Video Girl Ai

Video Girl Ai was written by the mangaka that did I"S. This threw up all sorts of red flags, because I"S was really, really, really bad. This made me all the more surprised when VGA turned out to be great. For starters, it's probably the only shonen romance I've ever read where I got the impression who the main character was going to end up with was really, truly up in the air. Hell, for a couple of short blinks, the "Main Character X Nobody" pairing was up for grabs. The plot in itself is kind of generic, but that can be forgiven because the plot actuallymoves. Things happen. Relationships change. And they stay changed. "I want to go back" is the exception, rather than the rule. This is the most important thing that makes VGA good and almost all other shonen romance bad. There is nothing worse than a romance story that just spins its wheels, and thankfully that never happens with this series. The characters are great. I bought all of them as human beings (except Takashi. I don't know what the hell was up with him) and once their personalities were drawn out, they acted in character. It makes some of the fairly generic events that happen have real impact, since you can actually thing of them as people. There was only two characters where I was truly unsatisfied with how that character was dealt with. Considering the genre, that's actually kind of amazing. In closing, VGA is shonen romance done correctly. You're doing yourself a disservice if you're a fan of the genre and haven't read this.

"Video Girl Ai" is an interesting romantic/sci-fi manga in the style of Pinocchio. It's sort of every pubescent guy's fantasy: Striking out in the romance department? Taking comfort in the rental of a pornographic video? Wouldn't it be great if the chick in the video came out of the TV to assist you in finding love?! Well, that's what happens here. Quirkiness and angst ensue amidst a story of love triangles, magic video tapes, (Google that if you must), and what it means to be human. Is it flesh and blood or genuine emotion that make us what we are? The story itself is thestandard boy likes girl, girl likes boy's best friend, boy gets help from a chick who pops out of a TV screen. None of the main characters are that memorable. All are very likeable but have their flaws. There is a decent supporting cast to go with them. It's not really the characters that make this manga good, it's the journey they go on. The story gives us a lot of soap opera-esque scenarios of "Who is going to end up with who ?" and "How will this romance play out?" but when everything was said and done, I left pretty happy and rather satisfied by the conclusion. The artwork does well in it's story telling and once again that's what it's about. The story. It's a refreshing re-hash of some old concepts and an enjoyable read. Heads up. There is some sexuality and nudity. Nothing tasteless. If you're in the mood for some mildly adult themed comedy romance drama, give it a read. Cheers!

Before writing this review I thought quite a bit and it would be difficult for me to give Video Girl Ai a score lower than 9. The manga is simply that good. I'll try to break it down a bit. **Story** This is arguably the weakest aspect of Video Girl Ai. For the first ~20 chapters it's a beautiful story of finding love in the most unlikely of places and overcoming one's weaknesses for that love. Later, however, the manga somehow loses focus and bounces around more episodically, until we reach the well-deserved conclusion. This decrease in focus and shifts in narrative kind of undermine the finale,because at least I wasn't 100% convinced by it. Past the end we have an extra, unrelated volume with a second story - equally heart-warming and beautiful. **Art** The most prominent point. The art is simply stunning. Great focus on character design, especially clothing (very nostalgic 80-90s vibes) and lots of zoom-ins on faces. Close-ups are used to portray slight changes in the emotions of characters. That, coupled with a brilliant use of illumination, just works. It's not only convincing, but also naturally evokes strong emotions. **Characters** Very human and relatable. The main protagonist is a teenager who honestly struggles with puberty, but also with the kindness of his heart. He's not a people\s pleaser, but genuinely kind. Unfortunately, this kindness often brings him sadness as it's not possible to give love to everyone. The main issue I find with him and partially the story is that as the narrative progresses, it's less and less clear what the main protagonist really wants from life. Who does he really care about the most? He professes love to girl A, but then he's equally in love with girl B and the entire narrative and the motivations of characters align with it. The rest of the cast is equally believable. The girls are naive at times, but also strong-willed. Oddly, there is only 1 villain, who is less of a villain and more of a plot device, because his intentions aren't always clear. **Enjoyment** I struggled to put the manga away and often dreamt about it. I honestly enjoyed it. **Overall** Yes, it's a 9, despite my complaints. The manga is definitely worth a read :).

Reviewing this one is going to be really difficult for me. It used to be my favourite when I was in high school and just started reading manga. I re-read it recently after more than 10 years, and in hindsight I understand it's not the masterpiece I thought it was, but there are still chapters and scenes that deeply moved me, so from an emotional perspective I think I wasn't completely wrong. It's the main reason why it's still on my favourites list despite having a relatively low rating compared to other titles I have read. THE GOOD: The art is amazing. The first few chapters mightstill have a slightly "cartoonish" feel, but already from volume 2-3 it becomes incredibly realistic and detailed, almost photography-like. All the panels are simply gorgeous. From a writing point of view, although the plot isn't exactly tight and characterization could be improved (more on that later), the manga delivers big time because the author manages to make the characters relatable. There are scenes that hit like a truck because you feel so invested in them. THE MEH: The manga leans HEAVILY on the ecchi side, so be prepared. It's already clear on page 2, where you are "welcomed" by an explicit panel of the MC's love interest wearing pantsu and nothing else. All the female characters (with only one exception) get this treatment at least once, the main ones a lot more. And almost all of those scenes contain strong erotic tension, i.e. they are not simply comedic situations. Considering that essentially all characters are teenagers... you see the issue. If you're an adult reader and you are there for the romance, those realistic panels will make you cringe and EXTREMELY uncomfortable. I honestly didn't remember it was SO ecchi when I re-read it some months ago, and I was taken aback. In terms of writing, while characters are relatable thanks to extensive introspection, they are also somewhat frustrating to root for because of poor development. They definitely change throughout the series, but most of the times they experience progression only to undo it the very next chapter or arc, which feels like they are not growing at all. This is especially egregious in the MC, who "resets" his progression multiple times during the story, particularly during the central arcs. THE BAD: The plot is all over the place. It's obvious that the author didn't have a clear idea in mind about the direction the story would take, beside the first chapters and the finale. Masakazu Katsura is notorious for his poorly structured writing, and this is no exception. You can see it in the setting, with inconsistent worldbuilding which affects important elements like the Gokuraku Club. You can see it in the decisions taken by some characters, which might be illogical, lack motivation, and included just to create drama or move the plot forward: this happens with the MC but also with many other characters like Takashi, Moemi, Koji. By some miracle the story can still be digested because it is well paced and has a surprising inner symmetry: the first chapters mirror the last ones, the 3 major turning points are perfectly placed and split the plot in cohesive arcs. However, this "artificial aesthetic harmony" isn't enough to overcome all the issues: if it's not aesthetics but good writing you're looking for, you won't find it here. FINAL THOUGHTS: A work that defined my teen years as a manga reader. I still understand why I loved it so much, back then: you won't find many other works as emotional as this one, out there. Still, many would probably find it too explicitly sexualised, and exigent readers would cringe at the poorly written plot. I'm keeping it as a favourite of mine because of what it means to me, even if there are objectively better manga out there. For the same reason I'm giving it a rating of 7 although it's probably closer to 6.5. If you're an adult, recommended only if you are a desperate romantic craving for strong emotions, and you're willing to put up with the ecchi and the writing issues to get it. If you're a teen, simply recommended. It's a must-read if you like romance, and you'll love it.