Jero

The first 6 episodes are kinda boring and this season feels so scripted, especially Izaya and William. I think I’ll just give it a chance because of Hiroya, Bomi, Ryuki, and maybe that 40yr old guy

And those two keep pushing the destiny thing when it’s clear the other two don’t have feelings for them

I feel that too. It’s not destiny, the show is either just using you, or you’re using the show.

I just finished ep 3, and I honestly think the cast from S1 was way more likable than this season’s. Two are just relying on destiny, another is a cheater, and the other one just seems horny idk

And the cafe truck thing already feels tired. Why don’t they at least have some in-between personal dates?

Like I shipped them from the moment Hiroya accompanied Bomi bc he didn’t want to go to the hot spring

Not Hiroya and Bomi both choosing Huwei when the real chemistry is between the two of them

I get that, and yeah flashback is the right term. I just think the way they used it made the relationship... like if this is supposed to be a slow burn, I wanted to sit in their HS/college phase a bit more. It felt like they speedran their history instead of letting the bond marinate

The pacing felt too fast for a slow burn relationship idk, and I’m not really a fan of time skips. The color grading looked nice tho

It’s Kagamiya (Kagami). The JP translation app I’m using mixed up the romanization and I didn’t catch it at first. There’s no official English translation, I just used a translation app page by page when I read it years ago. I tried rereading the novel again few months ago to practice since I’m studying Japanese

Koichi’s POV is probably the best POV I’ve seen so far in a BL. This series is really such a masterpiece

I didn’t include some parts, like where Koichi’s body was found. In the novel, it was actually in his bedroom which I found a bit weird, especially since it was described as causing a big commotion at the time. So I just left that out here lol. I’m honestly glad the series changed it. Tho, I prefer this part in the novel, it gave me proper closure, showing that Micchan moved forward with his life

I rewatched this to sort out my feelings about which BL I find better competing for my second place as best Japanese BL, and it proved me wrong for putting School Trip higher because Cherry Magic remains the gold standard. It’s still my 2nd best Japanese BL and this rewatch only confirmed why

The writing is honestly weak and the actor playing Hiroshi could really use a few more acting workshops because a lot of his scenes just don’t land the way as they should. Still, I’ll give the show some credit for atleast trying to challenge one of the most tired misconceptions in the BL fandom. It doesn’t always have to be about who looks “dominant” or “submissive” or who looks more masculine or feminine. That obsession with strict roles is annoying and I actually appreciated how this story pushed back against that a bit. I also have to say, the NC scene surprisingly feels more believable than what we usually get from a lot of Japanese BLs

But beyond those few good points, the series is dragged down by messy storytelling, noticeable plot holes, and overall poor execution. So while there are elements worth acknowledging, it’s hard to ignore that and as a whole, it still ends up being pretty bad

Ikr! And I wish we’d get more introverted, grumpy characters in BLs

Okay-ish at best. But it absolutely doesn’t live up to the TikTok hype like everyone keeps talking about. Whatever potential this series had is pretty much wasted by several issues: the awkward fish kisses, the rushed and unsatisfying ending, and the constant lack of tension that makes the romance feel frustratingly one-sided for most of the run

If there’s one saving grace, it’s Episode 4... arguably the only point where the show finally feels grounded and honest about what Shuichi is going through with Ryohei. For once, it feels real. Beyond that, tho, it’s pretty disappointing

But I’ll give credit where it’s due. The cinematography is beautiful, the shooting locations are stunning, and the musical score is immaculate. Unfortunately, great visuals and sound can’t fully mask how wasted the story feels

It’s actually pretty good ngl. I’m not even someone who usually enjoys shows involving infidelity but the cheating itself wasn’t really my concern here (surprisingly) What really threw me off were their partners, Kaori and Fujisawa

I appreciated that they at least tried to explain Kaori’s situation, but the way her character was written and how some of her lines were delivered bit came off

Lines like:
“If you slept with a woman, I might be able to find a way to forget it, but I just don’t understand why it had to be a man… To touch each other’s body would be unbearable”

If you don’t try to understand what those lines intended, it can easily be read as lowkey homophobic. But from how I interpreted her, she feels closer to someone who’s possibly asexual or fraysexual and also masculinity-averse. But even with that reading, I still found it unfair that she kept him in a sexless relationship for a year without an honest communication or clarity about what she could and couldn’t give

Then there’s Fujisawa. His side of the story felt underdeveloped. Why was he avoiding intimacy? Was it trauma? The show never really commits to explaining him which weakens his role and the emotional weight he should’ve had

On top of that, I also felt like Sei and Hagiwara’s dynamic lacked the chemistry or maybe, sexual tension the story needed. And the ending left me a little unsatisfied. I genuinely wish they had been allotted one more episode to properly breathe

But, overall, it was still a solid watch.

Don’t pay attention to the haters who are trying to do a demolition job because it received a high MDL rating. The 8.7 overall score (and 8.8 at its peak) already speaks for itself

Oops, I just checked, and this actually aired about a month after Old Fashion Cupcake finished. And honestly, that was BL at its peak during that year, so the standards were already high and then this cringefest BL followed right after 😭

Well, the BL is from the Tunku Shower franchise, and honestly I feel like that era was when Japanese BLs started to decline. Around 80–90% of their shows felt limited in production. I mean... weak lighting, non-giving camera work, or not so much effort to make it atleast visually appealing. They also focused too much on hiring J-pop idols who couldn’t really act, which led to a lot of unfitting casting. It’s disappointing because many of the original stories were actually good, but the adaptations failed to do them justice. Tokyo in April Is is the best example

I actually came back to this forum because I saw so many people commenting about it, and I got curious. It received a lot of backlash back then while it was airing, so I just wanted to see what everyone was saying

Lol, the funny thing is this came out around the same time as Old Fashion Cupcake (if I’m remembering right), and honestly this one was such a hard watch in comparison. I even put it on hold for months and only pushed myself to finish it because of Komiya Rio, since I was still missing Eternal Yesterday back then