[Ai no Kusabi DARK-EROGENOUS]
Original (Novel): Ai no Kusabi (ISBN: 4875194978)
Author: 吉原理恵子 Yoshihara Rieko
Cover Illustrator: 道原かつみ Michihara Katsumi
Reprinted Edition (Novel):
Ai no Kusabi 1: STRANGER (ISBN: 4415088236)
Ai no Kusabi 2: DESTINY (ISBN: 441508852X)
Released: 11/1/1993 Magazine.Magazine
Catalogue Number: JCD-931101
Price: 3200 yen (with tax), 3107 yen (w/out tax)
Cast:
塩沢兼人 Shiozawa Kaneto (イアソン・ミンク Iason Mink) x 関 俊彦 Seki Toshihiko (リキ Riki)
速水 奨 Hayami Shou (ラウール Raoul)
置鮎龍太郎 Okiayu Ryuutarou (ダリル Daryl)
篠原恵美 Shinohara Emi (ミメア Mimea)
Summary + Review:
Ai no Kusabi, the "wedge of interval." In the Japanese, "ai" [間] (interval) has the same pronounciation as "ai" [愛] (love). Therefore, ai no kusabi can also be interpreted as a word play on "wedge of love." The implied meaning of this title is first mentioned by Katze's famous quote from the anime:
"Riki, do you know what 'Ai no Kusabi' is? It is something that strongly links two opposites together, like you and Iason. I suppose people could call it love."
The background setting is Tanagura, a futuristic city that is controlled by a mother computer called Jupiter, which reigns above the human race. The humans are separated into different ranks mainly distinguished by hair color; the highest rank is the Blondies (golden hair), who are physically and intellectually perfected beings artificially created by Jupiter. After the Blondies come silver, blue, green, red, and at last, the Mongrels with black hair. The story begins in Ceres, the dark slum in which the Mongrels reside.
Riki is also known as "The Black Riki." He is famous for his ruthless attitude and his gang called "Bison." One day, when threatened by another bunch of gangsters, he is rescued by a Blondie called Iason Mink. Sticking to his personal motto that he will never owe anyone anything, Riki offers to pay Iason back with his body (which is reasonable, since the Mongrels don't really have anything else). However, Iason has more planned in mind than just having sex once with Riki. He makes Riki into a "Pet," humans who become sex toys for the higher-ranked elites.
The original novel and the anime encompasses the entire story of Riki and Iason. The Dark Erogenous drama, however, only covers the 3-year time span that Riki is forced to serve as a Pet under Iason. Therefore, if you do not know about the original story, it would probably be difficult to understand the drama since it provides no background infromation whatsoever. It is also STRONGLY RECOMMENDED (note the bold-face :P) that you watch the anime for several reasons: 1. it is doubtlessly one of the best yaoi anime ever made, and 2. the ENTIRE story, although painfully tragic, is strongly compelling. I cannot rant any further about the anime, because to tell the truth, I was completely shaken. The anime of Ai no Kusabi literally dug a bleeding hole out of my heart, THAT's how strongly I was moved. To tell the story again would be slowly unveiling the pain that I suffered through watching the anime...(no kidding...I swear). Now putting aside personal emotions and MOVING ON...(Ken sighs)...
One thing that I just realized is that, dude, this drama is TRANSLATED!! Please visit ainokusabi.com for the entire English translation to Dark Erogenous. Now that saves me a lot of explaining XDDD;;; so I will skip the summary and jump directly to my comments on seiyuu and storyline.
Now, Iason Mink is played by my favorite seiyuu, Shiozawa Kaneto. So what's that word again? Bias. But I think everyone should agree with me that Shiozawa-sama makes a perfect Iason, and nobody else would be better suited for the part. Iason, an artificially-created human being, is taught by a computer and trained to be rather emotionless in his expressions. However, under that emotionless surface, Iason burn with passion far greater than anyone else. His determination to keep Riki as a Pet, his unusual act of having sex with Riki (which is not what Masters usually do to Pets), and his desire to completely possess and control Riki all convey a sense that Iason loves Riki so much that he can give up his reputation in order to have him, that he wants not only Riki's body but also tries to capture his mind.
