Azumanga Analysis -- Kasuga "Osaka" Ayumu

Ah, everyone's favorite character, including mine.  The shining star of Azumanga, the one and only Osaka.  I read this analysis online where someone claimed if Osaka hadn't been in the show, the fanbase would not exist, at least not as large as it was at Azumanga's peak.  This is certainly true, given how strong a flavor character Osaka is.  It's also been stated by many that there was no character like Osaka in manga before, and that there were many imitators afterward. 

Granted, I don't know enough manga history to know if that last claim is true.  I don't really doubt it, it just surprises me because Osaka is pretty normal.  No, I don't mean "normal" as in a common example of a person in society.  Osaka is a normal example of a very small portion of the population.  She's the perfect example of a Myers-Briggs INTP, and in the world females of this type make up less than 2%, approximately, of the world's population.  While Azuma might not have been familiar with the Myers-Briggs system, it's entirely possible he knew someone like Osaka in real life, as INTPs are characterized as extremely withdrawn, imaginative system designers with love for innovation and near inability to follow through with even a small percentage of their ideas. 

As you can tell, I've put a lot of thought into Osaka's character.  Who wouldn't?  We all love her, so of course out of all the characters we think about her the most, yes?  And because we love her so much, we all try our hardest to deny the truth.  That truth?

Kasuga Ayumu is destined to be a failure.

Don't get angry.  Search your heart; you know it to be true.  If you require evidence, well, here we go. 
Let's start with the will/talent keys to success.  In terms of talent, Osaka appears to have none.  She's not athletic, not flexible, not academically inclined, and never shown doing anything artistic.  In terms of will, as much as she knows she should get it together, she never does.  Indeed, she prioritizes sleep over school, and merrily joins the bonkuras in their race to the bottom.  Nor does Osaka have any clear interests that would give her some direction in life.

When I was saying that Kaorin's subconscious philosophy of "take what life hands you" isn't the worst life philosophy to have, I meant that because Kaorin has been handed general Japanese culture, she'll do well enough.  Osaka doesn't even take what she's handed; she doesn't take anything at all, because she's so insulated from anything outside of herself. 

Despite telling herself to "get it together", Osaka only seems to do this because she knows she's different from other students.  Her former classmates did call her slow and spacey, after all.  Avoiding these labels is more important to her than reaching a destination.  The downside of that is that avoiding negative labels would only lift Osaka up to the same level as the other girls -- the other girls who are still trying to figure out who they are and what they're supposed to do with their lives. 

Unfortunately, Osaka seems to enjoy life moment by moment.  While that sounds like the kind of thing from an inspirational quote book, it's terrible in practice.  Osaka enjoys the small things in life.  Very small.  While other girls enjoy doing well in school or running fast, Osaka enjoys hot baths, sticking her face in flour, and watching a commerical where lotion drips into a bottle (in the manga).  It seems that so long is Osaka is happy in the absolute present, the right now, she is content to give the future not another thought.  This, combined with her general lack of talent, destroys any hope she had of taking advantage of her youth to discover what she's meant to be or wants to be.

In fact, Osaka doesn't appear to want to be anything.  Even her wish to get out of school every day primarily hinges on getting to leave and then go pursue whatever random desire occurs to her, like searching for Tokyo earthworms.  Osaka just takes whatever idea comes up and runs with it.

Like Kaorin, Osaka lets her life be up to fate.  Unlike Kaorin, she apparently has no one to nag her into pragmatic outlets or any self-determination to do the same.  Perhaps her parents are too concerned with their jobs to really pay attention to her, and while she isn't unloved, she's clearly left to her own devices, without facilitation into finding some job.  Even people with no obvious talent (Tomo) can do well if they have the strength of will to make a place for themselves.  Osaka's thoughts all scatter in impractical directions, making her only hope for a future Chiyo's questionable advice.

And no, I don't think Osaka would be good as a teacher.  Teachers generally have to teach the same things over and over again, and Osaka is better in situations where new ideas replace the old, not where new students replace the old.  If Osaka wasn't fired, she'd quit.

