Since this is my first review of the summer season of anime, I figured I would start things off the way I did last time, i.e., with a Japanese seasonal greeting for the beginning of autumn:
As the sun comes little by little to set earlier in the day, I feel the presence of autumn. Under a crystal sky, one can start the day with a clear heart.
And what better way to clear your heart than with some nice, refreshing boys love? The last time I wrote about BL, it was in fact on the rather melancholy and seasonally appropriate Song of Wind and Trees. When it comes to the seasonal character of Love Stage!!, though, spring or summer would be closer to the mark. Rather than Sturm-und-Drang Forty-Niner melodrama, we’re dealing here with sweet, fluffy fairy-tale romance from the director of Honey and Clover and Nodame Cantabile. It’s a little on the slight side, but it’s got a heart, a great sense of humor, and a beautiful visual style. All in all, I find it very endearing.
As you might expect, the tone isn’t the only thing that sets Love Stage!! apart from a work like Song of Wind and Trees. I haven’t read or watched enough BL to be sure, but I get the feeling that Love Stage!! is significantly more otaku-oriented than your average work in the genre. There are of course other BL titles with otaku themes, but Izumi is such an otaku-viewer-insertion character, in the style of Madarame in Genshiken Nidaime–a series for which Love Stage!! series composer Michiko Yokote also did series composition–and Lala-Ruru plays such a significant, albeit secondary, role in the story, that I reckon the otaku-oriented nature of the show must have something to do with its rather notable popularity among nonfujoshi anime fans. In addition to Izumi’s general character and his relationship with Lala-Ruru, other otaku-friendly features of the show include the meta-BL humor in episode 9, as well as the scenes featuring the humorous die-hard duo Futoyama and Kaneda of the manga club, who frequently sport emoji faces to complement their generally otakuish appearance; on this, see also scenes depicting things like Izumi’s orz. That said, Michiko Yokote also wrote the script for Gravitation and for some of Junjou Romantica, so it’s not as though the adaptation team lacks experience with “straight” (sorry, pun intended) BL.
Even setting aside questions of pedigree, it’s clear that although Love Stage!! has aspects of otaku comedy, that’s not what it’s fundamentally about. At its heart, it’s a fairy tale about two flawed but sympathetic characters, thrown together by chance, who might just each be capable of giving the other what he needs for his personal growth. The show has various elements that instantiate fairy-tale tropes, including the dazzling princess, encountered briefly in glamorous disguise by the knight before being lost to him for years; the quasimagical charm-object that binds the two of them together; the trio of nearly identical make-up artists who pop up when needed to transform the object of affection back into a princess; and the good-versus-evil story within a story of the battle between Lala-Ruru and Gaga-Ruru for the princess’ soul. The story built around these tropes is charming enough in its own right, but the appeal of the fairy-tale aesthetic is heightened by the show’s dreamlike visual style. Some viewers seem to have been turned off by things like the thickly lined eyes and well-defined lips. Personally, I love the way the show looks, from its attractively stylized characters to its quasisurrealistic lighting effects, warm color palette, and watercolor-style backgrounds. The visual language is great, too: in addition to the elements employed for comedic effect, like the bear mascots and the salacious pink elephants, I particularly love the row of swaying handholds on the train which, along with the cosmic doors in Izumi’s dreams, symbolize the uncertain, unsettled, open state of his future.
One aspect of the visual style that has come in for particular criticism is the “clouds on sky” censorship effect, which is kind of like the screen-toning effect used in Gankutsuou, except it’s applied to the whole body, minus the hair, eyes, nose, and mouth. I’m not sure what accounts for its not-obviously-consistent use, but it does serve an aesthetic purpose, at least in the scene linked above from episode 7. In that scene, Izumi has just spent the night at Ryouma’s apartment after having his manga rejected, and now that morning has come he’s pouting in bed and refusing to get up. Ryouma has become frustrated by having to suppress his desire, and he gives Izumi a powerful reminder of his feelings. In a state of dejection, Izumi tells him that he can do as he likes. Ryouma considers for a moment, then begins to kiss Izumi; as he does so, Izumi’s body turns to clouds-on-sky. Before long, though, he begins to cry. As Ryouma awakens from his trance and realizes that what he’s doing is wrong, Izumi’s body returns to its normal appearance, while Ryouma himself takes on the clouds-on-sky style. It’s a great metaphor for the dissipation of his desire and the inversion of his fetishizing gaze, now directed critically at himself.
The show also makes hay from the subversion of some other BL tropes, which, as Rebecca Silverman points out, actually make their strongest “straight” appearance (sorry; again…) in the opening and ending themes. Sexual assault does advance the romance, but one of the key scenes in that progression turns out to be a rewarding expression of character development rather than a rapey plot device (not that there’s anything inherently wrong with the latter). In episode 10, as Izumi is about to be raped by thugs, we half expect the recently discharged Ryouma to show up and save the day in a classic display of uke-rescuing gallantry. Instead, being groped by the thugs makes Izumi realize how special the experience of being with Ryouma is, and the recognition that he’s in love gives him the power to fight off the thugs by himself. You could certainly question the gender politics of the nexus of concepts at work here–chastity, rape, true love, etc.–if you wanted to, but from a storytelling perspective it’s a very satisfying expression of Izumi’s growth, in terms of his mode of relating to others and his volition and ability to stand up for himself.
Izumi’s growth receives a very sweet mark of affirmation a few scenes later, when he’s halted on his way to Ryouma’s apartment by a vision of Lala-Ruru. In contrast to his previous turning point in episode 7, when he decides not to give up on manga but to also go into the entertainment business for experience, this time he doesn’t need Lala-Ruru to set him right or rescue him from the darkness. Instead, he thanks her for having been there for him, then runs on past while she cheers him on. It’s a great expression of how far he has come.
Ryouma, too, gets some development by the end. In the beginning he comes off as a bit of a prima-donna jerk, not to mention a transphobe, when he first discovers that Izumi is a dude. He also has a bit of a jealous and controlling streak which manifests at various points throughout the story, though of course he is correct in his assessment that with Izumi’s debut half the entertainment world will be trying to get in his pants. That said, his unhesitating willingness to sacrifice for Izumi, with hardly a thought of getting anything in return, definitely changes the appearance of his character, from enfant terrible to thoughtful, generous friend. That said, it’s somewhat difficult to know to what extent his kind manner would generalize to his relationships with people other than his prince(ss). In addition to “gay only for you,” could he also be “nice only for you,” perhaps? As for his jealousy and insecurity, finally being with Izumi may cause those feelings to change, but we don’t get a chance to find out. It will surely be a relief to have his desires reciprocated, and one might expect Izumi’s popularity, and hence the threat of competition, to level off as the excitement over his debut fades. Then again, the penultimate scene appears to introduce a new potential romantic rival who likes what he sees on Izumi’s billboard. Will Ryouma’s love for Izumi persist now that the thrill of the chase has ended? Will Izumi’s drawing ability ever progress from heta-heta to at least heta-uma? Would Rei become my personal assistant if I went over to his house like Shougo?! Clearly, there’s only one way of resolving these conundrums; namely, moar manga, moar Lala-Ruru, moar adorable otaku traps, in short, moar Love Stage!!!