#futekiya manga

[thewonderofanime]

5 Boy's Love Friends-to-Lovers Manga to Read on Futekiya

If there is one thing I love, it’s a good trope! I do not care if I’ve read the same plot with different people 20 times. Keep giving it to me! I love the friends-to-lovers trope, especially if they started being friends in high school/college. With boy’s love stories, I feel like the trope is always intensified because the first person to fall in love will avoid the person finding out at all…

[allthefujoshiunite]

5 BL TITLES THAT’LL MAKE YOU FEEL THINGS ON VALENTINE’S DAY

Hi friends! Here’s a hastily put together list post. I know most of the titles are stuff that I have recommended before or talked about here or there, but I personally enjoy revisiting titles that I love and know they’ll make me feel giddy no matter how many times I’ve read them before. Consuming BL is said to clear your skin, get rid of the frizz in your hair, and rejuvenate your spirit, so…

[munchlax-musings]

Adding Missing Book Info to StoryGraph

StoryGraph finished importing my GoodReads data, but I noticed that a bunch of the stories I was reading (mainly Webtoons) were missing a ton of info.

I’m going to keep track of the info I add to each story and what is still missing, daily.

Stagtown by Punko:

Link to Webtoon. Link to StoryGraph entry.

Manually added:

Genre: fiction, comics, graphic novel, horror, mystery

My tags: psychological, spooky, webtoon

Blurb: Added.

Missing info: None relevant.

Steno Finger Drills: Master your Moneymaker (Paperback version) by Stephen Shastay:

Link to paperback version. Link to StoryGraph entry. Used ISBN/ISBA upload to import book data.

Manually added:

Blurb: Added.

My tags: accessibility, captioning, court-reporting, machine-shorthand, stenography, technology, textbook, transcription

Steno Finger Drills: Master your Moneymaker (The Shastay Way) (Kindle version) by Stephen Shastay:

Link to Kindle version. Link to StoryGraph entry.

Manually added:

Title: Added.

Author: Added.

Genre: nonfiction, reference

Cover Image: Uploaded.

My tags: accessibility, captioning, court-reporting, machine-shorthand, stenography, technology, textbook, transcription

Blurb: Added.

Series Title: Added.

Number of Pages: 130

Edition Publication Date: Nov 05 2022

Original Publication Year: 2020

Language: English

Format: Digital

Shastay's Steno Phrase Dictionary: Intelligent strokes for high-speed reporting (Paperback version) by Stephen Shastay:

Link to paperback version. Link to StoryGraph entry (currently unavailable; imported via ISBN)

Manually added:

No information yet.

Shastay's Steno Phrase Dictionary: Intelligent strokes for high-speed reporting (Kindle version) by Stephen Shastay

Link to Kindle version. Link to StoryGraph entry.

Manually added:

Title: Added.

Author: Added.

Series Name: Added.

Blurb: Added.

Cover Image: Uploaded.

Book Type: Nonfiction

Genres: Reference, Education

Edition Format: Digital

Number of Pages: 636

Edition Publication Date: October 31, 2022

Original Publication Year: 2022

Language: English

My tags: accessibility, captioning, court-reporting, machine-shorthand, stenography, technology, textbook, transcription

Top 1,000 Briefs and Top 1,000 Words: Two Invaluable Lists for the Stenography Student or Professional (Shastay Way) (Paperback version) by Stephen Shastay

Link to paperback version. Link to StoryGraph entry.

Manually added:

Title: Added.

Author: Added.

Series Name: Added.

Blurb: Added.

Cover Image: Uploaded.

Book Type: Nonfiction

Genres: Reference

Edition Format: Paperback

Number of Pages: 129

Edition Publication Date: November 20, 2015

Original Publication Year: 2015

Language: English

ISBN:  9781519464231

My tags: accessibility, captioning, court-reporting, machine-shorthand, stenography, technology, textbook, transcription

Top 1,000 Briefs and Top 1,000 Words: Two Great Lists for Steno Students (Kindle version) by Stephen Shastay

Link to Kindle version. Link to StoryGraph entry.

Manually added:

Title: Added.

Author: Added.

Series Name: Added.

Blurb: Added.

Cover Image: Uploaded.

Book Type: Nonfiction

Genres: Reference

Edition Format: Digital

Number of Pages: 101

Edition Publication Date: April 24, 2022

Original Publication Year: 2015

Language: English

Publisher: Amazon

My tags: accessibility, captioning, court-reporting, machine-shorthand, stenography, technology, textbook, transcription

Blue Sky Complex Vol. 4 by Ichikawa Kei

Link to digital version. Link to Manga Updates entry. Link to StoryGraph entry.

Manually added:

Title: Added.

Author: Added.

Contributor(s): Added.

Series Name: Added.

Cover Image: Uploaded.

Book Type: Fiction

Genres: romance, lgbtqia+, manga

Edition Format: Digital

Number of Pages: 219

Edition Publication Date: February 5, 2022

Language: English

Publisher:  東京漫��社 / Tōkyō Mangasha

My tags: comedy, delinquents, drama, fluff, glasses, school-life, slice-of-life, slow-burn, yaoi

Blue Sky Complex Vol. 5 by Ichikawa Kei

Link to digital version. Link to Manga Updates entry. Link to StoryGraph entry.

Manually added:

Title: Added.

Author: Added.

Contributor(s): Added.

Series Name: Added.

Cover Image: Uploaded.