What's another personal resource?  Friends.  Like Sakaki, Osaka does not go out of her way to seek friends.  She falls in with a group through the course of social circumstances.  Her two closest friends, Tomo and Chiyo, are responsible for bringing her into the group. 

(Note: I use the term "closest" because it makes the most sense, but Osaka isn't genuinely close to anyone.  No one knows who she really is on the inside, and her ideas are rarely given more than a guarded measure of respect.)

Tomo's stupid antics provide the perfect entrance for a girl without friends.  By being excited by Ayumu's arrival, Tomo loudly sparks the class' imaginations.  Then Osaka's contradictory nature makes her even more of a noticeable oddity.  Tomo's failed attempt at rivalry draws her into their group, both by making Tomo like her and by allowing Yomi to ask questions about who Ayumu really is.  By the time they've gotten over their interest in an Osakan transfer student, Osaka has her nickname and is firmly a part of their group. 

Tomo is also generous to Osaka as the series rolls on.  Actually, this is due more to Osaka's nature than Tomo's.  Osaka, being someone who loves new ideas and has no ability to tell the difference between strange and normal, thoroughly enjoys hearing what Tomo has to say.  Which is mildly messed up, because Osaka takes these ideas more seriously than Tomo.  Tomo is often clearly joking or just trying to get on someone's nerves, but Osaka takes her ideas and runs with them:  Even if it's not possible for Chiyo to become president of the United States, Osaka is still going to pretend America can be a land full of tiny Chiyos.  It's especially funny when Tomo creepily monologues when Chiyo is talking about their school trip, and while Yomi and Chiyo get annoyed, Osaka thinks it's super funny.  Seriously, look at her expression afterward.

Chiyo is also closer to Osaka than the other girls, because she's open-minded and Osaka is immune to her cuteness.   Honestly, Osaka is lucky to have her around.  But Osaka didn't seek her out as a friend.  She sought out Chiyo as an athletic equal, because she's absolutely horrible at physical challenge.  If Chiyo hadn't been there, Osaka would have despaired as the weakest of the class.  Though at least Tomo would have been there with her at the back of the marathon after the first kilometer.

That doesn't mean Osaka doesn't have serious issues.  While Tomo does like some of the things Osaka says, you'll notice that Osaka never led a "victory parade" or gave anyone a nickname.  No one ever really listens to her, Tomo included.  Likewise, Osaka is jealous of the other girls, primarily Chiyo.  Very jealous.  It may not seem clear, but it's there.  Let's look at some examples.

At the first changing of the classes, Yukari is reassuring Chiyo and Osaka that they'll be in the same class.  She tells Chiyo that she's a strong part of their fighting power.  She never says anything similar to Osaka, and Osaka slowly points to herself, wearing an inscrutible expression.  This expression becomes clearer when you read the manga.  In it, Osaka and Chiyo have returned to their summer job at Megatron Burger the second summer, and the boss gives Chiyo a raise.  Osaka only points to herself, hoping but probably not getting that same raise.

Osaka is jealous because she wants to be taken seriously.  Osaka insists that her culture fest ideas are homeruns, only to be shot down by the other girls.  She wants her disposable chopstick charm to be enjoyed, but everyone instead values Chiyo's charms.  Why do you think she was so upset that Tomo didn't pull apart the chopsticks right?  So as much as the two have a lot in common and can enjoy each other's company, Osaka can only dream that she'll achieve the respect and love that Chiyo gets.  And she won't even do that, because she's too busy dreaming about sentient pigtails.

The question does come up of why Yukari bothers keeping her in the class.  I suspect it's because Osaka is such a good sport.  When Yukari makes her pretend to be "Yukichi-san", or the ten thousand yen bill, Osaka goes right along with it with a big smile on her face.  Clearly Yukari knows Osaka isn't going to be weirded out by stuff like this.

