A quantitative reckoning of Koyomi Araragi’s effectiveness as a protagonist, by ‘Monogatari Series’ arc
So one day I was sitting around, thinking that Monogatari Series seems to have one of the most useless main characters, well, ever. In terms of making his friends’ lives better, at least, even if he is a premier source of banter and horrifying losses of bodily integrity. In fact, Araragi seems to be the source of his friends’ troubles more often than not.
Well, what better way to test this hypothesis than with numbers? We’ll give Araragi one point for every arc where the solution wouldn’t have happened without him, and take one away in each case where the problem et cetera as above. I’ll go in anime order.
| Hitagi Crab | +1 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Araragi introduces Senjougahara to Oshino. Let’s give him some credit. | ||||
| Mayoi Snail | +1 | |||
| None of the arc would happen without Araragi skulking around the park trying to avoid his family, and Hachikuji finally gets home and stops being so angry. Yes, Araragi isn’t very helpful when it comes to actually finding the place, but let’s not nitpick. | ||||
| Suruga Monkey | –1 | |||
| Not only would there be no problem in the first place but for Araragi, but his new girlfriend also has to save him from literal disembowelment. | ||||
| Nadeko Snake | +1 | |||
| You could loosely argue that Nadeko’s infatuation with Araragi is an indirect cause of the conflict, but it’s not essential. | ||||
| Tsubasa Cat | –1 | |||
| See Suruga Monkey, above, except replace “new girlfriend” with “new vampire shadow familiar.” | ||||
| Karen Bee | ||||
| Araragi doesn’t do much here. | ||||
| Tsukihi Phoenix | ||||
| Or here! | ||||
| Tsubasa Family | +1 | |||
| Eh, well, Araragi kind of solves the problem with his sword fuckery. | ||||
| Tsubasa Tiger | –1 | +1 | ||
| Jealousy again, but at least Araragi shuts this one down hard. | ||||
| Mayoi Jiangshi | –1 | +1 | ||
| Fucks up the world, then unfucks it. | ||||
| Nadeko Medusa | –1 | |||
| Definitely number one on the list of Araragi fuckups. | ||||
| Shinobu Time | –1 | |||
| Araragi’s basically the sole reason Hachikuji sticks around for so long, and he refuses to let her pass on until the very end. Big minus. | ||||
| Hitagi End | ||||
| This arc is just the tail end of Nadeko Medusa. Though it’s tempting, it’s not really fair to penalize Araragi for the same thing twice. | ||||
| Suruga Devil | ||||
| No, Araragi’s little pep talk in the middle doesn’t count as essential. | ||||
| Yotsugi Doll | –1 | |||
| I barely even remember what happens in this arc, but I do know it’s Araragi’s fault. | ||||
| Ougi Formula | ||||
| I guess Araragi could have spoken up, but why put that responsibility solely on him? | ||||
| Sodachi Riddle | –1 | |||
| You were supposed to notice sad Oikura in the corner! | ||||
| Sodachi Lost | ||||
| Araragi doesn’t solve the problem. Really, nothing gets solved. This is a pretty tragic, difficult arc. | ||||
| Shinobu Mail | –1 | +1 | ||
| Jealousy yet again! Araragi really knows how to step on some toes, but at least he’s learning how to fix things. | ||||
| Koyomi Vamp | +1 | |||
| This arc is a pretty clear victory for Araragi. Well, if you ignore Hanekawa getting kidnapped, which he solves, so let’s call that part a wash. | ||||
| Total | –9 | +8 | = | –1 |
Hm. Uh… well, guess I was right.