Caste Heaven Explained

Caste Heaven
Ja Kanji:Japanese: カーストヘヴン
Ja Romaji:Kāsuto Hevun
Type:manga
Author:Chise Ogawa
Publisher:Libre
Imprint:BBC DX
Magazine:Magazine Be × Boy
First:March 2014
Last:2021
Volumes:8
Volume List:
  1. Manga
Caste Heaven for Ameba
Developer:1080 Lab
Publisher:Ameba
Genre:Dating sim
Platforms:iOS
Android

is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Chise Ogawa, the pseudonym of Shigeyoshi Takagi. It was serialized in the monthly manga magazine Magazine Be × Boy since March 2014. A mobile game based on the manga was released in 2019 in Japan.

Plot

Setting

Each class at school is involved in a game that determines each individual's position in the caste system through picking up trump cards scattered throughout the campus. The King and Queen cards select the King and Queen of each class respectively, the top of the caste. The high tier consists of the Jack (Jack), Yes-Man (10), and Wannabes (9), who serve the King. The middle tier consists of the Preppies (8), Gofers (7), and Slackers (6). The low tier consists of the Geeks (5), the Goths (4), and the Brainiacs (3). The outside tier consists of the Freaks (2) and Delinquents (Ace). Students who draw the Joker, refuse to participate in the game, or inform the teachers are immediately turned into Targets and bullied.[1] [2] [3]

Synopsis

Azusa is the King of his class, but during the caste reassignment, Karino betrays him, taking the King card for himself while assigning him the role of the Target. Azusa is forced to submit to Karino to avoid being assaulted by the class, but despite facing constant harassment and bullying, he is undeterred and fights back to regain his position. As Azusa learns more about Karino's background, other students, overcome with envy from their social statuses, form relationships ranging from love to hate with each other throughout the caste game.

Characters

Azusa is a student from class 2-1 who was initially a King but became a Target during the reshuffle. He lives with his single mother and is determined to take back his King position from Kohei. He hates being sympathized.
  • Karino is a student from class 2-1 who was initially a Wannabe but became a King during the reshuffle. Initially obedient to Azusa, his true personality is sadistic and controlling, which he reveals upon betraying him to become the King. He is the prime minister's son with a future already decided for him, and he looks at his school life as a way to pass his boredom. He is entertained by Azusa's unbreakable spirit and wants nothing more than to see him humiliated and helpless.
  • Atsumu is a student from class 2-1 who was initially a Target but became a Jack during the reshuffle. Quiet and shy, he was bullied at school since childhood and views Kuze as a prince. After realizing the extent of how much caste game has affected people's personalities, Atsumu opposes the game and tries to treat everyone equally outside of their rankings.
  • Kuze is a student from class 2-1 who was initially a Jack but became a Preppy during the reshuffle. He is popular and comes from a rich family. Atsumu reminds him of a defenseless rabbit he cared for in elementary school that was later killed by other rabbits, and he becomes extremely protective of him as a result.
  • Tatsumi is a student from class 3-2 who was initially a Preppy but became a Delinquent during the reshuffle. He is the illegitimate son between Karino's father and his mistress, and he maintains good behavior, grades, and responsibility towards Karino in order for his mother to receive financial support. Through Senzaki, Tatsumi discovers he wants to be free, but he realizes he is still unable to choose between his family's expectations and his personal freedom. After Senzaki disappears from his life, Tatsumi awaits his return.
  • Senzaki is a student from class 3-2 who is a Delinquent before and after the reshuffle. He is feared by his classmates for having tattoos and a violent behavior, but he falls deeply in love with Tatsumi after the latter accepts him for who he is. He devotes all of himself to Tatsumi, but when he notices Tatsumi hesitates to reciprocate because of his family, he later stops attending school.
  • [1]
  • Osuga is a student from class 2-1 who is a Wannabe before and after the reshuffle. He is concerned about his small body and wants to become stronger.
    [1]
  • Yatori is a student from class 2-1 who is a Gofer before and after the reshuffle. He is Osuga's childhood friend and is loyal to him.

    Media

    Manga

    Caste Heaven is written and illustrated by Chise Ogawa, the pseudonym of Shigeyoshi Takagi.[4] It was serialized in monthly manga magazine Magazine Be × Boy from March 2014 to late 2021. The chapters were later released in 8 bound volumes by Libre under the BBC DX imprint.

