Video Girl Ai (1992) User Reviews

Masakazu Katsura 's sweet creation

[Lady_Targaryen · 7/10 · 19 June 2006]

''Denei shoujo Ai''', more well known as ''Video Girl Ai'' is one of the sweetest anime series I already watched in my whole life. The anime is very short,sadly, but the manga we can have more story about the sweet Ai Amano, a girl who came from the VCR. The Video Girl Ai anime is a six part OVA series , while the manga has fifteen volumes, being the last two volumes about a video girl called ''Len''. I personally prefer from Masakazu DNA², but Video Girl Ai is very sweet anime in it's own ways too.

Yota Moteuchi,a very shy but very caring guy, finds out that the girl he is in love with, his friend Moemi Hayakawa is in love with his best friend, Takashi Niimai, the popular guy from their school. Depressed, he decides to rent a video from a mysterious video store that appeared in front of him on his way home. Yota decides to watch a video with Ai Amano,not knowing that the video store he was in had the called'' video girls", girls which come out of the television to cheer the renter up.

When he starts watching the tape,AI comes out from the VCR to help Yota to reach his dreams,specially the ones concerning Moemi. But living together everyday, Ai and Yota start to like each other more and more....and Ai's creator is decided to make the things even more complicated.

oddly sweet

[niemand-2 · 8/10 · 5 December 1999]

Strangely sad and touching romantic comedy/drama that should have gone on for more episodes. Pretty character designs, although Niimai-kun's hair is eccentric to the point of ridicule. Somehow the total effect of the show transcends the often bathetic and inane goings-on; this probably has a lot to do with Megumi Hayashibara's great voice acting, so I don't know what it would be like dubbed. Definitely worth checking out if subtitled.

Fair as these things go, but less special than I had heard.

[dave13-1 · 6/10 · 10 February 2012]

I liked the look of this OAV series, but I found myself thinking that for a six episode series adding up to almost three hours of running time, nothing much happens. A guy puts a 'video date' tape in his crappy VCR and the girl comes out! Neat story conceit, if wildly implausible, but then they just hang out with one another and slowly become emotionally attached. It's a simple, straight-forward romance with little comedy or conflict to push the characters around, and little in the way of visual interest beyond the fact that the title character is cute. There is little in the way of other-realm fantasy - the girl just shows up - and when her existence on Earth is threatened, the geek hero has to act, but that comes almost three hours into the show. I re-iterate: nothing much happens here to justify the show's running length. I liked it for what it was, but I found it rather limited overall as a piece of entertainment.

Very Touching Adult Romantic Comedy

[ibbl · 10/10 · 23 February 2002]

Yes, it's not for kids. But sure it's the best animated sensual romantic comedy I have ever seen!

Though the romantic plot is developing in a quick pace, but it doesn't lose its tenderness. And yes, there are a lot of nudity scenes, but they are so smoothly integrated with the romantic comic plot without exaggeration.

The colors and picture quality in the DVD version of are amazing. You can chose between "the good and funny" English dubbing or the original Japanese voicing with the English subtitle, which I enjoyed switching to sometimes.

You can find many animated romantic comedies in Disney library to watch with your children, but if you like animation, and if you like "grown up" romantic comedies, sure this one is what you are looking for.

A true gem

[maris1 · 10/10 · 4 March 2006]

You don't have to be a anime fan to appreciate the greatness of Video girl Ai". The anime version is only about six episodes and covers only the first two-three books,but it cannot be missed since everything,from the main theme to the animation,to the ending song is beautiful.

When I saw Video girl ai for the first time I was 16,just like the majority of the characters.And I was so impressed by the fact Masakazu Katsura was so able to represent all the feelings boys and girls at that age have I immediately bought all the 17 volumes,and after reading all of them in bout three days I was completely speechless,overwhelmed by so much greatness,so much touching moments,so much perfection.

It has to be,in my opinion,if not the best manga ever at least one of the best.And the Anime version is none to less...when the beautiful ending song will begin you will find yourself asking for more,and more,and more of Ai,Yota,Moemi and Takashi.

You will love all of them.And you will fall in love with Ai,you have my word.

GREAT!! Romantic anime with fantasy all in one

[solo-11 · 7 November 1999]

The plot may not be unique, but the way it is put across is more than beautiful.

A truly funny anime that will get you laughing non-stop, and finally get you crying too.