Book Type: Fiction

Genres: romance, lgbtqia+, manga

Edition Format: Digital

Number of Pages: 185

Edition Publication Date: March 26, 2022

Language: English

Publisher:  東京漫画社 / Tōkyō Mangasha

My tags: comedy, delinquents, drama, fluff, glasses, school-life, slice-of-life, slow-burn, yaoi

Blue Sky Complex Vol. 6 by Ichikawa Kei

Link to digital version. Link to Manga Updates entry. Link to StoryGraph entry.

Manually added:

Title: Added.

Author: Added.

Contributor(s): Added.

Series Name: Added.

Cover Image: Uploaded.

Book Type: Fiction

Genres: romance, lgbtqia+, manga

Edition Format: Digital

Number of Pages: 185

Edition Publication Date: May 28, 2022

Language: English

Publisher:  東京漫画社 / Tōkyō Mangasha

My tags: comedy, delinquents, drama, fluff, glasses, school-life, slice-of-life, slow-burn, yaoi

Blue Sky Complex Vol. 7 by Ichikawa Kei

Link to digital version. Link to Manga Updates entry. Link to StoryGraph entry.

Manually added:

Title: Added.

Author: Added.

Contributor(s): Added.

Series Name: Added.

Cover Image: Uploaded.

Book Type: Fiction

Genres: romance, lgbtqia+, manga

Edition Format: Digital

Number of Pages: 185

Edition Publication Date: July 9, 2022

Language: English

Publisher:  東京漫画社 / Tōkyō Mangasha

My tags: comedy, delinquents, drama, fluff, glasses, school-life, slice-of-life, slow-burn, yaoi

Indigo Blue Gradation by Ichikawa Kei

Link to digital version. Link to Manga Updates entry. Link to StoryGraph entry.

Manually added:

Title: Added.

Author: Added.

Contributor(s): Added.

Series Name: Added.

Blurb: Added.

Cover Image: Uploaded.

Book Type: Fiction

Genres: romance, lgbtqia+, manga

Edition Format: Digital

Number of Pages: 161

Edition Publication Date: April 30, 2022

Language: English

Publisher:  東京漫画社 / Tōkyō Mangasha

My tags: college-life, comedy, delinquents, doujinshi, fluff, glasses, school-life, slice-of-life, smut, yaoi

Faded Picture Scroll あわいろ絵巻 by Fujitobi (ふじとび)

Link to digital version. Link to Manga Updates entry. Link to StoryGraph entry.

Manually added:

Blurb: Added.

Cover Image: Uploaded.

Book Type: Fiction

Genres: romance, lgbtqia+, manga, fantasy

Edition Publication Date: February 17, 2020

Mahoroba Chronicles まほろば絵伝 by Fujitobi (ふじとび)

Link to digital version. Link to Manga Updates entry. Link to StoryGraph entry.

Manually added:

Title: Added.

Author: Added.

Contributor(s): Added.

Series Name: Added.

Blurb: Added.

Cover Image: Uploaded.

Book Type: Fiction

Genres: romance, lgbtqia+, manga, historical

Edition Format: digital

Number of Pages: 189

Edition Publication Date: January 28, 2022

Language: English

Publisher: Home-Sha Inc.  ホーム社

My tags: comedy, supernatural

Robber x Lover by PENGKI

Link to digital version. Link to Manga Updates entry. Link to StoryGraph entry.

Manually added:

Title: Added.

Author: Added.

Blurb: Added.

Cover Image: Uploaded.

Book Type: Fiction

Genres: romance, lgbtqia+, manga

Edition Format: digital

Edition Publication Date: February 19, 2021

Language: English

Publisher: Lezhin US

My tags: college-life, comedy, fluff, living-together, roommates, slice-of-life, slow-burn

[greighish]

The Manga Planet/futekiya merger is a disaster. Title summaries are missing, titles that were fully available via subscription are now under a split model, and they want me to pay more on top of my subscription? I chose futekiya over others because there were no points/proprietary currencies; there is no point in staying with them if they're going to function like all the others. I sincerely doubt that I'll be renewing my subscription.

[ljaesch]

futekiya Licenses One Boys' Love Title from Fat Cat

futekiya has announced the license acquisition of one boys’ love manga title from FAT CAT: Inside God’s Arms – A Room Filled With Love Story and Art: Yonezou Nekota Reno’s got a new roommate and his name is Roger Brower. His nickname is “Casanova,” and there are rumors that he sells his body for money. Soon after arriving he asks Reno if he can leave the room for three hours once every two to…

[sportslumo]

The official Twitter handles for the Manga Planet and Futekiya manga subscription services have announced that the companies will be joining forces.

[yaoi-life2021]

TITLE: At 25:00; In Akasaka

Creator: Hiroko Natsuno (夏野寛子)

Category: #Manga

Status: #Completed

Chapters: Main Story 3 volumes + Side Story 2 volumes

Genre: #Drama; #Romance; #Smut

Tags: Actors; #Showbiz; Dubious Consent; Pretend Lovers; #Reunions

Description:

Yuki Shirasaki finally lands a huge role in TV drama Afternoon Dreams after years of toiling in theater. With popular actor Asami Hayama as his costar, Shirasaki plays a gay character in a relationship. But, Shirasaki has zero dating experience with either men or women. Shirasaki struggles to express his character's feelings and takes drastic measures. To better embrace his new role, Shirasaki goes to a gay bar to find someone to sleep with for the experience. There, he runs into Hayama. How will Shirasaki react when Asami offers him his body?

