Our Road of No Return
(Boku wa Konomama Kaerinai)
Reviewer: Wiggle [website] [email]Overall Rating: C+
Media Reviewed: VCD fansub
Creator: Kazuna Uchida
U.S. Licensed: Yes
Released by: Media Blasters (U.S.)
Run time: 30 minutes
BL Content: Soft (touching, kissing)
Genre:? Drama
Other media: English-licensed manga I Shall Never Return [review]
Webmaster's Note: This review covers the fansubbed version of "Our Road of No Return." It is now available on DVD from Media Blasters, titled "I Shall Never Return."
Our Road of No Return (Boku wa Konomama Kaerinai) follows a very basic storyline of two friends discovering their love for each other. The characters and the animation are about as memorable as the plot, but at the end, you're left with a sort of satisfaction. Sort of.
The thirty-minute OAV focuses on Amafuji Ken, a dark-haired, brown-eyed skinny high school dropout who longs to tell his best friend, sandy-blond, hazel-eyed Youshinari Ritsurou, how he really feels. Standing in the way of that admission is Ritsurou's girlfriend, Moeko -- not to mention the fact that Ken makes money to pay for his apartment by selling his body to men he meets on the street or at clubs. Ken's parents are divorced, so he lives by himself. After dropping out of high school, Ken gets Ritsurou to live with him, cooking and straightening in exchange for a place to live on their own.
The angst begins when Ken sleeps with Moeko to get to Ritsurou. Moeko even blames Ritsurou, because he was never willing to get physical before. But this is a pattern with the friends; Ken has stolen Ritsurou's girlfriends before. Despite apologies and angst from both sides, Ritsurou is still unable to go through with sex with Moeko. And, despite Ken's clumsy efforts, Ritsurou won't sleep with Ken either.
Finally the crucial moment comes: Ken is to go to Singapore to live with his mother and new husband. Just when Ken is about to agree to go, Ritsurou comes racing back to the apartment, saying, "I want to be with you."
To enforce his image as a loose, easy gigolo, Ken appears shirtless or naked several times in the course of thirty minutes. However, this nudity, a couple of kisses, and a few very short scenes of caressing are all that the OAV offers. There is no sex, there is very little explicit nudity or even making out. Still, Ken and Ritsurou are a sweet couple when they're getting along, and their relationship is very even. It's hard to tell which would take the seme or uke role, which is a nice change from many yaoi videos.
The animation looks like it would be nice in the original, but after copying several times to a VCD, and at a 360x240 resolution, the appearance is terrible. However, if you can download it, get it for free, or from a friend, Our Road of No Return is a nice little boys' love school drama with a few cute moments that make it worth the view.