    A short story featuring Osuga and Yatori was published in the anthology Kuzu, which was released on February 29, 2016.[5] A short story featuring Omi and Akio was published in the anthology Mesuochi BL, a part of Libre's X-BL anthology series, which was released on February 10, 2017.[6] In addition, Ogawa sold an unofficial dōjinshi featuring Tamotsu Yoshinaga and Kento Megumi for Comiket 89 on December 29, 2015 and also posted it on her Pixiv account.[7]

    In August 2019, Viz Media licensed the series for North American distribution in English under their SuBLime imprint.[8]

    Drama CDs

    A drama CD adapting the first volume was announced on July 7, 2016, starring Yuma Uchida as Azusa and Yūki Ono as Karino, and was released on October 26, 2016.[9] The first volume also included an original drama track titled "In the Middle of the Game" and peaked at #58 on the Oricon Weekly Album Rankings.[10] The second drama CD, adapting the second volume of the manga, was announced on April 11, 2017 with the release of volume 3 of the manga. The second volume starred Ayumu Murase as Atsumu and Takuya Satō as Kuze. It was released on July 19, 2017, peaking at #100 on the Oricon Weekly Album Ranking.[11] The third drama CD, adapting the third volume of the manga, was announced on September 10, 2018 with the release of volume 4 of the manga. The third volume starred Junya Enoki as Tatsumi and Makoto Furukawa as Senzaki.[12] It was released on July 30, 2019, peaking at #82 on the Oricon Weekly Album Ranking.[13]

    Game

    In January 2019, a dating sim game for iOS and Android was announced and later released in Japan on April 23, 2019.[14] [15] [16] The game is developed by 1080 Lab for Ameba featuring multiple endings for each pairing.[14] Chise Ogawa is supervising the scenarios and also wrote an original scenario for the game.[14] The cast from the drama CD reprised their roles.[17] A pop-up collaboration cafe was held from May 10 to May 26, 2019 at Area-Q Annex in Tokyo to promote the game.[18] [19]

    Reception

    Caste Heaven has sold a cumulative total of 700,000 physical copies in Japan by the release of the sixth volume on April 10, 2020.[20] Volume 1 peaked at #40 on Oricon and sold 15,978 physical copies on its first week of sales.[21] Volume 2 peaked at #24 on Oricon and sold 23,445 physical copies on its first week of sales.[22] Volume 3 peaked at #37 on Oricon and sold 17,010 physical copies on its first week of sales.[23] Volume 4 peaked at #29 on Oricon and sold 21,089 physical copies on its first week of sales.[24]

    Anime News Network gave the first volume a low score, citing discomfort with conflating bullying and cruelty with sexiness, while stating Atsumu and Kuze's segments were more palatable.[25]