Where to Read:

Main Story

English –futekiya

ebookjapan

Side Story

English – not available

Japanese

ebookjapan

[trashexplorer]

BLCD Review: Sei no Gekiyaku

Title: Sei no Gekiyaku (性の劇薬)

Author/Artist: Mizuta Yuki

Shop: CD + Manga

Release Date: 2021/10/27

Cast: Morikawa Toshiyuki x Nojima Hirofumi

Synopsis:

“I’ll find all of your most sensitive spots.”

Makoto Katsuragi, a man working for an advertising agency, has so far led a perfect private and work life. However, that all comes crashing down in an instant when he loses everything he holds dear. In the midst of his despair, he drunkenly climbs onto the ledge of a tall building and is about to jump, when… “If you’re going to throw away your life…let me have it.” He is saved by these words offered by the sudden appearance of Ryuji Yoden, and decides to do exactly as Ryuji says. From the moment Makoto awakens in Ryuji’s room, his daily life of retraining begins, giving away not only his body but his heart…

Review Proper

Uhh.

Hmm.

???????

If y'all know me and or have read my older posts, you'll know I hate this type of plot. However, I had to listen to this 'cause the last I heard of Morikawa Toshiyuki was in 2021, and Nojima Hirofumi in... 2019?! *goes into existential panic*. It doesn't help that these two were Shigure-san and Haru in Nights Before Night. I wanted my happy ending with them to happen even though it was nearly impossible since these two are already inactive in the BL industry. Having the two of them come back and co-star in a BLCD again is just too good to be true... and I was right. I didn't expect them to come in for one of the sketchiest things in the market. I really don't know what Frontier is smoking, having all the budget for veterans like these only to put them in weird projects.

Biases and triggers aside, I think that Sei no Gekiyaku failed to deliver what it was set to convey. It tried so hard to be deep and psychological in the beginning, but it's like sensei just threw that out the window in chapter 3. It reminds me a lot of Lala no Kekkon and Derail. What was all that build-up for, then? I'm gonna say it. If you wanna use Stockholm Syndrome, then commit. This is also true with the discarded BDSM. I don't like these themes, but damn, do I feel bad for them 'cause they all felt pointless in the end.

Anyway, onto the topic of the BLCD itself...

You'll miss a lot of things if you haven't read the manga beforehand. There was a lot of added and dropped content that was understandable since no other characters apart from the two leads were in the BLCD. But that also led to Ryuji's older brother's presence being missing in the BLCD. Although Ryuji mentions him in the BLCD often enough, the manga just shows Ryuji's trauma better since we get to see him constantly haunting Ryuji. I'm not sure if they've changed censorship laws on BLCDs because the same thing happened in Kuroe to Mesu, but the BLCD was less graphic than the manga. Take that part where Ryuji rapes Makoto in the bathtub. You can hear Makoto take a toy in, but you'll never know it was a dildo mount whatchamacallit if you didn't read the manga.

There's also that part when Ryuji loses it when Makoto smiles when they were fucking. Nojinii does chuckle then, but you wouldn't pick that up if you didn't know what happened in the manga. It might've been better if Ryuji loudly thought: "Oh crap, he smiled."

The original plot was already badly paced, but the BLCD was even worse lmao. The tracks don't even start the same way the manga chapters do. I really don't recommend listening to this if you haven't heard the story and are a beginner to Japanese. Speaking of reading, idk what happened to futekiya, but the translation progressively got worse towards the end of the manga. I also read the scanned version of this when it was still unlicensed, but it was also a bit off.

Now for the light in the tunnel: the voice work.

I tried to fight it. I really did.

But I'm always going to be Moririn trash.

Don't get me wrong, Morimori did spectacular here (duh). But I really hated Ryuji that I initially had no thoughts other than respect towards his voice acting here... until he whispered in Track 4, that is. At some point, I just wanted to throw Nojinii out of the picture 'cause THAT SHOULD BE ME???!!! I'LL SLURP THIS SPAGHETTI OFF THE FLOOR ON ALL FOURS FOR YOU, MORIKAWA TOSHIYUKI!

My god. Frontier sure has taste in VAs but not in stories.

He was just-ugh. I wonder how he does that. Like in Tadaima, he makes you feel like he's talking to you rather than his co-star wtf. I was gasping for air goddammit. This man is a danger to society.

As for Nojinii, I actually thought that his voice was too high for Makoto in the beginning. It was almost in the same range as his Haru, and I imagined Makoto's voice to be lower. It did grow on me, though. I missed my bottom Nojinii. Of course, he did excellent as well. His fear was really believable in the first tracks that I just feel so bad for him 'cause he needed to throw that all away. 🙄

Man, I can't help but think that Morimori and Nojinii were wasted on this work. Again, it's already a miracle to have them back, so this might be the last time they ever pair up again. And for fucking Sei no Gekiyaku? Part of the reason why I stopped listening to BLCDs was 'cause I wouldn't know how to cope if I saw more of my favorite older VAs leaving the industry. That's also why I stopped doing releases lists. Hype around BLCDs has steadily been on the decline and if you haven't noticed, there's been considerably fewer releases too. The manga scene isn't doing well either. I'm just so afraid it'll all run out someday. *crisis*

Going back on topic, I do not recommend this BLCD. If you're into psychological and BDSM, I would look into Harada or Kabukichou Bad Trip instead. If you're a fan of Morimori and Nojinii, I still wouldn't recommend it if the theme isn't your thing. Let's just re-listen to Nights Before Night and suffer instead. 👍

[obstinaterixatrix]

Having lost his protection charm given by his Grandmother, Sawatari must now rely on his super lucky junior, Akutsu to ward off his unluckiness. Will their relationship turn into love?

