Twittering Birds Never Fly
Twittering Birds Never Fly (Japanese: 囀る鳥は羽ばたかない, Hepburn: Saezuru Tori wa Habatakanai) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Kou Yoneda. A sequel to Yoneda's previous one-shot stories Don't Stay Gold (2008) and Though They Drift, They Do Not Sink, But Nor Do They Sing (2009), it has been serialized in the boys' love (BL) manga magazine ihr HertZ, formerly known as HertZ, since August 2011. The manga was adapted into an anime film trilogy produced by Blue Lynx and animated by Grizzly beginning in 2020. It also inspired an original animation DVD (OAD) adaptation of Don't Stay Gold and an ongoing audio drama produced by Frontier Works.
| Twittering Birds Never Fly | |
Cover of the first volume of the manga series | |
| 囀る鳥は羽ばたかない (Saezuru Tori wa Habatakanai) | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Boys' love[1] |
| Manga | |
| Written by | Kou Yoneda |
| Published by | Taiyoh Tosho |
| English publisher | |
| Imprint | H&C Comics ihr HertZ Series |
| Magazine | ihr HertZ (formerly HertZ) |
| Demographic | Josei |
| Original run | August 1, 2011 – present |
| Volumes | 7 |
| Audio drama | |
| Studio | Frontier Works |
| Original run | October 23, 2013 – present |
| Anime film | |
| Twittering Birds Never Fly – The Clouds Gather | |
| Directed by | Kaori Makita |
| Produced by | Blue Lynx |
| Written by | Hiroshi Seko |
| Music by | H ZETTRIO |
| Studio | Grizzly |
| Licensed by | |
| Released | February 15, 2020 |
| Runtime | 85 minutes |
| Original animation DVD | |
| Don't Stay Gold | |
| Directed by | Kaori Makita |
| Produced by | Blue Lynx |
| Written by | Hiroshi Seko |
| Music by | H ZETTRIO |
| Studio | Grizzly |
| Licensed by | |
| Released | March 1, 2021 |
| Runtime | 24 minutes |
| Anime film | |
| Twittering Birds Never Fly – The Storm Breaks | |
| Studio | Grizzly |
| Licensed by | |
| Anime film | |
| Untitled film | |
| Licensed by | |
Synopsis
The series follows Yashiro, a young, high-ranking yakuza boss and president of a front corporation. He is assigned a new bodyguard, Chikara Doumeki, who discovers that his employer is a hypersexual masochist. Yashiro develops an attraction to Doumeki, who rejects his advances. Yashiro later discovers that Doumeki is impotent and pursues a sadomasochistic relationship with him.
Characters
- Yashiro (矢代)
- Voiced by: Tarusuke Shingaki (audio drama, film)[2][3]
- A high-ranking yakuza boss. While outwardly demanding but cheerful, he is secretly a sadomasochist who was sexually abused as a child by his step-father. He has difficulty in maintaining close personal relationships with others.
- Chikara Doumeki (百目鬼 力, Dōmeki Chikara)
- Voiced by: Wataru Hatano (audio drama, film)[2][3]
- Yashiro's personal bodyguard. Formerly a police officer, he was forced to leave after going to prison. He became Yashiro’s bodyguard to earn more money. He is handsome and stoic, but suffers from sexual impotence.
- Kanji Kageyama (影山 莞爾, Kageyama Kanji)
- Voiced by: Hiroki Yasumoto (audio drama, film)[2][3]
- Yashiro's friend since high school. A doctor, he runs his clinic as a legitimate business during the day but tends to Yashiro's wounded underlings at night. He has a sexual fetish for scars and scabs.
- Eishin Kuga (久我 瑛心, Kuga Eishin)
- Voiced by: Yūki Ono (audio drama, film)[2][3]
- A 22-year-old former delinquent who grew up in a juvenile institution. His chest is covered in burn scars from his abusive childhood.
- Takahito Misumi (三角 隆仁, Misumi Takahito)
- Voiced by: Tōru Ōkawa (audio drama, film)[2][3]
- Yashiro's boss, mentor, and former lover.
