Oh, You Silly Humans! Being a Real-Life Izaya Orihara (DURARARA!!)

For any of you DURARARA!! fans out there, do you share the same thought process of the series’ devious sociopath, Izaya Orihara? I don’t mean the need to push people to their emotional limits, but a fascination with human behavior in general.

Over the past few years, I have learned some interesting things about the various people around me. Some good, some bad, and some just plain wacky. I can’t help but be amazed at how people handle it all mentally. There are many articles on in the Internet that talk about how one should conduct themselves in specific areas of life. Yet sometimes people don’t act the way they should act. This all gets me smirking with glee.

Human behavior is always quite the interesting subject to a lot of people. Why do people justify some of their actions? What keeps them going? How do they live with themselves? Who is aware of their own actions? When will they realize their inner follies? As I recall my viewings/readings of DURARARA!!, I wonder if it is possible to really love people in general, a la Izaya. 

There is a scene in the light novel version of DURARARA!! where a down-and-out Izaya was confronted by a girl he once mentally tortured while recuperating at a hospital. After preventing her attempt to kill him, Izaya was thrilled and exhilarated over the fact that the girl kept her thoughts of revenge for a year. He is reminded of how much he loves humans. While we do get bored of people from time-to-time, what Izaya’s experience teaches us is that while human behavior tends to be very predictable, the chance of unpredictability will always be present. Hey, things happen when you get emotional and that emotion can resonate with others.

In some ways, Izaya is a reminder that we should always try to understand human behavior. It makes you appreciate what humanity is all about. You get to learn from their experiences for the better and it can help bring much-needed humor when you’re down. Perhaps that’s why I’m becoming the way I am with regards to people. I get to see how I should approach certain situations that come my way. Has Izaya inspired any of you to be more curious about the wonderful world of humanity?

To my favorite animals on Earth: Stay entertaining, my friends!