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EP. REVIEW: Komi Can't Communicate


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Jonny Mendes



Joined: 17 Oct 2014
Posts: 997
Location: Europe
PostPosted: Tue Oct 26, 2021 7:36 am Reply with quote
Violet Park wrote:
Also, this plot is completely nonsensical in 2021. She clearly has no problem connecting to people in writing, so making friends in, let's say, the class WhatsApp chat or in a forum about her hobbies shouldn't be that difficult.

Your take is very "online friendship". That's really is very 2021. But that is also making people lose real contact. Whats the point on going out with friends if you can talk online. Is like what happens so many times when people going out and what you see is 10 people seating together but only looking at phone screens and don't really talking with anybody. People are becoming more a icon or a picture in a screen and less real humans.

What Komi-san wants is real contact. She wants to be able to speak directly with the person in front of her. A chat or a forum will not bring her the satisfaction and happiness of talking face to face with another human being. There are so many more things that can be transited with looking at another person when speaking. Words, expressions, a look in the eyes. So much is been lost when talking by online means. And that what Komi-san is looking for. Human friendship, contact and be able to talk face to face.
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Violet Park



Joined: 18 Jul 2018
Posts: 115
PostPosted: Tue Oct 26, 2021 7:53 am Reply with quote
Jonny Mendes wrote:
Violet Park wrote:
Also, this plot is completely nonsensical in 2021. She clearly has no problem connecting to people in writing, so making friends in, let's say, the class WhatsApp chat or in a forum about her hobbies shouldn't be that difficult.

Your take is very "online friendship". That's really is very 2021. But that is also making people lose real contact. Whats the point on going out with friends if you can talk online. Is like what happens so many times when people going out and what you see is 10 people seating together but only looking at phone screens and don't really talking with anybody. People are becoming more a icon or a picture in a screen and less real humans.

What Komi-san wants is real contact. She wants to be able to speak directly with the person in front of her. A chat or a forum will not bring her the satisfaction and happiness of talking face to face with another human being. There are so many more things that can be transited with looking at another person when speaking. Words, expressions, a look in the eyes. So much is been lost when talking by online means. And that what Komi-san is looking for. Human friendship, contact and be able to talk face to face.


Unless she is talking to bots, any form of communication where two people exchange words is "real contact". In-person, pen-pals, social media, the chalkboard thing, as long as she forms a connection it's a real friendship.

But let's pretend it's not, that it's only friendship if they talk face to face. She can do that with online friends, befriending them online or talking to her classmates in messaging apps can be the first step to actually talking to them IRL. Otherwise, considering she can't talk, what is she supposed to do, do nothing until one day she gets over her anxiety? That hasn't worked for her so far.
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Jonny Mendes



Joined: 17 Oct 2014
Posts: 997
Location: Europe
PostPosted: Tue Oct 26, 2021 8:14 am Reply with quote
Violet Park wrote:

But let's pretend it's not, that it's only friendship if they talk face to face. She can do that with online friends, befriending them online or talking to her classmates in messaging apps can be the first step to actually talking to them IRL. Otherwise, considering she can't talk, what is she supposed to do, do nothing until one day she gets over her anxiety? That hasn't worked for her so far.

That would not make her less anxious. She wants to be able to understand what people thinks and online you have more chance of been lied to. Do you know what that person is really like by talking to them online? You can tell anything online but what is the true? You can tell somebody that you are talking in private but maybe there are 1000 people reading the messages you write. That will only adds to Komi-san anxiety. If you are like Komi-san that have difficult to understand what people are thinking even when she are near them, imagine if she wasn't seeing the people she was talking with. Face to face speaking
communication is what Komi-san is looking for.

Some of the these things and reasons for her anxiety were lost because the way Netflix subbed the chalkboard scene and this anime. Some important information was not translated.
And lots of other information is been lost because of Neflix failing to translate so much of the text appearing in the anime.
You can have a better understanding if you read what she write in that scene on the manga or are able to read everything Komi-san write in the board. Than you understand better why talking online would not solve Komi-san problem.
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Sinsekihokimchiansu



Joined: 02 Aug 2021
Posts: 159
PostPosted: Tue Oct 26, 2021 4:51 pm Reply with quote
The show is okay for me but the real let down is that the jokes are either I don't get or just not funny Confused
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tywhoppity



Joined: 09 Sep 2019
Posts: 194
PostPosted: Tue Oct 26, 2021 5:45 pm Reply with quote
Just saying that I also noticed(and appreciated) the chalk dust. Smile
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NeedMoreCats
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Joined: 06 Oct 2018
Posts: 299
Location: Westchester, NY
PostPosted: Tue Oct 26, 2021 10:27 pm Reply with quote
I’m utterly delighted by this show so far. I find Komi’s anxiety and self-denigration very believable—I can really relate. And those great big googly eyes are adorable, they make me laugh every time.

