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lurkingshan · 5 months

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Japanese BL Starter Pack

It’s been awhile since I dropped a rec list, so I am here today to share one that is very near and dear to my heart—a Japanese bl primer for those who are new to the jbl game. I created this for @neuroticbookworm to help her on her journey when she decided she wanted to start getting into Japanese works. The fandom (on Tumblr and generally) tends to focus primarily on Thai shows because they are the easiest to access for international fans, since Thailand is working its way toward world domination via ql media and wants us all to be able to watch. But there is a lot of great stuff to watch beyond the easy access Thai channels, and Japan is the country where this genre originated, so its shows are important for anyone who considers themselves a bl fan. Japan doesn’t cater nearly as much to the international audience so tracking down the shows sometimes takes some ingenuity and can-do spirit, but that’s part of the fun!

And so, the list! Bookworm is about halfway through it and having a ball, so I figured it was time to stop hoarding it and share it with anyone else who would like to dip their toes into jbl and isn’t quite sure where to start. A few notes:

I am not here to teach you about the deep roots of the jbl genre or give you a primer on yaoi manga. I am by no means an expert and there are other places to find that information. Start here with this great post by @nieves-de-sugui and then maybe wander over to @absolutebl to read up more on the evolution of the genre.

This list is by no means an exhaustive accounting of every important Japanese bl ever made; it is simply a nice sampler platter of the cream of the crop among various styles you will find in jbl. Watching through this whole list will not only expose you to some fantastic shows, but also give you a sense of what makes jbl unique and how the country’s style differs from others, and point you toward the types of jbl you’ll like most (they tend to put shows in pretty specific style and tone lanes and once you find the ones you like there are lots more where that came from).

If you’re coming to this post as a jbl lover and you don’t see your favorite here, I promise it’s not because I don’t love it very much; I simply had to make some choices to get this down to a reasonable shortlist. Feel free to leave extra recs for others to find!

I’m putting these in a loose suggested watch order that will take you through the various jbl lanes in a kind of popcorn style, because I always think it’s good to change it up so you don’t get too stuck in one mode, and it works its way up to most of the extremely Japanese stuff (you will know what that means by the time you finish). But do what’s in your heart and change up the order if you want, friends, I am not the boss of you!

Cherry Magic (Crunchyroll or grey)

gif by @liyazaki

I believe everyone on Tumblr is pretty familiar with this one, which is not a coincidence—this is one of the most accessible jbls. Not in terms of actual access to watch it, mind you (we’ve all jumped through shady internet hoops to watch it) but in terms of its content and style. Cherry Magic is a classic workplace romcom with a magical twist, and it is charming af. It’s a great exemplar of Japan’s light and zippy comedy lane for bl—a lane in which, importantly, the romances stay chaste even when the actual plot is about sex, or lack thereof. My friend @waitmyturtles would kill me if I didn’t make sure you know that Cherry Magic also has a lovely follow up film. And bonus: there is now a Thai remake airing so if you watch the original you can get in on the discussion about the different adaptations between countries. This is pretty easy to find these days in all the usual places, but I strongly recommend watching it here.

Old Fashion Cupcake (Viki)

gif by @liyazaki

Moving on to a slightly more mature workplace romcom. Old Fashion Cupcake, another Tumblr favorite, is an age gap boss-subordinate romance, and it’s both very adult and somehow wholesome af at the same time. Sure, there is a lot of carnal desire going on here, but there is also a lot of wooing via fluffy pancakes. It’s a tight five episodes and a fantastic example of what Japan, with its extreme technical precision in writing, directing, editing, pacing, and acting firing on all cylinders, can do in two hours. There’s not an ounce of flab on this thing and you’ll want to watch it over and over again.

Utsukushii Kare (Viki)

gif by @wanderlust-in-my-soul

Time to get a little weird! Weird is a key feature of Japanese media, and lots of jbls explore unusual relationship dynamics rooted in complex psychology. This is the first show on the list that will likely feel very Japanese if you’re new around here—my advice is to lean into it and finish the show, even if you get uncomfortable along the way. In Japanese media, discomfort always serves a purpose. This is a high school story with a twisted relationship at its center, and I’m not saying any more than that. Don’t spoil yourself and go watch it! This one also comes with two sequels—one short second season and one movie—that continue from the original story. They are less essential but still excellent.

I Cannot Reach You (Netflix)

gif by @my-rose-tinted-glasses

Next up, another high school tale, but with a totally different vibe. This show is kind of a revelation in its willingness to tell a story about overwhelming desire—including sexual desire—with young protagonists. It’s rooted in a classic but often misunderstood trope, friends to lovers, and takes the angst of it seriously, giving us a low stakes story that feels extremely high stakes to our leads. It’s also gorgeous and uses a classic Japanese visual style (bokeh) that you’ll be dying to learn more about.

