Komori-san wa Kotowarenai!

Komori-san wa kotowarenai is a slice of life comedy originally written in 2012 by Cool-kyou Shinja. In 2015, three years after the manga began, it was adapted into an anime. The studio behind it was Artland, the same studio behind Mushishi, Gunslinger Girl Il Teatrino & the horrendous Ichiban Ushiro no Daimaou. Still, two out of three worthwhile anime isn't a bad precedent. I'm not sure what to expect going into this one, so let's take a look and see how it goes.

Story:

Komori is a fourteen year old girl who can't bring herself to turn down requests for help. As a result, her classmates are ... constantly relying on her. This, naturally, results in slice of life shenanigans. The biggest flaw with the series is just that the japes are pretty standard and predictable. You might laugh at points, but it's probably not going to be hearty laughter. More, a bit of a chuckle. This series may actually benefit from each episode lasting two minutes, simply because they have to fir out the jokes quickly and you don't get a lot of set up for the obvious pay-offs.

Characters:


The characters don't have much to them. Although, in all fairness, you can't really expect deep and compelling characters in a series where the entire twelve episodes take up roughly the same amount of time as one episode of a normal length series. With that said, there are times where Komori's interactions with her friends, Masako & Megumi, work well for comedic purposes and there are times where they don't really garner a reaction. Then we have Kurou, a character who is consistently dull. Any time he shows up, you can safely tune out and not risk missing a funny moment.

Art:

The art in this is pretty simple but it's functional and there's really nothing wrong with it. Even if it does use that hyper moe style I'm not personally fond of.

Sound:

The acting is perfectly competent. It's not stellar and Uchida Aya certainly doesn't get to fully showcase her talents, but it sounds just fine. I'd say the same for the other actors, but I haven't really heard them in anything else. Well, Ozawa Ari had a minor role in One Punch Man, but I don't remember her character at all. The music likewise is competent but nothing special.

Ho-yay:

There are times when Komori's friend, Masako, seems to have a crush on her. But it's difficult to say if that was intentional given the length of the series.

Final Thoughts:

Ultimately, Komori-san wa kotowarenai isn't a bad series. But it's also not a good one. It's a short, standard slice of life comedy. If you're a big fan of the genre, you might want to give it a go. The whole series is only twenty four minutes so it is pretty quick. Otherwise, you won't really miss anything by skipping it. My final rating is a 5/10. The series is average. Next week I'll look at Brain Powerd.

(This review has been adapted from my blog/reddit thread. Spoilers ahead!)

Recently, I was asked to visit a friend’s house to help setup some technology in his home. I accepted. Not because he offered me a going rate of ten dollars per hour (which was kind of him but unnecessary), but because he is a good friend of mine that I want to help.

Komori-san wa Kotowarenai! (or, in English, Komori-san Can’t Decline!) features, coincidentally enough, a girl named Komori. She never refuses to help others, providing a simple anime in the process.

STORY

Komori-san Can’t Decline! is an extremely short anime. At two – two – minutes per ... episode, the anime can literally be started, watched, and completed in less than thirty minutes. As such, not a whole lot can be said.

Each episode follows Komori helping out anyone and everyone that asks for help from her. Carrying boxes, giving directions, and taking pictures are just a handful of the ways in which Komori helps out her fellow friends.

Much of the comedy in the anime relies on Komori and her incessant need to help. For example, her drinking everyone’s milk cartridges leads into a discussion on her massive breasts. Her large height makes her friends use her for shade during a hot day. Her helpful nature has her considering becoming a detective. This comedy is rather quick, fitting the even quicker anime.

Along the way, the anime comes to explore the idea of helping others. Why people help. Whether or not it is wrong to help others despite potentially making the situation worse. What helping others results in. Relative to the anime (especially considering its overall length), it explores this theme of helping as well as it can.

Some episodes even focus on themes like friends and romance. The motif of helping still exists within these episodes – Komori, Megumi, Masako, and Ootani help each other and others. And, since helping naturally leads into friendship and romantic developments, such themes are natural, too.

Technically the anime does not explore these last two themes as much as it does the helping theme, so they are not as important. And, arguably, these last two themes distract from the helping theme, too. Still, having them around strengthens the theme on helping and, collectively, they all help to balance out the comedy that Komori-san Can’t Decline! usually leans on.

ANIMATION

When it comes to the actual animation, Komori-san Can’t Decline! does not have a whole lot of it. But the anime almost always makes sure to keep two parts moving: Komori’s breasts.

They are big and technically one of the defining features of her character. So the anime animates them accordingly. Not just in moving around or pressing her chest against some boxes. Something as simple as lifting her umbrella or her fist, which happens to hit the underside of her boob, causes her breasts to jostle (slightly-over) appropriately.

Komori’s chest naturally leads into her and the other character designs. While her boobs are focused on the most, she has other defining features: Her height, her striped, thigh-high socks, and, most strikingly, her multicolored eyes. Each feature makes her stick out even further, resulting in people singling her out for help.

