Does the Flower Blossom? (Japanese: 花は咲くか, Hepburn: Hana wa Saku ka) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Shoko Hidaka. It was serialized in the monthly manga magazine Rutile from August 2006 to January 2015. It was adapted into a live-action film that was released on February 24, 2018.
| Does the Flower Blossom? | |
 Cover of the Japanese version of vol. 1, released on December 24, 2009 | |
| 花は咲くか (Hana wa Saku ka) | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Boys' love[1] |
| Manga | |
| Written by | Shoko Hidaka |
| Published by | Gentosha |
| English publisher | |
| Imprint | Birz Comics Rutile Collection |
| Magazine | Rutile |
| Demographic | Josei |
| Original run | August 2006 – January 2015 |
| Volumes | 5 |
| Live-action film | |
| Directed by | Kaori Tanimoto |
| Produced by |
|
| Written by | Natsuko Takahashi |
| Studio | Toei Studios |
| Released | February 24, 2018 |
| Runtime | 88 minutes |
Characters
edit- Youichi Minagawa (水川 蓉一, Minagawa Yōichi)
- Voiced by: Takashi Kondo (audio drama); played by: Tsurugi Watanabe (film)[1]
- Youichi is a 19-year-old college student.[1]
- Kazuaki Sakurai (桜井 和明, Sakurai Kazuaki)
- Voiced by: Toshiyuki Morikawa (audio drama); played by: Kousei Amano (film)[2]
- Sakurai is a 38-year-old salaryman who Youichi is attracted to.
- Takeo Iwasaki (岩崎 竹生, Iwazaki Takeo)
- Voiced by: Satoshi Hino (audio drama); played by: Atomu Mizuishi (film)[3]
- Takeo is Youichi's cousin and lives with him.[3]
- Shouta Minagawa (水川 菖太, Minagawa Shōta)
- Voiced by: Nobuhiko Okamoto (audio drama); played by: Yuito Obara (film)[3]
- Shouta is Youichi's cousin and lives with him.[3]
- Kouki Fujimoto (藤本 浩輝, Fujimoto Kōki)
- Voiced by: Tatsuhisa Suzuki (audio drama); played by: Akihisa Shiono (film)[3]
- Kouki is Youichi's friend from college who is also interested in him.[3]
- Kippei Yoshitomi (吉富 桔平, Yoshitomi Kippei)
- Voiced by: Ryō Sugisaki (audio drama); played by: Yasukaze Motomiya (film)[3]
- Kippei is the landlord of Youichi's home.[3]
Media
editManga
editDoes the Flower Blossom? is written and illustrated by Shoko Hidaka. It is serialized in the monthly boys' love manga magazine Rutile from the August 2006 issue to the January 2015 issue. The chapters were later released in five bound volumes by Gentosha under the Birz Comics Rutile Collection imprint.
In 2012, Digital Manga Publishing announced at Yaoi-Con that they had licensed the first three volumes in English for North American distribution. The series was published under their Juné imprint.[4] Volume 1 was originally scheduled to be released in July 2013, but it was delayed until December 2013,[5] until finally releasing in 2014.
| No. | Original release date | Original ISBN | English release date | English ISBN |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | December 24, 2009 | 978-4-3448-1827-9 | October 29, 2014[6] | 978-1-5697-0317-5 |
| 2 | September 24, 2010 | 978-4-3448-2041-8 | February 25, 2015[7] | 978-1-6460-9030-3 |
| 3 | December 24, 2011 | 978-4-3448-2380-8 | May 24, 2016[8] | 978-1-5697-0318-2 |
| 4 | April 24, 2014 | 978-4-3448-2801-8 | — | — |
| 5 | March 31, 2015 | 978-4-3448-3385-2 (regular edition) ISBN 978-4-344-83386-9 (limited edition) | — | — |
Film
editA live-action film adaptation produced by Toei Studios was announced in September 2017, starring Tsurugi Watanabe in his debut film role as Youichi Minagawa.[1][9] Kousei Amano was later cast as Kazuaki Sakurai.[2] Additional cast members include Akihisa Shiono, Yuito Obara, Atomu Mizuishi, and Yasukaze Motomiya.[3][10] The film is directed by Kaori Tanimoto,[1] with the script written by Natsuko Takahashi.[2] It was released in theaters in Japan on February 24, 2018.[2] The film's theme song is "Futari Negai Boshi" by Mika Tsunaki,[10] which was released as a single on February 14, 2018.[11] Postcards exclusively illustrated by Shoko Hidaka were distributed during the theatrical run, with the first week distributing a postcard of Youichi and the second week distributing a postcard of Sakurai.[12]
Reception
editIn 2018, Does the Flower Blossom? was selected by visitors of the website Nijimen as one of the best boys' love manga for newcomers to the genre.[13]
References
edit- ^ a b c d e Ressler, Karen (22 September 2017). "Does The Flower Blossom? Boys-Love Manga Gets Live-Action Film". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on 5 December 2020. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
- ^ a b c d Pineda, Rafael Antonio (18 October 2017). "Live-Action Boys-Love Film Does The Flower Blossom? Casts Kōsei Amano". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on 19 August 2024. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Pineda, Rafael Antonio (20 November 2017). "Live-Action Boys-Love Film Does The Flower Blossom? Reveals More Cast, New Visual". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on 28 November 2020. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
- ^ Loo, Egan (13 October 2012). "Digital Manga, Inc. Adds Brave10 & New Titles, Offers Manga Downloads". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on 11 November 2020. Retrieved 10 December 2020.
- ^ Hodgkins, Crystalyn (14 November 2012). "DMI Puts All Print Releases on Hiatus in January-June 2013". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on 19 August 2024. Retrieved 10 December 2020.
- ^ Ressler, Karen (28 October 2014). "North American Anime, Manga Releases, October 26-November 1". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on 26 January 2021. Retrieved 10 December 2020.
- ^ Ressler, Karen (24 February 2015). "North American Anime, Manga Releases, February 22–28". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on 3 May 2019. Retrieved 10 December 2020.
- ^ Ressler, Karen (24 May 2016). "North American Anime, Manga Releases, May 22–28". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on 8 November 2020. Retrieved 10 December 2020.
- ^ "東映が助監督を募集！契約期間3年、年俸300万円". Natalie (in Japanese). 18 December 2017. Archived from the original on 19 August 2024. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
- ^ a b "渡邉剣と天野浩成共演のBL映画ポスター公開、追加キャストに塩野瑛久や水石亜飛夢ら". Natalie (in Japanese). 21 November 2017. Archived from the original on 29 December 2020. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
- ^ "ふたり願い星". Oricon (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 23 November 2023. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
- ^ "「花は咲くか」渡邉剣と天野浩成のキス＆抱擁シーン到着「正解のキスシーンができた」". Natalie (in Japanese). 19 February 2018. Archived from the original on 22 October 2020. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
- ^ Loveridge, Lynzee (10 August 2018). "Readers Pick the Best Boys-Love Manga for Beginners". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on 5 May 2022. Retrieved 5 May 2022.
External links
edit- Official website
- Does the Flower Blossom? (manga) at Anime News Network's encyclopedia
- Does the Flower Blossom? at IMDb
