This review may contain spoilers
"Loving someone means accepting the pain of losing them too"
I watched this BL with the idea that it might only revolve around food. Oh my god, I never thought that I would literally cry in episode 10. I was literally bawling my eyes out lol. This is so wholesome and nice in many aspects. Tane plays a huge role in their relationship and I thank him for his existence fr. This feels like a warm hug on a cold evening. I feel like it would be better to watch this on Christmas or Winter break since it has that warm tone that would make you cry under thick covers. I just hope that they would be happy forever in each others' lives. I remembered adding this series to one of our school projects since it moved me so much! There are really a lot of good JBLs. Keep it up!Was this review helpful to you?
Love so warm(≧▽≦)
After 7 episodes came out, i started reading reviews about this show. And it was not good. Most of the people said that it's kind of boring and slow. And that their chemistry wasn't much to talk about. The only promising thing the show provided was the little cute angel kid. I thought it is going to be a pass for me.However after the 8th episode came out I binge watched it and god I loved it soooo much. Yes, some may feel that the story is slow or the chemistry is not overflowing but believe me it's nothing like that. And because it's not like that, it is perfect. It's not that simple to fall in love and just straight up confess, it takes a lot of time. I loved that the pacing was slow but natural and boring to say the least. And when i tell you that the chemistry is so warm, it's true. The way they look at each other and smile when the other is not looking is so ugggggggghhhhh, damn it's too cute. And our little onigiri baby is too cute and adorable actor.
Anyone thinking to pass this show. WATCH IT. IT'S ABSOLUTELY LOVELY AND FRESH.
YOU WILL NOT REGRET IT♡♡
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Simply Loved It a Lot
Yutaka looks like a little rabbit to me. His smile is so cute. I can feel Yutaka and I am worried about him. Yutaka please accept Minoru. You both are made for each other. Minoru is wise and handsome. His eyes & smile when he is with family especially with Yutaka can make us feel what love can be. Tane is an angel who always gets them together. Tanes father is also good. Yutaka colleague is really good. Every character is perfectly narrated and they own their characters very well. Thanks for the lovely series. Can't you please release those two episodes a little sooner 🥺Was this review helpful to you?
Must Watch
To be honest I was waiting for the series to finish and had put it off even when it had finished as I have a long list of series. Something about this drama just really pulled me in, maybe it’s the acting, the storyline, the leads sweetness towards each other, etc. It just became one of my overall favorite dramas. I know some may think of this as “dry” or “boring”, personally I mainly see those who only watch for spicy scenes say this, but I hope their horizons broaden. This truly is such a heart warming drama. I most definitely will be rewatching this in the future.Was this review helpful to you?
The romance wasn't forcing itself; it just happened naturally.
No episodes starting from first episode did it make me bored af. Japanese BLs are really good in making this type of romance.Yutaka and Minoru, the main characters of this series, are both self-conscious and too shy to express their inner feelings. These makes the whole story interesting and keeps me wondering how their romance will start to unfold. Flavored with Minoru's supporting brother Tane and father Koji, the series that seems pale for non-watchers turns it bright and colorful. The progress of the story is so consistently good. With Yutaka's past family-related trauma, the series brought a variety of emotions.
The romance in this series isn't grand and fairytale-like. It is very realistic, warm and blooming. It doesn't need bed scenes to say their relationship is intimate. Every little thing they do is extraordinary in my eyes.
Our Dining Table is one of the best recommendations for binge-watchers. I can guarantee it.
Edit: Every line they said in Final Episode was everything to me. This is a MUST-WATCH series.
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Ça fait du bien
Un vrai drama doudou ! J'ai regardé les dix épisodes à la suite et ça m'a fait un bien fou. J'avais besoin de ça quand je l'ai regardé. C'est tendre, doux, touchant et j'apprécie beaucoup le rôle de la nourriture et partage des repas dans le récit, mais aussi dans l'expression des sentiments et l'évolution des relations. Le casting a vraiment rendu justice aux personnages je pense. Bref, j'ai adoré. Je dois regarder le spécial et lire le manga qui attend depuis des siècles dans ma PAL.Was this review helpful to you?
