Old Man X Young Fan Meets Old Art Style X Young Manga
About:
Warning:
This review will contain spoilers for the manga and anime series Dear My Killer Tune. While the manga may vary slightly from all other forms of media, it may have similar story elements and could be considered spoilers.
Content Warning: There may be references to age gap, social gap, mentions of dieting, body commentary, excessive drinking, occult, mentions of cheating, and mentions of breakups, as they appear in the manga.
Synopsis:
Harutaka has one obsession in life: The Lazy Rats. When he was very young, his dad had VHS tapes with their concerts on them, and he has been in love with them ever since. He’s part of their fan club and attends as many concerts as possible. When he’s not working as a hairdresser, he spends his off days organizing all his new merch. His life revolves around The Lazy Rats. While he loves the entire band, his favorite is the guitarist Reiichi Himemiya. The moment he got the chance to take a picture with Himemiya, he broke down in tears, creating one of his greatest treasures in the form of his lock screen.
But this moment wasn’t just memorable for Harutaka. As it turns out, Himemiya remembers it too. So, when Himemiya comes to Harutaka’s salon to get a haircut, rather than asking for the owner as he intended, he wants to get a haircut from Harutaka instead. Harutaka can barely speak; how could he do his hair? Somehow, someway, Harutaka gets through it and leaves Reiichi looking refreshed. Harutaka is perfectly happy with this new memory and is pleased with his work, but this one-time meeting with Reiichi leads to another, and another… and another.
Suddenly, he is spending most days with his favorite musician, and the feelings he once attributed to being a fan have evolved into something more.
Review:
When I first started reading this title, I was frightened. Seeing Harutaka for the first time, I was immediately transported back to my youth, staying up late to watch Toonami, specifically Cyborg 009. As much as I loved those days and Cyborg 009, I much prefer the more modern art styles in anime and manga today. This feels extremely antiquated. Even the band, The Lazy Rats, has the older grunge style (which also hails from my youth, *sobs in my 30s*) and some light glam mixed in. The band makes sense, having debuted in 1998, and maybe the art style is a loving callback to older manga styles of that time period, which I can appreciate. I’m just not that big of a fan of it. I am being a bit hyperbolic here, as I wouldn’t say this is identical to 90s manga, but it definitely calls back to it, which I could take or leave.
Though, admittedly, Himemiya and his bandmates are hot as hell, old art style or not. But they do look like they are from completely different universes when compared to Harutaka. The main story has nearly zero physical affection, so it isn’t as bad there. However, the bonus stories are where we finally get some kisses, and it becomes a clash of art styles. Seeing Harutaka and Hime kiss made me cackle. It’s very uncomfortable looking, like seeing a character from Steven Universe kiss someone from King of the Hill – a horrific but intriguing clash of worlds. As funny as I find this, it does sap out all of the passion and chemistry there could be, which is unfortunate.
The story is also a bit tired. I love the whole fan meets his idol trope, but I hate when the conflict is centered around the fan feeling like he’s “not allowed” to monopolize the idol, in this case, Hime. This idea that a famous person belongs to the world and can’t be with someone in a romantic capacity is so dehumanizing. This is certainly partly because of the difference between the United States’ ideas of being a fan and the Japanese, which seems to hold celebrities in much higher regard – at least from my understanding. I’m certainly not a fan of that. On the other hand, Hime’s insecurities about this potential relationship make way more sense and are much more understandable. He worries that Harutaka is disappointed in him and that he might not live up to Harutaka’s expectations. This was a much more refreshing take on this trope, and I like that we got to see some insecurity from the idol side of the relationship, as it helps balance out the power imbalance between the two.
That’s not to say this doesn’t have bright moments. A lot of the interactions between Himemiya and Harutaka are very cute. One that I found especially precious was when Harutaka was staring at a necklace while they were shopping together. Himemiya bought it, assuming Harutaka wanted it, only for Harutaka to admit he was staring at it because he thought it would look good on Hime. So, Hime ends up wearing it for Harutaka. That is so fucking cute. Also, I love that after Hime admits that he is obsessive, controlling, and jealous, Harutaka falls in love with it. Most people would see Hime as a walking red flag, but even that is something that Harutaka loves about him. Is that a healthy mindset? No. Do I love it anyway? Fuck yes. It’s such a cute reaction, and I’m so here for it.
Results:
The art in this is a huge pass. I was very disappointed in the bonus episodes because of it, and the story, while cute, wasn’t strong enough to carry the old-fashioned and rough art. There are much better “famous person x fan” works out there. Now, if you are specifically looking for shounen-ai with this trope, this might be one of the few out there (at least that I’ve read thus far). But even then, I don’t think this is really worth it. I don’t think it’s worth the time or the money.
Have you read Dear My Killer Tune? If so, what do you think? Do you agree with my assessment? Do you not? Let me know, and comment below!