given

GREAT
100%
OF 86 SCOUTSRECOMMEND

After a chance encounter, a high school student with a broken guitar seeks lessons from a talented classmate, leading to the formation of a band and the exploration of personal struggles.

📖 SYNOPSIS

A gifted guitarist who's hit a wall, Ritsuka Uenoyama finds that music just doesn't move him anymore. Then he finds Mafuyu Satou asleep on a staircase, hugging a beat-up Gibson with rusted, broken strings. Mafuyu barely knows how to hold the thing, but something about him makes Ritsuka agree to fix it and start teaching him. When Ritsuka brings Mafuyu to meet his bandmates — chill bassist Haruki and effortlessly cool drummer Akihiko — nobody expects much. Then Mafuyu opens his mouth to sing, and everything shifts. Given is an 11-episode TV series that understands something a lot of music anime don't: the silence between notes matters as much as the sound. It's a story about grief and creative expression and falling for someone before you even realize it's happening. The romance builds slowly and honestly, carried by small gestures and unspoken tension rather than dramatic confessions. Studio Lerche nails the performance scenes — they feel grounded and earned, not flashy for the sake of it. The emotional weight here is real without being manipulative. If you liked the way Your Lie in April tied music to heartbreak, or how Doukyuusei captured quiet intimacy between two people figuring things out, this hits a similar nerve. It also shares DNA with Nana in how it treats band dynamics and adult-feeling relationships. One of those shows that lingers with you after it ends.

✨ MUST WATCH IF...

You want a slow-burn BL romance that treats same-sex relationships with genuine sincerity and care
Character-driven drama about grief and healing matters more to you than plot-heavy storytelling
Lerche's subtle animation style—soft lighting, muted tones—fits your taste for introspective atmospheres
You're into music-themed anime where songs carry deep emotional weight, even if performances are few

❌ SKIP IF...

You expect frequent band performances—this 11-episode season really only spotlights one major song
Slow-burn pacing across early episodes will test your patience if you need constant momentum
Heavy themes like past trauma and suicide aren't something you're comfortable sitting with right now

🎬 EPISODE GUIDE

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MANGA BRIDGE

This season covers Chapters 1-11 of the manga. Continue reading from Chapter 12.

Manga cover

🎭 CHARACTERS

Mafuyu Satou

Mafuyu Satou, a shy 16-year-old, expresses himself through music after a personal tragedy.

Portrayed by Shouji Umeka, Yano Shougo

Ritsuka Uenoyama

Ritsuka Uenoyama: 16-year-old guitarist, scientifically minded, works part-time, and is captivated by Mafuyu.

Portrayed by Uchida Yuuma

Haruki Nakayama

Haruki Nakayama, 22, is a graduate student and bassist for the band Given.

Portrayed by Nakazawa Masatomo

Great
Great
100%(9 Reviews)
given

Studio

Lerche

Season

Summer 2019

Start Date

2019-07-12

End Date

2019-09-20

Episodes

11

Type

TV

©キヅナツキ・新書館/ギヴン製作委員会

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