A hero isn’t always perfect

Hitorijime My Hero Introduction and Story (Spoilers)

Hitorijime My Hero starts with Setagawa Masahiro not believing in heroes anymore. But his mindset changes when he meets Ooshiba Kousuke, who influenced him to change for the better. Fast forward to the future, Masahiro’s best friend, Ooshiba Kensuke, is panicking at the unexpected reunion with his childhood friend, Hasekura Asaya. Kensuke finds the courage to confront Hasekura, which turns out well. However, it didn’t take long for Hasekura to confess his love for Kensuke, making the black-haired boy shocked and confused. After some thinking, Kensuke realizes that he too is in love with Hasekura. The two finally get together and fade into the background of Masahiro and Kousuke’s story.

Masahiro and Kousuke’s story starts with Kousuke kissing Masahiro and rejecting the boy even though Masahiro hasn’t said anything yet. Because of this incident, Masahiro begins to distance himself with Kousuke and finds himself in a tight situation when his former gang members find him. For the next few days, he goes back to being their errand boy in order to protect Kousuke from harm. Kousuke, being suspicious of what is happening, goes to Masahiro’s place to talk to him. After clearing out the misunderstanding between them, Kousuke goes out to fight the delinquents that follow Masahiro. After making it clear to his enemies that Masahiro will not go back to them, the gang members decide to leave in defeat. After this incident, the couple goes back to Masahiro’s place to reconfirm their mutual feelings.

The following episodes are about their lovey-dovey life and Kensuke and Masahiro’s group of friends learning the truth about Masahiro’s relationship with Kousuke. All seem to accept their relationship, except for Shige. This creates a strain in their close relationship. Not wanting to waste their precious friendship, Masahiro decides to confront Shige and tries to make him understand his relationship with Kousuke. To answer his friend's honest feelings on the matter, Shige tells Masahiro the truth about why he disapproves of Kousuke for Masahiro. With everything out in the open, Shige apologizes to his friends and finds himself eating with Kousuke, who is also being punished by his lover.

Although everything seems to be alright, Masahiro starts to get worried about his relationship with Kousuke. He is afraid that once their relationship will get found out, which could negatively affect Kousuke's chances of getting his dream job. Meanwhile, Kousuke does not care about the consequences and only wants Masahiro to be by his side. With this, the two distance themselves from each other to the point of “breaking up”. On the day they promised to watch the meteors fall, they meet up high in the mountains to sort out their feelings with each other. They finally get back together with them exchanging rings.

What We Liked About Hitorijime My Hero

Unlike other BL shows, Hitorijime My Hero doesn’t rely on fan service and focuses on the growth of its characters. One of the best things that we liked about Hitorijime My Hero is the dynamic relationship between Kousuke and Masahiro. Throughout the whole show, each of them faces the hardships of being in a homosexual relationship. It also doesn’t help that they are teacher and student, both suffering because of the age gap.

In a relationship, there is no one who is above the other, and Masahiro has to learn that the hard way. Simply put, someone as amazing and cool as Kousuke, whom Masahiro looks up to like a hero, is also someone imperfect and very human. He sees that even though Kousuke is a capable adult, he makes mistakes like anyone in the world.

Meanwhile, Kousuke fails to understand that Masahiro also has his own insecurities to face. Because of his upfront behavior, Masahiro gets confused most of the time. He also fails to fully understand his partner’s fear, which causes Masahiro to worry a lot. Although it took a lot of episodes to clear their misunderstandings, it is really touching to see that Kousuke and Masahiro are able to finally see each other on equal terms.

Discussion Time

If you want something that is refreshing from the BL genre, then Hitorijime My Hero is a good show to watch. The plot isn’t too heavy, but it focuses on Kousuke and Masahiro’s relationship and struggles, which is done beautifully. Some scenes and situations may be relatable to some viewers and the little touch of realistic approach towards homosexual relationships is something to see. Hitorijime My Hero also has its fluff and funny moments to balance out some of the drama.

While the anime is indeed an enjoyable show to watch, it has problems when it comes to pacing and animation. Viewers may find the story too fast and confusing in the first couple of episodes while in the middle part of the show, it moves agonizingly slow. The Animation is also one thing that may irk some of the viewers. The character designs are gorgeous and stay true to the original material, but there are some parts in the show where the characters look derpy and are animated awkwardly, making their movements look unnatural.

