REVIEW: ‘Badly In Love’ Season 1 Is A Deep Dive Into Troubled Love

Badly In Love Season 1, created by former yankii/delinquent MEGUMI, is Japan’s first reality dating show for rebellious delinquents. Eleven singles butt heads, forge bonds, and live together for 14 days as they go all out to find the one. Over the course of two weeks together, they reveal their true selves through both clashes and connections, putting everything on the line in fights and in love. On the final day, at an emotional graduation ceremony, each must confess their feelings to the one they’ve fallen for.

The most captivating hook of Badly In Love Season 1 is the fact that these are eleven ex-delinquents living in one space, eating and finding love with one another. The rules are simple: no violence, and don’t do anything illegal. This seems simple, but can be hard for some of the men and women who have a short fuse—or have loose lips when they drink too much. 

Badly In Love Season 1 contains three charming hosts, including the series’ producer and actor, MEGUMI, rapper, AK-69, and comedian, Nagano—both MEGUMI and AK-69 relate to being a part of yankii culture. Each of these hosts is charming and funny in their own right. Nagano is great for the rapid-fire comedy and critique of the show, with lines like “I thought this was a dating show,” whenever a cast member has an emotional moment that doesn’t involve romance.

MEGUMI and the other hosts make Badly in Love Season 1 work.

MEGUMI has some comedic lines, but is mostly there to answer questions or add insight to what Nagano and AK-69 are saying. For example, when Nagano says, “I thought this was a dating show,” MEGUMI thoughtfully explains that, yes, it’s a dating show. But like many of those who are dating, everyone carries some kind of baggage—even more so for delinquents with rough pasts. 

AK-69 is a great host because he offers great advice, mostly told through anecdotes of his own personal experiences of his wrongdoings in the past. He’ll also throw in funny reactions, such as when Baby ultimately chooses Tsu-chan over Milk. Overall, the panel of hosts is refreshing and great that MEGUMI and AK-69 can connect with the male and female contestants, since they also were delinquents at some point in their lives.

Where other Japanese reality shows like Terrace House or Love Village tend to resolve quarrels more peacefully, Badly In Love Season 1 is unapologetically rowdy. The cast of characters try to be themselves, blending who they’ve grown up to be after being delinquents in their younger days—but some of them still dip back into old habits. Watching Japan’s socially deviant try to find love is the closest reality show that can match the wild debauchery seen in Western reality dating shows.

Badly in Love Season 1 is foremost interested in humanizing its delinquents.

With only ten episodes, Badly In Love Season 1 has to have a good first few episodes to quickly grab the audience’s attention. This show accomplishes its hook, by showing the first two men, Shunya Tsukahara, aka Tsu-chan, and Takumi Sato, aka Milk, jostling and grabbing each other—forcing security to seperate them. In a show of dominance and testosterone, the whole ordeal looks a bit staged, but the rest of the show doesn’t.

One of the interesting notes about everyone’s introduction is the camera’s focus on their tattoos. Japan has a long-standing negative connotation associated with tattoos and organized crime. More specifically, tattoos have a strong historical link to the Yakuza. The show is bold in its beautifully highlighting everyone’s tattoos rather than treating them as fearful societal markers. 

In Badly In Love Episodes 1-4, the drama centers heavily on Isamu Nishizawa, aka Yanboh, a former member of the Yakuza. To watch a man attempt to impress his crush is always admirable, but the number of losses Yanboh takes in the Badly In Love Academy needs to be studied.

The drama and beef is always front and center to make captivating TV.

The twist of adding the final two contestants ramps up the show’s excitement again—especially when Amo is introduced. When Baby throws the ice water at Amo, this is something out of a reality show like Jersey Shore. The suspense grows as the show’s staff almost kicks Baby out for being this violent. It’s crazy to think that if Baby didn’t make up with Amo after, Baby would not end up with Tsu-chan in the end. 

The double-edged critique of Episodes 5-10 is how much Badly In Love Season 1 becomes the Nisei and Baby show. It’s very amusing watching multiple suitors try to flirt with and fight over Nisei and Baby’s respective affections, from Otoha, aka Oto-san, throwing herself at Nisei to Milk getting in Nisei’s face to show Baby how tough he is. While Nisei and Baby’s individual paths to finding love make for captivating TV, Sho Tsuda, aka Tackle, Tensei Nanahoshi, aka Ten-ten, and Kirei, aka Kiichan’s, journeys become overshadowed.

Ten-ten begins to confide and talk a lot more with Tekarin and Kiichan in the last few episodes, but that doesn’t head anywhere. Ten-ten’s connection with Kiichan might’ve gone somewhere if they had connected sooner, but Tackle’s one-sided infatuation didn’t appear to go anywhere.

Tackle says he’s going to keep pursuing Kiichan, but there’s very little evidence of it leading to the final confession ceremony. Potentially, Tackle is one of the super shy guys who gets a little too goofy when he has a crush, and he didn’t want to show that in the show—but this is just conjecture.

Badly In Love Season 1 squeezes in plenty of wholesome moments.

The most wholesome part of Badly In Love Season 1 is watching all the delinquents hard at work decorating the children’s cafeteria and interacting with the kids. Since most of the cast have been in a juvenile rehabilitation center, this is like watching each of them do community service.

The most meaningful part of seeing these individuals with traumatic and troubled pasts is that they not only find love, but can give love too. Where many people in society wouldn’t let their kids near formerly incarcerated people, this show takes a chance that shows they’re regular human beings with deep emotions.

Badly In Love Season 1 cuts through the formalities and pleasantries of dating and successfully gets straight to the point of love interests. Most of the contestants this season genuinely put their hearts out there, even it meant getting extremely hurt. Even when it comes to self-love or healing familial relationships at home, this show is captivating to watch for these therapeutic lessons.

Badly in Love Season 1 is a near-perfect examination of yankii culture.

This reality dating show is the near-perfect examination of Japan’s yankii culture that can connect with anyone worldwide who’ve been connected with delinquency. Badly In Love Season 1 adds to the notion that everyone deserves a shot at love.

Badly in Love Season 2 had been greenlit, hinting at new scenery—potentially somewhere seaside-related. If MEGUMI could find an even wilder, diverse bunch of yankii men and women, this could be the perfect Japanese reality dating show to date. 

Badly In Love Season 1 is streaming now on Netflix.

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