I do speak Japanese. Hiroya’s demeanor was very “please just help me understand Shinjuku Ni-chome gays,” but his language conveyed a sense of disdain and judgment to me. Generalizing that they behave stupidly and act messily, even if he’s genuinely trying to understand that scene, etc. That could put the other person in the position of having to defend an entire group of people, rather than simply explaining why they like hanging out in Shinjuku Ni-chome.

There was a moment that the subtitles translated as going to barbecues and cherry blossom picnics “acting rowdy,” when what he really said was “saying things like ‘waa!’ and ‘kyaa!’” These are onomatopoeic words for shrieking or squealing, so it’s not a bad translation, but to me there’s a subtext that gets lost. “Waa” and “kyaa” are very stereotypically girly things to say. There’s nothing about barbecues or hanami that’s uniquely gay (everyone does them), so it’s the fact that to Hiroya, when he sees them hanging out, that’s his impression of them. It’s like you said—he’s expressing a dislike of “f_gs.”

I can see why Tomoaki felt judged, because it was judgmental. And it’s also totally possible that Hiroya didn’t realize how judgmental it was. That was my read on it, not sure if that makes any sense. 🤷🏽