Sakaki, on the other hand, probably could have really gotten to know Osaka.  They have much more in common with each other than they do the other girls.  Both are introverted girls who spend their time thinking of weird things.  They're also the only girls who understand the nature of Chiyochichi.  I absolutely love the moment in the manga where Sakaki tells Osaka that he's Chiyo's Otou-san, and Osaka not only accepts this, but proclaims it makes sense.  It's also a great scene in the anime where they're talking about the Japanese language on the beach.  There's an acceptance there that wouldn't be present with the other girls.

Then again, Sakaki does know the difference between normal and weird.  She wouldn't be shy if she didn't know how unusual her cat obsession is.  Osaka is introverted, but not shy.  Sakaki also focuses all her strange ambition into one general category, which will enable her to have a jumping point for a career.  Osaka's randomness and love of too simple things means she can't do that. 

Also, they both have non-social behaviors in common.  Two nerds who don't go out of their way to reach out to friends aren't going to hang out, no matter how much they have in common.  In the end, Sakaki and Osaka are like two laptops passing in the night, with every reason to be best friends but no opportunity. 

Osaka, however, isn't without her powers.  She can solve pointless riddles (probably because she's read them before).  She...uh, she...

Give me a minute...

Well, Osaka does have her shield of oblivion.  Because she's so wrapped up in her own little world, things don't reach her emotional core.  It's like Yomi or Sakaki's shell, only far stronger.  And also not fear-based.  Osaka is introverted simply because she likes her thoughts, not because anyone scared her.  This is clear when you notice that Osaka is more capable of acting in social situations than Sakaki is, despite having more issues than Sakaki.  She's also free of Yomi's emotional hangups.

This shield protects Osaka from being too startled by Kimura, from Yukari's nonsense, and from fully realizing the extent of her inferiority to the other girls.  Indeed, she's too busy chasing the dust in her eye to notice screaming, a roach, and Tomo smacking other people.

Not that this shield doesn't have negative implications.  It says something that in the second episode in, nobody's surprised at the idea of Osaka having a mental disorder.  This is one of the moments where Osaka expresses more than minimal emotion, but she recovers quickly, probably not giving it another thought.  Also, at one "next episode" segment, Osaka is asked what she wants to do about her future.  Osaka quickly changes the subject to a discussion of the phrase "blue spring of youth."

It's entirely possible that Osaka simply doesn't choose to think of bad things.  Or things she isn't interested in.  She'd probably be better at school if she cared.  Chiyo knows that Osaka thinks differently, and Sakaki even calls her smart.  Just like the way Tomo puts her physical energy into the wrong things, Osaka puts her mental energy into the wrong things (except for Yomi's good luck charm.  If you notice, Osaka's "power" worked).  Osaka is plenty smart, she just has no outlet for her intelligence, and doesn't appear interested in finding one.  Instead she just dwells on trivial things like pigtails, sea slugs, earthworms, tiny people....

....and characters from an over ten year old anime that nobody ever talks about anymore.  Trust me when I say that Osaka is going to need some hard knocks from the real world to get anywhere in life.  Trust, and don't ask questions.

Also, the shield of oblivion has downsides in Osaka's character development.  Not in outworld character building, but Osaka's development into a more caring person.  You know how I said Sakaki was kind of selfish?  Osaka is much more so.  If you notice, Osaka only exits her introverted fog if something gets to her personally.  Nothing bothers her if it doesn't affect her.

Take the start of the second year.  Chiyo is upset because first year students squee over her, when she wants to be taken seriously.  Osaka is there when it happens, and freaks out right alongside Chiyo.  Then, perhaps less than an hour later, Osaka feels free to bounce Chiyo's pigtails as though nothing had happened.  Chiyo is still upset, but Osaka doesn't appear to care.  Likewise, when seeing Mayaa again, Osaka immediately abandons any desire she had to see the cat, because she can sit at Chiyo's heated table.  And when she leaves, she says goodbye....to the table.

Osaka is never shown feeling pity for someone else, not until the last episode when Chiyo cries at graduation.  This sort of dense self-regard is especially creepy when taken in regard to the knife incident and her story where she kills everyone.  Granted, Osaka doesn't seem like she would ever really want to murder, but her detachment from life is a sign of emotional trauma either present or to come.  When Osaka encounters the real world, she'll be forced to know exactly how inferior to the other girls she is.  And if she's already jealous, then she's headed for a moment when she finally understands exactly how behind she is.

