Seven Days
I've seen that Japanese BL drama Seven Days is recommended just about everywhere on the internet as one of the greats. I entirely agree.
Summary: At a high school in Yokohama, senior student Shino is in a rut. He's very popular and handsome, though he's unlucky in love. The girls he dates all end up saying the same thing when they break up with him: that his beauty and outwardly gregarious nature hide an obtuseness and vulgarity that only bring disappointment. He hears from his classmates that one of the juniors in his archery club, Seryo, has a very strange dating rule: he will date the first girl that asks him out on a Monday and then break up with her on the Sunday a week later if he's not in love. Shino is intrigued and, meeting Seryo by chance on Monday morning, asks him to go out with him. The usually suave Seryo is genuinely taken aback by Shino's request but accepts. Will the boys find love over the course of seven days, or will they be disappointed in each other's behaviour and principles, just the same as everyone else?
What a fantastic drama this is. It takes a wonderful premise and two self-absorbed teenagers, and throws them together to see whether their opposing personalities and identical desires can find common ground in the short time they have together. Everything about it plays so well: the amazing chemistry between the two lead actors; enthralling dialogue; a simple but well-constructed screenplay; the unobtrusive soundtrack; the gorgeously framed cinematography. The sound editing in this drama is a character in itself. The archery scenes in particular are extraordinary, with the whine of a taut bowstring and the powerful shuck of a released arrow. And then there's the beautifully judged silences. They are long, dramatic and intense, and they add gentle fire to the boys' expressive stares. They also contribute to the feeling of a very slow-moving drama - which isn't the case in reality, but it sounds like this is the one aspect of the show that is most likely to put some viewers off.
We live the week side by side with the boys, with each of the seven days given its own short chapter. Through all this time, we are given access to listen in on the consciousness of each boy, as well as their excruciating miscommunications and attempts to explain their feelings in words. Seryo is humbled and in awe of Shino's frankness and mercurial nature. Shino is instantly drawn to Seryo's gentle kindness and attentive devotion. They both see each other's flaws, but - and this is where the screenplay really shines - they fall in love with each other because of the flaws, not despite them. Much is made of the fact that both boys feel their reputations at school have misrepresented them. As a result, they too misunderstand each other because they don't believe in each other's true intentions. It's not a game for either of them, but their respective reputations and behaviour are difficult to set aside. There's a very funny, touching scene where Shino impulsively blurts out a stressed braindump about his tolerance of Seryo's ex-girlfriend, which leads Seryo, mortified, to call Shino "dense". And yet almost perversely, he tells Shino he loves his impulsivity and brutal candour. It's a transformative moment for both boys, as it shows them that their old habits and ways of thinking, and all their sad assumptions about never finding someone who will like them for who they are, have been entirely wrong.
The day-to-day structure and the short running time (around three hours across two episodes) give the story enough space to present its ideas without any of the usual padding of other BL dramas. There are no subplots at all. There are a few friends or ex-girlfriends that enter the scene but they never have their own separate stories, they are only presented in so far as they provide momentum and depth to the boy's central relationship. As a result, all we are left with is the increasingly dramatic progression of a week-long timeline, the inevitability of the ticking time bomb, and a growing sense of desperation.
One of my favourite aspects of the Japanese BL dramas that I've seen so far is that they favour realism over fantasy. That's not to say that there's no fantasy in Seven Days, it's just that it's so muted when compared to other BL dramas from, say, China or especially Thailand. The boys go on dates, see a movie, eat out, go for walks, hang out together at school during recess. It's so routine that everyone at school assumes they have become close friends, albeit strangely quickly. Whenever there's an approximation of a romantic interlude, the writers have a tendency to turn it on its head. As an example, the boys go to a local park that has a lovely scenic viewpoint looking out over Yokohama harbour. It's full of straight couples on dates taking in the view, kissing. The boys look around at the couples, and then at each other. It's exquisitely awkward and anti-romantic. But of course, the romantic attraction is always palpable. Even though the attraction is almost always deflected defensively, or even shamefully, it's deeply satisfying when they finally share a kiss or a caress.
Ultimately this is a story about two people who fall in love, despite all the preconceptions and prejudices they had about each other beforehand, and despite all the unwritten rules associated with the laws of attraction. And despite being the same gender. It speaks to the nature of attraction and love, indirectly but unsentimentally, and the fact that it does so without resorting to the clichés and excess cheesiness that are so common in BL is definitely something worth celebrating.
Rating: 15 out of 20
Ending: Happy.
