Old Fashion Cupcake (2022)

Very sweet, slow-burn (even though only 5 episodes)

Almost perfect!
The acting was awesome, very natural. Both actors were nuanced in facial expressions, tone of voice, and body posture. It was a joy watching them interact as their characters.

The show had a positive message and multiple thoughtful and memorable quotes.
There were a few comedic moments that made me legitimately laugh out loud.
Music was unremarkable, but didn't distract either.

The story felt a lot more rushed in the last episode than it had in the previous four episodes. For this reason, I wish they had made it six episodes. The ending wasn't completely satisfying because of this, in my opinion, and brought my rating down. I think it still has high rewatch value though.

SPOILER ABOUT ENDING:
... ... ...
After all the tension and build-up, having their first *mutual* kiss at the end interrupted left me feeling frustrated and disappointed, lol. I wanted that sweet resolution to go with the relief and happiness.

Leia Mais

Cute

The hype for this series was LOUD. I knew I needed to watch this as soon as I could, and I think it lives up to its hype maybe halfway. This is not me saying the series was terrible -- because it was really good, except, not very memorable for me. Old Fashion Cupcake is a mini little office series about two workers falling in love and finding it at their, "old ages".

Let's Dive In.

I only put "Old Ages" in quotation marks cause I don't consider either of them too old for love, especially Togawa. But one thing I appreciate about this series is that we do get to see an older love story, which is very rare to receive in a BL. And they did it beautifully. I loved that Nozue got to discover new things he liked and enjoyed since before meeting Togawa he was stuck in his I-have-to-act-my-age bubble. It was a delight to watch him eat pancakes and drink milkshakes and just look so excited and giddy.

More on Nozue, I appreciate the very accurate understanding of a man going through a life crisis of turning 40 and still not understanding his life or knowing what he wants or loves. It's something that can be easily reliable and I'm sure a lot did. I also just loved watching him be such an old man and accidentally taking videos instead of photos. God, I loved him.

I also really liked Togawa, and it's not only because he's gorgeous, but it's also just because I can't pinpoint my exact admiration for him -- maybe because he can take a man like Nozue and show him that age is literally just a number -- but I really enjoyed watching them grow on screen and we slowly watch them fall for one another.

I think the chemistry was great, and so was their connection. The only thing that really threw me off was Togawa's unexpected and forceful actions towards Nozue in the 4th episode. It was so uncalled for, especially if he just would've gone about things calmer and in a manner that didn't seem so erratic. And I also wish they would've gotten an ending kiss, but that's just me being picky.

Rating:

Story: 8 - Good. Enjoyable enough. I usually am not the person to enjoy office-type romances, but this series did a good job of not dwelling too much on the actual work part of it all. The story is short but still entertaining.

Acting: 9 - They did really well. Even though I disliked their first kiss scene, I appreciated Kimura's acting afterward. Beautifully done.

Music: 7 - Didn't really pay much attention. But it wasn't distracting so that's good.

Rewatch Value: 2 - Most likely not.

Out of all the BLs we're getting handed now, there's only room to watch the good ones, and this one is one of those. I recommend it -- it's short and cute. Not the best J-BL I've seen, but it's definitely up there.

Leia Mais

FANTASTIC WRITING AND ACTING!!!

I usually only ever write reviews either when something is extremely horrible that I want to warn people never to watch it, or when something feels so underrated that I want to give it more recognition, and this BL is exactly that, underrated ( I even created this account just to write this ). The themes this BL goes through is extremely relatable to me and a lot of others. Im still 17 but with each growing number I relate to the feeling of not having done anything meaningful in life. The themes with wanting to stray away from the daily routine but also being afraid by it is something I really appreciate that this BL portrays so well. Sometimes I get anxiety attacks and stressed out since I keep thinking about how boring and monotone my life might be. But this series shows me that sometimes it takes just one small thing like eating something new or getting a smoothie you've never drank before to make life more interesting. Moving to the actual acting and writing, I don't usually watch live action BL series because from the stuff I've watched, the actors and scenes feel forced and I get turned off by it. But with this series, the actors really feel like they've been friends for years and did a great job making the characters come to life. The scripting is also really well done. Everything flowed together and each dialogue felt like something that would happen in real life. Nothing felt out of place and the timing/delivery feels organic from both actors. Both of their interactions with one another felt very fluffy and cute without being OVERDRAMATIC cute, where overdramatic cute feels forced and uncomfortable to watch. Basically what Im trying to say is that their relationship doesn't feel forced. Overall I really love this series and It saddened me to hear it only has 5 episodes. Series like these are a rare find, I would even say this is the first BL live action series that producers got right. Im looking forward to the rest! Ill give this a 10/10 and would 100% recommend this to any BL lover <333333

