Saezuru Tori wa Habatakanai: The Clouds Gather

Yashiro, the ruthlessly efficient leader of the yakuza group Shinsekai, is also a brazen sexual deviant and masochist. Having been hurt by the only person he had ever fallen in love with, he now engages in strictly physical relationships.

One day, Yashiro's superior assigns Chikara Doumeki, a recently released prisoner, to the role of Yashiro's new bodyguard. The stoic and observant Doumeki is also clumsy and impotent, much to Yashiro's dismay. Although Yashiro has a personal policy to not get involved with his subordinates, he finds himself strangely drawn to Doumeki, who keeps denying his advances. Despite his refusals, Doumeki finds Yashiro beautiful and wishes to stay by his side, yet he knows that he will never be able to satisfy his boss. As the two grow closer, their complicated pasts slowly begin to reveal themselves. Will their histories get in the way of their emergent feelings?

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Yashiro Main

Shingaki, Tarusuke Japanese

Doumeki, Chikara Main

Hatano, Wataru Japanese

Kuga, Eishin Supporting

Ono, Yuuki Japanese

Kageyama, Kanji Supporting

Yasumoto, Hiroki Japanese

Nanahara, Yuusuke Supporting

Okitsu, Kazuyuki Japanese

Misumi, Takahito Supporting

Ookawa, Tooru Japanese

Ryuuzaki, Atsushi Supporting

Miyake, Kenta Japanese

Shizuma, Amou Supporting

Satou, Takuya Japanese

Sugimoto, Hayato Supporting

Miyake, Takahiro Japanese

School Nurse Supporting

Ootsuka, Manabu Producer

Makita, Kaori Director, Episode Director, Storyboard

Koizumi, Kisuke Sound Director

Seko, Hiroshi Script

Reviews

Mar 10, 2024

noirOrion

Recommended

*NO SPOILERS*

Where do I even start? Maybe here: To simply slap a BL label on this and leave it at that feels downright criminal.

I’m very grateful that I stumbled upon this without any prior knowledge or pretext. Had I read a synopsis or character description, I doubt I would have given it a try. Almost everything I found on this movie and manga fails to capture the essence of this story and its characters. It very much sounds like one of those cliches where BL is predatory and abuse is strangely romanticized. But I can promise you, that this ... is not the case. At all.

I should preface anything else with a bit of a warning. This manga/movie is without a doubt 18+. No, it isn’t hentai. No, it’s not all just about juicy sex scenes. BUT the story is heavy-laden with crime, violence, sex, abuse, rape, and abuse of minors. But let me say it one more time for the people in the back: In no way, shape, or form are any of these heavy topics romanticized or fetishized. They are merely used as tools to depict what (unfortunately) is reality for many people. Generally, it could be said that mentally healthy and sound individuals with a normal childhood don’t end up in the Yakuza and that’s where this story unfolds…

Yoneda Kou is the author of this journey, that started in 2008 with the one-shot Don’t Stay Gold. The focus is split between the main characters Kageyama & Kuga and character development of Yashiro, the main character of the movie/manga series.

In 2009, the story continues with the one-shot Though They Drift, They Do Not Sink, But Nor Do They Sing, where the focus is on Kageyama’s (one of the mains in Don’t Stay Gold) and Yashiro’s Highschool years, though the focus is again on character development of Yashiro.

Since 2011, Twittering Birds Never Fly has been serialized in HertZ magazine. It depicts Yashiro and Chikara Doumeki (first name, family name) and their struggle to make sense of many difficult feelings in an environment that is ruthless and unforgiving, all while suffocating in profound trauma. Both characters are immensely complex, Yashiro especially so, using his hyper-sexual facade as a tool - both weapon and shield - to navigate the choppy waters of a harsh, men-only crime syndicate. Doumeki, a newcomer to this lifestyle, quickly becomes Yashiro’s anchor, grounding him and pulling him under at the same time. Their affection and fascination with each other is both, tragic and hopeful; twisted, yet simple. But this story is about more than just two people’s attraction. It’s a deep, dark, and intense dive into the Japanese underworld.

You can absolutely watch the movie without having read any source material, just as you can read the main story without the one-shots first. They may all be connected and will absolutely give you a much deeper understanding of all the characters involved, but hey are all stand-alone stories at the same time. I started with the movie and then couldn’t rest until I had found the manga!

The movie adaptation Twittering Birds Never Fly - The Clouds Gather was released in 2020. The adaptation follows the manga very closely and the art is identical to the source material which is a huge plus in my opinion. The movie score has jazzy undertones and fits the whole “mobster theme” well. The ending is a beautiful song with poignant lyrics, and having watched the music video I wonder if the interpretive dance is foreshadowing the storyline? The same year, a sequel The Storm Breaks was announced, but has yet to be released. A third, still untitled movie has also been announced. All three films were licensed by Sentai Filmworks for screenings & releases in North America, so I remain hopeful that it will happen.

When it comes to the voice actors, I have nothing but praise! They infuse Yashiro & Doumeki with so much character and really bring them to life. The acting is truly superb and gives the whole story yet another layer of depth! If you have read the manga and are now watching the movie, you will be amazed by how perfectly they were cast for their respective roles! Likewise, if you’ve just watched the movies and are now diving deeper into the manga, having experienced their “voices” will make reading their story that much more exciting!

