Ai Yori Aoshi

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.

Story:

I enjoy the story for Ai Yori Aoshi. Basically, a young girl from a rich family is betrothed to a young man from a rich family. She likes him a lot even at such a young age, but he eventually disappears from his family. She goes to try and find him and ends up succeeding. They end up living together in a large house and many of their friends also end up living there. Of course, that are all girls and they all fall for the main male protagonist. The show basically follows their daily lives and the growth of Kaoru's and Aoi's relationship.

Animation:

The animation ... is nice and bright. I think it looks good and is drawn well.

Sound:

I love the music in this anime, especially the opening song, Towa No Hana, it is very beautiful. I very rarely skipped this song while watching. They also do very well with the music during the episodes.

Characters:

I really enjoyed the characters, there really wasn't any that I disliked. They are all different with different personanlities. The main male protagonist, Kaoru, is a little bit too nice though. I enjoy watching the growth of the love between him and Aoi. Aoi is probably my favorite female protagonist in a harem anime.

I think Aoi gets alot of flak because of her supposed "weakness" about wanting to cook and clean for Kaoru. No one makes fun of Martha Stewart for being good at cooking, entertaining and cleaning. Aoi is good at what she does and she knows what she wants, going after it with a rather single minded determination. She is actually one of the tougher anime characters out there. Everything she does is because of a dilberate choice, no one is making her do anything.

The other girls are also pretty fun, like I said before, with their own different personalities. Only thing is, like any other harem anime, I fell sorry for the girls falling in love and not being the one picked by the male protagonist.

Overall:

One of my favorite animes, in part because its one of the first ones I ever saw and probabaly only the 2nd or 3rd of the harem genre. I think it is a little different from a typical harem, because pretty much, you know from the start who is going to be chosen in the end. I think it is worth a watch if you like romance animes.

So i gave this a rating of 5 why? I came into this series in the 1st couple of episodes and i loved the concept country girl out of her element in the big city and meeting of childhood sweethearts add in the trauma faced by the male lead and it has all the ingredients needed to tell a great love story. What is the finished product Cliche and bland.

I was hoping for Aoi that away from the live she always had in the country we would see her struggles maybe have to get a job to make ends meat. None of ... this happens and she takes to the city like a bird to flying. I like all kinds of female leads tsundere, sporty, nerdy etc and this one had potential at the start but there is only ever 1 thought on her mind our male lead. Nothing wrong with being in love but this is the kind obsessive, can't live without you kind. The manager also mentions this point towards the end of the series. I don't mind love but i need character depth. What does she care about besides him? who are her friends? What are her hobbies? Whats her goal for the future? The answer to all that is our male lead or have his friends.

Kaoru is our male lead and he's as dull as a plank. We see so much potential from him in the start with all the problems he's faced and they go nowhere with it and any time he's facing difficulties with his past they run the same scenes over again. Does he deal with this trauma to overcome it, face his past and move on. Nope every chance from beginning to end he runs away from his past never facing it. He seems to be in college but there is no direction to his life i mean he wants to take care of Aoi but he never once mentions what job he'd like. He has a hobby in the photo club but he puts 0 effort in and the series never gave the impression he even cared about his hobby. He love Aoi supposedly but what's not to love when a gorgeous woman is practically throwing herself at you. They set up the reason why she loves him but never really why he loves her just always there for him that's about it.

As for the other characters when they started being introduced is when it really went down the drain and turned into a harem situation with our ML sometimes having perverted thoughts about them. The series spends 90% of it's time on side stories, minor characters or slice of life episodic moments that don't add up to much. Only 10% is good quality story stuff so if you can stick out the boring for the occasional sprinkle of good, go ahead.

When coming to my conclusion i'd like to mention a manga series i enjoy Hajimete no Gal. This is 100% what i wanted this series to be - ecchi stuff such a good story that focuses on the main couple despite there being many other characters. What we get reminds me of when the same series go an anime adaptation it went to hell focusing all it's attention on the minor characters much in the same way Ai Yori Aoshi has. There's nothing special about any of the characters here, nothing of note in the story you can say it's average and that's about it.

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.

"I am sorry it looks like I have been causing trouble for you again"
---Taeko

Say what you will about best girls in other anime but Aoi chan is the perfect girl, and thank heaven Karou is no idiot when it comes to realizing it. The elements Ai Yori Aoshi are wonderful.

Anyway lets talk about those really great parts. Ai Yori, is all about wonderful characters. All of them are wonderful, and most are pretty damn believable with the possible exception of Aoi who may well be too perfect. The series even manages to create layer after layer of detail. What are initially anime stereotype characters ... all become marvelously complex. By the end of the series they are all well fleshed out and feel like old acquaintances.

