Shoebill

The last chapter of Vol 2, chapter 6. There should be 1-2 extra chapters left in vol 2, but they're pretty important so read those before you jump onto vol 3 (I Hear the Sunspot Limit 1).

Hm maybe you're not used to the manga feel being translated to live-action? I think compared to other manga adapted JBL Kobayashi's exaggerated acting is pretty in-line with most. While he definitely nails the nuances of Taichi's character and the emotions in the quieter moments, I also get why you might find his exaggerated acting out of place since the direction of the show does try to lean towards realism. That said I think Kobayashi has a good grasp of Taichi's character, so I don't think he's a bad actor.

Taichi was actually even more exaggerated in the manga. He acts tsundere and hits Kohei a lot lol. Obviously this couldn't be translated to screen, so they toned it down a bit and made his character slightly less chaotic, but the manga feel is still there cause it's a manga. His character is supposed to act childish and carefree to hide his sadness. I actually think they emphasised much more on the romantic yearning in the drama already, especially from Kohei.

So good! I thought the manga was just cute, but Tanaka Koki as Isumi really elevated his cuteness to a whole other level. Why is every JBL this year amazing???

Your definition isn't incorrect, but it isn't a hard rule. In Japan, it's much more vague and really just depends on how the source material/publisher labels itself, it's not always according to the amount of romance. I Hear the Sunspot, One Room Angel, and The Night Beyond the Tricornered Window are all explicitly labelled as BL serialised in BL magazines despite many people on this site insisting they're not. And I have definitely seen BL-BL manga that discuss LGBTQ+ issues.

In the case of Smells like Green Spirit, I'm pretty sure it's a similar case to The Cornered Mouse Dreams of Cheese and What Did You Eat Yesterday?, in that it isn't serialised in BL magazine (josei magazine in its case) but feature gay/bi protagonist. Many people refer to them as BL anyway because to them anything featuring relationship between gay MCs is BL. So ultimately whether it is BL or not is debatable.

Kabe Koji

Watashi no Machi no Chiba-kun wa
https://kisskh.at/776095-watashi-no-machi-no-chiba-kun-wa

Ah, sorry if I came off too aggressive. I wanted to clarify some common misunderstandings many comments had below and just used your comment as a springboard. Glad to know that you enjoyed the show still.

Happy of the end

A good show to watch if you just want a cute and lighthearted romance.

This will be a very fun ride. Haruto/Hyodo's character is attractive, I get why Shiba is charmed.

The manga didn't have a kiss in the final EP's equivalent chapter either (They do kiss soon after in the manga, it's just that the drama didn't adapt up to that point). Many people complain about the series' lack of intimacy, but ironically this is one of the few JBL this year that didn't tone down or change anything about their relationship in the source material. The spicier ones like Akasaka, Coslover, HOTE, did. So if anyone wants to complain about censorship, they should take it up to those shows first lol.

I believe the Jdrama Silent which features a deaf MC didn't have a kiss either. So yeah they do do that with hetero couples.

They're different versions of the same story. This is a newer adaptation with better production and all that. The drama adapts further into the manga source material (2 volumes) compared to the movie (1 volume).

The manga isn't finished yet. But I agree, we all want a sequel!

Kohei loves Taichi's voice the most so I think he'd prefer Taichi to use it :)

Ah, I think I saw a few comments on Reddit and Tumblr that said that. That volume literally ends with a scene of Ryu roasting Kohei lol. It's like if the drama ended at ep 7 where Maya yells at Taichi. Yes, very satisfying for viewers.

The story gradually moves away from university setting in the future volumes, so there is less opportunity to spend time with them cause Kohei and Taichi only meet outside university/work. Her and Yasu and Yoko haven't appeared at all in the last 2 volumes lol.

It's actually 8 volumes and still going. The next arc (Limit) is 3 volumes long and could form a season 2. Literally everyone on Twitter is asking for it, so I hope the staff listens!

Everyone wants a sequel, so I hope our prayers reach the staff 😆

There is indeed more story to tell. The drama ends at volume 2, the manga is at 8 volumes and still ongoing...