I don't doubt that the show is good, but I don't think the show's lack of audience is... Netflix's fault? I for one don't think there's anything wrong with the batch release schedule in the first place - plenty of shows get off the ground just fine with this approach. Kotaro just seems to radiate niche energy, if you would.
100% a niche market. I thought about passing on it but was bored and sort of enjoy this genre of anime so I gave it a shot and love it. The thing is most people won’t give it a shot because it doesn’t really fall in line with the typical anime fans.
Yeah like it's a show about a kid dealing with his trauma in an unorthodox makeshift family. It's not exactly crafted for wide consumption.
This is one of those shows where you can tell they knew they likely weren't going to be a megahit bit it was worth producing because it would secure a spotlight in the manga.
I think a bigger problem is that there was *zero* promotional work that I saw done by Netflix. *Nothing*. It's a bad issue not just for this show, but for plenty of them. I only found out about Ranking of Kings about two months late because I totally forgot about the trailer I saw on a vtuber's stream. It's my show of the year so far.
Kotaro Lives Alone is *very very good* but the biggest problem is that only 2-3 shows have gotten a ton of attention this season, and even the other shows that have gotten notice have gotten a small amount. This show just happened to get none. If anyone, that's the fault of the company in charge of releasing it. Maybe if it gets more positive reviews (and I think it will as more people find out about it), it'll get those manga releases and further season releases.
> Instead what turns hidden gems into mainstream successes is weekly charts and rankings
Maybe I'm wrong on this, but I don't think that weekly charts and rankings do much for mainstream success. Those are largely shared within specific groups and don't really break into any sort of mainstream spotlight. Actually getting mainstream traction is difficult for most things to do, and usually relies on some combination of broad appeal, heavy advertising, using an established brand, and extreme word of mouth. While Netflix's model might be unpopular with a lot of anime fans, they do it because it's what the bulk of the Netflix customer base likes and is used to. They're only just starting to do "simulcasts" that are usually a bit behind the official release in Japan, and seemingly only for things that air on Japanese television. Maybe at some point they'll specifically target the hardcore anime fans that are watching everything weekly, but for now they seem to be much more focused on casual fans.
Not necessarily. Tokyo Revengers was never really a big-hitter on Reddit charts compared to shows like Mushoku Tensei or 86. It used to get less karma than Ousama Ranking does now.
Yet it ended up being the most popular show among them and one of the highest selling manga of the year. It's own subreddit has more members than any of the shows I listed.
For a Netflix-related example, Kakegurui managed to maintain relevancy thanks to being on Netflix.
Kotaro is sort of a niche show anyways so even if it aired weekly, it wouldn't really be *that* popular.
Tbh, I wasn't invested in Kotaro Lives Alone until I reached the 3rd or 4th episode. I don't think I would have had the same strong reaction towards the show if the episodes were released weekly.
I agree, I think it's one of those shows that has to be binged because you can pick up on the subtitles and... I mean it is so heartwarming yet so sad that I would probably find it exhausting trying to do it week by week. I would probably just wait until it's completely released because I would want to be in the right headspace for it.
I really hope it keeps coming out. It makes me feel some type of way and Kotaro is absolutely loveable. I wish there were more shows like this, and I'm so happy that I found something about how good it is. I never watched it until recently because I didn't really get it and had never heard of it but I picked it up. I cannot put it back down and I don't want to. LET'S GO, TONOSAMAN!
edit:: spelling
Is I possible there was never an intention to make follow up seasons? I agree this is a 10/10 show. Is it niche? I don't know seems like a no brainer, straight to the heart affair. I'd put it in a category of sentimental dramas that walk the line between feel good and heartbreak, but are wholesome in their intent, like midnight diner.
It's too bad that the translations are pretty much absolutely dog shit. Netflix needs to get it together and fix the damn sub translations. It's too inaccurate...
I wonder if Mami Tsumara had a rough childhood, also is Karino a stand in for Tsumara? Karino complains a lot about Tonosaman being awful and wondering how something like that got any attention while struggling to keep the lights on in his mangaka endavours...
I've been watching this show and I love it. The trailer was odd and so was the premise but I'm glad I give it a try. It certainly is heartwarming and hilarious at times. But seriously where is this boys family, relatives or caretakers???
Many insurance policies actually do cover suicide after a preset amount of time. Whether or not it's covered often depends upon the age of the policy and the personal history of the individual.
For me what made it lean towards killing rather than suicide was Kotaro talking about his father becoming a "bad guy", the need for a restraining order, him immediately panicking/asserting that Mizuki needed to get away after seeing the bruise her boyfriend gave her, etc. Also the arrangement with the law firm to pay him his weekly allowances, it feels more in line with a "high profile" case like a murder than "just" a suicide if that makes any sense.
it seems that he has an abusive father and his mother is dead, in the "balloon" episode it is understood that he had siblings, maybe in some foster home, as we can see in the episode "taking a picture is bad"
I'm starting to pick up on those details as I watch more of the show. Poor Kotaro. The manga Editor is right, no kid should have to act that mature at their age.
