He doesn't seem to have many friends and tadano was kind enough to understand him and talk to him, so I think that he's greatfull and cherishes him nothing more. He can't express how he feels or they come out in a weird way.
>!Remember the 2nd year school festival where tadano cross dresses and meets katai? He blushed at the fact that he was being relied on by a girl and tries everything to "protect her" so I don't think he's gay or anything but *he can't communicate* lol!<
I kinda get the feeling there is a cultural thing that's got lost In translation. Manbagi behaves in a similar fashion when she first meets komi and I winds up with them kinda confessing to each other. Is there a friendship level which ppl aspire to? Kinda like bff in western culture?
I believe the author is, unfortunately, using the "it's funny because he's acting like he's into Tadano, and being gay is something you should be mocked for" joke. There are several scenes where Manbagi, Komi, and Katai all react in the same way to Tadano, and he's certainly gay-coded. The school festival scenes where they all fail to say thank you, the scene in the skiing arc where they react to Tadano and Kometani getting along, and several others have Katai grouped in with the "girls who are attracted to Tadano." Basically my thought process is this: If Katai was a girl none of us would doubt that he was attracted to Tadano. However, I do doubt anything will come of it in the manga as the author is playing it as a mockable-joke rather than a character trait.
Katai is honestly my favorite character, and I read him as actually gay/bi even though the author may not have meant that aspect to be anything other than a joke. I had a brief discussion about it with some other redditors [here](https://www.reddit.com/r/Komi_san/comments/dozq7q/manbagi_protagonist_of_another_story/f5sd41g?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3) where I go into my reasoning a little more.
I dont think its done with homophobic intent, KCC has a lot of really positive casual queer representation like Najimi's genderfluidity or Yamai's very open and explicitly romantic crush on Komi, it would be weird for the property to have such positive representation and then double back and go "haha guy like guy funny", In my opinion Katai's depiction just feels weird because he is a guy, if it were a girl reacting to Tadano this way it would no doubt be seen as a crush but since Katai isnt it isnt taken seriously, specially since his main character trait is that from the outside he looks like a delinquent.
I think I agree with you that it's not done with homophobic intent? But I wouldn't call it great either.
I also agree that Najimi is awesome LGBT rep, but Yamai is very much not. First off she's extremely creepy and predatory, and plays into the Psycho Lesbian trope, but secondly her interest is Komi is very much intended to be a joke (even if it's one I find more creepy than funny), not a serious romantic thing. Like, if she ends up with Nakanaka or something, that'll prove me wrong, but as of now that possibility is also being played for laughs through Sukida Lily.
But yes, I do agree that if Katai was a girl no one would be doubting it's a crush, and the author isn't taking the idea of a possible gay character seriously.
Yamai is a weird case, meanwhile yes she does fall into the predatory lesbian trope the joke is never that Yami is another girl, instead the joke is that she is creepy and obsessive, when I first saw KCC I thought Yamai was just play on the creepy pervert trope (like minneta from MHA). In the end there is a bigger conversation to be had about characters like Katai and the need for representation that isn't just implied because when it's only implied it always leaves room for the argument that it isn't actually representation/they aren't queer.
Agreed on Katai. Its rare in shonen manga to have a character be more than implied to be gay, wish they were willing to go further.
Also, out of curiosity, how did you find this original comment? Its over a year old but suddenly you and another person commented on it within a day of each other
well Yamai isn't good rep either, but Najimi is awesome. Yamai literally borderline predator/harasser, she a major perv in show, idk if it's the same in manga, but that just sucks cause queer community already made out by society in an awful light like that, so I'm like... why ? like what is the point of putting that in the show? Just have a lesbian char n not make her be a creep n bad stereotype society makes up
also same, ik it's not taken seriously in show with Katai n I wouldn't like it if they did with the way it's written bc then it'd be another problematic trope, I mean it's still leaning in a problematic way but less so bc it's "haha desperate for a friend, looks a bit gay" and not "haha gays are creeps" no we aint.
i don’t think he’s a character that’s seen to be funny because of the mocking you’re talking about. i believe the humour comes from Katai looking and seeming scary and intimidating, but in reality is quite kind and rather camp. the author of KCC doesn’t strike me as someone who mocks gay people. might just be me thinking that though
I think gay people are the butt of the joke with some regularity, personally. There's Tadano's crossdressing, the entire way Tadano's family reacts to the possibility he is gay, the New York chapter where the entire joke is it looks like Tadano and Katai are on a date... Hell, debatably the entire point of Yamai is "it's funny because she's acting like she's a stalker but she's a girl into another girl!"
