Final Thoughts: Morita-san Wa Mukuchi

Morita Mayu, a high school girl. She is extremely reticent and her silence and habit of looking at people's eyes straightly sometimes cause misunderstanding. The reason behind it is not because she doesn’t like to talk nor because she has nothing to say. The reason she rarely speaks is due to the fact she thinks too much before speaking, thus losing the timing to speak altogether. But she lives a happy school life with her classmates. (Source: MAL)

I would not go so far as to call Morita-san wa Mukuchi the sleeper hit of its respective season, or even that it is a diamond in the rough. But it is not terrible and it is certainly not as bad as some reviewers are making it out to be – did I really see one site label it the worst show of the season? Player, please. It does sound like I’m not representing Morita-san very well, and that’s true, because there is nothing terrifically impressive about this thirteen-episode collection of shorts scenes illustrating Morita’s life as a taciturn high school girl and friend to many.

But it does bring a sort of lovely quiet feeling to the whole thing, something missing in current slice-of-life series about nothing that would rather make jokes about random situations a la Seinfeld than actually explore a bit of their own characters’ daily routines, all the little moments that make up a person’s life. And that is exactly what Morita-san wa Mukuchi does best and that is all it really needs to do: wrap the viewer up in a small scene in these girls’ lives; highlight those cute silly scenes through the eyes of someone who talks more with her expressions than her words.

The main attraction of the series is, naturally, the taciturn girl herself Morita. She doesn’t say much because she keeps over thinking her reaction and usually misses her opportunity to speak up. Luckily, she is surrounded by a loving and understanding group of people, including her family and girl friends, who understand what Morita is saying – even when she isn’t saying much at all. For someone like me who is a bit taciturn in real life, it’s nice to see a main protag who has trouble expressing herself verbally and isn’t shamed for it. In fact, this is why I kept watching the series in the first place; few things compare to the feeling of seeing someone like you in an anime series. It just makes it that more enjoyable and relatable.

Normally, at this point, I would say – hey, wouldn’t it be cool if there was a second season? After all, there are so much more scenarios and little life moments Morita-san and her friends could explore! And it is so cute, how can I resist more of the same? But luckily, the second season has already started up, so there is more of Morita’s sweet shy smile around the corner for the winter season. And that is all right by me.

You can watch episodes of Morita-san wa Mukuchi currently streaming on Crunchyroll! And then you can e-mail CR and ask why there are so many adverts for a three-minute clip, geez (just sayin’!).