I wish futekiya didn’t make you go on hunts for summaries, I ended up pulling this one from mangaupdates but I have no idea whether it was sent in a promo email and nowhere else or if it’s a fan translation… anyway, this one’s a fun luck-based bl, what I really like about it is that the lucky love interest is just a normal guy with Off Vibes because he has a dry personality but is constantly smiling

the love interest gets a kick out of protecting the main character, especially because the main character is really good natured about his bad luck

the mc’s charm point is that he’s like. just a really nice guy LOL part of his bad luck is based on how if he sees someone in trouble he’ll jump in to help so he’s gonna block someone else from being splashed by a passing car, it’s not a major focus but it’s pretty sweet. also that means he’s really concerned about if he’s causing trouble for the li

it’s a sweet dynamic, I liked it :)

[bishouikemenlover]

📙This thread is about Legalized/Official Platforms where you can read/buy Manga/Manhwa/Manhua/Webcomics in English.

1)Manga Plus

2)Shonen Jump / Viz

3)ComicWalker

NB: You can read English translated Manga by changing the language in setting which will be appear if you click the 3 short rows on the right upper top

4)BookWalker

5)Crunchyroll Manga

6)ComiXology

https://www.amazon.com/kindle-dbs/comics-store/home?_encoding=UTF8&merchant=&ref=nav_ya_signin&#nav-top

7)Mangamo

8)Renta [Mostly BL,GL,Ero & Romance]

9)Futekiya [BL]

10)Coolmic [18+ Manga]

[ljaesch]

futekiya Announces Two New Licenses From macaronRINX

futekiya, the online boys’ love manga subscription service, has announced the license acquisition of the following BL titles* from macaronRINX: The Two Sides of an Envious Heart Story and Art: MINORU “I can’t believe this is your first time. You’re a natural, sir.” Perfect in every way from looks, personality, and work ethic, salaryman Shirosawa’s team leader Kurotake has got him beat. But when…

[sasaranurude]

Saw a tweet about how buying only physical manga must really limit what you read and I kind of can't even wrap my head around it. Like okay first of all I disagree with the premise of the question, I think people obviously have preferences but who considers themself a manga fan and yet would ONLY buy physical? I think even the most die-hard physical volume fans would be willing to get a month or two of a shonen jump subscription, you know? It's like $3.

Second of all. Who has so much money to spend on manga that they can't easily fill up their budget with physical releases anyways?? I'm the kind of person who has no qualms with spending $100/mo+ on manga (I don't actually, but it my most hedonistic days when I was visiting the bookstore every week I absolutely have done that for extended periods of time), and... That was easily filled up with the variety of things being released physically. Digital volumes are usually only barely cheaper than this and frequently tied to shitty proprietary reader apps. Digital is just NOT worth it to me, outside aforementioned services like shonen jump that give you like hundreds of series for $40/yr or whatever. Stuff like futekiya is also decent although the library was too small for me to keep up a subscription for more than a year. If Renta or Bookwalker did a decent subscription I'd be on it in a heartbeat, but as it stands they're typically charging $10-$20 per volume. It's not worth it when it's all tied up in their service's DRM anyways... I may as well just spend my money on a physical volume that I know I'll have forever...

I feel like you could only actually feel limited by physical releases if you were 1. Seriously someone who *only* gets physical, which I doubt there are very many of, and 2. willing to spend an ungodly amount of money on manga. Or maybe if your tastes were limited to really specific genres and you don't buy much in the first place.

[yaoi-life2021]

Title: Never Let Go

Japanese: Kono Te wo Hanasanai de (この手を離さないで)

Chinese: 請不要放開這雙手 Creator: Saki Sakimoto (咲本﨑) Category: #Manga

Status: #Ongoing

Chapters: 9 (1 volume)~

Genre: #Drama; #SchoolLife; #Smut

Tags: #Omegaverse; Alpha x Omega; Gentle Top; Past Trauma; Melancolic; First Love

Description:

A unique talent’s striking debut! The “haves and have-nots” seek each other in the ultimate teen omegaverse.

I met a love I want to hold on to.

After causing a certain problem, Haruto transfers from an elite alpha school to a regular school. In the classroom filled with excitement over the out-of-season transfer, he meets the student council president, Miyabi, who, for some reason, is the only one who treats him harshly.

They have totally opposite personalities and circumstances, and, even though they reject each other, they also feel strong attraction. They gradually delve deep into each other’s hearts.

But Miyabi’s body, unable to resist Haruto’s pheromones, soon becomes uncontrollable... Immature, painful, and fragile – the beautiful days of youth.

“I’ll never let go of you.”

“I always hated heat to death, but now...”

Where to Read:

English

MangaPlaza – https://www.manga.club/book/title/SCEN00022/

Bookwalker – https://global.bookwalker.jp/de3d0191e3-e9d0-4c40-9139-ad518ce3bbcf/never-let- go/

Manga Planet (Futekiya) - https://mangaplanet.com/comic/63e1d6e957c36

Chinese –

Japanese

CMOA – https://www.cmoa.jp/title/223555/

Renta! – https://renta.papy.co.jp/renta/sc/frm/item/261432/

Ebookjapan - https://ebookjapan.yahoo.co.jp/books/645267/

[itsjulesharper]

The one where I’m consumed by BL Drama

the original of this post is over on my website if you want to take a look.  Otherwise, keep reading :)

Since around July 2022 I fell into a BL drama hole (feels MUCH longer!) and couldn't get up. OMG, Jules! I hear you say. What is this awesome-sounding thing you're into and why are you obsessed?

Well, come closer, my bébés, and let me give you a crash course.

