Smells Like Green Spirit

Only one drawback

I'm sad that the trans/gender queer kid, Kirino. didn't get a happy ending. I was hoping they would be the Drag queen. It made me die a little inside to see it end that way for them. I know we could talk about the artistry of it all. The realism, but IDK, if our gay character (and pan character) get a happy ending, I think the trans/gender queer character didn't. You could say I'm selfish, you could say that the world has already given trans characters enough sad endings as it is. This was a safe place to give them a happy or partially happy one. IKids are great an all, but you could see it when they zoomed into Kirino's face at the end and zoomed in on their eye that they were dead inside.

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Lots of Potential, but Fell Flat because of it's Too Gloomy

•❅✧❅✦ Story ✦❅✧❅•

Smells Like Green Spirit had the potential to be a really thought-provoking drama with all of the themes it decided to tackle, but it really fell flat with its gloomy atmosphere and rushed ending.

The drama tackles the theme of sexuality in the 90s. They also sprinkled in some of the usual troupes of bullying, societal pressure through neighborhood gossip, and coming out. There was also a little bit of sexual assault thrown in the mix as well. Just by reading all of the themes, you can tell they are not happy themes at all. It’s all doom and gloom, and with only 8 episodes it’s hard to insert many happy moments. It seems like Mishima is constantly facing some sort of gloomy trouble that he can never catch a break to be happy. And this is what is missing from the drama.

Every episode seems to be gloomy with no happiness that we end up feeling bad for Mishima. Even the ending, which is supposed to show Mishima being happy, no longer struggling with his sexuality, is rushed and crammed into the last few minutes. Even his cross-dressing nature is lost that when Mishima is shown as a drag queen model, we don’t even know if it is actually him or not. It’s sad, since this could have been a good coming of age drama!

•❅✧❅✦ Themes ✦❅✧❅•

Smells Like Green Spirit tackles many themes including sexuality in the 90s, bullying, societal pressure, neighborhood gossip, coming out, and sexual assault. The most prevalent is the reality of sexuality in the 90s and societal pressure through neighborhood gossip.

The drama focuses on each theme they try to tackle though gossip from the neighborhood. We then learn about the truth of the situation through the characters they are gossiping about. It’s really sad because on more than one occasion, the characters change their course of action after hearing the neighborhood gossip. Kirino can’t even live his life freely because his mother bends to the pressure of society and he doesn’t want to disappoint her. He even went as far as trying to run away, only to be pulled back because the neighborhood gossip hit his mother and she collapsed.

I could go on and on about each theme, but the neighborhood gossip really pissed me off while watching because it was so accurate to how the Japanese bend to the pressure of their social image, even in this day and age!

•❅✧❅✦ Overall ✦❅✧❅•

Smells Like Green Spirit could have been a thought-provoking drama, but it kind of fell flat for me with it’s doom and gloom. Other people really seem to give it high regards, so I guess it’s good. Maybe I just have really high standards. Or I just found it too gloomy to see the positives of this drama.

Either way, I think the drama was nice, but it’s not something I would ever watch again. I honestly don’t even feel like reading the manga since it’s more gloomy than happy. Overall, it’s a decent coming of age story, but it’s really not for me.

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Surprising, unpredictable, excellent (worth watching over and over)

The visuals in Smells Like Green Spirit are absolutely beautiful! And the pacing? Perfect. The story development is somewhat unconventional (unpredictable) and doesn't follow the typical BL story arc.

The series begins with intense bullying. The perpetrators, who are homophobes, have latched onto the long-haired Mishima. The show takes a surprising but significant turn when he starts to befriend one of the bullies, who is gay as well.

This sparks a sweet and wholesome bond between the two as they secretly have lunch on the school roof every day. Over boxed bentos and makeup accessories stolen from their mothers, the boys find a safe zone in each other. 

But the sappy sweetness from this coming-of-age friendship is short-lived. Smells Like Green Spirit is fraught with the anxiety of not belonging.

Set in the 1990s, the show comes with a warning that some may find the language inappropriate for today’s context. There’s also a warning label for sexual assault and violence.

Expect some unsettling behaviour in the show, but only because it mirrors reality. There is a fine line between highlighting real-life issues and parading tragedy for the sake of drawing attention, but I think Smells Like Green Spirit casts a delicate balance without overdoing it.