His (Viki)

gif by @gabrielokun

Time for a break from high school, and we’ll sprinkle in a movie for some added flavor. His is a jbl film featuring a second chance romance between a stoic, introverted man who moves to a remote town to start over, and his ex-boyfriend who follows him there unexpectedly, adorable child in tow. Importantly, this movie does not take place in what we often refer to as the “bl bubble” where homophobia doesn’t exist; the leads’ experiences of being gay men in a homophobic society are hugely important to the plot and themes of the story. It’s a beautiful film and I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve watched it. @bengiyo would surely also like me to tell you that this film follows a brief prequel show called His: I Didn’t Mean to Fall in Love about the characters originally meeting in high school; I do not think it’s really necessary to watch it but completists can start there.

The Pornographer series (Gaga)

By now you should be ready to get into some classic Japanese fucked up psychosexual material, right? Right! The Pornographer series is told in five installments in this order:

The Novelist, a six episode miniseries

Mood Indigo, a six episode prequel series

Spring Life, a 15 minute short

Pornographer: Playback, a two hour film

Spring Life Continued, a 15 minute short

Confused by that distribution model? So say we all; sometimes Japan likes to make us work for it to make sure we really appreciate its many gifts to us. The story across these installments is about a very difficult to love protagonist, what makes him the way he is, and the also-unhinged-but-in-a-different-way man who finally gets through to him. It’s an extremely satisfying love story and one of the best character arcs I have ever seen, full stop. For this one, you’ll want to just pull the word problematic out of your pocket and store it in a drawer; nearly everything that happens in this story is problematic and that’s the point. Lean in! All of these installments except for the film are on Gaga, if you get that far hmu and I will supply you with the final puzzle piece.

Our Dining Table (Gaga)

You could probably use a break after those last two, so it’s time to shift over to a heart-tugging twofer: family trauma mixed with the cutest shit you’ve ever seen. ODT is an example of another classic type of Japanese show: the food drama (you will see the GOAT in this category at the end of this list). In Japanese culture, food is love, and the act of preparing food for your loved ones is a common path to romance. You’ll love this story about an isolated office worker who meets a pair of brothers, learns to cook as a way of connecting with them, and begins to heal from his own trauma as a result. The image above is a scan from the manga, which @troubled-mind curates to make extremely cool comparison sets like this one. Many jbls are faithful adaptations of yaoi manga source material, so it’s good to have a bit of familiarity with them.

Minato’s Laundromat (Gaga)

gif by @liyazaki

Japanese media loves to explore taboo, and often manages to do it in a way that is surprisingly light and chaste. This is an age gap romance between a teenager and his adult neighbor that explores internalized homophobia, emotional repression, and falling in love across seemingly impossible social chasms. It’s also a great example of old school yaoi seme-uke dynamics that still show up across the bl genre. Also, take my advice: end your journey with this one with the first season and just pretend season 2 doesn’t exist.

Eternal Yesterday (Viki)

gif by @wanderlust-in-my-soul

Remember what I said about weird? Time to do that again, but with a heaping dose of grief and pain on top. It’s not a spoiler to tell you this show involves a major character death; a major character death is, in fact, the root of the entire story. This is a magic realist tale of first love turned tragic, and it will hurt and heal you. It is one of my favorite dramas of all time.

Restart After Come Back Home (Gaga)

And now for a break for your poor exhausted brain. This film is basically the jbl version of a Hallmark original movie, about a city boy who goes back home to the country and falls in love with a total sweetheart while working together on a farm. Enjoy it, bestie, you’ve earned it!

Tokyo in April Is… (Gaga)

gif by @wanderlust-in-my-soul

You’ve probably noticed by now that emotional repression and failed communication are big themes in Japanese works. This second chance romance has plenty of both, and it’s a great example of a kind of muted emotional style that Japan does so well, where the surface of the story seems almost placid and calm even as deep emotion roils underneath. This one (and Eternal Yesterday above) are part of a special line up of jbls on Japanese channel MBS called Tonku (Drama) Shower. The shows air one after another in the same time slot on Fridays (in Japan, perhaps Thursdays for you depending on where you live) and you truly never know what you’re gonna get, but they’re all interesting. Warnings on this one for sexual assault and trauma.

The End of the World With You (Viki)

Time for sexy and weird again, but even more so! This has to be one of the most unique bls ever made; it goes to some truly divine and strange places, and it feels incredibly queer while doing it. Made by the same screenwriter/director of the Pornographer series with a lot of the same sensibilities, but in a more heightened apocalyptic setting. This one has existential angst, a road trip, a redemption tale, and a variety of interesting side characters in the mix.