Just like K-Drama is all about stories made in Korea and featuring Korean actors, BL (aka boy love) Drama are stories involving boys dating, falling in love and (mainly) living happily ever after. The HEA has some exceptions which I will WARN YOU ABOUT because I am STILL SALTY about this (Love By Chance S2, I am looking right at you!).  A lot of the stories are adapted from novels, or short stories, or manga. Some start out as an online game (!)

On to a few definitions, courtesy of Nothing But Yaoi.

BL is also known as Yaoi (Yah-OY), and is a media genre depicting romantic and homoerotic relationships between males. This genre blossomed in Japan in the ’70s as a literary genre and originally consisted of derivative works from parodies of original anime and manga stories. However, it gradually transformed into an umbrella term for other forms of fiction - such as anime, movies, dramas and fan-works - featuring homosexual relationships.

Yaoi Vocabulary

Seme – (sem-AY) refers to the ‘top’ or the one who penetrates the ‘bottom’ during sex. Usually portrayed as the character with the most masculine features and the one with the more dominant personality. In standard romance writing terms, he would be an alpha.

Uke – (oo-KAY) character with the most docile and submissive personality and the ‘bottom’ in the relationship. Physically, he is presented as being more graceful and feminine.

Riba – characters with mixed traits of semes and uke, and is both submissive and dominant in the relationship.

Tsundere – (SOON-de-deh) A character who initially shows off a moody and harsh personality and sometimes violent tendencies, but then gradually shows a sweet and gentle side.

Yandere – (YAN-de-deh) a character with a possessive and obsessive personality, who will do anything to be with their crush or love interest.

The Futekiya blog has a good explanation on the differences between seme/uke/riba.

I totally recommend Gail Carriger's 2020 article BL Dramas Analysed from a Writer's Perspective because she goes into the background stuff and I don't need to say the same thing because I pretty much agree with all of it. Go read both parts.

Now, here's my observations. BL isn't just about gay/queer stories. It also deals with friendships, romantic pairings, families, school/college, acceptance and social issues. A lot of them fall into the New Adult subgenre (defined as stories with 18-24yo protagonists navigating their way in the world while dealing with a new job, college, family, social and romantic issues).

Sometimes I feel some male actors aren't that comfortable kissing other men, but that could be me. I know some actors see BL as a stepping stone in the industry and do it for the money. You can find a bunch of YouTube clips that delve into this, but please take those with a grain of salt, because the bottom line is, it's all subjective unless an actor has gone on record about it. And most will not, given most BL are produced by countries that still struggle with LGBTQIA+ acceptance.  And some are still downright homophobic.

#VegasPete MY HEART

BL run the gamut of SUPER HOT (KinnPorsche, Unforgotten Night), to one kiss in the last 30 seconds of the last ep (Where Your Eyes Linger, Light on Me, Minato's Laundromat). Some BL are light and fluffy because sometimes we just need that feel-good romance story about two people falling in love. And then we have the more grittier stories that deal with social and political issues, bullying, assault, social media.

You go for it, Pi! (Fish Upon the Sky)

A lot of BL are only one season, except when not (TharnType, SOTUS). This gets confusing when they give the second season/related seasons a different title. (For example, Kiss: The Series, Kiss Me Again, Dark Blue Kiss and Our Skyy are all related, with the same actors playing the same roles) I loved 2Moons (Phana and Wayo MY HEART!!!)  but the company (StarHunter entertainment) then produced a Season 2 and 3, but with completely different actors in the same roles for both seasons.  People were not happy.  The En of Love was another series that consisted of a bunch of mini stories, including a 4ep one called Love Mechanics.  I was so happy we got a full 10eps for the  retelling of Vee and Mark’s story, because the original 4eps were hugely lacking. It’s now one of my favourites, ngl. 

I've managed to find a lot of related shows via IMDB, and I've also referred to My Drama List for details about number of eps, shows with the same actors, etc. It can get more confusing when it looks like a series is also a movie, and then I realised they make a 'movie' version of the series but there's a lot of heavy editing involved so I recommend watching the series to get the complete story.

Like other fiction genres, BL has its tropes, expectations and issues. I think the oldest BL I've watched was 2016, and the earlier stuff shows its age when it comes to dealing with bullying, sexual assault, consent, stereotypes, gay rights and acceptance.

Most of my BL comes from Thailand and Korea, mainly because they are the ones meeting demand and consistently making content. Japanese BL have recently stepped up (Candy Colour Paradox is one of my faves) but Chinese BL made after 2016 is rare, due to the massive government ban on anything appearing to be gay. A few production companies produce my favourite shows (GMM and Domundi are two) and those companies have a stable of actors who appear in a multitude of different shows, promote those shows and endorse products (more about that later), plus do live greets, fan service and provide content for the original soundtrack. 

I watch in various places - I have Viki and iQIYI, as well as Prime and Netflix but the latter two don't have a lot of the old shows I'm looking for - and I'll tell you about that all further down.  Some production companies like O2 have a YouTube channel but sometimes scenes can be cut because ‘mature’ content.

Okay, so apart from boy love, what's BL about??

My Beautiful Man - of course he is

Aside from the fact that most of the boys are just SO FRICKING BEAUTIFUL IT MAKES ME CRY???? JUST LOOOOK AT THEM!!!! Who wouldn't want to watch all the dramas with these guys???

