I am one of Murakami's fans who believes this remains, as of 2020, his magnum opus, his most ambitious and successful work. Wrestling with the political and social-psychological repressions of World War II, the fundamental questions of identity and intimacy, the duality of self, and the Zen wending of fate/destiny/"flow," Murakami's WUBC still speaks through a passive "boku" protagonist who has more than his share of blockages. This reading, perhaps my 3rd complete reading of the novel, I have also begun, though, to see the Toru narrator as a secondary character to the primary character of Kumiko. (Spoiler here:) As the characters who cross Toru's path drop hints and opportunities which enable Toru to reach Room 208 and clear the barrier of Noboru, I wondered now if Toru's own successes in the well are their own destined opportunity for the primary character arc of Kumiko who is largely hidden from us, for it is she who ultimately must resolve the terrible repressed defilements within her own family. Still, too, we might see the entire novel as a psychological study of Cinnamon, of course, who is himself working through a narrative to resolve the mystery of his own identity and past, in which case all the characters are merely facets of or tools for Cinnamon. This is part of the wonder of the novel, of course: that Murakami opens the webs of relationships and connections to our unique perspectives. And all of us, readers included, are left with a less limited view due to Toru's healing work.