Hitochigai kara Hajimaru Koi mo Aru (2024)

Short and sweet and excellent

A perfect little drama! I got it from drama otaku where a kind soul edited all episodes seamlessly together making it into a one hour movie and another one subbed it skilfully.

The story of twins, mistaken identities and true love is told from a double point of view: in the first half it is one of the twins telling the story and in the other half it is the boyfriend Chiaki's turn. The drama starts somehow suddenly (there are no opening credits so it is a bit weird!) and it takes a viewer a couple of minutes to settle down. But then the story smoothly flows (thank you again the editor!).

The writing is stellar, no unnecessary side characters just three main ones (four if you include the cat!) and only two actors. One plays the twins and does it with brio, subtly and it is very much clear which twin is on screen by the slight changes in attitudes and the look in the actor's eyes. Well they are the complete opposites: one is serious, studious and hard working while the other one is a happy go lucky, live one day at a time type. The actor playing Chiaki, the boyfriend, leans a bit too much into being excessively cute to the point of being slightly annoying. And those bangs hiding his eyes were unbecoming... But calling the twin he fell for Cat Prince and looking for him in the bins, among other places, was hilarious.

This short BL manages to tell a story about love at first sight gone wrong because of siblings' rivalry. But all's well that ends well and the brothers stop being jealous of each other eventually realizing they are different and so much better off for it.

This short drama is masterfully produced probably on a shoestring budget but the writing and the acting are top notch so the flaws are minor. It is such a lovely, uplifting short watch; so if you need something toxic free to cheer you up, this is a perfect solution.

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