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Old 2003-12-16, 21:30   Link #1
Seiryuu
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Join Date: Nov 2003
Video Girl Ai

I've heard alot about the series and I thought I'd ask everyone's thoughts on it. First, know that I know the gist of the plotline, as I've skimmed through a few of the manga and read up online. I want details and opinions. What does everyone think of this OVA?
For those who have never heard of it and want to know the plot, and to get it out of the way here and now:
Start with Youta, a shy, mild-mannered guy who's pathetically afraid of girls. Add Takashi, most popular guy in school and Youta's best friend since he was little. Best buds, they won't let anything get between them. Now throw in Moemi. She was also Youta's and Takashi's childhood friend. Youta's always...fancied... Moemi, and Takashi, like any real man with any sense of honor, naturally treats her as anathema. You just don't think about your friend's girl in that way. However, right when Youta has finally gathered the courage to confess, Moemi confides in him that she likes Takashi! What's worse, when she confronts HER love, Takashi rejects her in a failed effort to divert her attentions to one who is already after her.
Heading home depressed from this double tragedy, Youta comes across a vid store he'd never seen before. Inside, he sees a set said to be designed to cheer those who are lonely and depressed(not the adult section). He picks up one with a pretty girl in a strange costume named Amano Ai, and rents it for 1 month(long rental if you ask me). when he turns the vid on, instead of seeing a movie, he sees Ai materialize before him. She's a video girl, a sort-of-android-like person connected to the tape in a way. Video girls are sent with tapes to people who are extremely depressed and help them overcome their personal obstacles(like Youta's shyness) and try to solve his other problems(like Moemi). But the VCR is broken, and so Ai is not acting right. She's moodier, acting like a real girl, even getting jealous and trying to sabotage Moemi. But a video girl is not supposed to feel love, and so the group that produced her has labeled her as a defect and set out to retrieve her.
Sorry for the long summary, I'm no good at summarizing. But I've heard good things about this story, and wanted some comments from the folks of Animesuki. This is an older vid, but the plot looks interesting. Only one warning for those who think of getting this series: Get the manga too, like I'm going to do. The anime stops at 6 eps, roughly halfway through the plot of the 13-volume manga. You will not get the true final ending from the DVD. Even so, I personally think it looks good if no one dissuades me.
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Old 2003-12-16, 22:00   Link #2
Vulkar
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I've seen this before. A guy I know has a lot of the old style video tape fansubs and played this. It's pretty good series, with an interesting relationship forming between Ai and Youta. However, the highlight are the "theater extras" or at least I think they were called. They were short little clips between episodes of the OVA filled with comedy and parody. One of the funnier ones is where they really play up the relationship between Takashi and Youta as homosexual and then have Moemi asking Ai to teach her bedroom techniques. It's all very funny stuff. The anime however, is very sincere and heartwarming. I think if you like something like "Ah! My Goddess" you'll probably enjoy this.
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Old 2003-12-16, 23:23   Link #3
Paper
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It's been a long time since I watched this, but I still list it as one of my favorites. Memories of feeling like being stabbed in the heart come to mind.

What I found odd was amongst my group of friends, the guys liked (and understood? ) this series more than the girls. It at least seemed like the girls didn't fully grasp the emotions of the story as much as the guys did. After that I wondered if my group of friends do not represent the norm.
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Old 2003-12-17, 13:37   Link #4
NeverRamza
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It's a good show but whether or not you enjoy it depends on your state of mind. Watching it today is like reading through some angsty livejournal filled with nothing but whiney garbage. Years ago when I first watched it I could easily relate but now, being the bitter old man I am that's just barely a teenager, I just want the characters to shut up, grow some balls, and just do whatever it is they're trying to do instead of crying about it so much.
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Old 2003-12-17, 14:06   Link #5
Seiryuu
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NeverRamza, I'm surprised. As "barely a teenager", you should know by now that situations like that can't be resolved so easily. If you like someone who likes your best friend, even if your friend rejects her, doing anything to approach her takes more courage than most people have, and a LOT more balls too, since you use that term specifically.
I'm sad to see someone so young disillusioned to ERCs(ecchi-romance-comedies). This is one of the most touching and hilarious gernres in anime today, able to bring about truly painful situations while entertaining us long enough to watch the lengthy development. I mean, I'd be bored watching the developing romance between two kids if there wasn't some entertainging slapstick and cheesecake to laugh at. But with the humor, I grow to love the characters and truly want a good ending to the plotline. This is the reason I think ERC is the best genre of anime today. Sure, I still watch Naruto, but I'll gladly sacrifice it to see Naru beat the crap out of Keitaro. Dont you agree?
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Old 2004-01-15, 10:27   Link #6
babbito2k
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I watched this for the umpteenth time not so long ago, and it was just as good as the previous jillion times I saw it. I don't think it's crucial to read the manga to get good value from this series, it has a lot going for it as it is.

For example, there's Hayashibara Megumi in one of her earliest major roles, doing great work as always. The story is a bit convoluted but delivers some great scenes, and I am all over anything that will deliver great scenes.

The videotape and videogirl stuff is a great gimmick, it's interesting but doesn't need a lot of explaining. The music is pretty good for a series that is *OMG* roughly 12 years old, I still like the closing theme.

