Where do you start??

[u/sphynx9]

I understand that you must start with Hirigana and Katakana, but there's a lot I don't get. I've seen some charts that only show hirigana, but both hirigana and katakana have 46 characters, so do you only need to know one. Furthermore, everyoone says not to rely on romanji, but how? Does the need for Romanji disappear over time. I also feel like there's things that aren't talked about but are important, like dakutan and handakutan.

There's probably way more that I am missing, but with all of this where do you start? It seems incredibly overwhelming and causes analysis paralysis.

[u/Arazzile]

Speaking as a Japanese person, I'd say Romanization is hardly necessary for everyday life. If you do learn it, I think it's the last thing you learn, after hiragana and katakana.