Summary: >

Kauru was raised by a rich family to inherit a family fortune and business. When his mother died, he realized it was a life he just didn't want and ran away from home. Kauru severed all his ties with his family, and times were pretty tough getting by on his own but somehow he managed. Kauru is now pretty well independent and going to college, but his past catches up with him one day in a way he least expects.

Aoi is a girl he was set to marry through an arranged marriage when he was just a child, and while he remembers her fondly, he'd almost forgotten about her... until the day she shows up on his doorstep. Strange as it may seem, Aoi still has her heart set on Kauru and is determined to marry him. Kauru however isn't so pleased about it. While he does like Aoi well enough, he will never return to his family. Aoi was basically raised to marry into a rich and powerful family - something Kauru is no longer a part of. But still the two draw closer together. It might cause Kauru a lot of pain, and Aoi might lose everything but in the end the love between two hearts may be all they really need.

Thoughts: >

Ai Yori Aoshi (Bluer Than Indigo) has many good and bad points that leaves many people disagreeing on what they think about this title. This is where I started. One interesting problem this series has is that (aside from Aoi) I almost instantly hated every female character introduced. That's not to say the characters are unlikeable, it's just that the way this anime inserts them is really horrendous. So lets go over these poor girls.

Aoi - A cute mild manner girl set to be wed to Kauru. If you have problems with the likes of Belldandy (Ah! My Goddess) being too idealistic, then you'll tear your hair out over Aoi. This girl has been raised to be a good wife. All her hopes, dreams and desires revolve around Kauru... what a dull girl. Still it's hard not to like Aoi, she's just one of those characters that grows on you.

Miyabi - Stereo typical overbearing mother character. Spends most of her time yelling - typically at the accident prone maid. The anime really doesn't need her aside from the fact that she keeps Aoi and Kauru apart - and it wouldn't be nearly as interesting if they just got together right away now would it?

Taeko - introduced around the fourth episode. She is a member of the photography club (of which Kauru is also a member). Her job is basically to dress up and serve the cosplay fetish of another member. I mean that's pathetic on so many levels it isn't even funny. 1) That's a sad gimmick for this anime. 2) she must have an IQ of like 3 to do something like that. 3) the guy taking pictures is pathetic because he seems to be able to get this girl to dress up, but can't so much as ask her out? But have no fear, because her character fades into the backdrop as being a klutzy maid and you sort of become indifferent about her. Thankfully she doesn't take an interest in Kauru.

Tina - also introduced in episode 4, where she immediately starts grabbing breasts. Needless to say, you immediately want her to go away. But Tina grew to be one of my favorite characters in Ai Yori Aoshi. She's like a cat girl without the ears or tail, mixed in with a party girl. In an anime where everyone speaks with ungodly polite Japanese, her obnoxious wild manner of speaking is actually pretty refreshing. Also interesting that despite her brash behavior, she isn't all that honest with her feelings towards Kauru.

Mayu - A 16 year old girl that acts childish around Kauru. Is there any redeeming value in this character? Well having someone around getting Tina riled up is actually pretty funny, but surely there is a better way then using this annoying character.

Ai Yori Aoshi starts off with this really intriguing setup with this near perfect girl showing up on a guy's doorstep, intent to marry him. The episodes they spend together in his apartment had a decent amount of charm to them. As the other characters were introduced, this anime went downhill and slid into generic harem anime territory. It tries a romance / comedy formula, but only manages to do a mediocre job of it. While looking like a valid successor in the reserved romance line after Oh! My Goddess, Ai Yori Aoshi unfortunately doesn't cut it. I enjoyed some parts of it, but found myself generally indifferent towards this title.

[+] In Defense of Aoi