The Novelist (2018)

Good plot, with an amazing sequel.

As I was bored with BL histories that follow similar plots, this one was really entertaining to me. It is one of these Japanese works that appear random at the first sight but is really engaging to watch.
Even though the characters are portrayed with certain detail, it was not enough for me in the beginning. But I have to say that this changes a lot in "Mood Indigo". The thing is that people are complex and not unidimensional as we see in other plots. This drama gave me that. This season adds complexity to the plot and to the characters. It made it one of the best BL's I ever watched.
It has hot scenes but is not that much. It was a lot more natural than what happens in other BLs, where sex and sometimes even kisses are almost taboo. I liked the music. I loved the colors even more.

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I recommend it!

In my review I only summarized some party of the drama, so actually no spoilers ^^

'Pornographer' was on my 'Must watch' list for a long time and I finally watched it. The drama itself is actually nothing like the
rough title, which kinda scared me away at first. It shows a beautiful, developing romantic relationship between the two main actors.
The story itself has a perfect flow. In my opinion, nothing happens to fast and nothing is dragged out. It starts very sudden (which is not bad) but takes an interesting turn.
I love the acting of both main actors. They portraied their feelings and thoughts very well and natural. The same goes for the support actors.
I love how throughout the story You can clearly see the development of the main characters (mostly Kuzumi).
At first, he wasn't really bothered about Rio as a person but became more interested with time. Towards the end he even got jealous.
I think, this story shows a really beautiful and romantic relationship between two grown man. They are not really in a loving relationship, rather they love to be and learn from each other. It's satisfying to see how Kuzumi remembered the things that he learned to love at Rio's home (for example he has a record player in his room at the end. He first saw one at Rio's home).
The only thing that kinda bothered me was the end which was kinda sudden. You only can imagine how Kuzumi and Rio feel about each other, since they never talked about it.
I would rewatch it but not in the near future since it would take the magic of the drama away.

Finally I can say that I absolutely loved watching 'Pornographer'. I would recommend it to everyone who is looking for a drama with a growing, sexual but romantic relationship between two men.

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Soo... true to its name it is rather explicit, but not in a bad way xD
Its a short intense serie. Yep, that basically explains it all, it has only 5 ep. they are around 20-30 min. each, and boy... oh boy.. it is the literal definition of a rollercoaster of emotions.
It starts in the most romantic way xD... a crash.
Instead of the student paying the medical fees, he gets offered to help the person he crashed into... a writer, to copy his books since his arm is injured, or is it??
So I really liked this serie, it was well filmed and had some great scenes xD

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Lust, Lies and confusion about Love

Between Lust, Lies and Love there is a very troubled man or three... Saying such words as ah ah... and he put his... with a calm and soothing voice as if they where reading a news paper or some kind of text book.

This is the type of drama you watch either with a finger close to the mute button or far, far away from others ears. The romance in this is everything but healthy and the psychological parts are indeed psychological... There is some partial nudity and a whole lot of talk and show of people getting it off... but I* dare say that that part is mostly tastefully zoomed in or out and has a side of cold humour between the parts that should be classified as sexual assault. As you may guess this is not a drama that will make you fall in love but it may have you wondering what lust is and may make you curious about erotic books as well as ponder about stuff... So if you are prepared for all that it is a decent watch but there is a reason or ten for it being rated 18 +

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Production Value On Point As Well As Everything Else

I don't want to go too much into this series, because honestly knowing as little as possible is the optimal way to watch it. Just go in expecting some fantastic cinematography and set designing, that clearly had some production budget to back it up even if the show only really shows few filming locations. As well as really well done musical score, thought provoking dialogue and scenes acted out by stellar actors in the series (our main 2, so freaking good). The series felt like a more indie-ish project done by an up and coming talented artsy film student, it's probably not the case but that's the vibes it gave me which I love. Like I could see "The Novelist" getting awards in festivals if people actually took the time to sit down and watch it for what it is. Which is basically a layered character study. Rather than classify it as "BL" which it definitely isn't ya'll, trust me. Just because a series has a "gay couple/romance arch" in it doesn't mean it's immediately "BL" material (like for example, "Call Me By Your Name" is not a BL film). That's more its own genre (which is totally valid in its own right of course) and that's why I would just say LGBTQ related content instead for this.