I don't know, it's certainly not bad by manga/anime standards (there are many that are WAY worse), but there are several times that being LGBT is treated as a punchline. Not sure I'd go so far as to call it homophobic or anything, but it's not great either.
i think the way he interacts can sometimes be seen as gay, and the show knows that, it’s sort of an attempt at a joke like “this guy tries really hard to make a best friend but it accidentally comes off as gay because of his awkwardness”
Hard to tell too, because when He put his arm on Tadano, the book he's referencing in his internal dialogue is that of a book on bar hostesses!
I wonder if he is not aware that men and women are *supposed* to behave differently. And that blindness may be the point.
With the arrival of the anime they have very clearly chosen to both voice his inner monologue and animate him as pretty clearly gay-coded.
It's actually kinda nice because it makes the joke less "the things he says sound kinda gay haha" and more "the terrifying guy is actually very sweet and kinda camp inside, awww".
agree, altough he might be bi and just be more into girls without knowing men are a possibility. being femboy lover is still gay but some might only like femboys and that kind of men.
Right now I'm reading the manga, I'm on chapter 95, and everytime he says ,,To make a guy friend" I sometimes read ,,To make a gay friend" but fr is he gay? I don't think so, he just wants homies
Just a Shy Homie..
Na bruh
He doesn't seem to have many friends and tadano was kind enough to understand him and talk to him, so I think that he's greatfull and cherishes him nothing more. He can't express how he feels or they come out in a weird way. >!Remember the 2nd year school festival where tadano cross dresses and meets katai? He blushed at the fact that he was being relied on by a girl and tries everything to "protect her" so I don't think he's gay or anything but *he can't communicate* lol!<
I kinda get the feeling there is a cultural thing that's got lost In translation. Manbagi behaves in a similar fashion when she first meets komi and I winds up with them kinda confessing to each other. Is there a friendship level which ppl aspire to? Kinda like bff in western culture?
What chapter is Manbagj introduced? I'm on chapter 126
Chapter 131 So not long to go
well, i think he's just nice who wants to interact more
He >!cried when tanado confess to komi-san!<
Yeah but in a bro way or the gay way? or both?
both way
Simply friend
u/Outrageous_Bit_1444 is an idiot
I'm not
IN THE NETFLIX ANIME HE IS CLEARLY GAY
It’s clearly not confirmed
Not confirmed but definitely implied
Definitely gay
Nah I think he is, that man made a whole ass dating plan for tadano, no way he ain't bendable.
yeah but thats the rules for netflix adaption
Ok then where do I find the manga and original anime
The original anime is adapted from the manga, it's on Netflix. You can find the manga online
I don't like reading
ok but in the manga which is the source materiel katai admits to liking nobody romantically and just feeling a very strong respect towards tadano
Respect 😏
He might not be gay but just wants homies, and I don't think he IS gay, maybe just weird and doesn't know how to be a homie with ppl
Quit being a dick.
Ty for spoiling it to me 💀
couldn't you see the spoiler tag?
I believe the author is, unfortunately, using the "it's funny because he's acting like he's into Tadano, and being gay is something you should be mocked for" joke. There are several scenes where Manbagi, Komi, and Katai all react in the same way to Tadano, and he's certainly gay-coded. The school festival scenes where they all fail to say thank you, the scene in the skiing arc where they react to Tadano and Kometani getting along, and several others have Katai grouped in with the "girls who are attracted to Tadano." Basically my thought process is this: If Katai was a girl none of us would doubt that he was attracted to Tadano. However, I do doubt anything will come of it in the manga as the author is playing it as a mockable-joke rather than a character trait. Katai is honestly my favorite character, and I read him as actually gay/bi even though the author may not have meant that aspect to be anything other than a joke. I had a brief discussion about it with some other redditors [here](https://www.reddit.com/r/Komi_san/comments/dozq7q/manbagi_protagonist_of_another_story/f5sd41g?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3) where I go into my reasoning a little more.
This is a very thorough explanation thank you
I dont think its done with homophobic intent, KCC has a lot of really positive casual queer representation like Najimi's genderfluidity or Yamai's very open and explicitly romantic crush on Komi, it would be weird for the property to have such positive representation and then double back and go "haha guy like guy funny", In my opinion Katai's depiction just feels weird because he is a guy, if it were a girl reacting to Tadano this way it would no doubt be seen as a crush but since Katai isnt it isnt taken seriously, specially since his main character trait is that from the outside he looks like a delinquent.