Okay. It's also about the tropes. I get a kinda-sorta "old romance bodice rippers of the 80s" vibe from the older BL: low/dubious on consent, sexually aggressive, the "I'm interested in you so I'll overtly pursue you - even though you've said no - because I MUST HAVE YOU." The alpha-seme characters are often forceful and in your face. There's open bullying going on. Sometimes sexual assault is used as a plot/character device that makes me mega-uncomfortable (TharnType.... 😒)  But anyway. Here's a bunch of plot/trope devices that seem to crop up in a lot (if not most) BL.

Dominant male/passive male dynamic - I can count on one hand the BLs I've watched that don't have this dynamic - alpha-type guy pursuing a shy, often nerdy, passive (same age or sometimes younger) boy. It's your classic seme-uke. A lot of BL are set in college or just starting out in the workforce, so a huge New Adult vibe to it all, which is helpful to get past the censors re: sexual content. It’s also a very popular trope.

Hot previously-hetero fuckboy has GFY (gay for you) thoughts about roomie/bestie/cute nerdy boy - "gay for you" is a legit trope in the romance genre. Some hate it, some aren't bothered about it. It basically means that a previously heterosexual guy - with no indication he's ever questioned his sexuality and in fact, is overtly sexual with women - will suddenly start to have the feels for another guy. It's not that he's GAY, because he doesn't feel that way about other guys. It's just this one guy who sets his heart all aflutter. Theory of Love fits this, as does TharnType (two very male men who don't classify themselves as dominant or feminine, although Tharn is openly gay and says early on that he's a top).

...or not?

Not gay, just GFY - see above

Accidentally falling on other so they can 'accidentally' kiss - tripping over objects, a kerb, a fence or wall, people crashing into them - with their bodies or vehicle - and forcing them to kiss. Bonus if it involves water, like falling into a bath or a pond. Water fights are also good.

Getting drunk - this appears to provide an opportunity for the seme to kiss or touch the uke. It also allows them to talk about their feelings 'honestly and openly'. Can also lead into...

Drunk kisses - doesn't always come with consent. Many a drunk kiss may start out as 'wtf are you doing??' And because the pursuer is just SO DAMN GOOD at kissing, it morphs into consensual (and sometimes into sex, which again, is not always consensual or appears to be 'forced seduction' - a romance writing term that's loaded with issues and sometimes used as a euphemism for rape, especially when we're talking older romance novels of the 80s-90s).

Placing a hand on a wall/chair/object and leaning in to stare into their face/get intimately close - SO. DRAMATIC. I love this aggressive move (usually by the seme) and also love seeing the uke getting all flustered and nervous. See Cutie Pie, Secret Crush on You, Unforgotten Night.

Watching the other one sleep - So we get those lovely vulnerable moments with lingering looks and tender expressions. See also: pretending to be asleep so the other one can watch them sleep and possibly confess aloud how much they secretly have the feels. Is also related to the classic #OnlyOneBed conflict device.

Bringing food/feeding - this is a culture thing. Putting food on someone's plate, bringing them noms when they're sick or too busy to take care of themselves. Feeding them directly from a utensil has MAJOR sexual vibes, and we often get close ups of parted lips and lots of staring. There's also a bit of extreme dramatic offence taken by the seme when an outsider/potential rival puts food on the plate of the seme's love interest. This preferential treatment of being served food does not go unnoticed by family or friends.

Wiping food from their face - again, we are taking care of that someone we have the feels for. Wiping off food, sauce, cream, often on their lips or corner of the mouth. Bonus if the pursuer then licks that finger. HOT VIBE ALERT.

Patting/washing/drying hair - indicates intimacy, which a shoulder or arm pat definitely doesn't.

Tending to wounds - to show their caring side. Can also involve kisses to said wound, or blowing of said wound. Which then gives us variations of gay panic from the one being pursued.

Nursing them when they're sick - see above. This is also a good turning point for the uke to realise their pursuer is indeed, concerned for them. Which means their romantic feels start/increase.

Falling asleep together - with major spooning and possible kissing occurring. Can also be paired with the #OnlyOneBed conflict device.

Riding a bike/moped/vehicle to create physical touch - where the person sitting behind must hug the driver. This is usually initiated by the driver grabbing their arms and wrapping them around his waist and the passenger is usually reluctant and/or shocked but we also see him smiling and secretly enjoying it. YAY for intimacy! 

Introducing a female/ex to make the other person jealous - some of these are done SO BADLY and sometimes the ex inserts themselves into the budding romance just to be dramatic/evil/demand attention. I have a love/hate relationship with this device. It can be done so very badly, or used extremely well so I accept and understand why my boys are in conflict. In which case, I keep telling myself they'll eventually get their happy-ever-after, SO DON'T PANIC, FOR GODSAKES!

'We can never be together, so go find a woman who will make you happy'- see above.

Disapproving relative - to create tension and conflict. Yes, it's the 21st century but the reality is not everyone accepts same-sex relationships, especially when we're dealing with parents, older relatives and society as a whole. Many Asian countries still don't have gay rights or allow same-sex marriage, which makes the producers of these shows even more brave and forward-thinking.

Staring off into space, deep in thought - seriously, why is it so difficult to get someone's attention when they're doing this? It's not like they've suddenly been struck deaf.

Product Placement -  Snacks, drinks, face creams, collagen powders and pills, nasal sprays. I see them all, and some can be subtle (Theory of Love) and some literally IN YOUR FACE and wtf obvious (Unforgotten Night).  Sponsors throw money at the show and expect a return, both within the show and from the actors when they do promotional activities.  Not gonna lie, I've gone out and bought a bunch of those promoted snacks from my local Coles because I wanted to know what they tasted like. I am an advertisers dream.

