In My Beautiful Man, Hira develops a crush on his high school bully.

My Beautiful Man is a Japanese BL drama about a student who falls in love with his bully. The protagonist is a social outcast in his new high school and becomes a lackey for the popular kids. Despite his awful treatment, he develops a hopeless crush on one of his handsome classmates.

I'm not fond of the unlikeable characters or their abusive relationship in My Beautiful Man. The series features a volatile romance propelled by a twisted dynamic. Nonetheless, I like how the story deviates from the conventional BL drama, intriguing me with its dark and sinister undertones.

My Beautiful Man Summary

Title:

美しい彼

Series Info:

Japan (2021)

Length:

2 hours

Total Episodes:

6 episodes

Genre:

Romance

About:

My Beautiful Man is a dark & toxic BL drama.

Plot

Hira and Kiyoi are classmates in high school.

Hira is a socially awkward young man who has struggled to fit in since childhood. Due to his stuttering problem, he has little confidence in himself and can't make friends. Even his parents have pretty much given up on him. When Hira's family moves to a new neighbourhood, they leave him to live in a house all by himself.

Hira is anxious about transferring to a different school and meeting new people. He hopes to stay under the radar during his senior school year. On his first day of school, Hira makes a poor impression and stutters as he introduces himself to the class. When the other students begin to mock him, they are interrupted when Kiyoi enters the classroom, fashionably late. His arrival distracts everybody, and Hira feels grateful that the spotlight has shifted away from him.

Handsome and aloof, Kiyoi is one of the most popular students in his class. Hira is mesmerized by his classmate's physical attractiveness and develops an immediate crush. However, the feelings aren't mutual. Kiyoi thinks Hira is gross and creepy, insulting him directly to his face. In fact, his nickname for Hira is "stalker".

Kiyoi and his friends begin to bully Hira. They constantly order him around to do errands or let them copy his homework, like a lackey for their group. Although they treat him with little respect, Hira is simply grateful to spend more time with Kiyoi. Occasionally, Kiyoi shows warmth towards Hira, defending him from other bullies or surprising him with a kind gesture.

Kiyoi dreams of becoming famous. He joins a talent competition, but ends up coming in last place. His pitiful performance turns him into a laughing stock. Even his friends have begun ostracizing him, displeased with how he has accepted Hira into their social circle. In a terrible fall from grace, Kiyoi goes from being the most popular guy to an outcast in the school. The only person who stays by his side is Hira, wholeheartedly devoted to his idol.

My Beautiful Man Trailer

My Beautiful Man Cast

Characters

Hira

Riku Hagiwara (萩原利久)

Hira is portrayed by the Japanese actor Riku Hagiwara (萩原利久).

Hira is a socially awkward high school student with a stuttering problem. He is painfully shy, has little self-confidence, and finds it tough to make friends in school. Hira becomes a lackey for a group of popular bullies who take advantage of him. He develops an obsessive crush on his classmate Kiyoi, mesmerized by his physical beauty.

Riku Hagiwara

Riku Hagiwara (萩原利久) is a Japanese actor. He is born on February 28, 1999.

Riku Hagiwara (萩原利久) is a Japanese actor. He is born on February 28, 1999. His first BL project is the 2021 drama, My Beautiful Man. He also stars in the 2023 sequel My Beautiful Man 2 and the follow-up film My Beautiful Man: Eternal.

Kiyoi

Yagi Yusei (八木勇征)

Kiyoi is portrayed by the Japanese actor Yagi Yusei (八木勇征).

Kiyoi is Hira's handsome and popular classmate in high school. He is part of the cool kids' group, who bullies Hira for being a social outcast. Kiyoi comes from a divorced family and feels alienated at home. He aspires to be famous and has signed up for a talent competition.

Yusei Yagi

Yusei Yagi (八木勇征) is a Japanese actor. He is born on May 6, 1997.

Yusei Yagi (八木勇征) is a Japanese actor. He is born on May 6, 1997. His first BL project is the 2021 series, My Beautiful Man. He also stars in the 2023 follow-up My Beautiful Man 2 and the movie sequel My Beautiful Man: Eternal.

