Just being alive is the greatest thing!

What an amazing drama! Highly predictable, full of clichés and yet gripping and thought provoking and it concerns each and every one of us!

The main topic is depression and teens and how the parental and/or societal expectations can ruin someone's self-esteem and ultimately the will to live. This is a story of Boo, who faced with his own shortcomings compared to his brilliant father thinks seriously about suicide. But a chance encounter with a group of skateboarders, make him fine a new will to live. His father, still completely oblivious to his sons misery, tries to steer him in the direction he wants him to go, whether Boo is happy about it or not. The penny drops for the father when he realizes he has no recent photos of his son: the latest one being from primary school.

The mental health representation in this drama is perfect. The kid's unhappiness, the reasons for it, how to deal with it and what the depression is, are excellently explained and shown. The most important fact here ,that they stressed repeatedly, is that the path to well being is long and difficult, the patients need to be surrounded by well meaning and caring family and friends who need to be vigilant because of possible setbacks! The actor playing Boo is incredible: he manages to show Boo's deep feelings of unhappiness by subtle mannerisms, posture and facial microexpressions. Perfect!

Other characters are the usual suspects!
The father too busy to notice anything is wrong and quick to criticize and demand excellence and blind obeissance.
A young shrink projecting onto Boo her own family trauma in order to help him but getting into it too deep.
An older youth, a skateboarding master who becomes Boo's idol and who takes no nonsense from anyone and talks like that as well.
The youth's sister who plays with Boo's heart and unwittingly provokes a life changing accident.

All of the characters change, learn and mature during the drama and by the end of it, they all have learned important life lessons. The ending is a bit sappy and too fluffy for my taste but it is feelgood and just what the doctor ordered.

Cinematography is excellent, especially in episodes 6 & 7 when certain scenes are monochrome: pink, green, red etc. to go with the moods of suffering characters. Music is just the right amount of rock to go with skateboarding and ominous background score for the depression.

This is an amazing drama which, in spite of its serious subject matter and the cliché characters, grabs your attention from the get go and keeps it until the last moment of the last short episode! The length of the drama is perfect: 8 short episodes are just enough to tell a comprehensive story without it losing momentum by introducing secondary characters' stories!

I am surprised that it is not watched more! It should be! It gives us all a valuable lesson about life which we often seem to forget!

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Relationship handbook or how they should be!

Finally, I managed to finish this even though it took me longer than I intended. The reason? This drama is a rollercoaster ride but not in a good sense. It starts slowly with annoying main characters. So annoying, I almost dropped it but since I promised to watch it I persevered. After the episode 6 it suddenly gets better, more exciting and faster only to slow down a few episodes later turning into a boring mess. It picks up again towards the ending when it became necessary to give resolution to different storylines.

This is a love story between a doctor and a funeral director. The doctor has abandoned doctoring because of a personal tragedy (death of a brother) and the funeral director needs to earn some money to ease the burden on her father. But she has a magic touch: when she touches a dead person, they wake up and get to have a last wish granted. After the initial scare, she takes care of 21 wishes she was supposed to get. We discover in the last episode the connection between these 21 people and the funeral director with a magic touch. The drama deals with relationships and what do they mean: family, friends, coworkers, religion and how they help us deal with life and death situations, what is acceptable and how we are perceived by people around us, both known and unknown and how we deal with that!

I liked the story, the fantasy element was original. I liked the overall optimistic outlook on human nature: the vast majority of people are nice and kind and really good. I often wonder if they really are or should this as well be counted under the fantasy element (my cynicism is showing!!)?

After my initial annoyance with the leads: I found the FL brazen and rude and the ML a spineless wimp, they grew on me and were really good together. Their relationship managed to avoid those pesky misunderstandings, influence of a toxic ex and last episode break up only to meet after a time skip! So surprising for a K drama!It was not all smooth sailing but it moved nicely forward without being boring! Well done!

