"Are they or aren't they?"- A Study On Bromance

When watching certain movies or series you may noticed two guys... one is trying to comfort the other, who’s crying... the guy slowly puts his arm around the other... lays him on this chest and says: “You know, I’ll be always there for you. Because I care about you” What sound like the beginning of a gay romance isn’t what it seems to appear, it’s something deeper than a friendship, something that has been around since centurys: Bromance.

Dr. Higa will demonstrate it to you.

Thank you very much, Dr. Higa.

The Asian Bromance in Drama

There are different types of Bromances: First there’s the Bromance between brothers (for example: HikaruxKaoru, not the best example I know, but deal with it), then there’s the Bromance between friends (for example: WataruxYuuta, but when I think about it...actually the whole Tumbling-Cast), the Yakuza-Bromance (which you could also count as brotherly love but is really just an employerxemployee; for example: SerizawaxTokyo) and the Bromance between teacher and student(for example: Kawatoxany-student-from-the-Rookies-Team).

In a brotherly bromance it’s mostly that you can’t separate them, the brother is the most important thing in the world and is meant to be protected from it. Hikaru and Kaoru are really a more comedic version of that. OHSHC is mostly a comedy of everything that is Shojo and with the raising amount of Yaoi-fangirls you had to do something like that. You see them always hugging and holding hands and it soon becomes very clear that Kaoru is a little afraid of Haruhi stepping into their world and kind of breaking their bond, but at the same time he wants his brother, Hikaru, to be happy. 

Bromance between friends is mostly is the equal to a girls BFF: they tell each other everything, they scrub each others back at the public bath and he’ll be always there when his friend’s crying to give him a warm embrace or a shoulder grabbing just so he knows his friend’s there and give him a Martin Luther King Speech.

The best pairing to show this relationship in my eyes are Wataru and Yuuta. Wataru and Yuuta have lots of difficulties at the beginning but when he realises what tumbling means to Yuuta, he tries to help him accomplish and defend that dream by making it his dream as well. Yuuta was there for Wataru when his father died and Wataru was there when Yuuta was afraid to jump and he trained with him every night so he could finally jump again, until the point where Yuuta actually attacks Akabane when he wanted to deliver the finishing blow to Wataru. (‘That’s what friends are for.’ If I could cry a manly tear I would, but that would mean I should grow myself a penis and I’m not a snail.)

Yakuza-Bromance or Business-Bromance is mostly based on the fact that you have an Aniki or Sempai who teaches you the thing you need to do in this business. In the Yakuza-Bromance they share a very close bond and it goes as far as devoting their lives for each other including getting beaten up or even die (sounds very gay I know).

The best example I could find were Serizawa and Tokyo from Crows Zero. Tokyo would beat up Genji, his former best friend, for Serizawa. Serizawa wants his safety and is angry when Tokyo lies to him about his condition, even though he did it to not worry him so much. Tokyo is also the only one who calms Serizawa down. They’re deeply devoted to each other and they hope that their friendship will never change. 

Teacher-Student-Bromance really only exists in school drama with nice teachers. Teachers, who devote their lives for their (delinquent) students and want to be their best friend.

Kawato...where do we start with this happy-go-lucky-teacher... He’s the one who told Mikoshiba to chase his dreams, Aniya to not hide his feelings and Shinjo to finally make real friends. Which teacher would take a hit from their students? Which teacher would stay up late night to help his students? Which teacher would cover for their student and resign for them, when they did something stupid? Kawato would. ‘nuff said. (All Hail Thee Almighty Kawato!!)

And  also there’s my favourite pairing, which fits nowhere in the list but deserves a mentioning: Ba EulxHyun Woo. They’re not really friends, but they’re like an old married couple. Hyun Woo knits a scarf for Ba Eul and tells him he shouldn’t sleep naked. They’re mostly quarrelling, but still are seen together most of the time and you just enjoy seeing them that way.   