Koyama

Akira Takano (高野洸)

Koyama is portrayed by the Japanese actor Akira Takano (高野洸).

Koyama is Hira's friend that he meets in their university's photography club. The bubbly and kind-hearted Koyama helps bring Hira out of his shell. He is gay and has an unspoken crush on his friend. Koyama has a close relationship with his brother, who works as a theatre director.

Akira Takano

Akira Takano is a Japanese actor. He is born on July 22, 1997.

Akira Takano is a Japanese actor. He is born on July 22, 1997. His first BL project is the 2021 drama, My Beautiful Man. He also appears in the sequels My Beautiful Man 2 (2023) and My Beautiful Man: Eternal (2023).

Supporting Cast

Shirota is portrayed by the Japanese actor Yuto Tsubone (坪根悠仁).

Shirota

Yuto Tsubone (坪根悠仁)

Kurata is portrayed by the Japanese actress Shuri Nakamura (中村守里).

Kurata

Shuri Nakamura (中村守里)

Miki is portrayed by the Japanese actor Kento Sakurai (櫻井健人).

Miki

Kento Sakurai (櫻井健人)

Momo is portrayed by the Japanese actress Momoka (桃果).

Momo

Momoka (桃果)

Koyama's brother is portrayed by the Japanese actor Wataru Kuriyama (栗山航).

Koyama's brother

Wataru Kuriyama (栗山航)

Iruma is portrayed by the Japanese actor Toshiyuki Someya (染谷俊之).

Iruma

Toshiyuki Someya (染谷俊之)

Cast Highlights

  • Miki's actor (Kento Sakurai) appeared in the 2022 Japanese high school BL drama I Just Want to See You. He portrayed the main character's friend and classmate.

My Beautiful Man OST

My Beautiful Man Review

Review

Drama Review Score: 7.4

B-
Hira kisses Kiyoi's hand when they're alone in the classroom.

My Beautiful Man deviates from the typical BL drama. Notably, it isn't afraid to make the main characters appear flawed and unlikeable. The protagonist suffers from severe anxiety, and it's uncomfortable to watch him struggle in social situations. His love interest is a self-absorbed school bully, whose enormous ego outweighs his limited compassion. Other BL series want to portray their leads sympathetically, whereas My Beautiful Man shines a spotlight on their deficiencies.

Surprisingly, I like that My Beautiful Man doesn't give us a sugarcoated story with wholesome characters or idealistic scenarios. The sinister narrative disturbs me in some places, but it's also intriguing and thought-provoking. While Hira and Kiyoi behave frustratingly, I understand them enough to accept their imperfections. This drama takes place introspectively, giving us many insights into their thoughts and emotions. The decent storytelling turns My Beautiful Man into a riveting character study, rich with nuance and moral ambiguity.

I can tolerate the flawed protagonists, but that's as far as my appreciation goes. Hira and Kiyoi don't appeal to me as a couple. They have a problematic relationship, which consists of physically violent and emotionally abusive exchanges. Kiyoi exploits Hira in high school, and his few instances of kindness can't make up for the long streak of cruelty. He also looks down on Hira, constantly insulting and belittling him. I find it tough to endorse a romance where calling someone "disgusting" and "stalker" are supposedly terms of endearment.

Hira's self-esteem is so low that he takes the abuse and never stands up for himself. He has a warped view of Kiyoi, lusting after his high school bully in an unhealthy way. Later, Hira meets his kind-hearted university friend Koyama, who shows him respect and support. Despite being presented with a more sensible love interest, Hira remains fixated on his obsessive crush from the past. "I don't understand why you like him," Koyama comments about Kiyoi in one scene, echoing my thoughts exactly. Hira's inexplicable devotion to Kiyoi perplexes me.

With that said, the romance isn't entirely negative. Like many aspects of My Beautiful Man, the relationship is complex with layered dimensions. Several memorable encounters between Hira and Kiyoi offer a tiny morsel of sweetness to soothe their bitter moments. There are times when their scenes sway my heart and they almost come across as a picturesque couple. It helps that the credible acting, intimate encounters, and pleasant production values elevate this love story. My Beautiful Man wins points for being polished and presentable.