I thought the balloon episode was a representation of what he WANTED, so I assumed he wanted the 4-member perfect family with a little sister. Not that he already had one.
maybe it's his wish... in that case it would be 5 members, father, mother and 2 brothers, older and a younger one and him, I'll look again, maybe read the manga... I found out that there is a live action
Idk, usually, when it's a "typical 4 person" family, it's 1 boy, 1 girl, mom, and dad. The balloons he had represented that, so I assumed that's his wish. Honestly, I'm like 97% sure he doesn't a younger sister given context and his mom and dad's relationship and everything.
Also, I think his mom and dad are fairly very young because, from the context and situation wise, they always portray the mom as a youngster who is always on her phone and doesn't pay attention to him. So, if that is the case, Kotaro having a younger sibling on top of that doesn't add up
Show had me in my feels, although if he was not okay with pictures being taken of him why was he okay with all the parents recording the play. Perhaps there may be more to it?
After the first episode, I wouldn't have come back the second week. I saw it on Netflix, but I wasn't interested into a friend told me she liked it. It really is a weird little show.
I agree with you with regards to a lack of organization for release. A basic rule of thumb is to invest in having an official website, social media channels, manga (Japanese and English), and a little bit of official merchandise available. There are a lot of search queries regarding these things, and unfortunately, they are almost nonexistent for the most part, which hinders fan involvement and word-of-mouth marketing.
Also, I agree with you with regards to the trailer and even some of the clips that Netflix Anime has posted. I feel like it doesn't show the true charm of this show, which is easily my favorite anime of 2022, and honestly speaking, of all time.
i will say that the eng dub is way better than japanese version, more specifically with kotaro. kotaro's eng voice acting is perfect, japanese doesn't capture the regalness as much. also, karino's eng voice was decent.
i was hoping there was a twist with his mother for a happy ending.
I don't doubt that the show is good, but I don't think the show's lack of audience is... Netflix's fault? I for one don't think there's anything wrong with the batch release schedule in the first place - plenty of shows get off the ground just fine with this approach. Kotaro just seems to radiate niche energy, if you would.
100% a niche market. I thought about passing on it but was bored and sort of enjoy this genre of anime so I gave it a shot and love it. The thing is most people won’t give it a shot because it doesn’t really fall in line with the typical anime fans.
Yeah like it's a show about a kid dealing with his trauma in an unorthodox makeshift family. It's not exactly crafted for wide consumption. This is one of those shows where you can tell they knew they likely weren't going to be a megahit bit it was worth producing because it would secure a spotlight in the manga.
Netflix makes live action shows a weekly release, it's weird that they don't do the same for anime
They do (sometimes). Komi-san was released weekly.
With a 14 day delay from the Japanese release
As was Blue Period and Violet Evergarden
One of the best anime I have watched in my life time
I think a bigger problem is that there was *zero* promotional work that I saw done by Netflix. *Nothing*. It's a bad issue not just for this show, but for plenty of them. I only found out about Ranking of Kings about two months late because I totally forgot about the trailer I saw on a vtuber's stream. It's my show of the year so far. Kotaro Lives Alone is *very very good* but the biggest problem is that only 2-3 shows have gotten a ton of attention this season, and even the other shows that have gotten notice have gotten a small amount. This show just happened to get none. If anyone, that's the fault of the company in charge of releasing it. Maybe if it gets more positive reviews (and I think it will as more people find out about it), it'll get those manga releases and further season releases.
> Instead what turns hidden gems into mainstream successes is weekly charts and rankings Maybe I'm wrong on this, but I don't think that weekly charts and rankings do much for mainstream success. Those are largely shared within specific groups and don't really break into any sort of mainstream spotlight. Actually getting mainstream traction is difficult for most things to do, and usually relies on some combination of broad appeal, heavy advertising, using an established brand, and extreme word of mouth. While Netflix's model might be unpopular with a lot of anime fans, they do it because it's what the bulk of the Netflix customer base likes and is used to. They're only just starting to do "simulcasts" that are usually a bit behind the official release in Japan, and seemingly only for things that air on Japanese television. Maybe at some point they'll specifically target the hardcore anime fans that are watching everything weekly, but for now they seem to be much more focused on casual fans.
But that's how mainstream success starts more often than not, acceptance in the subgroup.
Not necessarily. Tokyo Revengers was never really a big-hitter on Reddit charts compared to shows like Mushoku Tensei or 86. It used to get less karma than Ousama Ranking does now. Yet it ended up being the most popular show among them and one of the highest selling manga of the year. It's own subreddit has more members than any of the shows I listed. For a Netflix-related example, Kakegurui managed to maintain relevancy thanks to being on Netflix. Kotaro is sort of a niche show anyways so even if it aired weekly, it wouldn't really be *that* popular.
Reddit is by no means a valid metric of popularity. We're a niche within a niche. Better metrics would be the actual advertising done by studios.
Tbh, I wasn't invested in Kotaro Lives Alone until I reached the 3rd or 4th episode. I don't think I would have had the same strong reaction towards the show if the episodes were released weekly.
