beta
Sakuraba is the cliche of the closeted man with internalized (might not be so internalized) misogyny and homophobia, he goes from being scared to be seen as “abnormal” to showing his feelings and being vulnerable little by little. i’m not saying he wasn’t trash at first because that would be lying, he was a playboy with little to no regards for the women he dated (then again he’s a misogynistic), we can see that this come from how he was educated which isn’t a justification but an explanation. He sees Asami as unmanly (such a weird word) and is repulsed by his own attraction to him due to his internalized homophobia. at the end of the manga, not only does he tell asami he loves him but he also shows improvement in his behavior (crying in front of asami, learning how to cook which is often seen as a “woman hobby” etc…). the end is an amorce to a more honest future for them both.
now there’s some think I didn’t quite like and I think we’re unnecessary: the cheating plot wasn’t needed at all… I think it goes against Asami’s straight forward way of acting and doesn’t really match his character when you know he was aware of his chef having a wife. The ex is really disappointing as well and doesn’t deserve his wife… lastly I didn’t like the moment when Asami was telling Sakuraba about how he didn’t wanted to be treated like a woman (he said smth along the lines of “I won’t laugh or be happy if you pay the bill and hold the door for me like a woman would), honestly pretty weird if you ask me, women aren’t just simple being who needs things to be paid for and door to be help open for them to be happy, and reducing them to that is meh… wish the author would have developed deeper into the misogynistic aspect of the story.