Nonetheless, I don't think Hira and Kiyoi are compatible together. Their pairing is missing the warmth and tenderness that makes me giddy about BL. There're too many red flags that scream NO for me, from the verbal abuse to the personality clashes. Even the ending leaves me unenthusiastic and unconvinced by their volatile dynamic. My Beautiful Man tries persuading me this dysfunctional couple deserves one another. Yet, I think they're better off staying the hell away from each other. I'm sorry, but I can't see the beauty of this ugly and toxic romance.

Summary

Intriguing story

Although the narrative is uncomfortable at times, My Beautiful Man is an intriguing and thought-provoking series. The main characters are portrayed with lots of insightful introspection.

Problematic romance

Hira and Kiyoi have an unhealthy and dysfunctional relationship. I cannot endorse the physical and psychological abuse that Kiyoi inflicts upon Hira.

Good acting

The actors put in convincing work in My Beautiful Man. Their performances are nuanced and natural, elevating the quality of the series. I love the enthusiasm Koyama's actor brings to his role.

Happy ending

My Beautiful Man's happy ending feels contrived. I don't believe the characters have redeemed themselves enough to reach this decisive point in their relationship.

Solid production

The production values in My Beautiful Man are solid. A few scenes stand out with their beautiful ambiance, particularly the fireworks scene at the end of Episode 2.

74%

Even though the plot is strangely engrossing, My Beautiful Man has a questionable BL romance. I don't feel emotionally attached to this couple or their love story.

My Beautiful Man Episodes

Episode Guide

Hira and Koyama are in the photography club.

My Beautiful Man has a total of 6 episodes. Each episode is around 24 minutes long. It is a short BL drama, and you can finish the entire series in under 2 hours. My Beautiful Man began on November 18, 2021 and ended its last episode on December 23, 2021.

My Beautiful Man has two sequels. The second season, My Beautiful Man 2, consists of four episodes. Season 2 started on February 8, 2023 and ended on March 1, 2023. In addition, My Beautiful Man: Eternal is a film sequel that released on April 7, 2023.

Episode 1
Episode 2
Episode 3
Episode 4
Episode 5
Episode 6

Sequel

Season 2

My Beautiful Man has a 2023 sequel, My Beautiful Man 2.

My Beautiful Man released a sequel called My Beautiful Man 2. The second season continues after the following story. The four-episode drama started on February 8, 2023 and ended on March 1, 2023. In addition, a movie sequel called My Beautiful Man: Eternal was released in April 2023. You should watch My Beautiful Man before starting the second season.

This sequel explores Hira and Kiyoi's relationship further. It takes place in Hira's final year of university, but he feels lost about his employment prospects. Meanwhile, Kiyoi's acting career has been taking off. He's becoming an up-and-coming celebrity. However, his newfound fame makes both protagonists realize they have different ambitions and lifestyles. Overall, I enjoy Season 2 more than the original. My Beautiful Man 2 focuses less on the toxic romance. Instead, the protagonists work together to resolve their incompatibility issues.

Movie

My Beautiful Man: Eternal is the movie sequel for My Beautiful Man 2.

My Beautiful Man: Eternal is a Japanese movie that released on April 7, 2023. It is the third installment in the My Beautiful Man franchise. The film sequel continues the love story with the same characters. The events take place immediately after Season 2. You should watch the first two seasons of the televised drama before starting the movie.

The My Beautiful Man: Eternal movie is excellent. It conveys many meaningful themes and insightful character arcs in under two hours. The film also includes romantic encounters, including a steamy scene in the bathtub. Most of all, everything looks aesthetically striking. The My Beautiful Man team adds an elegant flair to the visuals as they take the story to cinema screens. I enjoyed the movie, which improved my overall opinion of the franchise.

My Beautiful Man Information

Director

Mai Sakai (酒井麻衣) is a Japanese director. Her first BL project is the 2021 drama, My Beautiful Man. She also directed its sequels My Beautiful Man 2 (2023) and My Beautiful Man: Eternal (2023).