- Atsushi Ryuuzaki (竜崎 篤士, Ryūzaki Atsushi)
- Voiced by: Kenta Miyake (audio drama, film)[2][3]
- The boss of the Matsubara yakuza.
- Kazuaki Hirata (平田 和明, Hirata Kazuaki)
- Voiced by: Akimitsu Takase (audio drama, film)[2][3]
- The boss of the Shinseikai yakuza.
- Yuusuke Nanahara (七原 祐輔, Nanahara Yūsuke)
- Voiced by: Kazuyuki Okitsu (audio drama, film)[2][3]
- Yashiro's subordinate.
- Hayato Sugimoto (杉本 隼人, Sugimoto Hayato)
- Voiced by: Takahiro Miyake (audio drama, film)[2][3]
- Yashiro's subordinate.
- Shizuma Amou (天羽 静真, Amō Shizuma)
- Voiced by: Takuya Satō (audio drama, film)[2][3]
- Misumi's personal secretary.
Media
Manga
Twittering Birds Never Fly has been serialized in the boys' love (BL) manga magazine ihr HertZ, formerly known as HertZ,[4] since August 1, 2011.[5][6] In Japan, the series has been collected into seven tankōbon volumes published by Taiyoh Tosho as of March 1, 2021.[7] The first volume includes two prequel one-shot stories by Yoneda: Don't Stay Gold, originally published in the BL manga magazine Drap on March 31, 2008, depicting the relationship between Kuga and Kageyama;[8] and Though They Drift, They Do Not Sink, But Nor Do They Sing (漂えど沈まず、されど泣きもせず, Tadayoedo Shizumazu, Saredo Naki mo Sezu), originally published in HertZ on June 1, 2009, chronicling Yashiro's teen years and his friendship with Kageyama in high school.[9] A limited edition of the series' fourth volume was packaged with a bonus manga booklet, Distant Flame (遠火, Tōbi), revealing Doumeki's first encounter with Yashiro prior to becoming his underling.[10][11]
In North America, an English-language translation of the first three volumes of the series was published by Juné, the BL imprint of Digital Manga, from 2014 to 2017.[12][13][14] After a three year hiatus, the fourth volume was published digitally on December 4, 2020, and in print on January 12, 2021.[15][16] The fifth and sixth volumes were published by Juné in late 2021.[16][17][18] Twittering Birds Never Fly has also been translated into Chinese by Sharp Point Press,[19] French by Taifu Comics,[20] German by Manga Cult,[21] Italian by Flashbook Edizioni,[22] Korean by Ruvill,[23] Polish by Wydawnictwo Kotori,[24] and Spanish by Ediciones Tomodomo.[25]
| No. | Original release date | Original ISBN | English release date | English ISBN |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | January 30, 2013[26] | 978-4-8130-3013-3 | September 24, 2014[13] | 978-1-56970-327-4 |
| 2 | November 1, 2013[27] | 978-4-8130-3034-8 | January 28, 2015[28] | 978-1-56970-336-6 |
| 3 | June 1, 2015[29] | 978-4-8130-3080-5 | March 21, 2017[14] | 978-1-56970-362-5 |
| 4 | September 30, 2016[10][30] | 978-4-8130-3219-9 (standard) 978-4-8130-3127-7 (limited) | December 4, 2020 (digital)[16] January 12, 2021 (print)[16] | 978-1-56970-389-2 |
| 5 | November 30, 2017[31] | 978-4-8130-3168-0 | September 17, 2021 (digital)[32] October 26, 2021 (print)[33] | 978-1-56970-387-8 |
| 6 | May 1, 2019[34] | 978-4-8130-3220-5 | November 16, 2021 (digital)[35] December 13, 2021 (print)[36] | 978-1-56970-388-5 |
| 7 | March 1, 2021[37][38] | 978-4-8130-3278-6 (standard) 978-4-8130-4024-8 (limited) | — | — |
Audio drama
An audio drama adaptation of Twittering Birds Never Fly has been produced by Frontier Works since 2013, featuring Tarusuke Shingaki as the voice of Yashiro and Wataru Hatano as the voice of Doumeki.[1]
| Title | Release date | JAN |
|---|---|---|
| Twittering Birds Never Fly | October 23, 2013[39] | JAN 4562207987875 |
