Super Lovers (stylized in all caps) is a Japanese yaoimanga series published in the magazine Emerald by Miyuki Abe, author of Hakkenden: Eight Dogs of the East. An anime adaptation premiered in April 2016. A second season premiered in January 2017.
Plot
Haru Kaido goes to visit Canada and spend his summer vacation in the woodland house of his strict, strong-willed mother Haruko who purposely fools her son into believing that she's on "the verge of death" only to burden him with the responsibility of taking care of her newly adopted "puppy". That "puppy", in actuality, is a small, rash, anti-social little boy named Ren who doesn't trust anyone and would prefer hanging out with Haruko's dogs. Haruko orders Haru to "civilize" Ren until the end of summer. As the young man struggles in doing everything he can to help Ren, their relationship gradually improves; so far so that when Haru graduated high school, he planned on taking Ren to Japan for them to live together with his twin half-brothers.
Unfortunately, an accident occurs that causes the death of Haru's father and stepmother, leaving him the only survivor. The accident causes him to lose his memories of that summer.
Five years later, Ren comes to Tokyo, Japan and claims Haru as his new "brother". Will Haru adjust to his new role in life and keep that promise to Ren? Or will he deny Ren as his brother?
The eldest brother and the head household of the Kaidou family. He is the adopted brother to Ren and half-brother to Aki and Shima. Five years ago, when he went to visit Canada, he met Ren. Even though Ren was quite hostile towards him, he managed to make Ren open his heart. He lost his memories of that summer when he came back to Japan due to an accident. When he meets Ren again he isn't too keen about the whole "brother" thing, but he quickly warms up to him again. He dotes on Ren, to the annoyance of the younger boy as well as Haru's younger twin brothers, especially Aki. He is quarter-Canadian. He has a kind and child-like personality and cares dearly for all of his brothers, especially Ren.
The fourth and youngest brother of the Kaidou family. Five years earlier, he was a wild anti-social little brat that behaved like a dog which led to Haruko having a hard time raising him. When he first met Haru, his life gradually changed and started to accept the society life because of him. He attends a co-ed high school in Tokyo and is starting to make friends. In the series, Ren has a calm and steady personality, and he acts more mature for his age. According to Haruko, there is a possibility of his birth name being Allen and that his biological mother was a drug addict who sold him for drugs. This, however, has not been outright confirmed.
The second brother of the Kaidou family. He has a brash, stubborn attitude compare to his younger twin. He seems to have a slight brother complex when it comes to Haru and Shima. He isn't very fond of Ren at first, but gradually warms up to him over time especially when they all start living together.
The third brother of the Kaidou family. He has a calm personality and is taller than his older twin. He is more understanding than his brother when it comes to things concerning Ren.
Takashi Kaidō (海棠 崇, Kaidō Takashi)
Voiced by: Teruaki Ogawa (drama CD and TV anime Japanese)
Haru's biological father. He passes away in a car accident in the beginning of the series.
Ruri Kaidō (海棠 留理, Kaidō Ruri)
Voiced by: Yūko Sasaki (drama CD and TV anime Japanese)
Haru's stepmother. She passes away in a car accident in the beginning of the series.
A host and fellow worker of Haru with a friendly and lively demeanor. He admires Haru and follows him working on the cafe White Fang, where he provides the food through his family in the country. He affectionately calls Ren as Ren Ren.
Ren's best friend and classmate. He lives in a student dorm next to their school. When Ren asks him specific questions, it embarrasses him.
Haruko D. Dieckmann (春子・D・ディークマン, Haruko Di Dīkuman)
Voiced by: Atsuko Tanaka (drama CD and TV anime Japanese)
Haru's biological mother and Ren's adopted mother. She stayed with Ren after Haru left for Japan. In the Manga and Anime, it is said that she is a CERN member and is friends with Mikiko.
Mikiko Kashiwagi (柏木 幹子, Kashiwagi Mikiko)
Voiced by: Yōko Sōmi (drama CD and TV anime Japanese)
A lawyer friend of Haruko who is part of a wealthy family and acts as a correspondent between Haru and Haruko. She sometimes drops by the house to check up on them.
Voiced by: Mitsuki Saiga (drama CD and TV anime Japanese)
A friend from Haru's high school days. He is seen dressing in women's outfits and takes on the name Kiyoka. He helps Haru when he decides to open up his own cafe by working the bar after six. He has confessed to Haru before but was rejected.
A female student of Shima's and is her first year in middle school. Since her parents got divorced she is living with her grandparents; she appears in episode 8. When she was first introduced, she had a small crush on Shima. It is unknown if she still has the crush or not.
A bartender working at Host-(Haru's previous job) and Haru's childhood friend and cousin. At times he can be very assertive and exhibit otherwise reckless behavior and/or attitude towards people. Additionally, Natsuo is shown to be extremely lazy. Even if his house is messy; with litter all over the ground and revenge-graffiti from his ex covering the walls, he still refuses to clean and continues to inhabit the place. Haru became quite fond of Natsuo. When they were together, they'd look like brothers because of appearances. Natsuo can be good-natured or kind, but this is often disregarded by his sometimes obnoxious demeanor. Natsuo was separated from the Kaidou family at a young age because his father borrowed money from them and ran away to avoid paying it.
A psychotherapist who works at the same hospital that Haru was admitted to after the latter was involved in a fatal car crash. He was the one who helped Haru recover from his injuries and keeps in touch with Mikiko. He has a happy and cheerful personality.
Media
Manga
Abe began publishing Super Lovers in Kadokawa's Ciel magazine in 2009,[1] before switching to the Emerald magazine upon its 31 August 2014 launch.[4] Eighteen volumes have been published as of August 2024.
In 2017, at Yaoi-Con, Viz Media stated that they received requests to license the manga in English for North American distribution, but they decided against it due to content issues.[5]
An anime adaptation was announced via a handout included with the reprint of volume one of Shungiku Nakamura's √W.P.B. manga.[1] It is directed by Shinji Ishihira and written by Yoshiko Nakamura, with animation by the animation studioStudio Deen.[30] Miki Takihara is in charge of the series' character designs.[31] The opening theme song is "Okaeri" by Yūsuke Yata and the ending theme is "Happiness YOU&ME" by Kaidō 4 Kyōdai (voice actors of Ren, Haru, Aki, and Shima).[32]
A 20-minute-long OVA was included with the 10th volume of the manga when it ships on 1 January 2017.[33]
A second season of the anime was announced in the final episode of the first season.[34] It premiered on 12 January 2017.[35][36] The opening theme song is "Hare-Iro Melody" by Yūsuke Yata, while the ending theme song is "Gyun to Love Song" by Kaidō 4 Kyōdai.[37]
On 14 July 2017, Funimation licensed the series and released it on home video starting 17 October 2017.[38]
