Welcome to the N.H.K. is an anime based on the hikikomori and NEET culture in Japan. Tatsuhiro Satou is a hikikomori which means a person who subjects himself to long periods of isolation. He is a NEET which means a young person who is not in education, employment and training. Tatsuhiro is 22 years old and it has been close to four years since he confines himself in his room and depends on his parents’ allowance.

Due to his extreme awkwardness and shyness, he cannot go with the flow of the society and do the normal things that regular people do. He shuns himself in his own world (aka room) to live a life that does not involve others which is where he feels most comfortable. Long periods of isolation has caused Tatsuhiro to turn a little psychotic that he believes a secret organization named N.H.K., causes him to be in the state he is in now.

Sadly, there are people who are like him in real life so if you are such a person, who may find his character relatable. Shy characters are not always cute as shown by the character of Tatsuhiro, whose shyness drives him into having psychological problems, but not till the creepy extent of committing murders and having other strange fetishes. Since he is a unique and interesting character, we think he deserves to be in the list!

Yuu Kusakabe is the total opposite from Kyouya Sata, who is the male protagonist with a brazen and sadistic attitude. Both of them are attracted to Erika, but Erika prefers the bad boy that is Kyouya instead. Kyouya is like the ultimate alpha male, while Yuu does not even seem like a beta male, but rather an omega male.

Yuu is so shy that he can barely look at anyone in the eyes. As he is too shy, he sometimes stutters and mumbles which makes conversations with him even more difficult. He is a pessimist who always thinks negatively. Despite him being too hard on himself, he is actually a really sweet, nice guy who has cute looks to boot! He just needs to be a little more confident so that he will not get trampled upon. Even though he is such a shy person, he pushes himself to confess to Erika, which is a huge achievement for a terribly shy person!

It may seem mystifying that such a shy boy could be a leader of a gang, but Jacuzzi Splot is a shy boy whom you should not mess with. Despite being a crybaby, he can unleash terror when his loved ones are hurt. When a gang member dies, he is so consumed by anger that he robs many neighborhood stores, as he cries while clutching on his machine gun.

Despite the violent side which he may sometimes display, he is a sweet romantic who would sacrifice himself for his girlfriend. An explosion caused his girlfriend, Nice Holystone, to lose an eye and suffer from poor vision on the other eye, so Jacuzzi tattooed his face to allow Nice to easily recognize him. It is also so that his girlfriend would not feel embarrassed of her scars. Essentially, he is a sweet-natured, timid boy who is prone to crying, but that does not mean that others can easily take advantage of him. He is a shy boy who is capable of making things happen!

Bols, or Bors, was a member of team Incineration Empire before he became a member of the Jaegers. He has a buff appearance and can be seen always wearing a mask. In spite of his intimidating appearance, he is really shy, especially towards people he does not know. This can be seen when he makes a long pause prior to introducing himself to Wave. He is also reluctant to open his mask even though his wife insists that his looks will not trouble others.

Even though Bols is shy, he is not one to shy away from his tasks which include burning villages. Nevertheless, he feels guilty about them and thinks that many people hate him for his wrongdoings. However, he keeps doing his job for the sake of his family. He has a wife and a daughter whom he loves very much, so he is really a family man. When he is about to die, he feels very regretful about not being able to return home. Unlike many villains, he is not totally evil which makes him a likable shy character!

Tadase Hotori is a boy whom Amu Hinamori has feelings for. He is known as the King’s Chair and he is the leader of The Guardians. His cute appearance makes him a popular boy whom many girls are attracted to! His Guardian character is Kiseki, who is born out of Tadase’s desire to dominate the world and become stronger. His character would switch into a brave and egoistical king when someone utters the word “ouji” which could mean prince or dead end.

Tadase is really shy and as a result, he is not good at public speaking. When a girl confesses to him, instead of rejecting the girl he is not interested in, he would have Kiseki reject the girl for his sake instead. Perhaps to cover up for his shyness, he often acts confident around others. He has a big ambition and strong will even though he is shy, which causes Kiseki to be born!