Iason's actions CAN be explained as rational, because he was never taught how to love a person. Under the rule of a computer, Iason is the first in his race to try to capture some freedom of human emotions. He is forced to explore on his own what love really is. In Iason's mind, love is physical desire and dominance; and if having a Pet is what comes closest to that, then a Pet is what Riki should become (which is what Iason made him into).
Back to Shiozawa-sama who plays Iason's voice. In order to portray the composed, emotionless attitude, Shiozawa-sama used a level tone that is almost monotonish in order to accurately represent the icy-cold surface that Iason appears to others. By relying only on change of volume, Shiozawa-sama is able to deliver Iason's authority by simply speaking in a louder voice. At the same time, Iason's whispers that he breathes into Riki's ears are almost gentle, yet irresistably powerful. When he says "Omae wa watashi no--Iason Mink no Pet, Riki" (You are mine--Iason Mink's Pet, Riki), Riki has no other way than to yield to him (and Ken shivers all over and almost melts onto the floor). If one listens closely however, every tiny change of tone in Iason's speech represents a change in his emotional state. This subtle, yet noticeable change is what makes Iason come to life as a compelling character. Especially after listening to this drama several times and knowing the relationship between Riki and Iason, it is even easier to distinguish Iason's unrelenting love towards Riki everytime he speaks to him, in which his tone becomes softer than what he used to speak to other people, as if his icy surface melted away to reveal his true inner heart.
Compared to Shiozawa-sama's thrououghly composed voice, Seki's voice is wild, unrestrained, and full of resistance and frustration. Naturally, since Riki is only a low-born Mongrel who lacks education and is rather unrefined compared to the Blondies. Seki's voice is hard to describe, perhaps because when compared to Shiozawa's monotonish performance, Riki is much more varied in tones and expressions. Seki's voice is sometimes coarse, other times shrill and full of self-sarcasm, and yet under Iason's complete dominance, his voice fades away to a seductive panting which can drive proper nosebleed out of anyone (Ken is a sadist...I know, I happen to LIKE Riki's screams and groans, okay? >_>). Anyways, Riki makes a completely opposite when contrasted to Iason--which is the central theme of this drama: antithesis. The theory of Ai no Kusabi is that opposites attract, so that a Blondie from the highest race would be attracted to a Mongrel, the lowest of the low. This attraction builds a "wedge" which connects between the two. The strength of this link can be none other than love, which is the strongest feeling that ties humans together.
Another character worth to mention is Okiayu's character Daryl, and that is because I like Okiayu's young voice very much XDD (see the review on Kinkanshoku) and I especially like him chasing after Riki and softly calling "Riki-sama!!" XDDDDDDD Ahhhhhnnn Okiayu's young voice just sounds so sexy, okay, now I will stop myself...
Here comes Ken's favorite part---Iason's soliloquy when he watches Riki leave Eos (very last track of the drama). For a short explanation, after keeping Riki for three years, Iason finally decides to let Riki go free for a while. He frees Riki of the pet ring, and watches the elated Riki trot away into the distance. At this moment, the Ai no Kusabi theme fades in (my FAVORITE piece of music in the entire drama), and Iason reveals his true inner feelings (Quote from ainokusabi.com's translation):
Iason: Go back, Riki. Go back to the slums, stretch the weight off your wings. It's been three years. You can greet your old friends, you can even get back together with Guy. However...you'll certainly realize the length of three years you can't bury. And then you'll know the weight of freedom and the thirst of your blood....There is no Pet ring left to bind you. Go, and come back, Riki. I'll give you only one year of freedom. Go, and make certain with your eyes, with your body, that you are already a stranger there, and return. I...will merely wait. Until that moment in which you truly become mine. That moment....
In this quote, Iason firmly believes that the influence that he placed on Riki for three years will eventually make him realize his own feelings, and that eventually Riki will come back to him. What touched me is Iason's firm belief, and the force with which he said "Watashi wa....tada mattei o...sono doki o...omae wa shin ni watashi ni mono ni naru...sono doki o..." The vain hope and faith that Iason speaks of when he watches Riki's vanishing shadow drives me to tears. Now I am getting all mushy again so I'll stop T_T;;;;....but did I say about a hundred times already that Ai no Kusabi is SUCH a classic that it simply CAN'T be ignored? So if you haven't embarked upon ANY Ai no Kusabi media (anime, drama, novel, etc.) go do so NOW!!