Working!!: Difference between revisions

[[File:working_with_aoi_6348.jpg|frame|Clockwise from center left: [[Les Yay|Yachiyo]], [[Japanese Delinquents|Kyouko]], [[You Gotta Have Blue Hair|Hiroo]][[Manipulative Bastard|mi]], [[Aloof Big Brother|Jun]], [[Team Dad|Otoo-san]], [[Cuteness Proximity|Souta]], [[Spell My Name with an "S"|Popura/Poplar]], [[Does Not Like Men|Mahiru]] and [[The Klutz|Aoi]] (Not Pictured: [[Living Prop|Maya]])]]

 

 

 

Popura Taneshima is a short girl who works at a family restaurant. One day her boss gives her the ultimatum to go out and find some more help, as no one wishes to apply for the job. After spending an entire day asking, she accidentally bumps into Souta Takanashi, who thinks she's a lost child, and proclaims herself to actually be 17, a year older than he is. Souta ends up taking the job and quickly learns about his new dysfunctional co-workers.

An anime adaptation aired in the spring of 2010. The series has been picked up by [[Nippon Ichi|NIS America]] in their anime collection in an English sub-only format under the title ''Wagnaria!!'', [[Internet Backdraft|with polarizing reactions]] [[Flame War|from the fans]] regarding to the title change.

 

 

 

* [[Abuse Is Okay When It Is Female On Male]]: Double subverted. Inami's called out a bit for hitting men, but otherwise little effort is made on stopping her or helping her get over that. In fact, when Takanashi in the second season gets fed up and calls her out, HE is seen as the bad guy, and Aoi breaking a few plates gets punished much worse than Inami ever gets for breaking faces.

** And now, thanks to a misunderstanding, Souta's younger sister has got it into her head that [[Too Kinky to Torture|Souta actually likes]] [[Freud Was Right|that stuff.]]

** Her dad is a better example.

* [[All Love Is Unrequited]]: Poor, poor Jun.

* [[Aloof Big Brother]]: Jun

* [[Alternate Character Reading]]: Episode 9 features Kotori, whose name is an [[Alternate Character Reading]] of {{spoiler|Takanashi}}. To be more specific, {{spoiler|Takanashi -> Kotoriasobi.}}

** This refers to a Japanese saying - {{spoiler|"There are no hawks (taka nashi) where little birds play (kotori asobi)".}}

* [[Anti Role Model]]: All of Souta's older sisters.

* [[Barehanded Blade Block]]: Otoo pulls one off against Yachiyo.

* [[Big Eater]]: Kyouko

* [[Blue with Shock]]: Satou gets a lot of this when dealing with Yachiyo, especially when she's being particularly clueless about his feelings. Episode 10 takes it to new levels, when she tries to serve him the way she does Kyouko.

* [[Bottle Fairy]]: Souta's older sister, Takanashi Kozue, is practically the anime poster child for AA. It's quite hard to find her actually sober.

* [[Brilliant but Lazy]]: Apparently, Souma spends all that time and effort collecting blackmail on his co-workers so he doesn't have to actually do any of his own work.

** With Jun and Inami, though, such tactics are [[Stealth Pun|hit and miss]].

* [[Butt Monkey]]: Aoi, to a degree. The girl ''never'' gets even a smidgen of sympathy--except from ''Souma'', of all people.

* [[Calling the Old Man Out]]: Souta of all people. He lays into Inami's father over his method of parenting that resulted in Inami becoming violently androphobic. This could also count as a [[Crowning Moment of Heartwarming]], but considering Souta may or may not be doing this for Inami, rather for all the abuse he's been forced to take as a result of Inami's fears.

* [[Christmas Cake]]: Gets played with for Kyouko, Kazue, Izumi, and Kozue.

* [[Clingy Jealous Girl]]: Yachiyo towards Kyouko. Even if it's something so simple as giving Kyouko food, Yachiyo will get angry.

* [[Conspicuous CG]]: There doesn't even seem to be a reason beyond "because we could".

* [[Cool Big Sis]]: Subverted with all of Souta's older sisters.

** Let's see: one is an alcoholic who can't keep a job or a boyfriend (despite being quite attractive); one is a struggling romance writer who is pretty much incapable of taking care of herself; and one is a short-tempered and physically abusive law school student, who decided to become a lawyer (in part) to have bigger books to throw at Souta's head. Yeah, [[Anti Role Model|good role models]], [[Sarcasm Mode|right there]].

