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Ai no Kusabi (間の楔)^{[n 1]} is a Japanese novel written by Rieko Yoshihara. Originally serialized in the yaoi magazine Shousetsu June between December 1986 and October 1987, the story was collected into a hardbound novel that was released in Japan in 1990. This futuristic tale is set in a world where the Elites are assigned various social classes based on their hair color in the city of Tanagura. Iason Mink, a high-class 'Blondie', runs into Riki, a black-haired 'Mongrel', and makes him his 'Pet', which Riki resents being. As Riki learns of the dangers Iason faces by keeping him, he finds himself developing feelings for his master. Focusing on the relationship between Iason and Riki, Ai no Kusabi also explores issues of caste systems and social exclusion.

The novel was partially adapted into a two-episode original video animation (OVA) by Anime International Company (AIC), with the first episode released in August 1992 and the second in May 1994. In November 1993, an audio drama entitled Erogenous Dark was released focusing on a time period left unexplored in the original novels. A new twelve-episode OVA adaptation, also from AIC, was scheduled to begin releasing in Japan in the spring of 2010, but was cancelled for financial reasons. The project was picked up again and was released on January 18, 2012.^[6] However, the series was once again discontinued after four episodes.

The novel is licensed for an English language release in North America by Digital Manga Publishing, which published the novel over an eight-volume series.

• 1Plot
• 2Terminology
• 3Characters
• 4Media

Plot[edit]

Setting[edit]

Ai no Kusabi takes place on the world of Amoï, which is ruled by a computer named Jupiter. Jupiter has introduced a number of strict social rules to society: Elites of Tanagura, Midas citizens, and Mongrels from Ceres. The Elites are genetically engineered by Jupiter, are of the highest social class, which is determined by hair color, and occupy the capital city of Tanagura. Under Jupiter's restrictions, the Elites are sterile and forbidden from indulging in sexual activities. They keep 'pets' (adolescents in their late teens) for about a year, for purely voyeuristic purposes, before discarding them. Further emasculation is seen in the 'Furniture', adolescent boys who serve the Elites.

Outside Tanagura's walls is the satellite pleasure city of Midas, which is heavily occupied by rich citizens and tourists alike. Near Midas is an independent slum area called Ceres. The mostly male population of Ceres lives in high poverty; therefore, they are often called 'Mongrels' by both Midas citizens and Tanagura elites and are looked down upon.

Terminology[edit]

Amoï[edit]

Amoï is the twelfth planet in the Garan star system and was once a small, barren planet. Amoï was first settled by a group of scientists who sought to make a metropolis society unconstrained by political pressures and religious taboos. They created Tanagura as their central city and made the supercomputer named 'Jupiter.' Jupiter eventually attained a consciousness of its own and seized power over Tanagura. Over time, Amoï constructed the city of Midas near Tanagura and developed many independent city states, with Tanagura as the planet's governed capital.

Tanagura[edit]

Tanagura is the metallic city under the direct and complete control of Jupiter, who rules over Amoï. In Tanagura, Eos Tower is the palace where Jupiter's android-like elites live and work while Jupiter itself resides in its Jupiter Tower. All elites are physically perfect and beautiful, with immortal bodies and long hair, along with strength greater than normal humans. They are sterile and their highly advanced brains are the only organic part of their bodies. Tanagura applied a hair-color caste system called 'NORAM' to those who work there:

• Blondie - The 'elites of the elite', Blondies are the highest social class and genetically engineered by Jupiter. With only thirteen Blondies, they make up the 'Tanagura Syndicate' and are the supreme leaders of Tanagura, with Iason Mink as the foremost head. They have the authority to communicate directly with Jupiter, mainly Iason, and are aware of all of secrets Amoï and its underworld.
• Platina - Silver-haired elites that hold the highest and various leadership positions.
• Ruby, Jade, and Sapphire - Subdivided by their individual specialties, they are advisers to the Onyx elites.
• Onyx - The 'face' of Tanagura, the black-haired elites are the lowest of the caste with external responsibilities. They take administrator positions and are in charge of government businesses.

Characters[edit]

Main[edit]

