Kokosha

oh you are living Japan? I heard it's great country to visit, but not to live. Must be exciting to watch a show and recognize places from it . I am sorry that you had some rough weeks, hope everything gets better for you. I understand for some ppl music and tv shows really help to get through some tough times. I agree it's a very comforting, chill show that helps to get away from work problems, stress, I also would love to see more shows like this. I think for me, best match would be Blueming , because it also has that unusual calming atmosphere, plus the osts are just magical. Agree that shows like this are one of a kind

oh thank you ! Sorry it's kind of long, but i will update it and post as a review once the show has finished, upcoming episodes are nerve wrecking.

It's been a while since I saw grounded bl tackling serious topics while also staying interesting and portraying realistic characters. I don't mind characters being over the top sometimes like in other bls , because it's still just a fictional show, but once again missed these kind of shows that just feels real and genuine. This might be one of my favorite BL shows including Old fashion cupcake, and Blueming. Would love to see more shows like this that just doesn't portray lightheaded subjects and doesn't shy away from portraying serious issues.

As a manga reader, I was impressed by how accurately this show portrayed it. There are literally scenes that could be put side by side and also really glad that they didn't cut dark themes that take place in the manga. I honestly didn't think they would dare to portray this kind of story. Here I want to give kudos to the director and screenwriter , because I feel she was able to realistically portray the show while balancing between manga and show, as to my opinion there weren't any filler scenes. Additionally, as the screentime is always limited to 30 min , I am glad she was able to balance it well. Now I have seen few comments saying that it didn't do justice to manga, but I feel like it's up to each person, cause personally I feel like they showed all the important scenes without losing too much context.

As for the acting, personally I liked it. It feels very grounded and natural and if you have seen some animes/ manga getting updated into live action , you know how cartoonish it can get cause sometimes actors would struggle to find balance between manga and real acting and get it mixed up. I really like subtle expressions of Ren's actor, I think he was perfectly casted and was able to find that balance , as it felt like a real person with real feelings and I could relate to him.
Really loved his subtle expressions. Like when he is at workplace he is killing it with confidence, knows what to do, very outspoken and puts in places scumbags like Sanada, but when he is with Kazuma we see that subtleness in vulnerability, his workplace mask slowly fades away and we get to see the real Ren who is very soft, gentle and very safe when he's around him and loves affections from Kazuma. Like judging from Kazuma's gentleness and sweetness you would imagine he is like that outside of the public eye too, but Ren has complete different workplace persona, and it's really amazing actor to show that contrast between his two personas and his subtle expressions like the vulnerable look and guards down/mask off look when he is with Kazuma. Like the way he looks away and hides from eye contact when sometimes Kazuma goes overboard with sweet gentle gestures is the best.

Again will mention shows like Old fashion cupcake and Blueming, where in the same way it feels so natural , characters just make you sympathize with them.
Also liked Kazuma's choice of the actor, again feels very natural, though reading manga at first I thought he didn't fit the image but later as I continued watching the show, I feel like he was also chosen well, as he was able to deliver Kazuma's gentle character quite well and his affection towards Ren and tender gestures were also delivered well. He looks a like a typical kind hearted shonen affectionate character and was able to greatly convey that. Whenever he reacts to even small moments like having day off with Ren, meeting him or even just thinking of him his eyes light up and make you really makes you believe how much in love he is with Ren. Really glad that actor was able to portray him with such sincerity.

Now, as for the kids actors, some ppl complain that showrunners shouldn't have chosen real 14 year old actors to play them, however, actually I didn't mind. Acting is still acting, and there are tons of shows which have 14 year olds or even younger portraying such provocative scenes though I didn't think it was provocative but just unsettling, which is the point , as the scene in the manga also makes you feel uncomfortable. There are some shows like Shameless where there are tons of provocative episodes and in the first season Ian's actor was only 15 and his character had to make out with the actors who were in 30s like Mickey and Cash's actors, which apparently no one has problem with. Again even with Shameless, as long as the actors have chosen themselves to portray a certain role , I don't have a problem, cause acting is acting. As for this show, I liked the portrayal of the teenage actors as well as it felt very natural. Young actors line delivery and expressions matches very well the adult ones, love the subtlety of young Ren's expressions matches the adult Ren's portrayal and Kazuma's innocence and gentleness in young and adult versions.

