BL Anime in 2021 - Mid-Year Review

Just when we thought it couldn’t get any worse than 2020, the next year starts and… nothing has changed! Not only do we still need to stay inside, but there’s little to no BL content for us fujoshis to enjoy. How unfair is that?!

However, since we’re used to this situation, we find creative ways to get over the lack of actual male x male scenes. You can bet we’re going to build ships out of thin air! What else are we supposed to do?

A Tough Six Months

It’s not like fujoshis need BL content every single day to stay alive, but it’s nice to have something to watch when you’re feeling down. With the current situation, it’s easy to feel disheartened and sad, and some boys loving each other unconditionally is perhaps what we need to lift our spirits. Starting 2021, fujoshis were supposed to get several anime adaptations of beloved BL classics, but all of them were postponed due to different circumstances.

Thankfully, we can always count on sports anime, a reliable source of cute boys striving to be the best out there while showing glimpses of what looks like attitudes that belong to a BL production. There’s always going to be at least one sports anime in every anime season, so fujoshis have a way to find some happiness even when there’s no fully BL anime. Don’t judge us! We just want to feel some joy.

SK∞

One of the most acclaimed anime from the Winter season was SK∞ (aka SK8 the Infinity), and it’s not a surprise that fujoshis went crazy when it came out. This anime follows Reiki, a high school student with an obsession: skateboarding. Much like any other protagonist in a sports anime, Reiki only has time for skateboards and everything that involves them: from putting them together or painting them, to fixing and selling them.

What makes SK8 the Infinity so appealing to fujoshis? Not only does it have a full male cast, but every new character that’s introduced is hotter than the previous one. While Reiki looks and acts like a child, he’s passionate about the things he likes, and that makes him interesting as a person. Langa, the mysterious and quiet transfer student, is half Japanese and half Canadian, talk about exotic! And don’t get us started with Kaoru, whose beauty has no rival. With all of these men, it’s hard not to let our minds run wild.

Let That Ship Sail!

Yes, we know that the fujoshi tendency to ship two male characters in any anime might be annoying for a lot of people, but they have no choice. When the animation studios don’t feed the hungry eyes of the viewers, they have to come up with different ways to fix that. It’s not their fault that boys in an all-male cast seem to get along nicely.

Plus, when there’s plenty of male characters, it’s easier to pair them together, with strange yet interesting duos being formed. Once again, we can see plenty of examples in sports anime, like 2.43: Seiin Koukou Danshi Volley-bu, an anime centered around volleyball. Not only does the animation flow, but so do the relationships between the characters. There’s competitiveness, rivalry, and friendship, three key elements when it comes to shipping. There are so many routes to choose from: long-term rivals with a secret crush, teammates whose friendship turns into something different, a heated competition that ends up in a more heated encounter after the game…

Skate-Leading☆Stars

SK8-the-Infinity-Wallpaper-2-1 BL Anime in 2021 - Mid-Year Review

An anime that perhaps went a bit unnoticed by regular anime watchers is Skate-Leading☆Stars, but it definitely wasn’t ignored by fujoshis. This anime tells the story of Kensei, a teenager who’s been figure skating ever since he can remember. And like it usually happens with anime like this, Kensei has a rival he wants to beat no matter what: the always calm Reo.

Skate-Leading☆Stars was a huge hit with fujoshis because it reminded them of Yuri!!! On Ice. Centered around figure skating, this anime has it all: handsome high schoolers, passion, drama, and a pretty dope soundtrack. When Reo decides to quit figure skating to pursue a career in skate-leading, Kensei knows it’s his chance to finally defeat him. But joining his school skate-leading team is not going to be easy for him. While Kensei tries his best to convince his senpais that he’s serious about the sport, we can enjoy our time shipping all of these cute boys. A soft-spoken boy like Tomoyuki with the always serious team captain Taiga? Or maybe you prefer a pairing between Akimitsu, a small yet nasty team member, with Shoutarou, the competitive team leader? Whatever it is that you like, you’ll definitely find it in this anime!


We've Been Scammed!

2021 was supposed to be a great year for fujoshis around the world! We were promised a lot of BL anime, yet we didn’t get to see any of them. We got to see some movies that came out during the second half of 2020 and, while it was good to be able to watch titles such as Yes ka No ka Hanbun ka and Umibe no Étranger, we still want what was promised to us.
Due to different issues, we’ve yet to get the most awaited film of all: Yuri!!! On Ice The Movie: Ice Adolescence. Another BL anime that has suffered a lot of rescheduling is the Ten Count OVA, originally scheduled for 2020. This whole pandemic has affected us in more than one way. But not everything is lost: during the spring season, we got an 8 episode adaptation of a very spicy BL manga, and needless to say, it’s hot as hell!

Kuro Gal ni Natta kara Shinyuu to shitemita

Just when we thought everything was lost, this anime came to save the first half of 2021. Shion and Rui are two best friends who enjoy picking up women everywhere they go. They make it a competition to see who manages to seduce more girls, with it always being a tie. After taking some strange drug, Shion wakes up and notices something strange: he has boobs! After closer inspection, he realized he now is a woman.

When Rui finds him, he doesn’t think it twice and has sex with his best friend before learning that it’s Shion. Knowing that he slept with his best friend doesn’t affect Rui, if anything, it just makes him want to do it again. With the excuse of helping him go back to his male form, Rui forces Shion to sleep with him on various occasions. This anime is so smutty that we can forget for a moment about all the things we were promised and are still waiting for.

Final Thoughts

The first half of 2021 was full of broken promises, halted releases, and little to no BL content. But hey! We still got plenty of other anime to watch, a lot of boys to build ships, and some BL films and OVAs to keep us entertained while we wait for new releases.

Will the second half of 2021 be nicer to fujoshis around the globe? Guess we’ll just have to wait and see.

SK8-the-Infinity-Wallpaper-2-1 BL Anime in 2021 - Mid-Year Review

Author: Yaz L.

Hey, there! I'm a soon-to-be marine biologist who just happens to love video games, dream pop music, and BL/yaoi stuff. When I was a kid, I lived in Colombia for 3 years and now I'm a sucker for hot chocolate with cheese. My favorite treat while watching anime!

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