This Week in Anime
Is Komi Can't Communicate All Laughs and No Heart?
by Jean-Karlo Lemus & Monique Thomas,
Komi is just one unique character in a sea of quirky potential friends. Does the anime handle its cast with care or does the mental health angles just become another joke in this gag comedy? Jean-Karlo and Monique explain what's so endearing about Komi Can't Communicate.
This series is streaming on Netflix
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by the participants in this chatlog are not the views of Anime News Network.
Spoiler Warning for discussion of the series ahead.
@Lossthief
|
@mouse_inhouse
|
@NickyEnchilada
|
@vestenet
|
Jean-Karlo
Nicky, you gotta hand it to anime fans. A lot of folks love anime, but struggle to talk about it to other people. It can be a real challenge. Look at this poor example: clearly she's got opinions on this week's edition of This Week In Anime.
Nicky, you gotta hand it to anime fans. A lot of folks love anime, but struggle to talk about it to other people. It can be a real challenge. Look at this poor example: clearly she's got opinions on this week's edition of This Week In Anime.
Well, if she can't talk about her anime opinions maybe she could try writing them? That's what I did! Lol. Anyways, today we'll be communicating about Komi Can't Communicate, a series about how some of us just can't find the right words to say, ever!
I've read the Komi Can't Communicate manga, so I was excited to see this adaptation. I had expected something along the lines of Kimi ni Todoke or My Love Story about a nice couple coming together in spite of some social anxieties. I also hoped it didn't get to the raw schadenfreude of Watamote, which was more uncomfortable for me than anything. I may have some opinions about what I got, but I'm damn glad I got it.
Yeah, I expected a nice and fluffy romantic drama but Komi leans more heavily into being a gag comedy. Now a gag comedy about someone's totally crippling anxiety disorder may seem be humorless at best, or tasteless at worst, but there's so much about Komi-san that's both ridiculous, extreme, and wholesome that it's really endearing immediately. Just look at that face! It's precious.
To my knowledge, Japan's understanding of social/mental disorders is a bit behind from where we are in the United States (note: all I have to base this off of is having read the sadly-incomplete With The Light). And it would have been unfair to expect Komi Can't Communicate to be on the same level as With The Light. But at its best, it definitely nails the characters. Komi's got very good face game, and the show takes fantastic advantage of her body language.
For those wondering, Komi Shoko is the most beautiful girl in school. A stone-cold beauty with a stoic expression, whom everyone at school admires and wants to be around (but can't). But that's only appearances; in reality, she is a very shy and timid person with extreme social anxiety to the point of being basically mute.
Far from being a demure yamato nadeshiko, Komi is in a constant state of panic. It's all she can do to just keep that placid expression, because she's one wrong move away from a coronary.
Dear god, someone get this girl therapy and some medicine. Please, I'm begging you.
One of these days she's gonna shiver out of existence. Every molecule of this girl is vibrating with FEAR. She's trying.
One of these days she's gonna shiver out of existence. Every molecule of this girl is vibrating with FEAR. She's trying.
Being someone who suffers from social anxiety as well, it's easy to empathize with Komi. As the narration is wont to point out, it's not that Komi can't form bonds—it's just painfully difficult. I appreciate the show repeating this, because few things piss me off like the peanut gallery telling me I can deal with autism and social anxiety "with a bit of effort".
I've also sat in similar situations, especially during school where you're often forced to interact with your peers. Which is why I feel confident talking about the parts of Komi-san that are realistic and sympathetic depictions of a struggle, and when it's a more exaggerated version of a silent gag character.
What doesn't help Komi is that she's extremely conventionally attractive—people are convinced she's some kind of ice queen. It takes the extremely ordinary and empathetic Tadano to realize "Oh, she's not a snob—this girl is living an existential nightmare of anxiety!"
Both versions of Komi we see are extremely sympathetic, and it's very uplifting to see Komi go from having one person that truly tries to understand her and trying to reach out of her comfort zone into having a real social life.
