Ken Kubo represents relentless self-belief. When he gets involved with Tanaka’s otaku circle, he eventually comes to believe so deeply in “otaku” ideals that he alienates his girlfriend, Yoshiko Ueno, without meaning to. When he finds out she’s started cheating on him as a result, rather than sulk, he decides to go all-in and, with the help of Tanaka and his circle, eventually builds a super-successful otaku business.

Kubo doesn’t let others hold him back from what he believes in, even when that results in people abandoning him. He also knows who his true allies are (Tanaka stuck with him to the end, even after they’d been ousted from the company they built): The people who truly believe in him and will back him up in whatever endeavour he chooses.