Social anxiety has never had a hero quite like Bocchi Hitori.
“Hitori Bocchi” is a slice-of-life comedy anime series based on the manga series by Katsuwo. The story follows Bocchi, whose life is turned upside down when her best friend Kai is enrolled in a different middle school than her. To make matters worse, Kai tells Bocchi that they can’t be friends again until Bocchi befriends her entire class.
What follows is a series of charm-filled episodes that will surely have you questioning your own social skills and the friends around you. Bocchi is a character that I easily related to.
The show thrives most when it is focused on the social dynamics between Bocchi and other characters. We see this firsthand when she meets a girl named Nako, who is thought to be a delinquent due to her “intimidating” looks and outlandish appearance. Throughout the series, she is the only student to not wear the traditional school uniform.
So, when Nako becomes Bocchi’s first friend, it truly is an interesting clash of personalities, with Bocchi’s anxiousness driving her to puke out of nervous excitement (which she does constantly.)
Later on, Bocchi meets Aru Honsho and Sotca Luckythar. Aru is a girl who wants people to think that she’s got it all figured out even though she doesn’t, and although the series doesn’t go too far into this theme, it does its job in comparing it in contrast to Bocchi. Socta is an exchange student who befriends Bocchi after becoming her “pupil” in ninja training, believing Bocchi to be her sensei.
These interactions are at the heart of the show and they offer interesting perspectives when paired against Bocchi’s own anxieties. There’s even a character that appears later on in the series who refuses to be friends with Bocchi because she doesn’t want friends at all. I think we all know people sort-of like that.
This show also brings the charm. I never found myself rolling on the floor in laughter but I always found myself chuckling and smiling. I always found myself appreciating how relaxing and light the series was to watch.
If you aren’t into slow plots and “low” stakes then “Hitori Bocchi” is probably not for you. But if you’re interested in a light-hearted, character-driven, social anxiety-filled rollercoaster, “Hitori Bocchi” is the slice-of-life anime for you.
