Four Flavors of Taiyaki » Junjou Romantica

Junjou fans, rejoice.

Taiyaki — Sun, 27 Jul 2008 18:58:11 +0000

Junjou Romantica gets a new season. Apparently, it airs in October. Looking forward to it, I guess.

Junjou Romantica 12 (end) – Can’t tell if it was a happy one or not.

Taiyaki — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 03:56:24 +0000

Flavor: Mild

Whoa, well, this was the last episode… but it’s like it feels the show ended with no closure whatsoever because of the random story they decided to choose as the final story of the series. I kinda expected them to create an original ending for the anime like they usually do, but then I thought about how making up a finale for a series like this in a single episode could only result in disaster, so I guess I’m sorta glad they didn’t go for that direction.

Anywho, as for what happened on the episode itself: Basically, Akihiko receives an award for one of his novels and Misaki doesn’t know anything about any of this until he hears everything from Sumi after school’s over. Later that same day, when he arrives home, he finds Aikawa and that other annoying guy inside Usami’s apartment ready to take him out to some kind of event. They start talking about some stuff related to the award and then all of a sudden they end up mentioning Usami’s brother, Haruhiko, a name that Misaki has never heard before.

While they head off to the party or whatever, Misaki stays home and begins thinking about various things… such as how Usami never tells him about that kind of stuff and how he’s always the one doing things for him. When Akihiko returns, Misaki decides to confront him about all of this. He manages to get some tidbits about his brother out of him, so Misaki is all like “wait, it’s okay, that’s enough” and proceeds to congratulate him on winning the award, something which makes Akihiko feel really happy…

And I guess that pretty much sums things up. Seeing Misaki act like a seme was probably the most interesting scene from the entire episode. The rest wasn’t all that great, so I suppose that makes it one of my least favorite Junjou Romantica stories so far. Not bad… but not really a good choice for the final episode, in my opinion.

Final comments:

Certainly, this ended up being a lot more entertaining than what I imagined it to be. Like I’ve said multiple times now, I don’t like BL that much, so at first I thought this would really be incredibly boring and only decided to keep following it because I was curious about how they were planning on handling the H-scenes from the manga. However, when I began watching it with a less pessimistic view, I realized it wasn’t all that bad. Sure, the drama moments were very tiresome… but the lovely comedy and the amusing character interactions made up for it.

Still, can’t say I feel sad about the lack of confirmation for a second season though… but if they ever make one, I’d definitely watch it.

Junjou Romantica 11 – Terrorist Uke.

Taiyaki — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 02:46:38 +0000

This could be dangerous.

Flavor: Mild

The end of the Junjou Terrorist introductory arc. Didn’t like it as much as last’s week episode since it was a bit more serious and less funny, though I guess the drama moments weren’t nearly as annoying as the ones from Junjou Egoist IMO.

Anyways, everything that happened on this last part of the story can be summarized in “Miyagi reminisces about his past relationship with his female teacher who eventually died because of an illness” and “Shinobu remains a forceful uke”. My favorite scene was when Miyagi asked Hiroki for some advice and when he began talking to him about his current situation through a “what-if” scenario, Hiro noticed it sounded awfully similar to what Nowaki and him had experienced before. Then Miyagi told him something like “But what if we aren’t talking about a girl, but a GUY instead?” and that’s when Hiro totally freaked out because he really thought he was trying to make fun of him or something.

So, yeah, on the topic of interesting moments, I found the way they handled that scene where Shinobu asks Miyagi for buttsecks to what he responds with “well, why don’t you start with it?” sort of interesting. In the anime, what Shinobu did next was start removing his own clothes, while in the manga what he really did was unzip Miyagi’s pants and… well, you can probably guess the rest. Also, when I noticed they left the part with the whole “Shinobu shaking his hands” thing, I couldn’t help but think “Pfft, are you nervous of showing your body to your seme? At least you didn’t have to endure what your manga counterpart did!”.

Err… okay, enough with the H-scenes. It also looks like the ending suffered some modifications as well since, even if it was still about “Miyagi coming to the airport in order to prevent Shinobu from returning back to Australia”, they removed some stuff that was supposed to happen after they showed Miyagi holding hands with the kid and walking together. We aren’t really missing that much, though… aside from maybe an humorous scene involving tissue boxes.

Next episode: A Junjou Romantica story, most likely.

