Yesterday wo Utatte Episode 1 Impressions

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Yesterday wo Utatte (Sing “Yesterday” for Me) is an ongoing anime from this season.

Synopsis: Rikuo Uozumi is a recent university graduate who works at a convenience store. He does not have many ambitions and lives his life day by day. He is frequently visited by Haru Nonaka, an eccentric girl who has a crow as her pet. Rikuo is visited by another person: His former classmate and crush, Shinako Morinome.

[X] MC is self-deprecating.

[X] MC likes photography.

[X] MC is a recent university graduate.

Wow, all the things I like in a main protagonist, or can relate to, are in an anime!

While I do like optimistic characters such as the MCs in shonen anime (Naruto is a prime example), I can relate to self-deprecating characters a lot more.

Overall impressions: I enjoyed the first episode a lot. A self-deprecating main character and an eccentric character make the best combo. It feels relatable at times but I think there will be a lot to unpack later on. I am excited to watch the rest of this series. I highly recommend this anime.

People hate liars, but people like them.

You lie, you play along with what people say, and live a BS life.

You have nothing to hurt people or be hurt by.

You become worthless and you become sick of being with other people.

…

Liars don’t lose anything, but they don’t gain anything, either.

I’m a liar, but for the first time, I wanted to be liked.

Maybe I’m out of places to escape to.”

These lines were said by Haru Nonaka. Does being a liar = fitting in with the rest of society?

Not being a liar = being an outcast?

Escapism –> not being a liar.

Running out of places to escape to –> being a liar –> because you want to be liked.

Hm. Well, from my personal experience, being myself = being an outcast because no one shared the same interests as me –> was not liked –> but it was okay because I could escape from reality with anime. If I cannot escape from reality –> then I think I would like to be liked –> then I would be a liar in order to fit in.

(It’s okay if you don’t follow. I tried to analyze the lines in the anime…)

19 thoughts on “Yesterday wo Utatte Episode 1 Impressions”

  1. I really like the whole idea and your analysis of being a liar = fitting in with the rest of society. It’s like comparing your public face to who you are at home, or like Freud’s the id lol. I think growing up, society kinda pushes you to be a “liar” to fit in with everyone, especially in your elementary and middle school years when you’re developing your personality. But I also think that those who stick to their true selves and interests get rewarded in the end. Once I started expressing my heavy interest in fandoms and anime, I didn’t have many friends growing up, but eventually I discovered people I clicked with who also shared similar interests, and the small friend circles that developed created some of my most treasured relationships. Going into university, I discovered more people that were like me through anime club, and made a lot more friends. So I think if you expose yourself to enough people, you’ll find friends that you don’t need to be a “liar” for; they like you for who you are.

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    • I agree. That’s basically what happened to me too, when I made AniBlogger friends and when I became an exec of UBC Anime Club. I think that even when you do find friends that have similar interests as you, there is still some level of fitting in and pretending. It’s definitely not as much as normie vs. anime fan but there’s still some level there. Do you agree? Although, that is part of being your own person and having individuality. I think there’s always a balance.

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      • Ahh true, yeah I guess that most if not all relationship with other people in general do require you to fit in with the other person in order for that relationship to happen. Stuff like white lies and influencing each other, and ye like your own individuality kinda determines to what degree you show that public face. Discovering somebody’s true self is something mb really close partners/friends can get close to, but never really achieve.

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      • YES. “Discovering somebody’s true self is something mb really close partners/friends can get close to, but never really achieve.” I agree with this 100%. I don’t even know if I will even understand myself completely, yet alone other people understanding me completely.

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  2. Yeah…

    I was never able to master the social persona. I presented the actual me – which wasn’t what anyone wanted. If I were better at the social lie, presenting what people wanted to see instead of what I was, I’d be a much happier person.

    There were no anime or science fiction club or role-playing gamers when I was young. “Fitting in” required a much narrower spectrum of traits than it does now. At least today there are niches in large population centers where an involuntarily unique person might seek refuge. I pretty much hid alone in the library.

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  6. Pingback: Sing “Yesterday” for Me: A Mixed Bag, but Still Well-Worth Watching – Another Anime Review

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