* [[Credits Running Sequence]]: The ED has Souta, Sato and Soma running; [[Lampshaded]] in that at the end of the sequence they all stop to catch their breath.

** Sometimes this is coupled with [[Attention Deficit Ooh Shiny|Attention Deficit... Ooh Shiny!]]

** Kotori provokes a similar reaction from Popura, much to Souta's dismay. Episode 10 has Souma selling photos of Kotori-chan to Popura, who reacts much as Souta does around her.

* [[Deadpan Snarker]]: Souta. [[Innocently Insensitive|Or maybe he's just insensitive.]] [[Alternative Character Interpretation|Or both.]]

* [[Description Cut]]: When Souma asks Satou how to avoid Mahiru's daily dose of [[Megaton Punch]].

''(Inami shows up in front of Souma. Souma goes [[Blue with Shock]].)'' }}

* [[Do-It-Yourself Theme Tune]]: Both Openings are sung by [[Kana Asumi|Popura]], [[Saki Fujita|Inami]] and [[Eri Kitamura|Yachiyo]] while the endings are sung by [[Jun Fukuyama|Souta]], [[Daisuke Ono|Jun]], and [[Hiroshi Kamiya|Souma]].

* [[Ear Worm]]: The OP for the first season, SOMEONE ELSE, is rather catchy. The second season's OP, COOLISH WALK, continues this tradition.

** ''SOMEONE one one SOMEONE one one SOMEONE one one SOMEONE ELSE...''

** Apparently you're forgetting Kyouko's juniors - leaving the cops out is just good sense.

* [[Every Girl Is Cuter With Hair Decs]]: Inami and her various hair clips. Even Souta thinks so.

* [[Evolving Credits]]: When Aoi Yamada joins the cast, the OP and ED are changed to include her. The same applies in season two for Haruna Otoo, Youhei and Mizuki Mashiba and Kirio Yamada.

* [[Expy]]: So we got a cool, smoking cook whose blond hair constantly covers his left eye. [[One Piece|Where did I see that before, hmmm....]]? Not to mention the [[All Love Is Unrequited]] angle.

** There's also [[Love Hina|Kyouko]]'s clear Expy-hood.

* [[Eyes Always Shut]]: Yachiyo and Otoo. Hiroomi also does this at times, but keeps his eyes mostly open (so he won't miss any of the interesting stuff happening in the restaurant).

** In Yachiyo's case, her eyes open once in Episode 7

* [[For the Evulz]]: When Souma isn't trying to blackmail his co-workers into doing his work for him, he's usually trying to arrange embarrassing or irritating situations for the people around him... pretty much [[Troll|because he thinks it's funny.]]

* [[Freeze-Frame Bonus]]: In the second opening, when Popura dashes past the camera as the title card shows up, one can see a tiny Yamada holding onto the end of Popura's ponytail.

** To elaborate: Despite being sixteen he's shorter than all of his older sisters, and his younger sister is almost as tall as he. All of his older sisters bully or abuse him in some way, and he suspects his younger sister will eventually turn out the same way.

* [[Frying Pan of Doom]]: If both Jun and Souma are in the kitchen, and some of what Souma does happens to affect Jun in a bad way, this happens.

** Not to mention that almost ALL of the violence in the series is Inami hitting a guy, usually before he even finishes a sentence.

* [[I Didn't Mean to Turn You On]]: Inami, regarding Souta. Less sexually implicit as it is romantically implicit - but it still gets the same reaction out of her.

** Again when Souta finds a lost girl in the parking lot. Given Souta's minicon fetish, there are [[Unfortunate Implications]] that may impair your enjoyment of the scene.

* [[Incest Subtext]]: Not explicitly stated, but it's more of a vague attraction played for laughs and... drama? Perhaps it's even a complex. Anyway, three of the Takanashi sisters do seem a bit too dependent or close to Souta. One grew up for the purpose of helping her older brother, one is an apparently always boyfriend-less, hopeless [[Bottle Fairy]], and the last is a romance novelist who can't do anything by herself despite being 28.

* [[Incompatible Orientation]]: Jun is in love with Yachiyo, who is lesbian. Or at least, she is [[Single-Target Sexuality|with regard to Kyouko]]. Kyouko herself seems to have [[Asexual|no interest]] in guys ''or'' girls, preferring gluttony to lust.