1. Setagawa Masahiro

Masahiro is definitely one of the reasons why you should watch the show. Out of all the characters in the anime, he is the most sensible one. It’s such an amazing contrast, that even though he has been living in such an unhealthy environment, he is still thoughtful and responsible. I mean who could not love this delinquent with a big heart? Adding to that, he is a good friend. He is very supportive of Kensuke and even cooks delicious food to his group of friends and his lover. Although Masahiro may appear weak and helpless at times, he is actually tough and capable. Overall, he is mature and not your typical uke character. He doesn’t look that handsome, but still looks manly and cute at the same time. We’re sure that you will love Masahiro since he is such an intriguing and interesting character to watch.

2. The Romance

There are two couples that are featured in the anime. The first couple is Hasekura and Kensuke. Although their story is told only at the beginning, it seems that as the show progresses, the two of them get sweeter and more adorable. If you love a forceful seme and a silly innocent uke pairing, then you will surely love their episodes.

The second couple is Kousuke and Masahiro, who are the highlight of the show. Fans love this couple since everything about their relationship is mutual and very healthy, which is seldom seen in this type of genre. Nothing will happen unless Kousuke and Masahiro agree to it together. Just like any other couple, they have their ups and downs, but the way they solve their problems is something good to see. Though, admittedly, it does take time for them to talk it out. Kousuke and Masahiro’s relationship is more complex than the first couple. Their romance is more striking and entertaining to viewers.

3. Likable Characters

Although there are some moments where a few characters tend to get annoying, generally, all of them are fun and charming. Hasekura and Kensuke are good supporting characters for our main ones. Meanwhile, Kensuke and Masahiro’s group of friends are enjoyable to watch since they are the ones who usually lighten up the show. Not only that, characters that are seldom seen are appealing in some way. After all, a few of these characters are sensible enough to give advice to our main stars. All of them have their own flaws, adding a little spice to the background characters.

1. Not for Everyone

Honestly, some viewers may find the show quite unsettling. Let’s start with the first couple... As seen in the anime, Hasekura is very forceful towards Kensuke. This may trouble some viewers because Kensuke is genuinely sweet and kind, and is truly remorseful for his actions towards Hasekura back in the day. Unfortunately, Hasekura is hellbent on making Kensuke his, even if it means pressuring him to chose from his ridiculous offer: to cut ties with him again or to sleep with him.

Now for the second couple, Kensuke and Masahiro. The two characters do suit each other in every possible way, however, they are teacher and student. Simply put, a relationship between a minor and an adult. It also doesn’t help that Kousuke will sometimes make some childish decisions, which confuses Masahiro from time to time.

2. Predictable

While the show is indeed refreshing, it doesn’t really offer something new. The actions of each character are quite predictable, especially so, if you are knowledgeable about BL clichés and tropes. As usual, communication is one of the problems in the anime which makes the show very emotional in a frustrating way. Characters will take a number of episodes before they open up to each other and clear the misunderstanding between them. Viewers will find other familiar clichés like the stereotypical characters (only some), melodramatic situations, and the infuriating intense cliffhangers.

Final Thoughts

There are only a few animated BL shows out there and Hitorijime My Hero is certainly recommended if you love character-centric anime. It depicts the problems in a homosexual relationship, more so, if the two concerning parties are involved in a compromising situation. With that said, the show also has its problems. There are some things that are not fully explored like Yamabe and Natsuo. Along with that, the ending is quite anticlimactic after all that intense drama.

So, have you watched Hitorijime My Hero? What do you think about the whole show? Write all your thoughts in the comment section below because we absolutely love hearing from you! Always stay tuned to Honey’s Anime! We hope to see you in the next article! Now signing off~

Writer

Author: Jopz "Yuuema"

I'm an anime and manga enthusiast who is also sinking deeper and deeper into the world of video games. I’m also a traveler by heart who goes out a lot in seek of adventures by studying/learning other histories and cultures of different places and people. Besides the above mentioned, my other interests include reading, writing, cooking/baking, listening to music, observing people, and imagining/appreciating all kinds of things. Oh, by the way, I don’t bite! :3

Previous Articles

Top 5 Anime by Jopz "Yuuema"