• Riki (リキ) is the primary protagonist of the series. Due to his dark hair and eyes, he is known as 'Riki the Dark' and is the former gang leader of the Bison gang in Ceres. Considered the 'charisma of the slums', Riki was once proud, rebellious, fierce, and defiant, but after his three years of being Iason's pet, he became more mature and quiet. Before becoming Iason's pet, Riki was once the lover of Guy, the second-in-command of Bison, but their relationship ended once Iason forced Riki to be his pet for three years, which had a crushing effect on his human pride. Throughout the story, Riki is torn between his pride and the feelings he has for Iason that he is unwilling to acknowledge. In the audio book, 1990s OVAs, and the first drama CD, he is voiced by Seki Toshihiko. In the later drama CDs and the remake OVAs, he is voiced by Kentarō Itō. In the English dub, he is voiced by Darren Mitchell.^[7][8]
• Iason Mink (イアソン・ミンク) is the most superior and powerful Blondie in Tanagura, and the head of the Syndicate, Tanagura's black market for pet trade. Iason has an elegant and calm demeanor that hides a passionate, ruthless, manipulative, and unforgiving nature. He is in love with his pet Riki, a mongrel from the slums, which casts a dark shadow over his seeming perfection. At first, Iason is interested in what it would be like to have a gang leader from the slums as a pet, instead of one of those non-thinking pets bred by the Academy, but slowly he begins to love Riki to the point of obsession. In the audio book, 1990s OVAs, and first drama CD, he is voiced by Kaneto Shiozawa. In the later drama CDs and remake OVAs, he is voiced by Tōru Ōkawa. In the English dub, he is voiced by Todd Haberkorn.^[7][8]
• Guy (ガイ) Guy is the former pairing partner of Riki's and is second-in-command of the gang Bison. Much like Iason, he is in love with Riki, although their relationship became strained after Riki's disappearance from the slums. Once he realized the connection between Riki's disappearance for three years and Iason, Guy attempts to do whatever he can in order to retrieve Riki from Iason. In the audio book, he is voiced by Kozima Takayuki (小島貴幸). In the 1990s OVAs, he is voiced by Kōji Tsujitani. In the later drama CDs and remake OVAs, he is voiced by Kōsuke Toriumi. In the English dub, he is voiced by Ricco Fajardo.^[9][10]
• Katze (カッツェ) was a former Furniture of Iason, and Iason's right-hand man in the black market. A computer genius, he almost uncovered what he calls the 'Secrets of Tanagura' during time as Iason's Furniture, but was caught in the act by Iason, who punished him by slashing his left cheek, which earned him a scar that he usually covers with his hair. Although he respects Riki, he is willing to take part in Iason's plans to make Riki return to Iason by manipulating Kirie. Despite his cool, seemingly uncaring nature, he cares for both Iason and Riki deeply and tries his best to look after both of them. In the audio book, he is voiced by Hōchū Ōtsuka. In the 1990s OVAs, he is voiced by Hideyuki Tanaka. In the later drama CDs and remake OVAs, he is voiced by Shin-ichiro Miki. In the English dub, he is voiced by Michael A. Zekas.^[11][12]
• Raoul Am (ラウール・アム) is a Blondie who is the second-in-command of Tanagura, chief scientist of Tanagura, and Iason Mink's best friend. He serves as the voice of reason, concern and societal pressure as Iason's infatuation with Riki becomes more obvious. Raoul possesses the ability to tamper with minds, which he does not want to use on Iason in case his relationship with Riki worsens. In the audio book, he is voiced by Ikeda Hidekazu. In the 1990s OVAs and first drama CD, he is voiced by Shō Hayami. In the later drama CDs and remake OVAs, he is voiced by Takaya Kuroda. In the English dub, he is voiced by Chuck Huber.^[13][14]
• Kirie (キリエ) is the youngest member of Bison at 17-year-old with his right eye is colored gold to sandy brown and the left eye is colored blue. Ambitious and sly, Kirie is lured into lucrative deals by Katze as part of Iason's scheme to bring Riki back after his year of freedom. Although Riki harbors an intense hatred for Kirie because he reminds Riki of his former proud and rebellious self, Kirie possesses an obsessive love for Riki. In the audiobook, he is voiced by Taiki Matsuno. In the 1990s OVAs, he was voiced by Shigeru Nakahara. In the remake OVAs, he voiced by Showtaro Morikubo. In the English dub, he is voiced by Bryson Baugus.^[11][12]

Minor Characters[edit]

