Ranked #1332

Ai no Kusabi

I have just a few seconds ago finished watching Ai no Kusabi, but I think I will remain breathless for quite a while.

I was expecting a not too heavy yaoi story involving hot boys in chains, but I got so much more. The story is pretty intense to sit through but its worth it. It has characters whom you actually feel for and a story that fits the old adage of leaving you wanting more.

By the end I was quite taken aback at how good the story was, don't mistake it for a shallow or superficial anime, at its core this is one of the best love stories I've ever seen. Regardless of gender, genre, live action/animation, the story has enough integrity to hold its own as a love story.

The art is very earlier nineties style so its a bit nostalgic but if thats not your thing, try to see past it for the sake of the story.

It's a little slow starting but give it a chance, there are some very hot scenes in this short anime & I'd recommend it to anyone who's willing to watch it.

I am now looking forward to seeing the remake when it comes out. read more

Gay romance in anime is something that one almost doesn’t want to see nowadays. Most anime features homosexuals in way that is degrading. They exist only as drag queen outcast villains for the heroes to defeat. Then you get into the animes which are based on gay romance, and these ones are even worse. If their purpose isn’t to exist as a poorly disguised pornography, most gay romance anime features two men who fall in love one day and are sleeping together the next. These men usually have ridiculous arguments about anything and everything insignificant, and their relationships are a roller coaster of confusion and pointlessness.

Ai No Kusabi is a masterpiece in a genre that is seriously under-developed. For one thing, this anime features real men who have real problems. Instead of being late for class or getting jealous because their boyfriend had a conversation with somebody else, the characters are fighting for their lives against an oppressive government, trying to avoid massive political scandals, or coping with their existences as sex slaves.

Ai No Kusabi means something beyond being a sexual outlet for a perverted manga artist. While sexual themes are present and heavy, they ultimately do not dominate the main message of the story. More important is the way that “mongrels,” the lowest class of Tanagura’s cut-throat society, are stuck in the ghetto-like city of Ceres. Iason, the most elite of the elite, who has a scandalous love affair with Riki the mongrel, is at risk of being ruined because of it. Guy, the mongrel and jealous ex-lover of Riki is so incensed by the way Riki is “stolen” from him by Iason that he sets out on a hopeless quest for revenge.

The story revolves around a violent and strategic love triangle in which all of the involved characters suffer considerably because of Tanagura’s inherent political injustice. It’s a classic Romeo and Juliet styled story of a love between noble and pauper, except the only way for them to be together is for one of them to be a registered “pet,” a sex slave who has undergone years of training to be completely obedient in bed, and have no shame about exposing themselves to others. The pot is stirred even further by the force of Riki’s old friends which include Guy, his ex-lover who is driven mad by Riki’s absence after he left to live within the elite society.

Naturally, Ai No Kusabi has a great number of tragic moments, and it would be wrong to have it any other way. This anime isn’t just an idealistic fantasy or a cheaply made porn flick, it’s a serious story about a ruthless capitalistic society which in some ways very much mirrors our own. Given the way that human society has progressed and is still progressing, it is certainly not unthinkable that the events within Ai No Kusabi could someday transpire in reality. This anime is a stark commentary on humanity’s deepest and darkest desires, and it certainly doesn’t disappoint. Nobody is fit to call themselves a fan of yaoi without having seen this anime, as it is arguably the greatest yaoi anime ever made. read more