Sukiyanen Kedo Do Yaro ka (2024)

Not that great but not that bad either

Ain’t the most appealing and entertaining J-BL this year yet I’m happy they tried and make things work. The love story was light and the chemistry was alright but it took me a while before being absorbed into their characters. The inconsistency in each episode is also there as sometimes I got too bored but there are also times that I was smiling with them.

The memorable parts of this drama were the sauna scenes that seldom missed a single episode without having one of their conversation inside the hot room. I must also say that the childish fight right after becoming an official couple was indeed cute. Sakae-kun is handsome and emits the lighter version of the word sexy.

But the best part that the show has to offer was to bless me with such a cool setup of OSTs. ‘Palette’ by SG and ‘I’ll Be There’ by Genic were playing on repeat in my playlist. It was so good that it also helped the drama to be more catchy and have an average rating score.

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A surprising delight!

I hesitated a bit to watch this show given the mediocre reviews it's received here; little did I know what a fun little series I was missing out on!
The story lands very much on the light and comedic side so if you're looking for something particularly deep or dramatic, you won't find it here.

What the show does have to offer, however, is a unique and zany sense of humour (which might not be everyone's cup of tea but which I greatly enjoyed), highly likeable characters, and a surprisingly touching and realistic romance with some very decent depictions of casual physical intimacy.
The relationships and friendships depicted are all incredibly sweet and wholesome, just a group of people trying their very best to care for and love one another - often while sharing delicious food.
The pacing and romantic buildup work perfectly in my opinion and the dynamic between the main pair is of the rare but truly wonderful sunshine x sunshine type.

More importantly though, what this story is mainly about is two people who, from the very beginning, like each other so much and so sincerely that watching their interactions feels painfully lovely and disarming in a way that I didn't think was possible in such a high-energy comedy setting. They also communicate very clearly and openly with one another which lends the story some more depth and realism and ensures that none of the conflicts feel contrived or unnecessary.
There are meddling exes, female love rivals but these tropes are very quickly subverted and the characters are complex, three-dimensional human beings and all contribute to the story in important ways rather than just serving as sentient roadblocks for our main couple to overcome.

Is the show perfect? Of course not; the humour doesn't always land perfectly, the comedy music feels slightly over-used in parts (although both of those are pretty much down to personal preference) and there is a completely unnecessary "comedic" slap which may put viewers off.
Fans of the source material might also be disappointed as this series is, at best, a very loose interpretation of the manga.
But to me the good far outweighs the bad and with its lovely cinematography, utterly charming cast of characters, and surprising and refreshing queer-norm approach to representation I can whole-heartedly recommend giving it a shot.

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Cute light drama

So far this drama is cute and light. It’s giving very rom com vibes. I like our main cast. The two male leads are both cute and seem to have pretty decent chemistry between each other. I Ike the city boy comes down to the small town vibes. From the beginning the plot moves pretty fast. I like the friend of Sakae and other members of the town. They give off wholesome vibes. There seems to be this angst vibes for one of our main leads.
The editing has been pretty decent so far as well.
One thing I liked so far is one of our main protagonist has a good many funny facial expressions that really add to the dialogue.

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Hideyoshi Kan on the BL planet

Most Japanese BLs in nonschool settings have foods to connect and to tell a story. This one operates the same, where we have a handsome, charming young man who runs small food corners (I would not call it a restaurant). While the story, based on the premise, is so much usual, nothing extreme and nothing new-- I think honestly, I don't look forward to how it progresses---Sukiyaken is still worth watching. It is a reminder of what it is like to live on BL planet, where being gay is so acceptable and normal. And seeing Kan Hideyoshi on this planet is so refreshing.

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