History Manga / Gravitation

* BleachedUnderpants: The infamous [[HotterAndSexier Remix,]] doujinshi by Murakami and her doujin circle, that is ''far'' more explicit than the original series. And then the ''Megamix'' series, which is even more so.

* {{Bishonen}}: As is the standard fare for BL.

* HasTwoMommies: The temporary care of Riku.

* ShoutOut: The series is built on this trope, and becomes immensely more enjoyable when you know exactly what is being referenced and why. The most obvious is Bad Luck and Nittle Grasper's origins (see NoCelebritiesWereHarmed above). The storyline about Shuichi obsessing over going to Disneyland with Yuki (and chanting "Mickey " repeatedly) is one enormous shout-out to Daisuke Asakura's well-known love of all things MickeyMouse. There's also a glance at an Oricon chart featuring [[Music/TMRevolution S.M.Revolution.]]

* IncurableCoughOfDeath: Subverted: At one point [[spoiler: Yuki seems to suffer from this condition, even going to the extent of coughing up blood. However the illness turns out to be ulcers and goes away on its own.]]

* {{Paparazzi}}: Once Bad Luck hits the big time, they become a recurring obstacle / antagonist.

* RearrangeTheSong: The ''Gravitation TV-tracks'' soundtrack consists of multiple versions of the four vocal tracks ("SUPER DRIVE", "Glaring Dream", "Sleepless beauty" and "THE RAGE BEAT"), with one piano/synth version and one electronica-based remix alongside the main version ("SUPER DRIVE" also receives a variant on acoustic guitar.) The "sacred beauty air mix" of "Sleepless beauty" was turned into a vocal version in the anime, when Ryuichi sings crashes Bad Luck's concert by singing it.

* ShoutOut: The series is built on this trope, and becomes immensely more enjoyable when you know exactly what is being referenced and why. The most obvious is Bad Luck and Nittle Grasper's origins (see NoCelebritiesWereHarmed above). The storyline about Shuichi obsessing over going to Disneyland with Yuki (and chanting "Mickey " repeatedly) is one enormous shout out to Daisuke Asakura's well known love of all things MickeyMouse. There's also a glance at an Oricon chart featuring [[Music/TMRevolution S.M.Revolution.]]
** Features a character named [[Music/XJapan Yoshiki]] in a series featuring part of the Japanese music scene [[DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything who just happens to be transgender,]] though if Yoshiki's name is really a shout out, YMMV on whether it’s meant to be a positive ShoutOut or more of a TakeThat to Music/XJapan and/or VisualKei.

* StupidSexyFlanders: Shuichi might be a victim with a notoriously open mind, considering how he never shows any interest men except for Yuki; particularly in the manga, where he actually has some brief displays of interest in ''women.''
* SuperDeformed: Quite a bit of the MoodWhiplash, especially in the manga, can be attributed to this. Murakami has a very special, very over the top and extreme way of doing this.

''Gravitation'' was first adapted into a two episode [[OriginalVideoAnimation OVA]] series in 1999, and then later remade into a 13 episode anime series that aired from 2000 to 2001. The anime somehow managed to pack the comedy, drama, romance, and music in equal spades without compromising the strength of any one. It became popular enough that many non-BL lovers have [[MultipleDemographicAppeal enjoyed]] it for its other qualities.

* BleachedUnderpants: The infamous [[HotterAndSexier Remix,]] doujinshi by Murakami and her doujin circle, that is ''far'' more explicit than the original series. And then the ''Megamix'' series, which is [[UpToEleven even more so.]]

* MoralDissonance: Arguably. However YMMV. [[spoiler: As we find out that a large proportion of Yuki's backstory stems from an attempted rape. Fair enough considering how horrible that is. However the dissonance comes in that when Shuichi actually GETS raped by ''two guys'' no less as part of a vengeance/blackmail plan it is literally ''glossed over'' in almost one chapter and never mentioned again.]] However much MoralDissonance can be argued on this one, at the ''very least'' there is AngstDissonance.

''Gravitation,'' created by Maki Murakami, is one of the few mainstream [[YaoiGenre Boys' Love]] manga and anime series out there, partly because of the non-explicit nature of the romance between the two main male characters, and also because it has an actual plot to it instead of the [[PornWithoutPlot Plot? What Plot?]] typical of many BL series.

''Gravitation'' was first made into a two episode [[OriginalVideoAnimation OVA]] series and then later remade into a 13 episode anime series that somehow managed to pack the comedy, drama, romance, and music in equal spades without compromising the strength of any one. It's even become popular enough that many non-BL lovers have [[MultipleDemographicAppeal enjoyed]] it for its other qualities.

