is a Japanese ''

yaoi , also known by its abbreviation , is a genre of fictional media originating in Japan that depicts homoerotic relationships between male characters. It is typically created by women for a female audience, distinguishing it from the equivale ...

manga are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long history in earlier Japanese art. The term is used in Japan to refer to both comics ...

series written by Eiki Eiki and illustrated by Taishi Zaō. It began serialization in the July 2010 issue of

Kadokawa Shoten , formerly , is a Japanese publisher and division of Kadokawa Future Publishing based in Tokyo, Japan. It became an internal division of Kadokawa Corporation on October 1, 2013. Kadokawa publishes manga, light novels, manga anthology magazines ...

's ''Asuka Ciel'' magazine. The manga is licensed in North America by SuBLime. A

spin-off Spin-off, Spin Off, Spin-Off, or Spinoff may refer to: Entertainment and media *Spinoff (media), a media work derived from an existing work *''The Spinoff'', a New Zealand current affairs magazine * ''Spin Off'' (Canadian game show), a 2013 Canad ...

light novel A is a type of Genre fiction, popular literature novel from Japan usually classified as young adult fiction, generally targeting Adolescence, teens to Young adult, twenties or older. The definition is very vague, and wide-ranging. The abbr ...

series titled ''Back Stage!!'' began publication in May 2011. A 10-episode

anime is a Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, , in Japan and in Ja ...

television series adaptation produced by J.C.Staff aired between July and September 2014.

Characters

; : :Portrayed by: Mahiro Sugiyama (film) :Izumi is the main protagonist of the story. A college student at the age of eighteen, he aspires to be a manga author despite lacking the talent for it. His father is a director, his mother is a film actress, and his older brother Shōgo is the lead vocalist of a popular band. Ten years ago, he botched a bouquet catching scene in a commercial while dressed as a girl, and since then he refuses to be involved in the entertainment industry due to his "accident" caused by stage fright. Over the course of the series, he begins to develop strong feelings for Ryoma and falls in love with him. He is a huge fan of the fictional anime show ''Magical Girl Lala-Lulu''. Izumi is often mistaken as a girl due to his tiny frame. ; : :Portrayed by: Hiroki Nakada (film) :Ryoma is a popular young actor two years older than Izumi, who fell in love with him as a child, thinking him to be a girl, when they co-starred in a commercial together ten years prior. Even after he finds out Izumi is a guy when they reunite, he still maintains strong feelings for him. He fell in love with Izumi when he was ten and Izumi was eight during the commercial. ; : :Portrayed by: Shinichi Wago (film) :Rei is the Sena family's manager. He was taken in by Izumi's father, Seiya Sena, when he was 18 years old and has lived with the family since then. ; : :Shōgo is Izumi's doting older brother. Whenever Rei has problems regarding Izumi, Rei contacts his brother. He always dotes on his younger brother and gives Izumi ''Magical Girl Lala-Lulu'' merchandise whenever the situation calls for it. Shōgo has been in love with Rei since he was 16 and is the main reason why he joined the band Crusherz.

Media

Manga

''Love Stage!!'' is written by Eiki Eiki and illustrated by Taishi Zaō. It began serialization in the July 2010 issue of

's ''Asuka Ciel'' magazine. Seven ''

tankōbon A is a standard publishing format for books in Japan, alongside other formats such as ''shinsho'' (17x11 cm paperback books) and ''bunkobon''. Used as a loanword in English, the term specifically refers to a printed collection of a manga that w ...

'' volumes was published from May 27, 2011 to November 1, 2016. The manga is licensed in North America by SuBLime. The manga is also published in Germany by

Tokyopop Tokyopop (styled TOKYOPOP; formerly known as Mixx Entertainment) is an American distributor, licensor and publisher of anime, manga, manhwa and Western manga-style works. The German publishing division produces German translations of licens ...

. The ''Back Stage!!''

manga series, adapted from the previously released light novels, got published by

Light novels

The first volume of a

series titled ''Back Stage!!'', written by Eiki Eiki and Kazuki Amano, with illustrations by Taishi Zaō, was published by

under their Kadokawa Ruby Bunko imprint on May 31, 2011. As of June 1, 2013, three volumes have been released.

Anime

A 10-episode

adaptation was first announced by Kadokawa in November 2013 at

Animate Animation is a filmmaking technique whereby image, still images are manipulated to create Motion picture, moving images. In traditional animation, images are drawn or painted by hand on cel, transparent celluloid sheets to be photographed and e ...

Girls Festival. Directed by

Ken'ichi Kasai is a Japanese storyboard artist and director. He is amongst J.C.Staff's most noted directors, having directed the highly rated '' Honey and Clover'' series. Beginning his career as a production manager, using his name in kanji, , he moved on to ...

and produced by J.C.Staff, it aired between July 9 and September 10, 2014 on

Tokyo MX JOMX-DTV (channel 9), branded as Tokyo MX (officially stylized as TOKYO MX), is an independent station, independent television station in Tokyo, Japan, owned by the . It is the only television station that exclusively serves the city and parts ...

. The screenplay is written by

Michiko Yokote is a Japanese screenwriter. Screenwriting • Head writer/series composition denoted in bold Anime television series *'' Patlabor: The TV Series'' (1990) *'' Ranma ½'' (1990–1992) *''Rurouni Kenshin'' (1996) *'' Magical Project S '' (1996– ...

and the character design is by Yōko Itō.

Crunchyroll Crunchyroll is an American Video on demand#Subscription models, subscription video on-demand Over-the-top media service, over-the-top Streaming media, streaming service owned by Sony, Sony Group Corporation. The service primarily distributes fi ...

licensed the series to be streamed in countries of North America, Europe, Latin America and Africa. It was released in five DVD and Blu-ray volumes by Kadokawa Shoten from September 26, 2014 to January 24, 2015. The opening theme is "LΦvest" by Screen Mode under the record label Lantis and the ending theme is "Click Your Heart!!" by Kazutomi Yamamoto.

Episode list

Film

The September 2019 issue of ''Ciel'' announced that a live-action film adaptation for ''Love Stage!!'' had been green-lit, with Eiki Eiki, the manga's original author, in charge of the screenplay. To promote the announcement, a short story was printed in the issue along with a re-print of the manga's first chapter. On October 2, 2019, the film's cast and 2020 release date was announced.

TV drama

A Thai live-action television drama adaptation was announced on February 28, 2021. It starred Kittipat Kaewcharoen and Turbo Chanokchon Boonmanawong and premiered through AIS Play and Amarin TV on September 12, 2022.

References

External links

''Love Stage!!''
at

Anime official website
* * {{J.C.Staff OVAs 2010 manga Anime series based on manga Eiki Eiki J.C.Staff Josei manga Manga creation in anime and manga Television series about filmmaking Kadokawa Shoten manga Kadokawa Corporation franchises Japanese LGBTQ-related animated television series Mikiyo Tsuda Romantic comedy anime and manga Sentai Filmworks SuBLime manga Thai television dramas based on manga Tokyopop titles Yaoi anime and manga 2010s LGBTQ-related comedy television series 2010s LGBTQ literature