I wanna point out that I struggled with that a lot in high school—a combination of being painfully Autistic and also having been skipped up a few grades meant I was extremely scared of my high school peers. It took them a bit to realize, "Oh, Jean-Karlo isn't a snob, he's Autistic." I am lucky that they all—to a man—were very understanding and patient with me and always made sure to let me join in with them at my comfort. Not everyone gets that kind of support.
Tadano is where a lot of the series' gag humor starts to come out, though. See, Tadano's shtick is that he's "extremely normal." Meanwhile, his school has full-on freaks, including a ninja.
And nobody really forgives Tadano for being as close to Komi as he is, so he gets the shaft at every turn.
Tadano could've been a total bread-boy but he's actually got a few great moments of his own. Part of the reason I pointed out that the premise could've been tasteless was that using someone's disability in order to gain romantic favor can seem somewhat manipulative and insidious. But Tadano doesn't have an entitled bone in his body; he's a genuine sweetheart whose one ability is that he can "read a room", and that's a skill that's highly valuable when it comes to interpreting Komi.
Though, as a comedy, he can be just as ridiculous as everyone else when he tries. Even his name is a stupid pun on "Ordinary Person" because everyone in this show is just extreme versions of their archetypes.
Though, as a comedy, he can be just as ridiculous as everyone else when he tries. Even his name is a stupid pun on "Ordinary Person" because everyone in this show is just extreme versions of their archetypes.
Further comedic consideration goes to Tadano's childhood friend, Najimi Osana. Whose name means "childhood friend", and whose shtick is that they're everyone's best friend.
Also an extremely nonbinary gender-troll to top everything off. (Because "Childhood Friend" is a gender-ambiguous concept.)
I have some issues with some of the characters, but Najimi is kinda the most "eesh" of them all. For starters, Najimi has a reputation of being a bit of a gadfly and a liar. For another, Najimi is crossdressing and plays it up... seemingly just to make people sweat.
It's 2021; it's really entirely too late to have people crossdress as a joke. You could have just had Najimi be genderfluid and be done with it. Heck, you could have Najimi being genderfluid be part of why Tadano is so empathetic: Tadano stood by Najimi when they were younger, which is why he stood by Komi now.
It's 2021; it's really entirely too late to have people crossdress as a joke. You could have just had Najimi be genderfluid and be done with it. Heck, you could have Najimi being genderfluid be part of why Tadano is so empathetic: Tadano stood by Najimi when they were younger, which is why he stood by Komi now.
Thankfully, the second episode is just about when the series hits the jokes with Najimi hardest. Having read the manga, there's one joke later on involving the bathrooms that gets floated, but that hasn't been adapted in the anime yet. At the very least, the show goes long stretches without making jokes about how Najimi presents.
I actually think Najimi is one of the most entertaining characters when they actively try to play hard into the support aspect of being a childhood friend while also totally being a little shit who loves to push people into situations. Basically, without Najimi, Komi and Tadano wouldn't even know where to start since the introverts need an extrovert to lead them. It's also only Tadano that is weird about the prospects of Najimi's gender and everyone else seems cool with it. But other than that, I appreciate Najimi for being transparent in a show where everyone is a little bit screwy.
Najimi is definitely the person who can tell that Tadano and Komi have a thing for each other and pushes them into spending more time with each other. So they have that: they're a good wingman.
Even though Najimi's schemes mostly never work because these two are such NERDS. But really, when things do happen they're soooooo goddamn cute!
These are honestly the best parts of the story: Tadano and Komi just having earnest heart-to-hearts with each other. Those remind me most of the kind of vibes from Kimi ni Todoke that I love most.
Also, sometimes they do a Princess Jellyfish gag, even though I'm pretty sure people would think Komi is one of The Stylish at first blush.
