Kieta Hatsukoi (2021)

Arigato! Ida and Aoki

The eraser and the misunderstanding. The supposed to be someone else love story turned into a cute mix-up! Pilot episode did a great job holding me till the end. Since EP01 until EP10, there’s no doubt that this drama make me feel extremely happy. I just keep smiling the whole time. One thing that I always do when I am enjoying what I am watching is to took several screenshots from it. My gallery will prove how fond I am from the show.

IDA IS SUCH A NICE GUY –a rare gem to be exact. The way he handled Aoki and the eraser situation was something only kind-hearted people will do. He was shocked but he didn’t altered any harsh words to Aoki. He responded him with an utmost thinking of whether to accept Aoki’s confession or not. If only all guys acts like the way Ida acted towards Aoki’s love revalation, maybe people like Aoki may avoid a painful rejection from the guy he liked just because he is gay.

Ida-kun in a rolled white-school-long-sleeves with a loose necktie is so sizzling hot! With his kind personality and duality of either being a hottie or a cuttie, I therefore conclude that Ida is such a perfect boyfriend material.

Aoki on the other hand is the character I closely relate to. In the world where hetero relationship is labelled as “normal,” people who likes the same kind of gender tend to be really scared to even avoid speaking this kind of feeling to their friends. Some people can’t bring themselves to speak up and be honest with their sexuality to others, not even themselves. That is why I cried a lot when Aoki finally open up to his best friend, Akkun. It is really a blessing to have a friend that you can freely tell to them everything, even liking a person who have the same sex with you. I love how Aoki and Aida’s friendship was been told, supporting each other no matter who other person likes.

Aoki the cutest and the kindest. After their confession scene at the camping episode, every scenes were definitely a screaming-with-joy moments knowing that the two of them are real boyfriends now. Those beautiful smiles of Ida brought by Aoki’s action is absolutely the sweetest thing ever. His minimal laugh was sexy and appealing. I love him, we all love him, but most importantly, Aoki love him the most. On the episode where the appearance of a temporary new teacher –changing his attitude after knowing that Aoki is gay, make my blood boiled up. But thanks to this, we see that Ida is that gentle boyfriend who will protect you and let you be dependable to him because he doesn’t want you to be sad on something. Also, Aoki who will protect his lovelife and not letting other people say something bad about being in a homosexual relationship is the bravest thing to deal with homophobic person. I am glad that in the end, the teacher has been educate about this kind of relation.

From the special episode, aired before the release of the last two episodes, I am so happy to hear that Ida’s small and soft gesture of caressing Aoki’s hair from time to time has became a big topic in Japan. It trended and called as IDA-PON (Pon means touching or poking something.) Their first date was one of my favorite episode. I can feel how amazingly high their chemistry is with a consistent connection since the pilot episode. The highlight scene for me is when Ida is supposed to change his clothes on Aoki’s side, then Aoki were in panic because he’s too shy to see Ida’s angry abs. That was a funny clip for me, an exquisite one.

There’s only a few scenes where we see Ida being jealous and it was an adorable moments to see. Ida’s facial expression when he found out that Aoki has a little crush on Hashimoto before was the cutest! In spite of that, Hashimoto and Aoki became real besties now. This girl has a pure heart even after mistakenly knowing that Aoki has the same crush with her, she was so cheerful to accept her rival. I am also grateful that a person like Hashimoto exist in Aoki’s life owing to the fact that she’s a trustworthy and comfortable girl for Aoki to talked about his relationship with Ida, the same way Aoki help her with Aida. Hashimoto and Aida doesn’t have the best side couple story but both of them has been a great help to Aoki and Ida’s relationship; they’re truly a wonderful friends to have. Along with Ida’s volleyball friends who are kind too. I hope more and more people will be just like them, who is sincerely open on accepting homosexual relationship.

Ida and Aoki relationship has also some downfalls encountered. The misunderstanding or conflict thoughts were fix immediatle, proving that they have a healthy relationship.