There were some amazing support characters the best of which were two uncles: a single man with a funny haircut and a priest! Their bromance and the banter, verging on a BL, were really funny. Only that makes this drama worth the watch! And of course there is the funeral director's best friend with a crush on her boss, slowly pursuing him, making sweet faces and rolling shyly her eyer until he succumbed. Cute! By the way, why isn't Tae In Ho getting better and bigger roles? He deserves much better than the endless string of support and guest roles!

The music was lovely, the songs were appropriately sweet and slow with enough emotions considering the subject matter.

Now that I think of it, this seems to be another entry in the list of dramas dealing with recently deceased and their wishes and last moments (Tomorrow, Move To Heaven etc.) I must have sen others as well! I wonder why are there often such dramas coming from Korea! I do not remember watching as many western shows with such theme (Pushing Daisies, I Zombie...were mostly comedies!). The comedy here is just to give you a breather between serious scenes! The balance between serious and funny was perfectly attained!

I don't like the drama poster: already seen elsewhere and therefore not really attracting attention: so much so I almost missed this drama! Which was an OK watch but I will never rewatch it since it is not bingeable and it did not strike me as memorable!

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I was bored!!!

I think I might be getting fed up with all these "classical" Sherlock Holmes versions. All of this has been seen so many times and the only originality here is that it takes place in Japan today. The rest is just The Hound of the Baskervilles. I am blessed in a way, since I usually do not remember the plot of these movies (and books - the same is with every Agatha Christie book: as soon as I finish the book, my brain refuses to retain the name of the culprit so it is always new! For me, at least!). So even though I have seen every other version of this story, I cannot remember the plot. All I remember is that it takes place in the countryside.
So that is the case here. There are a couple of murders and kidnappings, rich families and their secrets and an earthquake punishing everyone, one way or another.

Shishio and Wakamiya are back, more annoying than before. Shishio looks like he just came back from Afghanistan, wearing ample robes and looking scruffy and unkempt. Wakamiya is imagining himself a detective like SH but he is too pretty to be convincing so he just struts around, following Shishio and failing at being helpful. There is no more chemistry between them that made the series such a fun watch in the beginning. Shishio just seems bored and Wakamiya is just a lovely wallflower!

What I loved was the cinematography: beautiful shots of mountainous and misty island, scary mine shafts and subdues colours verging towards grey, cold tones! And the music! Something special. The background score evolved as the story progressed, from the cello grating noise to the sweeping orchestral pieces to the final credits beautiful song, "lullaby" by YU-KA.

Last but not least, thank you eveychooey for the subs! I do not regret watching this: having these excellent subs just added to the pleasure of discovering a new exciting movie!

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Three micro dramas wrapped in a forth

A mix of romance, fantasy, adventure and chinese short dramas, Serendipity is a quick and fun watch. The story follows a student who accidentally touches a spiritual lamp and finds herself going from one book to another and finishing quests in order to earn more spiritual energy to get out of the book. She is accompanied by a history professor travelling through books. They go through three books, each adventure taking about three and a half episodes (the length of those micro c dramas!).

This drama is seriously woke feminist: each task the girl is given is about women empowerment be it a housewife, a princess or a businesswoman. The FL is a smart strong kind and beautiful, she has everything going for her. Kudos for the production team: they managed to keep everything streamlined, especially the plot. They did not have much choice, this having only 12 episodes. The pacing was perfect, the cases were fun and watching the romance evolve before our eyes was sweet and cute. The actors had good chemistry. The music was excellent and I loved the final credits song. Apparently this drama had a limited low budget: well it does not show it! The cinematography and the special effects are top notch.

Now for the negative parts: the plot was a bit messy. The explanation of the spiritual book travelling quests were unclear: why was it there? What is the professor doing and why? Wan Wan the book spirit and his role in everything. And of course; that ending. Where were they and what were they doing for two months? No answers whatsoever! And do not start me on those dead fish frozen kisses! Last but not least, why is the ML speaking as if he out of breath, soundlessly. I do not get this need to whisper loudly!

