Nanakor

I have a feeling that Pearl will not end up with any of the girls lol

Good start! Although I felt some scenes went too fast one after another, overall it was fine.

Thank you for your comment! I agree with everything you said.

Tbh, I don't really mind... I get that the majority relies on the score they see up there, but personally I read the reviews and the comments section to get a "feeling" of the drama. BUT I get why there is frustration. We love this story and we want the high score to represent how good it is.

I am sure MDL mods/admins won't share the algorithm they have for the ratings, but it's very obvious they are doing a correlation of # of watchers to ratings. Apparently the new version can detect spam accounts that are used for giving high ratings. Weird how CM has many of them that caused such a 4.0 point fall.

Yes, cultural and societal background is important in cases like this. This is a Japanese story intended for Japanese people; the rest of overseas fans can love and appreciate it all the same but due to differences in our perception and acceptance of LGBTQ+ people, the way their stories are told can be very different or how Japanese people perceive scenes of "coming out".

At the end of the day all povs are valid. If some didn't like it because of how it was handled, it's fine; the same goes for those who think it was a good scene. As long as we can respect different opinions, I think both the story and the fans can take a step forward.

Oh, that sure is an interesting pov because I didn't take the "coming out" scene like that at all. To me it was about Adachi being more confident in that moment to say it in order to help Tsuge (as you also mentioned) and of course because he found the courage to say what he couldn't before at home. We see that he wasn't sure how to introduce Kurosawa, so Kurosawa took the lead in that moment and did the "save". Also, I think confirming that Tsuge likes another man helped a lot too. But I didn't feel like he was pressured to say it because he heard Kurosawa about wishing he could fulfill Adachi's wishes. I think in his own way Adachi wants to be true and proud of himself and Kurosawa but it's not easy for him when this is also his first romantic relationship, aside from both being men which I think is the "heavy" social issue here.

Still an interesting opinion and I can see why they thought of it like that. Talking before coming out is essential, especially in a conservative society like Japan, but I think both of them wanted to say it although Adachi was not ready yet. Kurosawa only "complained" because he wasn't prepared that Adachi would say it so soon since he couldn't just a few hours (?) ago but was still happy about it, hence he had the confidence to take Adachi's hands in a public road and Adachi responded to that. Not to mention the upcoming hug in public next episode. They are both fine with it but I can understand if some fans thought it could have been handled better :)

Btw, the official twitter account said that they will announce something at 1pm JST tomorrow, let's see *eyes emoji*

Yay, I was right xD Sometimes mangaka do that with the "badboy" character.

His character looks like the classic Japanese delinquent: dyed blond hair, smoking, cool attitude and clothes etc. but he probably has a heart of gold/is a very good friend if my experience with manga all these years has taught me something.

I am curious now! I want to read the manga but I will hold and wait for the drama first because my experience usually says that I am lukewarm about manga adaptions. But yeah, your theory could happen and his character survive a bit longer. But I am fine either way, because I like survival stuff.

Kinda sad about it because I wanted to see how good of an actor he is but guess I will have to check a past work. Still very fine with the whole thing because I was expecting characters to die judging by the premise of the summary.

How is it possible to find wholesome the love between two 30 years old office men? Make your heart flutter, your face hurt because of smiling so much, your eyes full of tears due to laughter? The answer is simple: when that feeling is genuine and its purpose is to make you feel good about being in love, then the feelings you experience are real and none can take that away from you.

In the newest episode we got to see the highlights of 3 relationships: a romantic love between our main leads Adachi and Kurosawa, as both confirmed in the previous episode that their feelings are mutual; the friendship of Adachi and Tsuge, something we only got a glimpse of in other episodes but in this one we get to experience their chaotic relationship; and last but not least, the development between Tsuge and Minato, an awkward and hilarious relationship that is only just starting.

