#it felt grounded in a way cherry magic doesnt quite (tho cherry magic feels emotionally trounded)

[mejomonster]

I watched all of Kabe Koji in 1 day and I 100% recommend if:

You like BL genre stuff that both references yaoi erotica manga (and comedy manga) roots, while also telling a quite grounded realistic story (it balances direct manga panel shots and comedy with a more realistic tinge including more realistic looking actors, who act more toward real people behavior versus fiction and with a core theme about an inferiority complex rather than about romance)

You liked Absolute BL (again that Manga-tropes-crash-into-reality comedy style) with more of a realistic core

You liked My Beautiful Man, particularly the more messy realistic themes and behavior, intertwined with some BL tropes (but want something more Lighthearted a bit)

I'd say Kabe Koji is doing a variety of things, wrapped up in one singular unique experience. It's really nice. As a manga comedy lover it brings that silliness to life, but it's so realistic in certain ways that screams dramas much more like Japan Sinks or Alice in Borderlands almost (while still remaining slice of life optimistic). The romance doesn't actually rely on BL tropes mostly. For example the wiping food off the face of a crush is one of the much later scenes and one of the only BL fluff tropes that gets used. The characters driving goals/personalities are the main focus of the plot, resulting in a very grounded feeling romance (and individuals) you want to root for, rather than feeling you're going through the usual motions of X fluff trope = ship them.

And of course, as a fan of shows that use certain references but subvert them or do much more, this was really satisfying. It's one of the only things I've ever seen to treat Idol career as fairly serious (they work, they're employees, they're stressed over work stuff, they have paparazzi, they aren't glamorized even though other people certainly idolize them). The mangaka works hard and is often frustrated WITH drawing (a reality of doing what you love for a living is sometimes it IS work and frustrating), the characters who are gay are aware of the society they live in (I related to our mangaka SO much, how many of us were queer teens then one day ran into yaoi online and realized hey! There's people like me! That aren't treating people like us like freaks - at least, that's what I felt like over a decade ago finding yaoi and learning boys can like boys girls can like girls, when adults told me they couldn't, and I was in fact not rhe only one but tons of fictional stories and real people like me did exist and it was perfectly ordinary). I think Issei has balls to come out at a concert and it was very in line with his straightforward honest unapologetic well intended personality. I think their relationship was simple and GOOD, and yet still compelling dramatically because yes our Own internal doubts do affect if we can even admit we like someone, accept their love, believe their love, hope to share our lives with people we admire, and this story really captured that.

It was just lovely. As a story on its own merit. An experience.

And the theme song, the reaching out hands. Hands as queer romance. You get it.

Anyway I wholeheartedly recommend.