What Did You Eat Yesterday? (Gaga)

gif by @my-rose-tinted-glasses

Congratulations, you’ve reached the end of the list and your reward is watching one of the best bls of all time, and a perfect slice of life food drama to boot. WDYEY now has two seasons (along with a couple specials and a movie that fall in between) because the universe clearly loves us. You can now get it on Gaga for easy access but I’m partial to the versions over at @kinounaniresource for better subs. Wherever you watch, settle in to get cozy with Shiro and Kenji and make sure to always eat before you hit play.

#shan recommends #cherry magic #old fashion cupcake #utsukushii kare #eternal yesterday #our dining table #minato’s laundromat #what did you eat yesterday?#tokyo in april is...#his the movie #the pornographer #japanese bl #jbl starter pack

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fujoshi--senpai · 1 month

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19 days

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luminaryvenuss · 2 years

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the real "well my boyfriend is pretty cool, but he is not as cool as me" energy:

#19 days #mo guan shan #payback #king's maker #the pizza delivery man and the gold palace #roses and champagne #hold me tight #dear door #here u are #under the green light #red candy #manhwa bl #manhwa #bl recommendation

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day-dreamer-2018 · 1 year

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Cheers to more kisses to come! ☺☺☺

19 Days

#19 days update #19 days #manhwa #bl manga #bl manhwa #boys love #yaoi bl #yaoi #yaoi manhwa #yaoicouple #bl recommendation #manhua #chinese bl #danmei #he tian #little mo #mo guan shan #jian yi #zhang zheng xi

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wen-kexing-apologist · 2 months

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Having stayed up past my bedtime to finish Episode 7 of Twenty Five- Twenty One I would liked to take a moment to say:

Fuck you@lurkingshan for recommending this stupid fucking fencing show that keeps making me super fucking emotional in a vicious, endless cycle! How dare you make me sob in my living room at one am over a fucking referee call! I thought we were friends, how could you do this to me?!?! Do you harbor any guilt whatsoever knowing that I cried through all three of the episodes that I watched today!!

^Look at my beloved girl, look at her sobbing in the street. This is me, on my couch, right now. Look at what you have done to me!

Anyway, it may not be a BL but I do think everyone should watch Twenty Five Twenty One it is fantastic so far and it making my heart so full.

#this show is so good #the fencing is legitimate as well which makes me all the more emo #because on top of the actual emotions the show drags you through #I have done a bit of sword fighting in my day and those bout moments- the really impressive touches; the blade breaking; the contested call #i feel those so hard you don't even know #anyway this show makes me cry so much #which of course means everyone should watch it #shout out to shan for the recommendation #she was (once again and as always) right about this show #twenty five twenty one #twenty-five twenty-one #2521 #25 21 #Full disclosure I changed my tumblr profile picture to Hee-do 15-30 minutes in to Episode 1 because I knew I was gonna fall in love with he #and I was so incredibly correct #no regrets no hesitation i made the right call with that pfp

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teabutmakeitazure · 6 months

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I ate cooked jasmine rice for lunch and was so extremely confused about why they're somewhat sticky

#after 19 years of life I find out there's different kinds of rice #but they were tasty #basmati rice are dry you cant eat them without something wet #but jasmine rice with half fried eggs was a heavenly meal #i just found a new comfort food #remember to add some salt to the egg as topping and perhaps some spices for flavour if its bland #i added a few sprinkles of egg fried rice masala (from Shan) and it was instantly 10x better #10/10 would recommend to students #zuri rambles

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hyejura · 1 year

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please save lil mo😂😭🙈

#19 days #old xian #he tian #mo guan shan #yaoi couple #yaoi recommendation #yaoi icons #yaoi love #manga #webtoon

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morzyin · 2 years

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O Pequeno Mo 🥺🤲🏻

#mo guan shan #he tian x mo guan shan #he tian #old web #old xian #19 days #yaoi bl #yaoi manga #manhwa bl #yaoi manhwa #yaoi recommendation #bl manga #boys love #fujodanshi #icons #twitter icons #matching icons #husbando

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jays-supersonic-dynamo · 1 year

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finally gave my nextgen ideas some colorsssssss (itty bitty bios under the cut)

Raine is the oldest by a long shot, adopted by Nya and Jay when he was about 7-ish. he’s much older than the core elemental inheritors, and is already a a full-fledged ninja of sorts. she’s not home a lot, usually doing missions and fighting evil and stuff. Lilly and Ry look up to him the most. his weapon is a guandao, forged with the help of his uncle Kai.