The final episode is a real game over! When Ida say “I LOVE YOU” to Aoki, I hold my face so tight and cry in great silent. That was an insanely lovely scene, Ida finally giving Aoki a reassurance. The last scene is a happy ending indeed. Aoki borrowing Ida’s eraser and saw the text “Aoki (with a heart)” on his eraser bring me too many emotions. It all started with a eraser and ended up with another eraser, no misunderstaning, no mix-up, just being real with their feelings.

OST’s is as great as the drama. The fact that both Michieda Shunsuke and Meguro Ren was the one who sang Kieta Hatsukoi OSTs alongside with their respective groups are so cutely amazing. Snow Man’s Secret Touch and Ubu Love by Naniwa Danshi are the two songs that has been added to my favorite songs in my playlist. No doubt that it were one of the best Japanese song I’ve ever heard.

I never thought that after “Cherry Magic: Thirty Years of Virginity Can Make You A Wizard,” there were another Japanese drama that I am been so attached to. Kieta Hatsukoi began its first episode on October 9, 2021, a year after Cherry Magic first episode well released as well. Destiny is really doing its job making this coincidence to happened. Both drama is an all perfect score for me! The OSTs, acting, visuals, chemistry, and everything about these two shows are a masterpiece. I am always so grateful for Japanese BL for having a Kurosawa and Ida as the perfect boyfriends ever existed in fiction and live-action, as well to their ever loving and caring cute boyfriends, Adachi and Aoki.

To those who read this review until my very last paragraphs, thank you so much for making time for me. I am just super happy to be able to wrote feedbacks from the show that made me feel so much happiness. Let us live our life always seeking for our happiness that we deserved. Ida and Aoki thought us that love is purely love regarding what kind of sexuality we have. I wish everyone the best in their life! Arigato!

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A sweet high school love

I watched the episodes on Netflix and it was such a fun ride. I loved the character progression and development and how they were able to weave in solemn topics like breaking the social stigma and acceptance of gay relationships. 10 episodes were definitely not enough!

Highlights:
1) Characters
i) Aoki's (Michieda Shunsuke) shy expressions, his selflessness, his heart of gold, his soft and adorable side.
ii) Ida (Meguro Ren) depicted a woody character who slowly became more aware of his feelings very well. His smiles really light up the room!
iii) Chemistry between Aoki and Ida was very apparent and believable. Enjoyed the romantic and sweet conversations they had. As they learned about each other and their relationship, they slowly matured and grew together.
iv) Hashimoto was such a strong female character and she carried her arc well. Strong support to Aoki too!
v) I like how the story navigated the social stigma and acceptance of gay relationships (it was respectful and enlightening). The message embedded was one of positivity and hope.

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Simple, Cute, Adorable!

Stop reading this review and go watch it! Its cute, REALLY cute!
That's it, that's the review.

If you made it here, might as well read on.

Kieta Hatsukoi is your run-of-the-mill cute, fluffy, ball of sunshine type BL where its the high school first love trope. What set sets it apart from its contemporaries is that it knows exactly what it is, and doesn't stray from its lane. It doesn't try to be a multifaceted, edgy, layered, and overly complicated story that a lot of BLs seem to be trying to be lately. Kieta Hatsukoi knows that its cavity-inducing sweetness and plays that to-a-tee! And the the fact that the premise of it, and the whole story ACTUALLY is a layered story with a lot of moving pats and elements yet it surprisingly kept itself simple is amazing to me.

Also, I can easily say that for all the BLs I've watched (and there's been quite a few) this has the best laid out pilot episode.


In the first episode it showed me the setting and the theme. I was introduced to the major characters and it showed me who's point of view I'll be following. and by the end of the first episode it showed me the major conflict of the entire show without totally ruining it for me! It was such a well put together episode and incredibly satisfying to watch.