The comedy is also pretty good, it's not at side splitting belly laugh level but it is definitely there and you will find yourself smiling and chuckling quite a bit.

The story is rather mediocre but that isn't a negative. It's definitely a sitcom and in a sitcom the story is just there to provide a vehicle for the characters to interact with each other. Ai Yori's story manages this very well. Just don't expect it to go anyplace in the anime.

On the presentation side Ai Yori does a pretty solid job. Regarding the English Dub, the voice acting was very solid. While there could have been more emotional range the characterization was spot on. Music was also very on target.

The art, oh my the art. The faces and facial expressions are just wonderful There's no trying to remember hair and eyecolor combos with this anime. People are distinct and memorable. Unfortunately the rest of the art is really crude. 1960s or 1970s American cartoon level. It still works well and doesn't detract from the enjoyment.

What did detract from the enjoyment ? Not sure I know. Maybe it just wasn't bingeable ? Maybe it was despite the fact a story really wasn't needed, it still needed a little resolution ? Maybe a little change in their situations ? Despite the difficult to pinpoint problems this was still very well worth the watching

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..

Beautiful love story.The plot is simple.We have 2 childhood friends with arranged marriage but even from the start we can see that there is much more drama and hidden story then i tough.It really is nice to see that both main characters are in love even doe it was a type of political arranged marriage between 2 well known clans but since there are many complications involved like for instance that male MC isn't part of his clan anymore and what kind of reaction would people have is she marries someone beneath her.This is what i love to see.When main characters are fighting with everything ... they have for the ones they love and when they are even ready to lose everything they have just to be next to person they love.Like i said the story has a lot of romance and hardship and it is quite nice to see so i recommend you to watch it.

I didn't really enjoy this anime much.

I was interested in the premise, and maybe it would have made a better story if it didn't have so much filler. Maybe just as a movie?

I didn't care for most of the side characters. They were all more annoying than funny to me, and I spent a lot of my time rolling my eyes. I would have been happier watching just the first four episodes, and then the last few. Even though romance isn't really my thing, I would have at least enjoyed it more.

The animation was okay. I don't like how they did the eyes in this ... anime, though. The opening and closing songs weren't too bad. The main character has a really cute hairstyle.

Overall, the only reason I finished this anime was because I started it.

(This is my first review on MyAnimeList. It will not be based on events that take place in the second season.)

OK, so while I'm rather late to the party with this anime, I feel like I should share my thoughts on it because I don't think the reviews made so far have really done the show justice. Apparently this is either the best, worst, or most mediocre romance anime ever, all in the extremes. In reality, this show isn't as black and white as that.

Ai Yori Aoshi has two devastating problems at its core, and these problems together only intensify in the damage they do. ... First of all, Ai Yori Aoshi thinks that having a "secret romance" is excuse enough to focus totally on the harem aspect of the story, and second of all, it thinks that romantic feelings towards the male protagonist counts as character development. This is ultimately why Ai Yori Aoshi is sitting at a 7 for me; when the supporting female characters take the limelight in their pursuit of Hanabishi we don't care about the female because we don't know anything about them, and since Hanabishi only receives screen time when talking to these females we don't know enough about him to care about the relationship. This creates a large amount of episodes that might as well be referred to as "filler", elaborating on no previous thoughts / emotions and creating no lasting effects or impressions for future episodes.

It is understandable that in a harem anime the male character should be easy to relate with, but goddamn, Hanabishi just feels like a cardboard cutout. Sure, he has had events affect his life in negative ways, but these events are not reflected in his thoughts or actions. Unless he is actually talking directly about the past events, his behavior is totally generic and standard of male leads in harem anime. We never feel (amongst other feelings) the crushing loneliness of having no loved ones around because Hanabishi never reacts to reminders about it, never shows any differing emotions when alone, never even THINKS about it except in snippets of dreams designed to remind you that this totally isn't your ordinary harem. A characters past should be consistent with their personality or else character development won't happen (ESPECIALLY with protagonists); Hanabishi is just a male character template with a big ol' sappy background story stapled onto his back.

Luckily, this means he can serve his purpose, which is basically being an emotional battery for the similarly poor character development cursing the female supporting characters. Tina, Mayu, Chika and Taeko are simply tools for creating awkward situations with Hanabishi, trading the romance promised by the shows beginning for a dry slapstick that proceeds in an episodic fashion of rinse and repeat relationships. Tina is blessed with about 2 minutes of background info in the form of some quick flashbacks, but beyond that you will know no more about the characters at the series finale than you did at the start. The romantic relationships they attempt to establish with Hanabishi feel forced in conception, cringe inducing in execution and undefined in conclusion. Also, half of the time these relationships will also lead to Aoi having concerns about her relationship with Hanabishi, and speaking of which...