Being in love is something nice, positive, it brightens your world and we can definitely see all that in both of Adachi and Kurosawa's face. The latter has been in love for 7 years and now he is just "MABUSHI" with his whole body while the former has only recently admitted his feelings that were brewing for a whole month there. Smiling and looking at each other's eyes, teasing and supporting, holding hands: little gestures that speak volumes, especially in that scene where Adachi reveals to Tsuge that he and Kurosawa are in a relationship! What a moment, right? But more important is what Kurosawa says as they are walking back, holding hands for the first time: let's take this easy, step by step and experience every new thing together. How can you not fall in love with them after this? It's impossible.

Moving to the adorable friendship of our wizard virgins: I was waiting for a moment of a mind-reading-conversation to happen and it did not disappoint! I feel for Kurosawa in that scene, it must have been awkward but so funny at the same time. I like how both are getting nervous over going to see some street dancers because of their anxiety but what I like the most is how considerate Adachi is to his friend: the date bombed, in a way, but his friend is someone who has been there for him for years and now that Tsuge is in a tight knot, he wants to help. The bus stop scene is important for two reasons: one, we see that Adachi loves and trusts Tsuge enough to tell him about his relationship with Kurosawa and two, that Tsuge takes that moment as an advice and example of what he has to do. We see him running to meet Minato again which...

Brings us to the next relationship, Tsuge and Minato. Ok, I don't have much to say here because so far we mostly saw the feelings of Tsuge. With his awkwardness, limited social interaction and shyness, he wasn't sure how to approach Minato. We even have a stalking scene in one of the episodes that left a bad taste to some viewers and now the writers are addressing this in a good way: Minato invites him over, there is a confrontation with, what I assume is, a friend but previous dance mate of the group Minato and Rokkaku are part of. But the real moment is Tsuge's speech to Minato about dreams. To move forward while others are making fun of your dream, feeling alienated about if this is the right path, if you are trying hard enough and is giving results, are legit fears and concerns. While the speech in no way can erase Minato's thoughts, it's comforting to know someone out there cares about you. And sadly, at least for now, when Tsuge found the courage to confess, a terrible surprise came his way.

*phew* Ok, I wrote a lot... more than I expected but I just wanted to puke my thoughts like I always do after each episode. I think the end result is that relationships of all kind do matter and having someone there to support you, whether a friend or just a stranger, is such a warm feeling that can give you strength. Next episode, Adachi can't stop smiling and I am so happy for him! And it seems that Tsuge will find the resolve to speak with Minato and hopefully, this can be the start of a good relationship, whether friendship or romance.

Someone on twitter did a summary of the IG Live but didn't mention any of that. For the almost kiss in EP3 they have only said that it took them a lot of takes for the bottle to land right in front of the camera.

Source: Dude trust me.

Ok, joking aside I wouldn't take this seriously. I didn't see anyone reply to that comment (besides the translator) and I doubt there is a policy about it when almost all BL dramas out there have at least one kiss. Although I suggest to wait and see, I also think we should take these kind of info with a grain of salt.

I posted the "Cherry Magic Timeline" in the discussion section. I updated it to include episode 8 too and further updates will be made along with the new episodes :)

Yup! I haven't read the manga yet but the plot sounds very interesting! I am also excited to see how good of an actor Machida is.

I love it!

Thank you so much for hosting! Sadly, my laptop crushed in our rewatch when more people joined and I left without a word, sorry ;_; At least I made it work again this morning, but yeah, came here to thank you again :D

That's one hell of a definition lmao But tbh, I am also not very knowledgeable about Queer media/studies. I know some stuff but that's mostly from online research since my major is completely different. I know more about BL since I have been reading manga for years now and it's quite an interesting topic, especially with the recent changes. Aww I hope you end up asking her one day! It's always nice to get to talk with people about new stuff, especially if they are open minded.

I think they mean sexy, "daddy" vibes. LOL I would definitely be interested to hear what your lecturer has to say about these kind of stuff. The whole "BL culture" is interesting to research about.