All in all, I suspect that Osaka is simply younger than her age.  She's physically and mentally behind the average, and it may take time for her to reach maturity.  She simply has to learn who she is, absent of her random interests and people like Tomo.  As much as the Tomo-Osaka friendship is probably Tomo's healthiest one, Osaka needs to stop being a follower so she can determine what she wants. 

In any case, picking a favorite Osaka moment is even harder than picking one for Sakaki.  Basically all Osaka's screentime is a funny or cute moment, because of her role as a flavor character.  Probably my favorite moment is a manga-only one, where Osaka has a nekoconeko on her head -- nekoconekocosaka!  It's so darling, especially when Osaka tries to open her eyes, but Sakaki shuts them again.  Adsfkslnlfkdsx.  So cute, can't type.

The second moment is likewise cute.  In the second culture fest episode, Osaka tries to pretend to be scary, and it's so surreal that you can't help but laugh, and maybe be a little frightened...of the cute.

Poor baby, you sure do have some potentials on you, don't you girl?  Osaka --
- vanishes and is never seen again by the other girls.
- gets stuck in a dead end job and spends every day waiting for quitting time.
- makes a decent McG's manager.
- tries, and fails, to become a teacher.
- discovers new interests in college and new friends who have common interests with her, and as a result leaves the Azugirls.
- becomes a marine biologist to study sea slugs and other sea creatures.
- gets caught up in a dumb get rich quick scheme with Tomo, which results in bad things for the both of them.
- causes or is otherwise in a horrible accident because of her absentminded tendencies. 
- gives fake fortunes to people in the street, which most people find unbelievably entertaining.

The trouble with Osaka is that she was never tested in high school.  The other girls faced challenges of various kinds, like Kagura's ambitions or Chiyo's fish-out-of-water circumstances.  Osaka's shield protected her too much, and so she was never in a position to learn about herself, how to deal with others, and how to make a career.  Thus, no matter what happens to Osaka, she will inevitably go through trials as she enters the adult world.

Kasuga Ayumu's Ending:  ----- Time is Pavement for No One -----

Osaka goes to college, separated from the Azugirls, but ready to finally get it together.  Her first year at university is much like being at high school, with her thinking more about her missing friends or random things of the day rather than the things she's supposed to be studying.  Instead of simply allowing this behavior to continue, Osaka's professors go out of their way to ask why she even bothered going to university if she's not going to work hard.  This scares Osaka, and she tries her hardest to think of what she likes as she studies.  While she encounters various topics in school she likes, she can't focus on any one, and also can't find any talent in which she is more than mediocre.

But as long as college goes forward, Osaka is able to delay her worries about the future.  She also has contrary feelings about getting out of the "stifling" school and finally being able to have a real job.  As a result, she gets a degree in general studies and ends up with an office job as a secretary, because her boss thought she was nice.  Osaka, however, is notoriously bad at this type of work.  As hard as she works, she can't make herself like or be organized enough to stay there.  She thus loses her 9-5 job, losing those precious afternoons she used to relax. 

For the next five years, Osaka doesn't do much significant.  She works at a music store and a coffee shop at different times, just getting through the day so she can have time for herself.  Due to the nature of adulthood, and to working evenings and weekends, Osaka has no close friends, and maintains her relationship with the Azugirls through the internet.  Osaka hangs out with Yomi sometimes during the day, but this friendship is strained when Osaka finds out that Yomi doesn't trust her to babysit. 

Throughout all this time, Osaka does not date anyone at all.  She sees the other girls getting married or otherwise receiving attention, but no guy says much to her.  Her bustline does start to develop some, but her absentminded nature, inconvenient work hours, and increasing insecurity means that the only guys interested in her are ones not worthy of interest.  Osaka realizes that she's just carrying on, not doing anything. 

