My Love Mix-Up / Kieta Hatsukoi Review

As I start writing my My Love Mix-Up / Kieta Hatsukoi review, the first thing that comes to mind is that it’s a treat for every Johnny’s fangirl. For the first time ever, members from top Johnny’s and Associates groups are together for a Boys Love (BL) drama.

The My Love Mix-Up / Kieta Hatsukoi drama was announced in August 2021, and two of the most looked-after boy group members starred in it. It was then released in Japan in October of last year, and to my utter delight, it suddenly appeared on the first page of my Netflix page.

My Love Mix-Up / Kieta Hatsukoi Plot

I’ve seen a lot of previews about it because fangirls were excited and posted a lot of pictures about My Love Mix-Up / Kieta Hatsukoi on Twitter. It was pretty apparent that it was supposed to be a BL drama, but since I haven’t read the manga series (I couldn’t fit it into my schedule to do so), I had a lot of reservations about how BL it would be. I mean, two of the up-and-coming actors and idols from Johnny’s star in it. I still couldn’t put my finger on it, especially since it’s about a love mix-up, so there might just be a misunderstanding.

Well, I kept my reservations up until I finally started watching the series. And yes, to my delight, it was indeed a BL series. After a huge misunderstanding, Aoki, played by Shunsuke Michieda (of newly-debuted Johnny’s boy group, Naniwa Danshi), unexpectedly fell for Ida, played by Ren Meguro. (of Snow Man). The whole mix-up was the main reason for both leads falling for each other because, at first, Aoki’s love was his classmate Hashimoto.

After borrowing Hashimoto’s eraser, Aoki finds out that she likes Ida. In order to protect her secret, Aoki sacrifices the real score by just owning up to the crush after Ida finds out about his name in the eraser. Ida is always the type who is open about things, even if he’s unsure about it. For example, after being urged by the volleyball team, he joined it and eventually loved what he was doing.

However, love was a different thing. After discovering that Aoki likes him, he becomes curious and can’t stop thinking of Aoki, to the point of wanting to protect him. It was his first time acknowledging romantic love in his life, and he was taking the plunge.

Eventually, because of all the mix-up, the two lovebirds fell for each other, but it is not without its mishaps and (more) misunderstandings. However, with the help of their friends, they were able to overcome their struggles.

My Love Mix-Up / Kieta Hatsukoi Review

My Love Mix-Up / Kieta Hatsukoi is a very simple j-dorama. It mostly dwelled on a flimsy high school love. While the issues of falling in love with the same sex and being conscious about it, as well as acceptance from people around them, were brought up, the issues were rather taken lightly. If we compare it to other BL series, My Love Mix-Up / Kieta Hatsukoi is not very heavy and racy. It lacked in-depth character study and build-up. Again, it’s just another sweet and light BL series.

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The 19-24-minute 10-episode series couldn’t tackle all the crucial aspects of coming out, even after falling in love with the opposite sex at first (for Aoki) or after not falling in love yet (for Ida). Hence, overall, the series is just for BL fans who want to relax and be giddy about two handsome Johnny’s idols falling in love with each other in a j-dorama.

Even though My Love Mix-Up / Kieta Hatsukoi is a very light romantic comedy series with a limited time frame, having a secondary love affair was necessary to pump up the series. I looked out for what would happen in the other love team-up in the series—between Hashimoto and Aida, Aoki’s two close friends. The second love story was part of the mix-up, so it’s a great thing that the J-dorama also focused on the two.

My Love Mix-Up / Kieta Hatsukoi Review: Characters and Actors

Since there was very little character depth in the drama, and almost every scene was situational, I cannot comment on the characters. These types of characters were already introduced in a lot of BL series and other rom-com series, not just in Japan but in Korean, Taiwanese, Thai, and Filipino rom-com films and series as well. Hence, I’m going to focus on the actors for the review.

Shunsuke Michieda as Sota Aoki

As the youngest member of the j-drama, Shunsuke’s charm really shone throughout the series. His character is adorable, imperfect, friendly, light-hearted, frank, childlike, awkward, and easily embarrassed, which perfectly matches his appearance. I first noticed Shunsuke in Naniwa Danshi, Johnny’s boy group, where it seems he is favored as the center, and his towering height is definitely a plus. Initially, I was more drawn to the struggling group members, Joichiro and Daigo, but after watching My Love Mix-Up, I can’t deny that I’ve become biased towards Shunsuke. He is incredibly adorable and pulled off his character well.

Ren Meguro as Kousuke Ida

I’m not a huge fan of Snow Man, Ren’s boy group, but I’ve seen a few dramas starring Ren Meguro. I particularly loved his performance in the quirky J-drama We Apply for an Easy Job. Ren’s character, Ida, embodies a common trope—the popular, intelligent, quiet, kind, and inexperienced guy. Ida is portrayed as nearly perfect, making him a highly desirable character. Ren played this role exceptionally well, especially since characters like this often require a soft-spoken and poker-faced performance.

Riko Fukumoto as Mio Hashimoto

This was my first time noticing Riko Fukumoto in a drama, as I barely recognized her in Secret Unrequited Love. Her character embodies the typical beautiful and feminine girl, but as the drama unfolds, we begin to see her subtle, cute flaws, which make her character quite endearing. I loved the chemistry between her and Shunsuke’s character, Aoki. They support each other in their respective romantic pursuits.

Jin Suzuki as Hayato Aida

Jin Suzuki’s character in the drama is mischievous. Aida strikes me as someone who doesn’t take things very seriously. It’s almost the same as Suzuki’s character in Hana Nochi Hare. Suzuki has had a lot of projects in the few years he’s been in the industry, and this drama might one of the easier ones for him. He’s super adorable in here too.

My Love Mix-Up / Kieta Hatsukoi Review: OST

As with any J-dorama led by Johnny’s, My Love Mix-Up / Kieta Hatsukoi features a fantastic original soundtrack, featuring songs from Naniwa Danshi and Snow Man. While not all songs by Johnny’s are exceptional, they consistently produce outstanding tracks for the J-doramas in which their idols star. My favorite song from the series is Snow Man’s “Secret Touch,” which serves as the drama’s main theme.

Conclusion

I assume there were many scenes in the drama that were restricted for Johnny’s idols. Naniwa Danshi just debuted in November of last year, and this drama marks the first time that Shunsuke Michieda, the center of the boy group, takes on a leading role. It is not very ideal, to say the least. However, fangirls are better off knowing that their idols are queer and marry each other than pursuing other girls. This drama is a delight for Naniwa Danshi and Snow Man fans.

I am grateful to Johnny’s for being open-minded enough to allow some of their idols to participate in a BL series. My Love Mix-Up / Kieta Hatsukoi may be a lighthearted BL series featuring typical character tropes, but it represents a significant step forward for Johnny’s idols and mainstream celebrities in becoming more accepting of the LGBTQ+ community. The series is not only entertaining but also heartwarming.

Watch My Love Mix-Up / Kieta Hatsukoi on Netflix.