Welcome to the N.H.K.

Preface: 

Going into this, I thought this was going to be a show about TV and broadcasting because of the title name.NHK usually stands for Nippon Housou Kyoukai, which translates to Japan Broadcasting Corporation, the equivalent of the PBS in the States so don’t go thinking our national broadcasting program is out there to get you or anything after watching this show. And that folks, was your random fact of the day brought to you by Jap Reviews.

Basic Info
24 episodes

Made by Gonzo

Genre(s): Psychological, Drama, Comedy

Plot (Spoiler Alert!)
Remember how I thought this as going to be a show about broadcasting? Yeah, well it broadcasted something alright, this show was packed full of depression and anxiety. The show does a great job of introducing and dragging the viewers into the dark and wacky world of Hikkikomoris. Hikkikomori is a Japanese term used to label people who don’t leave their home aside from when they need to purchase daily necessities such as food and water?... Don’t quote me on this as I am not an expert. 

Anyways, in this show, N.H.K. stands for Nippon Hikkikomori Kyoukai which basically translates into Japan Hikkikomori association (...gee, who could’ve guessed). This is just a concept made up by our MC Sato Tatsuhiro who has been a Hikkikomori for about 4 years. He thinks that everything bad that happens to him is a conspiracy that the N.H.K. is plotting against him. He is a hopeless man through and through until a young lady, Misaki comes to visit him one day. She proposes that she will help him recover from being a Hikkikomori and get him back into society. After some time wondering, he agrees and their new story unfolds.

The plot goes over how scary daily activities such as going out to the city, school or anywhere with large crowds with people can be for Hikkikomoris. It also covers the mental state of Hikkikomoris or depressed people in general and how hard it can be for them to carry out “normal” activities. I have never tried, or much less been addicted to drugs but I would think this Anime is what the world would look like if I did try them. Everything from the talking appliances, scary looks from people, negative thoughts and the N.H.K. agents are all wacky, but it adds to the charm and world-building of the show.

Find out if Tatsuhiro can conquer his fears and get back to society in this psychological ride!

Characters

Every character in this show is facing a challenge whether it be restrictive parents, loneliness, self-doubt or society as a whole. Even if they are exaggerated , they are all thoughts and worries that people have on a daily basis and I believe this is what makes them human and relatable. Take our MC Tatsuhiro for example, even though he is literally at the bottom of society, he still understands this fact and is struggling to accept it and move on with his life. When he is given the opportunity to interact with people, he doubts them whether everyone is plotting against him behind his back. This may look crazy until you put into consideration that he has been shutting in his house for 4 years without much human interaction. All the other characters show these sort of human traits and it was really refreshing seeing characters that don’t act based on a single troupe like most Anime characters. My favorite character has to be Yamazaki (guy with glasses), Tatsuhiro’s junior in high school and his only friend. He introduces us to the world of otaku and Pururin! (The Pururin theme song is addicting and it reminds me of that one episode of Regular Show where the video shop clerk was being hypnotized by a random Anime clip) Even though he has his flaw of being short tempered, he is arguably the most rational of the cast and I really enjoyed his comedic interactions with Tatsuhiro. Misaki seems to be an angel sent from the heavens for wanting to help a guy like Tatsuhiro at no costs, but she has her own dark past which is another interesting piece of the show.

Overall, the characters are all quirky and unique and I definitely enjoyed them all.

Review
When I was watching this show, COVID-19 was terrorizing society which meant that I couldn’t go to university or do anything outside. So all I could really do was to stay at home all day and consume Anime. I was probably halfway to becoming a Hikkikomori, keyword here being halfway. I thought this would allow me to relate more to the characters as I did not have any meaningful interaction with people in a while. However, I was dead wrong. The world of HIkkikomoris is a very scary place to be in and it really made me appreciate my situation that I am in. Even though there are fan-service galore and there are some fantasy elements, in that no angel is going to be appearing one day to save you from a living hell, it is still quite the realistic show with valuable life lessons to be learnt. It gives you insight on how society can look for people suffering from depression and how interaction with other human beings is essential. It also teaches you about how most people in first world countries where infrastructure and food are abundant and available are very much privileged.
This show can be very depressing at times, actually most of the time. But, I don’t think you’ll be disappointed watching it to the end. Sure the situation may not improve much for the characters, but you will definitely gain a new perspective of the world and a real sense of appreciation. If you are currently suffering, there are many things to relate to but I think it will also teach you about the consequences of actions that you may have thought to take. 
If you perceive this show as an educational experience or a psychological ride with some comedy thrown in there, it is a show that you should watch once in your life as an otaku.

Enjoyment level: 3.5/5 -I did not really have a great time watching but that was mostly due to the tone of the topic this Anime covers and it does not take away from it’s depth and greatness as a show.

Overall score: 8.5/10 -Even though I did not particularly enjoy watching, it left a huge impression in my heart and challenged my knowledge about the world which not many shows accomplish.