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I am a big fan of CTK, especially "Midnight Rain" captured my heart with its older, rough masculine romance. I rarely get these outside of bara/geikomi or fanworks. "On Doorstep" was also a good one.

However, I am not sure about this work, and it quite frankly left me bamboozled and waiting. The topic of brother complexes is ever-present, yet never fully explored, some bits of self-harm for attention and stalker behaviour are thrown in - and yet I find nothing to grasp at. Who are these people and why are they the way they are? Even if they sometimes outright state their emotions in inner ... monologues, I still find myself asking "...ok?"
And I think this is the shortcoming of why this doesn't resonate with me, I don't really get why characters do the things they do, except "because plot". I feel like this manga was cut short, especially, when a big family confrontation rolls around, where verbal and physical violence was used: happens completely off-screen. The father, who played a big role in both brothers' lives, is never seen.

Overall, this manga is presentable, with a unique theme, but it ultimately falls short, literally. I expected more from CTK, and I will wait for the next work.

Well damn, they really just went in here stepping their whole game up

I got into the Utapri franchise via the rhythm game (English version discontinued now, curse you) and then tried the anime, didn't like it at all, but stuck to it - something had to be here. The new course kicked in when S4 started, and ever since then, I am fully on board: The Utapri franchise has been soaring for me once they did what was possibly the smartest move in their branding: no one *really* cares about the otome cishet romance aspect with a girl that has soup bowls for eyes, we ... want the hot and cool guys to be rad, everyone with their own stories and characterisations, plus some homoerotic moments.

And ever since then? Wowee, we are feasting.

Maji Love Kingdom, the concert movie before this one, was a welcome entry during the lockdown time of the pandemic for me: I couldn't go out, I hadn't seen a lot of people, and here I was: I could join a live performance at home - with the cheering, the spontaneous banter, the interactions with the crowd, all very entertaining and uplifting during a difficult time.

And now, the second concert movie is here and WEW they blew it out of the water: who cares about "realism" when you can deliver awesome performances, choreographies and outlandish staging - it is FUN. Have people flying, big hologram dragons, throw in flying boat, why not, you will have a STELLAR time.

Starish TOURS takes the approach of a musical style world tour, one song will have a Las Vegas vibe, another a French aesthetic and theme, and many more. And these make for a varied program with a lot of different entries, there will be something for your taste.

Honestly, 60 minutes well spent, it does exactly what it wants to do, plus a very fun encore, and I was amazed by the production value and attention to detail: expressive and powerful animation and staging, 3D that is smooth or snappy for whatever it needs to be, and the songs are catchy with their different vibes. I wonder how much the rise of kpop influenced this production, it feels very now, very modern - some other idol shows can only dream of such a freshness and spectacle.

If you are a fan, this is a must, and if you are just looking for a good time with a fun concert, this is also for you!

Mentaiko Itto is currently one of the biggest names in "bara" or rather "gei komi" (gay comics) in Japan. Unlike BL, which shows male gay romance by straight women for straight women, this genre is by gay men for gay men. It thus differs in many ways: the artstyle is more masculine, leaning on the Seinen side instead of the BL-shoujo-bishonen, and will tackle topics such as LGBTQ+ acceptance, social issues, patriarchal structures and toxic masculinity.
"The Boy Who Cries Wolf" is the story of a high schooler who is in the closet, coming out is not an option for him. When graduation comes around ... the corner, he is looking forward to maybe starting is new gay life far away from his hometown.
In the final night, hanging out with his male friends, he can let his homosexuality out in a playful manner, he is drunk, he kisses one of his mates, what a big good time.
However, later that night, said friend comes out to him... but our protagonist can't. In the following sex scene, we see an intense and honestly heartbreaking inner monologue about him not being able to be who he wants to be, but also, even in the act of gay sex, cannot deal with the shame. Neither can he emotionally support his gay friend. The internalised homophobia is too strong.
Another review on this site called this scene a "rape scene", however, I disagree with this reading, as it is fully consensual, yet struggles with its own identity and intention: which is the whole theme of the story. (It also portrays gay anal sex in a realistic manner, it can severely hurt if one is not well-prepared, unlike in the BL genre where lube or foreplay is often non-existent.)
The story ends positively, with the two friends being able to reconnect and talk about it many years later, and both apologising and making up for it.
What also leads me to this conclusion is the afterword by the author himself, which is included in my physical copy by the Bruno Gmünder publisher: Mentaiko Itto says that this story is quite autobiographical, he was in the closet for his whole youth, and now as an adult, severely regrets that he couldn't support gay friends who came out to him in his school days - he feels shame for letting his fellow gay friends down, and not having been true to himself.
As the story itself ends on a positive note, his own afterword also ends in a positive one: I'm out to the world now, and I'm happy. And I think that is wonderful.
"The Boy Who Cries Wolf" is a tough read, an emotional turmoil that many LGBTQ+ youths all around the world face, and I will recommend it highly for that.

