Utsukushii Kare (2021)

Controversial for some, but Not for MEEEEE!!!!

Listen, before you go any further... I will not discredit and say that the issues of this BL aren't real. They are. I am not romanticizing it nor do I condone it. However, I am someone who can separate reality and fiction, which it hard for many in this niche. That said, if you do suffer/had issues with bullying/toxic relationships, please look elsewhere.

Yes, the story is about another introverted high school and the so-called cool guy that sucks at school. But, that's where it gets you; that's the surface. You watch a bit more and you realize that Hira (the introvert) has had problems integrating himself with society. Not so much an introvert, but embarrassingly awkward (the first 10 minutes make that known). He is often creepy, desperate, and devastatingly lonely. You feel for him, but it is hard to watch him in situations. He doesn't fit back. Kiyoi is the "badster" of the class, who is often thought of the rebel who acts like a king at his school. Deep down, he has frivolous and laughable dreams and he knows that they don't mend with his persona. So he hides them deep enough to avoid possible ridicule. When these two meet, the impact is undeniable. It's a blue flame that doesn't look dangerous, but deep down, you know its going to burn.

Hira's deep obsession with Kiyoi is creepy and unhealthy. He's the embodiment of people's obsession with what they can't have but continue to get as close to it as they want. When they have a taste of that forbidden fruit, that introverted persona melts away and the true obsessive self surfaces. He endures humiliation, and physical/emotional/mental hits, he lets his desires consume him (sucking the blood off a cut and them going sexually feral?), and allows himself to be little. He never sees himself as an equal; he is always below. He is happy like some puppy in some domination kink. Is it dangerous? Incredibly. But, he just doesn't stop.

Kiyoi's fluctuating emotions lead him to be aggressive, polite, loving, and protective. He allows Kiyoi to act the way he does as it allows him to feel like he is actually worth something. He knows, deep down, that his dreams require him to be confident in himself and his dreams. Acting and dancing are often seen as dreams of those who are loud and vocal, something which is his not. He hides his dancing and threatens Hira is he tells others. He smashes things out of anger, insinuates problems to gather attention, and make things about himself. Hira knows and continues to play the fool. He will do anything for his king.

What I really love about this story is that it is dreamy but in the wrong sense. The introverted character is always seen as relatable but here, many would be embarrassed to say they see themselves in Hira. Some of you exist but know that saying it out loud sounds...weird. And I think that's what this story does: expose an inner truth to some that many are embarrassed to admit. Many grow up being shy and lacking connections that we often latch to the thing we most desire. While the ending is sweet, one can't help but wonder why we don't choose what is right and honest. Hira had that opportunity, but choose what hurt him.

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unpleasant watch in all the wrong ways

i see the appeal. trust me, i'm all for flawed characters and realistic relationships, but we need to draw a line between realistic, flawed relationships and abuse. the way kiyoi treated hira isn't excused by the fact that he "liked" him. this show was an agony to sit through. i kept wishing that they just went seperate ways and maybe sought professional help, but that would probably be too much to ask of the show. i would've accepted it if they both made efforts to grow as people and be better. but by the end of it, kiyoi was still an abuser, and hira was still a weirdo.
i'm not gonna be watching s2. i didn't like this. it's okay if you did, and i'm not criticizing you for liking it. i'm only stating my own reasons for disliking it.
👍

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Best casual BL I've seen so far

This show is not perfect. It's not a masterpiece. But it's still extremely good for a BL.
The casting is GODLY, the "beautiful man" in question is extremely beautiful for real and plays it great, and the other male lead handles the stuttering character really well. The acting may feel off from time to time, but it was still good enough for me to think the actors have had BL roles before.
The soundtrack - don't even get me started. The instrumentals fit the mood so naturally. And the ED completely conveys the character's (Kiyoi's) feelings (if you know Japanese or happen to be curious enough to look for a translation).
Story-wise, it's not that complex or deep, but it's an interesting story, exciting and enticing, making you want more. Important point though, since the plot seems to be inspired by some of the classic BL and shojo-maga tropes, the relationship may seem quite toxic to the Westerners, so if you're overly sensitive about that kind of stuff it might not be a good choice for you. Still, the toxicity has some ground for it and understanding the toxic character was not too hard.
As for the pace of the plot, it was a tiny bit too fast for me, but on the other hand we can witness decent character development thanks to that. Still, depending on the translation you might find yourself lost in the events of the show so maybe pay extra attention to what the characters are saying because sometimes just one phrase completes a whole story arc. Thanks to this pacing, it's quite easy to rewatch it once or twice to fill in some of your personal plot holes.

Overall, a REALLY good show with high rewatch rate. Absolutely recommend unless you're allergic to toxic starts.

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INCRÍVEL!

Eu só comecei a assistir por conta do tédio e por não ter mais nada pra ver, e confesso que nos primeiros episódios a atuação deles (principalmente do yusei yagi) não me prendeu muito, mas conforme os eps foram passando e depois que eu compreendi a história por trás de tudo eu achei simplesmente uma das melhores obras bls japonesas que eu já vi, a história é cativante e a 2ª temporada é melhor ainda. EU AMEI! Com certeza teve muito choro em muitos episódios e também muito plot twist, simplesmente incrível. A forma em como eles mostram o lado dos dois personagens é cativante.

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THE WORST BL I'VE EVER WATCHED

How come there's a lot of positive reviews? One is an obsessed stalker, one is an abusive person. Their relationship would never be equal. Bleh.

But seriously, why does people like this? This is pure toxic!! WTF.

I don't like how they bully him. I don't like how he worships the ground he walks on. How he tolerated being degraded like that. The second hand embarrassment is real on this one.

