In such a cute world, why work?
Chiikawa Sociology
Chiikawa's house, pay and the weeding exam. An unofficial blog by Shinogi that reads Chiikawa through work, money and home.
This page is translated from the Japanese original. For anything drawn in the manga, the Japanese original is the reference. An unofficial fan site. Chiikawa is created by Nagano.
Reading society
- Why do Chiikawa and friends work?Money to live on, and money you want to spend on someone. Let's look at the life beyond the work.
- Is the weeding certification exam a fair system?Taking the same exam, and being able to prepare in the same way. Thinking about two kinds of “fairness.”
- Thinking about effort and luck from Chiikawa's houseCan the reason someone has a house be explained just by how hard they worked? Thinking it through from the sweepstakes scene.
- How is a gift different from shopping?The meaning of a sweet, which its price alone doesn't tell you. From a celebration of passing, I read the ties between people and things.
- How far can a friend's kindness hold you up?Encouragement, and supporting someone's life. While valuing helping each other, I also think about how far it reaches.
- What does mealtime give a rest to?Eating and taking a breather without accomplishing anything. Thinking about times of rest within the story.
- What do the Armor-sans decide in this world?Being a kind person, and being in a position to decide things. Let's look at the two separately.
- If the pay is 100 times higher, is it a good job?Reading the island flyer as a job ad. What's written next to that big number?
- Is the world of Chiikawa socialist or capitalist?There's money, things get shared out, someone manages things. Can any one of these alone decide what to call a society?
- Why is Chiikawa read in places like China, too?Work, exams, time with friends. Using reported voices from those places as clues, I think about what people relate to.
Story arcs
- The Siren arcExtermination jobs with 100 times the pay, plus limited-edition ramen and all-you-can-eat food. Lured by a flyer that fell from the sky, Chiikawa and friends head to an island with Rakko-sensei. The island they reach is lively, and for a while the trip is fun, with parfaits, hammocks, and the seaside at night.
- The Nightmare arcWhile studying for the weeding certification exam, Chiikawa hears a song offering to make a late-night snack. Following the voice into the forest, Chiikawa gets a snack from a black, elephant-like creature, and in return has to play a staring game.
- The Yamanba arcWhile picking up sweet berries in the woods, the three get caught in a trap and can't move. At night, a white-haired old woman appears and rescues them, and at her hut she serves them pork miso soup and inari sushi with pickled red ginger.
- The Parallel World arcHachiware comes to deliver corn to Chiikawa, who is sick in bed with a fever. The moment Hachiware rushes over, light surrounds them, and when Hachiware comes to, they're in a world where familiar things are each slightly different.
- The Three-Star Restaurant arcAfter getting paid, Chiikawa and Hachiware find a reasonably priced “three-star” restaurant and nervously go in.
- The Muchau Man arcUsagi brings a flyer for an event with new-product tastings and an appearance by the hero Muchau Man. The three go together, and Hachiware is all fired up to take a photo with the hero using the camera.
- The Complimented Ribbon arcComplimented on a ribbon that came with some cookies, Hachiware happily displays it in a vase. But one morning, the ribbon in the vase is nowhere to be found.
- The Staff arcUsagi buys a staff at a secondhand shop. Waving it makes things appear, and a camera shows up in front of Hachiware.
- The Pajama Parties arcThe 4-member group the Pajama Parties sing in a meadow, but no one comes to watch. Even so, their songs slowly spread, and they're booked to perform at a big event, Mucha Fest.
Latest notes
- What changes when Chiikawa passes the weeding exam?Chiikawa weeded even before earning Level 5. The change we can confirm after passing is that the bag of pay grows a little heavier. The manga does not show who decided how much that little increase would be.
- What do you do when only your friend passes?Even if you can't feel the same way right away, there's still something you can do. Thinking it through from the walk home after the weeding certification exam and a celebration scene.
- Why was the invitation to the island so tempting?Everyday work turns into a special trip. The island story begins with the words of an invitation and the faces reading it.