As for the other designs, Ootani’s design is rather plain, but this plainness fits his character since he does not stick out and therefore does not get called on for help. Komori’s friends, Megumi and Masako, try to be slightly different. Megumi’s blonde, twin-tailed, eye-covering hair with light-blue eyes and Masako’s dark-green hair, all-black eyes, and floor-touching skirt make Komori’s best friends distinct without being obtuse.

For all three (and for most of the background characters), they appear to be shorter than normal, accentuating Komori’s height even further. Also, a positive shout-out goes to Megumi’s father. The anime presumably did not want to create a design for him, so they only showed his hand and arm waving from outside of Megumi’s room. A silly and welcome inclusion. Also (also), a negative shout-out to the scrolling text that did little else besides be distracting when it occurred in nearly every episode. An unnecessary and unwelcome inclusion.

The rest of the art is soft and simple. Made so by the white coating and shininess of the characters as well as the white coating of the backgrounds. The anime sticks mostly to the school grounds, but it occasionally has the cast at other locations such as the beach, a festival, or at their respective homes. The backgrounds are boring, but, regardless of what is shown, the simplicity and softness fit the gentle anime well enough.

CHARACTERS

While the characters of Komori-san Can’t Decline! do not see any development in the short time that they are on-screen, what they represent definitely follows the direction of the anime.

Komori’s view on the world is one that everyone should adopt: She likes to help others. Plain and simple. She helps people not just to make herself feel happy but also to make others happy. She is as selfless as someone can be. As she says, “When people depend on you, it means they trust you. That makes me happy. And that’s why I can’t decline anyone today, either. I won’t decline!”

Ootani is helpful as well, but, as he says, he does it to make himself “feel better.” He is not tall like Komori. He is not popular like Komori. He is not relied upon like Komori. Altogether, he does not get the same opportunities as her, so he seeks them out. But because he is so helpful, he understands Komori. And, since they are both similar and opposite, the hinted-at romantic relationship between them makes even more sense.

As for Megumi and Masako, they do not necessarily have as much focus throughout the season. Instead, they are mostly there for comedic and supporting purposes. Them teasing Komori about looking at Ootani while he swims or them visiting Komori when she gets sick prove that they play their minor roles as well as they can.

Looking at them collectively, they advocate the same message that the narrative gets at: be helpful. To each other, to others. While one does not have to go to Komori’s extreme of never declining anyone for aid, helping people, as Komori puts it, allows one “to spend time with people.” It does not matter if it is getting a friend away from a situation they do not want to be in or helping someone cut some grass. Helping others deepens relationships, improving them beyond what they already happen to be.

SOUND

The opening theme is, like the anime, quite short. An acoustic guitar, chimes, and drums, alongside some nice singing and lyric-and-instrument synchronization near the end, make for a happy little OP.

Besides the OP, squeaky toys, water droplets, and shining stars are used as sound-effects to make the different gags and transitions more fun than they would be otherwise.

Komori-san Can’t Decline!’s other musical offerings (the anime does not have an ending theme) are comprised of very simple tracks to fit the very simple show. Music box sounds, low, heavy drums, and barely-any-notes piano pieces make up the majority of the anime’s OST. The tracks are certainly not worthwhile, but their simplicity, like the art, further the anime’s simplicity motif.

And the voice acting performances are similarly simple. Aya Uchida as Shuri uses a mature, kind voice to match the equally mature and kind girl. Maria Naganawa as Masako sounds breathy, Ari Ozawa as Megumi sounds hyper. And Reina Takeshita as Ootani gives the boy a fitting voice despite being female herself.

ENJOYMENT

To reiterate, this anime is incredibly short. In fact, I may have listed nearly half of the events that occur. Because the anime is so short and simple, it does not offer a whole lot, but it also does not take a whole lot to sit down and watch it to completion.

The anime, regardless of its length and simplicity, does have spurts of funny, cute, and romantic moments that are entertaining. Komori getting all excited when someone asks her for help after not being asked for a while. Megumi hugging onto Komori tightly after everyone seems to be “taking” Komori away from her. And Ootani carrying Komori on his back following her getting lost and breaking her sandal. Short moments, but some combination of funny, cute, and romantic nonetheless.

(Also, after writing out these three examples, I have probably now listed half of the events that occur in the anime.)

Komori-san wa Kotowarenai! is a short anime. In its short run, it has a comedic story, a cast of helpful characters, and simple art and music. Nothing impressive, nothing forgettable. Just a short and simple show. If nothing else, it makes helping others – not for ten dollars an hour but out of the kindness of one’s heart – that much more enticing.

SUMMARY

Story: Good, comedy and helping make for a fun and purposeful narrative

Animation: Fine, low actual animation besides Komori’s breasts, soft art, and nice character designs

Characters: Fine, while the cast does not develop, they prove that helping others deepens relationships

Sound: Fine, okay OP, okay OST, okay VA performances

Enjoyment: Fine, not that worthwhile, but entertaining moments here and there

Final Score: 5/10

Komori-san wa Kotowarenai! is quite the simple anime short, right down to the title. Komori-san wa Kotowarenai! or Komori-san Can't Decline.