The blackboard scene was so touching and sweet (yes, the chalk dust was great), just loved it. Can’t wait for episode two.
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Piglet the Grate



Joined: 25 May 2021
Posts: 523
Location: North America
PostPosted: Tue Oct 26, 2021 10:34 pm Reply with quote
wacclay wrote:

And I suppose a show with better writing ... would have been yuri or BL. Or absolutely delightful stuff like HoriMiya, where the obviously in need of counseling male protagonist has a history of self-harm spoiler[and is stuck with a "girlfriend" with a history of bullying who then proceeds to walk all over him, including forcing him to participate in her fetishes]. Yeah, that is precisely the sort of great writing that we need more of.


Just to be clear, the above is sarcasm?

(Yes, I almost stopped watching HoriMiya half-way through due to my dislike of the primary couple.)

wacclay wrote:

Also, people with social anxiety or even simply extreme shyness are indeed often paranoid, thinking that the whole world hates them or is laughing at them. They often become misanthropes as a defense mechanism. Indeed, Komi NOT using her issues as an excuse to become a jerk like Watamote's Tomoko, Bottom Tier Character's Tomozaki, Handa-kun's character (whose problems continue well into adulthood!) or Oregairu's Hachiman is actually a refreshing departure.


Maybe we have a different definition of jerk - I would consider a jerk to be someone who intentionally hurts others and not just insensitive. I see Hachiman as neither, but rather someone who is very cynical and lets the end justify the means (OK, getting off topic here).

But there are plenty of people who talk bad about others, and sometimes the shy person does get confirmation by hearing or reading something that was not intended for his/her ears or eyes.
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Redbeard 101
Oscar the Grouch
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Joined: 14 Aug 2006
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PostPosted: Wed Oct 27, 2021 2:03 pm Reply with quote
Violet Park wrote:

Unless she is talking to bots, any form of communication where two people exchange words is "real contact". In-person, pen-pals, social media, the chalkboard thing, as long as she forms a connection it's a real friendship.

But let's pretend it's not, that it's only friendship if they talk face to face. She can do that with online friends, befriending them online or talking to her classmates in messaging apps can be the first step to actually talking to them IRL. Otherwise, considering she can't talk, what is she supposed to do, do nothing until one day she gets over her anxiety? That hasn't worked for her so far.


That all may be true, but that does not matter if you suffer from bad social anxiety. Your earlier post about how it's nonsensical is rather uninformed. As someone with moderate social anxiety I can tell you that interacting with some face to face is a vastly different situation then over an app or phone. The sheer physical presence of the other person is a major difference. Body language, wondering how your voice sounds, what you look like, etc. That are a lot of factors involved with actually having a discussion face to face that are not there with apps, emails, etc. Even with face time and skype or other video calls it's still not the same as in person. Pretending that it's all nonsensical is just as ill-informed as acting as if online communication is not real communication. It is real, but it is still on a vastly different level then in person face to face.
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Piglet the Grate



Joined: 25 May 2021
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PostPosted: Wed Oct 27, 2021 6:53 pm Reply with quote
Redbeard 101 wrote:
...interacting with some face to face is a vastly different situation then over an app or phone. The sheer physical presence of the other person is a major difference. Body language, wondering how your voice sounds, what you look like, etc. That are a lot of factors involved with actually having a discussion face to face that are not there with apps, emails, etc. Even with face time and skype or other video calls it's still not the same as in person. Pretending that it's all nonsensical is just as ill-informed as acting as if online communication is not real communication. It is real, but it is still on a vastly different level then in person face to face.


Quite true, but goes both ways. Someone with poor writing skills might have anxiety over having to write a formal email (or that artifact of antiquity, the written letter on paper), but not talking in person or over the phone (this may fit a lot of VLoggers). For myself, I deal with people a lot better in person than over the phone (much easier for the person on the other end to blow someone off over the phone than in person).

What is ridiculous is is a goal of 100 friends. Yes, 100 acquaintances is possible, but hard to see how someone could have more than a handful of real friends considering if nothing else time constraints. Even a dozen would be pushing things.
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Piglet the Grate



Joined: 25 May 2021
Posts: 523
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PostPosted: Thu Oct 28, 2021 6:49 am Reply with quote
Is spoiler[kidnapping and threatening to kill a person] something that may be done with no repercussions other than Komi not wanting you as a friend? Rolling Eyes
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Birriaman



Joined: 24 Jul 2015
Posts: 94
PostPosted: Thu Oct 28, 2021 4:38 pm Reply with quote
Wow… just wow… As one of the most charming and lighthearted manga I’ve read in the past few years, I was really not expecting Komi’s anime to become such a heated topic of debate. That’s not to say it doesn’t deal with some real issues (and does in such a non-judgemental and relatable way), but it is based on a slice of life manga. It’s not a remake of the Evangelion remakes. It’s a gag fluff-comedy with really nice characters who are very relatable because of the way their issues are depicted. It’s like what Kaguya-sama was trying to be before everything became serious, only that Komi is able to deal with serious subjects while still keeping the lightheartedness and have very little actual drama.
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Birriaman