Someone is gonna be shipping someone on social media - this is a cute device, and very in keeping with modern teenage life today. For those not in the know, 'Shipping' is basically the act of putting two people in a relationship together, either romantically or not. Mostly, it's of the romantic kind. In Fish Upon the Sky, this is a major conflict device for our nerdy uke, Pi, and his seme pursuer, Mork. Their ship name is #MorkPi. The actors are also shipped outside the show too (for e.g. #BrightWin, #MewGulf, #BibleBuild). Of course, some actors will do this for the fan service (i.e. providing that fan-driven squeeeee! content that keeps people interested/obsessed with the show), but then you will have a ship that sails into real-life couple waters: #MaxNat, #OffGun, #EarthMix, #NetJames, #ZeeNuNew 😍😍

A Happy Ever After - this is the most important trope in a romance novel - in fact, it defines the entire genre.  If a Romance is not HEA or HFN (happy for now) i.e. an uplifting ending, it is not a romance novel.  Whatever else is going on in the story, however the characters fight and break up and reconcile and suffer, romance readers expect and demand a HEA / HFN for them.  I want my BL boys to have a happy ending because I like love stories to be positive.  I’ve seen a few that have ended badly HIStory: Make Our Days Count, Gray Rainbow and Love Bill  UUGGGGHHH.  Also, a S2 may or may not be utterly devastating -  don't get me started on Love By Chance S2 😡😡. I've seen some left up in the air (Ingredients and HIStory: Trapped), some that have a 'X years later' (Where Your Eyes Linger, Plus + Minus), and some that are bittersweet (On Cloud Nine, Doctor I'm Coming for Soul).  I watched Present Perfect (original Thai movie) and Present Still Perfect (sequel), but saw the sequel first, so I got Toey and Oat's initial romance backstory last. Didn't diminish or spoil the story at all and they're now two of my favourite BL movies.

The "I like you" moment - When a boy confesses their feels. I think a more accurate translation should be "I have a crush on you". Gail Carriger goes into more detail about translation issues, which you can read in her article I've linked to above.

A bit more on translating issues. Depending where you watch, they could be A+ or piss-poor. Some are just very very odd. I laughed aloud with KinnPorsche - a story about mafia and their tough bodyguards - and their cursing. 'Fudge', 'darn' and 'shoot'...? LOOOOL. Vegas definitely says "fuck" in English, but 'fudge' is the translator's go-to. For Love By Chance, one site's subs were "at least you won't be told you're a f*ggot." Viki translated it as: "you won't be told you're the wrong gender." The subs for Make It Right on Bilibili were crazy-ass around Ep10, so I swapped over to YouTube.

So where can I watch these awesome shows?

My first port of call is either a legal paid platform or the creators' official YouTube channel.

The Cutie Pie ep10 scene YT doesn't want me to see...

YouTube - GMMTV has a channel for catchup, which I love. I also recommend MindTrio. Make sure you get an ad blocker, because I totally forgot YT has ads, and one time I watched on my iPad ... annoying ads ahoy! Plus, I read on an Instagram account there's some censoring going on, but this is a bit hit-and-miss for me.  For e.g. there's a hot bath scene in Secret Crush on You between Toh and Neua that I DID NOT KNOW ABOUT because I'd watched it on Bilibili and they'd cut it. The full uncut scenes can be found on Viki.  I've also had ep10 of Cutie Pie censored because of 'sexual content' and unless I send YT a copy of my ID (wtf, not gonna do that!!) then I'm blocked from watching it there. Yay 👍 - free! Boo 😒 - censorship!  And ads.

Rakuten Viki - The format is very Prime-looking. You can get a bunch of shows for free, and the quality is great, but sometimes they'll make the first few eps free, then the rest of the season is VIP-only, which you have to pay for. They also place LOUD ads wherever they feel like in a show, so you'll be watching an intense emotional scene and suddenly there's a 20sec ad for Pocky. UGH. And the frequency/number of ads is totally random: one 30min ep had 5 breaks in it?? On the flip side, I watched a 90min movie with two ad breaks. And sometimes you get a Skip this ad>> button so there's that? Yay 👍 - somewhat free. Excellent range of BL if you pay for a sub. Boo 😒 - random ads everywhere unless you pay for VIP.  Paywall to see a complete season.

iQiYi - I had this app on my iPad but the ads were ANNOYING on the free version and totally in the way of the buttons. Paying for a subscription removes them, of course.  But some content is country-restricted (e.g. Unintentional Love Story), so even if you're a subscriber, you may not get access to every show. Yay 👍 - excellent uncensored content! Boo 😒 - paywall/sub fee can be expensive, plus content may be country-restricted.

GagaOOLala - this channel is LGBTQIA dedicated, so if you're unhappy with the shitty offerings of Prime or Netflix, I'd totally be paying a sub for this. You can see an ep or two for free, but then you have to subscribe. Also, as with iQiYi above, content may be country-restricted, even as a subscriber. Yay 👍 - CONTENT that is frequent and excellent!! Boo 😒 - possible country restrictions, plus sub is $$

HiTV - I recently discovered this app and it's fab because there's lots of older shows here that iQiYi and Viki don't have (full version of Love Mechanics! 🥰 ).  It does have ads, but only static silent ones at the start of each ep. Yay 👍 - content you may not be able to find elsewhere. Boo 😒 - The tiniest of tiny ads at the start of each ep.

