I've found a recording of the #HanasakeruSeishounen stage play! :blobcatcoffee: I'm not actually a huge fan of most #anime-based live action because most #anime characters work best as, well, #anime characters (note: this is a personal preference, it's fine if you disagree), but I'll probably watch it anyway. I need more Kajika and Fang Liren in my life.

So, about the special volumes of #HanasakeruSeishounen! They're fine; I especially like the parts about Kajika and Fang Liren (yeah, I'm biased), Kajika's parents, and Quinza. Art-wise, I suppose I prefer Itsuki's older works, but that's how I feel about many shoujo #manga (such as #TokimekiTonight, for instance).

Finished #HanasakeruSeishounen during lunch today! What a fun series. Kind of ridiculous, yes, but really enjoyable and genuinely touching at times, plus I love the endgame pairing. 💞 Now I just need to read the special chapters of the #manga.

Oh, and just a random observation: although #HanasakeruSeishounen follows the original #manga closely in most cases, Kajika and Fang Liren's first encounter with Fang Lingli is a bit different in the #anime. And to be honest, it feels rushed for some reason. The #manga version flows better and makes more emotional sense. Perhaps the director had to omit some details in order to move the main political plot forward.

My favorite #HanasakeruSeishounen characters are Kajika and Fang Liren because I'm simple like that, but Quinza is such a delightful schemer, too. In real life, I'm... not pro-monarchy at all, but I do enjoy fictional stories about young kings and their supporters.

According to some rumors (don't quote me on this), fans were displeased with Kon's direction. I... don't really get it? I'm enjoying #HanasakeruSeishounen a lot, and while it's obviously not groundbreaking or anything, it's also perfectly watchable and not, like, offensively bad.

Apparently, #HanasakeruSeishounen got a new director (Kamegaki Hajime) somewhere around episode 24, and Kon Chiaki left the project? I have no idea why though. It's true that episode 24 seems different. Not in a bad way, I mean, just... well, different. I think it's a bit closer to the original #manga in tone, with little comedic moments similar to Itsuki's drawings.

There's an amusing moment in #HanasakeruSeishounen where Yui compares Kajika to Oscar from #VersaillesNoBara. So Kajika is supposed to be this kind of beauty, huh?

I'm re-reading #HanasakeruSeishounen in English (along with the #anime), and... Itsuki's art is really enjoyable for me to look at? She's not necessarily the very best shoujo #manga artist out there, but I like the way she does facial expressions, for example. The #manga has more visual humor than the #anime version, which mostly focuses on pretty stuff.

Surprisingly enough, #HanasakeruSeishounen does address Fang Liren's... extreme maturity. The explanation it offers is not necessarily perfectly plausible, but at least Itsuki Natsumi KNOWS that Fang Liren doesn't act like a typical boy in his late teens.

Incidentally, I'm watching #HanasakeruSeishounen, a 2010 #anime based on a 1987 #manga (so not very new). I'm fairly sure I flipped through the #manga and saw the first couple of episodes way back in 2010, but I don't remember much of it? My Japanese skills were not enough to understand the plot. Anyway, it's a really fun series, and I'm not even a big fan of harems (or reverse harems).