The most heart warming slice of life bl.
I loved this Japanese bl so much. It felt so realistic and true to life. I loved how it was slow paced and natural. The father was so understanding! I wish a lot of us have parents like that, parents who intuitively understand what their children need.The child!! omg, he was the sweetest. he made the story so heartwarming.
I love the family vibe this bl gave. It gave us the warm fuzzy feeling of what family can and should be.
I will be rewatching this series more than once! The slice of life, warm and loving vibes with a happy ending is all I need to make a bad day good again.
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So warm and fuzzy, I died!
It's actually quite slow paced for my liking but surprisingly keeping me entertained with its hearwarming story.It's tone is mainly warm and fuzzy, with some comedy and touching moment.
It's pretty realistic and not the over-the-top kind of drama.
My only wish is more romance scene between them, although I kinda know this isn't what the show is about (I mean, look at the poster lol)
And, the little boy is a gem, he definitely brightens up the show and is a crucial part of the show. He honestly steals the show in many moments. In fact, there is one scene that really just melts my heart because I am touched by his purity, innocence and sweetness. Sometimes, watching a child makes us remember the simple things in life, like what truly matters is having fun, playing with your family and really just love trumps everything.
It also really teaches us the how COMMUNICATION literally is the key to relationship!
Also, don't get me started at how cute Inukai Atsuhiro is. He looks so different here than in his other show I've watched but cute either way!
It's a simple yet meaningful show about family, romance, and just about LOVE and LIFE!
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This review may contain spoilers
I have no words
I'm afraid I have no words to say how much I love this series, but I'll try my best. Saying that this is the most beautiful BL series I've ever watched is true, but still sounds like it isn't enough. So in this review I won't even try to be objective, because you can't be objective about someone or something you're head over heels with.I wonder if the series can be categorized as ”BL” at all, as the main characters are 23 years old, so not really ”boys”, and in this series you won't find even a single of the numerous ”BL-tropes”. What does make it ”BL” is the fact that the main characters experience – as far as we learn in the series - their first love, and especially their first gay love.
I won't elaborate on the plot here – just so much: ”Our Dining Table” tells the story of two 23-year-old men who are utterly unhappy. Yutaka (Inukai Atsuhiro) is an outsider and isn't able to enjoy a meal with other persons as he suffers from a childhood trauma which was caused by his misconception that he wasn't welcomed in the family who adopted him after his parents' death. Minoru (Iijima Hiroki) stopped attending college after his mother's death and took up a part time job at a ramen restaurant to be there for his little brother Tane (Maeyama Kuuga) as their father doesn't have enough time for the little boy.
The series displays the way how Yutaka and Minoru help each other overcome their loneliness and sadness. The script must have been written by authors who experienced similar situations, because it is so sensitive and at the same time so true-to-life that the actions of the main characters are completely understandable, however awkward and clumsy they may appear.
Little Tane is the katalyst of Yutaka and Minoru's relationship. He's the one who asks Yutaka for his riceball, thus initiating Yutaka and Minoru's alleged first contact (although they had met before, but Yutaka forgot about it), and later it is again Tane who encourages Yutaka and Minoru to get closer.
There is a scene that made me cry like a baby, because it is so heartwarming: Tane notices that Yutaka has been crying, and he pats Yutaka's hair to console him. In another beautiful scene, Tane notices that Minoru is very sad. He asks him whether he had a fight with Yutaka, and again he made me cry when he hugs Minoru and says: ”I will go with you to apologize to him.”
The authors have found many subtle ways of making the viewer notice how Yutaka and Minoru cautiously, in tiny steps, get closer to each other, opening up to each other very slowly as not to destroy the little progress they have achieved. When Yutaka tells Minoru the sad story of his childhood, he hides his face behind a drawing of himself that Tane has made. In another scene, Yutaka instinctively pats Minoru's head which shocks both of them because the gesture reveals Yutaka's feelings for Minoru way too frankly and early.
