English Dub Review: Real Girl Episodes 13~15

Do your best.

Our Take:

I hadn’t heard of Real Girl before this, but I like what it’s doing- especially with how it depicts otaku. The otaku in this case, Tsutsui and Itou, are still very clearly otaku at the end of the day. They don’t like socialization, are pretty awkward when it comes to relationships, and still view things in mostly 2D terms. They are not being reformed, as there is no push whatsoever for them to put down their otaku ways, but they are changing. A lot of modern anime likes to coddle its (largely) male otaku audience, and reaffirm a lot of the ideas and prejudices that they have- your life is fine, keep buying our products! In doing so, a lot of what ends up happening is most of the popular series play into male fantasies, such as the state of modern isekai, where a normal every-man (just like the audience) becomes ultra-powerful, and without changing anything about him, incredibly attractive girls start to love him. In those, girls are objects of desire, and not beings whose feelings have to be considered.

Tsutsui is very much not that. He loathes having to work the culture festival in a very public position, but he does deeply care for Igarashi and how he feels. He wants the thing he makes with the class to be the best it can be, even if he doesn’t want to do it. He’s willing to take responsibility, because he is the leader, and leaders have to look out for his teammates, and his girlfriend. He doesn’t let her win the beauty contest because he knows she isn’t interested in victory. Also, he’s willing to tell her to her face what he finds lovely about her, all small things, that makes him genuinely charming.

Itou undergoes some character development, trying to mature into someone dependable that the person he likes can depend on. While that doesn’t go well on the romance-side, it also kicks Itou into realizing that he has to do more. He needs to do some uncomfortable things, he needs to be outside his known zones, he needs to allow himself more freedoms. When he is rejected romantically, he doesn’t only think of himself, but is careful to frame how awkward the situation must be for her, not just for him. Even though he loses the cat ears, he is well on his way to becoming a solid person.

And the thing is, both of them are still otaku. They end up using their knowledge for good, especially in the cultural festival. This feels like challenging otaku, that they can be more than only self indulgent. They can pay attention to others, something that will genuinely help them forge connections and possibly end up with someone else in their lives. They can care about girls’ feelings, and take those feelings seriously. Being an otaku isn’t expecting everything to fall in place- and it shouldn’t.

The culture festival arc, although small, was extremely fruitful. By comparison, the divorce arc that’s being set up is a little trickier. On one hand, Tsutsui’s mother instantly wanting to divorce for her husband cheating on her, good, you go girl. However, at the same time, her rushing things is negatively impacting the family, and she is putting herself before her sons’ well-being. Even before romance becomes a factor, something that she isn’t aware of for either of her sons, she is still expecting them to be okay with picking up and moving at the drop of the dime. I support her decision, but it feels very rushed, and I hope the later parts of the arc fixes these issues.