Netflix - I've watched heaps of K- and C-Drama here (While You Were Sleeping, Love and Leashes, Final Life, Sweet Home, Alice in Borderland) and I still have a bunch bookmarked, but I haven't turned on my TV for weeks. I watched Your Name Engraved Herein, plus technically-not-BL Hwarang and The Untamed here, but Netflix have edited a few scenes of the latter, which makes me v. angry. Also, apparently Germany has absolutely no Chinese drama available, which is... just weird. Yay 👍 - HD content, no ads. Boo 😒 - choice is limited via your country. Plus, you know... you have to pay for a subscription. And with the 'no family sharing thing' that's being phased in, Netflix may not be your best choice.

Okay, so that's my crash course on BL Drama. Stay tuned for a list of my favourite series.  And if you watch BL, let me know your faves in the comments!

[trashexplorer]

BLCD Review: Ikigami & Donor

Title: Ikigami to Donor (イキガミとドナー)

Author/Artist: Yamanaka Hiko

Shop: CD + Manga

Release Date: 2021/12/03

Cast: 

Nakajima Yoshiki x Saitou Souma

Yamashita Seiichirou + Kawanishi Kengo

Kobayashi Chiaki

Yashiro Taku

Komada Wataru

Hayashi Miho

Shiozaki Tomohiro

Higa Ryosuke

Abe Ryouma

Torashima Takaaki

Oota Kensuke

Nakashima Takuya

Fujita Mami

Miyama Mari

Souya Kazuki

Synopsis: 

"Your blood and flesh, all of it is mine." An ikigami and a healer, together their souls support each other, blooming into love...

In the distant future, ordinary teacher Yoshino learns that he is a "donor" for the strongest species, the "ikigami." These warriors are tasked with protecting the country. "The unique ability of a donor is to use their bodily fluids to heal ikigami." Yoshino learns this fact and is shocked. Thus, Yoshino is forced to live with Kidou... At first, he is like a beast, demanding Yoshino's bodily fluids, but slowly, the underlying loneliness begins to show...

"Someday, if I met a donor, could they come to love me? That thought is the only reason I survived..."

Review Proper

I can’t believe Yamanaka Hiko’s been terrorizing me for over twelve years now. OH MY GOD I’M SO OLD. And true to the Yamanaka Hiko brand, this turned out to be another fantasy masterpiece (read His 500 Years of Suffering Romance). This was definitely the type of thing that would do great even without the BL aspect of it. Now, I did have an issue with Kidou being an asshole (he's almost killed Yoshino more than once), so I’m not excusing it. But I do get how and why he turned out to be like that and I'm aware that it's important for his character development. The world-building was great, don't get me wrong, but it's definitely dubcon 2015. I would strongly advise you not to get into it if that's a deal breaker for you.

Anyway, onto the voice work.

Souma used a tone so close to Gucci's that I kept imagining Gucci being Yoshino. Yes, I didn't read the manga while listening to the BLCD. It was like after graduating Karasuno, Gucci went on to become a teacher, then a donor lmao. His Yoshino panics more like Honda-san, however, so my final verdict is that his Yoshino is half-Gucci, half-Honda-san.

This isn't Nakajiki and Souma's first rodeo, but I'm glad to say that their performance/dynamic here is different from Mikeneko and XL Size. I expected Kidou to be a mix of Amano and Anaconbayashi-kun 'cause the former was cocky and the latter was stoic, but Kidou was only 50% of that mix and 50% brooding, suffering, I'll-protect-you top. Am I even making any sense? Again, I listened to the BLCD first, but the sound direction they gave Nakajiki was very different from what I thought he'd sound like after I read the manga. It’s almost like what happened with OnoD’s expressive Hasebe-kun in the Kotonoha BLCD vs the more stoic Hasebe-kun in the manga. 

The voice work of our two leads was 👌. This might just be my fave out of their pairings 'cause the sex isn't over-the-top like XL Size and Mikeneko. I will say that I wasn't completely sold on Yamashita Seiichirou as Shibata-san 'cause I feel like he speaks too slowly, but I'm sure it'll grow on me by the time I listen to their spin-off. KawaKen was fine. My heart broke for him every time Shibata-san rejected him, so it's safe to say he's got Taki-kun down already.

Oh. I did have a slight issue with the sfx too. Why was it so watery??? Lmao. Even r18 otome cds aren't that wet. But it's not so glaring that it'll turn you off.

The BLCD was almost perfectly accurate to the manga. I highly recommend this to those learning mid to higher levels of Japanese. Futekiya has licensed volumes 1 & 2, so please try to support the official release if you can. I'd be lying if I said that I agree with how they translated it so... literally?, but I think it's also important to see how things are translated that way if you're aiming to dip your toes into translation aside from studying the language. For example, they used "Living God" throughout the manga instead of "Ikigami." It's correctly translated, but I personally prefer retaining the original title. You know, like how Viz uses "Kaiju no. 8" instead of "Monster no. 8?"

God knows if I'll ever survive the spinoff that I wanted to work on. I avoided talking about it for a reason lmao. Anyway, if y'all liked this, then please give 500 Years (Ono Yuuki x Suzuki Tatsuhisa) and Shortcake no Ichigo Sawaranaide (Nojima Hirofumi x Takeuchi Ken). These two are android bls and Ikigami to Donor is more guide bl, but they both share a futuristic vibe.

[allthefujoshiunite]

TOP 5 SEMES IN BL THAT ARE THE GREENEST FLAGS

Hello friends. It’s been a little over one month ever since the major earthquake, and due to this enormous crisis, there’s new dirt or shortcoming of the ruling party unearthed every day. With two months left until the elections, my head is still preoccupied with what’s going on here. I plan to finish my first impressions next week even though it’s silly to write about a season that’ll end in two…