Snapshot Impressions of Each Episode: [[SPOILERS!]]

1. The writing is introspective, honest, and beautiful. I like the POV format and the window into Hira's mind.

"I want to keep these near me forever. I've never felt this way before. A cruel and glorious imprint. Beautiful like a spring storm. Overwhelming in its power."

"What a nuisance. Just take your time. I'll wait."

2. I really, really liked this episode. It reminded me of my years in high school when I felt disassociated from those around me, even though they inhabited my space and held my time hostage. Bonus @13:44 when Kiyoi startled the pants off Hira on his bike, LOL. I also thought it was especially poignant when Hira mentally envisioned Kiyoi's expression after having called him a "strange guy" while on the bike, and we as the viewer could see Kiyoi was, in fact, gently smiling. I thought that was beautiful.

"I live here, but I want to go home."

"Because I want to be invisible. When I look through the viewfinder, I feel like I'm cropped out from the rest of the world. No one can bother me. I'm in a place where I can be alone."

"I am yanked again by hope and despair I have no right to feel...."

3. The writing continues to move me. The shifting dynamic between Kiyoi and Hira is mesmerizing. The visual of Hira and the symbolic image of his shadow walking upstairs toward confrontation was * p o w e r f u l *. Finding a voice in action.

"The apex of the pyramid began to waver and change."

"Ever since childhood, I floated along in filthy water...Thanks to Kiyoi, I want to move forward despite the stagnant air."

"There you go again." - the affection slowly lilting into his voice when he says that now, is really precious.

4. OOf. The time passage. The desperate yearning behind eyes that hadn't met in years. The hurt.
I'm eating every moment; every in-between stolen glance, with eagerness.

"University life is pleasant. I have friends who understand me and yet, so easily and abruptly...like a flash storm. Kiyoi wreaks havoc in my life just as it was starting to come together."

"For several insipid years, all I did was grow up."

5. Oh. my. goodness. The sudden switch to Kiyoi's POV. To be able to see behind those pensive eyes. It was thrilling.
I've always known there was a level of complexity behind his throwaway barbs and indecisive micro-expressions. He is a man. Thinking and feeling and deserving of the right to own his emotions, like anyone else. He is not just a face to be idolized and doted on. His vulnerability, insecurity, and heart-rendering yearning were indescribably beautiful. All this time he's been more than the face Hira has relentlessly stared at. The miscommunication between their unspoken words is truly heartbreaking, especially because their souls and thoughts are more in synch than either of them realize.

"I want to be stared at with those eyes again. My heart pounds with that hope...I didn't know what that feeling was called. I love you."

"I wanted to know the feelings behind the look in his eyes."

"There's no best way to describe my relationship with him. But...because of Hira, I want to move forward despite the stagnant air."

"I want to see him again. I never want to see him again."

6. It's hard to put this final episode into words. A whole different side comes out of Hira when he's with Kiyoi in these later years; it's sensual and almost preying in its intensity and I admittedly watched the finger scene an unhealthy amount of times, lol. Even despite Kiyoi's obvious desire to be understood and footed to the ground with Hira, the high pedestal on which Hira has placed Kiyoi keeps them both unobtainable from the other. The climax between them when Kiyoi *f i n a l l y* let out his true feelings gave me total body chills. His voice was so raw and pure and full of pain. It's also unfathomable how sad it is that Hira simply can't imagine being the object of Kiyoi's affection. That Kiyoi is literally screaming out his frustration and his feelings to Hira, but Hira can only assume he's referring to someone else. The bike ride at the end and the synchronicity in which their communication lines up spoke more than additional scenes needed to say (although I admittedly wanted to see more of the lovey-dovey part of their relationship because their chemistry was insannnne). I'm thankful for the way it ended; they make a beautiful couple and the journey it took warrants a happy ending.

"I wish I could spend the rest of my life being the light shining on Kiyoi."

"I don't care if you chase your ideal of me... but leave the real me alone. I don't think you'll ever understand my feelings."

"I'm not the 'King.' Screw you!"

"Makes me wonder why I fell in love with a creepy guy like you."

Overall Takeaway:
This is likely my new, all-time favorite BL. At the very least, my favorite Japanese love story.
We're looking through the viewfinder into their intimate thoughts and insecurities; they're two dots, never overlapping, but always yearning for the other. How they find their way to each other was both heartbreaking and beautiful; the climax burns intensely. I've already rewatched my favorite scenes and each time, I have butterflies and am mesmerized by its beauty.
My only negative is the theme song- it's very...jarring? Loud? Overly peppy? I hope they release a movie version of this series so I don't have to skip through the theme song with each episode because it's always kind of grating. I wish they'd used something more pretty at the end scene with them together and not the theme - it takes me out of an otherwise gorgeous shot.