My Beautiful Man

is a Japanese light novel series by Yuu Nagira. It is published by Tokuma Shoten with illustrations by Rikako Kasai. ''My Beautiful Man'' was published as Nagira's debut work, and since 2014, there have been four volumes published, as well as one side story.

A live-action television drama adaptation starring and was broadcast from November 19, 2021, to December 24, 2021, on MBS as part of the programming block . A second season was broadcast from February 8, 2023, to March 1, 2023, on MBS and TBS TV as part of the programming block , and its conclusion was released as a theatrical film titled ''My Beautiful Man: Eternal'' on April 7, 2023. The television drama series was critically acclaimed, with Hagiwara and Yagi winning the My Best TV Prize Grand Prix Award at the 59th and 60th Galaxy Awards for their performances in both seasons.

''My Beautiful Man'' was also adapted into a manga series by Megumi Kitano, which is serialized in the bimonthly boys' love manga magazine '' Chara''.

Plot

Since childhood, Kazunari Hira has had a stuttering speech disorder that has led him to become ostracized by his classmates. On his first day of school, Hira immediately becomes bullied, but he also meets Sou Kiyoi, a boy in his class who, despite his brutally honest personality, instantly becomes popular. Hira becomes fascinated by Kiyoi's beauty and charismatic presence, viewing him as the "king" of his class.

Characters

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:Hira grew up with a stutter and has struggled to get along with others since childhood. His behavior is described as creepy. He falls in love at first sight with Kiyoi.
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:Kiyoi is Hira's classmate in high school, who Hira views as his "king." A popular student, Kiyoi has a cold personality. As a child, Kiyoi lived with his mother and had a lonely childhood, often spending time at home alone. Kiyoi is initially disgusted at Hira's attention, but he is unable to leave him alone and becomes interested in him.
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:Koyama attends the same university as Hira and is part of the same photography club as him. He falls in love with Hira. During their fourth year of university, he becomes the president of the photography club.
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:Anna is a 23-year-old actress from Kiyoi's talent agency who has garnered universal acclaim for her acting. She is a friend of his and acts as his confidant.
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:Noguchi is a highly-sought photographer in the entertainment industry. He hires Hira as his assistant after seeing his photos. He has high communication skills and an eye for detail.
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:Shitara is Hira and Kiyoi's classmate who mainly bullies Hira.
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:Shitara is a 32-year-old man and a huge fan of Anna. He initially befriends Hira for understanding his passion as her fan.

Media

Novels

''My Beautiful Man'' is written by Yuu Nagira as her debut work. It is published by Tokuma Shoten under the Chara Bunko imprint, with Rikako Kasai providing the illustrations. Following the novels' initial releases, Nagira continued the series, which is serialized in the bimonthly magazine ''Shosetsu Chara'' beginning with the magazine's vol. 41 released on November 22, 2019.

In a 2021 interview with '' Da Vinci'', Nagira stated that she and her editors had expected ''My Beautiful Man'' to end in only one volume. Nagira expressed surprise at how well-received Hira was as a character because of his "creepy" personality, as she had assumed readers of the boys' love genre preferred characters and settings that "reflected their desires." Nagira also stated that because of how well-received Hira was to her audience, she was able to subvert other boys' love tropes, particularly with how Kiyoi gains 20 kg. for a movie role in the third volume. While Hira was written to be "creepy", Nagira felt that the readers of the BL genre were able to sympathize with him because they understood the feeling of supporting idols.

Tokyopop licensed the novels for English-language distribution in North America as part of their LoveLove imprint.

Audio drama

Ginger Records released a series of audio dramas on CD adapting each volume of the novel. The CD drama stars Yūki Ono as Kazunari Hira, Soma Saito as Sou Kiyoi, Yu Miyazaki as Shirota, Shun Horie as Kazuki Koyama, Toshiyuki Morikawa as Hiromi Noguchi, Shinichiro Miki as Hideki Ueda. The first volume was released on June 28, 2019. The second volume was released on July 23, 2021. A special version of the CD included a bonus CD adapting the chapter "Moon Age 14." The third volume was released on April 21, 2023, and peaked at no. 34 on the Oricon Weekly Albums Chart on its first week of release.

For their roles, Ono wanted to express Hira with "delicacy and detail", stating that he consulted the sound director about Hira's stuttering. Saito described that there was a "gap" between how Hira views Kiyoi and Kiyoi's true self, so he took care to portray the balance between them. Horie stated he paid attention in portraying Koyama's "human side", particularly in the scene where he cries because he is in love with Hira.

Television drama

On October 12, 2021, a live-action television drama series adaptation was announced. The series was broadcast for 6 episodes from November 19, 2021, to June 15, 2023, on MBS on their programming block . Additional broadcasts include TV Kanagawa, Chiba TV, Tochigi TV, TV Saitama, and Gunma TV. It was streamed internationally with English subtitles on GagaOOLala.