The Asian Bromance in Asian Boybands

Bromance seems to have kind of a tradition in asian boybands. It’s mostly...kind of...sort of (yes, I’m very insecure on that topic. Don’t wanna make anyone angry...) It’s actually teasing... But in a very weird way, that really makes you wonder if... they... are...

Super Junior's Heechul

The topic is mostly kissing: they steal the first kiss of unkissed members (for example Jaejoong from TVXQ who kissed Changmin while he was sleeping and Jaejoong thought he was cute, or Doojoon from BEAST who kissed Yoseob suddenly during a fan meeting) or it’s just fanservice (for example Heechul from Super Junior who kisses or embraces his members always).

What’s also remarkable, this happens only between the OTPs (One True Pairings), which are built by the fangirls. Does this mean the Idols do read fanfics...? o.Ô

The Western Bromance

Bromance has kind of a “long” tradition with in our realms too. Think of Sherlock Holmes and his dear Dr. Watson or if you want to go even more back in time Greek mythologies. 

A newer series to feature Bromance is ‘Supernatural’. Peopla who know the series, know what I’m talking about. You can really pair everyone: SamxDean, DeanxCastiel, GabrielxCastiel or SamxCastiel (to name a few).

Sam and Dean have a brotherly Bromance (They’re actually a better example for the brotherly  Bromance). Dean and Castiel are kind of a Friendship-Bromance. Gabriel and Castiel have again a brotherly Bromance.

Final words

Honestly, Bromance is funny, if you know how to handle it. And, well, there are a lot ways to handle it and you, Miss fangirl, know probably more than I do.

Our favourites are the Yakuza- and the Friendship-Bromance. They’re the most common bromances as far as we know.

It is actually remarkable how Bromance became a world phenomenon, I mean it was suddenly known all over the planet, and also how it is more acceptable than a gay relationship.  

AND NOW: LET’S ALL HAVE A BROMANCE-PARTY! WEEEEHEEEEEEEEE! (the manliest sound in the world)

And don’t forget men. Never let that hand of yours go too deep down. It’s basically the same as with the girls: Touching the butt without permission is a no-no!

“Are they or aren’t they?” - Anonymous

"It's lame - but it's everything for me!" - A Tumbling Review

Originalname:	タンブリング
Also known as:	-
Release Date:	17. April - 26. June 2010
Director:	Ayato Matsuda, Kenjiro Kuranuki
Writer:	Michiru Egashira, Yukako Shimizu, Akira Watanabe
Cast:	Yusuke Yamamoto, Koji Seto, Shohei Miura, Shunsuke Daito, Takahiro Nishijima, Satoshi Tomiura, Tomo Yanagishita, Kento Kaku, Soran Tamoto

Plot

Wataru, a delinquent student, has to search for a club activity because of his bad grades. He falls in love quickly with his new classmate. She is in the girls rhythmic gymnastics club. When he finds out that she adores a boy from the male rhythmic gymnastics club, he decides he wants to join them. After lots of quitting, joining and getting accepted by the club members, they finally enter a tournament together and lose. Yuuta, the captain, thinks it’s his fault and finds himself not good enough to do rhythmic gymnastics, even though it was his dream since childhood.

While Wataru was trying to convince Yuuta to be their captain again, Ryousuke, his friend from delinquent days, feels lonelier and gets involved with very bad company. After getting Nippori to lose his part time job Ryousuke finally wants to get out, but they won’t let him. Wataru appears and begs them to let him go and gets beaten up badly. Luckily, the Yakuza-boss arrives and beats the bad guy up instead. So Ryousuke and Wataru are free to go. Yuuta becomes captain again, they get their homeroom teacher to be their coach and have two new members, namely Ryousuke and Nippori.

The new formed group decides that they want to join a festival and start practising. But Nippori leaves the rhythmic gymnastics club. When Wataru asks him for the reason, he replies with being too bad at it. But the real reason is that he had to take extra work so that his sister could go on a school excursion. The group finds it out and helps him and they manage to arrive right in time for their performance. They lose. But all of them are saying that it was great fun anyway.

