Do anime characters need to be realistic in order to make them relatable?

[teja208]

I had a discussion with a female friend. She said she’s not really into anime because she finds characters unrealistic and thus she can’t related with them. For reference, she’s into Korean drama, especially historical ones, which I’m not a fan of, but she said that watching characters struggle through their hardship in the drama felt real to her, and she gets the impression of events similar to that could happen IRL somewhere and also learn valuable lessons from them, but she can’t say the same when it comes to anime. Given she hadn’t watch much anime, she remarked how anime characters in general especially the female ones tends to behave immaturely in spite of their age and thus she’s unable to related with them. Of course, sometimes I do enjoy watching more realistic down-to-earth anime settings and characters like Bakuman, Silver Spoon, and Uchuu Kyoudai, but the reason why I was drawn to anime in the first place is because I find their quirky personalities and hammy behaviors interesting in the way that you can’t find in any other media. I love characters like Haruhi from TMOS, Okabe from Stein;Gate, Toori from KnH, Araragi from Bakemonogatari and many many of the casts in Durarara which currently on air, but it’s not like I have to related to them and their struggles in order to like them, but their quirkiness is what kept me hooked. The same thing when it comes to cute girls anime series. It’s not like I watch series like K-on expecting characters to behave maturely, but I do envy their childish optimism which I find myself lacking and makes me feel refreshed after watching. So yeah, it’s ironic that what turn her away from anime is what keeps me enjoy watching it and that’s fine and all, but I’m curious about certain things…

How do you define “relatable characters”? I don’t really understand this concept.

Is it necessary for a character to be realistic in order to make them relatable?

Does “relatable characters” heavily influence your choice of anime?

[Archon_Wing]

Finds characters in Korean dramas relatable... Excuse me for a moment.

Spoiler:

In all seriousness, I honestly think people have too narrow of a range for what they consider "realistic". People run in all shapes and colors, and maybe just because you or I can't imagine why someone would act like that, it doesn't mean it's not realistic. Remember, fiction is derived from reality! One might use a lot of hyperbole and exaggeration, but chances are it was inspired by someone in real life.

I think "relatable character" is horrifically overrated. I don't watch anime to project myself into it, or to project it into real life. What I feel that needs to be relatable is whether or not the sum of the experience felt here can be attributed to the human experience of thought, emotions, or imagination. And yes, obviously real life can form a strong backdrop, and adding realism strengthens the logical part of a story. It is by no means required though. There are many cases where there are characters that are say, alien to regular people, such as Gon from Hunter x Hunter, but the basic humanity of his situations when context is brought aboard allows the viewer to connect on a level of which everyone can understand and create meaningful thought. Or you know, cause brains to start working.

If we take shows like Durarara, Haruhi, and Steins;Gate; sure a lot of them are crazy and are borderland sociopath, but there's ultimately a human message of insecurity and desire to seek meaning that does resonate with the viewer.

[Tenzen12]

As long as even "unrealistic" characters has realistic worries, they can be relatable. Archon for example mentioned Durarara. For me most relatable characters there are dulahan and uncontrolable berserker throwing vending machines. Because you can see they are genuinely lonely, or happy. They care about their family, own job and friends.

Another case would be for example Oregairu, where cast is in a way as bizzare as Naritas one, but it actually adress lot of issues manny of us know well, which again make them relatable.

All you need is single aspect or character trait.

[Pocari_Sweat]

Korean dramas... ah the good ol days (about 10+ years ago) when the most common genre were historical epics like Ho-Jun, Hong-gil-Dong, Dae Jung Geum, Sang-doetc. Now it's ruined by trying to solely cater to housewives and young adult females with trucktons of badly made romcoms and romance melodramas. F*** you Winter Sonata and My Sassy girl.

[aohige]

To an extent, yes.
There's no need to obsess over realism, but the characters need to be comparable to our natural feelings enough to relate to, within the borders of suspension of belief.

I don't like Korean or Japanese drama btw.
IMO, East asian drama (TV or film) more often than not tend to either be too pretentious or too corny for my tastes.
And that's not a recently developed feeling, I felt that way even back when I was growing up in Japan.

[Triple_R]

Whether a character is relatable largely depends on...

1) Whether his/her main goals and motivations make sense or not to you.

2) If you can understand the rationale and/or emotional drives behind his/her actions and decisions.

3) The character background in any way "hitting home" with you.


A character being realistic can help all three, but it's probably not absolutely necessary. A very skillful writer could probably find a way to have at least the first 2 apply to, say, a magic-using alien with 10 eyes.

I would argue that it's important for a character to be at least somewhat relatable because otherwise the "why should I care about this character?" question may lack a good answer. And if you can't bring yourself to care about the characters in a story, it's going to be much harder to engage with the story and to care about the story itself. And if you don't care about the characters or the story, then the show is going to need absolutely fantastic production values (great visuals, awesome bgm) or you're almost certainly going to lose interest fast.