If you overlook these little details, this is a really fun watch! People say c dramas are full of silly damsels in distress. I have yet to watch a c drama to find one. I haven't seen that many, it's true, but damsel in distress? ....well it is not the case here.

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Weirdly enjoyable mess

Captivated, by You is a misleading title coupled with that poster gives you all the feels of a BL. Nothing of the sort. Actually it is very difficult to pinpoint the exact genre. Why? Well, let's see....

The drama follows two high school boys, in two different towns, in two different schools, with different experiences and interests. They have absolutely nothing in common save for a moment their literal paths crossed and one boy took a photo of the other one being bizarre on the other side of the road. And they are both cute. That's it!

When you say school drama, the first item on the producers' list is bullying. So there is some of that of course! The boys' reactions to it are different; while one is immune to it and does not pay attention, the other one creates a repulsive and scary character in order not to be bothered again.

The drama has a strange structure: it keeps jumping back and forth between the characters and up and down the timeline so pay attention while watching. Everything is strange about this drama: the weird book they keep quoting (does it really exist?), side characters' stories out of nowhere when even the main characters' have not been developed correctly and of course the total absence of adults! That is often the case in school dramas and I find it fascinating; the kids are left alone to fend for themselves.

At the end of episode three, there is an amazing trailer for a fake horror movie only japanese can make and looking mighty real and convincing! I almost looked the advertised "movie" up!

And despite all this strangeness, it was a great little drama, leaving you wanting for more! The characters were likable, the actors excellent, the music was really good and the overall production was high value. And I want more!

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Before they were famous....

I would not call it a knee slapping comedy but it is a nice simple movie to watch especially if you want to see the huge stars of today in one of their first roles, when they were young and innocent! LOL

The story follows three high school best friends as they navigate the sensitive time between adolescence and adulthood doing every silly thing boys that age do as they mature. Talking about girls, trying to get laid, choosing a profession, gaining independence from family...

The actors are all exceptional, the banter and their chemistry is worth the watch. The girl gravitating around them is a welcome addition with her deadpan expression and no nonsense attitude.

And of course, the cherry on the cake is the slow motion fistfight with the loan sharks. That was really funny! The film is worth the watch for this scene! But not only, rest assured!

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Miss Kawai & Mr Prickly

To my great surprise, this drama manages to tread the fine line between cute and annoying, finding the perfect amount of sugar without it becoming diabetes inducing.

Well, I thought this was a fairly recent drama. I picked it up on the feeds and never really bothered to notice the year. I also think there is a drama with a similar poster actually released this year. Towards the end of the drama, I decided to look up the actors and while reading their bios, i realized that it was six years old.

(On the unrelated matter pertaining to the private: why is the main actress not working any more? Ever since she started dating & married one of the actors from this drama, she disappeared from the public view. I wonder why? It sounds odd!)

Back to the drama! The story is rather simple: a girl who makes cakes is offered a job in a restaurant run by three brothers. Initially she accepts it since she's had a crush on the eldest brother since forever but clashes from the first minute with the second brother. Basically it is enemies to lovers story.

The FL is a cute idiot on the surface, jumping around like a 3 yr old, squealing and generally behaving like a silly girl) but surprisingly has bouts of lucidity when her good sense and courage come out and she faces her problems directly. And though often she behaves as if she is completely unaware of other people's feelings (confiding in a brother who obviously likes her, that she has a crush on another brother - that seems very insensitive!) she is quick to mend the damages she causes! She is a perfect balance between cute and annoying, never too much of either which makes her highly likable and watchable! You just have to be brave and watch the first episode without dropping the drama. It is worth it.

The three brothers are clichés: the eldest is the responsible one, the middle a talented one and the youngest a rebellious one. In contact with the girl, they change. The responsible brother finds a bit of joie de vivre. The talented one loses some of his thorns and the rebellious one grows up.

