Hataraki Man

[Srin Tuar]

Originally Posted by MrProphet

The only thing that still amazes me is that she and Shinji still delude themselves that they are still a couple. Those 2 are incredibly separated, both physically and emotionally and I simply don't understand how they keep on going living together. I guess, both of them are so much involved in their work that they just didn't have a free moment to evaluate their failing relationship and just move on.

Lol, very true. Its seems impossible to have two workaholics maintain a real relationship. If neither of them puts the home first, then there really is no home. I bet Hiroko has no domestic skills whatsoever, making me sortof wonder why shinji isnt shopping around for someone who can at least make him a bentou. Instead, he has hiroko who work's all nighters and cancels dates without even a phone call.

Hiroko otoh, I have no idea what kind of guy would be good for her. She needs someone with high availability, because her unpredictable and sporadic free time would never work with a salaryman. (unless he was her coworker or something)
She either needs to get with a coworker or she could do what maiko does and sleep with her interview material .

[MrProphet]

Well, she does sort of have a love-hate relationship with Tanaka (with an emphasis on HATE), and some people did mention the possibility of her finally putting him firmly under her heel. 8)

[MrProphet]

Episode 10... the last one before the ending. This is kinda sad that meaningful shows get such a short lifespan.

I can't say I am head-over-heels in love with Hatarakiman, but I certainly found it:

1) curious
2) true to life
3) inspiring (as in, never work like the Japanese do ^_^)

And... wow... Maiko Kaji has a... hard job!

Spoiler:

Actually, it's not as bad as it looks. She was just posing for a nude painting by her interview material.

Atsuko Tanaka rocks, baby. 8)

[Shiroth]

Originally Posted by MrProphet

Atsuko Tanaka rocks, baby. 8)

She sure does. I have to admit that i was a lil' shocked when finding out she plays my fav' character Kaji back with the first episode, but now i understand it was one genius choice.

Now we're only one episode away, i believe its about time i checked out the raws from episode 04 on-words. I'm missing out on one hell of a show, and lots of Kaji love

[DoReMiFaSo]

Oh no.

Spoiler for ep10:

Hiro and Jinji broke up.

[Srin Tuar]

Originally Posted by DoReMiFaSo

Oh no.

Spoiler for ep10:

Hiro and Jinji broke up.

Spoiler:

At first I was wondering why they didnt show the rest of the scene, then at the end it was kindof a bombshell. (lol, I didnt know what maiko was talking about at first)

I can't say I disagree though, they were hardly a couple at all. But still it was painful to hear and to see how it affected her. That next day she was all torn to pieces. Plus Kaji seems to have totally read her mind, telling her that her next love will come(Did she tell her she was dumped? If so they didn't show it. Perhaps maiko can just read people's minds ), and that it's not her fault for working so hard. (duh, yes it is)

About shinji... even though Hiro wasnt exactly all you could hope for in a woman... it seems she really did love him. ( or else need someone to love/abuse like him )

About Kaji, I have to say I think her "nude modelling" was a metaphor at best. (We all know she is a turbo-slut) Its hard to accuse this show of pulling punches, but I think her "personal life" isnt really all that much of a mystery.

[MrProphet]

Well, this was the end.

It was quite fitting that a story about a workaholic ended with a story about her personal life that was so sadly lacking previously. It was sweet, it had an immense heart and even though I am frustrated by the moral of this story, that no matter how your life sucks, WORK will pull you through, I still appreciated it.

It was a very nice series. It pleased me immensely without any specific wow-factor. It was about real life and real life is very short on wows some days. Still, it was the energy of everyday, simple matters of working people that made the magic of cinema work.

A very special thanks goes out to Tanaka Rie, who made the character of Hiro Matsukata possible. It wouldn't have been the same without her. She was and shall always remain amazing.

What next? Nodame Cantabile! Yay! More Noitamina!

