This review contains some spoilers
Before I start this review Id like to mention the fact that I had absolutely no positive expectations of this anime. As an avid fudanshi when I first heard about a new BL anime I was thrilled. Then I decided to check out some comments about the manga online. What I read had a bad omen: words like rape being thrown around which unfortunately is nothing new for BL. That being said Id like to divide this review into three sections: The Good the Bad and the Ugly I know the original movie title doesnt use the Oxford comma but just bear with me okay?.
The Good:
I believe there is actually a lot to like about this anime. For one the art is phenomenal. The characters look great and really hot much better than what little I read of the manga. Not just their faces but the bodies of the main characters are also phenomenal. This is purely fanservice but its something I appreciate in BL where both the uke and seme have more muscular figure. The more erotic moments of the show were a welcome sight along with the many passionate kisses they shared.
Exhibit A:
400https://i.gyazo.com/099d8221b7b23a500cfc7931ab869cb0.jpg Speaking of kisses their relationship actually develops far quicker than every other BL anime Ive seen which is a very welcome change of pace in my opinion. Many of these anime Sekaiichi Hatsukoi Junjou Romantica Love Stage etc spend a lot of time beating around the bush with stuff like do I really like him? but in this by episode 6 we already have a confession. There were signs of it in episode 2 even when Junta starts ignoring Takato the reason behind it is pretty stupid but Ill talk about that in a minute and Takato is practically begging Junta to keep touching him saying things like it can only be you etc. This is where they do some play with honey...or something...but honestly it was pretty hot. Their relationship is very sexual which is definitely a double edge sword: its good for fanservice but in terms of character development not so much. Aside from their relationship the anime is actually pretty funny I feel. Takato has this very high opinion of himself as shown here:
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which I think is very funny. He puts himself over others in this assholeish kind of way while at the same time respecting others talent such as Junta. Junta is also a very funny character his obsession with Takato usually fuels this. Juntas sort of yandere nature contributes to this as well: his obsession leads to him literally scaring Takatos other suitors off.
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Juntas expressions like this make the anime much more light hearted.The funniest example of this is with Ayagi the guy who wants to make Takato his woman. Junta gives Ayagi a toy that repeats some very incriminating words Ayagi spoke leading to Ayagi backing off from Takato and some nice humor. However this show is not all good.
The Bad:
There is a lot to dislike about this anime. The first episode which I will talk more about in The Ugly is just objectively bad writing. Junta gets into a relationship with blackmail which right off the bat is messed up and not okay. But even then Im willing to let that go because remember I have low expectations for stuff like this. One example of blackmail done right its never right but in a more acceptable way is the Sekaiichi Hatsukoi movie: Yokozawa is blackmailed by one of his higherups with photos much like in this anime but the difference in that movie was that his boss Kirishima just wanted to go out to eat dinner with him go on dates etc. However in this Junta feels the need to have sex right off the bat and just for added shock value sexually assault him to achieve this. This is where the anime fundamentally falls flat: its all about the sex. Sure its hot but can we get more character development? This anime was based off a manga that is a majority just them having sex. Adapting that into an anime will be difficult mainly because you cant show porn on television. Thus they have to water it down and resort to blueballing the audience constantly. The best example of this is the episode where Junta takes Takato to a film set to see him dressed up in a high school uniform. Hes there to have sex with him and that is literally it. You see some very passionate and great kisses as shown in the first pic of this review but you just get a few panning shots of Takato taking it in the behind but with no actual action showing and its kind of...unfulfilling. Because the manga is mostly smut however that means that the drama is very lacking and predictable. Remember the conflict in episode 2 I talked about? The reason Junta was annoying Takato was because of a COLD. He had a cold and didnt wanna pass it to him. I know were just starting the anime here but come on. First we have the trademark romance anime love triangle but in this case it only lasts for two episodes which is good I guess because that can get annoying. But the resolution was very formulaic guy sets his sights attempts something heinous but nothing actually happens or Junta saves him. Even the paparazzi arc it was like 3 episodes is predictable obviously it wont resolve to anything but they make it seem like such a huge deal. It would be much better if that arc ended with some more dramatic consequences rather than everything just going back to how it was before. Id like it more if they had a situation more like Gravitation:
The character writing is also kind of lazy all of the love rivals if you can even call them that they dont show up for very long have very basic backstories and are only there because they wanna get down with Takato. And once they are defeated by Junta they essentially become irrelevant. Junta is also written as kind of a jack of all trades that can do anything when Takato is involved. I would have liked to see some kind of weakness from Junta and being horny all the time doesnt count. Juntas horniness is funny but it gets kinda old. Juntas image as this very suave guy is never broken and I would have liked it if it were and maybe he could rely on Takato sometimes. Takato was always the damsel in distress of this anime which is kind of lame because he has pretty strong resolve himself. He is the most well written character in the show however. One thing I will give the anime credit for is the flashback episodes where Takato remembers how he met Junta in the past. My question is why didnt they put that at the beginning? When Junta first meets Takato it seems like they hardly know each other and their relationship seems very forced from the beginning. Takatos reflection on their meeting actually gives some context to Juntas feelings as well as Takatos. The worst part about this anime however is the atrocity that is the first episode. This anime misses something very important when it comes to relationships: consent.
The Ugly:
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Everyones reaction upon seeing the first episode.
The reason many people dropped this anime was because of what happened at the beginning. Junta sexually assaults Takato no beating around the bush here that is what happened chases him into a room and forces a kiss on him. After this Takato HIDES yes you heard me he hides in a room slightly traumatized by what just happened to him. The real question is: why. Why was it written like this? I guess were lucky it was only a kiss: in the manga Junta actually rapes Takato. No ambiguity there either like there is sometimes in yaoi Takato literally yells out youre raping a man? while yelling and crying. This is not just a problem with Dakaretai rather BL as a whole. Lack of consent gives rise to these ridiculous stories about some guy being raped then falling in love. This is very fucked up no two bones about it. Luckily recent BL has shifted away from this but it still lingers as you can see in this anime this manga is fairly recent. My opinion on this is clear: its horrible. I know Juntas whole character is hes insanely horny but rape right at the start is NOT the way to introduce that. It doesnt even make sense either at the end of the first episode Junta holds Takatos hand very romantically and says please let me have sex with you which is actually asking for consent. This is how it should have been in the first place It should be noted that Takato wasnt exactly in a position to refuse because of the blackmail but momentarily disregarding that it would have been much better if the anime started like that. Although Takato gives consent later in the anime it would have left a much better taste in my mouth if it started out like that.
Conclusion:
If you want a for the most part fun hot and mindlessly entertaining BL anime this is the way to go. One thing Ive learned throughout my time watching anime is that my standards for anime are not particularly high and especially not for BL. That means Ill take what I can get and this is what I was given.
75
/100