Aoi was the reason I didn't give this show a 6 (or less). She is an awesome character; the likable part of her personality lies in her motivation and commitment to achieving love with Hanabishi rather than the love itself (see: any other character in the anime), and her attitude / personality is dynamic and changes according to whether she's speaking with friends, Hanabishi, strangers or relatives. She has clear and understandable emotions and has dreams and aspirations that we see her actively striving to achieve.

The criminal part is that for the better half of the show she is barely even seen.

Quickly fading into the background as nothing more than an observer of Hanabishi's interactions, Aoi is brutally forgotten by the shows story as it plows ahead and tries to force us to root for each individual female rather than the one we already love (or are meant to love at least). She had so much potential in the show, and not only is it squandered by the lack of focus on her, but the focus she does get (also the shows actual romance) is so repetitious it is infuriating. Every sparse romantic counter between her and Hanabishi simply involves them uttering each others names, discussing no pressing issues at great length and giving very vague reassurances when they do discuss these issues. The encounters then seem to be wiped from both parties minds, because sure enough next episode Aoi will experience heartache for a very similar (if not the same) reason and Hanabishi will be as predictably oblivious and non committal in his actions as always.

Basically, this show is an experience in wasted potential. Aoi was a great character and the last few episodes actually gave her a lot of the attention that she deserved and needed, but it is hard to overlook the stiflingly bland Hanabishi and the generic, under cooked personalities of the other girls. Perhaps the second season will have greater things in store for me, but for now I consider Ai Yori Aoshi rather disappointing.

You really can't judge an anime based on the synopsis and reviews alone because there will be anime out there that everybody hated but you actually will like. I myself have experienced this many times hence I always give all anime a try. Ai Yori Aoshi is a good example of this. The synopsis sounded like it was written by a pubescent virgin and the reviews weren't that good either, but after finishing the series I found out that there is more to this anime than what it looks like in the outside and I ended up enjoying it more than I should have.

Ai Yori ... Aoshi or Bluer than Indigo is adapted from a manga with the same name and back then it was a actually a pretty popular manga for older guys. The story revolves around Kaoru Hanabishi, a college student with a traumatic childhood. Kaoru is from the wealthy Hanabishi clan, albeit an illegitimate child. His grandfather hated him resulting in very abusive treatments, until one day he finally decides to cut off all his ties with the Hanabishi clan and start living on his own. Kaoru has been living peacefully on his own but that will all change when a person from his past appears again. Who is it? well it's none other than his ex-fiancé Ai. Sounds cheesy and cliché? it is.

The story and characters of Ai Yori Aoshi is pretty much a rip-off of Love Hina, only without the tsundere bitch and the wimpy main protagonist instantly making it a hundred times better. I found Ai yori Aoshi's characters more likeable especially Ai who's basically the perfect wife that doesn't exist in real life. I really like how the series shows how Kaoru and Ai grew their relationship together. They really are perfect for each other. This is something I always look for when watching romance - a brilliant chemistry between the main couple.

I like watching harem anime, it's just one of my guilty pleasures. However, this is a harem anime I would have much preferred if it's just a standard love triangle because I only really cared about the relationship between the two main characters Ai and Kaoru and the other characters were pretty much non-existent to me.

The biggest flaw of this anime is the pacing which is generally slow. Being a slice-of-life romance anime it was kind of expected. There weren't much conflict in the series but the little drama that it has was pretty well done in my opinion. The animation and art style is okay, it's something you would expect from a series that aired in 2002. There's nothing noteworthy in the music department maybe except for ending theme song which I really liked.

Overall I would say I really enjoyed watching this anime but I will understand if the majority of viewers will find this to be one boring shit. If you like slow-paced romance anime where it focuses more in growing the relationship of the main couple rather than throwing conflicts and drama left and right then you might want check out this one.

Beginning of the story was very nice and for that I would give 7-8/10. When the story went on, it started going to a direction which I would give 6/10. Until the end it started getting a bit better 7/10. I was still a little disappointed for the ending, so I had to give 6/10 for the overall.

The story to Ai Yori Aoshi isn't very complicated, but it's sweet. If you like simple love stories, don't care about thinking through the layers of story, and just want to enjoy some good ol' fashioned sap, then you'll like this.

There are somewhat frustrating love triangles, and obstacles/antics that get in the way of the main characters finding happiness/alone time, but it's just your formulaic approach to a typical happy ending.

I liked this anime because it was a happy, easy-going, and romantic story. I had trouble getting through the fillers sometimes, because I just wanted to watch the relationship between the main characters ... progress, but overall I enjoyed it. It was a memorable story for me. If you typically enjoy rom-coms, then you'll like Ai Yori Aoshi.

