Komi Can't Communicate Review

Komi Can't Communicate 8.75/10 (I wrote this with some friends in mind, so if there are specific people mentioned or something I mentioned specifically seems a bit strange, my bad. Also I wrote this with discord in mind, so you'll see some artifacts from that)

(NO SPOILER)I feel since this manga is in its final arc (Im really sad about this), I can talk at length about this without worrying too much about how the ending impacts my feelings on the manga as a whole. While the ending has the potential to elevate this manga into a masterpiece in my eyes, It will not be able to take away what it has accomplished so far even if it is botched. Komi Can't Communicate, despite the rating not even being a 9/10 for me, is truly something special and something that only comes around once in a while. The things that this manga does well, it does so masterfully; however, unlike manga like My Dress Up Darling and Kaguya-Sama, there is a level of consistency that is lacking. In order to lay out my opinions in a more organized manner, I will break up my review into segments based off what I have the most to say about.

Things this manga does perfectly: The main strength of this manga, in my opinion, has to be how well each character and their growth is written, especially after the first year (I will discuss why later). There are a LOT of characters in this manga, and ALMOST EVERY SINGLE CHARACTER THAT APPEARS MORE THAN ONCE HAS SIGNIFICANCE TO THE MAIN CHARACTERS. How this is even possible astonishes me. Komi and Tadano befriend and meet hundreds of extraordinarily well written side and pseudo-side characters (those who are more important than the other side characters but not quite main characters) throughout the span of this manga who all have extremely unique personalities and play different roles in the character growth of the two main characters. However, if these characters only served to push the character growth of Komi and Tadano, then it would feel like they kind of throw aways. However, this is not even close to the case. Tadano and Komi also help every character they befriend grow in their own way. Seeing this mutual growth of characters done with such care and balance often leaves me dumbfounded. It is not often I see this delicate balance of growth between main and side character during their interactions done so well. It is truly inspiring seeing the growth of each character (especially Tadano and Komi duh). Seeing how Komi and Tadano transform from the anxious, slightly uninspired, and insecure people they are at the beginning to what they are at the end really resonates with me and I hope many other people as well. I can apply so many things in this manga to my life that will help me improve myself and the people around me. Even my favorite manga of all time, My Dress Up Darling, has trouble doing this (Me criticizing Sono Bisque Doll:face_with_open_eyes_and_hand_over_mouth: ). Second, this manga is soooooo funny in my opinion. Almost every chapter (longer than like 4 panels) had something that made me laugh audibly (If you couldn't tell by me constantly posting screenshots of the manga in this channel, and believe me I could have done at least 100 more if I didn't care about spoiling things). I know that the humor in this manga really panders towards me because of the absolute absurdity of the side characters and the situations the mangaka writes, so I understand how the humor factor may change for different people. Additionally, the constant humor of the manga rarely interrupts the important moments in a way that detracts from the overall quality of said moments. Even if you don't care to read too deep into all the complex character growth stuff, you will find this manga highly entertaining. Third, this manga is paced really really really well. If you have watched the anime, you know that it takes two full seasons to even get through one school year in the manga (and that's the fastest paced part). This is because the manga takes its time to fully flesh out each and every detail that is significant to the story as a whole (and some that aren't just for the fun of it, but not in a harmful way). | It rarely feels like there are missing plot points that could have elevated the manga further. If the entirity of the manga gets adapted the way I think it should, there will be 7 or 8 seasons in total (the first two seasons adapt ~100 chapters of the manga. The manga will probably be ~500 chapters once its finished and the average length of each chapter increases after the first 100 chapters). While this might seem like shit just drags, I promise you it does not. I was addicted to this manga while reading it (and even now it feels like I'm getting withdrawals from not being able to read more. Even to the point where I've almost cried because I have to wait). The length of the manga benefits the overall quality of the story immensly. Fourth, this manga really knows how to evoke any emotions it needs to (Will just briefly mention that this manga has a decent amount of fan service, but it almost never ruins moments and naturally occurs within the context of each situation in a believable manner. I will talk about when it hurts moments later). When this manga wants to be wholesome, oh my god is it; When it needs to be funny, its fucking hilarious; When it needs to be serious about a topic, it gives that topic the proper respect it deserves; etc etc. Fifth (and finally?), this manga is just fun as hell. I know this is kind of a recap of a couple of subpoints in this, but it must be said. Its one of the most entertaining pieces of media I've ever engaged with.

