u/periwinkl18

Let's take a moment to muse over this collection of Very Precious Things, which is a snippet from the current anime S2's ending sequence. I love that they put this together! It gives me so much joy when I recognise each item and recall which scene/arc they were from.

Anime only fans would recall the birthday Ponta plushie, Miki's burger doodle that led to a misunderstanding, the last piece of candy Koyun gave Minato, the curry drink that started it all for MinaKoyun, among others...

Manga finishers though, do you feel as thrilled as I am with these!?

>!- the group 2 slip of paper from Miki to Koyun for the field trip grouping! All praise Miki-sama~ if she hadn't, we wouldn't have had this scene...!<

>!- the hardboiled egg aehuigeahjvb this was one of the cutest MinaKoyun moments! How Koyun teased Minato about liking eggs and how he denied it every time lol I had been thinking that it'd be such a bummer if they skipped this in the anime -- I'm so glad they won't!!!<

>!- that Tanuki guardian statue, lol the only "witness" to the Most Special Moment (well, if we don't count that Kyoto green tea bottle). Its expression like "I know what's up" cracks me up every time I reread that chapter. !<

>!- the bottle of perfume and letter to Koyu. I thought it was such a mature choice of birthday present from Minato, just like that necklace for Xmas... Gifting is probably one of his top love languages heh. !<

Which items stand out to you guys??

Hello everyone who have been waiting to watch this, the download is now available via Nyaa.si with subs in various languages.

Alternatively, according to the official Instagram, it will be available for streaming globally on Amazon Prime Video from Oct 30th.

+++SPOILERS BELOW+++

I've been anticipating this movie because I'm a fan of the anime and I was excited with the casting as I like Meguro Ren, Takahashi Fumiya, Kitamura Takumi, Nukumi Meru, Shison Jun.

So perhaps my expectations were misplaced a bit too high, and I've ended up a bit disappointed. I did only watch the first half and jumped scenes in the second half though.

There are some aspects that I enjoyed though, and I'll cover those first. Fumiya, playing Shin, was given a lot of screen time as the character mainly moving the plot along. This is surprising, as I don't recall him being this prominent in the anime. Well all the better, because his performance here is impressive. I noticed especially how he captured Shin's demeanour and his gait/the way he moves when he charges in somewhere or when he's fighting. He reminded me of the anime Shin so much, it was fascinating!

I also enjoyed watching Takumi play Nagumo with his steely charisma and mischievous/dangerous quirks. He didn't remind me so much of the anime Nagumo as Fumiya did as Shin, but he did it well enough that he was believable as a real person (vs anime version if you get what I mean). In fact, I want to see more of The Order in action, which we'll probably get more of in the sequel, if there's going to be one. The ending is totally set up for one though, and there was only a glimpse of Shison Jun ugh, so I hope we do!

I found Ueto Aya's acting here pretty good too as the super "hard-boiled" wife. She commanded the screen in the few scenes she had. It did take me some effort though to push aside the fact that she is a lot older than Ren IRL 😳

My biggest disappointment is this: They adopted a slapstick comedy style used in older Japanese productions that's much less used in newer productions, for good reason. The director really fell short here, or maybe this style still appeals to domestic audiences? There were just too many things that made me cringe, such as Taro's exaggerated reactions to his wife and defeated opponents who squirm in pain and contort their faces too much. In fact, this comedy style is unlike in the anime, which I recall leans towards deadpan/irreverent -- maybe other anime viewers could weigh in on this?

Ren is great as Sakamoto Taro, but, (and by no means his fault), it's honestly hard for me to digest in live action format that he is able to fight so well when he's fat, and even harder to digest that he slims down completely whenever he has to exert himself.

As for the fighting scenes, the choreography was not too bad considering it's pretty much the main appeal of Sakamoto Days -- thrilling, flashy and captivating. While they did incorporate Sakamoto's quick thinking and smart tactics, but post-production could have done better to up the ante, like better timing of speed-up versus slow-mo, as some parts seemed too rehearsed and lacking the spontaneity of an actual brawl.