While fraught with the troubling anxiety of youth, it also reminds us of the immeasurable potential of having one’s life stretched out in front of you.  Shangri-la is out there waiting for us.

More reviews: https://asianblreviews.wordpress.com/

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a bittersweet journey of queer identity

i dont usually write reviews but it’s 6am and i just binge watched the whole thing… i have too many feelings to keep to myself.

one scene that really stayed with me was when kirino and mishima were in their usual spot and kirino kept unconsciously using the feminine pronoun for herself, mishima gently picked up on it and reassured her, that when they’re together, it’s okay to be whoever she wants to be, even to use “she” if that felt right. that moment of freedom, of affirmation, of just being seen and accepted….it was so beautiful. watching kirino begin to use “she” and seeing the happiness on both their faces… it was like watching someone breathe for the first time.

mishima’s confrontation with his mom was another standout. her unwavering support, her love, her simple desire to see her son happy… it’s something every queer kid deserves. in contrast, kirino’s moment with her own mother was just heartbreaking. the weight she carried, the choice she made to abandon her truth for what she believed was the best for everyone… it was devastating.

kirino in the bath, scrubbing her body like she’s trying to erase something invisible, something that lives just under the skin like if she tries hard enough she can scrub away whatever part of herself she’s struggling to accept or reconcile.

this drama doesn’t offer easy answers. it gives us two queer characters, two very different outcomes. mishima got to live his truth. kirino didn’t. and yet, both stories reflect real lives. real people. it’s not fair but it’s real. that’s what makes it so bittersweet.

mishima and kirino’s story is not about falling in love, it’s about seeing and being seen. about offering someone a space where they don’t have to flinch, where they can exist in the fullness of their gender, their fear, their hope.

for those who have lived even a fraction of what these characters go through, smells like green spirit will feel like a mirror. and maybe, just maybe, a hand reaching out to hold yours through it.

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this drama is realistic, unhinged, and.. did i mention realistic?

it's not your typical BL and it mainly focuses on how characters discover themselves, friendships, and love. Some scenes are like a warm hug and some scenes are like a slap on the face. it's cruel, but realistic. and i like how in some serious or dramatic scenes, they do not put a background sound which makes it even more realistic as if im actually there, invisible, watching the characters suffer and can do nothing about it. i especially like the friendship between kirino and mishima.

pros:
the plot is amazing
the acting is GIVING
the characters are well-written and have some flaws (which is realistic)
makes you experience different feelings in just one episode

cons:
being aired once a week
cant wait for new ep
so short, wdym 9 eps?? i need 900. RIGHT NOW. ALL AIRED!!

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It comes in at the right time in my life (I was facing transphobia..). I watch it in one sitting

A real queer story about acceptance, coming out and friendship.
"The pandora's box we could only open on the rooftop" what if I CRY?!!

They did really a great job on portreying queer people who struggle with their identity - even though I'm not a big fan of "they are homophobic because they are queer too" and "they bully you because they love you".

It's very japanese in the way they act, it's not bad, just a observation. I loved it.

If one day I'm too happy, i'll re-watch it to remember how sad life is.

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Review is W.I.P~

Foremost, I think the runtime should have been around 45 minutes to properly impact the viewers. 23-24 minutes episodes aren't ideal when you're dealing with such delicate societal topics. Makers should have given viewers the time to settle in and connect themselves. I would recommend waiting for 3-4 episodes and then start watching.
Now, let's come to the societal issue this drama will be dealing with, this is not a BL, it's an LGBTQ drama, so please keep that in mind when jumping in. You gotta bring your compassion along with your passion while watching.
In the first episode, there's a disclaimer in the beginning which viewers should read carefully. Though the drama is set up of 1990s, the society is still very much prejudiced and harsh against a 'girly' boy than it is against a 'boyish' girl. If I am to give an example from my own experiences, we had a boy in our school, who liked 'girly' stuffs were harassed/made fun of by other boys and even some girls. But a tomboy was quite famous among boys and even girls. She played volleyball in district level for our school.
Nevertheless, I am through and through impressed by Araki Towa, he's going to win awards for his protreyal of Mishima for sure