Junjou Romantica 10 – Yaoi terrorism.

Taiyaki — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 04:03:43 +0000

Haha, oh boy.

Flavor: Sweet

Didn’t think I’d enjoy this episode because I thought the first manga chapter from this pairing wasn’t all that great… but somehow it seemed more entertaining in anime form. Also, like I’ve said before, I don’t really read/watch that many yaoi series, so a pairing where the uke acts like a seme is all new stuff to me (though I’m sure it still isn’t something that common anyways).

Anyways, so in Junjou Terrorist we have this uke called Shinobu Takatsuki who fell in love at first sight with professor You Miyagi (the same old dude who appeared on Junjou Egoist’s second arc). They first met around three years ago when Shinobu was getting bullied by some guys on the streets and Miyagi was the one who came to his rescue. Shinobu immediately felt that their encounter had been destined to happen and called it “fate” or something like that, and he was quite surprised to find out that after that they were planning on heading to the same location. However, when they arrived Shinobu discovered that both of their families had been waiting for them on the same place because Miyagi was actually his sister’s fiance. LOL, the ultimate rejection!

So, the years passed and Miyagi got divorced… which Shinobu saw as a new chance to win over the guy’s heart. He returns from Australia and meets up with the professor on some kind of restaurant where he starts talking about all this destiny business. Miyagi doesn’t seem too convinced about any of this and starts telling stuff like “You know I’m 35 years old and we’re both guys, right? Please stop making fun of me!” but Shinobu doesn’t really care and just wants him to take responsibility for making him fall in love with him. XD

Later, we get to see how Miyagi starts getting tired of the situation after the director at the University he works at asks him to let his son (which ends up being Shinobu) stay at his place for some weeks. Then the guy itself reveals that he plans to get into M University just so he could be around Miyagi, and that’s when the old professor decides to play a little prank on the kid since he feels that he’s really gone too far with this “joke”. However, once he’s done “playing” with him, he sees him crying and stuff and finally realizes that Shinobu has been serious about it all this time. Lastly, the episode ends with the scene from the second chapter where Shinobu tells Miyagi about how his name also means Ninja and that he’s not giving up with his stalking activities or whatever.

Next episode: The end of the first Junjou Terrorist arc.

Junjou Romantica 09 – Shotas in love.

Taiyaki — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 03:16:41 +0000

Fortunately, there wasn’t any kind of sex in this episode.

Flavor: Sweet

Well, this episode pretty much covered the first three chapters of the manga’s side story called Junjou Minimum. The only chapter they missed was the last one where we get to see a shota Misaki and a young Takahiro. The final scene after the credits where Misaki checks Akihiko’s computer while the guy is sleeping and there he discovers a folder with a bunch of photos from his childhood days was actually how that fourth chapter started in the manga.

Anyways, I guess it was a really cute episode and it was nice to see how Hiroki and Usami met. It sorta loses its cuteness factor when you think about how things ended up between these two after all those years, but it was still good nonetheless. It looks like all this time the only one who really fell in love was Hiro… and even if Usami was the one who kissed him, hugged him and let him hold his hands, he never realized Hiroki’s feelings for him, or maybe he just completely ignored them because during that time he was already infatuated with Misaki’s brother. ^^;

Next episode: Finally… Junjou Terrorist!?

Junjou Romantica 08 – Protect yer ukes.

Taiyaki — Sun, 01 Jun 2008 02:11:13 +0000

Sad Usami is sad.

Flavor: Sweet

A new Misaki x Akihiko episode, hurray! This one didn’t feel as comedic as the previous ones, but it was fun nonetheless.

Well, the story basically started last week since, after the credits, they showed the scene where Misaki’s brother talks over the phone with Usami and tells him… that he’s planning on taking Misaki away from him! After the kid hears about this, he gets kinda shocked but he doesn’t really seem to understand why he feels like that. Usami doesn’t say anything about it either so Misaki ends up going to his onii-chan’s place in Tokyo after all.

So, he arrives, his brother picks him up at the station and they have dinner together at home. There, Takahiro starts saying some bad things about Akihiko like how he can get pretty moody at times and stuff, so Misaki gets all pissed off and starts yelling stuff like “What’s wrong with you people, why’re you all always saying these kinds of things about him!?”. Then, after he realizes what he had just done, he apologizes to his brother and his wife and then dashes off to a convenience store. On his way to the shop, Misaki starts thinking about how he has heard people say the same things about Usami before and how he doesn’t agree with any of them… even if he knows that he really does some “horrible” stuff to him (like using him for his gay porn novels) every now and then.

