From left to right: Eri, Sosuke, Ruka, Michiru, and Takeru.
Last Friends is a Japanese live-action drama series aired on Fuji TV in 2008. The series was directed by Endo Mitsutaka and Katou Yuusuke and written by Asano Taeko.
The story follows a group of 5 young adults who must deal with their own personal demons. The main plotline follows Michiru who recently started living with her boyfriend, a man who at first glance looks like the perfect partner. Additional plotlines involve Ruka, Michiru's ex-classmate, dealing with gender identity issues and Takeru a hairdresser that's afraid of sex due to past trauma.
Last Friends provides examples of:
- Destructive Romance: Michiru and Sosuke.
- Domestic Abuse: Despite appearing perfect to outsiders Sosuke is a physically abusive man.
- Forced Out of the Closet: Ruka is pushed to come out of the closet before being ready.
- Paralyzing Fear of Sexuality: Takeru is afraid of everything involving sex or romance due to past trauma.
- Queerphobic Hate Crime: Ruka is the receiver of these on multiple ocassions.