Although some people might disagree with me, and call the acting is bad, again I feel like it's up to each person. Cause there are tons of shows out there, in which for some ppl certain actors didn't sell out their roles and for some ppl portrayal was quite solid. I think the only problem or minor issue was for me sometimes the crying on the scenes which could have another takes, but in overall for me it was very natural throughout the whole series. I usually don't judge a whole show to have bad acting just because of couple of clunky scenes, and instead evaluate it based on the whole show and how it made the characters feel , in this case, fleshed out , natural and sympathetic.

Again another thing, why i liked the cast and feel like they perfectly fit their roles is because the chemistry between two leads was really great. There are so many BL shows or usual shows that have 2 actors who are trying very hard to portray their characters but there is no chemistry between main leads. I think for me same type of well executed chemistry was again in Blueming, Old fashion cupcake, Cherry magic, To my star, Minato's laundromat(cute chemistry). In Tokyo in April , I really loved all these subtle expressions of two main leads especially Ren's, and of course it was adapted from manga, but their domestic scenes are the best. Like they would be just calmly chilling together or cooking together , and the amount of fluff there is immeasurable. I honestly think affectionate scenes are 100x times better than all those passionate sexy scenes in Thai BLs. Honestly watching these 2 characters together made me feel very lonely and wanting a comfy relationship like this haha. Their scenes didn't feel awkward or clunky at all, and it just felt very natural and like a real life couple, which convinces me that actors were able to connect well before shooting for this show.

As for the music, really love both opening and ending songs. Especially the ending song is perfect for these characters. However, I wish there were more musical scores, cause the ones we have are really nice and wish there were more of it in the show.

I feel like we need more shows like this that have some depths and serious topics. I am not against comedic BL shows and lighthearted ones like Cherry Magic or Minato's laundromat( perfect summer light show) all of these shows are necessary and provide great escapism from the real tough world we have. But at the same time those shows are prevalent and it's quite refreshing to see shows like Tokyo in april and in which characters who play mid 20s office workers actually act and feel like them in real life. Honestly missed shows like this and would like to see more shows having emotional depth, characters that feel very real and natural.

I see. Thanks! Still would be awesome if there gonna be any additional scenes)). If not, it would be still interesting to get new music scores.

What's the point of releasing movie then? If it has only same scenes as in the show((

It's a great character development. Also since the beginning he has changed a lot , like compare him in the first episode just ordering food without taking it, drinking someone's beer without asking and not apologizing. Many people claimed how Ji Woo was cold and rude, but honestly I would be pissed too ,if some stranger would come and act like we are long time friends. But so glad that his character started to change and that he became as favorite character as Ji Woo.

Yeah, he has some kind of panic attacks when he hears loud noises like sth breaking , backstory wasn't explained. In ep 2 when one of his fans threw a stone to a plant near Ji Woo's apartment, he had the same panic attacks. Also part of the reason why Seo Joon didn't want to disclose camera footage of his friend 's case because there, during the fight scene , he had panic attack as well due to shuttering glasses, he didn't want public to know that he has this kind health issue, I guess. Later it was revealed that he is receiving some treatment.

I love every bit of this show! Two basketball scenes are also one of my favorites. P.S. Love the small details of the show like when Ji Woo bought the space poster for Seo Joon, and the way they showed in the beginning Seo Joon's character being bold and Ji Woo's timid (you can see it in scooter scene , where Ji Woo is holding Seo Joon's jacket gently, while Seo Joon just holding Ji Woo's waist hands intertwined)

I like that even in the show they also made Ji Woo younger. Also the way Seo Joon was teasing him in the end of episode 9 was really cute)

In episode 7. In subs it wasn't shown or translated, but you can see in korean when they show the messages it was written Kan Seo Joon

I already rewatched 5 times lol. Can't get enough of this marshmallow couple^-^

I am the only one who keeps coming back ,although the show already ended few days ago? Like there is gonna be new episodes announcement, but it won't happen T_T . I was in such a good mood lately just because of this show)))

1. I guess that girl just felt guilty
2. either they passed away or left him, it wasn't disclosed
3. In the episode 3 or 4, Seo Joon and Ji Woo went to play basketball after work, when Seo Joon told Ji Woo that he has a dream of going to space if he has a chance. After that we can see that Ji Woo has bought doormat with a moon theme and later after kiss scene in ep 6 we also see the space poster on the wall(there were like two planets in the space Jupiter and another one I forgot). Therefore, Ji Woo put both of the poster and doormat , because he cares for Seo Joon's dream I guess). Hope that explains everything!

Fun fact: before episode 9, Seo Joon's contact was saved in Ji Woo's phone as Kang Seo Joon (full name), but on episode 9 we can see twice that he renamed him to Seo Joon only, cause in South Korea usually you call by first name when you are close to that person:)