Ranked #1878

Ai Yori Aoshi

The story itself isn't out of the ordinary......boy meets girl, falls in love and another 4 girls do the same. However, it is good the way the story develops around the two main characters. The male lead isn't an asshole nor an idiot and that makes him a likable character. The female lead is.....interesting......She doesn't know anything else besides her love for the male lead and it's kinda interesting to see how the story develops around her.

There is no tragedy to make the plot a little more complicated (except the facts concerning the past of the main male character which I won't spoil for you), so all you can expect is love-love in every episode.

The motivation of each character is explained and you get to identify with the situation of a few characters, however there are some that only do what they do because they want and that leaves you with the feeling of emptiness.

I would recommend this anime if you want a light story of love.... read more

Ai Yori Aoshi is a very straight forward one dimensional anime. There isn't anything else i could say to describe this anime other that. It's a typical lovey dovey through and through, but nothing else.

It's story is incredibly simple. It's a typical harem anime in the sense that the main male character is surrounded by five or six females who all have feelings for him. However it is very evident in the beginning who he will end up with. The story it's self does not know what it wants to be. It doesn't know whether it wants to be a romance anime that specifically focuses on the two main characters or a harem anime. Sadly because of this the series takes the horribly awkward approach and tries to do both things, but fails miserably at it.

It's harem elements are never flushed out enough to ever bring anything to the table, other than two or three episodes, most of which are filled with echhiness rather than the actual problem at hand. The feelings just linger throughout the series with nothing to make note of.

The two main characters are forced to hide their relationship, and thus have to "sneak" around in order to get any alone time. But this is incredibly misleading, because the backyard is like a different dimension of which no other character is ever allowed to step foot in. Even though the scene's done with the two main characters are done correctly and are very nice to watch, there are very few of them and very spread out through the series.

It's characters however are the weakest part of the show. Most of the characters in this series are plot devices use to simply keep the harem plot moving. They never try to confront their own feelings, they are barelly even aware of it throughout the series.

The main characters are just flat, nothing more. They aren't deep. Aoi is a character with very little emotion at all, expect that of the love she feels for our main protagonist Kaoru. Kaoru is a character i had hope for. He is the only character that even has a chance of development with the fact they actually take the time to explore his past. But instead of having him confront his past, the allow him to run away from it the entire series, and use the same three clips to show his "awful" child hood. He remains flat, undeveloped and almost unlikeable.

The art is nothing spectacular. It uses many still frames, and focuses on the characters faces a lot. Not to much attention to detail, at least nothing popped out to me. The characters have a very moe feeling, which is fine since they are really well done, with a lot of detail in their facial features. It's not bad but not great either.

The sound track of this anime is different. It's music when it's upbeat is pleasant and easy to listen to. However when every there is anything remotely bad happening it uses the most dramatic and mysterious music ever. I found myself thinking i was watching a murder mystery at many parts rather than a romantic comedy. It's original Sub is fine, but avoid the dub at all cost. Despite some decent English VA's it is awfully done, one of the worst dubs i have personally come across.

Overall if you are in the mood to see a lovely dovey anime with echhi scenes in it than you should give it a try. However if you are looking for an anime with any sort of substance than steer clear of this. read more

Why do I rate this anime so highly? Why do I give a 10 in nearly every category? Well, it's simple. It's an awesome show! In my own personal taste, in what I liked to see in an anime, this was what hit the spot. I'll review this as I have a few others, by category then by my overall take on it.

**Story**
First of all, the story. In my opinion, one of the 2 most important aspects of any anime. You can have crazy action, you can have ecchi-ness and nudity, whatever, but without an actual story that makes sense and that is fun to follow, there's nothing to be had from watching it. When I first heard of this anime, I thought it sounded silly - a man who's had some girl devote herself to him since she was little who plans on marrying him and giving herself completely to him. Who does that? But as I watched more and more into the show, I began to realize that it was exactly that point that made this story so unique and fresh. Karou already has Aoi-chan. She's his, will be his wife one day. But then you've got a twist that they have to hide it. Suddenly Karou is surrounded by other girls, and you've got yourself what appears to be a typical harem anime. However (I won't spoil) there's so much more that happens here and much later into the anime that just makes you root for everyone; Karou and Aoi and all the other characters.

**Art**
What can I say? This one is beautiful. Attention to detail everywhere, from the outfits to the floorboards and walls. It would see that every scene is fully animated and given great care. There are several of those "awww" moments with the gorgeous backgrounds, the shading and texturing on the faces, all that jazz. I really can't say more here, as you just have to see it.