The main couple spends a lot of time literally running from one place to another. Apparently there are no means of transportation in this town! LOL

There are some interesting side characters: the best friend who is always surrounded by crowds when she talks to FL (running gag!), the stunning ex and the weird gangster looking guy trying to buy (?) the restaurant. There are no negative characters: on the outside they might seem evil and bad but they are just life weary!

It is a very wholesome cute and kind drama, fluffy and easy to watch, full of tropes sprinkled judiciously throughout. But then they let all caution out the window and went for the most annoying tropes ever in the lest episode: noble idiocy and an airport reunion.

So if you are looking for some limited cute and a little annoying fluffy drama, look no more!

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Cute ?!?!?

If this were a straight romance, the comments would be: so boring, seen so many times, looks like a high school project. But since it is a lgbtqabcdefg whatever, it is necessarily amazing, great, cute, brave. Shouldn't be saying anything critical about it, it is not right to do so!

But, I was so bored by a 15min film. I multitasked while watching so.....

The actresses have no talent or chemistry. They are so awkward with each other. And I know: it is their first meeting so it is natural to be uncomfortable but these two seemed to be in two different movies. The overuse of social media is tiring. Today, before getting to know anyone, you have to ask your social media followers for their opinion...we do live in crazy times!

The sets are cold and empty, the music is non existent. I wish it were longer and better developed. The story is not original but it does not mean it has to be boring! I know it was probably made with a very little money but. Still that is not an excuse! I mean just look at Confidential Coffee Break: two people talking in an empty set: gripping!

Could have and should have been better!

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Failed british black comedy

Too many cooks spoil the soup! Well, here we can say, too many plotlines, spoil the drama.

The original idea is good: a kind of black comedy crime drama. It had a nice british feel to it. And I love all things Agatha Christie. But here you have Poirot, Miss Marple and Tommy & Tuppence all in one drama. And that turned out to be too much for me. Everything started with the unlikable main couple! And went downhill from there.

She is a cold famous borderline psycho crime writer. Her husband is a sleazy lawyer, simpering around her and at the same time cheating on her. Do not misunderstand me, I do not mind the cheating plot lines since they give a bit of a drama to a drama.

So there is adultery, murders, corruption, chaebol heir and heiress, quirky policemen, NIS agents, politicians, secret room mystery, drug trafficking, domestic abuse...too many not to lose interest! It was really all over the place which is a disappointment because on the paper it looked promising.

The writer goes from being an interesting character with her cold and uncaring attitude to a scary and freaky (literally EVERYONE shakes in fear in front of her!) one to a normal human with her history shaping her. But in spite of all her intelligence and perspicacity, she does not see what is right in front of her. Her husband had developed a sophisticated system in order to erase all trace of his adulterous behaviour.
The music is there, loud screeching strings underlying the "dramatic but not too serious though maybe yes!" plot. I have a feeling it is going to give me nightmares.

It had taken me a long time to complete it but I gave it a chance and by the time I decided to drop it, I realized I had two episodes left. So I finished it. They managed to wrap everything up nicely with a bow on top but it felt really rushed! Well they did introduce too many plotlines involving too many characters we never really cared about!

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Lamps, roses and foam

The novelty of these short c dramas hasn't worn off yet, so I might be a bit too generous with ratings but, man, aren't they so much fun to watch? I am a sucker for butterflies inducing chemistry and time slip (groundhog day and fall into a novel/drama ) tropes and here I was served! Basically, I want more!

The plot is same as in many other dramas (a girl falls into a novel as a secondary character and falls for the main lead) but the execution is perfect: you can see that the budget was not limited too much since the sets and costumes were imposing!

There is nothing much to say about the plot itself since it had been done before many many time so we get to see again the same old tropes of palace battles for power, evil step mother and concubine, a second brother in love with the queen and the queen herself melting the king's cold and cruel heart with her joy and quirkiness. See, already seen!

