeded for the progression of the plot. The references to lolicon that are present within the novel and manga have also been downplayed within the anime, where most of the women the characters lust after are of mature age, although brief hints still remain.

The Nihon Hikikomori Kyōkai (N.H.K.) (日本ひきこもり協会) of Satō's imagination is supposedly a sinister conspiracy which aims to turn people into hikikomori and NEETs. No clear reason why they would do this is offered, although Satō considers the potential of an "army" of displaced individuals, and it is mentioned that hikikomori are created for the purpose of giving society someone to look down upon, making themselves feel superior. The majority of the N.H.K.'s work is done through the media, via broadcasting anime and other material that is likely to turn the viewer into an otaku. Throughout the series, many shots of advertising hoardings or movie posters incidentally displayed in other locations bear N.H.K. references.

Characters

Tatsuhiro Satō (佐藤 達広, Satō Tatsuhiro)

Voiced by: Yutaka Koizumi (Japanese); Chris Patton (English)

The story's protagonist is a 22-year-old hikikomori of nearly four years. He is highly unstable, easily manipulated, obsessive, and often blames the N.H.K. conspiracy, a fabrication of his mind, for his shortcomings. He lives in a rented apartment, but depends on his parents' allowance to live. Within the novel and manga, he engages in fairly hard drug use, which is the cause of his delusional visions, although this does not occur within the anime. Near the beginning of the series he finds out one of his few high school friends, Kaoru Yamazaki, has been living next door to him for quite some time. Yamazaki's influence inadvertently makes Sato become an otaku. Sato also decides to help Yamazaki on the creation of a gal game by writing the script. However, the reason for accepting the writing task was initially to get a girl he met, Misaki Nakahara, off his back. Misaki wants Sato to participate in her project, a therapy of sorts. Although he was extremely reluctant at first, he eventually agrees to take part in Misaki's project, albeit not treating it seriously at first. As they spend more time together he quickly falls in love with her, but is afraid to show it since he knows so little about her despite the fact she knows so much about him. His paranoia drives him to tail Misaki one day to find out where she lives. The result of the expedition reveals that Misaki lives on a nearby hill which gives her a perfect view of Sato's apartment as well as the park where they meet for their sessions. Again driven by paranoia, he tries to save himself from potential betrayal by claiming he doesn't want to see her ever again. Shortly thereafter, Sato accidentally becomes involved in a suicide party but ends up being the closest one to go through with it. Yamazaki and Misaki talk him out of it, and he resumes Misaki's project, but his feelings for her have become platonic rather than amorous. Near the end of the series, Sato's true feelings for her are revealed when Misaki makes up another contract that will bind them together as a couple forever. Despite how he feels, he rejects the contract thinking that he has to protect her from his own condition, and believing she deserves someone much better than he is even if it would mean that he reverts to being a hikikomori. Later, Sato finds a suicide note from Misaki, but because of an earlier conversation he knows where she will be. Sato eventually finds Misaki and confesses the truth that he needs and loves her in an attempt to prevent her from going through with the suicide. In the end, they decide to continue their relationship while Misaki finishes her high school equivalency, and they go to college together. In the closing scene Sato signs a new contract proposal from Misaki that binds their actual lives together.

Media

Novels

Welcome to the N.H.K. is a 192-page novel written by Tatsuhiko Takimoto, with the cover drawn by Yoshitoshi Abe. It was first serialized on the website “Boiled Eggs Online” from January 29 to April 16, 2001, and then published as a novel on January 28, 2002, in Japan by Kadokawa Shoten, with a bunko edition following in 2005. A sequel novel titled the Rebuild of Welcome to the NHK was released over 2021 through 2024, comprising six chapters.

Manga

The manga series is illustrated by manga author Kendi Oiwa. It was serialized in Kadokawa Shoten's manga magazine Shōnen Ace between December 26, 2003, and May 26, 2007. The manga's forty chapters have been collected into eight bound volumes released in Japan. Tokyopop licensed the manga for release in English, and the first volume was published on October 10, 2006. The manga version diverges from the original version later in the story. After Tokyopop's license expired, Viz Media picked up the series in 2015.