Joined: 24 Jul 2015
Posts: 94
PostPosted: Thu Oct 28, 2021 4:39 pm Reply with quote
Wow… just wow… As one of the most charming and lighthearted manga I’ve read in the past few years, I was really not expecting Komi’s anime to become such a heated topic of debate. That’s not to say it doesn’t deal with some real issues (and does in such a non-judgemental and relatable way), but it is based on a slice of life manga. It’s not a remake of the Evangelion remakes. It’s a gag fluff-comedy with really nice characters who are very relatable because of the way their issues are depicted. It’s like what Kaguya-sama was trying to be before everything became serious, only that Komi is able to deal with serious subjects while still keeping the lightheartedness and have very little actual drama.
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Redbeard 101
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PostPosted: Thu Oct 28, 2021 7:39 pm Reply with quote
Piglet the Grate wrote:

Quite true, but goes both ways. Someone with poor writing skills might have anxiety over having to write a formal email (or that artifact of antiquity, the written letter on paper), but not talking in person or over the phone (this may fit a lot of VLoggers). For myself, I deal with people a lot better in person than over the phone (much easier for the person on the other end to blow someone off over the phone than in person).


I never said that it doesn't go both ways. Of course it would. There are many forms social anxiety can take. I was simply focusing on the idea of communicating online vs in person being vastly different and hardly "ridiculous" as was mentioned. In terms of verbal and face to face interactions.


Birriaman wrote:
Wow… just wow… As one of the most charming and lighthearted manga I’ve read in the past few years, I was really not expecting Komi’s anime to become such a heated topic of debate.

I'd hardly say this is really heated. At least not by the standards that many discussions here garner.
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Florete



Joined: 21 Jan 2018
Posts: 363
PostPosted: Sat Oct 30, 2021 7:00 pm Reply with quote
pikrodafni wrote:
^

Wow so many bad takes in a single post.Let's see:

He obviously doesn't wear a hair ormanornament ,it's just a stylistic choice by the character designer,if we were listing all the weird hair in anime we'd be here all day.

People don't flock to Komi which is ironically both a blessing and a curse,they admire her from afar cause either they think they're not good enough for her or are afraid she'll reject them.

What's so weird about her thinking that people don't like her,that's actually one of the most common things people experience when they have low self-esteem,assuming the worse.Even i have fallen to this line thinking and felt like such an idiot later when I realised the truth.

I'm assuming this isn't a critisism on the series, but yes Japan does still use chalkboards ,it's not exclusive to anime.

That thing is clearly not part of his hair. It's an ornament of some sort. Regardless, it doesn't mesh with his self-proposed identity.

There were multiple scenes of people clearly surrounding Komi.

It's not weird for someone with low self-esteem to think people hate them, but most people with low self-esteem don't have large groups of people following them everywhere with obvious infatuation.

wacclay wrote:
Florete wrote:
Well, all I could think about was how stupid this first episode was.


Oh wow. Half of your criticisms were eviscerations of the male protagonist, whom you are going after for the crime of merely existing. I see this sort of thing all the time either the criticism is for being an unrealistic power fantasy Gary Stu or for being a boring everyman self-insert. And yes, said criticisms are generally made about the same people. So ... what kind of male protagonists do said critics want? One who never dates a female? Do said critics just want every single work to be yuri and BL?

A good male protagonist would have a real personality and not be a copy of every cardboard cutout from every romcom in the past twenty years. These criticisms are about the same people because they are always the same bland, boring person. I've seen this same male protagonist in dozens of other works. I'm not interested in seeing him again.

It's really not that hard. Gouda from My Love Story is a good male protagonist. Okabe from Steins;Gate is another. Going out of anime, Aang from Avatar: The Last Airbender is a great protagonist. And all three of these end up with a girl.

Again, it's not hard to do. But it's not about difficulty, it's about desire; authors of works like this intentionally make their protagonists as basic as possible for self-insertion purposes.

Quote:
As for the other stuff ... they still use chalkboards in most American classrooms too.

I haven't seen a chalkboard since I was in the 1st grade, which was the 90s.
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Piglet the Grate



Joined: 25 May 2021
Posts: 523
Location: North America
PostPosted: Sat Oct 30, 2021 8:18 pm Reply with quote
Florete wrote:

A good male protagonist would have a real personality and not be a copy of every cardboard cutout from every romcom in the past twenty years. These criticisms are about the same people because they are always the same bland, boring person. I've seen this same male protagonist in dozens of other works. I'm not interested in seeing him again.


I will mostly agree (absolutes are hardly ever correct) in that Tadano Hitohito could be exchanged with most male high school rom-com protagonists of the last 20 years. The only exception to the stock character that comes readily to mind is Hachiman Hikigaya from OreGairu with his cynicism. Akuru Akutsu from Aho-Girl and Mukai Naoya from Kanojo mo Kanojo of course do not count since Hiroyuki is obviously making parody send-ups of those same generic rom-com characters.

A criticism of Tadano that derives from him being a stock rom-com figure is spoiler[that he does not report to the police being garroted or chloroformed (we are not shown enough detail to tell exactly what was done), kidnapped, and threatened with murder. Almost as bad are Komi and Najimi not reporting anything] - even in anime world this stretches credulity.
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