[Vexx]

There's so much below radar information in this show about the state of the japanese workplace and what it is doing to the culture and people that I'd almost consider this mandatory viewing. Great show but kind of punted on the ending a bit in terms of social statement (if I was following the plot correctly... gotta wait for the sub to verify what I think I heard).

[Siegel Clyne]

Television Audience Ratings - Kantou region (Includes Tokyo), Japan

Hataraki Man Episode 11 Television Audience Rating, Thursday Night, December 21, 2006 [Friday Morning, December 22, 2006]

4.1% CX [Fuji TV] 25.15 [1:15 AM] Noitamina "Hataraki Man" (Episode 11 [The End] / Soredemo Hatarakiman {Still the Working Man})

Despite a broadcast starting time 30 minutes later than usual, episode 11 of Hataraki Man still drew a pretty good television audience rating.

And despite three out of its eleven total episodes airing significantly later than their regularly scheduled time, Hataraki Man still managed to deliver an overall television audience rating of 4.01%.

Very, very few late night animation (anime) series in Japan have ever managed to pull off an overall television audience rating of 4.0% or more. Hataraki Man has just accomplished that. And NANA almost certainly will when it ends its run.

The Hataraki Man anime apparently has done much better than expected, drawing in and keeping audiences despite, among other obstacles, a number of broadcast delays and the lack of a live action version to boost awareness and interest among the Japanese general public.

Japanese posters at 2ch credit the fine cast of Hataraki Man, led by Tanaka Rie as the main character Matsukata Hiroko, for its excellent performance with Japanese viewers, particularly with salaryman, or working men and women - people who, by and large, do not normally watch anime.

[Srin Tuar]

Originally Posted by Vexx

There's so much below radar information in this show about the state of the japanese workplace and what it is doing to the culture and people that I'd almost consider this mandatory viewing. Great show but kind of punted on the ending a bit in terms of social statement (if I was following the plot correctly... gotta wait for the sub to verify what I think I heard).

I was expecting more from the very last ep myself, but it seems it was simply a rehash of episode 10, filling in all the things they didnt show but you had already guessed.
I totally disagree with the moral of the story and with hiroko's choice. I expect she'll be a burnt out husk after a few years and noone will appreciate her for it. I've found that enjoying one's time off and personal life is very important to doing a good job at work- especially in creative industries.

Hiroko's character was very interesting. She acts alot like and is treated as a guy. Except that it seems the guys in the office are never quite as harried about work as she is. Also, natto-maki were not tempting

Well, I look forward to nodame

[Vexx]

"living to work" is *always* a fail in the end..... (exept perhaps to the deluded). You work to live and if you're lucky, the work you do happens to be fun. I've been lucky for most of my career until the last 10 years or so when most of it stopped being fun. Off to another career now.

This series sent a terrible message to an already over-stressed set of viewers at the end... but it was probably fairly realistic of the choices a lot of them make and provides one of several drivers which is sending their birth rate and marriage rates plummeting through the floor.

[Siegel Clyne]

Hataraki Man Overall Television Audience Rating, 4.01% - Great for a Late Night Anime

Originally Posted by Siegel Clyne

Television Audience Ratings - Kantou region (Includes Tokyo), Japan

Hataraki Man Episode 11 Television Audience Rating, Thursday Night, December 21, 2006 [Friday Morning, December 22, 2006]

4.1% CX [Fuji TV] 25.15 [1:15 AM] Noitamina "Hataraki Man" (Episode 11 [The End] / Soredemo Hatarakiman {Still the Working Man})

Despite a broadcast starting time 30 minutes later than usual, episode 11 of Hataraki Man still drew a pretty good television audience rating.

And despite three out of its eleven total episodes airing significantly later than their regularly scheduled time, Hataraki Man still managed to deliver an overall television audience rating of 4.01%.

Very, very few late night animation (anime) series in Japan have ever managed to pull off an overall television audience rating of 4.0% or more. Hataraki Man has just accomplished that. And NANA almost certainly will when it ends its run.

