English Dub Review: Twilight Out of Focus “Pick Me”

Overview (Spoilers Below):
Mao prepares to shoot the BL movie for his film club.  Hisashi gets ready to play the handsome, troubled, gay lead.  Mao starts to feel something beyond friendship toward Hisashi but is bound by their promise.  However, the night before the shoot begins…

Our Take:
The film shoot is about to commence, but the real deal still involves Mao’s complex feelings toward Hisashi, who’s set to play the main lead.  Fortunately, it didn’t take too long for Mao to confess his love to Hisashi before the shoot.  This comes after Hisashi’s nasty breakup with his boyfriend, who’s revealed as his manipulative teacher in the flashback.  We’re two episodes in, and Mao has already made his first move despite their promise not to.  On the one hand, this moment could’ve been saved until the climax, when things get as dramatic as a Hallmark movie.  On the other hand, it also developed some compelling internal conflicts between Mao and Hisashi, especially the latter, whose awkwardness toward Mao affected his work.
I also appreciate the episode for portraying the fundamental aspects of filmmaking, mainly in the first half, including the producers’ duties and the camera crew.  It offers an insightful depiction similar to how professionals perform their tasks in Hollywood, indicating the challenges in film production.  Of course, since the film club has a pretty small budget, the best they can do is create a 30-minute BL short movie.  I won’t be surprised if we see more of these fundamentals in action amid the budding bromance between Mao and Hisashi.  The latter felt a bit rushed regarding the character development, but it had enough merits in its humor and heart for me to let it slide for now.