Aharen-san wa Hakarenai

Episodes 1-3

A comedic formula that's gotten one hell of a workout the last decade is that of sticking your main character next to the class oddball. Whether their desk neighbor is building Rube Goldberg machines out of school supplies or just constantly falling asleep, it's pretty easy to make gags so long as you can innovate on whatever brand of weirdness your central character exudes. On its surface, Aharen-san definitely seems like another entry in that little comedy subgenre, and in some ways it definitely is. But somewhere in episode two it started to hit me that this wasn't quite the same thing. This wasn't a show about a rational straightman being constantly surprised by how strange the girl next to him is – it's a show about two absolute morons “Yes, and”-ing each other's specific brand of goofiness until the tower of rock-stupid cards they've stacked tumbles down on top of them.

Raido really is the difference-maker here. He could very easily have been your standard straightman character, reacting in bewilderment at every seemingly inexplicable quirk Aharen presents. But instead he may actually be weirder and dumber than his pint-sized partner in comedy. The moment that tipped me off was when, realizing somebody was following him, Raido's first and only thought was that it must be a hitman, leading to him thinking back on all the terrible things he's done in his past (read: accidentally crushing some flowers with a soccer ball and eating his sister's pudding cup) and concluding that he really is a monster. It's a pretty simple joke, but what makes it work is that he's 100% serious and stonefaced through the entire thing, and the contrast between his bizarre imagination and dead serious exterior works to make it hilarious.

That's the secret sauce that really makes these episodes work so far. The best skits tap into the same kind of energy as Monthly Girls' Nozaki-kun's famous Tomoda skit where two characters just get on the same wavelength and nobody's around to stop them as they test out weird ideas and half-baked plans with nothing but the most deadpan of expressions. Even when that feedback loop is broken up by our third (and so far only) major character, Raido never becomes a shouting tsukkomi, but just rolls with Oshiro's towering shyness. The show understands that these gags work best on their own without any loud commentary, and that allows it to breeze through a ton of great punchlines while keeping its pace snappy. That's a godsend for a show built around a repetitive setup, and is going to be crucial in keeping this series fresh as it moves forward.

The timing and animation will also be pretty important, though that doesn't mean the show needs to be a nonstop sakuga parade to be funny. Knowing when to time and how to stage each joke is most important, and so far the show has demonstrated a pretty great grasp of both. The only skit that sticks out as lacking in that department is the softball game in episode three, but for the most part the direction has been solid and consistent in letting the inherent humor of its visual gags speak for themselves. Aharen pulls out four-foot long chopsticks to feed Oshiro and nobody bats an eye. I'm only slightly ashamed to admit the myriad ways Aharen covered up Raido's open fly had me dying laughing. And the weird little dance sequences (and the delightful new ED animation) in episode three display that this show can move plenty when it needs to.

This is also still a romantic comedy, and while our central couple aren't going to set anyone's hearts on fire, their comedic chemistry actually does a great job highlighting why they'd actually make a pretty cute couple. These are two weirdos with negative amounts of social grace just trying to fumble their way into friendship, and they always have each other's back no matter what. Even when he doesn't understand what Aharen is doing or thinking, Raido never gets angry or short-tempered with her. Aharen isn't always great (or coherent) at showing it, but she goes out of her way to support Raido as well. That camaraderie makes them just plain fun to follow as they try to whack their collective pair of braincells together each episode. There's certainly humor to be mined from clashing personalities, but these two work best when they're on the same wavelength, and that makes for a pretty pleasant watch.

This is a stacked season for comedies, with or without romance, and while Aharen-san wa Hakarenai probably won't ever compete with Kaguya-sama for popularity, it certainly can carve out its own niche. The cast will all but certainly expand sooner or later, and some tweaks may be needed to keep the humor from getting stale, but right now the series has definitely put its best foot forward.

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Aharen-san wa Hakarenai is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.