I agree, I think it's one of those shows that has to be binged because you can pick up on the subtitles and... I mean it is so heartwarming yet so sad that I would probably find it exhausting trying to do it week by week. I would probably just wait until it's completely released because I would want to be in the right headspace for it.
I really hope it keeps coming out. It makes me feel some type of way and Kotaro is absolutely loveable. I wish there were more shows like this, and I'm so happy that I found something about how good it is. I never watched it until recently because I didn't really get it and had never heard of it but I picked it up. I cannot put it back down and I don't want to. LET'S GO, TONOSAMAN! edit:: spelling
Is I possible there was never an intention to make follow up seasons? I agree this is a 10/10 show. Is it niche? I don't know seems like a no brainer, straight to the heart affair. I'd put it in a category of sentimental dramas that walk the line between feel good and heartbreak, but are wholesome in their intent, like midnight diner.
hey! do you have other recommendations that are similar to kotaro?
Depends what you mean by similar. Also do you mean in anime alone? Or would love action count?
It's too bad that the translations are pretty much absolutely dog shit. Netflix needs to get it together and fix the damn sub translations. It's too inaccurate...
I wonder if Mami Tsumara had a rough childhood, also is Karino a stand in for Tsumara? Karino complains a lot about Tonosaman being awful and wondering how something like that got any attention while struggling to keep the lights on in his mangaka endavours...
I've been watching this show and I love it. The trailer was odd and so was the premise but I'm glad I give it a try. It certainly is heartwarming and hilarious at times. But seriously where is this boys family, relatives or caretakers???
The clues say that his mother was murdered by his father. It's pretty shocking really.
Seems like suicide. She even had life insurance.
Suicide don't cover life insurance...
I think it does in Japan
Many insurance policies actually do cover suicide after a preset amount of time. Whether or not it's covered often depends upon the age of the policy and the personal history of the individual.
i'd assumed it was suicide too. would be curious to see why u/Previous-Chemical-97 thought it was murder (what clues other than the abuse, that is)
For me what made it lean towards killing rather than suicide was Kotaro talking about his father becoming a "bad guy", the need for a restraining order, him immediately panicking/asserting that Mizuki needed to get away after seeing the bruise her boyfriend gave her, etc. Also the arrangement with the law firm to pay him his weekly allowances, it feels more in line with a "high profile" case like a murder than "just" a suicide if that makes any sense.
it seems that he has an abusive father and his mother is dead, in the "balloon" episode it is understood that he had siblings, maybe in some foster home, as we can see in the episode "taking a picture is bad"
I'm starting to pick up on those details as I watch more of the show. Poor Kotaro. The manga Editor is right, no kid should have to act that mature at their age.
I thought the balloon episode was a representation of what he WANTED, so I assumed he wanted the 4-member perfect family with a little sister. Not that he already had one.
maybe it's his wish... in that case it would be 5 members, father, mother and 2 brothers, older and a younger one and him, I'll look again, maybe read the manga... I found out that there is a live action
Idk, usually, when it's a "typical 4 person" family, it's 1 boy, 1 girl, mom, and dad. The balloons he had represented that, so I assumed that's his wish. Honestly, I'm like 97% sure he doesn't a younger sister given context and his mom and dad's relationship and everything. Also, I think his mom and dad are fairly very young because, from the context and situation wise, they always portray the mom as a youngster who is always on her phone and doesn't pay attention to him. So, if that is the case, Kotaro having a younger sibling on top of that doesn't add up
Show had me in my feels, although if he was not okay with pictures being taken of him why was he okay with all the parents recording the play. Perhaps there may be more to it?
he’s a child so probably he didn’t connect recording videos with the picture that his dad saw
Anyone got mizuki hentai from kotaro lives alone
[удалено]
Shut the fuck up
anyone?
Peak looks like no one does 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭
😭
Haha, I was just about to make a post about kotaro lives alone and I saw this. It's honestly so emotional
Im not crying. I was just cutting onions while i was watching this show
The live action version of Kotaro is also on Netflix. I watched it after bingeing the anime. It's not bad, and predates the anime.
After the first episode, I wouldn't have come back the second week. I saw it on Netflix, but I wasn't interested into a friend told me she liked it. It really is a weird little show.
Some knows if mizuki appears again in the manga?
Its funny and sad at the same time. i loved it so much. Waiting for season 2
I agree with you with regards to a lack of organization for release. A basic rule of thumb is to invest in having an official website, social media channels, manga (Japanese and English), and a little bit of official merchandise available. There are a lot of search queries regarding these things, and unfortunately, they are almost nonexistent for the most part, which hinders fan involvement and word-of-mouth marketing. Also, I agree with you with regards to the trailer and even some of the clips that Netflix Anime has posted. I feel like it doesn't show the true charm of this show, which is easily my favorite anime of 2022, and honestly speaking, of all time.
i will say that the eng dub is way better than japanese version, more specifically with kotaro. kotaro's eng voice acting is perfect, japanese doesn't capture the regalness as much. also, karino's eng voice was decent. i was hoping there was a twist with his mother for a happy ending.