I've written before about how most of us live in obscurity. We look for a decent job and try to tolerate it while cultivating happiness outside of our careers. Most of our dream careers go out the window when the realities of life slap us in the face.
But what if life slaps you with something different? Something that never really entered your radar?
Well, for Minare Koda in Wave, Listen to Me!, that's exactly what happens.
 |
| Minare, a quick-witted restaurant server, is suddenly thrusts into the world of radio |
Wave, Listen to Me!, or Nami yo Kiitekure, stars the fast-talking, imaginative Minare Koda. And I don't just mean the anime. Wave, Listen to Me! is also the name of the eventual late-night radio program broadcast by MRS throughout Hokkaido. And when I say late night, I mean LATE NIGHT! Wave, Listen to Me! would air at around 3:00 AM.
But for Minare, becoming a radio DJ was never really something she had considered.
So who is Minare Koda?
Minare was raised in Kushiro, Hokkaido, before moving to Sapporo to attend acupuncturist training. Her name, Minare, was either derived from a sexual pun when her drunk father was looking at porn magazines in a store or from the first three syllables of the names of his mistresses. It's one of those two—or her dad was just being a dick. Which would explain the imaginative ad-libs she would eventually bring to her radio program.
She ends up working at Voyager, a curry restaurant that plays MRS during the lunch rush, as a server and social media manager. It's not exactly the career she dreamed of, but it provides her with a steady income and a routine she can tolerate. Nakahara, one of the cooks at Voyager, is a supportive friend who is very open about his feelings for Minare and his dream of running his own restaurant with her. Takarada, their boss, isn't particularly fond of Minare because she doesn't fit his vision for Voyager. He is also gay, and the anime implies that he is sexually inappropriate toward Nakahara from time to time.
At the start of the anime, Minare has just broken up with Mitsuo, who swindled ¥500,000 from her. That's maybe three or four months' worth of pay from her restaurant gig. Being an energetic 26-year-old, of course she goes out drinking because of it.
And it is during this drinking session that she meets Mato-san, a radio program director for MRS. In front of him, she proceeds to rip into Mitsuo and the men of his hometown of Fukuoka. A magnificent diatribe, oozing with attitude, is delivered without her tripping over her syllables—a non-stop barrage that would force even the most veteran anime subtitle reader to pause and catch up with her rant.
Realizing the potential, Mato-san secretly records Minare's tirade and decides to play it during MRS's lunchtime show. This compels Minare to make a beeline for the station, where she intends to stop the broadcast and confront Mato-san.
But somehow, we get this:
 |
| Minare is forced in front of a live mic and delivers an apology for her hasty generalizations about the men of Fukuoka before declaring her intention to murder Mitsuo. |
Oh, by the way, I lied... At the start of Wave, Listen to Me!, Minare was confronting a FREAKIN' BEAR IN THE WOODS!
But I digress.
Minare was not really miserable at Voyager. Her natural charisma actually suited the role, allowing her to develop rapport with the patrons. She had a colleague she could call a friend. She also had an income to fund her apartment, as well as a small car that she drove with reckless abandon. The threat of being fired constantly loomed because of her sour relationship with Takarada. But by all accounts, everything was going smoothly prior to her breakup, which caused her distress and led to a few instances of tardiness.
Then comes Mato-san, bringing with him an opportunity that comes completely out of left field. Later in the anime, Minare admits that she never really listened to the radio all that much. But Mato-san saw her ability to talk, her energy, her personality, and her willingness to draw from deep within herself to craft stories that leave listeners hooked.
Even though she never aimed for it, Minare gets a shot that many people work their whole lives for.
Minare, being completely oblivious to the world of radio, initially thinks it is a way to stick it to Takarada. But upon being brought down to earth after hearing how low on the totem pole she will begin her radio career, she shrinks.
 |
| Minare was powering up to tear him a new one! |
But this bravado after hearing the offer is just her initial reaction. To be offered something so out of the norm can be suspicious and really daunting. Nakahara reminds Minare of how sketchy the offer is.
Is she just going to be made fun of? Is this some sort of scam? Can't she just prostrate in front of Takarada to keep her job?
Minare actually asks Mato-san about this. Why her? Why is he putting a restaurant server on air? Aren't there other amateurs out there who can do this work? Did she blank out and they actually slept together before, and he is giving her this as a consolation?
And Mato-san gives her the breakdown of how she did. During the 26 minutes of talk time, both in the original recording and during the time she barged in and was forced to speak into a live microphone, she did not stumble over her words once. Her segment got twice as many reactions as the other two amateur segments that followed her combined. She performed so well that some people thought her segment was all scripted.
Mato-san did not sugarcoat anything. He was tired of producing segments for low-level idols and voice actors. And Minare presented an opportunity for him to foster a young, up-and-coming personality.
Not all opportunities deserve a yes. But the ease of saying no can leave too many things off the table.
Minare is on the brink of unemployment and down ¥500,000. Sure, the gig is not stable, being on the 3:00 AM block. Her name won't draw sponsors. But she goes for it. Not because she thinks it is her destiny or for any noble reason like the ones we are fed in a lot of anime. But because she won't find out for sure until she says yes.
Throughout Wave, Listen to Me!, the radio show, Minare brings her listeners into a chaotic world where she fights off a bear, gets abducted by aliens, murders her ex, and gets into all sorts of craziness. She develops a mild resentment toward the show's writer, Kureko, because he just puts stuff like ad-lib for the rest of the show in the scripts he gives her. But it's her quick wit, personality, and general irreverence that give the show its edge.
And no, the anime is not about how this young whippersnapper takes the radio world by storm. Wave, Listen to Me! doesn't become an overwhelming hit. Minare still ends up working at Voyager throughout the anime. Remember, Wave, Listen to Me! airs at 3:00 AM.
Wave, Listen to Me!, the anime, is not clichรฉ. For all the chaos and insanity it has, it remains grounded when it comes to Minare's life as a radio DJ.
Minare has to go out and do research—be it visiting a disturbed listener who thinks he is being haunted, asking friends like Nakahara for ideas, or actually listening to the radio. Opportunities need hard work to bear fruit, and Wave, Listen to Me! does not shy away from that. And this is one of the things that makes Minare Koda such a likable character.
There is a particular anxiety that comes with being a young adult. People in their 20s are pressured to have a plan and a roadmap toward reaching a particular goal. After spending years studying and being prepared by their parents, this is the expectation.
But for a lot of people, that plan is nonexistent. We just end up with a diploma and our thumbs up our asses, not really planning for what's next.
Wave, Listen to Me!, the anime, is a look at Minare at this particular junction in her life. She has no real plans for the future. Just a job she tolerates that gets her what she needs. But as adults without that plan, sometimes you just have to take the next weird opportunity and see where it takes you.
Amid all the chaos and insanity of Wave, Listen to Me!, it is a good reminder that sometimes you don't need to know where you are going. Just pay the fare and see where it takes you.
No comments:
Post a Comment