Project Densha - The 'Densha Otoko' Translation Project

p r o j e c t . D E N S H A
The 'Densha Otoko' Translation Project

What is 'Densha Otoko'?

Densha Otoko, or 'Train Man' is the name of a very popular book published in Japan in early 2005, which tells the true story of a nerdy guy who falls in love with a girl who he saved from a drunk on a train. This entire story takes place on a Japanese bulletin board system called 2ch, or 'ni-channel', particularly in a thread called 'Men Being Shot from Behind', where single men get together and gripe about being single.

In typical Japanese fashion, after the tremendous success of the book, both a movie version and a TV drama series were released. 'Densha Otoko' is really the "it" book of 2005 for Japan. It's a really great story and I hope that this translation helps you enjoy it, too.

Disclaimers

The original Japanese version of 'Densha Otoko' took place on the internet, and an archive is available online. The book version was created from the online archive, however some parts of the text were slightly changed. This English translation is done from the online version, which is in the public domain.

HOWEVER, translation is a very personalized process and I would greatly appreciate it if you'd refrain from reproducing these translations. But please feel free to link to the Project - it is totally LINK FREE.

Thank you for your understanding and cooperation.

The Characters

Train Man: The main character. A self-professed anime/game nerd who frequents Akihabara, the technology/anime/idol Mecca of the Tokyo area.

Hermes: A young lady of proper upbringing, with whom Train Man falls in love.

The 2-channelers: The anonymous residents of the 2ch BBS system. They are witness to Train Man's romantic coming-of-age, and also offer wisdom, advice and support.

Nakano Hitori: AKA "Naka no Hito". The "author" of 'Densha Otoko'. "nakano hitori" means "one of them"; it's the penname of the anonymous 2-channeler who compiled all the original posts into a website, which started the 'Densha Otoko' phenomenon.

Translation

Please note that much of the ASCII art contained within the story requires that your computer have the ability to read Japanese characters. To learn more about adding Japanese to your computer, please see the links section below.

> Mission.1 - dinnerwhere help
> Mission.2 - I've got you
> Mission.3 - She gently takes my hand
> Mission.4 - The time to use the cups has arrived
> Mission.5 - Please don't put me in that kind of mood
> Mission.6 - The miraculous final chapter
> Congratulations!

Links

Densha Otoko

- The original Japanese site, part of Naka no Hito's site.

Jim Breen's kanji dictionary

- This site was a huge help for all those pesky obscure kanji.

2ch

- The BBS that started the phenomenon.

How to Install Japanese Characters on your PC

- For Windows-based systems.

Common phrases on 2ch @ wikipedia

- Used quite often in 'Densha Otoko'.

rinji.tv

- My homepage. :D

F.A.Q.

The ASCII art is all messed up! Will you fix it?

- If you have Japanese font installed on your computer (not just on your browser), and you also have Japanese set as your default non-Unicode language, you should be able to see the ASCII art with no problems.

What's "nullpo"?

- It's short for "null pointer exception", which is used in certain computer programming languages. Basically (I think) it means that the command in the program can't run, because it's pointing to an object that doesn't exist. In 2ch, it's used in many different ways - to express the concept of "nothing", to express death, to express pointlessness, as a nonsense word, and more...

What's "orz"?

- It's a smaller version of __|БP|БЫ, but facing the other way.

What's a "trip code"?

- It's a way of uniquely indentifying yourself on 2ch - you enter a series of numbers with a # in front of them somewhere in your name, and the 2ch server encodes it into a diamond-shape followed by a series of letters and numbers. Nobody can pretend to be someone who uses a trip code, so it allows people to post using a nickname, without having to worry that someone will impersonate them.

"NEwayZ" doesn't come out in Gundam!

- I know, sorry. The original Japanese was "toriaaezu", which can mean "anyways".

More Disclaimers

Please be warned: I am not a native Japanese-speaker. I did my best to translate accurately, but I'm sure there are mistakes here and there. If you find one, please let me know. My email address is lindsay AT the domain this site is hosted on. Your help is appreciated! :D