Best scene: the outdoor stairs scene, where Seryo calls Shino 'dense'.
Summary: At a high school in Yokohama, senior student Shino is in a rut. He's very popular and handsome, though he's unlucky in love. The girls he dates all end up saying the same thing when they break up with him: that his beauty and outwardly gregarious nature hide an obtuseness and vulgarity that only bring disappointment. He hears from his classmates that one of the juniors in his archery club, Seryo, has a very strange dating rule: he will date the first girl that asks him out on a Monday and then break up with her on the Sunday a week later if he's not in love. Shino is intrigued and, meeting Seryo by chance on Monday morning, asks him to go out with him. The usually suave Seryo is genuinely taken aback by Shino's request but accepts. Will the boys find love over the course of seven days, or will they be disappointed in each other's behaviour and principles, just the same as everyone else?
What a fantastic drama this is. It takes a wonderful premise and two self-absorbed teenagers, and throws them together to see whether their opposing personalities and identical desires can find common ground in the short time they have together. Everything about it plays so well: the amazing chemistry between the two lead actors; enthralling dialogue; a simple but well-constructed screenplay; the unobtrusive soundtrack; the gorgeously framed cinematography. The sound editing in this drama is a character in itself. The archery scenes in particular are extraordinary, with the whine of a taut bowstring and the powerful shuck of a released arrow. And then there's the beautifully judged silences. They are long, dramatic and intense, and they add gentle fire to the boys' expressive stares. They also contribute to the feeling of a very slow-moving drama - which isn't the case in reality, but it sounds like this is the one aspect of the show that is most likely to put some viewers off.
We live the week side by side with the boys, with each of the seven days given its own short chapter. Through all this time, we are given access to listen in on the consciousness of each boy, as well as their excruciating miscommunications and attempts to explain their feelings in words. Seryo is humbled and in awe of Shino's frankness and mercurial nature. Shino is instantly drawn to Seryo's gentle kindness and attentive devotion. They both see each other's flaws, but - and this is where the screenplay really shines - they fall in love with each other because of the flaws, not despite them. Much is made of the fact that both boys feel their reputations at school have misrepresented them. As a result, they too misunderstand each other because they don't believe in each other's true intentions. It's not a game for either of them, but their respective reputations and behaviour are difficult to set aside. There's a very funny, touching scene where Shino impulsively blurts out a stressed braindump about his tolerance of Seryo's ex-girlfriend, which leads Seryo, mortified, to call Shino "dense". And yet almost perversely, he tells Shino he loves his impulsivity and brutal candour. It's a transformative moment for both boys, as it shows them that their old habits and ways of thinking, and all their sad assumptions about never finding someone who will like them for who they are, have been entirely wrong.
The day-to-day structure and the short running time (around three hours across two episodes) give the story enough space to present its ideas without any of the usual padding of other BL dramas. There are no subplots at all. There are a few friends or ex-girlfriends that enter the scene but they never have their own separate stories, they are only presented in so far as they provide momentum and depth to the boy's central relationship. As a result, all we are left with is the increasingly dramatic progression of a week-long timeline, the inevitability of the ticking time bomb, and a growing sense of desperation.
One of my favourite aspects of the Japanese BL dramas that I've seen so far is that they favour realism over fantasy. That's not to say that there's no fantasy in Seven Days, it's just that it's so muted when compared to other BL dramas from, say, China or especially Thailand. The boys go on dates, see a movie, eat out, go for walks, hang out together at school during recess. It's so routine that everyone at school assumes they have become close friends, albeit strangely quickly. Whenever there's an approximation of a romantic interlude, the writers have a tendency to turn it on its head. As an example, the boys go to a local park that has a lovely scenic viewpoint looking out over Yokohama harbour. It's full of straight couples on dates taking in the view, kissing. The boys look around at the couples, and then at each other. It's exquisitely awkward and anti-romantic. But of course, the romantic attraction is always palpable. Even though the attraction is almost always deflected defensively, or even shamefully, it's deeply satisfying when they finally share a kiss or a caress.
Ultimately this is a story about two people who fall in love, despite all the preconceptions and prejudices they had about each other beforehand, and despite all the unwritten rules associated with the laws of attraction. And despite being the same gender. It speaks to the nature of attraction and love, indirectly but unsentimentally, and the fact that it does so without resorting to the clichés and excess cheesiness that are so common in BL is definitely something worth celebrating.
Rating: 15 out of 20
Ending: Happy.
Best scene: the outdoor stairs scene, where Seryo calls Shino 'dense'.
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