Edited on: July 6, 2022 (EP 5/5)

Leia Mais

Perfect Perfect and Perfect

This series got me screaming like a 12 year old girl and I am neither a girl nor 12. I feel robbed, betrayed and sad that this wonderful series have only 5 episodes. I NEED MORE. I NEED MORE of Nozue and Tagawa. They are so flipping cute. Like omg I can't believe people in their 30s can be this cute. If you liked Cherry Magic then you would liked this even 10 times more. This actually surpassed cherry magic and its no.1 bl in terms of Jp bl. Which i though was not possible but this series surpassed all expectations and climbed even higher. Being shy and hiding your feelings? none of that here, dragging things till the last episode? no sir, cringy acting? fuck no. The acting,ost and story was overall 10/10 for me. The flirting, the tension and kiss was all so *chef kiss*. If you don't give this a watch, you are messing out something great.

Leia Mais

Love and joy in all their forms, told through the medium of Good Food

This show may have permanently rewired my brain and I don't regret a thing. This show Gets Me. It gets what it means to be human, what it means to love and let yourself be loved, what it means to reach for the joy and wonder that can be found in every day life, what it means to yearn for something. It explores what it means to desire; desire a feeling, desire food, desire change, desire a person. I could (and have, shoutout to my friends and my sincere apologies) spend hours ranting about the beautiful and complex use this show makes of food as symbolism, but I won't subject you to that.
Instead I will tell you this:
If you have ever known or wanted to know what it's like to outgrow and shed the shell you've been confined to all your life, to let go of "would have"s and "should be"s and grab for happiness with both hands, then this show is for you.
It is beautiful, it is intense, it is unafraid, it is pure joy.

Leia Mais

SO FLUFFY CUTE AND CONCISE

July 7, 2022

Waw another Jdrama checked off my ever-growing list. Needless to say, I finished this drama in just one sitting since I waited for it to finish airing before starting... 😈

Let's get on to it:
- the chemistry between the leads is top tier, I really like the younger guy holy shit. His sex appeal and charisma are just chef's kiss. And yes, you are very seductive mah booi.
- I feel like the relationship and the progress into getting to it were not perfect and smooth. There were some sluggish parts and some miscommunication? Well, to be honest, I am not sure if it is miscommunication, it is more like the lack of wanting to communicate and staying silent was the problem? Anyway, that was something that was dealt with quickly so I don't think it will be much of a bother towards the other audience
- plot-wise, I think it is pretty adequate in the sense that there was no boring part. Just to clarify since I said sluggish in the previous bullet point. I mean like there was sluggishness in the progress of getting into their relationship. But like the episodes were not sluggish... It's a little confusing to explain but I think once you watch the series you might get this point.
- this show gave me so many butterflies and like those little gestures and glances... ackdkjdkfjkdj
- I need to sue the directors for making this drama too short like I am actually gonna cry. I NEED MORE, LIKE PLEASE TAKE MY MONEY I WANT MORE



Also, I actually wanna emphasize how most J-dramas or maybe it's just the J-dramas I came across recently are based in younger adults or middle age settings. I actually love this direction, as much as I am a sucker for the high school or college/uni series. I am lividly looking forward to these types of dramas, maybe I am just getting exhausted with eating up all the uni dramas... or maybe it is because I am aging... maybe I should do that "anti-aging process"... but I need to find a guy who wants to that with me first... uh... oh well... 😭

Leia Mais

Age gaps and power imbalances done right

Loved it. Exactly what I wanted from this drama: sweet, soft and shot. sometimes dragging angst or arcs out for the sake of reaching X number of episodes just isn't worth it.
A fear I had going in, was that the age gap and power dynamic would be overbearing and badly represented, thus showcasing a rather toxic relationship. I was happily proven wrong: by them hanging out after working hours, and having sincere talks about age, growing up and fears, a bond strong enough is created. Their interactions feel natural and yet intimate. Ultimately, the destruction of their last remaining power imbalance is destroyed when Nozue leaves, and thus also culminates his development as a character.The age talk is still prevalent but it is not seen as a handicap.
Masterfully done.

Leia Mais

Nozue and Togawa - My Favorite Treats

I loved, loved this series. The premise of acting like a young woman was a little odd to me at first, but as I kept reading the manga, I went with the real premise, that in Japan, there are certain venues that target younger women. I felt that this series conveyed this cultural slice of life very well. Seeing these two men, seating amongst all these younger women, shows that neither age nor gender should be so strictly stratified when it comes to enjoying a place to eat with your loved one.