Later, Akihiko is seen talking with Takahiro over the phone and there he learns that Misaki’s parents died when he was just 8, and that he’s been blaming himself for it since he thinks that if he hadn’t told them to hurry up and come back faster the accident that killed them wouldn’t have happened. Ever since then, Misaki has always cared for the people around him without letting them do the same for him. That’s why Takahiro wants to have Misaki around… so he can open up and feel what it’s like to be in a complete family setting.

After a week (I think) Misaki calls Usami and tells him that’s he’s coming back for a while. Usami mentions how he’s been able to take care of everything without having him around, and that makes Misaki feel sorta sad. He finally realizes that he wants to stay by Usami’s side and now is all like “Crap, now I won’t be able to come back…” while he starts to cry. Akihiko notices this and tells him to wait for him there since he’s coming to see him now. So, yeah, he arrives, he hugs Misaki and they do it in the train, lol.

After that, they’re shown going on a date together since it’s Misaki’s birthday… then there’s the whole Marimo thing with Usami and the episode’s over. Phew.

Next episode: Childhood memories with Junjou Minimum.

Junjou Romantica 06 – Lonely.

Taiyaki — Sat, 17 May 2008 21:38:39 +0000

Sad guys in the rain.

Flavor: Sour

The continuation from last week’s BL drama fest. I guess I should start by admitting that I didn’t really enjoy this arc. Like I’ve said before, I’m no yaoi fangirl so I guess that must be the reason of why a boys love romance dramatic story doesn’t really manage to capture my interest.

Anyways, this episode begins with Nowaki’s professor asking him to come with him to the airport since he needs to meet some dude there. When they arrive, Nowaki can’t stop thinking of what he told Hiroki about meeting with him at a restaurant to have a chat, and when he realizes that he’s gonna be late for the date he decides to abandon his professor and runs away. Unfortunately, when he arrives he doesn’t find Hiro-san since he had left the place a while ago.

Sorry, Miyagi, but your uke is in another manga story.

Meanwhile, Hiro heads back to school to finish the rest of his work and there he meets with Miyagi. The professor notices he’s all soaked because of the rain so he hands him a towel. Then, he jokingly asks him “What’s wrong? Were you dumped or something?”, but then he sees that Hiroki has suddenly started to cry. Miyagi takes advantage of this and decides to give him a hug. He’s about to kiss him when Nowaki arrives and pushes him away from Hiro-san. After that, Nowaki proceeds to drag Hiro to the school library where they fight, they talk… and then have sex. Oh boy.

The next day, things are okay between Hiro and Nowaki now, so they decide to start living together at Hiroki’s place. While Hiro helps Nowaki unpack his stuff, he finds a bag with a bunch of letters that Nowaki apparently wrote to him but that for some reason he never sent any of them. Also, in the end Hiro-san realizes that Nowaki DID tell him about the whole studying abroad business in one of their dates, but I guess he wasn’t really paying attention or something and he completely ignored that. YEAH, IT WAS ALL YOUR FAULT SO STOP BEING ALL TSUNTSUN ABOUT IT -_-;

Junjou Romantica 05 – Being egoist again.

Taiyaki — Sun, 11 May 2008 04:38:31 +0000

Finally. I had to watch this one with Chinese subs because I never managed to find the RAW.

Flavor: Mild

Well, this is probably the arc that all the Junjo Egoist fans have been waiting for. This episode covered half of the story so it’s most likely gonna end on the next one. Anyways, it starts out with Nowaki returning from America after being absent for one year, something that Hiro doesn’t seem too happy about since he doesn’t remember ever hearing anything about this trip. In fact, the first thing he does after seeing him back is kicking him on the head and running away lol.

Okay, I’m kinda unsure about this but… apparently, after they met each other, Hiroki and Nowaki began dating for the next five years until Nowaki suddenly left the country to study abroad in the US. During this time, he never contacted Hiroki… and the only letter he ever received was the one he got some days before his arrival where he told him that he was planning on returning to Japan soon.

Why was this part darkened out, again?