The Hataraki Man anime apparently has done much better than expected, drawing in and keeping audiences despite, among other obstacles, a number of broadcast delays and the lack of a live action version to boost awareness and interest among the Japanese general public.

Japanese posters at 2ch credit the fine cast of Hataraki Man, led by Tanaka Rie as the main character Matsukata Hiroko, for its excellent performance with Japanese viewers, particularly with salaryman, or working men and women - people who, by and large, do not normally watch anime.

Hataraki Man aka The Working Man is a Working Hit ... and She Sings Too - AnimeOnDVD.com - Powered by FusionBB

Hataraki Man aka The Working Man is a Working Hit ... and She Sings Too

Distinctive and Popular Voices

Chou! Animelo -Anime&Game entertainment-

Download Ranking [December 25, 2006]

Music (12/25)

List
1st.*"Eternal" - Tanaka Rie
1st.*"Seishoujo Ryouiki" - ALI PROJECT
3rd.*"Enter!" - Momoi Haruko [Halko]

Artist (12/25)

List
1st.*Tanaka Rie
2nd.*ALI PROJECT
3rd.*Momoi Haruko [Halko]

Mobile (12/25)

List
1st.*"Eternal" - Tanaka Rie
2nd.*"LoveLoveLove no Sei na no yo!" - Lovedol
3rd.*"Seishoujo Ryouiki" - ALI PROJECT


Tanaka Rie Mini Live Concert

Popular voice actor (ninki seiyuu) Tanaka Rie (Lacus Clyne; Meer Campbell) will be the special guest at the official national convention "Premium Dogfight II BANPRESTO CUP" for the Mobile Suit Gundam SEED DESTINY Earth Alliance vs. Z.A.F.T. II game in Tokyo, Japan on Saturday, January 6, 2007. Ms. Tanaka will perform a mini live concert as one of the attraction events there.

Hataraki Man Anime is a Commercial Hit in Japan

While it did not sell on DVD in Japan -- its appeal lies with mainstream audiences, not with DVD-buying otaku -- the Hataraki Man anime nevertheless has been a commercial hit in Japan for Fuji TV and its sponsors, such as the DIP Corporation.

Working people in their twenties and thirties identified with the workaholic main character of the Hataraki-Man anime, Matsukata Hiroko "Hiro," voiced by Japanese voice actresss (seiyuu) Tanaka Rie.

To illustrate how mainstream a show it is in Japan, Yahoo! JAPAN covered the Hataraki Man anime on more than one occasion in its headlines. Links to Mantan Web and ORICON STYLE articles on the Hataraki Man anime, as well as former links to Yahoo! JAPAN Top News coverage of those articles, are provided below.

In contrast, popular otaku anime Suzumiya Haruhi no Yuuutsu (The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya) and popular otaku/fujoshi anime Code Geass Hangyaku no Lelouch (Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion), as a Japanese poster at 2ch notes, have not received top news coverage from Yahoo! JAPAN -- presumably because, although they each have sold a lot of DVDs in Japan, they each also play to smaller, niche audiences in Japan.

Hatarakiman Director Ono Katsumi & Fuji TV Assistant Producer Nakano Kumiko Interview

This interview with Hataraki-Man director Ono Katsumi and Fuji TV assistant producer Nakano Kumiko mentions, among other things, that Hataraki Man scored the highest television audience ratings of any series in the history of Fuji TV's Noitamina late night animation time slot [which Nodame Cantabile has since eclipsed], that Hataraki Man [although based on a manga running in a seinen/salaryman magazine, Morning] targeted women who normally did not watch anime, and that it has been a highly successful show.

The interview focuses on the fashion for the show.