**Sound**
The only category I did not give a 10. It takes a lot for me to give an anime a 10 in sound. In this category I include the music as well as every little sound effect and noise and speech and everything else. The music was alright, nothing too special, nothing that blew me away. The sound quality, likewise. But it was the character's emotions in the voices that made me rate this as high as I did. You can feel true emotion pouring out. So well voice acted that at times, you want to cry right along with a character.

**Character**
The other most important aspect to an anime. Without a good set of characters and the way they interact, what's left? A narrative about the beautiful landscape? No, especially in this show, the characters are a major driving factor. I would even go so far as to say that characters are what determine, develop and drive a story. That being said, Ai yori Aoshi brings us some of the most interesting and lovable characters I've seen in an anime. You've got crazies, you've got adorable cuties, you've got sensitives, hard-asses, uptights, lowlives, and nearly every imaginable kind of character, all represented amazingly well. The only other thing I can say about this category is that when you have such high quality characters interacting with each other, you're bound to have an emotional response, be it laughter, crying, anger, frustration or something else. I experienced all these while watching.

**Enjoyment**
Well, as you can tell thus far, I enjoyed this anime. Like I mentioned before, I've watched it three times. There's just something about Aoi-chan that keeps bringing me back to watch this. Karou, likewise. He's a great guy. He genuinely cares for those around him, and especially Aoi-chan. The same parts that made me cry and laugh and get frustrated the first time had a similar effect the second and third time. I wouldn't doubt it if I watched it again, I had the same responses. Not much else to say, other than mentioning that the dialogue and story are what make this so enjoyable to me.

**Overall**
How do I feel about this anime overall? Well, obviously I loved it. One of my favorites. I rated it a 10 overall. Why? As I stated above, all these categories shine out. I truly enjoyed every aspect of this anime. I love watching the ending as it feels so resolved (even though they made a sequel, which is also good). I get such a good feeling after finishing this anime. If you at all enjoy romance and slice-of-life genres, then you must give this anime a try. read more

Ai Yori Aoishi is good, if you're looking for a light-hearted happy anime where two people basically chase each other down, to what appears to be at no avail.

Aoi is basically your typical hopeless romantic, prepared to give her heart and soul to Kaoru-sama, who is much less than interested, with sporadic bursts of feelings for her at his own convience. The characters aren't very well developed in terms of their personalities and what makes them so in love, all we really know is that Kaoru has many girls attracted to him, and Aoi is relentlessly competing for Kaoru's attention. You know where it's going to end up, though, right? Yeah, because it's very typically Shoujo.

The plot is only as well-developed as the characters are, and at times it can be very good - just light hearted and fluffy. It's basically a typical boy-meets-girl harem Anime.

The art is very good, but it's more a Moe or "Kawaii" style than detailed. The men look somewhat Bishounen, and the girls just look "cute".

Overall, it's a very good anime, but very fluffy. read more

NOTICE: This review extends to the sequel for this series, titled Ai Yori Aoshi – Enishi . There are hardly any differences between them and so they can easily be seen as one.

Although it begins as another ecchi comedy, Ai Yori Aoshi stands out by being more focused on romance rather than vulgar erotic humor. Something quite rare coming from a studio such J.C. Staff, infamous for its lolicons and softporns. Other than that, we have another dorky male living with several ultra sexy women and do nothing else other than making a fool out of himself. I pretty much got tired of this concept after watching Love Hina .

The director of the show is Shimoda Masami, a guy which I wouldn’t even care about if it wasn’t for his directing of Zegapain. All his other works are plain passable but, man, Zegapain rocks da world! Of course even that show had various pacing issues so I must admit that he is not a good director and this show is yet another proof of it.

STORY SECTION: 5/10 [Hentai premise, lukewarm romance.]
Analysis: Premise 1/2, Pacing 1/2, Complexity 2/2, Plausability 1/2, Conclusion 0/2
- Their families force the main two characters, a young man and a young woman, into an arranged marriage, since they were babies (Japanese people do this crap all the time). The boy has left his home in order to have freedom away from his stuck-up parents. But then the girl comes to look for him, as she really loves him. They quickly get to live together and slowly more female cast adds for support or protection…
- It sounds like a scenario for a hentai with lots of orgies, doesn’t it? Well, being a comedy, there is nothing of the sort, as the leading male is a scaredy-cat, like 99% of others like him in similar series.
- As it usually happens with long and superficial series, there is story development only in the first and the last episodes of both seasons. The rest (about 70% of the total number of episodes) are flavor to get to like the characters and laugh at their awkwardness. There is nothing much to expect in the story, the scenario development is slow and simple (especially in the second season), and the conclusion is left open (the manga that is based upon, goes further, with a better story).