''Gravitation,'' created by Maki Murakami, is one of the few mainstream [[YaoiGenre Boys' Love]] manga and anime series out there, partly because of the non-explicit nature of the romance between the two main male characters, and also because it has an actual plot to it instead of the usual [[PornWithoutPlot Plot? What Plot?]] typical of many BL series.

* HaveIMentionedIAmHeterosexualToday: Yuki in the beginning, Hiro throughout. Shuichi also takes very much care to remind people that [[BiTheWay actually, he's bi.]]

** Bad Luck shares a similar origin: [[http://oi61.tinypic.com/728g.jpg their designs are recycled from the yaoi doujinshi that Murakami's circle also drew]] about [[JapanesePopMusic B'z,]] and have the same positions in Bad Luck as their RealLife inspirations. This influence became more of an artifact once Suguru was added and Shuichi's design became influenced by Music/TMRevolution.

* ReusedCharacterDesign: Gravitation recycled the character designs from Help! which was already reusing the designs from Murakami’s access and B’z doujinshi. See also NoCelebritiesWereHarmed above.

* RearrangeTheSong: The TV soundtrack features multiple instrumental remixes of all of the vocal tracks. One of these was actually turned into a vocal version in the anime: The slowed down rendition of "Sleepless Beauty" that Ryuichi sings when he crashes Bad Luck's concert.

* [[DudeShesLikeInAComa Dude, He's Like, in a Coma!]]
** Strangely enough, this is averted in ''Gravitation Ex.'' when [[spoiler: Shuichi really ''is'' in a coma.]]

* {{Pilot}}: Gravitation is an expanded rewrite of an earlier doujinshi series by Murakami, collected under the title of Help! It was about a singer named Ryuichi Sakuma and how his relationship with novelist Tatsuha Uesugi affected his work in his band, Nettle Grasper. Ryuichi and Tatsuha were used as [[TheSameButDifferent the basis for Shuichi and Yuki]] [[MythologyGag as well influencing the characterization of their namesakes]] in Gravitation. Secondary characters from Help! were moved into Gravitation without any real changes to their names or personalities. Short chapter summaries of Help! can be found [[https://web.archive.org/web/20050311050810/http://www.nittlegrasper.com/nittles/gravitation_nittles_help.shtml here.]]

** Features a character named [[Music/XJapan Yoshiki]] in a series featuring part of the Japanese music scene [[DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything who just happens to be transgender,]] though if Yoshiki's name is really a shout out, YMMV on whether it’s meant to be a positive ShoutOut or more of a TakeThat to XJapan and/or VisualKei.

* FiveManBand: Bad Luck, [[ThreePlusTwo when K and Sakano are involved]]: Shuichi as the lead singer (TheHero), Hiro the guitarist (TheLancer), K the manager (TheBigGuy; Noriko takes this role in the manga before K shows up), and Suguru the keyboardist (TheSmartGuy). Their male producer Sakano, who frets like a mother hen with eggs balancing on the edge of the Eiffel Tower, is easily TheChick.

''Gravitation,'' created by Maki Murakami, is one of the few mainstream YaoiGenre manga and anime series out there, partly because of the non-explicit nature of the romance between the two main male characters, and also because it has an actual plot to it instead of the usual [[PornWithoutPlot Plot? What Plot?]] typical of many BL series.

* BleachedUnderpants: The infamous [[HotterAndSexier Remix,]] doujinshi by Murakami and her doujin circle, that is ''far'' more explicit than the original series. And then the Megamix series, which is [[UpToEleven even more so.]]

* DenserAndWackier: Hits the manga hard from book six onward.

* [[DudeShesLikeInAComa Dude, He's Like, In A Coma!]]
** Strangely enough, this is averted in ''Gravitation Ex'' when [[spoiler: Shuichi really ''is'' in a coma.]]

* {{Expy}}: A lot of characters are this in relation to the ones in Help! See {{Pilot}} below.
* FakeBand: Back Luck, Nittle Grasper, Ask.
* FiveManBand: Bad Luck, [[ThreePlusTwo when K and Sakano are involved]]: Shuichi as the lead singer (The Hero), Hiro the guitarist (TheLancer), K the manager (TheBigGuy; Noriko takes this role in the manga before K shows up), and Suguru the keyboardist (TheSmartGuy). Their male producer Sakano, who frets like a mother hen with eggs balancing on the edge of the Eiffel Tower, is easily TheChick.

** Badluck: Shuichi (id), Hiro (ego) and Suguru (superego)
** Nittle Grasper: Ryuichi (id), Noriko (ego) and Tohma (superego)

''Gravitation,'' created by Maki Murakami, is one of the few mainstream BoysLove manga and anime series out there, partly because of the non-explicit nature of the romance between the two main male characters, and also because it has an actual plot to it instead of the usual [[PornWithoutPlot Plot? What Plot?]] typical of many BL series.