* [[Japanese Delinquents]]: Kyouko used to be one. The Mashiba twins, being Kyouko's henchmen back in high school, also count as reformed versions of these.

{{quote|'''Yamada''': "Playing card games?"}}

** And wouldn't you know it, ''{{spoiler|[[Exactly What It Says on the Tin|they were playing card games.]]}}''

** She was seen throughout the show, including in the OP, but did not get a speaking role until the last episode.

** This actually ends up being a good gag (despite missing out on using a potentially good character) and even some [[Fridge Brilliance]]. Maya is obsessed with being straight-laced and [[Only Sane Man|sane]] when stacked against her coworkers. The fact she only appears at the end to berate the rest of the staff on how weird they are shows how steadfast she is in her commitment to be "normal" (though it comes back to bite her because she's developed a normality complex). She shows up to work, does her job, doesn't get involved with her coworkers' eccentricity, and leaves without making much of a fuss. So we see her in the background and ignore her, ''which is exactly what she wants.''

* [[Living Prop]]: Maya Matsumoto, who actually appears in the OP.

* [[Lolicon]]: Despite denying it, Souta claims he is instead a ''[[Moe Moe|minicon]]''.

** Well, it does include things like [[Bread, Eggs, Milk, Squick|kitties, puppies, and water fleas (or sea monkeys)]].

* [[Love Triangle]]: [[Triang Relations|Type 5]], Jun -> Yachiyo -> Kyouko (-> food).

** Also played with. Yamada sees Popura fawning over Souta and thinks one of these is developing between those two and Inami--it turns out that Popura is just admiring {{spoiler|[[Wholesome Crossdresser|"Kotori"]] for being everything she wants to be.}}

** Jun completely out-manipulates Souma in the last episode.

* [[Marshmallow Hell]]: Popura at one time gets this treatment from Kazue.

* [[My Name Is Not Durwood]]: Popura cannot call Takanashi properly by his name, instead calling him "Katanashi." Inami got confused with that until she found out that he only lets Popura call him that.

* [[Mysterious Past]]: No one is quite sure where Aoi came from (though it's hinted that she ran away from home), no one is sure why she decided to run away and work at the restaurant, and ''no one'' knows where she learned how to plant a bug on someone's clothing.

* [[Theme Naming]]: All of Souta's sisters have "zu" in the middle of their names. Kazue, Izumi, Kozue and Nazuna.

* [[There Are No Therapists]]: Inami really should get one. [[Lampshade Hanging|Lampshaded]] by Souta, who wonders in one episode why Inami hasn't been committed.

* [[Third Person Person]]: Aoi, Nazuna.

** Yamada doesn't do this at first; it's just when it's becoming painfully clear she can't remember her own <s>alias</s>name.

* [[Throw the Book At Them]]: According to Souta, Kazue has a penchant for smacking him with her law books at any opportunity. She then demonstrates by hitting him in the forehead with the one she's currently holding.

** Apparently that's why she became a lawyer.

** Popura fits the role better except for her chest.

* [[Trademark Favorite Food]]: Kyouko loves her parfaits, which is why Yachiyo is all too happy to bring them to her.

* [[The Gadfly|Troll]]: Despite being under the threat of Satou's [[Frying Pan of Doom|frying pan]] and Inami's [[Megaton Punch|punch]], Souma still is one.

** Also Satou himself namely Popura.

* [[Unusually Uninteresting Sight]]: Yachiyo walks around with a katana all the time, and most of the time people don't comment on it. That being said, she has scared away customers before because, well, they were afraid. Of course, they have nothing to worry about, [[Berserk Button|so long as they don't insult, attack or hit on Kyouko.]]

* [[Vague Age]]: Aoi is dodgy about giving up her age in the anime (when Souta tells her he's 16, she responds that she's 16 as well). She appears to have a 16-year-old brother who refers to her as his younger sister, so she might be the same age or younger.

* [[Vitriolic Best Buds]]: Satou and Souma

* [[Wholesome Crossdresser]]: {{spoiler|Souta, much to the confusion of Inami.}}

** {{spoiler|Apparently, even Popura liked him as a crossdresser more than normally.}}

** Apparently though, Mahiru's mother doesn't seem to be all that fooled by {{spoiler|Souta's}} disguise.

 

{{reflist}}

[[Category:Anime]]

[[Category:Manga]]