Otto no chinpo ga hairanai

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.

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.

Very refreshing topic showing real life problems, rearly talked about. It IS frustrating to watch, but in reality situations like those portrayed ARE frustrating so it feels true to me. There is a lot of silence and misunderstandings and poor communication. I found the acting good enough and believable. Sexual problems are a difficult topic. Netflix production is showing great diversity. If you like the slow paced Japanese style I can truly recommend this. Probably you can also see this series in a context of the sexual problems in Japanese society today, where sexless marriages are becoming increasingly common.

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.

I didn't expect it to be so good. A fair warning, this is not a show for the shallow people. This is a show that's slow with very intriguing dialog between two people in love and that's it, don't expect much more. The story's main problem is not common, and therefore hard to relate with.