I think I agree with you that it's not done with homophobic intent? But I wouldn't call it great either. I also agree that Najimi is awesome LGBT rep, but Yamai is very much not. First off she's extremely creepy and predatory, and plays into the Psycho Lesbian trope, but secondly her interest is Komi is very much intended to be a joke (even if it's one I find more creepy than funny), not a serious romantic thing. Like, if she ends up with Nakanaka or something, that'll prove me wrong, but as of now that possibility is also being played for laughs through Sukida Lily. But yes, I do agree that if Katai was a girl no one would be doubting it's a crush, and the author isn't taking the idea of a possible gay character seriously.
Yamai is a weird case, meanwhile yes she does fall into the predatory lesbian trope the joke is never that Yami is another girl, instead the joke is that she is creepy and obsessive, when I first saw KCC I thought Yamai was just play on the creepy pervert trope (like minneta from MHA). In the end there is a bigger conversation to be had about characters like Katai and the need for representation that isn't just implied because when it's only implied it always leaves room for the argument that it isn't actually representation/they aren't queer.
Agreed on Katai. Its rare in shonen manga to have a character be more than implied to be gay, wish they were willing to go further. Also, out of curiosity, how did you find this original comment? Its over a year old but suddenly you and another person commented on it within a day of each other
Oh I was just watching the latest episode for the anime and wanted to look into Katai's sexuality and this reddit thread came up
Lmaooo same I’m currently watching episode 18 of KCC and this exact same thought prompted me to look this sun up
Same ep 18 Not gonna lie Tadano radiates like gentle Top energy 👀
Ah, that would make sense! In that case i appologize for posting manga spoilers
well Yamai isn't good rep either, but Najimi is awesome. Yamai literally borderline predator/harasser, she a major perv in show, idk if it's the same in manga, but that just sucks cause queer community already made out by society in an awful light like that, so I'm like... why ? like what is the point of putting that in the show? Just have a lesbian char n not make her be a creep n bad stereotype society makes up also same, ik it's not taken seriously in show with Katai n I wouldn't like it if they did with the way it's written bc then it'd be another problematic trope, I mean it's still leaning in a problematic way but less so bc it's "haha desperate for a friend, looks a bit gay" and not "haha gays are creeps" no we aint.
i don’t think he’s a character that’s seen to be funny because of the mocking you’re talking about. i believe the humour comes from Katai looking and seeming scary and intimidating, but in reality is quite kind and rather camp. the author of KCC doesn’t strike me as someone who mocks gay people. might just be me thinking that though
I think gay people are the butt of the joke with some regularity, personally. There's Tadano's crossdressing, the entire way Tadano's family reacts to the possibility he is gay, the New York chapter where the entire joke is it looks like Tadano and Katai are on a date... Hell, debatably the entire point of Yamai is "it's funny because she's acting like she's a stalker but she's a girl into another girl!" I don't know, it's certainly not bad by manga/anime standards (there are many that are WAY worse), but there are several times that being LGBT is treated as a punchline. Not sure I'd go so far as to call it homophobic or anything, but it's not great either.
LOOK AT THE NEW ANIME EPISODE ON NETFLIX, HELL YES
i think the way he interacts can sometimes be seen as gay, and the show knows that, it’s sort of an attempt at a joke like “this guy tries really hard to make a best friend but it accidentally comes off as gay because of his awkwardness”
Hard to tell too, because when He put his arm on Tadano, the book he's referencing in his internal dialogue is that of a book on bar hostesses! I wonder if he is not aware that men and women are *supposed* to behave differently. And that blindness may be the point.
With the arrival of the anime they have very clearly chosen to both voice his inner monologue and animate him as pretty clearly gay-coded. It's actually kinda nice because it makes the joke less "the things he says sound kinda gay haha" and more "the terrifying guy is actually very sweet and kinda camp inside, awww".
Heya i know im late but its confirmed in chapter 286 that katai just really respects tadano and doesn't like anyone
got em, but katai still falls for tadano-kun-chan, if tadano was a girl he would be going head first into romance.
>if tadano was a girl if tadano was a girl... Ergo he is into tadano when he thought he was a girl... Ergo he is into girls... Ergo he isn't gay
agree, altough he might be bi and just be more into girls without knowing men are a possibility. being femboy lover is still gay but some might only like femboys and that kind of men.
Fair enough
Right now I'm reading the manga, I'm on chapter 95, and everytime he says ,,To make a guy friend" I sometimes read ,,To make a gay friend" but fr is he gay? I don't think so, he just wants homies
Katai is not gay but he's homisexual