Dig Deeper Watson
My Thoughts on the Character Yutaka Watari from YnM
by Laekin
Taken at face value, Yutaka Watari is easily dismissed as your stereotypical eccentric scientist, sidekick character. Unfortunately, and in all honesty, for the most part the anime does little to dispel this interpretation. To really get a good grasp of the character you need to read the manga or at least a good translation, for which I strongly recommend Theria’s site.
A good highlight for the difference between the anime and the manga is the showdown with Tsuzuki in Devil’s Trill. I understand that the anime was working with a time constraint but I do wish that they had added in the fact, from the manga, that Watari erected a force screen to hold Tsuzuki in one area of the building. I wish this for two reasons. One, it shows that Watari was instrumental in more than just standing there "Yes" manning Hisoka. Secondly, and perhaps even more importantly, it could be used as an explanation for why the hell Tatsumi wasn't there.
If Tatsumi got caught on the other side of the force screen, and we're talking something designed to hold Tsuzuki and Shikigamis back, then I could easily understand how it slowed up Tatsumi. I know the conventional wisdom for Tatsumi's absence is he cared too much about Tsuzuki to be able to face the possibility of destroying him. But in truth I feel this belittles Tatsumi and makes him seem a coward when I think that his opinion would have been more like Hisoka's: save Tsuzuki from the humiliation of being manipulated into killing his friends.
This is what makes getting a good read on Watari a little complex. It’s very difficult to get a good understanding of him simply from the anime and even with the manga you often have to look at what he does and how the other characters react around him to get to the truth of the character.
One point that I also feel is important to remember when looking at Watari is the fact that he works with some seriously high-strung, guilt ridden individuals. Though it might often appear otherwise, I do not believe that Watari is insensitive to the stresses, strains and traumas that define his friends. In fact, I believe he is extremely sensitive to the emotional states of the others and I'll go further to say that he handles each of them with deftness that belies his addled façade.
Despite his 'in your face' mannerisms, if you think about it, it's rare for Watari to take on a confrontation directly. This doesn't mean he runs from them but he has a very subtle way of holding his ground. Two prime examples of this are the way he gets back at Terazuma when Tera is teasing him and also the way he handles Tatsumi.
I think we can all agree that confronting Tatsumi Seiichirou directly can be hazardous for one's health. For the most part, Watari is content to let Tatsumi enjoy the illusion that he's in control, while our resident scientist is busily doing whatever the hell he wants anyway. An example would be the way Watari neatly shoves Tatsumi in the loving hands of the maids to be dressed up in the yukata, while Watari himself skips off to play with his computer. (I love that scene! Watari is such the devious little blonde.)
This is an integral part of how one must deal with Seiichirou. Threaten Tatsumi's control over a situation directly and he's going to react badly. So, Watari just takes a different approach to the problem. However, if the situation warrants a direct approach, Watari is not shy about hitting hard, hitting fast and, most importantly, hitting accurately.
Like many scientists, Watari plays his cards close to the vest. This might make it look like he's completely clueless but in truth he is always gathering information, putting it in order and drawing conclusions, and when he does need to lay it on the line, he doesn't waste words.
In a way, this makes Watari a bit of a high-strung personality himself. He has very little tolerance for fools, or foolish situations, especially when he could be doing actual work. Melodrama holds no appeal for the blonde scientist and Watari has no problem walking away from ludicrous situations. This can sometimes make him look cold or clueless. In truth I think that Watari is one of the most practical of the Shinigami. He distances himself a bit in a way that reminds me of the character Duo Maxwell from Gundam Wing.
Watari plays the gleeful fool, because this is a very effective way to keep people at bay. If people see a happy, bouncy façade, they very rarely think to look beyond it. It's the dark and brooding types who draw attention. If you appear bouncy and silly and funny… well then people don't look much farther and you can keep your secrets well hidden.
However, don't let Watari's gregarious nature fool you. Despite Tsuzuki's awesome power, Tatsumi's shadows and Hisoka's empathy, Watari is the Shinigami I would not want to run afoul of.
Ever.
Why? Because once Watari decides you need to go down, that's it, no second chances. There will be no last minute reprieve. Nothing is going to stop him, not emotion, not sentimentality and if you've really pissed him off he's not going to put you down quickly. Watari likes a challenge, he likes puzzles and he is just cunning and ruthless enough to enjoy torturing someone who really pissed him off.
When I say torture I'm not talking physical, I'm talking psychological. In a lot of ways Watari is a lot like Muraki. You never really truly know what his motivation is and he’ll uses round about methods to gain his goals, even if he doesn’t have to but rather because it makes the game more fun.
Tatsumi said in Kyoto, that he (Tatsumi) was an unsparing man. Tatsumi had one goal and one goal only; Muraki was going to die for hurting Tsuzuki. Those shadows were gearing up to kill. Now, had Watari been moved into a situation where he felt the same level of intense hatred for Muraki, that Tatsumi did, well... what's the term... mindfuckage galore would have ensued and Enma help anyone who got between them. It would become brutal on a number of levels, because Watari would use anyone close to Muraki as ruthlessly as Muraki used mortals to draw out Tsuzuki. The body count would go through the roof.
