Otto no chinpo ga hairanai

So on the bright side we have nice Japanese actors doing a good job in exploring emotional and physical attraction. The series is shot well and could be perfectly watchable and satisfying had it not been for... a pretty ridiculous problem to begin with. And I don't mean to ridicule the fact that unusual problems may and do exist in sex. But purely looking logically at the data- first since females are biologically prepared to give birth, their anatomy is typically not so rigid. Second assuming that the rare female condition that may exhibit this way for psychological reasons exists in the female lead, then she should have the same condition with every partner and not selectively with one who also ironically happens to be the man she loves. Thirdly based on the data we're provided, there seemed to be nothing extraordinary about the husband to begin with to doubt if he will not fit. Furthermore the couple shouldn't have accepted this status quo but instead sought to educate themselves. Let's face it, most problems have solutions. They apparently also don't communicate too well either. So while the show may be well put together with good actors and an interesting idea- that of difficult sex in a marriage- the implementation is completely lacking in veracity. I have not finished the show and most likely will not because I was not persuaded that this particular specific problem could be applied to that particular couple first but second because even if that were the case, they should look for a productive solution more proactively and not hide in the sand.

Sorry it's not really going to be a review but I didn't know how to add to the trivia section. I personally liked the series. It is based on a book by an author who goes by the name Kodama in 2017. The story follows her real life experience so it was not made for the sole purpose of entertainment. It would also explain why the technology seems outdated. It's because it all happened a while ago.

The physical incompatibility of the title is the theme running through this series, but it's not really about that. It's about the Japanese cultural disinclination to discuss delicate matters openly. It's about how Japanese women, in particular, are taught that they should experience a life of depravation and discomfort before they ever deign to bring up something embarrassing. How communication, which is so central to any good marriage, is secondary to cultural norms of subservience and deference.

That's not to say the long silences, and the reluctance of BOTH characters to resolve their physical incompatibility, wasn't aggravating and occasionally infuriating. In this day & age, there are SO MANY options they could have explored -- both to please each other, and to alleviate the wife's discomfort -- but the writers chose not to explore what would be normal, common-sense measures.

I enjoyed the series, even though it occasionally infuriated me, because it gave me such a good insight into a very foreign culture.

You either love or hate this show. It's slow-paced, but the acting is great and the topic is very realistic. I think they've nailed it with this one, but if you're not into the genre, you're not going to enjoy this experience.

I'm not sure what to make of this series - is it a comedy, a tragedy, or just a really honest look at Japanese culture and society? In any case, it is heartfelt and in many ways quite a realistic look into the sometimes dysfunctional Japanese relationship.

One cannot help but feel sorry for the protagonist and to a lesser degree her husband. If only there was more honest and open communication, and less sexual repression, then much of the frustration might have been avoided or mitigated.

Oh well, that's Japan for you. And that is why this series about alienation and loneliness deserves a high rating.