| Twittering Birds Never Fly Volume 2 | September 24, 2014[40] | JAN 4571436893420 |
| Twittering Birds Never Fly Volume 3 | January 27, 2016[41] | JAN 4571436907950 |
| Twittering Birds Never Fly Volume 4 | February 8, 2017[42] | JAN 4571436926807 |
| Twittering Birds Never Fly Volume 5 | February 28, 2018[43] | JAN 4571436945174 |
| Twittering Birds Never Fly Volume 6 | February 21, 2020[44] | JAN 4589644719548 |
| Twittering Birds Never Fly Volume 7 | July 28, 2021[45] | JAN 4589644770587 |
Anime films
An anime film adaptation, Twittering Birds Never Fly – The Clouds Gather, was announced on April 26, 2019, and released on February 15, 2020. The film is animated by Grizzly and produced by Blue Lynx.[46][47] The film's primary production staff includes Kaori Makita as director and Hiroshi Seko as scriptwriter; the film's score is composed by piano trio band H ZETTRIO.[1][48] A sequel film, Twittering Birds Never Fly – The Storm Breaks, was announced on February 15, 2020.[49] An as-of-yet untitled third Twittering Birds Never Fly film has also been announced.[50]
The three films were licensed in English by Sentai Filmworks for theater bookings, virtual screenings, and home video releases in North America.[51] The first film, The Clouds Gather, was released on Blu-ray on February 2, 2021.[52]
Original anime DVD
An original anime DVD (OAD) adapting Don't Stay Gold was announced on February 15, 2020.[49] It was packaged with a special edition of the seventh volume of the manga series on March 1, 2021.[53] The OAD was licensed in English by Sentai Filmworks and began streaming on HIDIVE on September 10, 2021.[54]
Reception
Over 1.5 million copies of Twittering Birds Never Fly are in print in Japan as of February 2020.[55]
In 2014, Twittering Birds Never Fly was listed as a top recommended boys' love (BL) title in a national survey of Japanese bookstore employees.[56] The manga was shortlisted for the Sugoi Japan Award 2016.[57]
References
- ^ a b c Pineda, Rafael Antonio (April 25, 2019). "Kou Yoneda's Twittering Birds Never Fly Boys-Love Manga Gets Anime Film". Anime News Network. Retrieved April 27, 2019.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k ドラマCD「囀る鳥は羽ばたかない」公式サイト. Frontier Works (in Japanese). Retrieved April 2, 2021.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Hodgkins, Crystalyn (December 26, 2019). "Twittering Birds Never Fly Boys-Love Anime Film's New Trailer Reveals 8 More Cast Members". Anime News Network. Retrieved December 26, 2019.
- ^ 「ihr HertZ」創刊のお知らせ. B's-Garden (in Japanese). Taiyoh Tosho. April 20, 2012. from the original on June 21, 2021. Original text: 「それに伴い、雑誌名が『HertZ』から『ihr HertZ（イァ ハーツ）』に、レーベル名も『ミリオンコミックス』から『H＆C Comics』となります。」 Translation: "Accordingly, the magazine name will change from HertZ to ihr HertZ, and the label name will change from 'Million Comics' to 'H&C Comics'."
- ^ . Tobakuchi: Kou Yoneda's Commercial Information Blog (in Japanese). December 4, 2011. Archived from the original on June 21, 2021. Original text: 「8月・大洋図書HertZ band.45『囀る鳥は羽ばたかない』連載１話目 P44」 Translation: "August: Taiyoh Tosho's HertZ band.45, Twittering Birds Never Fly, serialization, 1st chapter, 44 pages."
- ^ . B's-Garden (in Japanese). Taiyoh Tosho. Archived from the original on March 26, 2015. Retrieved April 29, 2021. Original text: 「2011年08月01日 発売」 Translation: "Released on August 1, 2011."
- ^ 「囀る鳥は羽ばたかない」7巻アニメDVD付き限定版発売、コラボカフェ＆複製原画展も. Comic Natalie (in Japanese). March 1, 2021. Retrieved April 2, 2021.