However, the value of realism in general is more variable depending on the context of the show and what it's aiming for overall.

[teja208]

Originally Posted by Tenzen12

Another case would be for example Oregairu, where cast is in a way as bizzare as Naritas one, but it actually adress lot of issues manny of us know well, which again make them relatable.

All you need is single aspect or character trait.

Oh yeah 8-man is also another very interesting character. I'm also looking forward to s2.

And thanks to all of you for your valuable feedback. Come to think of it, most of my favorite anime characters tend to be quite an unpredictable wild card, but it's not like their actions doesn't make any sense. We always learn a little more about what makes them tick as we get to know them through their actions and sometimes how other characters and audiences interpret their actions. So as long as their action makes sense no matter how quirky they are, then they are relateable.

[Flower]

There is also another factor in all this, and that is that as the years go by and we change we are sometimes able to "hear" things in a field of a specific art that we were not able to earlier ... different things are able to speak to us based on where we are at certain points in our life or even certain places and timings where we are able to hear what is being said, or even to relate to certain characters circumstances. It is the same with other art forms.

So perhaps there will come a time when the person the OP wishes to communicate with via anime series will come.

[larethian]

Pretty much the rest said; as long as things don't get too unreal or unbelievable that you feel disconnected from the show and can't take it seriously anymore. Especially for slice of life ones.

Btw, some of those drama in dramas are actually quite unreal......
She's probably just watching the wrong shows. Get her to to try "Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso". She probably will like it if she enjoys teary Korean love stories.

[GreyZone]

No, all you need is a few notable traits that you share with a character and can say that you can "relate" with them. For a character to be "relatable" in the general sense, those few notable traits must be part of what most of the average people have in common.

[relentlessflame]

There's a reason why almost all fiction deals with a very small but universal list of overarching themes, like "growing up," "falling in love," "finding your place in the world," "experiencing and dealing with pain," "struggling with authority," "overcoming the odds," and so on. These sorts of themes are seen as being part of the "universal human experience"; they're the things most writers write about because they've experienced them to some degree, and the things that most people can relate to for the same reason. So regardless of how the characters in anime act, most stories have some elements of these (and other similar) universal themes. Even though you may not be able to personally relate to exactly what the characters are going through specifically, you can still relate on a basic level to what they're going through emotionally. That's basically empathy in action.

Of course, different people have different roadblocks to their ability to feel empathy towards characters in a fictional work. For example, one roadblock could be that you don't find the premise or characters interesting -- maybe you could have related to them, but it just doesn't keep your interest so you can't fully engage. Or another roadblock for some people is that there are elements of the plot that seem illogical or full of "plot holes" and they get so distracted by these elements that they can no longer focus on the people in the story. Or a third could be that the story includes some elements that you personally don't enjoy (graphic content, political viewpoints, tired archetypes, etc.) -- so whatever the characters are doing is overshadowed by the more significant problem to that person. And on and on. I've known people who claimed they couldn't relate to a story unless it had a protagonist that matched their gender. I've known people who claimed they couldn't relate to any story that starred teenagers. I've known people who claimed they couldn't relate to any story that wasn't "realistic", or even any story that was animated at all (had to be live-action). It all depends on the person. Sometimes I personally find some of those view points seem a bit "close-minded," or it seem to me they have odd priorities... but, hey, it's pretty hard to judge these things.

I'd say it's very important for a show to be "relatable" to me but, at the same time, it's never been all that hard to find shows that I can relate to, as long as I get a sense of what the characters are going through on an emotional level.

[IceHism]

No because i'm not pretentious enough to think that "this sort of person couldn't exist in real life" because there are 7 billion humans on this earth and fiction is made from real life. There are many sorts of people all over the place. Just because you haven't met them doesn't mean they don't exist.

However, i would argue that a character with a background or conflict that hits home with you will more easily attract a viewer that relates to him.

Not necessary but it can help.

i love asian dramas tho....

[Fizix]

I don't find most anime characters relatable; aside from what relentlessflame described as "the human experience".

A character doesn't have to be relatable to be entertaining and that's the important the point isnt it? Being relatable just adds another layer to a characters appeal I guess.

For example, an extreme example... I loved Trevor in GTA 5, I found him very entertaining but there was nothing, nothing at all, relatable about him. I'd be worried if anyone found him relatable.

The human experience is what allows you to get behind them and emphasise with them, but that's a different thing.

[GDiddy]

There might be certain quirks I can relate to an anime character....but otherwise? noooo......

[Vitne Eveille]

There's a genre for everyone. People have similar arguments about music. Some people can't relate to electronic music...some can't relate to classical.

Some enjoy it regardless!

For that matter, "reality" shows are mostly staged as well. And some people think those are relatable

I personally don't like fantasy shows much (like orcs and vikings and goblins and dragons) as much as say, space stuff. Some people are the opposite and think space-related things are lame and unrelatable or uninteresting, but get lost in the fantasy world.

Maybe my answer doesn't help