I only wished the ending were a bit longer and that they explained it better though it was fairly obvious but I needed a few more scenes in the present. It needed one more episode! Maybe it was explained in the second season!

The chemistry was nice but apart from a couple of steamy kisses it was really tame. The main leads' banter and interactions were fun to watch and sparkly.

The high production value was very much obvious but for one thing: foam used for snow did not look like snow at all so the actors covered in foam looked like someone who came out of the bath when the water suddenly stopped running! The music was the usual violins and flutes and zither but I liked it since it is very earwormy....I cannot get it out of my head. But that happens with every short historical c drama (the only kind of c drama I watch!).

I watched it on viki: fortunately they have it because on youtube there are so many soundless parts (I gather it has to do with music rights!).

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Surprising

Very rarely I get to change my mind: when a drama is on my dropped list, it stays there and I usually do not give it a second chance. I was challenged into watching this so I gave it a go. And frankly, it was not as bad as I thought it would be.

Star In My Mind is a drama about Dao and Kleun and their imagined unrequited love for each other. When Dao confesses before leaving for a trip, Kleun is flabbergasted and just utters a banality. They meet again a few years later at the University where they share a dorm. After a few wrong moves, they eventually find common ground and love.

I had dropped this after the first episode, the cringe factor (the confession) was just too much for me to bear. But surprisingly, that cringiness disappears and we get a straight forward rom com together with all the usual tropes, misunderstandings, another love interest, helpful friends. Another surprising absence is the adults (parents, teachers etc.) since none of the characters work, they must be financed somehow in order to study. But we do not know really how (most of them apparently come from well off families!).

As somebody pointed out already, there are no side couples in this drama: there are friends in their group flirting but nothing is mentioned let alone fleshed out. This drama is only about Kleun and Dao. I found this a refreshing change from the usual thai bl formula where there are usually two more couples adding nothing to the plot but wasting time.

The actors had a surprisingly good chemistry probably because the characters they played were the complete opposites: Kleun a taciturn popular guy and Dao an expressive artist. Joong is an awful actor: he has a single facial expression: brooding. He might be handsome but he is like a doll. Dunk was surprisingly good. He has an interesting voice and managed to be slightly better than Joong. They appeared to be at ease with each other and did not shy from contact.

The rest of the cast were just there not to have the stage empty. They were there as support for the main leads and we never did get to know them. Which is ok since it made the series shorter and more compact and therefore easier to watch. The only character that gets a bit more time is Fah, Dao's older brother who is the star of the second series. 😀😀

This series was a surprisingly decent watch and I ended up liking it more than the second part Sky In Your Heart. To be watched while doing something else....

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Corruption & politics & business & Don Quichottes

Every single korean drama dealing with business or politics is also always about the corruption. There seems to be no honest businessmen or politicians in Korea or if there are any they are quickly threatened or killed in order to shut them up. The rich and powerful always get away with everything, usually putting blame on "little" people, those who are not rich or have the power to rule.

I guess I have seen one drama too many having this plotline and I cannot stand it any more. Is Korea really such a corrupt country where the powerful can get away with anything? And they mostly do even when they are caught, the punishment somehow does not seem to equal all the bad deeds they commited!

Argon is that drama too many! It is a good drama at its bases but this plot is so repetitive. Usually it is a super honest policeman but, in this case, it is a super honest journalist who stumbles upon a huge cover up involving his own company CEO.

The beginning of this drama reminded me a lot of Newsroom, a US show about workings behind the screen of a late night news show. But once they delved into the highly predictable territory of rotten chaebols and politicians, I lost interest really quickly. I finished it since it was only 8 episodes long. And that was a good and a bad thing at the same time. On the good side the drama was finished quickly and I could let a sigh of relief when all the corruption plot left my screen. On the downside, I was not happy with the episode count because the drama had an amazing cast of characters which were not sufficiently explored. Apart from the main character, the Argon anchor, everyone else was left behind very quickly and was eventually used as aprop for the ML's redemption arc.
For example, there was the rookie journalist, a mercenary who was hated when she arrived but managed to keep her cool and prove herself. Another one was a journalist who ruined the show because he hero worshipped the anchor. There was also the slimy rival anchor who was more worried about ratings than reporting the facts and corrupt to the bone. There was also another journalist with interesting family only slightly hinted at but never really talked about. And so on and so on...

