There are a lot of anime that take place in high school that are labeled “slice of life.” But there’s nothing about anime like Toradora, K-On!, or The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya that resemble any of the feelings or experiences I remember having in high school. There’s dating, drama, and above all, too much effortless beauty for me to believe these characters are really high schoolers. I wasn’t moe in high school, who was? Even if you WERE, you were too full of teen angst and self doubt to notice.

Which is why I’ve been unexpectedly enjoying Watamote, perhaps the most relatable anime about high school that’s come out in years.

Watamote is plain. It teeters on dullness simply because the world it covers—inside Tomoko’s stubborn, neurotic brain—is just so small. It’s hard to have multiple recurring characters when your protagonist is a hikikomori in training. But while Tomoko’s shyness is extreme, her high school experience is not.

When I think back on high school, I don’t remember love triangles, near-death experiences, and perfect, manageable hair. I remember being my worst self. In high school I was at my most self-conscious, anxious, and shallow that I’ve ever been, and if you’re honest with yourself, you might share a similar reflection. I cared about so many silly little details—about my appearance, about what other people might think of me—that I realize as an adult don’t matter at all.

Tomoko is no different. She listens in on her classmates’ conversations while making judgements about their perceived sluttiness. She spends a lot of time daydreaming that she’s somebody else. She magnifies the smallest problem (like forgetting a textbook) into The Worst Thing Ever. She often feels superior to her peers, which is a joke given that she’s wildly unpopular and not as smart as she thinks. Even the full title of the show, “No Matter How I look at It, It’s You Guys Fault I’m Not Popular,” reveals a glaring lack of self awareness, as Tomoko blames everyone but herself.

It’s not a surprise that I wasn’t cool in high school, mainly because I’ve shared that fact on my blog before. I was co-captain of the debate team, a yearbook editor, and generally an introverted nerd. I had a small group of friends, whom I still hang out with today, but like Tomoko—and like EVERY TEEN—I spent a lot of time in my own head. I suspect this is the same even if you were popular in high school. As a teen, I felt like I was alone and nobody else could possibly understand my feelings. I felt like there was something special about my experience, though of course I went through the same feelings and emotions that everyone does through those angsty teen years.

Tomoko is not as special as she seems to think. She’s capable of acting like a regular teen girl, especially with her middle school friend, Yuu. She’s even capable of looking adorable, though she usually tries way too hard. Even though she tells us she wants to change, she revels in her own awkwardness and solitude. Tomoko is flawed, hypocritical, and above all, a human character who is incredibly endearing to anyone who has ever been a teen.

This is why Watamote is the most believable high school slice-of-life we’ve had in recent memory. You never doubt for a second that Tomoko, with all her insecurities and smug superiority, is a high school girl with a high school mindset.