The Boyfriend Night: A Netflix Special
We don’t know about you, but we have The Boyfriend fever. We devoured every single episode of the new Japanese dating show on Netflix with gusto and invested ourselves in the lives and relationships of these nine young men. Now, just a few days after the last episodes aired, Netflix Japan delivers The Boyfriend Night – a one-hour special that convenes the commentators and all the contestants on the show so audiences around the world can catch up with them and find out what’s going on in their lives now.
We didn’t know how much we needed to see them together again until we actually did! The commentators spent an equal amount of time on each person, allowing them to share with their fans what they’re doing now and how participating on the show has changed their lives. Here are the highlights from The Boyfriend Night.
Dai and Shun
After leaving the house together and heading back out into the world to give their relationship a real shot, both Dai and Shun have been receiving a lot of attention on social media as the show aired. From their Instagram posts and stories, both men seemed to be doing well but there was very little evidence indicating that a relationship still exists between them.
Well, DaiShun nation can take a breath now because they revealed on The Boyfriend Night that they are most definitely together, and they’re doing very well. Shun divulges that after the filming of The Boyfriend finished, he moved into Dai’s house with his family as they settled into their relationship together.
DaiShun spend most of The Boyfriend Night making moon eyes at each other and their connection and love for one another oozes through the screen. The commentators are absolutely besotted with them both and are unable to contain their love for DaiShun’s love.
In our coverage of The Boyfriend, we have been very loud about our admiration for the way in which Dai conducts himself. During this special, when he reveals the real reason why he joined the cast, we fell even more in love with this wonderful human.
Dai says that he was going through his life avoiding situations where he could fall in love because he didn’t want to get hurt, so he joined the show because the confines of the house wouldn’t allow him to run from himself like that. He says that if he had met Shun under normal real-life circumstances, he doesn’t think they would have made it because he probably would have run away.
Despite the challenging start they had to their relationship, they seem to complement each other very well. DaiShun remind us that sometimes we’re our own worst enemies and we just need to give into the love a little more.
Alan and Kazuto
Alan and Kazuto might have left the house together, but their relationship didn’t evolve romantically further than that. From the way the information was delivered to the audience, we get the feeling that Alan would still very much like to walk through that door with Kazuto, but Kazuto just isn’t feeling it.
However, Kazuto did reveal that although they’re not lovers, he now considers Alan to be his best friend, which is also pretty great, right? As we all know, bromance is just as important as romance, so it’s nice that they were able to maneuver their relationship down that path.
Gensei and Taeheon
We called it, folks! In our piece about the platonic relationships that developed in the Green Room, we marveled over the friendship that evolved between Gensei and Taeheon. Taeheon confirmed for everyone that he’s based in Japan right now and he and Gensei speak to each other every single day!
While definitely not romantically linked, their love for each other bled through screens as the episodes aired, so it was really affirming to hear them say that they are still a massive part of each other’s lives now.
Taeheon talks confidently about coming out to his parents, and Gensei preens under the attention that he’s garnered online since the show started airing.
The Rest of the Crew
Ryota, Usak, and Ikuo all say they’re just working and focusing on themselves. None of them are romantically attached to anyone at the moment, but Usak makes it clear that he’s on the prowl, especially when he goes abroad for work. Ikuo also reveals that he’s received quite a lot of attention since the show aired and has been out on dates with people, but nothing has cemented itself in his life just yet.
Collectively, each contestant said that they learned something about themselves while they were in the Green Room, and the experience as a whole has helped them evolve as a person. Although most people didn’t leave with a romantic partner, that kind of growth is irreplaceable.
The Boyfriend is an absolute delight. Getting to know these nine young men and watching them bravely put themselves out there has been quite a journey. As they go off into the world and continue to live their lives, we wish them well and hope they’re all able to get everything they’re searching for.
If you missed it, you can watch The Boyfriend Night below.
All ten episodes of The Boyfriend are available to stream on Netflix globally now. Follow us on X and Instagram for all queer stuff!
Featured Image: Courtesy of Netflix Japan