- How did Chiikawa get their house?Chiikawa's house was won in a prize drawing. From the story of the house, I think about a kind of life that effort alone can't explain.
- Why are the just-eating episodes so comforting?Everyday life also has mealtimes that don't solve anything. I try reading Chiikawa's meals as time to rest.
- Is it fair to lump the Armor-sans together?The Armor-sans at the counter that hands out pay are a little intriguing. But look at them one by one, and each has different likes and different ways of relating to others.
- Who does Hachiware's camera enrich?Hachiware bought it. But their friends enjoy it too. Is it only photos that the camera adds?
- How does the pochette Armor-san turn what they love into work?Making cute things yourself and selling them. From the pochette Armor-san, I think about how loving something connects with work.
- Does the labor Armor-san decide the pay, too?The labor Armor-san runs the job desk. But do they also decide wages and working conditions? I think it through from the role of the desk.
- Is ordering at Rou friendly to first-timers?If you have money, can everyone use a shop the same way? From ordering at Rou, we think about how knowing how to order helps.
- Ways to help besides cheering someone on, from caring for ShisaTwo friends caring for Shisa. Chiikawa is asked to go shopping for supplies. Taking on someone's errands is help, too. I think about it through Shisa's story.
- If there's a Wakidokoro, does no one go hungry?Even if there's a place where food comes out, it doesn't necessarily reach everyone. From the line at the Wakidokoro, I think about what it takes to be able to eat.
- Why Shinogi reads Chiikawa as a “society”Who decides? Who gets something? Who helps when there's trouble? Whatever the story, these are the three things I want to follow.
- Can't Shisa work just by wanting to?Working at Rou requires a hard qualification. From Shisa's job hunt, I think about the conditions for starting work.
- Chiikawa and friends have things to teach Rakko, tooChiikawa and Hachiware teach Rakko, who's great at extermination jobs, about video games and cold baths. When what you're good at changes, who does the teaching changes too.
- Does filling in for the Pajama Parties take kindness alone?Even once it's decided you'll fill in, you can't dance right away. From Chiikawa and friends' practice, I read what preparation helpers need.
- Chiikawa even shows the night after a live show goes wrongEven after the show is over, it may not be over for the people who were in it. From the night Chiikawa and Hachiware remember their mistakes, I think about the time that results alone don't show.
- Rakko's solo yakiniku: even the ones others rely on need time aloneEven strong Rakko has a scene of eating a meal alone. I think about being someone's idol and having time of your own.
- Who are the plans on Hachiware's wish list for?You don't have to fill your plans only with things you have to do. From a scene of Hachiware looking over a list, I think about joys that haven't come true yet.
- Who decides what goes in the pay bag, and who hands it over?After weeding or extermination jobs, Chiikawa and friends receive bags at the counter. Who decides how much is inside, and based on what?
- Who sells things in the world of Chiikawa?The Armor-san's pajamas, the head-washing shop, Rou's ramen. Apart from work from the counter, there are people who open their own shops and take in money.
- Who decides everyone's share?Rakko splitting the pay from an extermination job, three friends splitting the cost of popcorn. I read scenes where money and food are shared among friends, not through the counter.
- Does Chiikawa's world look socialist?There is not enough evidence to call Chiikawa's town socialist. Chiikawa can take a job ticket, but we do not see who makes the pay rules. An Armor-san also sets prices for goods they made.
- Is extermination pay an allowance for danger?Extermination is dangerous, so it pays more. That's what I used to think. Rereading the original, the reason the bag gets bigger is told somewhere other than the danger to the one doing the work.
- Who comes over to a house?Chiikawa's house was won in a sweepstakes. Line up who comes over to that house, and it starts to look like more than just the owner's.
- Who pays for the tools?Talk about pay usually starts from the side that receives it. But a sasumata, and the shopping on a sick day, both cost money. This time I followed the money going out.