Caste Heaven

Caste Heaven (Japanese: カーストヘヴン, Hepburn: Kāsuto Hevun, alternatively titled Heaven of School Caste in Japan) is a Japanese yaoi manga series written and illustrated by Chise Ogawa, the yaoi pseudonym of Shigeyoshi Takagi. It is 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.

Caste Heaven
Cover of the Japanese version of vol. 1, first released on June 10, 2015
カーストヘヴン
(Kāsuto Hevun)
GenreYaoi[1]
Manga
Written byChise Ogawa
Published byLibre
English publisher
ImprintBBC DX
MagazineMagazine Be × Boy
DemographicJosei
Original runMarch 2014 – present
Volumes6
Game
Caste Heaven for Ameba
Developer1080 Lab
PublisherAmeba
GenreDating sim
PlatformiOS
Android
Released
  • JP: April 23, 2019

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.[2][3][4]

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.[1][5]

Characters
Yuya Azusa (梓 裕也, Azusa Yūya)
Voiced by: Yuma Uchida[1]
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.[5]
Kohei Karino (刈野 滉平, Karino Kōhei)
Voiced by: Yūki Ono[1]
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.[5]
Atsumu Kusakabe (日下部 鐘, Kusakabe Atsumu)
Voiced by: Ayumu Murase[1]
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.[5]
Natsuki Kuze (久世 那月, Kuze Natsuki)
Voiced by: Takuya Satō[1]
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.[5]
Yoichiro Tatsumi (巽 耀一郎, Tatsumi Yōichirō)
Voiced by: Junya Enoki[1]
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.[5]
Kamo Senzaki (仙崎 鴨, Senzaki Kamo)
Voiced by: Makoto Furukawa[5]
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.[5]
Yukari Osuga (大須賀 ゆかり, Ōsuga Yukari)
Voiced by: Kengo Kawanishi[2]
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.
Keigo Yatori (八鳥 圭吾, Yatori Keigo)
Voiced by: Tarusuke Shingaki[2]
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 yaoi pseudonym of Shigeyoshi Takagi.[6] It is serialized in monthly manga magazine Magazine Be × Boy since March 2014.[1] The chapters were later released in 6 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.[7] 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.[8] 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.[9]

In August 2019, Viz Media licensed the series for North American distribution in English under their SuBLime imprint.[10]

No.Japanese release dateJapanese ISBNEnglish release dateEnglish ISBN
1 June 10, 2015 (2015-06-10)[11]978-4799725436March 10, 2020 (2020-03-10)[12][13]978-1974712458
2 May 10, 2016 (2016-05-10)[14]978-4799729458June 9, 2020 (2020-06-09)[15]978-1974712465
3 June 9, 2017 (2017-06-09)[16][17]978-4799733462September 8, 2020 (2020-09-08)[18]978-1974712472
4 September 10, 2018 (2018-09-10)[19][20]978-4799740057December 8, 2020 (2020-12-08)[21]978-1974712489
5 July 10, 2019 (2019-07-10)[22]978-4799743942TBA—
6 April 10, 2020 (2020-04-10)[23]978-4864363396TBA—

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.[24] 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.[25] 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.[17] The second volume starred Ayumu Murase as Atsumu and Takuya Satō as Kuze.[17] It was released on July 19, 2017, peaking at #100 on the Oricon Weekly Album Ranking.[26] 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.[20] The third volume starred Junya Enoki as Tatsumi and Makoto Furukawa as Senzaki.[27] It was released on July 30, 2019, peaking at #82 on the Oricon Weekly Album Ranking.[28]

Game

In January 2019, a dating sim game for iOS and Android was announced and later released on April 23, 2019.[1][5][29] The game is developed by 1080 Lab for Ameba featuring multiple endings for each pairing.[1] Chise Ogawa is supervising the scenarios and also wrote an original scenario for the game.[1] The cast from the drama CD reprised their roles.[30] A pop-up collaboration cafe was held from May 10 to May 26, 2019 at Area-Q Annex in Tokyo to promote the game.[31][32]

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.[33] Volume 1 peaked at #40 on Oricon and sold 15,978 physical copies on its first week of sales.[34] Volume 2 peaked at #24 on Oricon and sold 23,445 physical copies on its first week of sales.[35] Volume 3 peaked at #37 on Oricon and sold 17,010 physical copies on its first week of sales.[36] Volume 4 peaked at #29 on Oricon and sold 21,089 physical copies on its first week of sales.[37]

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.[38]

gollark: Yep!
gollark: It's unable to access DC because TJ09 blocked it for some unclear reason.
gollark: I guess so.
gollark: You kind of have to go off them to find any useful information other than "wait till the timer runs down and give it views".
gollark: It's probably because of our exclusion from the ridiculous "don't talk about NDs" rule on the forums.