And for 10 episodes, (under 30 minutes each) the show kept me engaged as it shaped the characters so well and so simply that by the 0 finale, I can easily track where the key points in the story is while at the same time knowing these fairly well-fleshed out characters and their own journeys.

When it comes to the acting was also on point. The protagonists had enough experience behind them that they pulled this one off very well. There were scenes where the acting was a tad exaggerated or were too big but for me it fits the overall narrative and vibe of the show.

Also, there really is something to be said about Japanese BLs and their use of lighting to lend emotion to a scene. They play with shadows and colors really well and just adds so much more to a scene.

On sound what I often note with Thai, Filipino, and sometimes even Taiwanese BLs is that sound sometimes is really off-putting. It can either be due to the equipment(lapels being covered by wardrobe or boom mics capturing way too much ambient noise) the sound being overall muffled, some sort of post-production / editing issue (often it would be the editors trying to cancel background noise so much that it ruins the whole thing), etc. But with Japanese BLs I don't have any of those issues, especially not with Kieta Hatsukoi. It feels like there's a level of meticulousness that I've so far only seen in Japanese BLs that really stands out to me.

Speaking of sounds, the fact that both leads are members of boy groups and sang songs for the OST is just *papa kiss*. I mean even their OSTs just know what they want to be! And that's fluffy, cute, and just heart-squishing adorable! I've been listening to their OST while I'm writing this review!

To be honest all I have are praises for this show. Bonus points for the fact that it also tried its hand on talking about prejudice is really good. It didn't deviate too much from its cutie-base but also branched out enough to talk about it is something I really apricated.

All in all, #KietaHatsukoi is a feel good, simple show you can really enjoy.

Its an easy 9.5 out of 10, and that .5 is so negligible since the show is THAT good!

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Funny, Sweet, Adorable

This show is very light and fluffy, with plenty of genuinely hilarious moments. Personally, the diverse yet lovable characters are what made Kieta Hatuskoi one of the best BL dramas in recent years.

1. Aoki is a spazzy character with a BIG heart
2. Ida is the cool and popular guy in class but with ZERO toxic masculinity
3. Hashimoto is the sweetest yet most badass female character ever!
4. Akkun is a funny but supportive good friend for both Aoki and Ida
5. Even Ida's volleyball teammates are great! The last episode had me pleasantly surprised :)

If you loved last year's Cherry Magic, you're gonna love Kieta Hatsukoi too.

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Very cute & light! I was watching a couple of heavy dramas so this one was very wholesome to lighten up a bit my currently watching list. Aoki is a sweetheart, a ball of insecurities but honest & loyal, and Ida is just the most patient teenage boy I've seen lately in a school drama.

The award for cutest character, for me , is nonetheless Hashimoto. It is so refreshing that both here & in Cherry Magic we fans love her & Fujisaki-san. Both girls are the sweetest & most supportive friend the MC can have, and both being so cute-looking is just the cherry-on-top.

This live action is very loyal to the manga, so for anyone who is doubting whether to watch this or not, read the manga first. If you like the story & characters, you will definitely love this short drama.

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Binged in a day

Dec. 22, 2021

OML Kieta Hatsukoi is that Japanese bl drama that is the perfect cherry on top to end the year 2021. I love this drama at all, very refreshing vibes and so cute and lovely. Not gonna lie, I've been so sick of BLs that showcase SAs, aggression, and other traits that I find disgusting at all. So this drama really made me happy. Both leads are so lovely, supporting characters are lovable as well. No stupid female character who will try to destroy the main ship. I really love how Aoki and Ida's relationship bloomed. Sure this drama is more on the slower type of development. BUT IT GIVES ME BUTTERFLIES, those subtle eye contact and the little things that they do to each other make me so jealous of what they have. I really can't wait to experience something like this, or maybe I am being a delulu right now LMFAOOO. Also, I LOVED OUR SECOND LEAD COUPLE AS WELL, like holy crap. They are both so lovely and I am so happy that they sailed as well. I really love this drama, I think my eyes just can't see the mistakes here. The plot is done well, the music and acting is good. I'm definitely going to put this in my comfort dramas as I really cherished this day. I can't believe I watched this drama in just one seating.