Maya is the elder twin, bio kid of Kai and Cole. they’re probably the calmest and most reserved out of the five of them, probably why they inherited the element of ice. they’re the least social, willingly at least, but it’s not out of intentional malice, they just have a rich inner life. and secrets. so many secrets. Maya is a natural strategist and enabler number one for their twin’s behavior.

Lilly is the younger twin, but only by about thirty minutes. she’s outgoing and LOUD, and very so excited to be an in-training ninja, just like her cousin Raine, FINALLY. she inherited the element of fire, and also her dad’s general hotheadedness and urge to stand out. graduating from her role as ringleader for most of her, her twin, and her cousin Ry’s shenanigans, Lilly’s usually the one taking charge as group leader. she’s also a gym rat, even though her gains aren’t even that visible, COME ON!

Rylan, usually Ry unless he’s in trouble, is Nya and Jay’s second kid, also adopted. to answer your questions, yes he’s a turned serpentine, no he doesn’t remember it, it happened when he was a baby and he was surrendered soon after. Ry’s the emotional heart of the group, most willing to talk about mushy stuff like feelings, to varying results from the rest of his teammates. he inherits the element of lightning. he’s big on scarves, but his favorite is the kitty cat one he knitted with his older sibling Raine.

Shan is a mystery wrapped in an enigma. they’re initially a suspect, a repeat offender for petty thefts that the ninja in training often pursued (because that’s all that Lilly, Ry, and Maya were qualified for, honestly) that somehow turned into a very reluctant friend along the way, mostly due to Ry’s efforts. and now they’re letting them live in the monastery full time? and now they’re the most worthy inheritor of the element of earth? sure. he butts heads with Lilly the most, she thinks they’re suspicious, he thinks she’s too bossy and full of herself.

#my art #ninjago #lego ninjago #fanart #nextgen #ninjago next gen #my ocs #raine smith-walker #maya julien #lilly smith #ry smith-walker #shan #idk how to tag for this! i don’t do it it that often lol #i am cringe but i am FREE #also. btw jaya and mountainshipping are canon for this #because they are my favoritessssssss 👍#any of them might have more kids (and i think i wanna go with a stolendata kid too) i just. haven’t got anything past these 5 #can i still blame da for recommending me all those mlp nextgens for this

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lilypadsayshi · 2 years

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I love this official art of them sm! ❤️🥰

#love #cute #boys love #manhua #official art #19 days #old xian #jian yi #zhan zheng xi #he tian #mo guan shan #cute couple #manhua recommendation #tianshan #jianxi

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lurkingshan · 3 months

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Hi Shan!

Help! I am looking for another Japanese drama to watch. However, my queue is only filled with BLs right now and I wanted to venture outside of the genre a bit. So my question is - do you have any favourite non-BL doramas to recommend? (Preferably not romance-oriented, but any genre will do)

Ooh, fun one. I do have a few I've seen that might be interesting to you, though honestly I do find that Japanese queer media is more to my taste than their more mainstream het stuff. Here are a few to try:

Koisenu Futari

Honestly on my hands and knees begging everyone to watch this fantastic drama about two people on the aroace spectrum who form a platonic bond and create their own kind of family.

Silent

This one has romance, but the narrative is not about romance. It's really about the process of coping with becoming disabled, the harm caused by abandoning your loved ones in a fit of noble idiocy, and the slow repairing of relationships. So good.

One Room Angel

An utterly beautiful show. Though it aired as part of Drama Shower, it's not actually a bl. This story is about healing from trauma and finding a reason to live. It’s also one of the most visually stunning shows of the last year.

She Loves to Cook and She Loves to Eat

Only just barely a romance, this is the female WDYEY and it's so precious. Two women develop a close bond and learn about themselves as they form a relationship around one cooking meals for the other.

Monster

This is a movie but I simply had to include it. I am not telling you anything about the plot, but it's excellent and a must watch for Japanese cinema fans, IMO.

Chugakusei Nikki

It wouldn't be a proper jdrama list without some taboo content! This is a serious, deep, thoughtful exploration of what happens when feelings develop between a teacher and student, and the fallout that comes with it. Probably the best treatment of this trope I have ever seen.

Rinko-san Wants to Try

This one is a romance with some classic tropes, but one I think does some really interesting things with gender dynamics and sex positivity. It's a fun watch!

If you end up liking any of these, let me know! A few of them might be tricky to track down, as well, so hmu if you’re having trouble finding anything and I’ll point you. I have a few more on my upcoming watchlist that may end up being future recs, as well.

#koisenu futari #silent 2022 #one room angel #she loves to cook and she loves to eat #monster 2023 #chugakusei nikki #rinko-san wants to try #shan recommends #shan answers #jdrama

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