Welcome To Itan Private High School
Shouko Komi is a first-year student at Komi High School. She struggles to communicate with others, and the opening scene of Episode 1 of Komi Can’t Communicate shows her making her way to school. Other students stare in awe, but we aren’t given a full shot of her face. It’s unclear what caused Shouko Komi’s difficulties in communication, but it seems to be a major obstacle for her in life. ..
Hitohito Tadano is a new student at Itan Private High School, which is known for its fame and elite status. He’s determined to blend in and avoid conflict, but his motivation is clear: he remembers his embarrassing middle school phase.
Tadano is interrupted mid-crisis by Komi, whose locker is above his. Tadano looks up and we get our first proper look at Komi’s face. She’s pretty enough to send Tadano into panic-mode. Komi is so startled by Tadano that she turns jerkily in his direction with wide eyes before levelling him with a stare cold enough to solve global warming. Tadano is trying to figure out whether he did something wrong when Komi flees the lockers altogether.
Tadano heads to class, content to brush the whole incident aside. That is, until he sits down and realises Komi is occupying the neighbouring desk. Their classmates are already fawning over her beauty, and she’s been crowned Class Princess. Unfortunately for Tadano, this means that he’s drawing the ire of jealous classmates rather than fitting in.
Komi stands for her turn and says nothing. She begins to slowly advance towards the chalkboard before rushing up to write down her name with the energy of a swordsman slicing at his target. The class erupts into applause while Tadano is the picture of confusion. ..
At the sound of the lunch bell, Tadano was knocked out cold by the students rushing to Komi’s desk. When Tadano comes to, he can hear Komi whispering questions about why she finds it so hard to speak. Tadano finally regains full consciousness in the otherwise empty classroom right as Komi meows to the cat plushie she’s been whispering to. Tadano and Komi stare at each other in shock until Tadano declares that he didn’t hear her, and she starts to run away. ..
Komi is worried that Tadano has potentially scarred her for life and tries to rectify the situation by asking if she’s bad at talking to people. She only manages to stutter out a single syllable in reply. Tadano eventually suggests using the chalkboard to write down what she wants to say, and she wastes no time doing so.
Tadano tells Komi that he has noticed that she has difficulty speaking, and asks her how she knows. Tadano is not sure how to continue the conversation, so Komi opens up about her many anxieties that choke her voice. Tadano also writes about his middle school experiences with being left out during lunch time because of his inability to talk.
Komi almost leaves, apologizing for oversharing, but Tadano gives her an easy out. As she reaches the doorway, Tadano begins a new conversation on the chalkboard and they fall into an easy conversation. ..
Komi tells Tadano that she has a dream in which she wants to make 100 friends. Tadano declares that he’ll be her first friend and will help her make the other 99.
The next day, Tadano suggests they practice speaking out loud. Komi turns statue-like during her first attempt, but signals that she wants to try again. We almost end here, as the music builds triumphantly, when the narrator interrupts with some dire news. Itan Private High School admits students based on their personality, and the colourful array of individuals that walk the halls will definitely throw some curveballs at our protagonists. Even so, we see Komi bracing herself one more time before opening her mouth to speak.
The Episode Review
The animation is a visual treat, with care evident in details like the cherry blossoms or the flecks of chalk as Komi and Tadano converse. The show has been very popular so far, with no signs of slowing down.
So far, Komi’s character has not been reduced to an overly sexualized damsel in distress. In fact, her journey to overcome her communication disorder is being shown in a comical way. Viewers are also not asked to watch Komi through the beautiful ice-queen lens for too long at a time. ..
Episode 1 of the anime “Kaguya-sama: Love is War” is a great start to the series. The humour is well written and comes from the characters’ internal freak-outs. This makes for an enjoyable watch.
But it’s not all laughs, and Komi’s communication disorder is treated with an appropriate amount of solemnity, which made watching the development of her fledgling friendship with Tadano a genuinely heartwarming experience. ..
If the show manages to keep this up, then we might have ourselves one of the better offerings of the Autumn 2021 anime season.
