School Trip: Joined a Group I'm Not Close To – Series Review

Hioki is a second-year student at Kazamino High School. Due to his shy personality, he hasn't clicked with any of his classmates yet. To make matters worse, his best friend, Tsujitani, ended up in a different class. When the teacher announces a field trip just two months into the semester, Hioki is spiralling. The trip requires everyone to work in groups, which is a nightmare scenario for someone with social anxiety. For a loner like Hioki, he has no idea what to do next.

Hotta, one of the most outgoing classmates, suddenly asks Hioki if he wants to join his group. They knew each other from junior high school, though they didn't interact back then. Both of them were in different social circles. Hotta was a social butterfly who got along with everyone, while Hioki just kept to himself. Hioki never expected an invitation from Hotta, who belongs to the most popular clique in the whole school.

Hotta is part of this elite circle with Watarai, Morisaki, and Nakasato. These four guys are campus legends because of their good looks. Watarai is the one everyone follows on social media, mostly due to his handsome face and cool demeanour. Morisaki is also irresistible to girls who like mysterious guys. Nakasato is more on the bubbly side and loves to be cutesy, so he has a massive fanbase of his own. Hotta is technically the "least popular" of the group, but even he's undeniably charismatic and can command a room.

Hioki is super self-conscious about his new group members. He feels like a total outsider who has no business hanging out with the cool kids. He doesn't even have his own social media accounts! His first instinct is to just back out of the group, but the guys actually seem friendly enough. They just want to get to know him better. Even so, Hioki still feels totally intimidated around them. He notices some of the girls in class shooting him looks and whispering behind his back. Clearly, they don't think he belongs anywhere near the hottest guys in school.

Once the field trip begins, Hioki finds himself spending way more time with Watarai. Despite his reputation, Watarai turns out to be surprisingly down-to-earth. He's incredibly attentive, checking in to make sure Hioki feels included in the group's activities. When Hioki loses his contact lenses, Watarai is always hovering over him and making sure he's never left to wander off alone. Between Watarai's sweetness and the other friendly guys in the group, Hioki finally starts to relax. He pushes past his shyness and tries to hang out with his new friends.

School Trip: Joined a Group I'm Not Close To has gotten plenty of buzz. All the cool kids are watching this one. Do you have major FOMO? Wanna stay in the loop with the most popular BL dramas? If so, you should put this on your watchlist. One of the story's strengths is its simplicity, so you don't have to overthink anything. The episodes are just fun and cheerful, so you can easily breeze through the series. Then you can jump online, make some gifsets, and gush about the cute moments with your mutuals on social media.

One thing you need to know about Asian pop culture is the F4 phenomenon. Any time you put four hot guys together and make them friends, fans are gonna go wild. From Meteor Garden to Boys Over Flowers, everyone loves stories about friendships between attractive men. School Trip: Joined a Group I'm Not Close To has created the BL version of this winning formula. It includes everything that viewers love to see. Handsome men? Check. Cozy bromances? Check. Beautiful production? Oh yes, check! Most of all, it's packed with positive messages and empowering storylines that make you feel good while watching.

Hioki goes on a Cinderella journey. He starts out as a loner until the popular students befriend him. Usually, you'd expect a group of four handsome guys to be stuck-up or mean. Many stories love to make the cool kids the villains while celebrating the misfits. Yet, Watarai and his friends are surprisingly down-to-earth. You'll love the cute scenes where they go out of their way to make Hioki feel included. There's also zero toxic masculinity. No ego, no posturing. These fantasy men are sweet, sensitive, and so gentle that rainbow dust comes out of their asses when they fart!

Hioki's actor (Kodai Fujimoto) is gonna win hearts with his sweet smile and expressive face. He always looks so precious, making you wanna protect his innocence. His co-star (Hideyoshi Kan) is the master at telling a subtle story with his eyes, so I'm drawn to his sharp gazes and sullen looks. The rest of the guys are pure eye candy. Nakasato and Morisaki look like the frontrunners in an idol contest, while we're all a little hot for Hotta's buff actor. Also, a special shout-out goes to Tsujitani's performer (Kento Yamada), who's so bubbly that he becomes a scene stealer.

The romance seemed sweet at first. The couple is awkward in an adorable way, acting nervously around their crushes. Midway, I liked Watarai a lot less. In Episode 5, he misuses the "friend" label to invade Hioki's personal space. In Episode 6, he picks up Hioki and carries him without permission. Put him down! He can walk by himself! I hate how Watarai overcoddles his love interest, treating him like a Pomeranian dog. Watarai goes overboard with his possessiveness, like he wants to keep Hioki on a leash. Here, doggy doggy, don't stray away from your master!

I adored the field trip in those first four episodes, which have such a relaxing vibe. For the rest of the series, the plots feel like typical high school fluff. Cute, but almost too simple. Add in a few annoying moments with Watarai's jealousy, souring my opinion of the romance. The couple still has a sweet side, and I do like their finale scenes. It's a solid ending to a delightful BL drama. Some fans may have expected a higher review score, but I promise I'm not a hater! I have positive feelings about School Trip: Joined a Group I'm Not Close To. It's just not one of my faves.