Not sure which "lovey dovey cute" manga you are reading, but the protagonist gets graphically raped by the love interest in the first chapter and it's not adressed - in fact it gives some slapdash explanation of "taking magic by raping into submission", of course not worded like this. This might be the grim and terrible time of 2000s BL where consent is an afterthought and everyone is blinded by the "pretty art and beautiful character design". BL blatantly showing rape and not handling it as such is a gripe I have had with the genre forever, it's getting better, but early BL is overrun ... with this trope.

If you are fine with that, go ahead, for everyone else, skip it.

I have to agree with all the positive points, people have already written: the retro artstyle is amazing, the comedy is great and the overall feel is amazing. It's a unique manga that I am glad exists.

HOWEVER: I really don't appreciate the pupil/teacher shipping in this manga, even if it is played for laughs. This sadly only gets worse in the sequel, and then it starts feeling creepy. You can just FEEL that the author would ship an underage pupil with an adult man in any other circumstance, and they have indeed done so in their other works. Explicitly. Full on porn. And I am ... just not ok with that, it is disgusting and feels borderline grooming/pedophilia. This is a subjective viewpoint of mine, please enjoy whatever you please in media.

I know that some people can just brush that off as "that's just how BL is", but I can't, and I at least want to warn people about it before they run straight into it - because I wished someone had at least warned me about it.

I was more than surprised by "Seikimatsu Darling", I was highly delighted!

Contrary to all classic 90's/00's BL genre conventions, this is a funny and compelling story of two men who both want to conquer the other.
The heteronormative and downright shoujo-cis-coloured feminine-uke/masculine-seme structure doesn't exist, because the two don't know how to approach this fresh new gay relationship: This is a first for both. And so begins a very funny romcom of two office salarymen types who want to impress the other with swooping masculinity, strength and charm. Of course, hijinks ensue, in the funniest and most heartwarming manner! I was so very happy to have ... seen this anime, and even more so surprised that something so modern in its gay representation was released in 1996, where the toxic tropes of "~omg yaoi kyaaaa~" ran rampant.

It's only a short OVA of about 30 minutes with a little bonus at the end, but it's absolutely worth watching by anyone who knows the genre BL, is fed up with heteronormative nonsense, or even doesn't know the genre at all! Treat yourselves and I will cherish this darling of an OVA forever!

Ah, Gokushufudo. The anime adaptation many of us, including me, had been looking forward to.

The first trailer, however, was slightly concerning. Then, the director told in an interview that the producer wanted the anime "to look like the manga, and never move the characters". Which is an odd choice for an anime adaptation, and made people even more concerned.

Now it is out, and I could form my own opinion:

At the worst of times, it's a drab motion manga.

At the best of times, it's in the realm of "Cromartie Highschool", which also works with limited animation, different screen ratios and panels on screen.

Overall, it could ... be worse, it's still presentable and I laughed a lot. The manga is one of my absolute favourites, and I hope this will give the original work more exposure and mainstream focus.

But there is no denying that most of the weight is pulled by the voice acting, writing and comedic timing alone. Big kudos to all the voice actors, especially Kenjirou Tsuda, he was BORN for this role. If the animation was on par now, and this was a full length series, I think this could have been an absolutely stellar anime and an alltime classic. (Gokushofudo with the animation of a Nichijou, I can only dream...) At least I can show the anime to some friends as well, to give them a taste of the series, that's nice.

Time to continue what I always did: reading the manga, buy the tankobons, and occasionally rewatch the manga PV, to marvel at its style and care put into it.

Bottom Line: While it's still wasted potential, it tries to deliver what it can. It's fine. In the right hands, it could have been a masterpiece, but right now and like this, it's... fine.

This was exactly the manga I needed.

Kanda Tokizou, 42 years old, has been in unrequited love with his best friend from high school, Shiba Ryuuji, for 25 years. They depend on each other, and have met her and there for a beer and laugh ever since they finished school.
But after a few things change through the flow of time, Kanda finally has a chance to change things.
However, is it even possible to have a relationship after being friends for 25 years? With a friend who is straight?

I love the realistic and emotional side of this manga, not everything is easy in life, and it ... will lead to heated arguments, broken pride, and time that needs to be caught up.

To see two guys in their 40s try to understand each other was heartwarming and sensitive, and made me cry while reading it. This manga focuses a lot more on emotions, feelings and character development than on sexual content, so I would recommend this manga even to people who are not into BL. I would even go so far to call this manga more Bara/Gei Komi than BL, since it feels neither fetishistic, nor guided by heteronormative romance tropes typical of BL - it's a gay love story between two grown men.

It's an honest, emotional and deep romance of two old friends finding each other. It has consent, many emotions, and a big heart underneath every moment. These men communicate, they do mistakes, they apologise, and their ending will make anyone smile.

This small gem is now in my personal favourites, not many romance stories have touched me this deeply, and I certainly would love to read more of them. Give it a shot, it's short, but all the more sweet.