The theme song, BANG!! by Snow Man is a bop.

I'm eager to know what the rest of you think of this movie!

I'm starting this discussion thread because the other one existing is skewed to a negative review, which is fair but I think it'd be nice to have a generic thread for all kinds of views. That main post also seems to have spoilers, which I'm avoiding as I've only watched until ep2 so far -- but I have thoughts to share!

Synopsis (from Netflix Japan):
After inadvertently destroying his best friend’s life, Narutaki Ryu abandons everything and leaves Japan. Near death at a church in a foreign land, he’s saved by Hwang Johan, a Korean boxer. Both men carry deep emotional scars. As their lonely souls begin to intertwine, they discover a once-in-a-lifetime connection. But the more they yearn to share their lives, the more cruelly fate entangles their destinies. Set across Berlin, Seoul, and Tokyo, this decade-spanning narrative chronicles two young men’s journey of soul and love, marked by unforgettable moments of pain, suffering, and joy.

• Themes: Drama, Friendship, LGBTQ
• Starring: Isomura Hayato, Ok Taecyeon, Hashimoto Ai, Mizukami Koshi, Furutachi Yutaro
• Crew: Hashizume Shunki (Director, Screenwriter), Ota Masaru (Producer), Murakami Koichi (Producer)
• Streaming on Netflix now in most regions

My thoughts as of the end of ep2: (spoilers tags applied)

Behold, another joint collaboration of Japanese and Korean actors! I'm not sure of further production details for now, the crew looks to be all-Japanese but they sure are keeping up the trend since Eye Love You, Romantics Anonymous and Gimbap to Onigiri.

I started this drama without knowing anything other than what was shown in the trailer. And it revealed as much as the opening of the pilot, that Ryu is >!in shock after the sudden drastic accident of a good friend/ice hockey teammate, Arata, played by Mizukami Koshi.!< I wish we had more screen time of Koshi as I love watching him -- he has this quiet, brooding vibe but is total sunshine when he smiles. I like how the show cuts off the >!not-quite-sad but numb grieving sequence with the incident in the church. The moment in the confessional booth also became a funny topic later when Ryu talks to Johan for the first time, which was a nice touch. !< The script so far is written quite nicely to suit the characters.

I've taken a liking to Johan. I'd admit I could be a bit biased because I used to be a fan of Ok Taecyeon when his K-pop boyband, 2PM, was in its heyday. I also discovered he has pretty good acting chops when I saw him in the Kdrama, Reborn Rich. He plays passionate, wild characters well, and Johan here is turning out to be pretty wild and free-spirited. His Japanese here is also a bit comical -- it's obvious he was instructed to sound awkward, because IRL he's way more fluent. He's known to be effectively multilingual in Korean, English and Japanese.

As for Ryu, so far it feels like the Hayato I've seen in several other dramas he's appeared in. He has never really made an impression on me frankly, because I find he tends to lack expressiveness, but we shall see as the story progresses >! since Ryu was going through grief but should be coming out of it in the next episodes. !<

The setting in Berlin in these 2 episodes also lends a nice vibe to the show, helping to carry the concept of >!running away from which the 2 MC's start forming a bond. Sumiko's apartment is so aesthetic, and I keep remembering that scene when Ryu "hallucinated" that Arata jumped out of the open window there -- emphasising how extremely haunted he was by the extreme measures his friend took and bearing a lot of guilt over it.!<

At the end of ep2, >!I'm so relieved Ryu made the first move to share his contact with Johan. The scene was cute (thankgod for QR codes!) and adds a realistic element to their story. I mean, the writer could very well have decided to make their reunion back in Asia a fateful encounter again, but high chances it would've paled in comparison. !<

At this point, I'm hoping it turns out to be a wholesome BL story where they save each other from their inner ghosts, as in character growth. I wouldn't like it if they don't end up together, but I'm seated for Taec 😁

Would love to see your thoughts in the comments, and please remember to use the spoiler tag!