Ai no Kusabi

On the planet Amoi, a person's status is primarily dictated by the color of their hair. This society is run by the AI supercomputer known as Jupiter and its governing board of perfect blondes, referred to as Blondies, living in the capital city of Tanagura. However, the darker-haired humans live out their lives in the golden "pleasure city" of Midas and its outlying slum Ceres. They are known as "mongrels," and most cannot progress out of the slums.

Three years ago, a boy named Riki disappeared from the slums of Ceres. Once the revered leader of the gang Bison, a sudden encounter with an elite Blondie, Iason Mink, forced Riki to abandon everything he had cultivated. The boy was snatched from his home and forced to become Iason's pet. Riki has spent the past three years enduring numerous blows to his pride, his time in Tanagura nothing but a form of torture.

Now that Riki has returned, Bison once again rallies behind him. The risk he finds himself in, however, is much greater than ever before—there is always someone ready to sell him out.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Mink, Iason Main

Shiozawa, Kaneto Japanese

Riki Main

Seki, Toshihiko Japanese

Katze Supporting

Tanaka, Hideyuki Japanese

Am, Raoul Supporting

Hayami, Show Japanese

Gai Supporting

Tsujitani, Kouji Japanese

Kirie Supporting

Nakahara, Shigeru Japanese

Daryl Supporting

Sid Supporting

Hori, Hideyuki Japanese

Jupiter Supporting

Kyal Supporting

Kashiwakura, Tsutomu Japanese

Hasegawa, Yasuo Producer

Akiyama, Katsuhito Director

Nishimori, Akira Director

Iwanami, Yoshikazu Sound Director

Reviews

May 9, 2024

MickeyMinaj

Recommended

Timeless & ahead of it's time. It's been more than 30 years since this came out (1992), and no matter how hard I tried, I just couldn't force myself to like the 2012 version over this timeless piece of work. You know the shows that don't let the animation alter your thoughts on the plot, characters, acting, and an overall vibe. Ai no Kusabi is exactly that.

Finding solace the non-conventional way, with two men from extreme opposite ends of the society and the journey to feel accepted and sacrifices made to make that happen. It encounters multiple societal issues that we are STILL facing ... today, racism, colorism, slavery, financial and authority level based on your birth and the fight to be freed from it all.

If you're into BL, this is highly recommended. I keep coming back to watch this every now and then, that's the magnitude of impact it still has on me (hopefully on y'all too)

Reviewer’s Rating: 8

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Jul 20, 2023

mataniuschrader

Recommended

WOW!! Such an awesome story filled with intensity, longing, love, obsession, possession, care, jealousy, and more! This ‘92 version expands upon the story of Iason, Riki, Kitze, Guy, & Raoul compared to the 2012 version and it ends the story unlike the 2012 version too.

I watched both (the 2012 first then this one) and I was super happy that I watched this one second because I got an ending, more story, and greater love scenes. If I were to have watched the 2012 second, I would have been disappointed and left on a sour note because they focused so much on the past that ... we barely saw anything in the present storyline and future events that would have happened (as depicted in this ‘92 version).

I liked the look of the characters in both ‘92 & 2012 versions but overall I’d pick this ‘92 version to rewatch 100% based on everything about it. Very good yaoi story and anime.

Reviewer’s Rating: 10

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Dec 3, 2023

Sagaiko

Mixed Feelings

It tries to be all deep and meaningful, but it kinda trips over its own feet? The story, with its dystopian backdrop and themes about class differences and relationships, can feel like it's trying too hard. It's got this heavy, dramatic vibe that might be a bit much for some.
Now, where it scores some points is in the looks department. The characters have this cool, distinct design. Buuuut the characters, despite looking cool, sometimes feel a bit cardboard. The focus on their appearances kinda takes away from giving them more depth. And the relationships? Well, they can feel a bit forced, like the story's pushing ... them rather than letting them naturally unfold.
In the visuals department, this anime is doing its thing, but the storytelling could use a bit more "flavor"

Reviewer’s Rating: 4

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