ART & SOUND SECTION: 7/10 [Are you looking at the kimonos or what lies beneath them?]
Art Analysis: General Artwork 2/2, Character Figures 1/2, Backgrounds 2/2, Animation 1/2, Visual Effects 1/2
Music Analysis: Voice Acting 2/3, Music Themes 3/4, Sound Effects 2/3
The artwork is above average. It is detailed, with several attempts to show depth, perspective and warmth in the background or the atmosphere of the moment. Most kimonos are decorated with lovable pictures that make them nice to look at. Music themes are sweet pops and ballads, as long as you are accustomed to Japanese music. Character figures and voice acting were decent but not great.

CHARACTER SECTION: 4/10 [Why is sex such a bad thing?]
Analysis: Presence 1/2, Personality 1/2, Backdrop 1/2, Development 1/2, Catharsis 0/2
- Aoi, the woman, is the ideal Japanese archetype of a perfect housewife: Beautiful, shy, timid, great cook, cheery and still VIRGIN. For that, she is almost too good to be true. But at least she doesn’t behave like most girls in anime, as she is not an obnoxious, violent slut, after the semen of the guy she digs. If you like this kind of women, then she is adorable. If not, HER KINDNESS WILL DRIVE YOU NUTS!
- Kaoru is… typical. Modeled after the usual idiot that gets the chance to score big time but is too shy to take initiative. God, how I hate that! So, ok, he is a good guy with compassion and understanding for all. Why should something like that make him sexually incapable? Geez! He has issues with his family but I can’t say I liked him any more because of it.
- The rest of the cast is quite typical as well, consisting of mostly females modeled after sexual fetishes (maid, bodyguard, lolita) and stuck-with-tradition old people. I can’t say I liked any of them.
- The only character development there is will be the main characters expressing their true feelings for each other. WAY too little to deserve a good mark.
- Since the ending is incomplete, nothing solid exists as catharsis.

VALUE SECTION: 2/10 (Analysis: Historical Value 0/3, Rewatchability 1/3, Memorability 1/4)
Ecchi and harems are one-timers for me; without much story or character development, the second time around I just scroll it for the ecchi scenes. There is also nothing exceptional in it to deserve some value as historical important or memorable.

ENJOYMENT SECTION: 5/10 [A less extreme Love Hina.]
The relationships amongst the characters are a lot more serious and likable than those wacky ones in Hinata Inn. On the other hand, there is nothing else more special or different in it, making it half-enjoyable at best.

VERDICT: 5/10
The accused is found … GUILTY! … For pretending to be an aristocrat when in reality he is a commoner.

SUGGESTION LIST
Love Hina and Oh! My Goddess. The best harem anime around. read more

This is so far my favorite anime that I have seen so far. Its the kind of anime you don't want to end, because you want to watch more of it lol. Its a great story of a guy and a girl who has pretty much been waiting her whole life to be with him. It is technically a "harem romance" but it is really close to just a pure romance, because even though the main character is surrounded by girls, it is very clear who his love is.

Like i said earlier, the story is very good about a girl who has been waiting her whole life to be with the guy she loves and how they interact with each other and the things that they have to go through to be together. It has lots of fun and interesting characters. Unlike traditional harem romances, they main character knows who he loves and wants to be with, unlike the usual premise where he has to decide by the end of the show. The main female character has no doubt of who she wants to be with also. The other girls are also fun and likable, in as much as you don't really find yourself rooting against them, even though you know what the primary outcome is going to be.

The art and music are also very well done. The art is drawn very well and is bright and colorful. There is a lot of good music in the anime, not just the opening and closing scores but also in the episodes themselves.

basically I really enjoyed watching it, to the extent that i have re-watched it 3 times. I really believe that if you like romance animes, that you will love this one. read more

Very good anime. I liked it. If you liked Ah! My Goddess, you'll like this. Unless you don't like ecchi.

Story:
The main storyline did drift off at some points, and there were non-important side stories that had no real point but overall the story was very unique.

Art:
The art was very bright but the animation was not the best I've seen.

Sound:
The opening theme was abosutely beautiful with an ok ending theme. The two special ending themes were also just ok. Didn't care too much for the insert song. The background score is nice but I wouldn't listen to it without watching the anime. The vocal cast was really good though and really fit the characters.

