Bokura no Shokutaku (2023)

Simple, Cute, and lots of Food.

This is a sweet, cute story. Nothing too complex or heavy. There's lots of food in it which was a draw for me.

I would say what MAKES this drama is the acting of Minoru's father and of Tane. Especially Tane. I have seen many full grown adult actors who don't have the same acting chops as the boy who plays Tane. He was sweet and cute and every scene he's in was fully believable that he was Tane. In particular when he accuses Minoru of making Yutaka cry and later when he's comforting Yutaka. He doesn't act in the same way most child-actors act which always feels like they're struggling to portray or understand what playing a role in a series is. Not this kiddo! He's superb.

I felt like it could have had a bit more complexity to its plot but generally speaking it's a nice story if a bit simplistic. I've rated the acting 10/10 for Tane's actor alone. Not that the rest were bad but he really was exceptional given how young he is.

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Food banalities done ok

Two lonely people meet and bond over food. The end!

"No problem is too big that cannot be solved by sharing a meal." "The magic of food that brings people together." "The healing power of food preparation." These are the banalities repeated in every food drama I'd seen.This is a synopsis of a big number of japanese dramas. Japan excels in these. They are always interesting to watch but oftentimes the food preparation takes such a huge part of the drama that the plot is kept to a strict minimum. This can be a double edged sword. Sometimes it works, sometimes it does not!

I love dramas where food takes the front stage: they are usually fun to watch. Nevertheless, I am not blind to their flaws. And while I love food dramas, I also need some drama in the dramas I watch.

This is a wholesome, heartfelt and kind drama with a star child actor. Here there is barely any conflict and when there is, is just people misunderstanding and making themselves miserables or sacrificing their own future. One is troubled because of a misunderstanding from childhood (he was adopted, he misunderstood a remark, retreated from any contact with the family who apparently never noticed it let alone talked with him about it) . The other one is looking after his kid brother full time (after the death of their mother he dropped out of college, their father is there but seems like a stranger) not daring to dream about a future for himself. Both these situations are rage inducing where parents pay no notice to their children who feel abandoned whether it is true or not. The two men are wasting their lives being unhappy but not knowing how to escape the trap they were forced into..

They bond over food and help each other heal. The actors are good and the child actor has a well written role, which is so rare, the kid is not overly annoying and whiny but cute and smart! It is worth the watch only for him. Beside these three characters, we barely see anyone else. There is the father going aimlessly in and out of scenes. There is a coworker helping by teaching one of the characters how to make a bento. Everyone is nice, kind and helpful. There is not one single evil character in this drama.

This is a very sad drama trying to be uplifting. The two men have not lived well until they met, their lives are true tragedies. The fact that they help each other in spite of their innate pessimism is a sign of character development and that was nice to see.

The drama is a nice watch if you do not pay attention to all the darkness surrounding the main characters. I was sad and angry when I expected fluff and good food. There was not much of either!

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My New Comfort Show

This series will make you feel like you're being wrapped in a cozy blanket. Just finished the manga - since this series will probably follow its plot points for the most part, there thankfully won't be any low-effort/petty drama. This is the sort of slice-of-life where you can feel the warm atmosphere through your screen. I'm only exaggerating a little bit when I say that my soul feels immediately cleansed after watching a single episode.

All of the characters are lovable and have great chemistry. Yutaka and Minoru are both finding happiness and peace in each other's company while on their journies of healing from their pasts. Even though there's not much going on yet, I'm looking forward to seeing how their love will blossom and some of their mysteries unravel. And Tane takes the cake when it comes to being adorable and absolutely unhinged. There's also an emphasis on tasty-looking food, so be warned if you're hungry before watching an ep!

This series is the one I most look forward to each week for a calm and lighthearted ep. I'll definitely be rewatching this series whenever I need a quick serotonin boost!

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Basically: It's cute but too plain :(

I love the plot, I love the story, but I gave it a 7 and I will explain why!

I think that the plot is so cute, right? I also believe that food is a very fluffy way to bond, and it's special to me. It's cute, short, and simple, and Yutaka story it's sensible. But, after all, it's a little boring.

Ok, the romance exists, but it's not romantic, yk? It's too plain for me and I understand but they don't look like a couple. More like brothers, and it's a little weird to me.

About the acting, I really fell strange about Minoru's actor because he doesn't look like a person with emotions? Besides being happy and sad, and it feels a little weird. But Yutaka's actor is INCREDIBLE. He's so good that he makes me anxious watching because Yutaka was anxious.

But that's it :/

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The series is wholesome but a bit lacking in chemistry as a BL

The series is wholesome. It's actually most awaited once. It creates a homely heartfelt feeling of a family meal. The story is heartwarming and healing. Minoru's family is so warm.
The drama fills up some plot holes in the manga in some parts, but uneccesary in some parts.