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Many of us have been amazed by the latest project by the Japanese director, screenwriter, actress and casting director Sawada Ikuko for her point of view, for several of the ideas that are dropped, for the aesthetics that accompanies the story, for the strength of the performance of a luxury cast, for the splendid soundtrack that accompanies us.
We are in the 90s of the last century. We are in a quiet rural town during the Heisei era. We are facing a story of acceptance and self-discovery during adolescence, but far from the romanticism of most of the series based on manga that I usually review here, telling us a hard, stark and bittersweet story. This is a coming-of-age drama that explores the pressures to conform and the power of friendship.
The beginning of 'Smells Like Green Spirit', the LGBT+ themed drama series, is engaging. We are introduced to a high school student being chased by several of his schoolmates.
Mishima, an androgynous teenager who defies social norms of sexuality, with his very long hair, delicate beauty and marked feminine features, lives in two different worlds: while the Sun shines in the sky, his classmates give free rein to their homophobia and is systematically tortured for "appearing to be gay." At night, in the silence of his house, once his mother goes to bed, we can distinguish a boy who is clear that he likes boys, something he hides and, faced with the economic impossibility of buying other cosmetic products, he only applies lipstick taken from his mother's bag, while he enjoys dressing the clothes of the woman who sleeps a few meters away from him.
His colleagues harass and physically and psychologically attack him because of his femininity, calling him in the most derogatory ways alluding to his sexuality. But he doesn't care, he's happy being the way he is.
All this reveals two of the pillars of the work. But be careful, this is not a more or less classic story that revolves around transsexuality.
But that bittersweet existence takes a radical turn when he discovers by accident that the hatred that Makoto Kirino, one of his staunchest harassers, professes towards him, is not only the result of the education received by a heteronormative family or from living in a society that does not accept diversity and that makes someone who is different hate themselves for not fitting into a supposed canon of "normality", but that they have much more in common than what appears at first glance and that this hatred is actually a desire to have the freedom to be like him.
In this way, the fatherless young boy will discover that, like him, Kirino is gay and likes to cross-dress, but he has hidden this side of him due to his conservative mother, who cannot accept he son's true nature. In this sense, since his childhood, in his environment, Kirino has been raised listening to prejudices and stereotypes of rejection or hatred towards LGTB+ people. Having integrated these values into your system, the construction of your identity has been marked by those beliefs. For this reason, he considers that a part of him is not worthy of acceptance and recognition, so he must hide, compensate, repair... his sexuality.
This is how the series borders on that controversial stereotype that behind every homophobe there is someone repressing their authentic sexuality. However, Kirino's story is so well done that it is difficult not to empathize and feel sorry for him, and even understand the pain that not accepting oneself can lead to something terrible. Kirino is ultimately, unlike Mishima, a poor confused teenager with his head in a mess.
Although it is true that this stereotype also comes into play with another character with whom one does enter into more delicate terrain that is much more controversial, and I will not go into detail about it so as not to give away spoilers.
Once the moment of initial terror of being discovered has passed, Kirino experiences the relief of being able to show himself as he is to another person who does not judge him and understands him. Being able to talk and share their problems without having to hide will be the first step for the two to begin to weave a beautiful friendship based on the secrets they hide from the world. And in this way we discover the other pillar on which the series is based.
These two teenagers must face a hostile social environment, allies who are wolves in sheep's clothing, and, what's worse, the possibility of frustrating their families' expectations. They must not only hide from others, but also hide from themselves.
All this, while we are presented with a Japan far from the typical view and the images of cities of futuristic technology mixed with ancient traditions. A much "dirtier and darker" Japan, for a story that usually appears darker than what we get from there, where the main character suffers daily harassment by teenagers like him, while others are forced to hide who they are out of fear to receive the same bullying that Mishima suffers.
While Mishima benefits from having a loving and understanding mother, Kirino struggles to reconcile her sexuality with her oppressive and patriarchal upbringing.
Kirino quickly opens up to Mishima, when they both meet during free hours on the school roof and outside the educational grounds, and can be who he really is without having to hide, although in front of his classmates he has to continue pretending contrary. However, he slowly begins to change the way he treats Mishima in front of others as he begins to accept himself.
