I watched a video about A Silent Voice / Koe no Katachi and was reading the comments when I saw something about Japanese culture being harsh on inconvenience. It made me thing about how in novels, mangas, anime, whatever it is that causes the MC inconvenience, disappears at the begging. They get power, summoned to another world, turn into a demon, meet that one person that makes them a better human in days. The problems are shown, and they are gone. Really different from A Silent Voice, where the MC suffers from it until the end, acknowledges it, learns to deal with it, grows despite it, takes a step at getting better, but it stays with him. So now I want to know if there are other stories where the MCs don't have their problems magically solved for them, or given the power to ignore them until they are forgotten. Stories where the MCs are not turned into an exemplar person, don't turn into the perfect human.
What exactly is this "inconvenience" you're talking about? The definition is way too wide. A villain is an inconvenience, a missing shoelace is also an inconvenience.
Because it's lighthearted story, it's not "harsh on inconvenience" There's so many title with imperfect mc, like oyasumi punpun, aku no hana, Lord of the Mysteries, goblin workshop in me. And mostly op perfect mc is on either sci-fi or fantasy because the problem is clearly different, i mean problem like demon attacking a village vs koe no katachi is a different issue.
By "inconvenience" do you mean a character that is deaf like in A Silent Voice? Or suicidal/depressed? Has mental issues like autism that they struggle with but don't "cure" because that's impossible, it's more a matter of learning the coping methods that allow you to function? I was fond of the BL author Nanao Bohra as many of her characters are handicapped or older or suffering from depression or loss of loved ones. I remember one of the fantasy stories even had a main character that was enslaved and had his tongue cut out. He didn't magically grow it back either. The only non BL story by her is Tamago no Hi. I'd recommend it.
Oh, kinda makes me think of the Doctor Strange movie. Wasn't there the thing that his hands were never fixed? He still can't be a surgeon. But he became a better person or whatnot. I have no idea.
Few recommendations come to mind, but they’re manhwa and not novels. If that’s ok with you then: Save Me by 1230 - two protagonists one suffers from a physical disability and the other from mental disability. Nanohana Boys - two protagonists who have different physical disabilities. Both manhwa aren’t bl btw!
@SoulZer0 @Hazel00 @MoJo By inconvenience I mean something more individual, personal, a "flaw". Something that makes others (and themselves) see them as inconvenient. Fat, lonely, quiet, tall, deaf, depressed, otaku, all the shit that is often used as an excuse to make the character a victim, to make people around them dislike their presence or to make it so they have a hard time making connections. In most stories these "flaws" simply disappear or are ignored. I was hopping to find some where they stay with the characters, where they have to work around it, deal with situations where these traits play a role. @Hazel00 @MoJo @Walter vi Britannia @Leena.k Thanks for the recommendations, I will check them. Already on my reading list, I think it fits, thanks for reminding me of it. Stories are my bread, doesn't matter the format.
Wotakoi: Love Is Hard for Otaku is a good read. The four main characters are working adults that all work in the same place and like many functioning adults have a work face and a private face. All have otaku interests that they make pains to keep out of their work/public life, but it's rather wholesome and there's minimum angst because these are not teenagers. One of the side characters is an awkward teen though. Komi-san wa Komyushou Desu. (Komi Can't Communicate) Is a really cute high school romance about a super shy girl who struggles to literally talk. Normally you would have all sorts of bullying drama, but this girl is a bit of a mary sue because her good looks make her extremely popular despite her struggling to even mumble one word. This is not to say it's a bad manga. It's incredibly cute and wholesome to see her try to overcome her shyness and truly connect with the people around her instead of being a classroom mascot.
If you do not mind BL/Yaoi, there are a few that come to mind... "I See You" by Gǔjīn 古今 - MC suffers from hardship of life and ML has physical inconvenience. This is short but sweet and highlights perseverence and self-reliance. "Heaven Official's Blessing" by Mò Xiāng Tóngxiù 墨香铜臭 - Most people have heard of this one. The MC's inconveniences are probably not what you actually meant but the loss of godhood is definitely an inconvenience in my opinion.... but this novel is an amazing depiction of beauty and loathesomeness of human nature, joy and loss, fear, hatred, forgiveness, humility, compassion, and enlightenment. I could say much more, but I will just say that this novel is truly captivating. "Pastel Colours" by Shi Jiu Yao 十九瑶 - Involves past trauma, character growth, trust, and acceptance. Some parts are hasty or abrupt, but the meaning of the novel is not lost and is a bit healing. [Some (H) I think] If you would consider Omegaverse/BL: "Pay Attention to Me" by Little Ice Cube 冰块儿 - MC suffers from past trauma and is very self-reliant with a very realistic veiw on his life. The ML is a typical second-generation but he is also independent and even though he wants to wave a magic wand and make everything better, he cannot and does not force it. I do not tend to read school novels, but this is not just fluffy and sweet, but also sad and kind of dark at times. It does not delve too deeply into the possible (HH) of ABO dynamics, but it is enough to add depth to the fluffiness. This same author wrote "The Short Story of ShaoWang," which is definitely Yaoi and some (h), and it is the prequel of "Pay Attention to Me." I am not too into Transmigration, but "The Disabled Tyrant's Pet Palm Fish" by Xuěshān féi hú 雪山肥狐 is about an MC that has to help a King that cannot speak. There is MPreg but it is not one of the main aspects of the book. So, this may fall under an inconvenience since the ML is unable to speak? This is more about system transmigration and helping the ML not become a murderous tyrant. A good author I have read that depicts drama, character growth, past trauma/current trauma is Wu Zhe 巫哲. I am pretty sure I recall some (H). This author's works definitely fall into the 'not perfect' category. This author has at least one novel being serialized into a Manhua.