One of Wataru’s previous “friends”, his name is Akabane Reiji, wants to become King of the school. After the refusing of Ryousuke he wants to bring Kiyama on his side.  But he doesn’t show any interest. So that guy spreads the rumor of Kiyama killing somebody. Which he didn’t. That’s the same Wataru tells everyone in their club. After that Satoshis heart disease is discovered and he can’t be in the club anymore.

In the same time Wataru gets a message, which says that they got Kiyama and he rushes of. It’s a trap for both of them to come to the same place, so they can beat the shit out of Kiyama and Wataru. They fight well until Wataru gets injured because he wanted to protect Kiyama. Fortunatly, he isn’t hurt that bad.

Kiyama makes his peace, joins the club and Satoshi is allowed to stay as manager.

Soon the team gets the chance to join a trainings camp at the university with the girls’ team and the red ones (Keep in mind they’re eeeeevil!). But at the beginning Mizusawa seems to have a problem with Kiyama’s joining to the team. Anyway, at the trainings camp the boys can’t join the real exercises, they have to replace the garbage and clean the windows. During the camp Satoshi finds out the reason why Mizusawa is acting strange. Mizusawa loves Kiyama. But this information was heard of one of the other boys’ team. The next day the boy (of course he had to tell it to everyone) he makes jokes about the homosexuality of Mizusawa and the fact that he loves Kiyama. Nobody of the team knows how to act around Mizusawa and so Mizusawa decides to quit tumbling. His last word to his team mates were formulated in a notebook. Wataru and the others read this and they get guilty conscience. At the end, after Wataru and the others tell him how much they need him and that he can’t quit he comes back and they perform at the exhibition. Because of the unnatural training they get a clean performance (You know, waxing, polishing,waxing…) and surprise everyone.

One day Yuuta gets scared to jump because of an accident. So he starts a secret training which Wataru discovers. They start training together. The reason why Wataru sees Yuuta training is that he only just figured out that his father is still alive, although very sick, and wants him to visit.

With a little bit training and the help of the other teammates Yuuta can jump again. And even Wataru resolves his problem with visiting his father. The first meeting didn’t go that well.

But Hino has problems with his dad too. Wataru rescues him one night and they end up talking. Wataru say that Hino should go talking with his dad, but Hinosays that Wataru isn’t in any position to lecture him. Wataru takes it to heart and goes back to talk with his dad. He manages to  invite him for the tournament, but he dies meanwhile.

The next day Hino’s father had a talk with the teacher about taking Hino from school. Hino is angry and says that he doesn’t want to do rhythmic gymnastics anymore.

But Wataru hears him and goes and apologizes to his dad and invites him to the tournament.

At the day of the tournament Kiyama and Nippori get lost and beaten up by some delinquents. But Hino replaces them since he owes Wataru this. After this Hino wants to be finally a part of the group performance and because of the great performance with Hino they are chosen to go to the next tournament.

So, one day after practise the group decides that they need new music and new stunts. Kashiwagi, their coach, hears this and tries his best to collect any kind of data he can find.

However, the group decides that they need the help of a professional coach and get one. When they tell Kashiwagi, he hides his disappointment and tells them how happy he is about that.

Training with the professional coach goes well and Kashiwagi thinks that he’s not needed any more. So he considers an offer of one of his old soccer colleagues to teach kids how to play soccer.  He tells his thoughts to the girls’ team’s coach and Wataru overhears this. He tells him to do what he wants, because he helped them so many times and he wants to help him.

But it turns out the professional is an imposter; he taught them the choreography of the last year’s winners (I don’t know how Yuuta didn’t know about this. Thought he was a fan…). Kashiwagi shows up in the same time and, boy, is he angry at the imposter for not taking his team seriously. He hits him and takes full responsibility and resigns. (I think I wrote this somewhere before… but where…?)

