"What are you to me?"
"How should I know??"
Super Lovers is a yaoi manga by Miyuki Abe.
Haru visits Canada to spend the summer holidays in the woodland house of his strict, strong-willed mother, Haruko. There, she burdens him with the responsibility of caring for his younger adoptive brother - a wild and unruly little boy named Ren who trusts no one and prefers to wander in the woods with Haruko's dogs rather than associate with other people. Haruko orders Haru to 'civilize' Ren.
As the young man strives to teach Ren how to live in human society, their relationship gradually improves - so much so that Haru plans on taking his 'little brother' to Japan with him once he finds a job.
Unfortunately, fate has a cruel habit of interfering with one's plans...
The series was adapted into an anime in April 2016. The second season premiered in January 2017.
This work provides examples of:
- A Dog Named "Dog": Tanuki/Racoon, although this makes more sense in Japanese since he turns out to be a Tanuki Pome.
- Amnesiac Hero: Haru loses part of his memory, including the summer spent with Ren in Canada and the last conversation with his parents.
- Big Brother Instinct: Haru. He also tries (somewhat successfully) to invoke this in Aki regarding Ren.
- Bilingual Bonus: Ren and Haru, as well as Ren and a classmate sometimes talk in English. (At least in the Chinese tankobon, a translation is provided)
- Cast Full of Gay: The sheer amount of gays isn't surprising, considering the Yaoi Genre.
- Character Development: Aki really grew up, both Ren and Haru are going through some.
- Conveniently an Orphan: Played with in regards to Ren. Although it isn't played for laughs and an important part of his character, it is convenient to the plot.
- Crazy Jealous Guy: Everyone has their jealous and crazy jealous moments, even Aki over Shima tutoring and spending time with a girl. There's also Haru towards Ren spending time with Natsuo and Ren's outburst after Natsuo kissed Haru. or Ren's general emotions regarding Haru and other people.
- Dark and Troubled Past: Most likely for Ren, who has burn marks on the soles of his feet. Either in the orphanage or before someone seems to have abused him.
- Deceased Parents Are the Best: The Kaidou's, who were a loving couple who cared for Haru and adopted Ren into the family before they died tragically in a car crash.
- Double Standard: Abuse, Female on Male:
- Averted somewhat. Ren loves and cares deeply for Haru but has no problem hurting Haru whenever he does something that upsets him.
- Played straight with Haruko mistreating her own son Haru even though she still loves him. She would even go as far as having no problems in punching her own son whenever he uses offensive words towards her or calls her “mom”!
- Also played straight when Mikiko literately threw a book at Haru when he showed up late for a meeting in her office.
- Expy:
- A half-Japanese blond that works as a host, is fawned over ladies in droves and wants to keep his family together? Where have we seen that before?
- Non-identical twins, one wears glasses and is responsible while the other is wild-haired and more hot-blooded. Rin and Yukio, is that you?
- Fetish: Haru. Keeps accepting presents like porn with a female star that looks suspiciously like Ren, cosplay in Ren's size etc. It's still not revealed whether Ren or Cosplay is the actual fetish.
- Funny Foreigner: Sometimes Ren to his classmates. When a teacher wants him to be more like his classmates, they say he might be weird, but he doesn't have to change, claiming that they can't change their little quirks either.
- Host Club: Haru used to work as a host, Natsuo still does and took on Haru's pseudonym.
- If It's You, It's Okay: Funnily enough, Natsuo says this to Ren, when he is asked to sleep with him.Natsuo: "Hm.. Though I'm not into guys or kids, if it's you, I don't mind."
- Incest Subtext: Aki and Shima, Haru and Natsuo, Natsuo and Sensei..
- Jizzed in My Pants: At one point Haru kicks Ren out of his bed for a while, and Ren finds that without Haru in the immediate vicinity he can't orgasm. This trope is invoked the next time Haru kisses Ren.
