I originally wanted to make the third anime-related post for the [Monthly Quest](https://peakd.com/hive-158489/@theanimerealm/the-anime-realm-quest-for-february-2024)'s first part. However, since it's almost Valentine's Day, I decided to skip it for now and share a romance anime.
There was a phase in my Otaku life when I breathed romance anime and manga. I especially liked ***Toradora***, ***Lovely Complex***, ***Clannad***, ***Clannad: After Story***, ***Kimi no Todoke***, ***YamaNade***, ***Kaichou wa Maid-sama***, ***Ouran HSHC*** and many others.They were so fun to watch and made the teenager and/or young adult me want to fall in love. However, I don't feel as excited watching them now as I'm older.
When it comes to romance, I wanted something deeper, forbidden... something hurtful, tragic even! Maybe because of my own experience? *haha* Just kidding, but jokes are half meant, aren't they? *lol*
I know this genre isn't for everyone, but I'm actually into ***Boy's Love*** and one of my favorites is ***GIVEN***.
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In the anime, one of the main characters, Mafuyu had a somewhat dark and depressing past which is connected to a certain guitar he's constantly with. One day, he had an encounter with Uenoyama who criticized him for not taking good care of his guitar.
Mafuyu who was amazed and curious about Uenoyama's knowledge of the instrument started pestering the latter to fix the guitar and teach him how to play. Eventually, Uenoyama gave up and introduced Mafuyu to his band mates, Haruki and Akihiko.
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I like every character in this series. They're so adorable despite having their own issues. Mafuyu is such a sweetheart that deserves so much love.
Here's a little trailer of the series below.
I remember crying a lot when I watched this series and just thinking about the story makes me want to cry again. It's not the kind of depressive cry, but more of a heartwarming one.
This series also introduced me to one of my favorite Japanese musician ***センチミリメンタル*** (Centimillimental). They sang the soundtrack not only of this series but also GIVEN movie which was released in 2020. And oh, there's an upcoming movie this year, too. I'm so excited to watch it and relive my heartbreak once more.
I'll watch the series again soon! I miss them! And I still listen to the soundtrack and even practiced singing Mafuyu's song *Fuyu no Hanashi*. It's such an emotional song that my heart clenches when I listen to it. *Dang!!!! T_T*
***And because of how I was really moved by this series when it was released around 5 years ago, I created a poem.*** Let me share it to you below.
***I was this invested and affected by this series. So, even if you're not into BL, won't you give this one a chance?***
Thanks for reading and see you around!
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To track my progress in this quest, allow me to write it here: 1a https://peakd.com/hive-158489/@tegoshei/bakuten-movie-was-beautifully-satisfying-3 1b https://peakd.com/hive-158489/@tegoshei/dive-had-so-much-potential 1c 2a 3a https://peakd.com/hive-158489/@tegoshei/re-theanimerealm-s8mmn3 3b 4 Engage! :)
