WL's Gay Manga and Anime Review - 4. Stranger by the Shore by Kanna Kii (Gay Romance)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/L%27%C3%A9tranger_series

If you enjoy Sasaki and Miyano, this manga series and anime movie may pique your interest as it did mine. I am happy that simple gay romance stories are now becoming easier to find in this medium of manga and anime. The five volumes of the manga story were published between 2013-2014 and the anime film was produced in 2020. The manga was ranked #5 overall in the genre in 2014, so it was very popular with the female and gay readership of Japan. It’s a very simple story, but unlike Sasaki and Miyano, there’s open homophobia in this manga series with the main character having to leave his home due to his sexuality being unacceptable. Boys’ Love genre in manga and anime usually preclude homophobia, Sasaki and Miyano hinted at it and showed how stereotyping can be a form of homophobia as well. Stranger by the Shore openly explored it with the main character and it also shows an understanding of internalized homophobia as well.

Length: 1 manga volume and a 58 minutes animated film, this is not a heavy read, nor viewing from any reader or viewer. It’s a good story to enjoy when you want a simple love story with interesting characters. The conflict Is interpersonal with a few Soap Opera twists, but nothing too extreme or causes shifts in the characters.

Plot: The story opens with Shun Hashimoto, an aspiring 24-year-old writer, working for his grandmother’s inn on Okinawa Island, where he lives away from his other family. We learn through flashbacks later in the story that he was estranged from his family after coming out as gay to them during the day of his arranged marriage to his best friend Sakurako, who knew he was gay back in high school. One day while looking out at the beach, Shun spots Mio Chibana, a lonely 17-year-old boy, sitting on a bench staring across the sea. Shun was interested in Mio and tried to find ways of getting to know him through food and conversation, but Mio remained aloof. Shun learns that Mio’s mother recently passed away through his grandmother. Shun thinks Mio was not interested in him and was afraid of homophobic rejection as he had with his own family and friends, but Mio surprises Shun and accepts his flirtations with him. Sadly though, Mio’s relatives were sending him away to an orphanage, but Mio promised he would return to Shun one day. Three years passed and Shun thought he would never see Mio again, until Mio, now a 20-year-old and free from the orphanage arrives at the inn as the new helper for Shun’s grandmother. Mio wants to start a relationship with the boy, who made him feel less alone during his saddest time. However, Shun held his distance and worried about Mio making a horrible choice, fearing that he would doom Mio to the same path of alienation and unhappiness for being gay. Mio would not relent and push Shun to express his feelings. Shun accepted that he loves Mio, but his fear for Mio’s future kept their relationship platonic until Sakurako, Shun’s ex-fiancé and childhood friend, appeared on Okinawa. What follows is a series of events that lead Shun and Mio to consummate their relationship and allow Shun to finally come to terms with being openly gay despite all the prejudice and personal issues.

Review: I think this is a wonderful story about two people, who loved and helped each other. Yes, there’s an age gap here like there was in Super Lovers, but unlike the building of a relationship between a 17-year-old and an 8-year-old, the idea of a 17-year-old boy being with a 24-year-old boy is just a matter of perspective. Plus the protagonist acknowledges his fear of coercing the young man and keeps his distance. Shun’s fear throughout the manga is that he was coercing Mio into becoming gay, but there was no coercion whatsoever in their relationship, if anything Mio appeared to be the one, who wanted to jump straight to having gay sex with Shun.

One thing I also want to highlight for anime viewers, the animated movie was gorgeous for someone who hasn’t watched animated films in years due to poor eyesight. I can’t believe how rich the color palate and the use of shadow and lighting were superb to emote characters. In the manga, you can learn a lot about inner monologue and feelings through text or art, but in animation, the animator used scenes and color to help illustrate amazing character moments. The scene of Shun running in the rain to reach Mio before he left his life again, the shadows around the room leading up to their first time having sex (nothing explicit this isn’t Yaoi), or my favorite scenes at the beginning when Shun and Mio meet for the first time, Shun illuminated with a street light, while Mio is covered in darkness to symbolize their situations with Shun having a warm family with his grandmother versus Mio being alone without his mother. For the animation alone, I think this is worth investing some time in.

The characters were all complex and simple at the same time. Shun encapsulated a lot of the gay experience from being estranged from his family and friends after coming out to having internalized homophobia due to fears about being "wrong", something many gay men feel as we accept ourselves, it was one of the first times in manga or anime where this subject was brought out. Being gay is no picnic and I applaud Kanna Kii for showcasing this reality with her gay character. Sometimes gay romances need a pinch of this kind of realism. Mio, on the other hand, was a boy yearning for real human affection after losing his mother, you can tell from the story’s sequences with Mio and his single mother there was a deep emotional link between them. After her death, Shun was the only person who tried to connect with him and hear him out; it built a second bond just as strong as the first. It’s significant for their love story. Mio also has a possessive streak due to his bond with Shun, which is endearing as the story portrays Mio being an affectionate no-nonsense lover. Mio also has a fear of crowds and people, he doesn’t like being around people. This issue is brought up a bit in the manga more than in the animated film, Mio can cope with crowds, but he remains uncomfortable.

On the sexual chemistry side, I do have to note that both Shun and Mio are both bottoms, while Mio can be a top at times to satisfy Shun. It's another unique aspect of this story, where you have 2 gay characters who prefer the bottom position. Not sure how realistic this kind of relationship is, but in the story, the sexual chemistry was strong enough for Shun to end his isolation on Okinawa and head back home to face his estranged homophobic family with Mio by his side. The sex helped solidify Shun's trust in Mio as his "forever" partner.

Other characters like Eri and Suzu, a lesbian couple, who are friends of Shun on Okinawa were also a fun addition to the story. They were just normal girls, who loved each other without any of the tropes that one may find in lesbian characters. They could spot the affections between Mio and Shun. Eri helped get Mio his current job with Shun’s grandmother and allow Mio to move in with Shun as a result, to help Shun and Mio be together at last. I like this approach to lesbian characters, acting as caring surrogate sisters with experience in relationships and love trying to help someone similar to them find the same.

Were there weaknesses? Yes, sadly, I was not a fan of Sakurako, the childhood best friend, and ex-fiancé of Shun. I do find the idea of a heterosexual women, being so desperately in love with a gay man and would willingly marry him to be a tragic story arc, but I am not sure if she would hold onto such a love so long after the failed marriage attempt. It just feels weird for such an unrealistic element to be inserted inside such a realistic love story between two young men, each trying to overcome issues.

Rating: 4 out of 5, the manga and animated film deserve reading and viewing from fans of romance stories. It’s easy to read and view, there is an English dubbed version of the film on Funimation’s main website.