Ai Yori Aoshi

the reviewers at t.h.e.m. anime didn’t like the fact that four episodes in, this series seems to change from being a serious romantic drama, to a classical Japanese situation comedy.

perhaps i’m more forgiving, as they’re partly true – the first four episodes seem to assert a very different style to the middle portion of the series, but i thoroughly enjoyed all of it. the transition might have been performed with a little more tact, but it wasn’t as jarring as i expected it to be after reading them anime’s reviews. something i’ve learned from Happy Lesson and Magical Shopping Arcade Abenobashi is that Japanese comedy is always meaningful, and usually there will be a great message at the heart of each situation.

from the outset it’s pretty clear that nothing will threaten Kaoru and Aoi’s relationship, so it was easy for me to enjoy the initial situation comedy Kaoru gets into with the other characters, knowing that eventually an issue regarding those other characters will be exposed. overall i found each situation to be handled in a far superior way than the quite shallow events of Love Hina. not to beat-up too much on Love Hina, afterall, it is intended only to be a lightish comedy, but i really do think Ai Yori Aoshi hits the mark pretty much every time, with every character.

pacing issues aside, i really did find this to be a well balanced anime – great characterisations, and not too many cheap moments. each situation is put to good use, and i never felt like any of them were inserted for cheap laughs – they always ended in a warm resolve, no matter how slight. it’s also great that Kaoru isn’t a bumbling idiot, like so many other male protagonists in comedies. nothing (much) against the classic bumbling idiot, but it was great to see a change for once, and i thought it really did suit the series well to have him as honest, caring and confident as he was. going hand-in-hand with that of-course is Aoi, who on the surface may appear weak, but is pretty assertive fairly early on. she is a very strong character, as are they all, and her behaviour is very relevant to her life experience – i didn’t find it overly humble at all.

eh… i didn’t write this in chronological order – too many edits… gar.

anyway, i don’t want to give away any spoilers, but i will say that Miyabi was my favourite character, though i really did take to the entire cast.