Character:
The two main characters, Kaoru and Aoi, are very developed. This anime has a lot of non-important side characters though. Such as Tina, Taeko, and Miyabi but the ones that really have no point are Mayu and Chika. Chika's tan is also really dumb.

Enjoyment:
I've seen this series twice and I enjoyed it both times ^.^

Overall:
If you want a not-so-strong storyline, ecchi, and romance then this anime is for you! read more

This IS the best ROMANTIC Seinen anime ever.....

To me the story feels like Love Hina yet more Japanese, the main plot is that Kaoru is a student and by chance meets a girl who is lost at the Tokyo Station, he helps her and so have it she is going near where he lives, Kaoru helps the girl (Aoi) out to find the house but yet to find a empty plot, so the note she had was wrong, it starts to rain and Kaoru lets Aoi come to his place to keep dry then he finds out who he is and thats the person Aoi was looking for.

This is all in the 1st episode (which i have to say is one of best opening to an anime i have seen) then the rest of episodes are like Love Hina with the day to day life.
I would put no more but with the great voice acting of all characters like Tina (whos voice is perfect for that character) and also Aoi and etc....

The animation skills are top notch and with a great story and music this is a perfect anime, unlike Love Hina there are a couple straight away but have to hide it from the world due to some reasons you will find out. The ending is quite good but was quite predictable, but i didnt see no wedding which is what i wanted to see but maybe its in the next season.

A nice mix of how the girls all get to like Kaoru was nice development and also the way its portrayed and stuff was amazing overall a MUST for any romance fans. read more

I actually liked this anime and that surprises me. The story starts as a one on one romance and then turns into a harem type. I thought I would hate this turn of events, but it grows on you. It has the typical character types, but it still works nicely. It was funny without taking away from the central love story. I've watched the sub and the dub versions and I still prefer the dub even with Tina Foster's voice. Southern accents don't belong in anime. The ending was okay, but it didn't tie up everything.

I watched this after seeing Love Hina and I still prefer this show. read more

Ai Yori Aoshi was a very nice surprise for me, this anime masterpiece will surely get the heart of any romantic soul on this planet.

Characters are nicely done with great personalities, each having a story of their own.

The graphic design of the anime is very nice, buildings, trees, people, there is hardly anything to pick up as bad from it.

Thse story is very comedial and, what's the main thing, very romantic. The determination of both main characters, their way of direcly expressing feelings for one another, suporting each other - that is the best thing about this anime. In todays stressfull world it is the right thing showing that love can overcome any obstacle and that a person is never alone.

Even though this review is not very good and is short I can guarantee that Ai Yori Aoshi will not let one romatic eye dry, will provide lots of funny situations and the best of all a happy ending.

Hope you enjoy watching it as I did. read more

First of all let me say this.... I HATE KIMONOS.. i might be a little biased but i can't stand the main character she disgusted me in every way.

OK now then this anime is basically the meeting of 2 friends who haven't seen each other for a long time, when they meet, the boy starts to like the girl and well what do you know? that's it, I didn't like the romance on this anime at all most of the characters are dumb and just there isn't any point on watching it.

I think it needed more plot and more interesting characters
o yeah and btw I hate this anime maybe it's personal preference but if you liked it then good for you. read more

A love story between a boy and a girl. There are other girls involved as well but the main plot is about the main male and female characters. The one good side about this story is that the male character isn't an idiot or a pervert. He is a normal likable college student.

If you like romantic stories with happy ending then you may enjoy watching this anime.

Ai Yori Aoshi is an "ecchi" type of anime meaning it includes naughty scenes, sexy characters and at the near end of the series, it progresses to maturity.

Kaoru, a clumsy guy met Aoi which happens to be his fiancee to his surprise! What's happening in his life right now is nothing to complain about, why would he even dare to complain when at his doorstep a lovely & very charming girl is claiming that he is her husband to be? But it all goes down to a clan he left for a painful memories of his childhood...

Can Aoi make him forget that past? Is her love enough for him to marry her?

You'll enjoy this anime if you like comedy, school life and romance that progresses to real love :) read more

Ai Yori Aoshi is like your typlical love story; boy meets girl, they fall in love. . . but then four other girls do the same. What?

What makes this story different is that the main male character, Kaoru, is really sweet and he is a one girl kind of guy. True, he is tempted by his housemates a lot but at the end of the day he still truly loves his fiancé and it’s not hard to tell either.

