Twilight Out of Focus

Episode 6

There's something fundamentally different about Jin and Ichikawa's romance than Mao and Hisashi's. Part of that comes down to the subgenre (or trope, if you prefer) that the story is working with; as I said last week, we're currently in an enemies-to-lovers tale rather than the initial friends-to-lovers. But I think that the more salient point is that we're starting at the beginning with Jin and Ichikawa. Mao and Hisashi were already moving in a romantic direction when we met them, although they were unaware of the fact. They'd been roommates for a year when the story opened, and their closeness was established. But Jin and Ichikawa, as far as we can tell, barely interacted with each other before their arc. Yes, they talked as members of the same club leading their respective factions, but that was surface-level interaction. They didn't talk until they became roommates, and we witnessed that in real-time.

It also changes the game significantly in that neither boy seems keen on real-world romance. Yes, Jin had dated around (Ichikawa says this week that he has a reputation as a playboy, although we know that's not entirely deserved), and Ichikawa reads romance fiction, but the former feels like it was performative while the latter says nothing more about Ichikawa's real-life tastes than that he enjoys romantic stories - reading romance no more means that you want one for yourself than reading mystery means you want to commit murder. Their relationship, even in the formative stages, comes as a surprise to both of them. Hell, their friendship comes as a shock, especially to Jin, who never saw Ichikawa in his at-home mode. As far as he knew, the other boy was always tense with a hair-trigger temper. Finding himself attracted to his new roommate comes out of nowhere for Jin, and even Ichikawa seems surprised that his reading tastes are translating into an increased awareness of Jin.

This episode does a good job of showing them feeling the situation out. Ichikawa struggles to understand why Jin is so – to his mind – lackadaisical in his direction. He can't wrap his head around why Jin would allow a major actor to change roles for an insignificant reason, and he immediately points out that the whole "I have exams" excuse doesn't hold up. The Jin he knows, or at least assumes he knows, should be able to see through Tobe's words, and there's an implication that if Jin doesn't take his film seriously, it devalues the competition. Ichikawa is serious, and he wants Jin to be just as invested in their contest…and maybe he also doesn't like seeing the older boy be taken advantage of. In his mind, it's not just about differing directorial styles, it's about how much you care about your project.

And Ichikawa wants Jin to care. He can't quite admit that he also wants Jin to care about him, and he's stunned by the other boy's confession. Is it fair to say that Jin reading lines from a BL manga serves as Ichikawa's sexual awakening? I'm not sure, but he's thinking about Jin in ways he wasn't expecting, and the reading seems to solidify that. It's more than him simply wanting to share books he likes because we've seen him do that during Mao and Hisashi's story. The way he wants Jin to read them feels more intense, or at least intense in a different frequency. Ichikawa's not someone who can be vulnerable easily, and Jin seems to understand.

It makes sense that he does because it seems like he's known Ichikawa for a long time. He mentioned directing has been Ichikawa's dream since he was little, and the photo Ichikawa finds at the end of the episode shows us that they encountered each other years ago. Will that factor into their burgeoning relationship? The bigger question is probably whether they can overcome their insecurities to allow things to bloom.

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Twilight Out of Focus is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.