I Cannot Reach You is a short Japanese BL series based on the Japanese manga Kimi ni wa Todokanai by Mika. The title initially aired on TBS in Japan but is now available on Netflix. There are eight episodes in total, with approximately 20 minutes per episode.
The manga began in June 2019 and is ongoing, with the 8th volume released on October 27th, 2023. The English editions of the manga are titled I Cannot Reach You. Yen Press is the English language publisher for the series. The seventh volume of the series is set to be released in February 2024.
Synopsis
“No matter how much time we spend together, I’ll never become special to you.”
They were:
Childhood best friends…
Two halves of a whole…
The cool, smart one who’s good at almost everything…
…and his average, dorky friend who struggles to do anything right…
—Yamato and Kakeru.
Always by the other’s side, but not together in the way they truly want to be. No matter how hard they try, their hearts cannot reach each other…
(Source: bato.to)
Imai Natsuki, Abe Asami, and Sugiyama Kaori produced the series. Tanazawa Takayoshi, Izumi Masahide, and Hayashi Masataka directed the series. Hayashi Masataka also directed 30-sai made Dotei Da to Mahotsukai ni Nareru rashii (Cherry Magic! “Thirty Years of Virginity Can Make You a Wizard?!”)
Cast:
Maeda Kentaro is Ohara Yamato
Kashiwagi Haru is Ashiya Kakeru
Supporting Cast:
Matsumoto Leo is Hosaka Yui
Tanaka Taketo is Fujino Kousuke
Konno Ayaka is Ohara Mikoto
Nakai Tomo is Toyama Akane
The story of childhood best friends turned into lovers is not new in the world of BL. It’s a pretty standard plot device. This trope exists for a reason, and it’s always been a favorite of mine. Whether it’s a BG (boy/girl), BB (boy/boy), or GG (girl/girl), the trope of falling in love with your best friend makes me feel all the feelings if done right. I love a good HEA (happy ever after) story. Best friends catching feelings can be a cute fluffy watch or read. So how does this BL ‘I Cannot Reach You’ measure up? Read on to discover our thoughts on the childhood best friends’ high school students’ secret crush.
The story is set up well. We have the tall, quiet, serious, good-looking, and popular Yamato. In contrast, his childhood best friend, Kakeru. He’s exuberant, liked by everyone, kind, and sort of a dummy. I mean, he’s not an academic, but I also mean that he is beyond dense when it comes to reading people’s emotions and motivations for their actions.
Kakeru is happy with the status quo. His friend group is boisterous and full of sweet young men who all desire exuberantly to get a girlfriend. The pressure turns on when Kousuke gets a girlfriend from a nearby school. He invites his friends, including Kakeru, hoping that Yamato will come with him. Yamoto is sought after by all the girls who want to be his girlfriend, even though every girl who has confessed is rejected. Yamato agrees to go with Kakeru to the mixer. A mixer in this setting refers to a group of girls and a group of boys going on a group date to see if anyone clicks with each other.
As with this story type, Yamato longs for and has romantic feelings for Kakeru. And to follow the trope affectionately and closely, he has neither the courage nor the drive to confess his feelings. That is until he thinks Kakeru will get a girlfriend, a sweet girl named Akane, who makes Kakeru smile.
Several other people seem to have established a connection with our erstwhile couple. Yui is a charismatic friend in the group who seems in touch with his more feminine side, wearing sweet barrettes with his school uniform. He understands that Yamato likes Kakeru as more than a friend. He observes the behaviors of the pair and seems to be rooting for them to find their happy ending.
We also have Yamato’s younger sister, Makoto. She watches her brother with keen attention to who he has feelings for. She asks him point blank if he’s in love with Kakeru. She is confident that she knows the answer, despite her brother’s protest they are just best friends.
It seems as if the only people rooting for the happiness of Yamato and Kakeru are Yui and Makoto, who seem to have struck up a small, unlikely friendship. The pair have a conversation related to the fate of the pair.
When Yui asks why Makoto calls Yamato so formally Onii-San, a very polite term for big brother, her answer is simple. She’s been accused of having a brother complex (being fixated on him in an almost romantic way), so she puts distance between them. She confesses this to Yui. Yui’s response tells us everything about who he is and what he’s been through as a character. “Living by other people’s standards sucks, right?” Empathy implies understanding what it feels like to love outside of social norms.
The Good
The characters are simple, the story is simple, and it’s that simplicity that makes the series an enjoyable one to watch. There are no villains, strange plot twists, or complications in I Cannot Reach You. I enjoy a piece of fluff in my BL watching sometimes.
It’s also obviously adapted from a Japanese yaoi manga. There are moments where you can feel the heartbeat of the characters. The text in manga reads ドキドキ(Doki Doki), which shows a character’s beating heart of being so close to a romantic partner. It’s a trope that makes me smile, an excellent inside nod to the manga it’s based on.
There are tropes scattered throughout the short series that I’m sure you can spot. There is the fall and rescue trope, which places the pair perilously close together, making them keenly aware of their feelings for each other.
There are the girls’ and guys’ rooftop confessions, which are always shown in mangas. There are sparkles or white hazy bubbles during a kiss, which also happens in manga.
One of my favorite tropes they used was a “kabudon,”…where the guy puts his hand (typically slaps) the wall next to the love interest’s head, effectively trapping them close. That happened on the rooftop. The look of indignation that accompanied this gesture made me laugh.
Another trope is the injured party having to be carried by piggyback by the Seme (a term for a “top” in YAOI manga). This trope can be seen in many BL series, and I’m looking at you, Tutor/Fighter from WhyRU. It’s another way to show how much they care about the person and force closeness that both parties secretly or not so secretly enjoy.
You must confess to your loved one before Christmas break so you don’t spend Christmas alone. This plays into the time limit on committing to a relationship in a grand gesture way. What will Kakeru or Yamoto do? In Japan, Christmas is a romantic holiday with people going on dates with their lovers.
If all this is good, what could possibly be bad or meh? Read on to find out.
The Bad
The frustration I felt as Yamato sat around moping and pining for Kakeru made me want to reach through the screen and shake him. I mean, there is a limit to my patience, especially in such a short series.
Also, while cute, Kakeru’s complete cluelessness began to annoy me. He put blinders on and refused to look at his best friends or Akane’s actions for what they both were, expressed romantic interest.
The acting seemed a bit over the top at the time, with Kentaro portraying Yamoto as a mooning, mopey, slightly boring caricature of a high school boy. Kashiwagi, as Kakeru, embodies the slow, dimwitted, friendly puppy type of high schooler. Ayaka Konno plays Makoto as a solemn and stern young woman who has lost her smile.
The Meh
As for meh, the show is composed of short episodes, 20 minutes each. I have been spoiled with Korean BLs and Taiwanese BLs in this format. They tend to portray the nuances by crafting a tightly woven tale. Each moment has a purpose, whether advancing the plot or the characters. This BL could use some tightening of both dialogue, pauses, etc.
We look at the success of Cherry Magic in Japan and look at this as a comparison that sadly doesn’t have the same punch from the same director.
Overall Impression:
A quick binge-watch for an evening or weekend when you need a bit of fluff is my recommendation for this show. It’s not the first pick when looking to start a new BL. However, it is enjoyable enough to take up some time when you are bored and need something light. Let me know your thoughts. If you have seen the BL, what do you think? If you haven’t and decide to try it, let me know what you think.
Overall Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars.