There are currently 8 volumes spanning 56 chapters with the next chapter release scheduled March 29, 24. Yoneda sensei announced that the story will conclude within the next 2-3 volumes, so we may be looking at many more years of waiting to see where life will take these two amazing characters.

I hope I could convince you to give this a try and I hope you won’t be disappointed! If you are a fan like me, consider buying original works to support not just the amazing author, but to guarantee the next two movies!

If you are still reading, thank you! I’ve said as much as I could without spoiling anything and now I’d just like to give my opinion:

I’m an avid reader (of literature) and have also watched anime my whole life. Considering that, I want to say how profoundly complex this story is. I occasionally re-read the manga and continue to see more connections, meanings, and interpretations. It absolutely blows my mind that Yoneda sensei pulled this off with the limited medium that is manga, where you don’t have pages upon pages to explain all the details and plots. She has a real talent to convey complex emotions like suspicions, fears, as well as hopes, dreams, and longing (sometimes all at the same time) with a mere sketch of a few characters. It translates very well in the movie! Though the ending definitely leaves you wanting more. If I’m honest, I’m very unsure of where these two characters are headed. It’s so hard to imagine a happy ending given their background and environment, but at the same time it would utterly wreck me if they didn’t get that redemption in the end.

Reviewer’s Rating: 10

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Oct 6, 2022

SapphiRubyCrys

Mixed Feelings

The Mixed feelings and the 7 stars out of 10 is not because of anything the anime does wrong or any problems in the story or characters it's because of what was needed to be shown. what the story is about and what the characters are going through and went through.
This anime will not be everyone's cup of tea and does deal with mature things. I was surprised by how much they could actually animate.
The characters are strong and it's not your shojo yakuza trope you find in mangas.

Both the MCs are one of the movie's strong points and are very interesting and straight ... forward. I want them to find happiness or at least some peace and comfort with each other

WARNING:- There is rape in this anime and don't worry it's not between the MCs (and it's not brushed aside like in some BL animes I watched and immediately dropped) and they don't shy away from discussing about it and how the characters were affected by it.
Also the sex shown in this anime was something I didn't expect.

All in all, the reason I am giving 7 is only because not everyone will want to watch this but those who do will not find any major faults in the storytelling or the characters. I watched this movie but even I feel like there was a 50-50 chance of me watching this. It has been postponed for a year now. (I recently stumbled upon the manga and remembered it has a movie and it peaked my interest to get a feel of the genre and story of the manga)

Reviewer’s Rating: 7

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Mar 19, 2021

MichalYo

Not Recommended

I read the manga a long time ago when I was still a teenager that loved yaoi and shounen-ai manga. Since I was still in the closet I didn't know better, almost every story seemed at least decent. When I saw this title getting adapted I was really excited and it made me feel kinda nostalgic.
But after watching this movie I can admit that everything I loved about this manga/anime was because I was just a stupid teen.

Story:
It's basically a porn. There are some cool moments, where characters have interesting interactions, however almost every scene ends with a blowjob, so I don't really know ... how to take it seriously. Of course there will be always some people who will defend it by saying that it's part of Yashiro's character and his mental problems. If that's the case, the anime did a really bad job on showing that.

Characters:
I'm not gonna lie, Netflix's gay characters are more interesting, which says a lot about this anime. Let's start with the 2 main characters. Yashiro is probably the most interesting one, which says a lot about this anime, since he's just a generic main characters with problems. The main difference is that he's just horny 24/7 with an excuse that he was raped in the past. There are some scenes that make you feel bad for him or perhaps understand him, but again, right after he just wants to give a blow job to another main character - Doumeki. He's a pretty shallow character, his past is tragic (what a surprise), however I haven't felt bad for him a single time, which in my opinion is the studio's fault. The other characters don't really bring much to the show other than having horny conversations with Yashiro.

Art&Sound&Animation:
It was decent, pretty good for shounen-ai/yaoi anime, since they normally don't get a lot of budget, so it was refreshing seeing this kind of anime with a decent and sometimes pretty good animation&art.

Enjoyment:
It was not the worst anime I've ever watched so I just gave it a 4. My expectations for "gay anime" are pretty low so a score lower than that wasn't necessary. There were some scenes that I enjoyed, but by the end of the movie I was really bored and I almost quit watching. I think if they adapted more chapters, then it would be a better anime, but they just went with the first few chapters, that are not really that good and deep.

Overall:
I'm sure that many enjoyed this anime, because it's a decent yaoi adaptation, however I don't think many gay people should be happy with it. It basically shows horny gays, having sex with everyone and everything. Some people may defend them, because of their mental problems, however it's not enough for me. Gay people still fight for their rights and "gay stuff" is still a taboo topic over there, so a manga like that, which was written by a female that probably imagines how gay people interact with each other (in the most horny way ever) doesn't really help.

If I was younger I would've probably enjoyed this anime a lot more, but since I'm in my 20's and I got to know the world a bit better I can say it's pretty stereotypical anime.

Reviewer’s Rating: 4

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	Poll: Saezuru Tori wa Habatakanai: The Clouds Gather Episode 1 Discussion ( 1 2 ) whither - Sep 10, 2020	53 replies	by Tetrachan96 »» Aug 23, 4:09 PM
	Saezuru Film Licensed in the US ClaireTheBear - Aug 26, 2020	1 replies	by lorde_esme »» Dec 6, 2020 1:55 AM
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