Kimi wa Natsu no Naka (2026)

A story of discovery but with no real kisses...

Of course I have to rant again, because in this story kissing has a deeper meaning especially in the finale. And both can't do it which sucks. That's a clear de-ranking for me.

But: We get a more realistic story, about disovering feelings one of the MLs did not know he had, about a stupid decision which could have ended a relationship before it began and about how to come together even with all the hurdles in their way. If you don't talk about what you're feeling, it always creates problems. The story was sensible told, some scenes are very emotional and feel realistic. For me, the pacing was off. The first half was very fast paced and there happens a lot, the second half is very slow, too slow imho.

Production quality was superb, even with some bonus landscape pictures which were really pretty and interesting. The intro song is also so "non-BL" and they hired veteran Erina Koyama for the rest. She did a bunch of soundtracks and a lot of BL soundtracks (also for "Love Is Better the Second Time" S1 & S2). You can listen to her work on youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCpPc7Q4cYWyynGkVls-ugLw

Overall an interesting story, more realistic as I assumed in the beginning. The only downfall for this series are actors not committing to their roles, even when Mr. Oku Tomoya was already in "Minato's Laundromat" S1 & S2. It's especially disappointing because this time the kissing is story relevant. Also the pacing is off in the second half where the story streched too far. Still, I liked the series. It's not top notch, but still good.

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Unrequited Love, Fast Feelings That Slowly Lost Its Spark

The first few episodes were surprisingly fast paced. I have a soft spot for high school crushes slowly turning into romance, especially when there are unrequited feelings involved, so I was immediately interested. I was actually surprised that Saeki confessed in the very first episode instead of dragging the confession out for half the series.

The story itself is simple, light and refreshing, focusing more on the awkward emotions of being young rather than filling the story with unnecessary drama. The chemistry between the leads feels natural, the acting is convincing, and the soundtrack fits the youthful summer atmosphere really well. I am always happy to watch another high school BL, so I was definitely enjoying it at first.

Episode 4 hit me particularly hard because the situation reminded me of something that happened to me in real life. My best friend and I had been inseparable since primary school, but one day my parents suddenly told me we were moving more than 2,000 km away to another state. This was before I started using social media, so keeping in touch was not easy and we eventually lost contact for more than 10 years before finally reconnecting. It was heartbreaking because, as children, we had no control over decisions like that. Our parents made them for us.

That is why Toda leaving without properly saying goodbye to Saeki really got to me. Knowing you are leaving is one thing, but disappearing without giving the other person a chance to say goodbye can hurt even more. Sometimes a goodbye cannot change what is going to happen, but it can give someone closure. Being left behind without an explanation is something that can stay with you for a very long time.

Episode 5 was another one I enjoyed. I loved the flashback showing how they first met when they were younger, and I especially liked the handwritten note. In a world where everyone sends texts, there is something much more meaningful about someone taking the time to actually write something down for you.

Episode 6 was probably my favourite. The beach scene was genuinely beautiful. They finally opened up about their feelings, cried together, confessed what they had been holding inside and ended the moment with a hug. It felt very honest and emotional without needing to be overly dramatic. That scene really worked for me.

My main criticism is that these actors just cannot kiss.
Their first kiss was unexpected because it was basically a kiss through a mask 😷 I honestly never seeing that before. I did not hate it, but I definitely did not like it either. It was just... unexpected.

Then every other kisses feels like a dead fish kiss with no passion or movement at all. I’m currently watching over 20 airing BLs, so maybe my expectations are just too high, but if you take on a BL role, then you need to fully commit to it.

I would honestly rather they not kiss at all than give us an awkward kiss where they just press their lips together and freeze. If you’re going to include kissing scenes, then commit to them and make them believable.

Overall, I think this BL started much stronger than it finished. The beginning moved at such a fast pace that I was really invested, but somewhere along the way the story started to drag and I felt like not much was happening.

In the end, this is a light and wholesome BL with some genuinely emotional moments, but for me, it is not one of the best Japanese BLs out there. I enjoyed watching it, especially the earlier episodes and the emotional scenes, but I was hoping for a little more by the end.

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