Netflix’s anime lineup has been going from strength to strength in recent years, to the point it can easily compete with dedicated anime streaming services. And Netflix’s newest anime is extremely popular with anime fans.
According to MyAnimeList, Komi Can’t Communicate is currently the 6th most popular airing anime right now. And it isn’t hard to see why, as the series has had a lot of pre-release hype that has only grown more intense now the series has started to air.
The series started life as a manga found in the pages of Weekly Shōnen Sunday in 2016 before being collected into twenty-two volumes, with more on the way. These collected volumes were licensed, translated, and released in America by Viz Media, allowing American fans to enjoy the story. And these American releases saw the series explode in popularity with both long-time manga fans and those with only a passing interest in the medium praising and recommending the series to others.
The series follows Shouko Komi, a beautiful young girl who joins the elite Itan Private High School. She instantly finds herself becoming very popular due to both her looks and her stoic nature, which the other classmates believe to be part of a deliberate aesthetic that only serves to make Komi feel more mysterious. However, Hitohito Tadano, the average student who sits next to Komi, soon learns the truth.
Komi isn’t stoic. She actually has massive problems communicating with people. Something that affects her quality of life as she has never been able to make a single friend. Joining forces with Komi, Tadano decides to help her on her quest to make or find 100 friends, as Komi believes that this will mean she has finally overcome her communication issues.
The series was praised for its portrayal of communication issues, noting that Komi is relatable to anyone who has ever struggled to make friends or been a social outcast. The series was also praised for having the rest of its cast have their own individual issues with school and life. Pointing out that not only does this make the series feel more realistic, it also means that the show doesn’t feel mean-spirited. It shows that Komi’s issues are not strange or unusual, but instead one facet of communication issues we can all suffer with from time to time.
Because of this, fans were extremely excited when the anime was announced in May of this year, especially when it was announced that OLM, the company behind hits like Odd Taxi, would be working on the animation. So it is no surprise that the series has quickly flown up the popularity charts. The series will likely continue to dominate them in the coming month as more people fall in love with this touching and charming exploration of communication issues.