  1. I think my biggest problem with the series is how short it is. I honestly think a few more episodes could have made the relationship a lot better. There are points where I see Hira and Kiyoi together and think "I can see this relationship working out." but that would need time where both characters work through there problems and develop steadily.

    At the end of the series Hira and Kiyoi just kind of…get together. Like Hira treated Kiyoi like a God and himself like a slave and Kiyoi just says one time "I wanna be a normal person." and suddenly Hira is like okay about a relationship and Kiyoi is totally reformed from his wierd asshole personality. The series ends before the two really address any of their problems. I wanted more at the end not because I really liked the couple but because I was really dissapointed with how it ended and I could see a really good, interesting and complex relationship between the two whether platonic, romantic or none.

    Also yeah the whole "creepy", "Stalker" talk was really jarring. I get what they were trying to do but the words are to mean spirited to be seen as like romantic.

  2. Ohhh thank you so much for validating my views…I was receiving quite the hatred on MDL for saying Hira's character was unlikable and I started thinking maybe I was wrong as I seem to be the only one thinking this way but your in depth analysis just proved to me that I was not the only one who thought this way…Thank you so much …

    I really did not like Hira's character…All his vulnerabilities aside, he was someone who just lacked a sense of self and was obsessively in love with someone who though liked him back but never showed it to him and according to Hira was unattainable and despite that he full on went stalker mode on this person leaving all shreds of his self respect aside and in the process completely ignored the one person who respected and liked him back !!!!!

  3. I did love it very much. It was certainly not an example of what a relationship should be, but as a piece of thought provoking filmmaking I thought it was pretty unparalleled for this short form style. Episode 5 I see you especially don’t care for but finding out we have been in an unreliable narrator situation makes soooo much sense and adds a really fascinating layer.

    Do I think they will last? Well, I don’t know. I have known weirder lasting couples. I ended up really loving them and I do wonder if the lens they finally gained from being honest with each other made their time of friendship (post tomato juice pre college) more valuable in terms of how well they knew each other.

  4. I'm surprised by your rating of this hot garbage. While I do think there is a lot of potential for this series, the ending just ruined everything. These two characters are not only toxic by themselves, but combined they bring out the worst from each other and amplify their self destructive behaviour. On one side you have Hira, a socially mal adjusted odd ball of anxiety, that naturally gets targeted by the narcissistic Kiyoi. There was simply not enough time to unpack all of the emotional damage of the two leads. Hira does not love Kiyoi, he's obsessed, while Kiyoi is not a love interest, he's a bully. Excuse me, but after all the emotional and physical abuse, the romance component of this drama deserves a flat F and the ending that tries to gaslight you into believing in this toxic relationship is also an F. I can appreciate this series as a psychological thriller, but as a romance, F.

  5. I really struggled to watch this show. I felt second hand humiliation and everything that was going on really disgusted me. My only sunshine of hope, was poor Koyama. Still I can't help but appreciate the series for what it is. It shows a very problematic and toxic relationship and it does it very well. I even liked the end, disturbing as it was. It's well written in that perspective and your score is fair.

  6. I was just now thinking about "My Beautiful Man".

    This past week I watched all of the first series of (6) videos… a second time, in part to refresh my memory in preparation for my FIRST-TIME viewing of the [Surprise-To-ME!!!] the SECOND SEASON. I hadn't even been aware they had continued the series, until stumbling upon it, somewhere, somehow! They had called the last episode of Season 1 the "Final Episode", and I took that quite literally.

    The PACE of the story development never languishes, there's never a wasted moment, never a throw-away scene, NOT EVEN A SECOND of flawed story making nor production, which makes it a JOY to watch and enjoy, even a second or third time of viewing.

    I actually watched the final episode of season 1 TWICE in the past couple of days, since the story is just so astoundingly deep, the acting so very nuanced, to perfection, the last scene in the school somewhat like two Black Hole COLLIDING… and a the heart-warming ending, showing two BEAUTIFUL boys… in their sleep embrace.

    The issues of this series, of these two lads, are that they are BOTH DEEPLY FLAWED & DAMAGED SOULS, both trapped by so many personality disabilities, that it really seems totally impossible that they will ever be able to have a true love relationship.