The finale is another emotional highlight of the series. When Yutaka realizes how much he loves Minoru he is scared that they may separate one day. It is Minoru's father who reassures him, and it is no surprise, but a most beautiful moment, when Tane – asked by his classmate who Yutaka is – declares ”He is my family”. Yutaka finally overcomes his fear and asks Minoru to stay together forever. In every BL series, there should be a kiss in the final scene, but here the final minutes are so full of emotions and love that a kiss isn't needed.
The unique and beautiful script requires first class actors, and they all deliver perfectly. Inukai has proven that he is a great actor as he has been able to shine in many different roles, e.g. in the gorgeous comedy ”The Man Who Defies the World of BL” or as a Yakuza boss in ”Kei x Yaku”, so it's no surprise that he is able to show Yutaka's pain and panic, but also his cautious – and, given his trauma, brave - way of opening up to Minoru and to his own family.
I hadn't seen Iijima before ”Our Dining Table”, but he is a very experienced actor, too. It is amazing how he is able to express Minoru's inhibitions, fears, and the love of his little brother. Iijima is easily one of the best actors I've ever seen in a BL series. The supporting actors are on the same level, especially Harada Riuji, who plays Minoru and Tane's father, and Ichikawa Tomohiro (Yutaka's stepbrother).
But the actor who stole everybody's heart is Maeyama Kuuga. I am sure that one or all of the directors must have spent all their skills, patience, and love to make the little boy act the way he does, but he must also be a huge talent. The same can be said about the child actors who play young Minoru (Arata Hinata), Yutaka (Kobayashi Ikuma), and Hozumi (Nagano Sora).
The cinematography matches the beauty of the script and the brilliance of the acting, and the soundtrack is as sensitive as the series as a whole – it never intrudes the characters' intimacy.
This series is so well written, brilliantly acted, and heartwarming that I can only recommend you to watch it in case you haven't already done that. ”Our Dining Table” reminded me a little of the Taiwanese series ”Papa and Daddy” which had a season 2, and I'd love to see Yutaka, Minoru, and Tane in a season 2 as well.
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Noone deserves to be lonely, we are all worthy of love
I think this show may have been written specifically for me.A quiet, tender tale of finding human connection after an extended period of loneliness and learning to find joy in little things each and every day? Yeah, I fell absolutely head over heels in love with this story. The fact that it was also heavily themed around food was just the cherry on top of the absolutely glorious sundae.
The cast were all truly pitch-perfect in bringing this sweet little slice-of-life drama to life and displayed an unbelievable chemistry with each other that made the bonds between all the characters feel breathtakingly loving and achingly real.
If you want a show that teaches you about finding connection, leaving behind loneliness, coming out of your shell, and learning to fall in love with the world and the people in it again and again and again, then Bokura no Shokutaku is most definitely what you're looking for.
Even if you're just after a warm comfort-watch to pass some cozy evenings, this show is for you as well.
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Simple, honest and beautiful
Let me say this at the beginning itself: there is a "problem" with this series. What is that? You might end up ignoring the two good-looking male leads because of the absolutely adorable third lead character - Tane kun!! This kid's smile, his giggles, laughter, dialogues - everything just lights everything up, and makes you feel so happy. I simply love him! So, I could ask you to watch this series just for him. But that's not all.There are more lovely things in this simple, honest and heart-warming story. Just go watch it to discover yourself.
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Showcases how trauma can effect people in different ways
This drama is perfect for people who need something to sit down and watch that want a BL, but it's not spicy or has plot holes and no communication. There's a lot of communication between Minoru and Yutaka that many BL dramas should have. The clear boundaries Yutaka has and keeps enforcing throughout the drama of "Change is hard" and "Please ask before doing something bold" is a perfect embodiment of hiw many people cope with trauma that isn't usually talked about. Yutaka holds his own and does not change midway through the drama because he finds himself enjoying this way of living, but rather opens himself and vulnerablizes himself slowly, which is very real and comforting. Minoru's character is an embodiment of an older siblings thoughts and feelings. (For me, at least.) He tries to hold strong for a long time himself. The respect he shows for Yutaka, especially during the scene where Yutaka has to stay home sick, makes my own heart flutter. He shows himself as a tough exterior who isn't understood within his family. I love this drama. Comfort drama!!Was this review helpful to you?