    External links

    Notes and References

    1. Web site: ストーリー . ja . . 2020-04-10 . April 11, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200411062743/https://www.b-boy.jp/special/caste_heaven/story.html . live .
    2. News: 「カーストヘヴン」ではクラス内カーストが存在する。 . ja . . 2015-04-07 . 2020-04-10 . April 11, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200411064337/https://natalie.mu/comic/gallery/news/143379/345146 . live .
    3. SuBLime Manga . SuBLimeManga . 1237502833244516352 . 2020-03-10 . Who wants to play the caste game? Comment below and I'll pull a random card to determine your caste! Class 2-1 begin playing NOW! . https://twitter.com/SuBLimeManga/status/1237502833244516352 . 2020-04-15.
    4. News: 緒川千世×モリエサトシの双子対談がon BLUEに、次号は高野ひと深を特集 . ja . . 2017-04-25 . 2020-04-10 . April 11, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200411062740/https://natalie.mu/comic/news/230070 . live .
    5. News: 緒川千世、志村貴子、秀良子らが描くクズ男たち、BLアンソロジー「屑」 . ja . . 2016-02-29 . 2020-04-10 . April 11, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200411062742/https://natalie.mu/comic/news/178028 . live .
    6. Web site: メス堕ち BL . ja . . 2020-04-10 . April 11, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200411062746/https://x-bl.jp/mesuochi/book/ . live .
    7. Web site: Chise . Ogawa . 【C89無配】かーちゅとへぶん . registration . ja . . 2020-04-10.
    8. News: Alex . Mateo . SuBLime Licenses Given, Secret XXX, Therapy Game, Liquor & Cigarettes Boys-Love Manga . . 2019-08-01 . 2020-04-10 . April 16, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200416091637/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2019-08-01/sublime-licenses-given-secret-xxx-therapy-game-liquor-and-cigarettes-boys-love-manga/.149616 . live .
    9. News: 緒川千世の学園BL「カーストヘヴン」ドラマCD化!内田雄馬、小野友樹ら出演 . ja . . 2016-07-07 . 2020-04-10 . April 11, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200411062743/https://natalie.mu/comic/news/193727 . live .
    10. Web site: ドラマCD「カーストヘヴン」初回限定盤 . ja . . 2020-04-10 . April 11, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200411062745/https://www.oricon.co.jp/prof/41498/products/1193250/1/ . live .
    11. Web site: ドラマCD「カーストヘヴン2」初回限定盤 . ja . . 2020-04-10 . April 11, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200411062744/https://www.oricon.co.jp/prof/41498/products/1231629/1/ . live .
    12. News: 緒川千世「カーストヘヴン」ドラマCD第3弾に古川慎出演、コラボカフェも開催 . ja . . 2019-03-01 . 2020-04-10 . April 11, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200411062741/https://natalie.mu/comic/news/322187 . live .
    13. Web site: ドラマCD「カーストヘヴン3」 . ja . . 2020-04-10 . April 11, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200411062741/https://www.oricon.co.jp/prof/41498/products/1333678/1/ . live .
    14. News: Alex . Mateo . Caste Heaven Boys Love Manga Gets Smartphone Game . . 2019-01-08 . 2020-04-10 . April 11, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200411062741/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2019-01-08/caste-heaven-boys-love-manga-gets-smartphone-game/.141752 . live .
    15. News: BLマンガ原作のスマホ向け恋愛SLG「カーストヘヴン」がAmebaにてリリース . ja . . 2019-04-23 . 2020-04-10 . April 11, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200411062746/https://www.4gamer.net/games/446/G044621/20190423108/ . live .
    16. News: Jennifer . Sherman . Caste Heaven Boys Love Smartphone Game Launches . . 2019-05-03 . 2020-04-10 . October 11, 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20191011222321/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/daily-briefs/2019-05-03/caste-heaven-boys-love-smartphone-game-launches/.146382 . live .
    17. News: 緒川千世のスクールカーストBL「カーストヘヴン」スマホゲームに、事前登録開始 . ja . . 2019-01-07 . 2020-04-10 . April 11, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200411062745/https://natalie.mu/comic/news/315029 . live .
    18. News: 「カーストヘヴン」コラボカフェが原宿で、「刈野に復讐してやるカフェオレ」など . ja . . 2019-04-23 . 2020-04-10 . June 9, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200609070720/https://natalie.mu/comic/news/330360 . live .
    19. News: 原作者・緒川千世さんのラフ原稿や作品世界が、事前予約なしで堪能できるBLコミック『カーストヘヴン』初コラボカフェをレポート! . ja . . 2019-05-16 . 2020-04-10 . August 8, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200808034906/https://www.animatetimes.com/news/details.php?id=1557485672 . live .
    20. News: シリーズ累計70万部突破! 衝撃のスクールカーストBLコミックス「カーストヘヴン」最新6巻本日発売! アニメイト池袋本店限定フェアや、新刊発売を記念したツイッターキャンペーンも開催★ . ja . . PR Times . 2020-04-10 . 2020-04-10 . April 11, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200411085655/https://prtimes.jp/main/html/rd/p/000000340.000022435.html . live .
    21. News: Karen . Ressler . Japanese Comic Ranking, June 8–14 . . 2015-06-17 . 2020-04-10 . April 25, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200425024011/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2015-06-17/japanese-comic-ranking-june-8-14/.89394 . live .
    22. News: Karen . Ressler . Japanese Comic Ranking, May 9–15 . . 2016-05-18 . 2020-04-10 . June 19, 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160619210141/http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2016-05-18/japanese-comic-ranking-may-9-15/.102252 . live .
    23. News: Karen . Ressler . Japanese Comic Ranking, June 5–11 . . 2017-06-14 . 2020-04-10 . August 13, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200813030537/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2017-06-14/japanese-comic-ranking-june-5-11/.117479 . live .
    24. News: Karen . Ressler . Japanese Comic Ranking, September 10–16 . . 2018-09-19 . 2020-04-10 . December 16, 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20191216222647/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2018-09-19/japanese-comic-ranking-september-10-16/.137006 . live .
    25. News: Faye . Hopper . Rebecca . Silverman . The Spring 2020 Manga Guide: Caste Heaven . . 2020-06-08 . 2020-06-08 . August 27, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200827183659/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/feature/2020-06-08/the-spring-2020-manga-guide/caste-heaven/.160279 . live .