It's funny because as much as I really really enjoyed this series, I don't think I'll be watching it again any time soon (though I have seen it twice already haha). Strictly because it is so emotionally draining (even if the ending is emotionally fulfilling) in some ways because of Kijima's character and how he functions, as well as having to follow around and see how badly Kuzumi has it for him. Let's just say its highly ironic how the two's relationship could very well be something written about in one of Kijima's novels to an extent. However, it's not lighthearted, it's actually quite sad all the way around. Yet also very erotic. There's a lot of very graphic sexual wordplay discussed within this (obviously since Kijima writes pornographic novels) and pretty graphic scenes as well. Nothing too crazy, but done in ways where it can be alarming so I need to prepare myself for them lol. I do really suggest watching this series though, at least once since it is incredibly well done! Though watching it for a second time, you will see some clever hints and clues to the plot and characters that you wouldn't see the first time around.

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There were no redeeming qualities for this show

I was intrigued by the premise of this as it seemed like an interesting departure from normal shows. However, it turned out to be a bundle of all the problematic tropes of every romance (bl specifically) series which made the series spectacularly cliche as well as uncomfortable. You’ve got: manipulation, student adult relationship, boss and employee power dynamic relationship, lying, verbal violence and manipulation (I hesitate on the word abuse but it definitely edged on that in one scene), drunk sex (one drunk, one completely sober), jealousy, controlling and possessive dynamics etc. There’s really a lot- and even the mini stories within were full of problematic narratives (I guess fairly typical of porn there). One could say: “well this is a realistic relationship” but I’m so fed up of gay narratives constantly being associated with these problematic features. Further, the story did not make any obvious criticisms of these aspects which might have made the narrative more compelling as a “realistic” story of a f*d relationship.

Onto the acting- it was pretty wooden and all the characters came off a bit unpleasant in the delivery. I’d put that down to the discomfort of the entire thing and some of the awkward lines they were given so I wouldn’t blame the actors too much there. I felt basically zero chemistry between the leads which just added to the intense awkwardness of the series. The relationship seemed even more lacking as the acting and chemistry didn’t fill in the gaping holes in the relationship progression.

And finally the ending (spoilers in this section)- I hoped it would have redeemed the relationship with some sweet moments or maybe address the problematic aspects and progress onwards. Unfortunately but predictably, the ending was as disappointing as the rest of the series. The relationship fizzled out as fast as it started (one or two rounds of sex and a half hearted romantic convo was the culmination of this romance at its height) and the morning after the student and their relationship was left behind by the older.

I honestly can’t remember what the music was like and don’t want to rewatch any part of this to check it over so the low rating on music may be an injustice in this case.

If you’re looking for something racy or whatever I would even hesitate to say it gives that… the explicit scenes were quite awkward to watch and not at all artistically shot. And the seductive (???) writing bits had the vibe of a wattpad fanfiction being read aloud with the level of writing and word choice. This made each writing scene a try not to cringe challenge.

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WASN'T CUP OF MY TEA

i knew that this will contain mature scenes but fucc this is so wild beyond my expectations... my mouth was agape for 5 mins straight frfr. i just tried to try another genre of bl series and im very much fine with mature scenes but this series has no/little fluff at all and im a sucker for fluff bl so nah this aint really my taste. moreover this is too fast-paced as well, i prefer slow burn. from my perspective it seems that this series has definitely some issues as well ... and the ending...... wasn't also satisfying... welp this was kinda heavy ya know .. it left me devastated

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if you come for the title...

you'll probably will satisfied.