The only thing to take note is that this anime is definitely not for young children. There is some harmless nudity and reference to sex, but is not pornographic.

Don't miss the after-episode theatre! Theis is where all the funniest jokes are! The ending is quite philosophical, but I do think it is most appropriate and artistic that way.

Not about the TV version, but the Manga

[Angga_Dungga · 10/10 · 4 February 2002]

Hi, i just want to tell you all that Video Girl Ai is really an enrichment to my daily literature. I've just seen one or two parts of the Anime Series, but I didn't understand anything cause it was japanese with chinese subtitles, so I didn't understand much of the story. But later I found the translated Manga and I must say that I could keep on reading the story on and on... The story is well told, the persons are fascinating and the way Masakazu Katsura is cutting off at the end of each manga is just brain-ripping! I just can't wait to read on and find out how it's gonna go on! So for those people who enjoy the story on TV, you should try to read the manga!

On Why 'Video Girl Ai' is Not as Good as it Should Be or, It's All Fun and Games Until Someone Loses an Ai (SPOILERS)

[thecomicman · 19 April 2003]

Yota Moteuchi is in love with Moemi Hayakawa. Unfortunately, Moemi is in love with Yota's best friend and most popular kid in school, Takashi Niimai. Utterly heartbroken, Yota walks the streets of Tokyo until he stumbles upon a video store. He rents an 'explicit' video and takes it home. When he puts the tape in his broken VCR, Ai Amano jumps out to make his life that much more difficult. So begins 'Video Girl Ai.'

As the story progresses, Ai, a magical creature created solely to comfort the man she's with and help him out in anyway possible, begins to fall in love with Yota, turning an already complicated situation almost impossible. The series is funny and heartwarming, and halfway through the fifth episode, the audience wants Yota to forget about Moemi and go with Ai, especially after Yota helps Moemi land Takashi. Even though the audience wants this, they know it is not possible because Moemi is Yota's one true love. Or is she?

After the fifth episode, things take a left turn. Ai's creator, referred to only as 'The Man,' has her recalled because she is defective. A video girl is not supposed to fall in love, something Ai has clearly done. When Yota discovers Ai is missing, he searches day and night to find her. When the video clerk from the video store Ai comes from allows her to speak with Yota one last time, Yota jumps on the chance and follows her into the Video World (not the Dimension of Love, as some of my colleagues have erroneously stated).

The series ends with Yota enduring pain and hardship to save Ai from being crucified and to spend one final moment with her, after being forced to choose between Ai and Moemi. This last episode is where it all falls apart.

The first five episode are all about unrequited love and perseverence in the face of this love. Yota knows for a fact that Moemi loves Takashi, and even though he helps her get Takashi, Yota never loses hope. Takashi, unknowingly the object of Moemi's affections, continually supports his downtrodden friend. Even after he begins dating Moemi, the audience wonders if it is only to further push his friend's cause (Takashi acts like a jerk throughout the relationship and ends it by asking Moemi to make sure she doesn't actually love Yota instead). When Ai enters the equation, she also helps Yota try to get Moemi, even after she has fallen in love with him. Ai gets mad at herself when she does things that jeopardize Yota's chances with Moemi.

This is all for naught, though, because the final episode explicitly states that one should get what one can, when one can. After Yota climbs the glass staircase (a metaphor for love, as 'The Man' deftly explains) to reach Ai, he makes it known what it is he has learned, and that is that one should get what one can, when one can.

This is in direct opposition to the rest of the series. In order for such a turnaround to occur, there needed to be more episodes charting Yota's journey from loving Moemi to loving Ai. And even then the final episode would make no sense. I cannot remember exactly what the exact words Yota utters at the end, but they were akin to 'one should get what one can, when one can.' Even if Yota's decision of Ai were explained more clearly, this last kernel of wisdom would still not make sense in the diegesis of the series. The previous five episodes teach to persevere. Go for the gold, as it were. Pick your girl and never give up. The last episode destroys this by saying that there is no need to get first place, when fifth is readily available.

Overall, this is a very funny, quirky, and sweet story about love and all the hangups that it entails. But the final episode will go down in history as the worst possible way to end a story. Not only does it disagree with everything the previous episodes stated, it also ends on a cliffhanger of sorts, with the audience left wondering what exactly has become of all the characters, Ai and Yota especially.