The adaptation starred as Kazunari Hira and Fantastics from Exile Tribe member as Sou Kiyoi. Nagira praised the cast in a 2021 interview, stating that she was initially concerned as she felt the success of the drama adaptation depended on the actor cast for Kiyoi. She also speculated that the "deciding factor" for Riku Hagiwara being cast as Hira may have been his eyes. Hagiwara focused on conveying his feelings through his eyes and facial expressions, and Yagi consciously tried to focus on having "beautiful" behavior, finding it difficult to portray the change in Kiyoi after meeting Hira. Yagi described Kiyoi as a "princess" and portrayed the character with the "spirit of, 'Hira, you come to me'" rather than changing himself to match Hira's pace.

The supporting cast includes as Kazuki Koyama, as Shirota, as Miki, as Momo, as Shima, and as Kurata. On December 3, 2021, for the "university arc", was cast as Yohei Koyama and Toshiyuki Someya was cast as Iruma. The series is directed by , with in charge of the script. The opening theme song is "Caramel" by Mosawo and the ending theme song is "Follow" by Rosu. The drama adaptation has several parts changed from the original novel.

''My Beautiful Man'' was renewed for a second season, which was broadcast from February 7, 2023, to February 28, 2023, for a total of 4 episodes. It was broadcast on MBS as part of the programming block as well as TBS TV. Additional broadcasts include TBS TV, HBC, TUT, and RKB. Mai Sakai and Fumi Tsubota returned to direct and write for the series respectively. The original cast reprised their roles, and the new supporting cast included Motoki Ochiai as Katsumi Shitara, as Anna, and as Hiromi Noguchi. On March 1, 2023, Kentaro Maeda and Dai Ikeda were added to the cast as Kiriya Kiritani and Koda, respectively. The opening theme song is "Bitter" by Rosu, and the ending theme song is "Kinmokusei" by Mosawo. Rosu stated that they wrote "Bitter" from Hira's perspective, while Mosawo wrote "Kinmokusei" from Kiyoi's perspective.

Season 1 (2021)

Season 2 (2023)

Film

On November 19, 2022, a live-action film adaptation titled was announced for a theatrical release on April 7, 2023, nationwide in Japan. It was created as a continuation of season 2 of the television series. Mai Sakai and Fumi Tsubota returned as director and scriptwriter of the film respectively. The theme songs for the film were the same as season 2: "Bitter" by Rosu; and "Kinmokusei" by Mosawo. Filming for the movie concluded on November 5, 2022.

The first season was re-released as a film titled that was screened in 21 of Toho's theaters beginning on March 10, 2023, to promote the release of the sequel film ''My Beautiful Man: Eternal''.

''My Beautiful Man: Eternal'' debuted at no. 3 in the Japanese box office, and within the first three days, it grossed with 97,000 people in attendance. Advanced screenings from March 24 to March 27 added an additional gross and 2,000 people in attendance.

Manga

A manga adaptation of ''My Beautiful Man'' is illustrated by Megumi Kitano. It is serialized in the bimonthly boys' love manga magazine '' Chara'' beginning with the February 2022 issue released on December 22, 2021. The chapters were later released in three bound volumes by Tokuma Shoten under the Chara Comics Collection imprint.

Tokyopop licensed the manga adaptation for English-language distribution in North America as part of their LoveLove imprint. The volumes are translated by Katie Kimura.

Reception

Novels

''My Beautiful Man'' sold a cumulative total of 700,000 copies as of 2023. It won Best Novel at the 6th Chil Chil BL Awards in 2015. In 2022, for the 13th Chil Chil BL Awards, ''Interlude'' won Best Novel, while Hira and Kiyoi won Best and Best respectively.

Television drama and film

' reviewed the live-action television drama series favorably, praising the casting of the main characters and the depiction of several iconic scenes from the novel, despite that the drama adaptation changed several parts from the original novel. The popularity of live-action television drama series in Asia led to ''Oricon'' describing the phenomenon as the "HiraKiyo" movement. On the streaming service GagaOOLala, the second season ranked 4th place in annual viewership for the year of 2023.

''My Beautiful Man'' won Best Video at the 13th BL Awards in 2022. Riku Hagiwara and Yusei Yagi won the 16th Grand Prix My Best TV Award at the 59th Galaxy Award, the Zaihan Broadcasting's Grand Prix Award, and the Hot Actor Pair Award from the Weibo Account Festival 2022 for their performances. Hagiwara and Yagi won the 17th Grand Prix My Best TV Award at the 60th Galaxy Award for their performance again in the second season. Hagiwara was awarded the Outstanding Breakthrough Star Award at the Weibo Account Festival 2022. Yagi was awarded Outstanding Newcomer Actor at the Weibo Account Festival 2022 and Outstanding Asian Star in the 2022 Seoul International Drama Awards for his performance. He was awarded the same prize for the 2023 Seoul International Drama Awards for his performance in the show's second season, For the film sequel, ''My Beautiful Man: Eternal'', he was awarded the Tsutaya Discs Film Fan Award at the 78th Mainichi Film Awards in 2024.

Manga

''Otaku USA'' praised the artwork for the manga adaptation, stating that the angles of "bullying and loneliness" gave the story an "empathetic, reflective feel" and matched the "pensive mood" of the story.

Notes

References

External links

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* {{ANN, light novel, 36559

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