It is surprising that Mishima does not feel or express any type of resentment towards his harassers and that he quickly finds in Kirino a being similar to the one who forgives all the bad times he put him through.
Thanks to the friendship with Mishima, Kirino's character transforms into a totally different person. If it is true that his attitude at the beginning is inexcusable and unjustifiable, as you begin to interact more with Mishima you discover his past and who he really is, making it easier to connect with him.
Through Mishima we observe the story and see how Tarō Yumeno, another of his bullies, a classmate and one of the main players in the school basketball club, is actually a boy who hides behind the façade of the bully, and who always makes fun of Mishima, to hide his true feelings.
Falling in love with Mishima is easy; He is so tender, so close, that you can't help but love him, sympathize with his character, let yourself be carried away by his antics, identify with a being that is certain of knowing who he is, even if he has to hide it.
And as these three young people begin to discover who they are, struggling to define themselves, they will make difficult decisions that will shape the rest of their lives.
'Smells Like Green Spirit' presents a heartbreaking character study anchored by a confident and convincing performance by Araki Towa, Sono Shunta and Fujimoto Kodai, actors who play Mishima Futoshi, Kirino Makoto and Yumeno Taro, respectively.
Araki Towa shines in her role, which she plays with delicacy and melancholy.
It is interesting how the story mixes comic situations that will brighten your day with other moments of extreme drama that will break your heart, while telling a story whose characters explore different ways of living sexuality and gender identity. Without a doubt, they are characters that anyone can empathize with.
Screenwriter Arai Yuuka takes the cake by adapting the manga of the same name written and illustrated by Saburō Nagai, serialized in Fusion Product's Comic Be between 2011 and 2013, collected in two tankōbon volumes, which allows the viewer to take a look at how complicated it is. a time that is complex in itself like adolescence, when one also does not fit into what is considered normal. As in the original work, the narrative text not only allows a very honest story to be translated into moving images, but also skips many stereotypes associated with BL manga.
The series addresses topics such as transvestism, while emphasizing that being a transvestite does not mean being transsexual, and that, in turn, this is not linked to sexual orientation.
Linking family history makes it feel even more intimate and personal, especially when one of them's mother is a widow and the other is single, and they have raised their children with so much love that their descendants want to care for them in the same way.
Sawada Ikuko addresses all these complex issues with commendable delicacy and lucidity. He raises the questions but does not decide, does not judge, does not take sides.
It is also true that with a cast like this it makes it very easy for the viewer. In addition to the aforementioned actors, Abe Aran joins as Professor Yanagida, Sakai Miyuki as Futoshi's mother, Kanai Miki as Sawada Ayako, Kaji Masaki as Edokawa Toshihiko, Katada Hiyori as Fujii Rinka, among others. That is to say, the stellar performances of the entire cast, especially the young people who turn from rivals to friends, anchor the story.
With an outstanding soundtrack, whose musical themes are inserted in such a way that they become the perfect complement to the story, the Japanese director succeeds in maintaining her closeness with his main character at all times, especially in that climactic moment when Mishima and Kirino They look into each other's eyes for the first time and scrutinize their souls.
There are some clichés often found in LGBT+ stories, but for the most part, Sawada Ikuko creates a totally original drama that is worth watching. Bearing the weight of emotional trauma and gay shame, the three boys need more than a hug to get them through. But there is a hopeful message, tinged with painful sadness. 'Smells Like Green Spirit' teaches an important lesson that will reach many young people who struggle with their sexual preferences, especially those who live among family members who are intolerant towards LGBT+ people.
As a result, the series doesn't flinch from contemplating the unfortunate reality of hate and intolerance, but also reflects and celebrates the other side of humanity.
This is a bittersweet series that reinforces the idea that there are good people who will love and accept you no matter who you are. The audiovisual demonstrates great empathy for those who have to hide who they are throughout their lives, or part of it, even if that eventually turns them into melancholic beings.
It is a deeply personal story, which speaks of young queer people who have the luxury of searching for their identity and discovering who they are from an early age, and those who must keep part of their identity hidden for fear of losing their family or receiving hate from the community.
There are moments in this queer story that are truly terrifying and other moments are tender and pure.
For all that has been said, the series stays with the viewer after the final credits of the first three episodes of the 9 that the MBS and TVK audiovisual have.
A splendid and bittersweet story as well as a tough love story. Yes, of love, because self-acceptance can only be fulfilled with a lot of love.

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