ALSO, I JUST WANNA EMPHASIZE THE CHEMISTRY OF AOKI AND IDA AGAIN JUST BECAUSE IT IS OFF THE ROOF. I CAN'T, THIS TYPE OF CHEMISTRY IS SO HARD TO FIND SINCE IT WAS PORTRAYED IN A PURE AND INNOCENT MANNER. LIKE I FKING LOVE THEM SO MUCH. I WISH MORE DRAMAS CAN DO THIS APPROACH CUZ SOME JUST MAKE THE LEADS FK AND CALL THAT THEIR CHEMISTRY 💀

Make sure yall watch this drama!!! SOOO GOOD I LOVED EVERY BIT OF EACH EPISODE. NO SKIPS AT ALL SINCE I NEVER GOT BORED!!!!

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Better than the Manga!

As someone who has read the manga and watched the drama, I'd have to say the drama is far more superior. I really enjoyed watching it, and even went back to rewatch it. It was that fun to watch.

That being said, this is your typical high school Japanese drama with a twist of BL, so don*t expect it to be the next big Life on the Line (Bokura no Senjou). However, because this drama aired on TV Asahi (one of the major TV stations in Japan) and backed by Johnny's Entertainment, starring two Johnny's boys, this drama does have better production production quality than the average BL (which are usually smaller B-List films.)

STORY:

Kieta Hatsukoi is about Aoki, who has a crush on Hashimoto, the pretty girl who is seated next to him in class. When Aoki forgets his easer, Hashimoto lends him her eraser. Aoki discovers Hashimoto had written the name of her crush, Ida, on the eraser. Panicked that his crush likes someone else, he accidentally drops the eraser, only for Ida to pick it up. Seeing his own name with a heart on the eraser, Ida looks at Aoki for an answer. Aoki, being the loyal man he is, chooses not to expose Hashimoto's crush, instead telling Ida it's his own eraser. Now Ida thinks Aoki is in love with him, while Aoki is in love with Hashimoto, who is in love with Ida?

The drama is amusing, all the way from the story, to the the way Aoki acts. The story itself, isn't very original, following many of the stereotypical BL and high school rom-com tropes. However, the story is refreshing because it doesn't have any real dramatic drama. The situations the characters find themselves in are very realistic and relevant, while not being too over the top with high stakes. Any Bob, Joe, and Harry can find themselves in Aoki, Ida, Hashimoto or Aida's shoes at any given day.

If there is any drawbacks to this drama, it's that because of the lack of dramatic drama, some may find it to be too boring or unoriginal. Also, the main actors are still rookies so their acting can sometimes be stiff, but it personally didn't bother men.
I've seen worse actors before, and the actors here are decent. Not great, but decent. Lastly, the biggest thing that bothered me was that never did any of the characters kiss. There was a few hugs, but no kissing... Which I expected since it's two Johnny's boys and Johnny's Entertainment is constantly fighting against the Johnny's are gay rumors. (Johnny's Entertainment is a male only entertainment company, so all actors, singers, and talent under Johnny's are men/boys.) A kiss at the end would have been great since there was some foreshadowing leading up the the final scene. But we don't get one... Which works for Aoki and Ida, since it's in character for them, but as an audience watching, I would have liked a kiss at the end.

Aoki & Ida

Aoki is a cheerful and hardworking boy, who has wears his heard on his sleeve, while Ida is more stoic and indifferent to his surroundings, he is actually a caring young man. Once Aoki caught Ida's eye, Ida's world started expanding and he started to feel so many different emotions. To be honest, at first, Ida's indifference really annoyed me since he came off as a more mature guy, but was more naïve about love than Aoki. However, as the drama progressed Ida grew on me... But he was still so naïve, it drove me crazy. If you like Aoki, stop mulling around and just go with the flow! Aoki, on the other hand, I loved a lot. He was very cute, and his over the top reactions were adorable. He's honestly the best thing about this drama.