Takeda did a great of job of showing Nozue's insecurities about growing older, after living a life of playing it safe. Although he has the aptitude for a higher managerial role, he choses to stay where he is comfortable. Through his relationship with Togawa, he is able to break out of his comfort zone, and take a risk in more ways than one.

Kimura is very easy on the eyes and the way plays Togawa is a combination of very masculine, and very caring. Togawa courts Nozue with patience, and admiration, which was very cute. It's obvious to everyone, except Nozue, that Togawa has feelings for him, I cried along with Togawa during his confession scene, and also with Nozue when he finally accepts and reciprocates.

It was so heartwarming to see Togawa and Nozue continue to patronize the types of places they went during their courtship. I would definitely go with them and be the 3rd wheel. They make such a lovely pair that I would watch a show about them when they are in their 80's.

Leia Mais

There is nothing better than love to make you feel young again

It really was a joy to watch this series! I think it was very realistically done too. I think we all at some point in our lives reach the stage where we feel lost. We either don’t know how to continue, if we are on the right path, or we might feel like we are too old to do something new, something exciting. Having someone there to help you through that is great, so seeing how Togawa helped Nozue through his crisis was really sweet to watch.

Nozue & Togawa: Nozue is 10 years older and seems to be stuck in a cycle of sleeping and working with nothing much else happening. Togawa is younger, but he also has a much better work life balance. Which he learned from Nozue who offered him many good advice in the past. I really liked how much influence Nozue actually had on Togawa as a mentor and a boss. That truly showed what a good person he is and just how much he cares for others. But it also showed that Togawa had very good opinion about him from early on. The two really are a good fit for one another. Togawa is mature, so it doesn’t seem like Nozue is actually that much older than him. And he is also very good at making Nozue relax and feel younger, not so stuck in his life. After all, there is nothing that makes a person feel younger than love. Plus, their chemistry was good too. Their reactions to different situations seemed very realistic which made the whole thing even more enjoyable for me.

There was no unecessary drama, which I liked. The two are adults, so I was glad we avoided all the drama that we often get.

I absolutely loved their little food dates. I know how hard it can be to go try something new on your own, how nerve wracking it can be if you don’t know how or what to order. So having someone else there, even if they don’t know what they are doing, is a lot of fun.

All in all, I really enjoyed the series. The side characters were really fun as well. The other office workers that worked under Nozue were fun, I really liked Nakamura. And then Kirishima as both friend and possibly HR person really had a great relationship with Nozue.

It was a bit short; I would love to see more. The end scene jump was a bit rushed, but it didn’t really bother me too much.

Leia Mais

Cute and sweet Relationship between middle aged men!

I can’t really say much more than you need to watch this! I certainly regret not watching this show sooner.

The chemistry between Nozue And Togawa is Perfect and doesn’t have any of the worrisome power dynamics you can see in other office romance dramas. The balance between their work life and personal life is well balanced (in my opinion anyways), and you easily forget that Nozue and Togawa have a ten year age gap. I personally think that it’s due to how closed off Nozue was, but he still had quite a bit of that childish vibe once he got closer with Togawa. I sincerely thought Togawa was going to get on my nerves going into this but I totally fell in love with his character by the end.

This drama really kind of brought a beautiful light to how diving deep into work can make life drag on in a way that seems unlivable and how breaking out of your comfort zone can bring back happiness and positive interactions within not only your work life but also personal.

I really gotta give it up for Kimura Tatsunari, he portrayed the emotions of Togawa really well and didn’t leave me with that cringey feeling I get with other dramas where someone cries so hard they have snot running out of their nose.

The show was super sweet and I often found myself smiling at the small interactions between Nozue and Togawa when they complimented each other, and I was definitely laughing each time they choked on their drinks.

all in all it’s a super quick watch so even if dramas like this aren’t your usual cup of tea, you wouldn’t be wasting too much time by giving this drama a chance!

Leia Mais

Another BL done right

Its feels like a breath of fresh air when you see a BL story around working men and their life in office. The series does a fine job at introducing the characters. We have the 1st ML who seems to be going through life with an averseness to change. Through dialogues between the 2 MLs we come to know that he used to be accept challenges but no longer.
I really appreciated that multiple episodes were spent in building the relationship between the 2 ML where one in trying to help the other get out of his so called "mid-life crisis" and rediscover himself. Hence when ultimately the 1st ML falls in love with the other it appears justified and not something out of the blue. The fact about the age-gap is hammered constantly in to the viewers but it does not take away from the narrative and the dialogues sound more natural.
The 1st MLs character of being afraid of change is brought back again in the later episides when the 2nd ML confesses his love. But as usual love triumphs and they get together at the end which comes as no surprise. The series ends at a great moment and I would love to watch season 2 that explores their relationship further.

Leia Mais