Thursday, September 4, 2008

Train Man (book) by Hitori Nakano

Just a note to start things off: The contents of this book came from a real-life Internet forum - if you believe everything that the people involved wrote, then Train Man and Hermes are real people, and these posts reveal the progression of their relationship over two months.

2channel, or 2ch for short, is a Japanese Internet forum that allows for completely anonymous posting. In March 2004, an anonymous user posted about his experience defending the passengers of the train he was riding from a drunken salaryman. Afterwards, several of the women on the train asked him for his name and contact information, so that they could send him a proper thank you. Although this young man thought that things would end here, he later received a thank you gift from one of the younger women on the train - Hermes tea cups (an expensive gift).

So begins Train Man's relationship with Lady Hermes (both are nicknames given by the other users). Train Man, being a Geek, has absolutely no idea what to do or say to a woman, so he asks the other 2ch Geek users for advice. Their advice prompts him to ask Hermes to dinner to repay her for the gift of the cups (he also asks for advice on where to take her and how to make himself look less like a Geek). As things between Train Man and Hermes progress, Train Man describes everything: the dinner, meeting with Hermes and a friend of hers, going to her house to drink tea using the cups she gave him, etc. Train Man seeks out the encouragement of the 2ch Geeks up until "the end," the time when he finally gathers up the courage to tell Hermes how he feels about her and graduates from the Geeks forum to the Couples forum.

Unlike the movie version of this story that I wrote about in a previous post (see Train Man [Densha Otoko]), this book, which is an edited version (lots of posts were removed to make it more manageable) of the actual 2ch posts, mentions some of the less eventful ways that Train Man and Hermes' relationship progressed: for instance, they got to know each other better through daily emailing. Whereas I occasionally had problems suspending my disbelief with the movie version, this book, whether or not Train Man was actually a fake, had more mundane relationship updates that made everything seem more real.

It's unfortunate that the book doesn't actually include any explanatory footnotes or endnotes, since I think they would have been very useful. For instance, there are quite a few references to anime series and other things that readers might not necessarily catch - Train Man and other posters mentioned some anime by name, but other titles were referred to more subtly (I caught references to Ai Yori Aoshi, Oh My Goddess, and maybe Azumanga Daioh). The many, many instances of ASCII art use would also have made good fodder for an explanatory notes section.

There are some terms the posters use that I wish had been explained. As an example, near the end of the book, several posters use the word "anorak" in a way that seemed to be synonymous with "geek" - I eventually looked it up and discovered that it's British slang for someone "who has unfathomable interest in arcane, detailed information regarded as boring by the rest of the population, and who feels compelled to talk at length about this information to anyone within earshot." That actually brings me to my other (pretty minor) issue with this book, the occasional very British bits. I don't think it happened often (what do I know, though, I didn't even realize that "anorak" was British slang and not somehow Japanese slang), but it was noticeable anytime prices were listed, since they were always in pounds. That was a little jarring - I've got a fairly good idea of how to convert Japanese yen into American dollars, but I had no idea how to deal with pounds. I checked the publication information for this book, and apparently it was first published in the United Kingdom - I guess no one thought it was necessary to adjust anything for publication in America.

Before I read this book, I'd actually already seen and read two different interpretations of this story, the movie version and a one-volume manga version, so it was really nice to read this, which is probably as close as I'm ever going to come to reading the original posts that started it all. It's not something that will appeal to everyone - I'm not just talking about the ASCII art, but also about the format of the book. Not everyone will like reading a bunch of anonymous forum posts, although it may help that Train Man's posts come fairly close to presenting his story in a coherent and chronological way and that Train Man's posts are in boldface, making them easily identifiable. Still, once I got used to it, I enjoyed reading all of these posts, since it allowed me to feel a little of what the many anonymous posters and readers must have felt, watching Train Man's story unfold. Although there is apparently some controversy over whether or not Train Man's story is true, I prefer to think that it is: it makes reading this book more fun, and, aside from the fairytale-like progression of the relationship, it feels like it could be true.