All in all I much prefer this show to like Da Capo or Sister Princess, which are all convoluted and gimmicky with sketchy characters and no decent scenes.
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Old 2004-01-15, 10:57   Link #7
Tboz
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I have read the manga but didn't got the chance to watch the anime yet, but I rate this series as the best among Masakazu Katsura's work.
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Old 2004-01-16, 16:34   Link #8
tsurumaru
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Tboz
I have read the manga but didn't got the chance to watch the anime yet, but I rate this series as the best among Masakazu Katsura's work.
I remember in the old days I DL'ed the online text translations for the last volume before I had got my hands on the the final Japanese volume of the manga. Only problem was that I didn't actually download the final chapter and thought the penultimate chapter was the last! Sob......

Poor Youta for the sheer amount of grief he goes through in the series! Lesser men would have died from the stress of it all.......

It a great series, in a nice touchy kinda way.
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Old 2004-01-17, 02:39   Link #9
Tboz
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Yep... it touched me too.

Wondering what Masakazu Katsura is up to nowadays. It has been some time since I's ended, hope his next series will be better.
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Old 2004-01-17, 03:54   Link #10
kj1980
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"Youta no iitokoro hitotsu mikke~"

Ah, "Den-ei Shoujo," one Hayashibara Megumi's earlier works.
Ai-tan, ha-ha-...


It probably still has another three or four years until this OVA becomes a "classic" status, but it is one of the most beautifully made OVAs of the early 1990s.

But still, this doesn't fit my terminology of being "old school."
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Old 2004-02-11, 04:32   Link #11
BigBadWolf
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Unhappy Video Girl AI

I need some help to find this series... Or is it one of those things were I'm going to knaw off my arm to get it first... I go tthe Manga and found it interesting and am having a hard time finding any vids on the Video Girl Series... If you can help please e-mail me at Urufukun@hotmail.com
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Old 2004-02-11, 04:42   Link #12
Nokto
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I'am pretty sure it is licensed. If that is the case just try looking at Amazon or whereever you usually buy your Anime DVD's.
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Old 2004-02-11, 05:18   Link #13
Keitaro
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Video Girl Ai is licensed

Moved thread -> DVD & Licensed forum
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Old 2004-02-13, 23:37   Link #14
Seiryuu
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Yes, it's licensed. Got it a month ago on Xmas money. Absolutely hilarious. I can understand why some might think it's not licensed, the series is old enuogh to be near impossible to track down. You'll have to do what I did and order it. But it's absolutely hilarious, esp. the omake. Warning: don't take eps 1 and 2 as representative of the whole, even if it's only 6 eps. In OVAs, they always make the first two eps extreme, with more ecchi, so that guys will be hooked, or at least numbed so that the slightly lighter stuff of the remainder of the series is not so bad. I love the explanation of why anime chars usually use standardized grammar in the ep2 omake(extra): "Ai, Ai. Video Girl from Hicksville, Alabama". In ep2, there's a brief argument when Ai realizes that the bad transfer through Youta's broken VCR not only made her refer to herself as "ore(the most masculine 1st person reference)", but also threw her from and E-cup down to too small for an A. Needless to say, she's angry. But the "hillbilly" translation of her complaint is unbeatable: "LOOK what you did to maa boobies! flatter'n a run-over squirrel!" Sure makes me glad they do talk normal.

BTW, the anime basically follows vol. 1 of the manga. Once it reaches the end of the first volume, since there were only a couple eps left, they made a new ending right there. The manga goes on five or so more volumes. With this and DNA^2, I think I've fallen in love with Masakazu Katsura.
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Old 2004-02-13, 23:42   Link #15
babbito2k
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Join Date: Jan 2004
Certainly worth whatever they are charging for it nowadays. Has certainly delighted its share of fans over the years. Holds up better than many titles over 10 years old. Hayashibara Megumi in one of her first big roles.
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Old 2004-02-14, 00:48   Link #16
TronDD
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Join Date: Jan 2004
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I just bought this today at Robert's ( http://store.yahoo.com/animecorner/index.html )


The manga is 13 Volumes and goes waaay beyond the OVA, And there are a 2 other volumes of short stories based on the video girl idea.

The OVA was a pretty good adaptation despite the (relatively) quick ending.
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Old 2004-02-14, 03:45   Link #17
Tboz
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Yes, 13 volumes of the manga are dedicated to Ai while volume 14 & 15 are about Len. Read the manga if you can find it mate.
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Old 2004-02-15, 13:18   Link #18
Seiryuu
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I'm collecting the manga. Only got 1&2 so far, Books-a-Million at my local mall usually has something of the series, so I just check up from time to time. I wish they DID follow the whole manga. Or make a TV version that did. Ah, well. Que sera sera.

Either way, both anime and manga are great. Short and old as it is, it doesn't have much following, but it is truly one of the masterpieces. I especially love when Ai and Youta get in a fight in a bowling alley. I must say, Ai has a pretty strong throwing arm to hurl those balls like that :P
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Old 2006-01-15, 22:53   Link #19
OtakuCat89
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The Video Girl AI Anime..

I read the manga and it is one of my favorites. Has anyone seen the anime. Ive only been hearing rumors about it. I have some screen shots but no videos / Trailers..
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Old 2006-01-15, 22:59   Link #20
Kamui4356
Aria Company
 
 
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It was released on dvd, but a while ago. http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/ency...ses.php?id=277
It seems amazon.com amazingly still has one in stock. You can also get it used though that ebay like shop thing they have.
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