Maybe jt got better. Whatever. It hurts to watch this.

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A show that shot itself in the foot

This series could have been perfect. But the actors refused to kiss. Adding insult to injury, the director tried to trick the viewers into thinking that the character did kiss by "cheating the camera." Every time the characters went in for a kiss, they would turn from the camera, or the camera would pan away from them, or the actors would be backlit so no details could be seen, or the actors would block the kiss with their hand. I don't understand why a series would hire actors for gay roles who then refuse to play those roles authentically. Not only is that bad storytelling, it's homophobic. If the actors and directors are so disgusted by same sex intimacy, then they shouldn't be telling a BL story. This has nothing to do with government censorship or getting an all-audience rating for broadcast television. The producers believe that the audience for BL's are too stupid to notice these tricks or they think that we have such low standards that we'll happily consume anything BL no matter how poorly done.

The rest of the story was wonderful. Too bad the whole thing was tainted.

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Two Dysfunctional Guys Hook Up

Hira is a stereotypical shy, nerdy high school senior who falls in love at first sight of Kiyoi, an egotistical bastard who is too full of himself for words. Hira stalks Kiyoi all through their senior year while Kiyoi continues to resent Hira outwardly, but under the surface Kiyoi is coming to terms with his own attraction to Hira. On the last day of school Kioyi gets the courage to kiss Hira, but like the rest of their dysfunctional relationship, it doesn't go well and they boys are now separated as Hira goes to college and Kiyoi starts his acting career. In the college camera club, Hira meets Koyama, who quickly falls in love with dysfunctional Hira, who is still longing for Kiyoi. Eventually, Hira does hook up with Kiyoi but we are left wondering how long such a relationship would last. "My Beautiful Man" follows the typical Y drama formula with the shy lead pursuing an abusive love interest, although here, Kiyoi never seems to fully embrace their bromance. Hira's stuttering becomes a bit tiresome after the first episode. At first the story seems to pose the question, "can opposites attract?" but in the end we realize both our heroes suffer from narcissistic personality disorder. I wanted to like these characters but ended up wishing Koyama was the hero. While his appearance is all too brief, he has the best scenes. If I were plotting out the six episodes, I would have concluded the high school years at episode 3 and given more time to the far more interesting bromance between Hira and Koyama. The performances are all on point and the production values are sparkling. The standout performance is Takano Akira's Koyama Kazuki, so I'm looking forward to seeing him in future dramas.

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It was good.

5/10 I wanted too see more of them...(for example kissing and lovescenes....) O___O the two as a couple have made Me curious and obsessed! Sad.
This season was the Best!

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Strange, but Intriguing.

That's exactly how I would describe Utsukushii Kare. Based on a somewhat familiar trope, what made this drama pique my interest were the leading characters.
Timid and introverted Hira falls for the cold and untouchable "King" Kiyoi. It then follows their twisted connection and the moral dilemmas that each of them face.
It's 100% non-fluffy by the way.
The show never moved away from the "romance" aspect, which I unfortunately found boring. Narrated from Hira's point of view, we rarely leave his bubble.

Both Kiyoi and Hira had distinct personalities and personally, I felt that there was more room for growth and portrayal of their different facets. I am not familiar with the source material, so I might me wrong.
Hira in particular, looked a bit more lively and open during the latter half of the show, particularly after his time at college. He is definitely one of the most uninteresting protagonists I've ever seen, but there were not many characters or relations in the story to begin with. It looked almosy empty or crowded at times.
I particularly loved the portrayal of the characters in the final episode, thanks to the cast who did an excellent job. It was too rushed for my taste, unfortunately.
Overall, it's definitely worth a try if you are seeking some dramas which deal with the ugly truth of a few people out there.

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Started off troubling but finished strong

As far as episodes 1 to 4 was concerned, Kiyoi appeared arrogant, narcissistic and unkind, while Hira was needlessly reverent. How could a healthy relationship possibly result from such a dynamic? I thought. But I was completely won over by the end as the final episodes offered revelations from Kiyoi’s perspective.

The beauty of Utsukushii Kare is in how it demonstrates the communication quirks in conservative Asian societies. Reading between the lines is required to grasp subtler expressions of love.

When Kiyoi uses the term “stalker”, he really means “thank you for coming to me”. When he says “disgusting”, albeit in harsher tones, it’s because he just doesn’t know how else to express what he’s feeling.

“How did I fall in love with someone as disgusting as you?” Taken out of context, his sentence might sound terribly unkind. But in the particular context where it was said, Kiyoi doesn’t actually think that Hira is to be abhorred, but instead, he wants to say, “how did I find someone as special as you?”

Read my full review: here: https://asianblreviews.wordpress.com/2021/12/26/utsukushii-kare-my-beautiful-man-2021/

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A peculiar love affair

Doubtless, many theses could be written about the Japanese psycho-sexual cultural impulse. In this series, the character Hira’s low self-esteem manifests itself in a fantasy obsession with the aloof, vain and arrogant Kiyoi. The peculiar Japanese take on this relationship imbalance is that Hira welcomes and Kiyoi obliges with masochistic behaviours. The two lead actors do outstanding work portraying these flawed characters. Kioyi evolves through his trail of humiliating failures to achieve some humility and regard for Hira. Hira’s character, on the other hand, barely leaves his comfort zone of demeanment and in the end, the writers ask us to accept that Kioyi’s continual slurs are meant as tokens of affection instead of the corrosive verbal instruments of degradation that they actually are. In my opinion, this relationship does not have the happy future the show’s creators would like us to believe. Production values are good and the earnestness of everyone involved is without question.

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