So, after their meeting on the airport, Hiroki returns home and finds Nowaki outside his apartment. He lets him stay there for the night and, after a little chat, they immediately have sex… except they didn’t even show the buttsecks scene this time (we only get to see up until they kiss against the door). So, it’s dark outside and they start having a conversation while being both naked in bed when suddenly Hiroki reveals to Nowaki that while he was gone he became an assistant professor, something that leaves the guy kinda in a shock. The next morning, Hiro-san wakes up to find a note from Nowaki saying that he’s going out.

Later, we get to see Hiroki in his workplace alongside professor Miyagi, the seme from Junjo Terrorist who in this case he seems sorta interested in Hiro-san. During class, Hiroki begins to think about his situation and finally decides to break up with Nowaki. After that, the poor guy is shown finding a postcard from Hiro-san saying that it’s all over.

The next half starts with Hiro reminiscing about how his dates with Nowaki used to be. Then, while being at the school where he works at, he meets with the boy once again. Hiroki tries to avoid him, but he starts following him while apologizing and asking him about the meaning of the letter. Hiro tells him that it’s impossible for them to be together since their positions are just too different, but Nowaki doesn’t believe that’s the real reason behind their break up. Hiro-san manages to get away but not before Nowaki tells him to meet with him later that night. The episode ends with Nowaki leaving the school while he sees Miyagi talking with Hiroki with a suprised look on his face. Oh noes!

Junjou Romantica 04 – Intruder alert.

Taiyaki — Tue, 06 May 2008 04:24:55 +0000

WTH get dat bitch out of my boyz luv, plz

Flavor: Mild

Well, since they went and crammed up the first two chapters of the Hiro x Nowaki pairing, we didn’t get a second Junjo Egoist episode like it should’ve been supposed to… and instead we’ve been sent back to the main storyline with Usagi and Misaki. Bad news for the fans of the second pairing, I guess.

In this chapter, Misaki meets Aikawa, a rather ugly woman (except Misaki thinks she’s actually quite beautiful, lol I mean just look at her face!) who works as Usami’s editor. After learning that this lady has the keys to Usagi’s apartment and seeing how close these two seem to be, Misaki starts to feel jealous… except that he’s still in denial about being in love with Usami so he gets all annoyed and confused throughout the episode and ends up avoiding Akihiko every time he tries to touch him or simply do something to him. This actually got me all annoyed and confused as well, since it’s like “geez, just get over it, you can’t escape anymore!”.

So, after his 3rd or 4th attempt to have sex with Misaki the kid finally yells to him that he doesn’t want to be touched by Usagi since he feels really weird when he does that, and that he already has Aikawa anyways. Of course, Usagi had to explain to the boy that there isn’t really anything between the woman and him, and that he had all those strange feelings because he was really in love with him.

…Meh.

After that, there’s the obligatory dull sex scene and then, in the end, they explain that the reason of why Aikawa had these keys was because she was Usagi’s first editor and back then he frequently missed the deadlines. Also, he suffered certain health problems and whenever Aikawa came she’d find him all dead on the floor and then she’d start to shake him violently demanding him to finish the damn script already. Oh, and it looks like those erotic scenes with Akihiko and Misaki in the books he writes were all idea of this demonic woman. Just great!

Junjou Romantica 03 – Egoist romance.

Taiyaki — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 04:12:57 +0000

The buttsecks scene was even worse this time, so this kiss is gonna be the only manservice shot of the week.

Flavor: Mild

This episode served as the introduction to the second pairing of the series, whose story is referred to as “Junjo Egoist”. This couple is integrated by Hiro-san, an university tsundere student who used to be in love with Akihiko (the same guy from the first pairing), and Nowaki, an orphan who requests Hiroki to become his tutor. So, yeah, Nowaki eventually finds out about Hiroki’s past with Akihiko and how he was living an unrequited love (since during that time Usami was infatuated with Misaki’s brother) and later he confesses his feelings to him, saying that he’d never do anything that could hurt him and that he wants to see him smile or something like that.

After that, I think they added some chunks from the second manga chapter of this story… since they showed Nowaki working at a flower shop and later receiving a bouquet from Hiro-san (something that made him really happy BTW). The sex scene they used for this, though, was actually the one from the first chapter… except that it was really short and like they censored it as hell so it sucked even more than the previous ones. =P