Hashimoto & Aida

Hashimoto and Aida were amazing supporting characters. They had a presence, with the own storyline, but never overtook the spotlight from Aoki and Ida. I really loved them from start to finish, but towards the end, their cat and mouse game really started to annoy me. I'm glad things worked out for them, but it took way to long to become happy.

DRAMA vs MANGA:

The drama covers Vol. 1-5 of the manga, and it is still ongoing as of the time I am writing.

The drama covers almost everything in the manga, and even adds extra scenes so we can get to know the characters more. However, the drama makes a few changes, like switching around the timeline of the scenes.

For example:
Drama - Aoki's tutor misunderstands him in ep. 8, while Christmas Event and Hashimoto giving Aida a cupcake is the last episode.
Manga - Christmas is not a big event. Aoki's tutor incident happens after the Christmas. Hashimoto giving Aida a cupcake was during Valentine's Day.

The drama also changed quite a few things, which I personally felt was better. Here are a few examples.

1. Kokomi
Drama - Volleyball manager(?) from another school, friends with Ida from before.
Manga - Some flashy random girl from another school that Ida befriends at a go-kon.

2. School Camp
Drama - Go hunting for food in the mountains, learn about teamwork.
Manga - Based on Skiing level, nothing about teamwork

3. Homeroom teacher
Drama - Supportive role, giving great advice.
Manga - Just around, not supportive, accuses Aoki of cheating, remembers Aoki's sister and not Aoki.

Lastly, the biggest change was Ida's personality and Aoki's disgusting reactions. In the manga, Ida thinks very annoyingly. His actions and thoughts don't match sometimes. In the drama, we can't hear his thoughts so he is only portrayed as stoic and indifferent. As for Aoki's disgusting reactions in the manga, I feel like the mangaka was trying to go for comedy, but the over exaggerated and hideous faces really threw me off. I wanted to throw the book away. Thank goodness the drama kept the reactions natural.

OVERALL:

Kieta Hastukoi is a great drama. I recommend watching it. It's your typical Japanese highschool rom-com, but it's a fun watch nontheless.

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My favorite JBL so far!

Honestly, I really liked this show. Every time I watched it, I had a smile on my face for at least most of the episode, if not all. Aoki is refreshingly relatable to the me in high school. Ida is a little clueless but still tries his best. And together these two are the cutest ever.

I really enjoyed how in almost every episode, Aoki and Ida improved their communication and resolved any issues or misgivings they had. A misunderstanding never went past two episodes, which as an anxiety-ridden person I enjoyed immensely. And watching their relationship blossom just made my heart so happy.

As a fan of Cherry Magic, this one gave me very similar vibes, except this one takes place in high school. This show was innocent, cute, and funny. Friends, give it a watch. You won't regret it.

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Funny and sweet (we need season 2)

Overall: This high school BL has a mixture of realistic, sweet, cringey and funny moments. I have not read the manga so I can't comment on similarities/differences there. Watched on Viki (My Love Mix-Up)

Content Warnings: two slaps not between m/m, homophobia

What I Liked
- subverted tropes, surprising moments (I won't go into details and ruin things but I rarely get pleasantly surprised watching BL and I was when watching this)
- Ida being honest and considerate, thinking about things seriously
- the look on the high schoolers faces when the military guy talks to them is priceless and universal
- supportive friends on both Ida's and Aoki's side, also that Ida's friends weren't stupid
- communication (yes there was also miscommunication, but there were several instances of good communication)
- characters apologizing for mistakes made
- I'm totally fine with the ending but we need a season 2 to see the continuation
- even some really minor side characters were fun to watch

Room For Improvement
- (neutral) Aoki is very energetic/exaggerated which I've noticed in quite a few manga adaptations, luckily the other protagonist is chill so it balances it out. Aoki does have some pretty funny moments.
- the slaps were not needed
- "gay for you" adjacent
- that first volleyball teacher side plot, though I was happy how he handled it
- I almost vomited when that tutor/student teacher asked things those invasive personal questions, no teacher is asking their student those questions

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Such a charm to it

To begin with, I watched it quite a long time ago now, so I surely forgot lot of reasons why I loved this title so much. All you have to know is that I waited every week impatiently for episodes to come out and had my heart to flutter for each episode, I liked all episodes and have not been bothered by any of them.