Hataraki Man: A Happy Meeting of "Animation" and "Temporary Employment" ... DIP (Hatarakiman : "Anime" to "Jinzai Haken" no Shiawasena Deai ... Dippu)

December 28, 2006 21:45 [9:45 PM] <Mainichi Shimbun [The Mainichi Newspapers] Mantan Web>

Hataraki Man Poster for DIP

Television animation "Hataraki Man" started broadcasting in the wee hours on Fuji TV in October 2006; the final episode aired on December 21, 2006. Working people in their twenties and thirties empathize with the hard working protagonist, Matsukata Hiroko, and the show scored high television audience ratings. Furthermore, a television commercial for the temporary employment agency "DIP" (Tokyo Minato-ku, company president Hideki Tomita) which uses the image of Matsukata [Hiroko] also attracts attention. How did the unexpected combination of "anime" and "temporary work" arise in the first place? <Watanabe Kei>
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Although DIP had chosen actress Koyuki [internationally famous for being in The Last Samurai motion picture with Tom Cruise, Watanabe Ken, Hiroyuki Sanada, et al.] as its promotional image character, the project to choose a new character began around June 2006, and information on the Hataraki Man animation was obtained while conferring with advertising agencies, etc. Having read the original Hataraki Man manga by Anno Moyoco thoroughly, marketing director Aihara/Aibara Hidenobu felt, "The manga readership and the viewers that the anime aims at, to say nothing of the theme, are the same."

The magazine "Morning," in which "Hataraki Man" is serialized [irregularly], young men (seinen) and businessmen (salaryman) in their 20s and 30s are the main readers. Animation is popular among women of the same generation -- users who built this company's site -- with the Thursday late night Noitamina time slot, when "Honey and Clover," "Paradise Kiss," etc., are broadcast. Furthermore, marketing director Aihara/Aibara quickly decided to sponsor the show and assured that the tie-up of manga and anime had the power of appeal in "killing two birds with one stone" and was able to boost the image of the business, saying that "this project cannot be done by other companies."
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The number of [DIP's] "Hatarako Net" registrants normally grows at several percent per month; but since the Hataraki Man promotion began in October 2006, it has been noticeably growing at 20-30 percent per month....
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Although broadcasting of the anime has ended, the Hataraki Man volume 1 DVD goes on sale December 22, 2006, with more releases in the future. When DIP using "Hataraki Man" for promotion continues, marketing director Aihara/Aibara expects, "Because the theme songs are heard and the DVDs are seen, DIP is brought to mind." In the final episode of the animation, buried too deep in her work, Hiroko breaks up with her boyfriend. But "happy relations" between "Hataraki Man" and DIP appear to go on.

DIP Corporation.
"The largest portal site in Japan linking people with the jobs they want."

DIP Corporation. Hatarako Net
"Hatarako Net is the largest portal site in Japan dealing with temporary positions ."

DIP Corporation. Baitoru Com
"Baitoru Com is the largest portal sites in Japan for part time work ."

Read the Hir@gana Times article in the Japan-Behind the Scenes - Business section, "One of Japan's Largest Internet Job Media —DIP— has Started Providing Job Information to Non-Japanese," for some interesting information.

For your information, "D" in DIP stands for "dream," "I" is for "idea" and "P" is for "passion." DIP is heading for growth with a dream, ideas and passion and is sure to become a strong partner for non-Japanese who have a dream to work in Japan.

Hataraki Man Anime Television Audience Ratings in Japan

Hataraki Man Episode 11 Television Audience Rating, Thursday Night, December 21, 2006 [Friday Morning, December 22, 2006]

4.1% CX [Fuji TV] 25.15 [1:15 AM] Noitamina "Hataraki Man" (Episode 11 [The End] / Soredemo Hatarakiman {Still the Working Man})

Despite a broadcast starting time 30 minutes later than usual, episode 11 of Hataraki Man still drew a pretty good television audience rating.

And despite three out of its eleven total episodes airing significantly later than the regularly scheduled time of 24:45 [12:45 AM], Hataraki Man still managed to deliver an overall television audience rating of 4.01%.

Demographic breakdown data of television audience ratings in the Kantou region of Japan (Tokyo, Yokohama, Kawasaki, Saitama, Chiba, etc.) for episode 1 show that men and women in their twenties, thirties and forties constituted the biggest portion of the viewing audience for the Hataraki Man anime.

