DAKAICHI -I'm being harassed by the sexiest man of the year- Episode 12 Review: Mi Tesoro

Here is the penultimate episode of my Fall 2018 guilty pleasure and with it comes the conclusion to Paparazzi arc! We’ve been through all the ups and downs of Chunta and Takato’s relationship and this is by far the biggest test yet!

Plot

Takato is listless after his breakup from Junta, turning to his manager Sasaki for advice. Meanwhile, Junta has come up with a plan for dealing with their current situation.

Episode Highlights

Ain’t no sunshine when he’s gone: The episode opens with Takato bemoaning a bit of gloomy weather. Since his break up with Junta, it’s been pretty rainy, most likely a reflection of his less than sunny disposition.

Sasaki’s Family: In a surprising twist, Takato’s manager has a loving wife and an adorable daughter… I know, shocker, a male character in a BL anime that isn’t gay. Takato gets along well with Sasaki’s family, especially his young daughter Nana, who he dotes on. In fact, the whole scene is really sweet, giving us a look at a much softer Takato.

Couple’s rings: The ultimate milestone for any couple is the exchanging of rings and this week’s episode gives us that in the most satisfying way! After all the drama is put behind them, Takato gets them each a ring, symbolizing their relationship.

Themes and Trivia

Fake news: I’m borrowing one of Donald Trump’s favorite phrases this time around. Tobun’s report about Junta and Yurie’s illicit affair is deemed to be false after Junta reveals during a press conference that it was all a part of a publicity stunt.

‘Mi Tesoro’: Junta engraves Takato’s ring with the phrase ‘mi tesoro’ which means my treasure in Italian.

Comments

I am big enough to admit that this anime managed to get me to feel some genuine emotions this week. I know that the break up was just for show, but that doesn’t mean the series didn’t do a good job of setting everything up. So, when Junta and Takato finally get back together at the end of the episode it had the appropriate emotional weight.

Also, maybe it’s just me, but the music in this week’s episode kind of reminds me of the some of the background music from those old BL classics. Up until this episode I really didn’t pay much attention to the BGM, but for some reason all of the tracks did a really good job of setting the mood during the more dramatic moments.

And lets not forget… Arisu! I have to give props where props are due, the interaction between Arisu and Usaka is literally frame for frame manga accurate, and this isn’t the first time the anime has done this. DAKAICHI has been doing a really phenomenal job of staying faithful to the manga, both visually and content wise… so kudos on that.

Never gonna give you up…

Episode 12 was definitely a satisfying conclusion to the Paparazzi arc. Everything was tied up into a nice neat bow, JunTaka is back on track and there was just enough time to tease a brand new character. All in all, another fun episode.

I’ll be back next week with another DAKAICHI review, but in the meantime, be sure to check out MANGA.TOKYO’s other amazing Fall 2018 reviews!!

NEXT TIME: Hug 13: Fu-fu-fuuuun