- ^ . Tobakuchi: Kou Yoneda's Commercial Information Blog (in Japanese). March 5, 2008. Archived from the original on June 21, 2021.
- ^ . Tobakuchi: Kou Yoneda's Commercial Information Blog (in Japanese). May 29, 2009. Archived from the original on June 21, 2021.
- ^ a b ヤクザの若頭とその付き人描く「囀る鳥は羽ばたかない」4巻は本日発売. Comic Natalie (in Japanese). September 30, 2016. Retrieved April 29, 2021.
- ^ 「 囀る鳥は羽ばたかない (4) 」初回限定版小冊子. Commercial BL Portal Chill Chill (in Japanese). Retrieved April 29, 2021.
- ^ Loo, Egan (August 16, 2013). "Digital Manga Licenses Kou Yoneda's Saezuru Tori wa Habatakanai". Anime News Network. Retrieved April 27, 2019.
- ^ a b Ressler, Karen (September 24, 2014). "North American Anime, Manga Releases, September 21–27". Anime News Network. Retrieved April 2, 2021.
- ^ a b Ressler, Karen (March 21, 2017). "North American Anime, Manga Releases, March 19–25". Anime News Network. Retrieved April 2, 2021.
- ^ Hazra, Adriana (August 31, 2020). "DMP's Juné Imprint to Release Volume 4 of Twittering Birds Never Fly Manga". Anime News Network. Retrieved August 31, 2020.
- ^ a b c d Hazra, Adriana (March 15, 2021). "DMP's Juné Imprint to Release Volumes 5, 6 of Twittering Birds Never Fly Manga". Anime News Network. Retrieved April 2, 2021.
- ^ Davidson, Danica (March 12, 2021). "DMP Announces Continuation of Yaoi Manga Twittering Birds Never Fly". Otaku USA. Retrieved April 2, 2021.
- ^ Mateo, Alex (June 14, 2021). "DMP's Juné Imprint to Release Only the Flower Knows, Hana no Miyako de Manga Physically/Digitally in 2022". Anime News Network. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
- ^ 鳴鳥不飛. Sharp Point Press (in Chinese). Retrieved April 29, 2021.
- ^ . Taifu Comics (in French). February 22, 2013. Archived from the original on March 14, 2016.
- ^ "Twittering Birds Never Fly 1". Manga Cult (in German). Retrieved April 29, 2021.
- ^ "Twittering Birds Never Fly di Flashbook". Fumetto Online (in Italian). Retrieved April 29, 2021.
- ^ 루빌이벤트 아이콘검색어 : 지저귀는 새는 날지 않는다. Ruvill (in Korean). Retrieved April 29, 2021.
- ^ "Złamane skrzydła". Wydawnictwo Kotori (in Polish). Retrieved April 29, 2021.
- ^ "Pájaro que trina no vuela de Kou Yoneda". Ediciones Tomodomo (in Spanish). Retrieved April 29, 2021.
- ^ 囀る鳥は羽ばたかない 1. Taiyoh Group (in Japanese). January 30, 2013. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
- ^ 囀る鳥は羽ばたかない 2. Taiyoh Group (in Japanese). November 30, 2013. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
- ^ Ressler, Karen (January 27, 2015). "North American Anime, Manga Releases, January 25–31". Anime News Network. Retrieved April 2, 2021.
- ^ 囀る鳥は羽ばたかない 3. Taiyoh Group (in Japanese). May 29, 2015. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
- ^ 囀る鳥は羽ばたかない 4 初回限定小冊子付. Taiyoh Group (in Japanese). September 28, 2016. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
- ^ 囀る鳥は羽ばたかない 5. Taiyoh Group (in Japanese). November 29, 2017. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
- ^ Mateo, Alex (September 14, 2021). "North American Anime, Manga Releases, September 12–18". Anime News Network. Retrieved September 26, 2021.
- ^ Mateo, Alex (October 26, 2021). "North American Anime, Manga Releases, October 24–30". Anime News Network. Retrieved October 28, 2021.
- ^ 囀る鳥は羽ばたかない 6. Taiyoh Group (in Japanese). April 26, 2019. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
- ^ Mateo, Alex (November 16, 2021). "North American Anime, Manga Releases, November 14–20". Anime News Network. Retrieved November 17, 2021.