I liked this anime, I would say that it is my cup of tea. I came across it when I was scrolling through a list on an anime site. I had a look at the story plot and I thought that it sounded quite good. Later I got this anime for christmas and it was very pleased to see the whole series.
The romantic aspect of the anime is very good, but the comedy is not as good. There are some funny scene's in it but not a lot. Other than that it is very good to watch. If your more of a comedy fan I ... would not say that this is the best anime to watch.
The character's in this anime are very good and I like their stories and how they relate to one another. The feelings that Aoi has for Kaoru are an important part of the story. It is not too extraordinary for a particular anime to involve a girl having a crush on a boy and a few other girls feel the same way, but this would be one of my favourite romance anime's and I think that Aoi and Karou are one of the best couple's I have seen in several anime.
I hope that my review has helped anyone who would like to see this anime.

Ai Yori Aoshi is actually one of my favorite animes. I have always loved this art style and have been a big fan of it since N.G.E. BUT! The best part of Ai Yori Aoshi, is the story. It actually fulfills plot points and ties them together like all great stories. Yes, this is a love story and there is no need to be hesitant about it. It's actually a story and less of a love drama. There are several entrancing moments of laughter, anticipation and tear jerking moments. I'm not much for love stories, but I can't help myself when the story is quality ... and the characters are soo likable.

In a nutshell, give it a watch. Even if you aren't big on romance. Could be that I'm a big softy, but this isn't about me. This is about you watching this and giving it a shot. ;)

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.

after watching this anime idk how to feel about it. The ending was pretty standard i saw it coming miles away. The characters were all unique as they each added something to the never ending harem. Best girl i think would be Aoi or miyabi as i quite liked her. The animation was pretty standard for the time. Although aoi's eyes at times looked too big almost like a goldfish. Kaoru and his backstory was actually really great and sad. Made me hate the hanabishi. The "PLOT" was also pretty good. The anime was a rollercoaster of emotions at times i hated the MC for ... not saying outright how he felt about certain things. Meanwhile at times i liked him for being brave and saying the right things when it mattered. All in all the anime was a thrill to watch and go through.
8/10. Alright time for season 2

The series takes a romance story, adds a touch of comedy and a little hint of harem. It's nothing overly special in plot, characterization, or art work.

Despite being little more a mildly enjoyable romance, I find Ai Yori Aoshi to be a guilty pleasure. There is something about the series that is just so sweet and genuine. The character of Aoi Sakuraba. You just want her to have a happy ending. They somehow made her kind, sweet, and naive but in a way that is endearing instead of annoying. The same can not be said for the other ... characters. Without Aoi, this show would be relegated to forgettable mediocrity. With her, the series is a comfortable guilty pleasure.

If you repeatedly dye something with indigo, it'll get bluer than the indigo you started with. The same happens with love, and that's what Ai Yori Aoshi (Bluer than Indigo) is about: as the characters show affection for each other their love becomes deeper, not just the romantic love of the main couple but the familiar love for everyone around them.

Story - 7/10. Aoi and Kaoru get engaged in their childhood, for the sake of their families. Later events split the couple, but on a whim Aoi seeks Kaoru (now a college student) and they start living together, discovering each other better. More people (all ... of them female) tag alongside them. The premise is simple but it works well with the theme, and there are subtle harem-like tones but not enough to detract attention from the main plot.

Characters - 7/10. They aren't deep but they were well done for the story, and they're generally likeable. There's some development for both the main couple and side characters.

Art - 8/10. As I write this show is almost 18yo, and yet the art aged well. It's rather pleasing to look at, pretty, delicate, and cute. Some still frames, but not enough to detract from the experience.

Sound - 6/10. It's... okay I guess? The music is by no means horrible, but unmemorable. The voice acting is better though.

Enjoyment - 9/10. Gotta admit I binge watched the 24 episodes over the course of two days while barely noticing the flow of the time.

Overall - 8/10. It's good; by no means a masterpiece, but if you're into a simple love story this anime is just for you.

(Please Note: I am not good at giving reviews and I am only giving a review to not only to give people my opinion but to help myself remember why I liked / didn't like certain Anime.)

Ai Yori Aoshi is a great Anime. Something that sets this Anime apart from the rest is: The characters are well developed. I found myself getting into each of the characters quite easily. Whether it was yelling at the characters, crying out "no", or just laughing out loud. This anime had the right blend of humor and seriousness.

The art was superb and the English cast did a very good ... job at portraying the characters. Overall they did a great job and got another fan here. (Sorry for the short Review: I hadn't watched it for awhile)

Rewatch Value: Medium -> High

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.....