With each version of this story I read, I love something different. The one-volume manga introduced me to this story and caught my interest. I loved how the movie version turned Train Man's anonymous posters into characters in their own right. This book fills in more of the details of Train Man and Hermes' relationship, making it seem more realistic. If I were recommending Train Man's story to someone, I'd probably recommend that they see the movie and read this book - the two make up for each others' weaknesses. For instance, while I was reading the book I found myself wishing that there were a way to tell which posts were done by the same people - only a handful of non-Train Man posts had anything other than "anonymous." With the movie, the way Train Man and Hermes' relationship was presented didn't always feel very real, and I found the "war zone" scenes a little jarring. It wasn't until I read the book that I understood why these scenes were done the way they were - throughout the book, several of the posters compare the experience to a prolonged battle, one in which they are both cheering Train Man on and dodging his "attacks" (anytime Train Man is successful with Hermes, it's good news, but it also rubs salt in the girlfriend-less Geeks' wounds).

Overall, I enjoyed this book and I'm glad I finally got to read the Train Man posts. I don't think I'll ever feel the need to read it again, since I didn't find the format that appealing, but it was worth it to read it once. Here's hoping Train Man is real and still living happily with Hermes.

Read-alikes and Watch-alikes:
  • Train Man: Densha Otoko (manga) by Hitori Nakano (story) and Hidenori Hara (art); Train Man: A Shojo Manga (manga) by Hitori Nakano (story) and Machiko Ocha (art); Train Man: Densha Otoko (live action movie) - Train Man's story was so popular that it spawned interpretations in several different formats - these three are, as far as I know, the only ones currently available in the US. If you liked the basic idea (geeky guy tries to save girl on train, gets an expensive gift from her later on, and uses the advice of people from a message board to help him eventually get to his happy, romantic ending), then you should try at least one of these interpretations of the story.
  • Whisper of the Heart (anime movie) - Shizuku, a young girl in junior high, loves to read. Every time she opens a library book, she always sees the same name on the cards, "Seiji Amasawa" - it's as though this guy somehow reads even more than she does, and she becomes determined to try to find him. As Shizuku learns more about Seiji, she also learns more about herself and her goals in life. Those who'd like to watch another sweet and sometimes awkward romantic story might enjoy this anime.
  • Genshiken (manga) by Shimoku Kio - College freshman Kanji Sasahara is an otaku who joins a college club called The Society for the Study of Modern Visual Culture (aka Genshiken). The club may have a grand name, but it's full of otaku who love going to conventions, buying doujinshi, and more. The story focuses on Kanji and the other members of the club as they do what they love, deal with life, and, in some cases, learn to deal with otakudom and being an otaku. Those who'd like another story with otaku as the main characters might like this series.
  • Welcome to the N.H.K. (manga) by Tatsuhiko Takimoto (original creator) and Kendi Oiwa (art) - Tatsuhiro Sato, a 22-year-old man, is a NEET (Not in Employment, Education, or Training) and incredibly socially withdrawn (hikikomori). He believes everything around him is a conspiracy, and he has this theory that there is a secret organization called the NHK that is trying to produce a hikikomori-filled world. He would like to break free from the NHK, but he's too afraid to go outdoors on his own. However, things change when he meets Misaki, a high school girl who invites him to become part of her "project," which she claims will cure him of his hikikomori ways. Those who'd like another story featuring an otaku who needs help changing himself might like this series.
  • Male Call (book) by Heather MacAllister - Marnie LaTour is a computer nerd with a serious crush on Zach, a handsome construction worker she's barely spoken to. On a whim, Marnie rents an apartment nearby his construction site for a few days a week, and her new landlord helps her begin to make herself over. The first time Zach sees Marnie in clothing that makes her gender clear and doesn't make her look homeless he's hooked, but it takes him a while to convince Marnie how he feels and that she can be higher on his list of priorities than his restoration business. Those who'd like another romantic story in which a nerd gains confidence from a makeover might like this book.
  • Rob&sara.com (book) by P. J. Peterson and Ivy Ruckman - Sara, the teenage daughter of an army colonel, posts one of her poems online, and Rob, who lives at a school for troubled teenagers, likes it and gives it a positive comment. The two become friends and communicate through email, fantasizing about being able to meet each other. With their emails, they support each other through difficult times. Those who'd like another story featuring a relationship conveyed through a modern format (the book is a collection of Rob and Sara's emails) and who don't mind if it's a fictional might like this young adult novel.

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