* {{Bishounen}}: As is the standard fare for BL.
* BleachedUnderpants: The infamous [[HotterAndSexier Remix doujinshi,]] by Murakami and her doujin circle, that is ''far'' more explicit than the original series. And then the Megamix series, which is [[UpToEleven even more so.]]

* DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything: In the OVA with [[http://images.myreviewer.co.uk/fullsize/0000209394.jpg Shuichi's mouth and K's gun.]]

** Strangely enough, this is averted in Gravitation Ex when [[spoiler: Shuichi really ''is'' in a coma.]]

* FunWithAcronyms: "Bad Luck" is occasionally abbreviated to "BL." Right, [[BoysLove that's what it stands for.]]

''Gravitation,'' created by Maki Murakami, is one of the few mainstream BoysLove manga and anime series out there, partly because of the non-explicit nature of the romance between the two main male characters, and also because it has an actual plot to it instead of the usual [[PornWithoutPlot Plot? What Plot]]? typical of many BL series.

Shuichi Shindou wants, above all, to find success as a singer in his band Bad Luck along with his best friend Hiro. But life has something else in store for him: while walking through a park at night, the song lyrics he had been working on are blown out of his hand, and picked up by a [[TallDarkAndSnarky tall, blond, and snarky]] stranger who mercilessly criticizes them. A hurt Shuichi is determined to track down the stranger (later found to be famous romance novelist Eiri Yuki) and demand an apology. But wouldn't you know it, he finds himself being strangely attracted to him by that unstoppable force called gravitation...

The rest of the series is about Bad Luck's rise to fame and the development of the rocky relationship between hyper Shuichi and emotionally cold Yuki who has a [[DarkAndTroubledPast dark past]] of his own. They break up and get back together as the series continually [[MoodWhiplash seesaws between angst and comedy]], but the gravitational pull of love keeps them together in the end, in spite of, or maybe ''because'' of, their [[OppositesAttract vastly different personalities]].

''Gravitation'' was first made into a 2-episode {{OVA}} series and then later remade into a 13-episode anime series that somehow managed to pack the comedy, drama, romance, and music in equal spades without compromising the strength of any one. It's even become popular enough that many non-BL lovers have [[MultipleDemographicAppeal enjoyed]] it for its other qualities.

''Not'' to be confused with ''Anime/{{Gravion}}'', nor with a famous textbook on General Relativity by Misner, Thorne, and Wheeler, nor with Jason Rohrer's [[http://hcsoftware.sourceforge.net/gravitation/ videogame]].

'''Some tropes include:'''

* BleachedUnderpants: The infamous [[HotterAndSexier Remix doujinshi]], by Murakami and her doujin circle, that is ''far'' more explicit than the original series. And then the Megamix series, which is [[UpToEleven even more so]].

* CloudCuckooLander: It's easier to count the characters who aren't, as most of the cast aren't exactly people with their heads well placed on their shoulders. Especially in the manga. See character page for specifics.

* DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything: In the OVA with [[http://images.myreviewer.co.uk/fullsize/0000209394.jpg Suichi's mouth and K's gun]].

* {{Eagleland}}: A significant amount of the manga takes place in [[BigApplesauce New York City]].

* FunWithAcronyms: "Bad Luck" is occasionally abbreviated to "BL." Right, [[BoysLove that's what it stands for]].

* HasTwoMommies: the temporary care of Riku.
* HaveIMentionedIAmHeterosexualToday: Yuki in the beginning, Hiro throughout. Shuichi also takes very much care to remind people that [[BiTheWay actually, he's bi]].

* IncurableCoughOfDeath: Subverted: At one point [[spoiler:Yuki seems to suffer from this condition, even going to the extent of coughing up blood. However the illness turns out to be ulcers and goes away on its own.]]
* InterruptedSuicide: In the final episode of the anime [[spoiler: Shuichi arrives just in time to keep Yuki from committing suicide. Keeping up with the spirit of MoodWhiplash of the series, Shuichi is ''wearing a dog suit'' as he bursts through the wall just as Yuki is about to shoot himself]].
* IWantMyBelovedToBeHappy: Ayaka, Yuki's fiancée, willingly gives him up to Shuichi. Hiro might also do this with Shuichi to an extent, depending on how much you read into the HoYay. Reiji eventually delivered this to Shuichi as well.

* MayDecemberRomance [[spoiler: Noriko and Tetsuya]].
* MeetCute: Yuki and Shuichi do this twice; first when Yuki catches shuichi's lyrics sheet in the park, and then when Shuichi jumps in front of his car in the rain. Hiro and Ayaka also do this, when he and Shuichi save her from the guys who were hassling her.