I really hope that Korea is not the country represented in these dramas: highly corrupted and easily corruptible individuals who rule over it and its economy together with the millions of hate filled envious and anonymous netizens who spew their frustration at the slightest misstep and arte used as a guideline. This is the real horror. Zombies and monsters are CareBears in comparison!

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Fall into novel done right

As far as I could gather, the chinese are expert in these kinds of plots.They produced a big number of these "fall into a novel" dramas. Koreans have done just a few and I have seen only two I did not particularly like: Extraordinary You and Pop Out Boy. The first one is hugely popular but the only thing I liked about it was the main male cast, a real eye candy who have gone on to forge huge careers for themselves. And I discovered the meaning of second lead syndrome there. Pop Out Boy was a cute little web drama, better than EY.

And then there is this one. The plot revolves around a young idol singer who suddenly finds herself a villain in her favourite webnovel. She unwittingly changes the plot of the novel and becomes a main FL in a love triangle. So as you see nothing new. But here is the turning point: this drama gives a scathing portrayal and expresses a severe criticism of social media and the power that a bunch of frustrated netizens hold in their little hands. And that is refreshing. The young idol singer is used to mean comments about her on SNS and even though she usually just waits for the storm to pass without commenting, it is visibly taking a toll on her. In order to escape it, she disappears into a novel and tries using the SNs for her advantage and it backfires badly making her realize that one needs to fight it and not just let it be and pay no attention to it.

Nana as the idol Yoo Jebi is perfect: innocent asn sincere and smart and realistic who suddenly gets to live her final year of high school anonymous. Gently and sweetly she brings about change in usual high school dynamics (there is "royalty" the F4, the four high school studs!!!And of cours a group of bullying mean girls! And the innocent punching ball! The usual high school cast of characters!)

No character is aware that they are in a novel: nobody thinks it is strange that there is noone on the roads (how did they manage to film so many scenes in public empty places? It does look like a "novel" village setting so maybe it was a soundstage somewhere...), that characters appear and then disappear without without anyone taking notice etc.etc. the usual novel tropes! And of course there is the second lead who almost gave me a SLS but the writers managed to put that threat under control quickly. Yoon Hyun Sook who played the SML was amazing, so sweet and pretty (I'd love to see him in a bl!lol).
This web drama did not have as many eye candy as EY but plotwise it was perfect. They even managed to figure out a credible solution for the main couple.

The resolution of internet troll problem is unfortunately overly optimistic! I personally do not believe in good human nature. People are not like that: everything most of us do is guided by the seven deadly sins and the internet is letting us get away with things that the good upbringing and education managed to curtail and limit before. Now it is feast for all, in blessed anonymity!

The story is really sweet, the actors are good, the writing logical,the world building credible and production value high.

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So much more than fantasy!

When I started The Warp Effect, I did not expect much: maybe a cute little time travelling teen lost but nothing more! What I got was the time travelling teen lost and then so much more.

This series has been on my PTW list for a long time and I started it yesterday while looking for something to watch. As I kept dropping one drama after another after trying them (one episode tryout), this one came up and without realizing it I binged the whole series in a day!

It tells a story about teens and sex! Alex is an 18yr old who would like to get laid but it always ends up as a disaster apparently because of a promise he gave to his late mother. Finally he manages to have drunken sex at a party and suddenly finds himself 10 years in the future with a set of polariod photos he took at a party and puzzles he needs to solve in order to set everything right.

