WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Episode 8 of Komi Can't Communicate, "It's Just Obon," now streaming on Netflix.
Komi Can't Communicate protagonist Shoko Komi has a communication disorder as a result of paralyzing social anxiety and has made it her goal to overcome it. Episode 7 introduced Komi’s father, Masayoshi, who also can’t communicate in most situations, which established a genetic link to her disorder. Episode 8 continues to build on this theme by revealing the entire Komi family suffers from both communication and anxiety disorders, showing a generational history.
The opening scene features Komi's younger brother, Shousuke, who also can't communicate like his sister and father. When they go on a family visit to the Komi ancestral home -- which includes a trip to the family cemetery -- only Komi's mother, Shuko, maintains a lively atmosphere during a mostly silent road trip. Shuko is also the one who encourages her children to speak with their ancestors through prayer, even though Komi also struggles to communicate in this way.
At the Komi ancestral home, the family is greeted by Masayoshi's mother, his brother, Sadayoshi, his sister-in-law and niece, Akira. Shuko immediately greets her sister-in-law, who is the only other talkative family member aside from herself. Komi's grandmother is able to vocalize her thoughts, but does so in a monotone voice and maintains a stoic face. Masayoshi silently greets Sadayoshi in nearly the same way he does his own daughter, which creates the same air of mystery for both of their wives.
Komi herself is greeted by her cousin Akira, who is immediately intimidated by her. It appears as though Akira suffers from an anxiety disorder like the rest of the Komi family, complete with the same communication disorder; however, this turns out not to be the case. Akira's anxiety stems from not knowing how to interact with Komi since the latter comes off as standoffish. Komi decides to break the ice by tickling her cousin -- which, oddly enough, works to ease her anxiety. From that point forward, Akira is comfortable in Komi's presence.
Komi spends most of her family visit with Akira and Shousuke to a lesser extent. They silently watch TV, sit and stare at the courtyard and play games together. While Akira tends to be silent in most situations, she is the only child who is able to vocalize her thoughts, never needing to use a memo pad and a pen to communicate with others. When she decides to play a game with Komi, she vocalizes this to her, though she continues to have trouble reading her cousin's body language.
Prior to family dinner, Komi is summoned by her grandmother to have a talk about her school life and especially her relationships. Though she is shown to be loving and warm, she also has very strong feelings about the types of relationships Komi has in school. On the one hand, she's happy to learn her granddaughter has friends, which confirms Komi has a history of not making them easily. The moment she asks if there's a boy she likes at school, Komi shakes uncontrollably, which prompts her grandmother to check her mobile phone. When she sees the name of a boy named Hitohito Tadano as one of her contacts, she demands to know who he is and follows that up with "I won't allow it."
Though the visit to the Komi ancestral home is brief, it does a lot to establish the Komi Can't Communicate's background and the generational history of anxiety and communication disorders. Some of that may be due to the family having conservative values, at least as evidenced by the grandmother's reaction to Komi having a close male friend. This seems to indicate both Masayoshi and Sadayoshi grew up with very strict rules, which most likely made them very self-conscious of their behavior.
The natural consequence of this extreme self-awareness is paralyzing social anxiety and a fear of saying the wrong thing, resulting in selective mutism. As married men, their anxiety and communication disorders were passed on to their children, most likely through a combination of genetics and socialization.