    Surprise is… that true love and devotion, of each other, upon the other, manage to thread the impossible needle to make these two souls be able to magically merge into one deep loving relationship, despite their mutual pain and many personality issues.

    Love [SOMETIMES!!!] finds a way, as the saying goes, and this story is its embodiment.

    Perhaps one needs to also share (in real life) some of these types of personality defects and deficiencies, to be able to relate to these troubled main characters, and make this an enjoyable series to watch. I myself am mildly autistic, certainly full of flaws and defects, and it took me 8 boyfriends (two of 7 years duration!) to navigate through to magically being able to sync up with my Thai boyfriend (who had and has his own issues, to be sure!), for these past 16 years, 5 months of our Long Term Relationship.

    Today's the day I will try to embark upon Season 2!!!

    Bring on the movie!!!

    My Beautiful Man… quite possibly the best BL series EVER!!!

     

  7. I really like all your reviews but this one, nah, coz the vibe I got from this series is like no other. Hira did have a right to this k that coz, oh my, kiyoi is so handsome and him liking a social misfit like Hira is out of the ordinary, this series requires more than you have given it. Also, kiyoi is afraid of revealing his feelings because of the status he has. Everyone is swooning over him but instead he only sees one person who happens to be socially awkward… Oh my, seriously this story is incredible. Even from kiyoi giving his whole being to Hira… And, I think it's not that violent. What kiyoi wants is Hira to step and get out of "idol" space he built. So, he can love him like an ordinary man… This story is epic… I love your reviews honestly but you need more lens…

  8. Such a bullshit review is this. You have no understanding of psyche, psychological issues, one sided narratives and kinks. PPL donot believe this at all. Just stick till ep 3 of S1 and you will understand how beautiful the series is.

  9. I think it is underrated heavily.

    You can’t take "disgusting" and "stalker" literally. When Kiyoi first noticed Hira’s obsession toward him, he called Hira stalker and disgusting as a genuine expression how he felt, but after the interaction between them, the words have more subtle meanings for Kiyoi. When they met again after their graduation, Kiyoi called Hira stalker which is a kind reminder of their life back to high school. At the end of the last episode, you can clearly see the beautiful sweetness in Kiyoi’s face when he calls Hira disgusting.

    The bully Hira got from his other classmates didn’t really bother Hira much. It is Kiyoi, the only person matters to him. Hira was happy to serve Kiyoi, who was also the only person standing out for him and respected him in a way. Hira treats Kiyoi as his king, so he has never dare to imagine this king can like him one day. So he hasn’t registered the messages Kiyoi sent to him through the impulsive kiss and the question “do you like me or him”?

    In a way, Hira’s obsession isn’t health, but he has the courage to tell Kiyoi his feeling even at very early stage. That is really incredible. His obsession hasn’t caused any issues for Kiyoi, on the contrary, Kiyoi feels more secured with it as he gradually realises Hira likes him unconditionally. Just like what their school teacher said after the school tomato juice insult, Hira saved Kiyoi.

    I like this drama a lot. Everyone has a longing towards something or someone. Hira is attracted by Kiyoi. He can just quietly follow around when Kiyoi is surrounded by his followers, he can also beat anyone who insults Kiyoi.

    There are a lot of other good points, but the only part I don’t like is at the end the kiss scene on the cupboard and the brief nudity scene. It is too abrupt.

  10. I partially share the same sentiment with the review. I think I'm more tolerant of the humiliation. Also, we must understand that the translation might not accurately depict the context of the original language and its culture.

    Towards the end of the series, I keep looking at them as two mentally unstable people who seem to fall in love with each other lmao. One has a sociopathic tendency, and one has family abandonment and narcissistic issues.

    Koyama koyama koyama. Such a waste! I think his character is cuter than Kyoi, to be honest, but like they say, love is blind, lol.

    I did enjoy the series because the actors looked cute <3. Is it my cup of tea? No. It's somewhat toxic and immature for me. I like the life: love on the line most. That one left me feeling empty for days. This one is decent enough for me to get through the series, but it's not relatable personally. However, some people will like this kind of dynamic.

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