As for the main female character Aoi, she’s basically obsessed with her husband to be and has spent basically her whole life training to be a perfect wife for him. She’s devoted herself to making him happy and she is constantly thinking about him, making it extremely hard for her to hide her undying love for him from the others. (I feel her character pushes the image of what a "typical women" should be and I some what dislike her character for that, you'll see what I mean.)

The plot isn't very complicated and is easy to follow, but that doesn't mean you’ll know exactly what’s going to happen during the whole course of the anime. The series ends on sort of a cliffhanger so the outcome of their relationship and what happens with their little family is unknown, but it’s not too hard to guess what will happen.

Over all this anime is truly beautiful. You learn so much about each character and it’s not hard to notice how happy and loving they all are towards each other. This anime won't hesitate to make you laughing, crying and possibly hanging onto your seat, but most of all it will have you wishing you were a part of their wonderful family. Watching how quickly they all go from strangers to practically brothers and sisters is truly amazing. read more

This is a really good, straight up love story. A guy and girl are madly in love but due to certain circumstances they cannot be together. Toss in a couple other love interests and some goody goody love scenes and you've got it.
This anime was a good break from the usual magical uber ecchi harem series that i've seen, (not that they weren't entertaining). Its a very realistic story with normal people and situations (mostly).
Definitely one for those romantics out there.

When I watch this anime, I feel touch by the way the romance goes, this is probably the only anime (that I know of) were the lead male character actually ends up with his childhood friend ( he only met her once as kids) and the lead male did actually lived up as to what he is about. Also,I really do admire the lead female character for living up as a "Yamato Nadeshiku," the two are a perfect match. So how do I rate this:

Story: Very Good 8

I like the romance on which the lead female character is so in love with the male lead that she herself went out of her way to look for him and also despite of other temptations of the other ladies involve he remains true to the female lead.

Art: Very Good 8

The art is ok so there is nothing more to say.

Sound: a decent number 4.

I hate the opening theme.

Character: a fair number 6.

There isn't much to say about the characters and about their roles, but I do have a lot of awkward questions about them- OK I know it's just an anime but I just like asking it anyway,so let's start:

Karou- Ok,so he's a college student, but what was he taking up in college? We do know that he and his grandfather never got along and he always ends up beaten with a bamboo cane in the back, good thing that he was still able to maintain his sanity and not sustained any spinal fracture. So for him to have those whip marks on his back his grandpapy should be using a whip not a bamboo cane or a some kind of kendo stick thing whatever.

Aoi- my question for this character is:
-Did she had a normal teenage life or was she just confined to learned how to cook, do origami, sing, do household chores or any other stuffs that traditional Japanese women do?
-Is she younger than Karou or are they at the same age?
-Did she actually attend school or was she just home schooled?
-Does she ever wore any other clothes other than a Yukata?
-Since she's rich,I wonder as to why didn't she enrolled in the same college as Karou?

Miyabi- my question for her is:
-Did she also enjoyed a normal teenage life or was she confined to be Aoi's Babysitter/bodyguard/ playmate?
-I wonder as to how old is she and if she's gonna get married?

Tina-
- Now why does she have to attend college in Japan when she can go to any of the top universities in the US?

Taeko-
-If she's so clumsy, I wonder if she's as clumsy with her grades?


Enjoyment: a fair number 6

So far, even if this anime has a comedy tag in it, it is still the romance and drama part that is more profound.

Overall: It is a very good number 8.

No need for me to discuss.



read more

Ai yori Aohsi is a sweet love story. Aoi and Kaoru are a great couple and the other characters are interesting.

In many ways this is a generic harem anime. If you enjoy harem anime you will like this one. Additionally there is a TON of fanservice, if that bothers you then avoid this series.

The story is very nice. they made something that close with the real life. dealing with some family issues and some hindrance are good material for the love story like this. I like this anime because there are lots of experiences that may share how the struggle of the main hero overcomes his problem since his family matters are quite deep. I don't like some background of the story that they use the flash back of each heroine not systematically. however, the story and character design are very good. Very romantic story, family bonds, and slice of life.....

A beautiful piece of work even if the story line is pretty normal boy meets girl, girl loves boy and boy loves girl then more girls fall in behind. There is almost no tragedy apart from the male lead's past which i won't tell because of spoilers. It also includes some very funny parts to the story as well as some crazy characters. The romantic scenes are very touching and this is intensified by the fact that both the boy and the girl must hide their relationship from the people they live with.

This anime made me learned alot and I reallly enjoy the stoy..Love the character and the mature of the main lady...I just wish I could be just like her..One of the best anime ever..