Saezuru Tori wa Habatakanai
Twittering Birds Never Fly

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Hands down, one of the best manga I've ever read. It's a tragedy that this manga will be dismissed by most people as just another BL/yaoi, but it's so much more than that. At its heart, this is a story about two very broken human beings at their most fragile and flawed. It's a story about suffering, human resilience, and how, despite everything, despite all our differences, we as humans crave love, compassion, and connection to another person even when we feel like we're unworthy of it.

It's not at all a light-hearted story. The story takes place in the world of organized crime, where ... physical and sexual violence is a commonplace occurrence. The story is deeply psychological and explores very heavy themes like childhood trauma and sexual abuse.

However, that is nothing new in the Yaoi world. It pains me to admit it, but most BL/yaoi has non-consensual scenes and deeply traumatized characters. It's just that most of the time, these characters only have trauma to make them "interesting". Trauma for the sake of trauma. "Trauma" is just another "trait" that the character has, and it's never fully explored; usually, it's just a plot device, and more often than not, it's magically cured through the power of love.

None of that can be said about Saezuru. And that's exactly what sets Saezuru apart from other yaoi. The story isn’t merely about two men falling into a complicated relationship, it's about the long, difficult journey towards healing and self-acceptance. And the best thing? Nothing is ever romanticized, glorified or normalized. It's shown as it is. The darkest of human emotions. Raw and unadulterated and brutal.

And Yashiro's character is at the centre of it all. Oh, Yashiro T.T As I read on, he quickly became one of my favourite characters in any media ever. Yashiro is a beautifully tragic man. He's very unlike any other "uke/bottom" I've read. A lot of yaois tend to sort of put the men into traditional roles of "male" and "female" where the one who takes it up the bum is the "female".

In Saezuru, there's none of that. Yashiro is a very charismatic and competent yakuza boss despite being an "uke". He's a pervert, but also someone who uses sarcasm and sexual promiscuity as a shield to protect himself from his own trauma. He is who he is due to the abuse he suffered in his childhood, and throughout the story, he's constantly engaging in self-destructive behaviour, using and seeing sex as merely a transactional process.

Yashiro is very emotionally detached/numb, but every panel does a beautiful job of showing us how deeply damaged he is, how he's built this whole sexual facade, how he's masquerading as a perverted masochist to avoid confronting his own trauma.

As Yashiro himself would say, humans are full of contradictions, and so is he. He's so deeply wounded that the only way he can cope is by pretending that he likes it, that he's always liked it. I'm honestly in love with the portrayal of Yashiro's character, the complexity, the depth, the way he clearly yearns for just a bit of affection and love and compassion, but he's so intensely afraid of being vulnerable, of intimacy, of opening himself up to pain again that he can't admit it. What's even more depressing is that he's aware of this. He's a very self-aware man who knows exactly why he is the way he is, but he's still stuck in his own patterns of behaviour.

Then, the gentle soul Doumeki comes along and shatters the illusion (and cage) Yashiro's created for himself. It's just so painful, yet so beautiful how Doumeki, unlike the typical "seme" shows Yashiro unconditional care and respect. It's wonderful to see his quiet dedication and patience.

Chapters 24-25 were some of the most hauntingly beautiful panels in any BL/yaoi ever, and though nothing much was said, it was so clear how Yashiro was breaking, how his whole world was falling apart, and the author managed to beautifully capture his pain and fear of vulnerability.

I've never loved a story more. And I'm here to tell you that if you haven't read this masterpiece yet, please do.

*NO SPOILERS*

Where do I even start? Maybe here: To simply slap a BL label on this and leave it at that feels downright criminal.

I’m very grateful that I stumbled upon this without any prior knowledge or pretext. Had I read a synopsis or character description, I doubt I would have given it a try. Almost everything I found on this movie and manga fails to capture the essence of this story and its characters. It very much sounds like one of those cliches where BL is predatory and abuse is strangely romanticized. But I can promise you, that this ... is not the case. At all.

I should preface anything else with a bit of a warning. This manga/movie is without a doubt 18+. No, it isn’t hentai. No, it’s not all just about juicy sex scenes. BUT the story is heavy-laden with crime, violence, sex, abuse, rape, and abuse of minors. But let me say it one more time for the people in the back: In no way, shape, or form are any of these heavy topics romanticized or fetishized. They are merely used as tools to depict what (unfortunately) is reality for many people. Generally, it could be said that mentally healthy and sound individuals with a normal childhood don’t end up in the Yakuza and that’s where this story unfolds…

Yoneda Kou is the author of this journey, that started in 2008 with the one-shot Don’t Stay Gold. The focus is split between the main characters Kageyama & Kuga and character development of Yashiro, the main character of the movie/manga series.

