 | | ▪ | RELEASED BY: | | GENEON ENTERTAINMENT | | | ▪ | ASPECT RATIO: | | 16:9 FULL SCREEN | | | ▪ | AUDIO: | | ENGLISH AND JAPANESE DD 2.0 | | | ▪ | RUNNING TIME: | | 910 | | | ▪ | RATING: | | 13UP | | | ▪ | RELEASE DATE: | | 04/17/2007 | | | ▪ | REVIEW DATE: | | 08/05/2007 | | | ▪ | REVIEWED BY: | | HOLLY ELLINGWOOD |
SYNOPSIS:
True "Blue" Love. Kaoru Hanabishi just wanted to help. Aoi Sakuraba just wanted to find her first love. They never realized they were looking for each other. Ever since their arranged marriage 18 years ago, Aoi has been in love with Kaoru, so she traveled to Tokyo to find him when she learned their marriage had been called off.
While Kaoru's impressed by Aoi's loyalty, innocence and beauty, to accept her affection, he might have to return to the Hanabishi Clan and the emotional and physical pain he suffered during his childhood. Their self-control and their love will be put to the test when she moves in and he tries to stay a gentleman!
Contains the complete five volumes of Ai Yori Aoshi and the complete three volumes of Ai Yori Aoshi – Enishi together in a shrink wrapped set for a total of eight DVDs to contain the entire series!
REVIEW:
Based on the shoujo manga series by Kou Fumizuki, Ai Yori Aoshi is a delightful romantic saga about a couple destined to be together no matter the odds. The first season is twenty-four episodes revolving around a college student named Kaoru, his lonely life, and how it is saved by the appearance of a childhood friend named Aoi. She comes from a very stern and high class family. That same family made Kaoru’s life Hell for being an illegitimate child. He never forgave them the hardships he had to endure or those forced upon his mother before she died. So Aoi’s presence in his life is one immediately fraught with unpleasant memories for Kaoru. However, this sweet and gentle flower is nothing like the harsh elders of the Sakuraba and Hanabishi clans that punished Kaoru merely for existing. Can her gentle and loving ways win him over and heal his long open wounds? The first part of this series starts off with a lot of drama, and builds to some exceptionally tender moments between theses two young adults. From there it begins to dissolve into a more generic harem comedy when they live under the same roof together supervised by the over-protective Miss Miyabi. At the Sakuraba mansion near Kaoru’s school, other girls quickly come to live with them as well, treating the mansion like a rental tenement. Soon his American and rowdy friend Tina joins them, followed by classmate Taeko who begins to work as a maid despite her clumsy ways, later the spoiled Mayu joins the fold along with her butler, and then last but not least is the cute young Chika who is Taeko’s cousin. Each character is shown to have a heart of gold. A personal favorite episode is the one regarding Miss Miyabi and the introduction of a cute furry visitor into the household. With all these girls living under the same roof, even the quiet and decent Kaoru has a hard time staying out of trouble as the girls put him in one compromising position after another. It’s all good natured though. The show depends on heart rather than racy fan service. No one’s out to seduce him, they simply care for him and circumstances lead to comedic misunderstandings. Also very early on, it is clear that Kaoru’s heart is taken by Aoi and vice versa. The snag is that to continue to be betrothed, they have to keep their relationship and engagement secret from everyone. Living in such close quarters with so many rambunctious girls who all adore Kaoru makes that very difficult. But love is worth it in the end, and can overcome all obstacles. At least that’s what this warm hearted anime tells with its sweet natured story. The second series, Ai Yori Aoshi, picks up two years after the first season. College is almost done and decisions about the future will have to be made. Unlike the previous series, this one focuses not only on Kaoru and Aoi’s deepening relationship, it takes a deeper look into Tina’s heart. The second series explores Tina’s bond with Kaoru and the depth and nature of her feelings for him. When she gets a call from America, everyone at the house is hoping she doesn’t have to go back for good. What’s interesting about this second series is that it doesn’t forward the story too much, but instead explores one of its characters to greater depth. It has some bittersweet moments and like the first season shows a lot of heart. The animation throughout both series is exceptional. The background details are gorgeous, the girls’ designs varying from the very cute to the extremely beautiful, and the movement in scenes is exemplary. The color palate has a soft warm feel and the anime holds a lush appearance. EXTRAS:
There’s a plethora of bonus features in this brick set. All of the volumes from both seasons come with reversible covers and fold out mini-posters. The first season has DVD extras that include clean opening animation for both openings, clean ending animation, original Japanese opening animation, episode 15 special ending, clean ending animation for episode 24, conceptual art galleries, unofficial trailer, previews of other Pioneer/Geneon anime, and a music video of the opening theme song “Towa no Hana” (Eternal Flower) sung by pop sensation Yoko Ishida. Aoi Yori Aoshi – Enishi DVD extras include clean opening and ending animation, episode 9 clean ending animation, Geneon previews, Yoko Ishida Live at AX’04 where she performs favorite Aoi Yori Aoshi theme songs before a live audience, and a bonus special episode “Miyuki” is included. This bonus episode looks back on a very special and foretelling Christmas Eve for Kaoru before he meets Aoi. IN SUMMARY:
Ai Yori Aoshi is a romantic saga that fills the heart with its good intentions and warm story. A tale of two lonely hearts who overcome numerous obstacles to be together, it is a sweetheart of an anime for the romantics in us all.
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