The plot sounds a bit silly but it is actually really well thought out: it manages to strike the perfect balance between entertainment and education. Because this is a full fledged sex ed course! The education part covers everything about sex, gender, pregnancy, stds but it is never "in your face" preachy, it flows so naturally that it is amazing! The writers managed to create a perfect teen/young adult drama!

The drama tells the story of 8 high school friends(who were never in the same friends' group but they knew each other) who reconnect when they are 28 years old and why are they who they became and what happened at the PARTY. They cover the large spectrum of sexual orientation but it looks natural, for lack of better word! None of them is really characterized by it but it is just something they are: what is important is how they are, what kind of person they are. Through them though every kind of sexual orientation is explained. And then more!

The time travelling plot is fun, Alex being completely lost and trying to figure out is funny, the interactions between the friends are realistic.... secrets hidden for a long time are revealed and Alex is taught a lot so when he eventually goes back he would avoid making the same mistakes.

There was never a dull moment. All the actors were excellent in their roles and I was pleasantly surprised by New's comic timing. People are saying that Joong would have been better in this role: I do not agree. Joong acts like a dead fish: zero facial expression. Sorry for his fans, but when you see him here, he always sports a semi smile trying to be quizzical but just being empty. Fortunately he only had a tiny role!

The writing was perfect, the editing as well and nothing was superfluous. And then there is music: I have not heard such a great soundtrack in a long time. Almost every song is not an original one but the music editor managed to choose some beautiful, mostly american, songs that illustrated perfectly what was happening on screen.

I am trying to find something wrong with this drama but I am having hard time. There are probably flaws since nothing is perfect but I have not noticed them. GMMTV managed again to surprise me with a great show. One time (55:15 ) is an accident, second time (Mama Gogo) is a coincidence, the third time (The Warp Effect) is a pattern!

PS I just found the flaw: the poster looks like those creepy & cringy US movies "American Pie". So awful!

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Maybe God is a fujoshi?

What can you do to improve upon a perfection? Make it just as perfect but shorter!

Even if I still do not understand why they'd go and make a movie only two years after that amazing drama (Fujoshi, Ukari...) was released, at least they did not ruin it!

What She Likes... is a beautiful coming of age drama dealing with one's own sexuality and the acceptance thereof. What it is not is a BL! It is a LGBT movie. It deals with trials and tribulations of a young man who knows himself to be gay but he is aware the society is not that tolerant or willing to accept people who do not fit the preconceived and deeply rooted idea of what is "normal". So he tries to fit the mould and fails brilliantly. The backlash of a forced outing is huge.

Jun is an 18 yr old aware of his own sexuality but struggling to accept it himself. He is seeing an older married man and deep down wants to have what his boyfriend has: a wife and kids. So he starts dating a girl who is a huge bl fan, a fujoshi and who is hiding that because she was told once she was disgusting for liking bls. Jun somehow feels the same about himself so he does not say anything to his friends or his mother believing they'd find him just as disgusting.

Jun's questioning of himself is portrayed very realistically. I found the school class discussion very true: kids were just saying things they think adults want to hear, open minded and politically correct, accepting differences without prejudices. Until the kid who caused all the mayhem by outing Jun, calls them on it and is quickly made to shut up. This scene shows how the society in general does not want to talk seriously about hard subjects and prefers hiding them under the carpet.

The friends, Jun's close friends, are the only ones treating him as an ordinary kid when he was outed while everyone else looked at him like an exotic beast in a circus. And even though the world is getting to be more and more open and accepting all differences on the surface, deep down the problem remains as is shown in two examples in the movie: a gay kid whose parents took him to see a doctor and a closeted gay student who does not want to be seen with Jun.

The only scene I did not like, both here and in the drama, was when Miura "came out" as fujoshi in front of the school assembly. I found it so wrong on so many level but mainly it is not the same thing not it has the same consequences being a fujoshi and being gay!

The story is poignant, true and the actors are all excellent. It is a must watch!

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