Their awkwardness is always so genuine and you can really tell the anime is putting a lot of "giveadamn" to sell the heart of these moments whether they're comedic, dramatic, or romantic, and it's amazing how much effort they put into what would've probably just been a few simple pages. Especially with all that text!!
Oh yeah, guess what Netflix doesn't happen to sub? Can you tell?
For a series that has so many on-screen text, it really messes with this show that they aren't subtitled. There's a lot of discussion these days concerning how much Netflix cheaps out on translations, and Komi is a prime example of how badly that can hurt a show.
There's some argument made for being able to pick up the context from most of the scenes even without the text, but it really sucks when a series built on little interactions has a few key ones missing or deemed unimportant because a streaming service that makes billions of dollars can't spare some of them to pay their translators properly.
It's not even a problem of this show being on a Weekly Release vs Netflix Jail, because even shows that get jailed have missing or just flat-out terrible stilted subs.
It's not even a problem of this show being on a Weekly Release vs Netflix Jail, because even shows that get jailed have missing or just flat-out terrible stilted subs.
Just goes to show that the politics of the industry can really affect the shows.
Another thing I kinda don't like: some of the friends Komi makes. Like I said, a lot of the folks in this have some kind of shtick. This isn't so bad with the one-off characters like Yadano, who is convinced that Komi is her rival. But when Agari comes in, I just seethe. There's nothing worse than a joke that doesn't work but keeps getting used.
Agari is cute enough as a character, but her entire shtick is that she wants to be Komi's dog. That's it. She wants Komi to literally put a leash on her. And I don't wanna yuck someone's yum, but personally I kinda hate the show leaning in on everyone idol-worshipping Komi instead of, y'know, actually getting to know her as a person.
Yeah, people may have problems with Najimi, but part of the reason I emphasize their qualities of "real-ness" is that some of the other characters are so exaggerated they might not work for everyone. Agari being really into pet-play is one of them, and yeah, I'm not really into it either. She's not really fun to hang out with like some of the other characters. I'm okay with the premise of everyone being "in lesbians" with Komi even after joining The Cult of Komi but it doesn't really make them feel like real friends.
Exactly. This is one of those bits where my Autistic brain is just looking at a situation and going, "If I was in that I wouldn't be very comfortable at all" instead of "Hahaha, the cringey thing is happening to the anime character!" If I was making friends, I'd want them to actually be friends with me, not secretly treat me like I'm some kind of deity. That feels just as alienating as people not talking to you at all. Komi's still a person; she has to shave her pits like anyone else. Maybe she doesn't want people to fall on their swords for her. Maybe she just wants someone to notice she got her hair done.
I think it's sweetened by the few good moments Komi does get though, and most of the other characters occasionally have good moments where they break their archetypes too. I really like the part where Agari suddenly breaks the schtick to become a serious ramen foodie at the weirdly reverent Ramen Bar with a lot of unspoken rules, in which Komi passes the test with flying colors while Tadano and Najimi flop. It's fun seeing Komi succeed knowing she tries so hard all the time.
Oh yeah, the ramen scene definitely adds depth to Agari besides the pet-play shtick. That, and it's nice to become one of "the regulars" at a joint.
You know who doesn't have any depth, though? Freaking Yamai.
Look, the rules of TWIA are that any amount of good qualities a character doesn't have can be forgiven as long as that character maintains a certain amount of face game.
And yeah, Yamai honestly has that for me. Like, I prefer characters who are outright psychos, or are supposed to be kinda shitty rather than a character who is just flat unfunny like Agari. Also her episode was just really weird and scary! So at least it's not boring.
And yeah, Yamai honestly has that for me. Like, I prefer characters who are outright psychos, or are supposed to be kinda shitty rather than a character who is just flat unfunny like Agari. Also her episode was just really weird and scary! So at least it's not boring.
For me, yandere has never not been a lazy, boring character archetype. Apologies to VTubers everywhere.