Komori-san wa Kotowarenai! is about a group of friends (and one guy with the some relatablity to Komori) with Shuri Komori voiced by Aya Uchida being the sole focus of this anime short.

There are two comedy skits to this anime short. Komori's inability to say no to a request and going through with it like Yes Man (but thing is Komori's personality LIKES doing requests, so not quite like Yes Man but close enough) and the other comedy skit is that Komori has a ... big chest.....yeah fanservice is here to.

Even though this is an anime short, the characters unfortunately are pretty bland with some stereotypical personalities, as such Komori's friends are the "genki one" a la Megumi Nishitori voiced by Ari Ozawa and the "smart one" a la Masako Negishi voiced by Maria Naganawa and..."love interest" a la Kurou Ootani voiced by Reina Takeshita and although these characters are little more than satellite characters to Komori, Komori herself is a running gag character with the two comedic skits on the above making that her character and all.

LA thinks what's worse is that the episode length is 2 minutes it has and actually even less due to the OP and ED taking up almost half the running time and you know where LA is going with this, LA will kinda blame the running time to how bland these characters are.

In terms of animation, done by Artand, the animation was "meh" overall, somewhat ok character designs to just ok backgrounding...overall, the animation for this anime short isn't anything to gush over.

Overall, Komori-san wa Kotowarenai! is an anime short with two running gags turning the gears of this anime short and that can either make this anime short predictable or boring, nonetheless either though LA said that the episode length was a big problem in this anime short, it also helps as it makes the anime harmless and quite easy and quickly to watch this anime, thus Komori-san wa Kotowarenai! is just an "ok" anime short coming from Fall of 2015.

This review will be very short!
The setting for this anime takes place in high school so nothing new there and follows the life of high-school girl Komori who has a big heart (and a big chest) as she can never say no to any request given to her. The series then follows her life completing requests and talking with her friends over the course 2 minute episodes, honestly there not much to say, the show is relaxing and is a good wined down from serious shows but aside from that there is not much else to watch it for, as it has no proper plot ... or ending, although a small romance sub-plot occurs later on, it doesn't go anywhere.

Though the show does have some good points as the characters are very likeable with good designs and nice personalities that don't feel cliché in any way, which could also be thanks to a cute art style and character interaction which can be quite funny at times that relaxes you which the Ending song and animation help to achieve as well. Though the rest of soundtrack is unnoticeable and doesn't stick out in anyway.

In conclusion watch this if you want something light that you can finish in 20 minutes, but if you want anything more don't bother with this one.

Now, I like short anime, a lot actually. But the bad thing about short anime is that they can either be extremely enjoyable (strange +, 'Danna ga Nani wo Itteiru ka Wakaranai Ken', etc) or extremely disastrous (pupa, etc)

Somehow, this anime is none, it is just bland, plain old nothing bland. There is nothing that can make it worthy of being called a good anime and nothing to make it a bad one. How can I review an anime that has nothing, just nothing?

The anime has 12 two minute long episodes and each episode has an almost 30 second opening/ending or whatever. So basically you ... have roughly 18 minute of actual content. The anime revolves around a middle school girl Komori who is a nice girl, so nice in fact that she cannot refuse a favour. She has two other friends, Megumi Nishitori and Masako Negishi, both of whom are little kindergarten looking girls. These bunch of characters are later joined by a short boy called Otani, who is basically like Komori's rival kind of thing and wants to help everyone.

Each episode can be summarized as:-
Some kind of dialogue between the main characters or something, Title screen with the main characters yelling "Komori San Wa Kotowarenai!", a person asking Komori for help, then many people asking Komori for help then later her friends complaining about how she helps everyone. Some arbitrary dialogue, weird encounters with Otani at times, and the opening/ending or whatever.

Basically if you just want to watch anime for the sake of it or just to get some of them anime experience points, watch this anime, it's only 18 minutes long.

Okay so this my first review so I'm sorry if its bad

Now Komori-san wa Kotowarenai aka Komori-san can't decline is very short and easy to watch if you are someone who doesn't have much time to watch long anime

Story 5/10

Now don't get me wrong it's not bad at all, just it doesnt't have an arc its simply just random skits of what the title is about but again not that it's something I wouldn't watch.

Art 6/10
The art was pretty okay, it was clear and very well animated nothing bad it. It was not impressive wow but it was pretty okay
...
Sound 7/10
I found the sound pretty clear and understandable


Character 7/10

I found the characters okay, but the reason I'm giving it a 7 is because you kinda seem some sort of character development its not all dry


Enjoyment 7/10

It was a nice short anime to watch, especially for me who is a senior in havo (high school) to at least have something to watch when I'm on break

I think this anime was made too short. Each episode is roughly about 2 minutes long. Having read the manga, it could go on for much longer, kind of like what was done with Lucky Star, having a large conglomeration of short stories per episode instead of having about 3-5 each.

I love the characters and the character designs, so having longer episodes would really help build up the characters. In the manga, even though each story is short, eventually they start to intertwine into a larger story and eventually starts to get even more fleshed out, so it doesn't really work with this format of ... having 2 minute episodes.