Now I'm going to list a few resons for why I loved this series (sorry it won't be a well organized review):
-The characters are extremly loveable. I felt attached to the four main of course (Hands down to Hashimoto-san who is my favorite character, so cute and funny, I lowkey want to marry her) but also to others like the side couple doing fun things or the mother of Ida. The relationtions between all of them are well written and I especially liked the building of a real friendship between Aoki and Hashimoto, this is such an iconic duo. And for once the girl is truly kind and, even more rare, she is not at all a threat to the development of romance. At every interaction it was a pleasure to see.
-The series is funny and cute. A lt of scenes were pure amazment, Ida and Aoki had adorable scenes that were so romantic and beautiful to see because of the setting. It was also the case for the side couple whom love story was really well-developed and whose story I was deeply invested in. BUT the interest of this series also relies on the comedy aspect. I already talked about the great comic-relief duo that is Aoki-Hashimoto but a lot of scenes also are funny by themselves. I laughed out loud at some moments.
-serious subject were also talked about, and not only the usual way. What I mean by that homphobia is shown from an interseting aspect: hidden, not only frontal (if it makes sense). Whether it be by jokes meant for no harm or a character that seemed nice but ends up having prejudices. And it's all the more important to show that homophobia can have many forms is that we can see characters really hurt by those situations but kind of "gaslighting" themselves because they deem them as not being "that important".
-To end this up with, one of my favorite point: the mature relation of Aoki and Ida, they communicate! Share their worries, show to the other they're here for support, care for their partner, etc. I loved to see them evolve in a really cute and healthy way :)

To sum it up: a really cute and fun story that still have important subject treated. To see and see again.

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Just like any other rom-com , but there is something new that will pull u into it.

When it first started it’s just like any other series I’m not that interested about it.. but as the story progressed , the development of characters is too good. Those subtle changes and improvements they mention in any human relationship are on point. May be this is the first time I didn’t hate any character in the series... the guy who is being judgmental about gays also didn’t made me mad because the writers carefully conveyed the mindset of people we find everywhere in society where we can’t ignore.
What I really liked about the series is the depiction of feelings of the characters .. kudos to the director and writers. OST is just awesome and it’s on my playlist now. Coming to the actors, wow! Everyone did splendid job. Generally I don’t like when they do overacting in the name of comedy but Aoki expressions are not over the top but still cute and funny. I really love when he’s shy or flustered and go all giggly . How can he be both handsome and pretty. Aida - Hashimoto couple are cute and lovable but I really like Aoki-Hashimoto friendship. Ida’s character development towards the end is good , a 16-17 yr old guy realising what like is ... accepting it....what love is!!! I wish there’s another season just to see how Ida changes in future.
P.s : how could I forget to throw some appreciation to “the Cupid - sensei” and “the Cupid - eraser”.

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If You Want Unserious And Fluffy Drama, This Is For You!

Basically a series full of humorous misunderstanding from start to end. Everyone is adorable, supportive, and cute.

As someone who's into heavy and heart wrenching drama, surprisingly this one entertained me. It has it's conflicts but it gets resolved easily and still handled well.

The acting is somewhat over the top, but I guess it's how it is in Japanese media especially if the series is adapted from a manga to maintain the animated feels of the characters.

Music is nice and fits the drama, but not my cup of tea.

Overall a delightful easy to watch show made for laughs and romantic cuteness.

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