Ren Mihashi has a dreadfully low self-confidence and he is a very nervous person. He probably inherits this personality from his father who seems to display the same characteristics, but Ren’s shyness becomes even more apparent after going through periods of being bullied in middle school. The reason he got bullied is because it is believed that he got a place in the baseball team due to favoritism, thus sparking dissatisfaction by his fellow baseball team members who feel that the reserve pitcher, Kanou, is a better player. As Ren could not take the bullying any longer, he decides to continue high school in another school which is Nishiura High School. He does not want to play baseball anymore in high school but he accidentally reveals that he used to be a pitcher, leading him to be dragged into joining a baseball club.

Despite his anxious and shy behavior, he has a strong resolve and commitment to succeed. He does not want to give up even after wearing himself out that he begins to lose control of his pitches. He is very passionate in pitching that even when he is asleep, he is always holding a ball. Being in a new team that appreciates him more, he slowly gains more confidence in himself. With that kind of stubbornness which refuses to give up, Ren’s progress in building his self-esteem is definitely commendable.

Senri Ichinose has the ability to summon and control water so he is used to help the irrigation system to the point of collapsing due to being overworked. As he had been subjected to cruel treatments by the adults around him, he has a negative attitude and is socially awkward.

Much like a hikikomori, he likes to stay in his room most of the time as he does not like to be surrounded by others. He likes being in the water where nobody could chase him. The people around him are not all bad as there are some who are worried about him, but he has become emotionally cold with trust issues that he thinks it is unnecessary for them to worry. Besides that, he thinks that it is better not to develop any feelings for them as they may turn out to be enemies in the future. As we feel pity for him, we gave him a place in this list so hopefully he cheers up a little.

Kuromine Asahi is too honest and straightforward that he cannot be trusted in keeping secrets. This earns him the title of “a bag full of holes”. As he is so shy and does not hide his expressions well, people can easily read through him. People may want to come to him when they want to know the truth but at times, they avoid from letting him know their secrets, as he is so poor in keeping them.

He has a crush on Shiragami Youko, but one day he finds out an important secret about her, which is that she’s a vampire! Due to his difficulties in hiding the truth, it indeed proves to be a challenge for him to keep her secret away from everyone. If others were to know about it, it would lead to her being expelled from school, or worse. Hence, Asahi made a promise to keep her secret at all costs, even though it is against his nature of being straightforward. Asahi is shy but he is a kind person, who is willing to embarrass himself for the sake of others, even to the extent of being misunderstood as a pervert. We have witnessed his sacrifices and think that he deserves to be placed 3rd in the list.

Sakamichi Onoda is a shy otaku with no friends of similar interests in middle school. Determined to join the anime club in his new school, in hopes of making friends whom he can share his interests with, he is met with disappointment as the club has been disbanded due to lack of participants. But by coincidence, he found out that he has great potential in cycling, so he ends up being in a bicycle racing club.

Sakamichi may seem like a weak boy with low stamina, but he can ride uphill with ease. He used to hate sports and the jocks who bullied him, but the tables have turned now as he becomes a jock, in addition to being an otaku! While his timidity may at times make us cringe in frustration, we can’t help but to root for him to have success in his cycling venture and prove to others than nerds (like us!) can make it too.

Noboru Yoshikawa is a weak character with a short stature, which makes him an easy target for bullying. He is physically weak and lack muscles that he couldn’t win against girls in a brawl. Thus, he is often bullied and beaten up by Anko and her two other friends. The girls also strip him naked, write and draw on his body, and take a photo of him naked. He faces depression due to the bullying and tried to commit suicide twice, but is saved by Onizuka.

Instead of being a wimp and keeping quiet, Noboru undresses himself in front of the crowd to prove that he has been bullied in order to save Onizuka from being fired. Noboru is very forgiving despite the harsh treatment he has received from Anko, he does not hold a grudge against her. When Anko falls into the sea, he jumps in without hesitation to save her life. He also comforts her when they are stuck in a cave with seemingly no way to escape. Noboru is probably the most loyal student of Onizuka as he is willing to sell all his gaming software and life savings in order to help Onizuka. Kindness is always rewarded, which he why he tops the list!