Review Corner - Ai no Kusabi vol 1 - Stranger
First yaoi novel that I've purchased from June publisher.
Ai no Kusabi vol 1 Stranger
by Rieko Yoshihara
Publisher: June Manga
From the back cover - The Man's upturned blue eyes were so unimaginably beautiful that they could make anybody tremble with awe. In this moment, however, they also glimmered with an icy fire - perhaps revealing the fury of his wounded pride, or rather, a manifestation of his uncontrollable obsession.
Ceres: a city without ethics or taboos, ruled by instincts and lusts. These are the slums - immutable, eternal, home to those poor, caged souls stricken with a perpetual melancholy. After three years, Riki unexpectedly returns to Ceres, but all is not well. The "Charisma" of the slums is a changed man. Faced with growing suspicion that he's lost his spark, and haunted by the memory of what happened during those three years away from the slums, Riki finds himself pulled into the escalating gang warfare as rivals attempt to wipe out his pack before they can regroup under their newly-returned leader. And then there is the frighteningly cold, regrettably familiar man he meets by chance one day: the beautiful Iason Mink. What secrets lie behind the smile of that bewitching Blondy?
Like most yaoi readers who have seen the classic anime, I hoped and prayed that some publisher would eventually make the novels available in English. With most movies that are based on novels, there is a tendency to condense, overlook, or simply change the original story. The result is a common cliche that 'the book is better than the movie'. Surely, that would be the case with such a piece as Ai no Kusabi. So, when the wonderfully awesome June publishing licensed this series, I was beside myself with joy at finally being able to read the intricate details and nuances of such a futuristic tale of lust, power, and possibly love. In this case, however, I find that the movie actually enhances the book. The novel is so convoluted in its storytelling, that it almost seems to skirt the border between beautifully poetic and outright pretentious. Reading the first volume in the series was an odd combination of enraptured attention and complete drudgery. There were parts that I could visualize in my head as I read along, allowing the story to flow, while other parts caused my eyes to glaze over as my mind skittered away into a daydream far removed from the story I was attempting to read.
I consider myself a fairly intelligent person; the two advanced science degrees under my belt lead me to believe this. However, when I sit down to relax with a good book, I truly want to leave the deciphering skills at work and simply enjoy a good tale. The labyrinthine structure in this book, however, is not one to lend itself to an easy afternoon read. Instead, it is reminiscent of those 'required reading' lists in school, where we were tasked with analyzing some literary masterpiece written by a classically famous and long-dead author. I always prayed for cliff notes. Fortunately, there are 'cliff notes' for this in the form of the anime; hence my feelings that the two compliment each other despite appearing to be slightly different takes on the tale. The lack of the more tantalizing aspects of Ai no Kusabi in this first volume was also disappointing. One can only hope that delightful aspect will be further explored in the remaining volumes.
I must commend June on their translation job of the book. I can only imagine how challenging it was, considering the complexity of this written piece of literature. There were, however, some grammatical mistakes throughout and perhaps some wording choices that could have been better. The illustrations were few and far between, lacking in detail and not quite as appealing or risque as the cover itself.
Despite the difficulties I experienced in making it through the first volume, I do plan to read the rest of the series. Reading the story did make a few aspects of the anime a little clearer to me, as watching the anime prior to reading the story perhaps made the novel a little easier to swallow. I recommend it for no other reason than it is an example of classic yaoi and an experience any mature fan of the genre should partake. But, I would suggest reading the books in conjunction with watching the anime, to gain the fullest experience from the tale.
Ai no Kusabi vol 1 Stranger
by Rieko Yoshihara
Publisher: June Manga
From the back cover - The Man's upturned blue eyes were so unimaginably beautiful that they could make anybody tremble with awe. In this moment, however, they also glimmered with an icy fire - perhaps revealing the fury of his wounded pride, or rather, a manifestation of his uncontrollable obsession.
Ceres: a city without ethics or taboos, ruled by instincts and lusts. These are the slums - immutable, eternal, home to those poor, caged souls stricken with a perpetual melancholy. After three years, Riki unexpectedly returns to Ceres, but all is not well. The "Charisma" of the slums is a changed man. Faced with growing suspicion that he's lost his spark, and haunted by the memory of what happened during those three years away from the slums, Riki finds himself pulled into the escalating gang warfare as rivals attempt to wipe out his pack before they can regroup under their newly-returned leader. And then there is the frighteningly cold, regrettably familiar man he meets by chance one day: the beautiful Iason Mink. What secrets lie behind the smile of that bewitching Blondy?
Like most yaoi readers who have seen the classic anime, I hoped and prayed that some publisher would eventually make the novels available in English. With most movies that are based on novels, there is a tendency to condense, overlook, or simply change the original story. The result is a common cliche that 'the book is better than the movie'. Surely, that would be the case with such a piece as Ai no Kusabi. So, when the wonderfully awesome June publishing licensed this series, I was beside myself with joy at finally being able to read the intricate details and nuances of such a futuristic tale of lust, power, and possibly love. In this case, however, I find that the movie actually enhances the book. The novel is so convoluted in its storytelling, that it almost seems to skirt the border between beautifully poetic and outright pretentious. Reading the first volume in the series was an odd combination of enraptured attention and complete drudgery. There were parts that I could visualize in my head as I read along, allowing the story to flow, while other parts caused my eyes to glaze over as my mind skittered away into a daydream far removed from the story I was attempting to read.
I consider myself a fairly intelligent person; the two advanced science degrees under my belt lead me to believe this. However, when I sit down to relax with a good book, I truly want to leave the deciphering skills at work and simply enjoy a good tale. The labyrinthine structure in this book, however, is not one to lend itself to an easy afternoon read. Instead, it is reminiscent of those 'required reading' lists in school, where we were tasked with analyzing some literary masterpiece written by a classically famous and long-dead author. I always prayed for cliff notes. Fortunately, there are 'cliff notes' for this in the form of the anime; hence my feelings that the two compliment each other despite appearing to be slightly different takes on the tale. The lack of the more tantalizing aspects of Ai no Kusabi in this first volume was also disappointing. One can only hope that delightful aspect will be further explored in the remaining volumes.
I must commend June on their translation job of the book. I can only imagine how challenging it was, considering the complexity of this written piece of literature. There were, however, some grammatical mistakes throughout and perhaps some wording choices that could have been better. The illustrations were few and far between, lacking in detail and not quite as appealing or risque as the cover itself.
Despite the difficulties I experienced in making it through the first volume, I do plan to read the rest of the series. Reading the story did make a few aspects of the anime a little clearer to me, as watching the anime prior to reading the story perhaps made the novel a little easier to swallow. I recommend it for no other reason than it is an example of classic yaoi and an experience any mature fan of the genre should partake. But, I would suggest reading the books in conjunction with watching the anime, to gain the fullest experience from the tale.