However, the biggest problem is the chemistry between Yutaka and Minoru as well as Yutaka and Tane. It feels much off compared to the manga. It it is a bit lacking in terms of "couple feeling". I think the drama lacks a bit of chemistry because I've seen better chemistry between Hiroki and Shono in even a short 50-minute SP drama. Hiroki and Kuuga did their job perfectly: 10/10. I could see Hiroki was striving to lift up the chemistry with Inuka and Kuuga, despite his young age, has a knit for acting.
Inukai's performance was erratic, sometimes it's natural, but sometimes I feel it's lacking something and a bit forced. He wasn't at his peak. The atmosphere between Minoru and Yukata is often times awkward - it's so forced.
One important detail is that ironically, in the manga the kid is much closer and more clingy to Yukata than his brother, but in the drama, the kid did try. Interaction between Tane and Minoru is not that close as we could feel from the manga, let the dry interaction off-show.

From the photoshoot, to the promo and actual drama, it’s bitterly dry. Inukai is pretty and Hiroki is handsome, but it’s just it.
The drama is still wholesome overall and is recommended.

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Found Family

This is a great JBL from start to finish. The pacing, the story, the end game... everything felt right from beginning to end. The overall touching point being gathered around the dining table was very unique and really drove home the overall feeling of all of us wanting to belong somewhere. The navigation through both of their stories, of love, loss, and a sense of not belonging are very human concepts and are touched on beautifully. To love is special, a miracle in itself, and it does not come without risks. But to love, is to also risk the most of ourselves, and I loved how this was explored also.

I couldn't complete this review without mentioning that Tane was a highlight throughout, the actor did so well and the series wouldn't be half of what it is without him. He definitely has a bright future if he chooses to continue acting.

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Sweet, clumsy shy love.

This is a cleverly written and acted slice of life BL that is heartwarming.
The young actor Maeyama Kuuga is so natural and spontaneous he also has the important role of bringing the two boys together and defusing tensions. He nailed the role of Tane.
His brother, Minoru, is very relatable as a young man who has dropped out of college to care for Tane and is grieving the recent death of his mother.
The chance meeting of Yutaka sets of a series of small, positive shifts in all their lives. Yutaka is pulled into their caring family dynamic and begins to open up to the world.
We are given flash backs to understand how each of the two boys have been shaped by their past. Their blossoming love is a slow, respectful journey initially broached by Minoru in a shy confession then later firmly accepted by Yutaka.

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A table full of wholesomeness

Full disclosure, I am hardcore fan of the manga. It is one of my go-to feel good reads, so when the drama adaptation was announced I was both nervous and excited, bécause in my experience the adaptations are generally a miss rather than a hit. I am familiar with Inukai but Hiroki is "that guy" for me. I keep confusing him with Shiono Akihisa (I had to look it up) aka Odajima in High&Low franchisee and Inukai's costar in Zettai BL. So, I waited till the the show was 9/10ths over to binge it, so I could directly watch the finale.

First things first. With the runtime longer than the actual source it was obvious they would need to add some filler to make up the time. And I am NOT a fan of the changes. Yutaka's whole backstory/phobia about sharing the dining table aka THE MAIN CONFLICT of the drama, rests on the emotional trauma he suffered growing up in a kind-hearted but emotionally cold family and a verbally abusive elder brother. Yutaka was orphaned at a young age, then lived with his grandparents for while before they too passed away, after which he was adopted by a rich/kind-hearted but emotionally distant family. The family already had 2 biological children and another which was born right after Yutaka was adopted. In a large family, Yutaka, a twice displaced outsider, felt like had no "position" of his own, not helped by the fact the elder siblings, especially the brother, absolutely refused to share the dinner table with him.

By changing adopted family into a nuclear family and Yutaka's emotional trauma into "oh, you just misunderstood us and distanced yourself on your own" arc, it felt like the drama was making a light of childhood emotional abuse as well as victim blaming Yutaka for his "imagined" trauma. "If only YOU had done more to adjust in the family", like he wasn't a 6 year old kid who had lost his ENTIRE family and was now dependent on complete and unwelcoming strangers for his physical and emotional well-being. Him reconciling with that family also took away from core message of the manga that "family" is something you CHOOSE, not something you are born or adopted into.

That said, now let's talk about Yutaka's REAL family. First, Tane. Absolute perfection, little pig belly aside. Tane is Yutaka's true love (vice versa) and the biggest connection he has with the Ueda family. I like the end scene where Tane calls "Yukata" his family and Minoru is like "he is not!" I like that Yutaka ignored him and talked to Tane's friend himself. Like bitch, he is *Tane's* family, you are just the guy who carries the bags.