Things that aren't done so well: First, the consistency of the manga is lacking during the first fourth or so of the manga. During the that portion, it feels like the mangaka didn't really have a vision for what he wanted the manga to be which created many moments that either didn't seem as necessary to the story as a whole, or lacked the depth and care that the later parts have. Once that first fourth of the manga passed, it really felt like the mangaka figured exactly what he wanted to do with each character, plot point, etc (like mentioned above). This inconsistency is a major reason why this manga isn't a 9 or higher for me. Its hard to ignore the inconsistencies because of the parts that do shine in that first fourth of the manga. Some of my favorite side characters from the entire series are introduced in that part, and their moments are some of the greatest throughout the manga, but the inconsistencies can often make those moments just a little worse overall which is so unfortunate. It is because of this, that I believe that the anime adaptation of the first year of school in the series is better than the manga, and I would recommend watching the anime and then starting off where it ended, since there are no significant parts that are skipped during adaptation. Second, the main characters are like incapable of being mad at anyone. While this rarely matters in the manga due to a great majority of characters being at least respectable people, there are times where I think Komi or Tadano should have raised their voices and stood up for themselves in a greater way. There are characters that consistently throughout the span of the manga that can ruin specific moments due to their lack of full character growth (which I believe is due to aforementioned incapability of Komi and Tadano). I know that the characters are written in a way which you are supposed to hate them at first and grow to like them as their character develops; however, for like two specific characters, it just can't really do it. The growth they undergo does not fully span their imperfections enough to make me like them how the mangaka wants me to. While I'm making this seem like a huge deal, I promise it is not. Like I said, I can only think of two characters that are like this out of the hundreds that play a role in the manga. Third (and this a really small nitpick), I feel like a specific point of character growth for the two main characters could have happened *slightly* and i mean *SLIGHTLY* earlier. This doesn't really matter, but I felt like mentioning it anyway.
Artwork: Because of the attention you brought to the shift in art style when we last talked, I feel obligated to talk about it here (Thank you as I do feel this is important to understand). The art style in this manga is consistently beautiful throughout the entirety of the manga. The issues that were brought up (Komi looking a bit sus during some panels) are very very very rarely present. The art shift that occurs 100% happens; however, it is not as pronounced as those tiktoks make it seem. If you read this manga front to back, you will rarely notice significant shifts worth noting. The art change happens very gradually and can even start to be seen pretty early on in the manga if you look hard enough. There are definitely some cases where the art shift is extremely pronounced like in those tiktoks, and you are left a little confused by it. However, some of these moments can be easily remedied with context which I will not provide because spoilers. Just know that some of these more questionable art choices are very explainable with the context that they are in. Additionally, I feel that the art shift that occurs is almost necessary to a certain degree. Without it, Komi's character development would not be as good. The art shift allows her to grow beyond the bounds of what would have been possible if the manga maintained the same art style throughout (this also holds true for some other characters, but not as much). I know it can be easy to dog on the shift in style without the context, but I promise you (and hope you trust me) that it at the very least has no overall negative effect on the quality of the manga (I, in fact, think that it helps more than it detracts). In short, the issues you mentioned are not pervasive. There are many times where the art style shift isn't noticeable or helps the story as a whole.

Final words: I really hope you guys (and who ever else might be reading this) reads this manga at some point (after My Dress Up Darling obviously :rolling_eyes: ). Like I said, this manga is something special and has really resonated with me in many ways. Despite, writing way too fucking much, there is still MORE I could say about this manga, even without spoiling it (definitely much more if I spoiled stuff though). I would advise you watch the anime before you start reading the parts that aren't adapted yet. If you want to save time, I think its totally valid to not read the adapted parts of the manga and just watch the anime like I mentioned previously. I'd *REALLY* recommend that if you do read Komi, you read the official translation on VIZ manga. Its just better than the available chapters of fan translations on sites like mangadex. The second and third years of Komi's school life are peak fiction. I can name so many characters who I love so much even if they only get a little time in the spotlight. Theres something for everyone to love here. I would really appreciate it if yall took time to read this in its entirety. I spent a lot of time on this.