Feb 3, 2021
First of all, I'm caught up with the manga, so I've already seen this arc in the manga. Secondly, I'm a gay boy, so I seriously treasure this adaptation since this is the only realistic anime with proper gay relationships that I can enjoy.
Given is the best Shounen Ai anime in my own opinion and I'm so thankful for this continuation. I'm pretty sure the staff and the mangaka worked hard on this movie, because it shows. It must have been hard to fit this WHOLE arc into 59 minutes, but I think they did a great job. Did it feel rushed sometimes? Yes. Would
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I love to see more Mafuyama scenes? YES. But other than those, they did justice to the manga as much as they could with the time they got. The soundtracks were amazing. Yoru ga Akeru is such a great song. They also released a mini album just for this movie! The animation and the art were fine as usual. It wasn't better or worse than the first season. Overall, the movie was enough for the audience to grasp this arc and the characters. My only regret is that... I wish they showed more of Akihiko's development. In the manga, we saw more of his progress. But anyways, it's understandable with the amount of time they got.
Also, it must not be hard to guess why they had to make a movie with this arc. The first season was about Mafuyu and Uenoyama's wholesome relationship and their band journey. Overall, it was cute. This arc tho? This was deep. This was much more serious. I remember reading this arc right after finishing the anime, and I thought to myself "WOW. I have never thought Given could get better, but kudos to the manga." She truly outdid herself with this arc in the manga, because EVERYTHING was so realistic and well written. Everything. Every single detail. It was such a well thought out and executed arc. However, it wasn't cute like the previous one. This would be hard to watch for other viewers expecting to see Mafuyu and Uenoyama's relationship progress etc. This movie also had lots of more serious and more mature scenes, like some sexual scenes. So I'm not surprised the staff decided to make a movie. This is like a side project for Given "fans" who wanted more. And I'm sure there will be a second season. I felt it while watching the movie. They almost cut out all the Mafuyama scenes, which means only one thing, they are saving them for the second season! It's a clever move to be honest. They are going to be like "Hey! Here's a second season, let's continue from where we left off! Mafuyu and Uenoyama! Oh, there's also a movie but it's pretty short and it's not about Mafuyu and Uenoyama haha so it's not that necessary."
I would give this movie a 9 out of 10. It wasn't masterpiece, obviously, but they did their best with 59 minutes and I'm satisfied with the adaptation of this arc. It was good enough to understand Akihiko's relationships with Haruki and Ugetsu, their developments, and their backstories. However, if you feel like it wasn't enough for you, you should definitely read the manga.
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
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