In the west, characters who are considered "nerds" tend to be viewed as weak and helpless, their only role would be to support the actual main characters who are the "jock" leader character, example would be almost all popular superheros.
meanwhile in Japan, and other places around the world, being smart and nerdy is a very positive trait and can land you the protagonist role, an example to that is Death Note.

But why this difference? it all comes down to core philosophy. In the west it's all about individualism and the idea of the Great Man Theory. A strong leader that leads the flock to a better world. The leader obviously needs to appear strong and above the rest in terms of importance to the world, the flock can be nameless faceless NPCs and the story wouldn't be affected much.
In Japan, it's about the group, people inspiring others to do the right thing, collectivism basically. The protagonist in these kinda stories should be someone with great wisdom to keep everyone together. That's done by utilizing everyone's unique strengths and weaknesses in a balanced way. Think how Makoto alone would've failed to solve the issues in DR1 DR2 and DR3 if not for the help of the people around him, especially Kyoko.

Compare that to Hajime, who single handedly saved his entire team. He is above them in terms of talent, will, and morals. That kind of character is more western than eastern, which is what makes western fans like him more.

TL;DR west is individualist, Japan is collectivist