Osaka considers trying some risky ventures, but by this point Tomo is getting along well in her career with the police, and she's not going to ruin that.  Osaka asks Kagura for a job, hoping to have some excitement with travelling.  Kagura says that she doesn't really have any positions for someone not an athlete, and she's dubious at hiring friends after Tomo's injury.  Osaka does not approach Yomi for ideas, still miffed that Aunt Ayumu can't watch the kids while Yomi is at the store. 

Out of ideas, Osaka decides to go to Okinawa find Sakaki, because Sakaki is the one friend who struggled the most with her job situation.  Sakaki explains that there isn't much money in wildcat preservation, but Osaka's welcome to volunteer.  Osaka is actually decent at this work, and Mayaa accepts her.  This brings the two closer together as friends.  Osaka also manages to babysit Sakaki's girls without incident.

But because Osaka isn't a saver, it's not long before she has to find work.  She manages a food cart for a while, until Chiyo, on a visit, offers to find her a job in her Okinawa branch, where Osaka gives local and foreign investors presentations.  Osaka isn't ideal at the job, but she is very cute, so her impact is generally more positive than otherwise.  Except for when she accidentally spills the beans to Sakaki that her husband asked Chiyo for a job, but that eventually blows over.

And still Osaka doesn't date.  Her presentations attract some attention in that way, but it goes no further than occasional flirting, as Osaka is not as business-minded as her job would imply, and most of the men there are looking for relationships that will boost their image or business.  Osaka remains underqualified in this regard.  She does manage to date one guy, but she finds out he's really after favor in Chiyo's sight and never speaks to him again.

All of this finally comes to a head when, after a business dinner with company employees, Chiyo's husband starts hitting on Osaka in a karaoke room, making drunken comments about seeing her on the side.  Osaka, more than mortified, finally loses it.  She screams him down about betraying Chiyo and using her, then throws a drink in his face and promptly quits.  Herself not entirely sober, Osaka rattles off a tipsy email to Chiyo when she gets home.  Chiyo's husband later insists that he had too much to drink and didn't mean it, but the damage is done.  They do eventually work things out, but this takes time.

Leaving them to solve their marriage issues, Osaka immediately quits her job.  She blames him for losing it, because this was finally a job where she could earn some real-world credibilty.  Trying to salvage his reputation, Chiyo's husband offers her paid time off and a raise on her return, but Osaka is only briefly tempted by this.  At Chiyo's insistence, she is paid a substantial severence package. 

Osaka spends an entire month out of work, more or less locked in her own apartment.  Taking out her anger on available notebooks, she scrawls down horrible fates for people she feels are deserving.  After about a week, Osaka realizes that she's got the start of a good horror story.  She discovers that she has a real ability to tell stories.  Sharing this with Sakaki, the latter replies that it's a bit too on the depressing side, and that she likes it better when Osaka mentions random observations, like she did in high school.  Taking this advice to heart, Osaka finally becomes frugal, sacrificing all else to spend as much time as she can writing. 

Eventually she goes back to working a food cart, but she spends a full year writing novels with whatever spare time she has, taking breaks only to allow Sakaki to beta read.  Sakaki claims not to be one much to judge books, so Osaka ends up emailing Yomi her manuscripts to beta-read.  Yomi, who can judge a book, is astounded by the talent.  She helps Osaka get her manuscripts ready, but Osaka insists on submitting her work for publishing herself.  She does, with success.  In another year she has a book on shelves, and thanks to her famous friends Chiyo and Kagura, it doesn't take long for the general public to get wind of her work.  Osaka becomes a famous author, producing two series, five independent books, and two manga adaptations in short succession.  She even gets a movie deal for one of her books.

This is where she meets director Azuma Hiroyoshi.  Feeling protective of her story, Osaka insists on meeting him, only to discover that he's as protective as the story as she is, because he's a big fan.  Hiro is immediately enthralled with her, expecting that someone nicknamed "Osaka" would have a different personality.  He's thrilled to see her real self, and they get along swimmingly.  And finally, at the age of 35, Osaka marries Hiro.  They continue to make films together, as well as continuing their separate projects.  They weren't planning on having children, but they end up having one girl, who adores her parents and their creative careers.