3.1% NTV 2006/10/10 Tuesday 25:56 (2006/10/11 Wednesday 1:56 AM) DEATH NOTE "Taiketsu" ("Confrontation")

4.6% CX (Fuji TV) 2006/10/12 Thursday 25:05 - 25:35 (2006/10/13 Friday 1:05 AM - 1:35 AM) Noitamina "Hataraki Man" (Episode 1: Onna no Hataraki Man {Female Working Man})

Highest Television Audience Rating Per Minute According to Generation (%)

HSH | KID | TEN | *M1 | *M2 | *M3 | *F1 | *F2 | *F3*| *MAX

----------------------------------------------

*3.1 | *0.8 | *2.3 | *3.5 | *0.8 | *0.5 | *3.6 | *0.7 | *0.4 | *4.4 | DEATH NOTE

*4.6 | *1.3 | *2.2 | *3.5 | *3.3 | *0.8 | *3.1 | *3.8 | *1.0 | *5.4 | Hataraki Man

HSH = Households (Setai)
KID = Children aged 0-12 years
TEN = Teenagers aged 13-19 years
*M1 = Men aged 20-34 years
*M2 = Men aged 35-49 years
*M3 = Men aged 50 years and over
*F1 = Women aged 20-34 years
*F2 = Women aged 35-49 years
*F3 = Women aged 50 years and over
MAX = Maximum

ORICON STYLE news of the high television audience rating of 4.6 percent for the first episode of the Hataraki Man animation series made the Yahoo! JAPAN News headlines.

[mippa]

For those who have had trouble following this series without subtitles, never fear! Arienai is getting back on track, and translations for episodes 4 and 5 are complete! Keep a lookout for new subbed episodes soon!

@.@ So sorry for the long break, folks.

[Slice of Life]

Oh, the good news of the day. I really liked the first three episodes and I'm looking forward to the rest.

[physics223]

Thank God. I was thinking about deleting this good series ... because of the lack of subs.

[Kaoru Chujo]

I loved the final episode...

Spoiler for ep11:

...for its realism and for not ending the show on some kind of contrived high. The break-up was like a slow-motion train-wreck from episode 1 on. I had hopes...but reality won. To continue MrProphet's idea, they finally found time to break up. I don't really think they loved each other. If anything, I think he loved her more. But she was beginning to doubt her life of work, and beginning to take his proposal seriously. But not really for his sake, and he realized it. To imagine her with the photographer is both easy and difficult. They both understand work and respect each other (finally). But they are both so tough to get along with.

As Vexx wrote: "There's so much below radar information in this show about the state of the Japanese workplace and what it is doing to the culture and people that I'd almost consider this mandatory viewing." But the "moral" didn't disappoint me. Perhaps the authors were being subtle: saying what was proper, but meaning the opposite. Not an unknown method in East Asian culture. And work is more than a necessary evil, anyway. But "moderation in all things," to quote the Western classics.

I guess there is some possibility of a second season, considering the show's success: success that most late-night anime can only dream of. But I don't imagine the ancillaries will be as profitable as with a moe show. I doubt there will be many Hiro figures sold, lol. Or will there?

Tanaka Rie was great. You know, after watching Hiro, most anime heroes/heroines seem kind of thin.

And thanks, Mippa and Arienai, for continuing the project.

[tun]

I QCed episode 4 today, so it should be out soon.

[Vexx]

Long anticipated excitement begins to stir....

[Shiroth]

Good old Hataraki Man - its good to have you back.

Episode 04 was pretty enjoyable. I didn't think that this early in the show we'd see life from the eyes Shinji (Hiroko's boyfriend), though it made out to be a good episode, and yet again shows another side to the wonderful life of having a job. Still waiting to see more Kaji though. :3

[Sinestra]

cant wait for the new subs such an underrated show i think it really slipped under the radar with most anime viewers. Iv only seen up to episode 3 but it was enough to get me hooked ashame that Hataraki Man has such a short run