Minoru. Like I said Hiroki is "that guy" for me. But he blew me away. Minoru is one of rare semes who is sweet and understanding of Yutaka's trauma and he helps Yutaka overcome his fear of sharing a dining table without being either judgemental or pedantic. He gives Yutaka the family he desperately needs, and turns his trauma into a warm and comfortable hug.

Yutaka, I have no words. Drama Yutaka is Manga Yutaka, warts and all. Inukai portrays Yutaka's trauma, loneliness, sadness, happiness, love, care everything. Yutaka is a complicated guy with lots of depth that a lesser actor would have easily folded under the pressure, but Inukai exceeded my expectations as always.

Tldr; while the drama is sweet and wholesome, by changing Yutaka's backstory and reconciling with his family, I feel like the core message of the manga was completely overlook ed. That said, the actors and wholesomeness of the drama kinda makes up for it, not enough to give it a perfect 10.

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A sweet story about all forms of love

Watched this show by Inukai Atsuhiro. As a big fan of this incredible actor, I couldn't help but follow this beautiful story. A sweet drama about Hozumi Yutaka, a lonely young man who grew up devoid of all forms of love, and who only comes to know the true meaning of that word by living with the Ueda family. The most beautiful message in the manga is that family is something you choose. I thought the entire adaptation was perfect, except for one detail: the way the TV version handled Yutaka's trauma.

The trauma of the main character portrayed by Inukai-kun can never be treated as something silly, because a situation that causes emotional trauma cannot be treated with negligence, and in my opinion, that's how the adoptive parents dealt with this issue. In the original, however large the family was (two older biological brothers and a newborn), this is no reason to ignore Yutaka's isolation caused by his older brother's verbal abuse. What really disappointed me was that Yuki didn't even apologize to Yutaka, and had the cynicism to point out Yutaka as the culprit. This is the only big mistake in this work, which apart from this detail, is perfect. You can't call malice and negligence a misunderstanding

The characters are very sweet and deep.
Yutaka is a rare gem. Inukai-kun was perfect in the role. Her cute, angelic beauty face perfectly portrayed all of Yutaka's emotions. Your smiles, your sadness, your insecurities and your fears. Everything was perfectly matched and well done. I've seen Inukai-kun in several characters, but Yutaka is without a doubt the cutest of them all. I love how, although he grew up without love, his nature never corrupted and he became a person with a kind heart and admirable character.

Tane is a precious cutie. The liaison between Yutaka and Minoru. The instant affectionate relationship between Yutaka and Tane is the sweetest and cutest thing to see, and it makes me smile for free. Both are just beautiful!

Minoru was also great with Hiroki-kun. His pain and concern over taking on the role of a "single parent" is also admirable and very beautiful to watch, as well as the development of his romantic feelings for Yutaka through his kind actions towards his younger brother.

In addition, BokuShoku is a beautiful story where each member of the Ueda family makes Yutaka experience all the ways of loving that until then were denied him forever. Tane gave him the love of a younger brother, Koji embraced him with a true father's love, and Minoru taught him romantic love. The dream family that Yutaka found, and if it weren't for the altered part of the manga, it would be just perfect. I loved it so much and will definitely watch it again

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A Masterpiece!

This series, hands down, is one of the best BLs for 2023. It is sheer perfection – from acting, to production to total chemistry between all the actors. This is one of the best ensemble casts to come alone in a long time. The screenplay is brilliant because it surprises you with angst and pathos yet culminates with a beautiful sense of reasonable adult resolution. This is a surprisingly deeply emotionally charged series, well-hidden however. This is one of the better ones because it was told with devotion. And as close to a masterpiece in both screenplay and sheer quiet force as you can get. Well done!

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僕らの食卓、最高過ぎる！Our Dining Table, Absolutely Amazing!

An amazing story and series! Highly highly recommend it! Yutaka (Yukata), Minoru, Tane, and the father were amazing! Even Yutaka’s adopted family were not as bad as they were made out to be. This was such a heart warming series. One of the best Japanese BLs of this year. Then again, Japan rarely ever fails to disappoint me. I absolutely loved Tane and the father. They were literally two of the sweetest supporting characters I have ever seen in a BL series. I will definitely rewatch this series. If you are hesitant to watch this series, don’t hesitate. It is well worth it! Like I said, 僕らの食卓、最高過ぎる！Oh, and teaches you how to make a few good Japanese foods too. Like bakudan onigiri and ramen fried rice.

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Sensibility.

A lot of sensitivity. A cohesive beginning, a blossoming friendship. What to talk about this series, with beautiful performances. A story that captivates us from the first chapter.

The characters have baggage, they have their rhythm, they have their growth. The series explores the problems and shows resolutions. It is the best Japanese BL ever released, so far in series format. I was missing perfection like that. It didn't seem rushed, like most of the stories we see or it seems like there was a lot missing.

There are many good stories out there waiting for the next great story to be told.

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