In November 2005, the limited edition of the fourth Japanese volume was published with a Misaki figurine which caused sales of the manga to skyrocket, and was once ranked third at Japan's Amazon website in terms of sales. The limited edition of the sixth volume, released in November 2006 in Japan, included the hard copy of the bishōjo game from the manga, True World: Shinjitsu no Sekai. The game was authored by Tatsuhiko Takimoto, the characters designed by Kendi Oiwa and produced by Circus (famous for D.C.: Da Capo). The limited edition of the eighth volume included a postcard featuring Misaki congratulating the recipient for graduating from being a hikikomori. The manga volume included with limited edition of the 8th volume is unchanged save for the inclusion of the postcard.

Anime

A 24-episode anime adaptation produced by Gonzo and directed by Yusuke Yamamoto aired in Japan between July 9 and December 17, 2006, on Chiba TV and on later dates on other JAITS stations. Hiroshima Home Television, a local ANN station in Hiroshima, aired the series from July 16 to December 23, 2006. The series was coordinated by Satoru Nishizono, featured character design by Takahiko Yoshida, and the music was headed by Masao Fukuda. ADV Films licensed the anime for $240,000 and released the first DVD of the English edition in October 2007. In 2008 the English license was transferred to Funimation. Siren Visual has licensed the series for release in Australia and New Zealand.

The anime has four pieces of theme music; two opening themes and two ending themes. The first opening theme, "Puzzle" (パズル, Pazuru) was written by Rieko Ito, composed by Kitagawa Katsutoshi, and performed by Round Table featuring Nino. The second opening theme is a remix of the first entitled "Puzzle (extra hot mix)" (パズル－extra hot mix－) which was produced by the same people as with the first opening theme. The first ending theme used for episodes one through twelve, "Odoru Akachan Ningen" (踊る赤ちゃん人間; lit. "Dancing Baby Humans"), was written by Kenji Otsuki, composed by Fumihiko Kitsutaka, and featured vocals by Otsuki and Kitsutaka. The second ending theme used for episodes thirteen through twenty-four, "Modokashii Sekai no Ue de" (もどかしい世界の上で; lit. "On Top of a Frustrating World"), was written and composed by Yugo Sasakura, arranged by Masanori Shimada, and performed by Yui Makino.

Reception

A. E. Sparrow of IGN gave the novel a nine out of ten while comparing it to Catcher in the Rye, saying "there's enough Holden Caulfield, or even Tyler Durden, in Satou and the events that surround him to make this story a solid read for anyone interested in books that examine the human condition."

The manga version of Welcome to the N.H.K. was also positively reviewed. Writing for Anime News Network, Carlo Santos rated the Tokyopop releases of the third manga volume with a B grade for story, an A− for art, and an A− overall. Speaking on the volume's art, Santos noted "it's endlessly entertaining to watch the parade of shocked, disturbed and stressed-out faces as Satou confronts each of society's ills," as well as highlighting the "detailed backgrounds" and "clean, rectangular layouts and frequent speedlines." Concerning the writing, "the dialogue is full of vigor and wit, with a straightforward tone that conveys mad outbursts, tearful breakdowns, and everything in between." And with regards to the adaptation, Santos praised the volume by writing "out of Tokyopop's many, many translations, this series stands among one of their best, if not the best." Santos was more couched in his approval for the fourth volume, giving it a C+ for story, an A− for art, and a B grade overall. While criticizing that "the plot has taken a vacation," he wrote that "those who are into NHK for the highly developed character drama, however, will find these chapters to be some of the most memorable yet," and concluded "it may not be the best or most entertaining volume of NHK, but it does serve its purpose, which is to deepen the story and make the characters even more dysfunctional and twisted than they already are."

The anime series was generally well received by critics. In his review for Animation World Magazine, James Brusuelas wrote "Welcome to the NHK is a true anime gem," describing it as "a delicately human tale." He went on to praise the series, saying "This is more than just anime. This is film." Concluding his review, he remarked "I cannot recommend this series enough. It is perhaps the best anime I saw during 2008."