The sexual scenes in the story are intense and captivating, and the kiss scenes are particularly well-written. However, the overall plot and character development are lacking. The story feels dull and predictable, with no significant changes or growth in the characters. While the story was enjoyable, it didn't have a lasting impact or evoke strong emotions. It didn't leave a lasting impression or move me in any meaningful way. the movie may not have a mature or sophisticated storyline, but it contains content that is not safe for work (NSFW). This could mean that the film includes explicit or inappropriate material that may not be suitable for viewing in a professional or public setting. It's possible that the movie may focus more on sensational or explicit content rather than a complex or thought-provoking narrative.

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Unloveable main character undermines this drama

Kuzumi (Izuka Kenta) is a university student who accidentally runs down Kijima (Takezai Terunosuke) with his bicycle, causing an injury to his writing arm. Kijima is a novelist who appears to be in his mid-30s, but he lives in the analogue world of someone twice his age. He listens to vinyl records, has no computer and writes his books out on paper. Kuzumi has no liability insurance and is a poor college student so Kijima allows him to work off the debt of medical bills by writing for him and doing light housework. At first Kuzumi is shocked to learn the books Kijima writes are graphic adult fiction, but quickly adapts. The two are attracted to each other but inexplicably act as if they have something to hide when there is really no one else in their lives. Only when Kimjima gets drunk one night does he have the nerve to ask Kuzumi to sleep in his bed. Nothing more happens than a kiss, though. Kijima is bitter about having to write low-brow porn novels for a living and he's had writer's block for the past year. So to make an excuse to have Kuzumi around, he recites passages from his old novels for the boy to transcribe. So far, this all makes sense. But then Kijima pushes Kuzumi away. Perhaps he sees too much difference in their age or feels he's all washed up while Kuzumi has his whole life ahead of him? Well, I guess that's a selfless gesture, but Kuzumi has really fallen in love with him. They have one climatic gay sex fling and Kuzumi asks him to write a story for him. Sometime later the story arrives and I think we're to believe it helped him overcome his writer's block. Meanwhile, Kuzumi has graduated from university and has a job at a big company, but we get no closure on his romantic life. The plot has all of the excitement and interest of a jet roaring down the runway, waiting to take off but it never really leaves the ground. It seems to just slow down and park at the terminal again. Izuka Kenta, who is 34 in real life, is completely convincing as 22-year-old Kuzumi. He really grounds the film in reality. Takezai Terunosuke's gives an uneven performance as Kijima. His character seems so unloveable that we begin to wonder what the heck Kuzumi sees in him. He's a compulsive liar and bit of a sadist. In the end, they seem to just be two lonely guys who find some temporary solace in their odd companionship, but it would be a stretch to say they are friends. I give this 3 stars overall because Izuka is so delightful to watch, but Takezai's Kimja must have been written by a committee who couldn't agree on his motivation.

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That was really not my cup of tea..

I liked the acting. That was great. I also liked the music. And the funny moments! And...that's it.

Unfortunately I can't join the squad which is head over heels for this drama. I didn't like it.. I know that there are also shows about Kido and Kijimas previous relationship (Mood Indigo) and a Sequel for this show, but I can't bring myself to watch these too.. even though I thought Kido was interesting. His voice is definitely a thing! x.x

But..I don't like forcing sexual acts on others and this whole lying, manipulation, not caring about Kuzumis feelings...nah. Just nah.

I liked Kuzumi, but he's naive and..stupid as hell.

I think this drama shouldn't be called a Boy Love, because there is no love at all. ^^'

2/10 for the funny moments, the great acting and "Twilight Dreams".

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Great BL drama!

It's an interesting BL drama, actually one of the best BL dramas indeed! I do like that it's only 6 short episodes. I loved the season 2 drama "Mood Indigo" so much so I decided to sign up MyDramaList and write a review about this drama and season 2 drama as well. This one is different from "Mood Indigo." I like this story because it's funny and different. In particular, it's about a young boy (inexperienced) finding himself through the journey or time spent with the novelist. Sex scenes were good but Season 2 is WOW for me, even though not as funny but the story a bit more realistic. Both dramas don't necessary relate to each other but I do recommend watching this one first and then the second season. Enjoy!

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