So I kept hearing good things about Ai Yori Aoshi, a romantic comedy / faux harem comedy. I heard this even from Robert who is not prone to recommendations. That was the deal clincher for me. I decided to give it a go and just finished both seasons.

In a nutshell, Kaoru has left his family due to very harsh abuse administered by the patriarch (his Grandfather). While growing up his family entered into a marriage pact with another family, whose daughter, Aoi, happened to love Kaoru from the first time she met him, at a very young age.

After Kaoru left, the pact was dissolved which devastated Aoi. She had spent her youth learning how to be the ideal wife, not for just anybody, but for him. She builds up enough courage and leaves her very sheltered environment to find him, going on an address she happened to have, which was sketchy at best.

Kaoru finds Aoi lost in a train station. Neither recognize the other right away. She tells him she's looking for her fiance and he helps her get to an area in a neighborhood very close to his. He invites her into his apartment for a respite and, while musing on how lucky her fiance must be to have someone so cute and devoted as she, sees a picture she carries of the two of them when they were little. This sets the series off and running.

I am not prone to love the romantic comedy genre in the first place, but I can appreciate anything done really well. Simply put, the first four episodes floored me.  The mood was always just gentle enough. the characters were instantly likeable, and the feeling was romantic. There was one scene where the two characters were staring at each other, saying nothing. A bad romantic comedy might have had someone interrupt them, or have them turn away from each other, or even (ugh) get all angsty. In this case I thought to myself "laugh", and they did. That was the case so many times here. I would think "tell him how you feel" knowing that it almost never works that way - and yet she would tell him, or he would tell her. I was surprised and so happy I had finally found a truly special series. This went on time after time.

Then came episode five.

All of a sudden, this became a harem comedy. Granted, a "faux" harem comedy, because you always know who the main couple is and always will be, but all the elements of a harem comedy are there. Other characters start to intrude in their lives and start to develop feelings for the male lead. I was disheartened and dreaded what I knew would be coming. Accidental breast gropes, drunken buffoonery, clingy rivals, all the standard tropes of the harem comedy. Sure enough, all those things happened, but in this series, I didn't actually mind them. There is a reason all this stuff is done in harem shows: done well, this stuff can be funny. Done with care, and infrequently, the plot can be advanced and characters can be developed.

These two characters truly care for each other, and are not about to be swayed by happenstance. The female lead does not get all pissy and violent, a la Love Hina. The male does not get all bloody nose horny, nor does he run screaming trying to deny the circumstance a la any number of shows. He doesn't have to. He knows honesty will work and she will understand. She knows there is a reason for whatever happens because - here is a concept! she trusts him. Another thing unusual in harem shows is that he gets out of potentially embarrassing situations without the inevitable discovery and ensuing shock and awe. There is a scene where one of the potential love interests finds herself in a compromising position with the male lead. She tries to help the male lead get out of the area so he is not discovered, and holy schmolies, it works! That almost never happens.

One character who is by design an over the top hyper exaggerated foreigner (American, of course - that trope never changes) is one of two very annoying characters in the series. The way the writers develop her, by the end of the series, she is one of the most sympathetic characters in the bunch. It was wonderful to see that change happen so well, you hardly noticed it.

 In most rom coms (as they are wont to be called) the characters are too embarrassed or afraid to tell each other their feelings at least until near the end. Aoi tells Kaoru fairly early she loves him. It doesn't take too long before he tells her the same. They hold hands when they can. They reassure each other that they are together and hope to be forever. It really changes the attitude this viewer had towards the situations they find themselves in, because I knew they would be strong enough to deal with it.

In Japanese culture, the "first kiss" is a very special moment. In romantic comedies, there is almost always some kind of interruption, accident or other intrusion that scotches the deal. While something similar happens in this series, the author uses it as a showcase of how much Aoi trusts Kaoru. Finally, when it is time for their first moment together, I kept waiting for the interruption, the intrusion, the head bump or the pratfall. I dare say the creators knew it, and deliberately took their time.

Then - they kissed. it was a wonderful moment and it shocked me for how much did not happen. This continues tyhoughout the series. It was all handled so well, that, at one of the few times they were interrupted, it was both funny and poignant. It actually surprised me when it happened and it was a funny little moment, instead of a predictable disappointment.

There is a strong hint towards the end of the second season where it is suggested that the couple takes the relationship to the next level. This was handled with so much class, and dignity, I was smiling. When the couple arrives back home afterwards, they see the only other character who had an idea this might have happened. There was a simple, small, non verbal exchange between Aoi and this character that was so well done I almost cheered upon seeing it. It added to the moment instead of embellished it.

Other series should take note.

 

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