procrastination8: Densha Otoko

I’ve been through a lot of internet forums and message boards. They are all out there for people to connect. There is no exception, no limit as to what topic can be discussed, as long as you find the appropriate forum for your subject of interest. Most of the time, complete strangers and familiars can log on, chat and share their thoughts and experiences. Despite this though, I never would think that this is a window to change one’s life.

Maybe I’m still too green at this, but really, serious talk has been revolving around message boards ever since it began. For example, I’m not interested to search for them, but most probably there are chat messages about someone who wants to attempt suicide, and the other people in the forum try to convince the person not to do so. I read somewhere that someone in a message board was able to predict the events of the 9/11 bombings, leading to controversy and many people trying to extract more information about the matter. Quite heavy stuff isn’t it? Well let’s put that aside and focus on a similarly serious but not deadly matter… love problems.

I’m very, very sure that many people turn to the internet message boards and tell complete strangers about their love problems, hoping that someone could give them advice. Of course, results may vary. Now, Densha Otoko is a jdorama delving quite closely about this subject, on how a guy successfully gained the courage to date a girl with the help of complete strangers in a message board. Quite a generic story if you ask me, but why did this Densha Otoko make such an uproar in Japan? Having not only a TV series, but also a movie, manga, and novel of the same name, Densha Otoko is the talk of the town. Why is it so popular? Well, I watched the series to find out myself.

I think the magic of the series lies on its improbability. As some of you describe, some Japanese otakus are so focused on their fandom, that they even ignore society. As a result, most of them don’t have a lovelife. What are the odds of someone like that getting the girl of his dreams? Not likely. But Densha Otoko is a story about an otaku guy who successfully gained the courage to date and confess to a girl with the help of complete strangers in a message board. Each