- ^ Mateo, Alex (December 14, 2021). "North American Anime, Manga Releases, December 12–18". Anime News Network. Retrieved December 15, 2021.
- ^ 囀る鳥は羽ばたかない 7. Taiyoh Group (in Japanese). March 2021. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
- ^ 囀る鳥は羽ばたかない 7 アニメDVD付き限定版. Taiyoh Group (in Japanese). February 18, 2021. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
- ^ ドラマCD「囀る鳥は羽ばたかない」. Frontier Works (in Japanese). Retrieved April 27, 2019.
- ^ ドラマCD「囀る鳥は羽ばたかない」第2巻. Frontier Works (in Japanese). Retrieved April 27, 2019.
- ^ ドラマCD「囀る鳥は羽ばたかない」第3巻. Frontier Works (in Japanese). Retrieved April 27, 2019.
- ^ ドラマCD「囀る鳥は羽ばたかない」第4巻. Frontier Works (in Japanese). Retrieved April 27, 2019.
- ^ ドラマCD「囀る鳥は羽ばたかない」第5巻. Frontier Works (in Japanese). Retrieved April 27, 2019.
- ^ ドラマCD「囀る鳥は羽ばたかない」第6巻. Frontier Works (in Japanese). Retrieved April 2, 2021.
- ^ ドラマCD「囀る鳥は羽ばたかない」第7巻. Frontier Works (in Japanese). Retrieved April 2, 2021.
- ^ Loo, Egan (October 26, 2019). "Twittering Birds Never Fly Boys-Love Film's Promo Video Unveils Cast, February Release". Anime News Network. Retrieved October 26, 2019.
- ^ Sherman, Jennifer (December 6, 2019). "Twittering Birds Never Fly Boys-Love Anime Film Reveals Visual, February 15 Opening". Anime News Network. Retrieved December 6, 2019.
- ^ ヨネダコウ「囀る鳥は羽ばたかない」劇場アニメ化！フジテレビの新BLレーベルより. Comic Natalie (in Japanese). April 25, 2019. Retrieved April 25, 2019.
- ^ a b Hodgkins, Crystalyn (February 15, 2020). "Twittering Birds Never Fly Anime Film Gets Sequel Film, OAD". Anime News Network. Retrieved February 15, 2020.
- ^ Hodgkins, Crystalyn (February 16, 2020). "Twittering Birds Never Fly Anime Listed With 3 60-Minute Installments". Anime News Network. Retrieved February 20, 2020.
- ^ "Sentai Acquires Twittering Birds Never Fly Feature Length Trilogy" (Press release). Sentai Filmworks. August 26, 2020. Retrieved September 10, 2020.
- ^ Mateo, Alex (February 3, 2021). "North American Anime, Manga Releases, January 31 – February 6". Anime News Network. Retrieved September 26, 2021.
- ^ Hodgkins, Crystalyn (September 27, 2020). "Twittering Birds Never Fly Original Anime Disc Slated for March [1]". Anime News Network. Retrieved September 27, 2020.
- ^ Mateo, Alex (September 3, 2021). "HIDIVE Streams Twittering Birds Never Fly – Don't Stay Gold OAD". Anime News Network. Retrieved September 26, 2021.
- ^ BLアニメが避けて通れない「性描写」と「年齢制限」。フジテレビアニメ開発部の挑戦. Livedoor (in Japanese). February 15, 2020. Retrieved February 20, 2020.
- ^ Pineda, Rafael Antonio (March 6, 2014). "Japan's Bookstore Employees Rank Top Boys-Love Manga of 2014". Anime News Network. Retrieved April 27, 2019.
- ^ Miller, KK (March 30, 2016). "Sugoi Japan Award 2016 winners: The manga, anime, novels Japan thinks you should binge on". Sora News 24. Retrieved April 27, 2019.
External links
- Official manga website (in Japanese)
- Official audio drama website (in Japanese)
- Official anime film website (in Japanese)
- Twittering Birds Never Fly (manga) at Anime News Network's encyclopedia