fluffbowl

I too fell into the trap of projecting my feelings onto Kaori and Fujisawa and was sorely disappointed when neither character turned out to be asexual. Instead, Kaori sometimes treats Hagiwara like a child (but at other times I was also kind of scared for her, so there are layers) and Fujisawa is abusive. Delightful. Clearly, Sei and Hagiwara were incompatible with their partners, and not just in terms of sexual needs. Still, and regardless of anyone’s sexuality, the lengths this story went to villainize the partners of our two male leads felt like a personal attack.

It’s all well and good to ask for sympathy for the main characters because they’re unfulfilled. But can we agree that nobody owes anyone sex and that being in a sexless relationship is not the literal hell on earth the main characters proclaim it to be? And it bears repeating that I really could have done without the rape. Sei and Hagiwara’s mutual reassurance that they’re oh so good people was a bit much too. Is the insistence on viewing every conflict through the lens of sex not just a societal ill but also in part a problem of this genre? I don't know.

Everyone’s non-confrontational to a fault in this one -- right up until they blow up on each other. No one is really honest about their identity either. Points for realism! I would also be remiss not to mention the good acting. If only this story wasn’t so set on sex being essential to romantic relationships, it could have meaningfully expanded upon the complexities of intimacy. It’s all very frustrating because the building blocks were there, and it’s not like the show can’t do nuance at all. It’s just that the amatonormativity won out. Even for a self-proclaimed enjoyer of toxic erotic relationships like moi, Futtara Doshaburi went against one too many of my core beliefs to remain a pleasant viewing experience.