And about Komari...well from what I've noticed, people have a different perception of her role in the whole thing. Komari is no more or less important than the other girls (Rin not included) she is as much a heroine as the others. Some people usually think of her as the second main heroine mostly due to:
- Komari apparently being a bit closer to Rin than the others (or rather, Rin being more at ease with her);
- and pictures like this one
No route (Rins and Refrain not included...again) is more or less important than another...aside from EX but then again I haven't played it so I have no connection with the girls. For example, Mio is my least favorite, I found myself skipping through bits of her route even the first time I played it because to me both character and route were boring compared to others. However! Taking out her route in the anime would be a colossal mistake.
But I tell you what...the biggest mistake they could make would be taking out Kuu's route. Why?
Well simple, though she's not the main heroine, Kuu's popularity by far outclasses all the other girls (enough to give Kuu her own afterstory game). It's strange how Rin is the main focus of the overall plot yet Kuu has the most fans.
I still love my Anego!
Randrak
PS: Futaki...is the only one of the EX girls that I wish was in the original game when I played it. She just seemed like she fit into the plot perfectly. Then again her route would be too similar to Haruka (only another point of view) so keeping it to the "expansion" wasn't a bad idea.