References
  1. Mateo, Alex (January 8, 2019). "Caste Heaven Boys Love Manga Gets Smartphone Game". Anime News Network. Retrieved April 10, 2020.
  2. "ストーリー". Libre (in Japanese). Retrieved April 10, 2020.
  3. "「カーストヘヴン」ではクラス内カーストが存在する。". Natalie (in Japanese). April 7, 2015. Retrieved April 10, 2020.
  4. SuBLime Manga [@SuBLimeManga] (March 10, 2020). "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!" (Tweet). Retrieved April 15, 2020 – via Twitter.
  5. "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". 4gamer (in Japanese). April 23, 2019. Retrieved April 10, 2020.
  6. "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". Natalie (in Japanese). April 25, 2017. Retrieved April 10, 2020.
  7. "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」". Natalie (in Japanese). February 29, 2016. Retrieved April 10, 2020.
  8. "メス堕ち BL". Libre (in Japanese). Retrieved April 10, 2020.
  9. Ogawa, Chise. "【C89無配】かーちゅとへぶん". Pixiv (in Japanese). Retrieved April 10, 2020.
  10. Mateo, Alex (August 1, 2019). "SuBLime Licenses Given, Secret XXX, Therapy Game, Liquor & Cigarettes Boys-Love Manga". Anime News Network. Retrieved April 10, 2020.
  11. "緒川千世、クラス内カースト描くBL「カーストヘヴン」1巻記念でサイン会". Natalie (in Japanese). April 7, 2015. Retrieved April 10, 2020.
  12. Sherman, Jennifer (March 10, 2020). "North American Anime, Manga Releases, March 8-14". Anime News Network. Retrieved April 10, 2020.
  13. "Caste Heaven Vol. 1". SuBLime. Retrieved April 10, 2020.
  14. "【5月10日付】本日発売の単行本リスト". Natalie (in Japanese). May 10, 2016. Retrieved April 10, 2020.
  15. "Caste Heaven Vol. 2". SuBLime. Retrieved April 10, 2020.
  16. "【6月9日付】本日発売の単行本リスト". Natalie (in Japanese). June 9, 2017. Retrieved April 10, 2020.
  17. "緒川千世「カーストヘヴン」3巻でサイン会、久世×あつむ編のドラマCDも". Natalie (in Japanese). April 11, 2017. Retrieved April 10, 2020.
  18. "Caste Heaven Vol. 3". SuBLime. Retrieved April 10, 2020.
  19. "【9月10日付】本日発売の単行本リスト". Natalie (in Japanese). September 10, 2018. Retrieved April 10, 2020.
  20. "緒川千世「カーストヘヴン」4巻発売、ドラマCD第3弾は「仙崎×巽編」を収録". Natalie (in Japanese). September 10, 2018. Retrieved April 10, 2020.
  21. "Caste Heaven Vol. 4". SuBLime. Retrieved April 10, 2020.
  22. "緒川千世「カーストヘヴン」5巻が7月発売、アニメイト京都でのサイン会も". Natalie (in Japanese). May 17, 2019. Retrieved April 10, 2020.
  23. "【4月10日付】本日発売の単行本リスト". Natalie (in Japanese). April 10, 2020. Retrieved April 10, 2020.
  24. "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". Natalie (in Japanese). July 7, 2016. Retrieved April 10, 2020.
  25. "ドラマCD「カーストヘヴン」初回限定盤". Oricon (in Japanese). Retrieved April 10, 2020.
  26. "ドラマCD「カーストヘヴン2」初回限定盤". Oricon (in Japanese). Retrieved April 10, 2020.
  27. "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". Natalie (in Japanese). March 1, 2019. Retrieved April 10, 2020.
  28. "ドラマCD「カーストヘヴン3」". Oricon (in Japanese). Retrieved April 10, 2020.
  29. Sherman, Jennifer (May 3, 2019). "Caste Heaven Boys Love Smartphone Game Launches". Anime News Network. Retrieved April 10, 2020.
  30. "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". Natalie (in Japanese). January 7, 2019. Retrieved April 10, 2020.
  31. "「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". Natalie (in Japanese). April 23, 2019. Retrieved April 10, 2020.
  32. "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！". Animate (in Japanese). May 16, 2019. Retrieved April 10, 2020.
  33. "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★". Libre (in Japanese). April 10, 2020. Retrieved April 10, 2020 – via PR Times.
  34. Ressler, Karen (June 17, 2015). "Japanese Comic Ranking, June 8-14". Anime News Network. Retrieved April 10, 2020.
  35. Ressler, Karen (May 18, 2016). "Japanese Comic Ranking, May 9-15". Anime News Network. Retrieved April 10, 2020.
  36. Ressler, Karen (June 14, 2017). "Japanese Comic Ranking, June 5-11". Anime News Network. Retrieved April 10, 2020.
  37. Ressler, Karen (September 19, 2018). "Japanese Comic Ranking, September 10-16". Anime News Network. Retrieved April 10, 2020.
  38. Hopper, Faye; Silverman, Rebecca (June 8, 2020). "The Spring 2020 Manga Guide: Caste Heaven". Anime News Network. Retrieved June 8, 2020.
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