** Nittle Grasper has the most direct example with Tohma, who [[http://oi57.tinypic.com/2iw0o02.jpg is a very obvious]] CaptainErsatz {{Expy}} of Daisuke Asakura and Ryuichi is [[SuspiciouslySimilarSubstitute suspiciously similar]] to Hiroyuki Takami, the other member of access, a RealLife music group Murakami's circle was well known for writing {{Yaoi}} {{Doujinshi}} about prior to Gravitation. Tohma and Ryuichi look nearly identical to the way [[http://i60.tinypic.com/ot235f.jpg Daisuke and Hiro were drawn in the doujinshi]].
** Bad Luck shares a similar origin: [[http://oi61.tinypic.com/728g.jpg their designs are recycled from the yaoi doujinshi that Murakami's circle also drew]] about [[JapanesePopMusic B'z]], and have the same positions in Bad Luck as their RealLife inspirations. This influence became more of an artifact once Suguru was added and Shuichi’s design became influenced by TMRevolution.

* {{Paparazzi}}: Once Bad Luck hits the big time, they become a recurring obstacle/antagonist.
* PetTheDog: Yuki starts getting these moments in episode eight.
* {{Pilot}}: Gravitation is an expanded rewrite of an earlier doujinshi series by Murakami, collected under the title of Help! It was about a singer named Ryuichi Sakuma and how his relationship with novelist Tatsuha Uesugi affected his work in his band, Nettle Grasper. Ryuichi and Tatsuha were used as [[TheSameButDifferent the basis for Shuichi and Yuki]] [[MythologyGag as well influencing the characterization of their namesakes]] in Gravitation. Secondary characters from Help! were moved into Gravitation without any real changes to their names or personalities. Short chapter summaries of Help! can be found [[https://web.archive.org/web/20050311050810/http://www.nittlegrasper.com/nittles/gravitation_nittles_help.shtml here]].

* RapeAsDrama: [[spoiler: Shuichi is gang-raped on the orders of rival musician Taki Aizawa in order to protect Yuki's reputation. But though Shuichi suffers physical injuries over it and has serious angst over it, he gets over the ordeal relatively quickly. The fact that he's able to do so [[OOCIsSeriousBusiness makes Yuki cry for the first time in six years]].]]
* RearrangeTheSong: The TV soundtrack features multiple instrumental remixes of all of the vocal tracks. One of these was actually turned into a vocal version in the anime: the slowed down rendition of "Sleepless Beauty" that Ryuichi sings when he crashes Bad Luck's concert.

* ShoutOut: The series is built on this trope, and becomes immensely more enjoyable when you know exactly what is being referenced and why. The most obvious is Bad Luck and Nittle Grasper's origins (see NoCelebritiesWereHarmed above). The storyline about Shuichi obsessing over going to Disneyland with Yuki (and chanting "Mickey " repeatedly) is one enormous shout out to Daisuke Asakura's well known love of all things MickeyMouse. There's also a glance at an Oricon chart featuring [[TMRevolution S.M.Revolution]].
** Features a character named [[Music/XJapan Yoshiki]] in a series featuring part of the Japanese music scene [[DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything who just happens to be transgender]], though if Yoshiki's name is really a shout out, YMMV on whether it’s meant to be a positive ShoutOut or more of a TakeThat to XJapan and/or VisualKei.
* SlapSlapKiss: Much of Shuichi and Yuki's interaction in the first episode consists of Shuichi yelling at Yuki that he has no right to insult his lyrics and Yuki coolly responding that he really has no talent, climaxing in a kiss. Interestingly, this WillTheyOrWontThey phase is much shorter than typical because Shuichi from then on becomes [[ClingyJealousGirl completely devoted]] to Yuki, who plays the part of the [[{{Tsundere}} cranky but ultimately protective lover]].

* SpeakIllOfTheDead: Very rarely does anyone say anything nice about [[spoiler: [[AssholeVictim Yuki Kitazawa]]]].
* StupidSexyFlanders: Shuichi might be a victim with a notoriously open mind, considering how he never shows any interest men except for Yuki; particularly in the manga, where he actually has some brief displays of interest in ''women''.

* SympatheticMurderBackstory: [[spoiler:Yuki]] killed someone but it was in self-defense, they were trying to rape him. This trope is actually [[InvokedTrope invoked]] in-universe when he reveals it [[spoiler: because he does so in an effort to repel Shuichi. It only makes Shuichi like him more.]]

* ThereWasADoor: Shuichi does this ''a lot''.
* WrestlerInAllOfUs: OVA Shuichi handing out ''German Suplexes''.