This dark gritty Japanese BL is something I was not expecting. The story focuses on a Yakuza bodyguard assigned to kill his young boss. The premise sounds interesting but the execution was just weird. There were lot of problems with the show like violence, abuse, coercion and even forcing themselves sexually. Eventually it somewhere becomes. BL with some nonsense stuff. Thankfully the series was only 6 episodes of about 26-30 minutes each. Kataoka is a respected yakuza leader. His boss has grown old and frail, unable to manage the organization anymore. Leadership now falls to the boss's son, Keito. He assigns Odajima as Kataoka's new handler to keep him in check. Kataoka is impulsive and treats Odajima aslmost as a servant even forcing sex on him. But beneath the rough exterior, Kataoka occasionally reveals a gentler side. Odajima, on the other hand, is stoic and distant, keeping his emotions under tight control. What Kataoka doesn't know is that Odajima has a hidden agen...
Despite his best friend's protest, An, a gifted student, joins the rock music club just before the national high school rock band contest. But aside from the practice sessions, he also has to manage the pressure of the endless exams and the trouble that comes with being a teenager…all that is worth looking forward to, is the action – such as a kiss that was never meant to be, a burning desire that has been left unattended for far too long, and a realization that a person's sex – both biological and psychological –matters not in front love. In the sophomore year of high school, anything could happen – it is an unapologetic rock n' roll song, composed of passion and youth!
At almost 2.5 hours of total runtime, the is a huge commitment to sit through and I have to a admit that I struggled to keep my attention on what's unfolding on my screen. But having said that if a similar BL show was to happen in my city, I might give it a try to watch it live. By now, I have seen almost 4 shows that have been recordings of live musical performances, and honestly they are just not fun to watch. The whole excitement of watching live is not there and everything is diluted. The story was interesting with the y young BL couple and an older generation couple worrying about what the newer generation BL couples must suffer. The actors seemed ok, its not easy to dance, sing and act all at the same time. Also, there are way too many characters and it takes a good 45 minutes to realize who are the important ones and whom should you focus on. But thankfully most guys were cute, which by now, I have started to expect o most Taiwanese shows. Overall, the show was not my cuppa tea although I would always applaud the efforts and hard work that must have gone to make this stage performance. My rating here is for my interest in this musical show and not really a reflection of how good or bad it really is. (2/10)
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