Kashiwagi asks the girls’ team coach to look after the boys and she gives the boys a box full of material that Kashiwagi collected for them. She helps them to get a new choreography (It’s called Kashiwagi Special), practised all night with them and on the next day they show it to him. Afterwards they say they don’t want him to leave and he takes back his resignation. (That is apparently possible in Japan.)

Some days later they get a new student which Kaneko recognizes as his childhood friend Yashiro Koichi. Because “Kou-chan” seemed to go down the wrong road, Kaneko wants him to join the club, thinking he could change back to the Kou-chan he knew.
After a couple of incidents like fire in the club room because someone smoked there, and an old man get beaten up, the team stands before a withdraw of the final tournament because Nippori and Ryosuke get accused for those incidents.
It’s obvious who did this but Kaneko doesn’t want to believe this and thinks he can still change his old friend.

Also Wataru’s previous friend Akabane Reiji shows up again! He apparently got expelled and let Kou-chan do all that stupid stuff. Only to cause trouble for Wataru and his team.

Anyway, Kou-chan gives in. He couldn’t stand it any longer because Kaneko was the only one who defeated him. Kou-chan wanted to help his friend and he tells everyone that he is responsible for the incidents.

After some days have passed the Washizu tumbling club (previously named the eeeevil red ones here) asks our tumbling club to train in their hall. Seeing them train, our group realises that they aren’t good enough and they have to improve the choreography. But to be sure who can handle with the new choreography, they make an entrance exam.

Well, the first time they fail miserably. But they eventually talk to each other and find their sync again, but Nippori fails at the tree times backflip and also Kiyama can’t participate because he got a fraction on his wrist.

Akabane, he wants still to destroy the club, actually had an evil plan but Kiyama gets in his way. (He had a heart-breaking goodbye speech on the phone)

Kiyama begs in front of Akabane for his team, but he gets beaten up and Akabane calls Wataru, who decides that he should help his friend even though it means to let go of his hobby.

Wataru now gets beaten up together with Kiyama, but they keep on talking about friendship and so on. Just when Akabane had enough and decided to give Wataru the finishing move, Yuuta and all the others step in and continuously beg for their teammates to be returned.

Akabane finally gets a heart (no seriously, that’s what it feels like while watching) and decides to let them go.

They enter the tournament all beaten up and of course the fine society wonders. But they manage to get the viewers on their side and have a good time on stage, which is why they celebrate even though they’ve lost and couldn’t go to nationals. But as Yuuta says, it’s all about the friends they made. The drama ends with the guys doing flips in the sand.

Conclusion

This drama was great. A real shounen- drama about friendship and chasing after their dreams. I liked it very much. Never the less the music played a big role to make the story that great. The music was epic and matched with every situation. With the music there came always the speeches along and they were also epic. I had sometimes the feeling, that Martin Luther King sits somewhere in a corner and tells the boys what to say. Because of those speeches, I had to cry a lot and not only in the last episode, no, since episode 4 or 5 (it was very early) my tears ran continually down my face.

As for the actors I have to say they did a great job (but what do you expect if there is like Yamamoto Yusuke and Seto Koji in the cast?).

One point what I thought was great, too, was the topic about homosexuality. I didn’t expect it. I never thought that they would really go with this. I mean, when I hear Japan, I still think of a nation where homosexually is still a forbidden theme and not allowed by the society. I think their openness was great. But what it’s sad, they couldn’t hold the topic longer. Homosexually was the topic of only one episode and afterwards it was never mentioned. Maybe Japan isn’t that open after all…

But sometimes the motivations of some characters were poor. I mean, you’re evil only because your friends didn’t ask you to join the club too? Hello? Those pussies! Go home and cry but don’t try to sabotage others. Or this: Every friend let me down and no one believes me, so I’m evil! I don’t really get these motivations to be evil. Here the writers could more think about that the antagonists could have had a deeper personality.

But for what it is, I honestly liked it. It was very surprising and fun to watch. And that being said: REAL MEN WEAR PINK!