Of all the Guardians, Watari is the most inhumane one. Think about it. In Devil's Trill when Hijiri wakes up after the big fight, Watari point blank lays it on him, "Kazusa's dead." He doesn't sugar coat it, he doesn't angst about it he says it and moves on. He's more interested in the challenge Sagaatanas poses than helping Hijiri. In fact helping Hijiri is sorta an afterthought. In the manga version I get the impression that Watari is fully ready to put Tsuzuki down no matter what it takes. In the anime I know he says "Yah we're going to save Tsuzuki" but... well, best not to get started on that again. Let’s just leave it at the fact that I hated the anime version of that whole scene. If it wasn’t for the fact that Tsuzuki looked hot as blazes…well anyway the manga was much better and truer to the personalities of the characters.
In the start of the Kyoto arc, Watari’s matter of fact when he's reeling off the murders, all what 10 of them? Then when it comes to Muraki, again he's very matter of fact, focused more on the idea that Muraki is being deliberately careless than the fact that Muraki is killing all these innocents. When he brings up protecting Doctor Satomi I definitely got the impression that he wanted to protect the doctor because the man was a witness, an asset. It didn’t involve any noble, “Let’s save his life” sentiment, as is often the case with Tsuzuki. The man was useful and thus to be protected, period. Even after Muraki kills his mentor, Watari is more concerned about the lost witness than the lost life.
This is a little different but in Kyoto when Hisoka is fighting Oryia and getting his ass kicked, you see that Watari never takes his eyes off the combat while at one point Tatsumi has to turn away. Now, I don't think Watari is getting a thrill out of watching the blood fly, or watching Hisoka get hurt but he doesn't suffer Tatsumi's very *human* response to seeing a friend getting the shit kicked out of him. I believe Watari generally cares about Hisoka but I think that in that moment a part of Watari's brain was working out what his next move would be against Oriya if Hisoka failed.
Going to the manga version of Kyoto, look at the way Watari tears into Tatsumi when Tsuzuki is dying. I think that that is the first time I remember seeing the taciturn Hisoka genuinely upset (like a child watching his parents fight). Granted, there are a lot of factors for Hisoka's emotional state but here is Watari, his kind slightly silly *uncle*, only instead of the laughter and jokes Hisoka is used to, Hisoka is watching Watari go after Tatsumi in an almost cruel fashion. Watari knows exactly where he wants to hit and in true Watari style, once he decides to let fly, he doesn't pull his punch.
Fast forwarding a little, I will admit I kinda like to pick and choose what I take as canon from the GenSouKai arc, but there is something a little sinister in the way Watari uses Tatsumi and then doesn't share after the fact that he got somewhere with the computer disk. Granted, he just sits back and lets Tatsumi come to the conclusion that they failed, but he just as easily could have corrected that assumption and he doesn’t. Also from that arc, when they are fleeing from the people trying to kill them Watari asks Tatsumi why not just kill the people pursuing them with the shadows and be done with it? It's Tatsumi who has to nix that idea as being too indiscreet.
Now, despite how all this sounds, I do think that Watari is genuinely a good person. When all is said and done he is very loyal to his friends. Oh, he can use them all he wants (potions in the coffee, chocolates, etc) but if someone else tried to use them with the intent to hurt them, then that person would have to die, period.
I think that the essence of Yutaka Watari is the idea of knowledge. He's ambitious in that he is insatiably curious and wants to know *everything*, but unlike Muraki he doesn't have an agenda (like to take over the world). I think that if Watari ever did begin to show signs of *wanting* power, Enma would put him down so fast the rest of Meifu would probably forget Watari ever existed.
This is part of what really draws me to Watari, this dichotomy of character. I honestly believe he is frighteningly dangerous for the reasons I listed but Watari doesn't *want* to be dangerous. This is where I believe Tatsumi is good for Watari.
I think that Tatsumi, as a master of secrets himself, sees past the façade that Watari puts up. Tatsumi, perhaps more than anyone else at the Division, is aware when Watari is hiding something, even if he isn’t sure of what. Of all the Shinigami we've met to date I believe Tatsumi is the only one who has a chance to genuinely touch Watari and also deal with the darkness within my favorite little scientist. Despite Tsuzuki and Hisoka’s raw power, it's the Tatsumi/Watari partnership that I'd fear. Having to face Tatsumi with those shadows while knowing Watari was coming up on my flank... yikes!
This is why, if Watari couldn't be with Tatsumi, I'd be just as happy for him to be off on his own. Watari is honestly content off in the corner playing with his puzzles and his creations. Of course, if Tatsumi can join him there, so much the better!
I'd best reel myself in here. The long and short of this little ramble being, Watari has a dark side. Don't feel that you have to write him as the gregarious, positive looking individual he seems on the surface. To borrow the phrase from one of my favorite books,
"Smiles conceal knives."
Smiles conceal knives… yes, that sounds like Yutaka Watari.
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“Smiles Conceal Knives” Title from “Traitor’s Moon” by Lynn Flewelling
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