- Just a Kid: Ren is usually treated this way by Haru.
- Kinky Cuffs: In chapter 20, Ren uses the handcuffs he found to cuff Haru and confront him about the massive amount of cosplay clothes he found under his bed.
- Meaningful Name: Ren's name means "really tiny", which is fitting since he's so small compared to Haru.
- My God, What Have I Done?: Happens to Haru when Ren gets sick due to his negligence. After that, he vows to look after Ren properly.
- Not Blood Siblings: Ren and Haru (or Ren and any of the Kaidou siblings).
- Not What It Looks Like: Aki and Shima to a friend/co-worker when he sees Haru and Ren kissing:Haru: "Isn't this really normal? Between two brothers."Shima: "Yeah, it's really normal."Aki: "Because it's Haru. (When we wre younger Haru was like that to us too.)"Shima: "Yeah, you see.. those two are definitely.. foreigners."
- Malaproper: Tanuki/Racoon Ren's understanding of the Japanese language is not necessarily bad, but it leaves something to wish for, starkly contrasting his otherwise exceptionally good grades.
- No Social Skills: Ren. He isn't outright rude or asocial, but he's just not that interested in people if they aren't Haru.
- Official Couple: Ren and Haru get together.
- Older Than They Look: Poor Ren apparently looks like a middle schooler.
- One Head Taller: Ren is really tiny.note
- Only Sane Man: Often Played for Laughs with either Aki, Shima, Sensei or an Innocent Bystander
- Parental Abandonment: Ren's biological parents seem to have abandoned him, the Kaidou parents died, and Haruko is more of a crazy aunt than a mother towards Haru, even punishing him for calling her mom.
- Parental Substitute: Haruko to Ren, though one could argue that she is more than that as his semi-adopted mother. Mikiko could be seen as one to all the brothers, as she helped them find residency and helped Haru rake in customers when he was a host.
- Parents Walk In at the Worst Time: Or rather, siblings do. There have been more than a few instances where either Shima or Aki walk in on Haru and Ren in various states of undress.
- Prefers Going Barefoot: Ren in Canada. He was a pretty badass 8-year-old, and constantly refused to wear his shoes until Haru managed to have him wear them.
- Real Men Cook: Living in an only-men household, and owning a café does that to a guy. Ren's curry seems to be very tasty, too.
- Ridiculously Cute Critter: Tanuki's definitely one, especially in the anime.
- Secret Relationship: Played with. While the rest of their family seems to be in the know about their relationship and are fine with it (for the most part), to an outsider they display themselves simply as brothers. Haru, however, has no problems with kissing Ren in the middle of his school foyer, in plain sight of one of Ren's friends.
- Seme: Haru is a Nonke (unless he'll be revealed to have been bi all along), and shares some traits with the Wanko-type-seme.
- Ship Tease: Aside from Haru and Ren there's Aki and Shima, as well as Natsuo and Shirou.
- Single-Target Sexuality: Arguably, for Ren, only Haru will do. After he gets to know Ren and regains some of his memories, it's most likely the same for Haru. Pretty much confirmed in chapter 12, when Haru can't get it up to an AV with an actress that looks like Ren—one of his top three. He's very distressed (at first).
- Sleep Cute: Haru and Ren start sharing a bed very early on, though with Ren being eight, it is deeply platonicHaru: "I can only sleep when it's with you."
- Uke: Ren is kind of a Sasoi uke, though his personality makes it hard to determine sometimes.
- Uncanny Family Resemblance: Despite being cousins, Haru and Natsuo look more like twins than the twins do.
- Undercover as Lovers: Natsuo and Shirou pretend to be thinking about dating when Natsuo is working for Mikiko to ruin Tachibana.
- Will They or Won't They?: Haru and Ren's relationship is moving at an absolutely glacial pace, not helped by constant interruptions from family members and friends as well as a healthy dose of overblown misunderstandings between the two.