Yeah, whether you find the yandere schtick funny or played-out is gonna be very polarizing for a lot of people. I simply thought the episode itself was structured well. Seeing Tadano tied-up for a whole episode was both nerve-wracking and funny. I couldn't stop screaming. I also liked the end where Yamai was rejected by Komi, for a good reason. When she keeps trying to hang onto the friend group anyways like a piece of goldfish poop is more annoying because she isn't as over-the-top, and therefore not as interesting.
Agari's shtick is just kinda not funny. Yamai is genuinely off-putting to be around, and all things considered it feels like a bit of an ass-pull that Komi would forgive her. Like, I know she's hard up for friends, but you can afford to be a bit more discerning.
This incident is enough to make Komi realize "Oh, hey, people get kinda weird because of me, maybe it's for the best Tadano stays away from me because people tend to hate on him." But Tadano, bless his heart, still loves Komi for Komi.
Yamai basically inserts herself into the episodes though. So for my money she's a load on the show. A pity, because even at their shtick-iest, folks like Agari are at least likeable.
This incident is enough to make Komi realize "Oh, hey, people get kinda weird because of me, maybe it's for the best Tadano stays away from me because people tend to hate on him." But Tadano, bless his heart, still loves Komi for Komi.
Yamai basically inserts herself into the episodes though. So for my money she's a load on the show. A pity, because even at their shtick-iest, folks like Agari are at least likeable.
Again, I don't really mind that she's unlikeable, cuz that has the potential to be interesting. Mostly, it's just bad cuz it's unfunny. But even when the show is at its worst, it's still pretty quickly-paced. And when it's good, it's very good, largely thanks to its excellent presentation. I love the filmic quality or the way it plays with letterboxing for the different flashbacks, and sometimes the show even uses them to display more text without being intrusive.
Also, I would trade Yamai and Agari for the chuuni girl any day of the week. Goodhearted chuunis are a trope I'm somehow not tired of yet.
If there's anyone that can understand the woman with a communication disorder, it's the chuuni. And sure enough, Komi feels kinship with her!
There's a very tender moment where Komi goes out of her way to team up with her during their gym exercises. It's nice to see Komi empathize with lonely people in her own way, and speaks a lot to her own growth.
There's a very tender moment where Komi goes out of her way to team up with her during their gym exercises. It's nice to see Komi empathize with lonely people in her own way, and speaks a lot to her own growth.
Yeah, again, it's great to see her succeed! I also liked the little moment where she manages to get herself a trim at the salon, or the time she gets a cellphone. I find these segments to be a lot more rewarding than most of the gag-centric stuff.
Yeah. I was a little disappointed that Komi Can't Communicate was more of a gag series, but it still does have tender moments that help you fall in love with Komi. I may not have liked this series or manga in the way I had hoped or to the extent I would have liked, but I still think that Komi Can't Communicate is a fun series and its success in the US makes me happy indeed.
It deserves love for what it gets right. Komi's world may be unrealistic and run on extremes at times, but it can sometimes display her disorder in a way that's both sympathetic and relatable with some necessary distance to make it less scary.
Other times the love and support Komi gets and watching her expand her life beyond where it was before are cleansing in a way that I immediately forget all the other parts I don't like.
And at the center is just this extremely soft romance between some nerds.
Other times the love and support Komi gets and watching her expand her life beyond where it was before are cleansing in a way that I immediately forget all the other parts I don't like.
And at the center is just this extremely soft romance between some nerds.
It's enough to see Komi win, little by little. And just like with Kimi ni Todoke or My Love Story, it's nice to see two goofs come closer together.
I appreciate the variety of not trying to stick to one thing, but if you had to do one thing right, I'm glad it's the romance. And I think it'll probably attract a lot of people and make them stay simply because they're easy to root for. And if anything I hope we were able to communicate that!
Fist Pump.jpg
discuss this in the forum (37 posts) |
bookmark/share with:
this article has been modified since it was originally posted; see change history