In 2009, the story continues with the one-shot Though They Drift, They Do Not Sink, But Nor Do They Sing, where the focus is on Kageyama’s (one of the mains in Don’t Stay Gold) and Yashiro’s Highschool years, though the focus is again on character development of Yashiro.

Since 2011, Twittering Birds Never Fly has been serialized in HertZ magazine. It depicts Yashiro and Chikara Doumeki (first name, family name) and their struggle to make sense of many difficult feelings in an environment that is ruthless and unforgiving, all while suffocating in profound trauma. Both characters are immensely complex, Yashiro especially so, using his hyper-sexual facade as a tool - both weapon and shield - to navigate the choppy waters of a harsh, men-only crime syndicate. Doumeki, a newcomer to this lifestyle, quickly becomes Yashiro’s anchor, grounding him and pulling him under at the same time. Their affection and fascination with each other is both, tragic and hopeful; twisted, yet simple. But this story is about more than just two people’s attraction. It’s a deep, dark, and intense dive into the Japanese underworld.

You can absolutely watch the movie without having read any source material, just as you can read the main story without the one-shots first. They may all be connected and will absolutely give you a much deeper understanding of all the characters involved, but hey are all stand-alone stories at the same time. I started with the movie and then couldn’t rest until I had found the manga!

The movie adaptation Twittering Birds Never Fly - The Clouds Gather was released in 2020. The adaptation follows the manga very closely and the art is identical to the source material which is a huge plus in my opinion. The movie score has jazzy undertones and fits the whole “mobster theme” well. The ending is a beautiful song with poignant lyrics, and having watched the music video I wonder if the interpretive dance is foreshadowing the storyline? The same year, a sequel The Storm Breaks was announced, but has yet to be released. A third, still untitled movie has also been announced. All three films were licensed by Sentai Filmworks for screenings & releases in North America, so I remain hopeful that it will happen.

When it comes to the voice actors, I have nothing but praise! They infuse Yashiro & Doumeki with so much character and really bring them to life. The acting is truly superb and gives the whole story yet another layer of depth! If you have read the manga and are now watching the movie, you will be amazed by how perfectly they were cast for their respective roles! Likewise, if you’ve just watched the movies and are now diving deeper into the manga, having experienced their “voices” will make reading their story that much more exciting!

There are currently 8 volumes spanning 56 chapters with the next chapter release scheduled March 29, 24. Yoneda sensei announced that the story will conclude within the next 2-3 volumes, so we may be looking at many more years of waiting to see where life will take these two amazing characters.

I hope I could convince you to give this a try and I hope you won’t be disappointed! If you are a fan like me, consider buying original works to support not just the amazing author, but to guarantee the next two movies!

If you are still reading, thank you! I’ve said as much as I could without spoiling anything and now I’d just like to give my opinion:

I’m an avid reader (of literature) and have also watched anime my whole life. Considering that, I want to say how profoundly complex this story is. I occasionally re-read the manga and continue to see more connections, meanings, and interpretations. It absolutely blows my mind that Yoneda sensei pulled this off with the limited medium that is manga, where you don’t have pages upon pages to explain all the details and plots. She has a real talent to convey complex emotions like suspicions, fears, as well as hopes, dreams, and longing (sometimes all at the same time) with a mere sketch of a few characters. It translates very well in the movie! Though the ending definitely leaves you wanting more. If I’m honest, I’m very unsure of where these two characters are headed. It’s so hard to imagine a happy ending given their background and environment, but at the same time it would utterly wreck me if they didn’t get that redemption in the end.

I gave thus one a 10/10 after reading the latest chapter last night.
This is everything I want from a manga and more than I ever hoped to get from a yaoi. The story is interesting and all characters feel so real. The psychological drama, the beautiful art, the pacing - it's just wonderful. This story makes my heart ache in a bittersweet way. The only 'bad' thing is that it takes so long to get new chapters. But seeing the quality of the newest chapters it kinda makes sense. I rather her to take her time to develop the plot and hit us with ... it than getting the chapters pushed out weekly with no substance to them.
I will reread this one more than once for sure.
Highly recommend 🙏