• Jupiter (ユピテル), also known as Lambda 3000, is the artificial intelligence that rules Amoï. Often referred to as a 'she', Jupiter places her android-like Blondie 'children' at the pinnacle of society, whom she only allows only speak to her, mainly Iason. Although Iason is said to be her favorite 'son', Jupiter disapproves of Iason's infatuation of Riki and is willing to have his mind wiped if Iason's obsession over Riki worsens. In the 1990s OVAs, she looks like a silver-colored statue in hologram form. In the remake OVAs, she takes the appearance of a large violet hologram with razor-sharped nails, a long, pointed nose, silted eyes with light violet irises with one on her forehead, a broad grin, and mechanic designs on her arms.
• Orphe Zavi (オルフェ・ザビ) is a Blondie and is responsible with supervising the parties, security details, and helps appease any trouble that might arise in Eos Tower. He is known as an 'elegant noble' among the Blondies, and takes great pride in his position as supervisor over Eos Tower. Like all Blondies, he has a fascination over Riki, although Orphe also despises him because he was the first person to get past his security details in Eos Tower (due to Iason's former Furniture Daryl's assistance). In the remake OVAs, he is voiced by Nobuo Tobita. In the English dub, he is voiced by John Swasey.^[9][10]
• Gideon Lagat (ギデオン・ラガト) is a Blondie and the chief of Midas with a wicked sense of humor. Like all Blondies, he has a fascination over Riki and finds the scandals Riki causes as a source of entertainment, but he also disapproves of his actions and Iason's infatuation for him. In the remake OVAs, he is voiced by Kenyu Horiuchi. In the English dub, he is voiced by Marcus Stimac.^[15][16]
• Aisha Rosen (アイシャ・ローゼン) is a Blondie and is charge of overseeing Tanagura but holds little power over Eos Tower. Like all Blondies, he has a fascination over Riki, but to a lesser extent because Riki and his pet often fight with each other. He openly voices his disapproval over Riki to Iason and enjoys criticizing Iason about Riki's scandals. In the remake OVAs, he is voiced by Takehito Koyasu. In the English dub, he is voiced by Meli Grant.^[15][16]
• Daryl (ダリル) was an eighteen-year-old castrated boy that served as Iason's former Furniture and Riki's caretaker. Like all Furnitures in Tanagura, Daryl was raised in Ceres at the orphanage, Guardian, along with Riki. Despite being three years older than Riki and having never met him in Guardian, Daryl knew Riki by his reputation and admired him. Daryl loved him because of his pride and his will not to bow down, which continued when Daryl met Riki again when he first came to Tanagura. As Riki's caretaker, Daryl tried his best effort to look after Riki, much to Riki's annoyance, while still maintaining his distance. Although Riki never treated with Daryl with a lot of respect, he found a comfortable companion in Daryl, who was dutiful, kind, and taught him the rules of Tanagura. Like Katze, Daryl was skilled at hacking, and used this talent to hack Eos Tower's security system to help Riki escape. Having aided an escape attempt and hacking Tanagura's system, he is executed for his crimes; however, Daryl did not regret his actions, as he was happy that Riki was still himself. Although most of Eos Tower knows of Daryl's fate, Riki never knew that Daryl tried to helped him or that he was killed for his actions. Knowing that Riki will feel guilty for Daryl's death and would keep Daryl's memory in his heart, Iason kept Daryl's death as a secret from Riki and told him that Daryl was replaced by Cal due to rearrangement with the Furnitures. In the first drama CD, Daryl is voiced by Ryōtarō Okiayu and by Eiji Hanawa in the later drama CDs and remake OVAs. In the English dub, he is voiced by Y. Chang.^[15][16]
• Mimea (ミメア) was Raoul Am's female Pet of the highest breeding and Riki's only friend in Eos. Unlike most pets, she was kind to Riki and fell in love with him, which led to them having forbidden intercourse. Although Riki did cared for her, he used her as a way to test Iason's feelings and make him jealous and ruin his public image. When the affair went public, Iason punished Riki and forced him to tell Mimea the motive behind his actions over a holoscreen. However, Mimea insisted that it was made just to push her and Riki apart, and she told Riki that she will be paired to another pet named Jena, whom she described as a sex freak with nothing but his looks and that thinking of carrying his children pained her. As Riki was silent because his pet ring was fully activated at that time and he had a hard time speaking and breathing, this led Mimea to think that he had abandoned her and calling him a coward. When Riki returned to Eos Tower after three years, Raoul replaced Mimea with a new pet, and Riki never heard what happened to her. In the first drama CD, she was voiced by Emi Shinohara and by Shiho Kawaragi in the later drama CDs and remake OVAs. In the English dub, she is voiced by Elizabeth Maxwell.^[9][10]
• Luke is a friend and member of Riki's former gang Bison from Ceres. Although typically easy-going, Luke is daring and cares deeply about his friends. While Luke is known to prefers virgins as pairing partners, Luke has an infatuation towards Riki and is the only member in Bison to shows his desire openly, but backs off once Riki makes it clear he's uninterested. In the 1990s OVAs, he was voiced by Shigeru Chiba. In the remake OVAs, he voiced by Masahiro Yamanaka. In the English dub, he is voiced by Tyson Rinehart.^[9][10]
• Norris is a friend and member of Riki's former gang Bison from Ceres. Much like Luke, Norris is energetic and easy-going, though has shown a thoughtful side at times. Although Norris once had a secret infatuation towards Riki, Norris found a serious and happy relationship with Maxi, a mechanic ten years older than him. In the 1990s OVAs, he was voiced by Kikuchi Masami. In the remake OVAs, he voiced by Makoto Aoki. In the English dub, Norris is voiced by Matt Shipman.^[17][12]
• Sid is a friend and member of Riki's former gang Bison from Ceres. Compare to the other members of Bison, Sid is more quiet and stoic, and is a good fighter. Like Luke and Norris, Sid has an infatuation towards Riki, but he kept his desires a secret out of respect for Guy. During Riki's three-year 'disappearance' from Ceres, Sid was the one who recruited Kirie into Bison as the teenager's proud rebelliousness reminded him of Riki. In the 1990s OVAs, he was voiced by Hideyuki Hori. In the remake OVAs, he voiced by Yasuhiro Mamiya. In the English dub, he is voiced by Austin Tindle.^[15][16]
• Cal is the young castrated boy that serves as Iason's Furniture and Riki's caretaker, replacing Daryl after his death. Much like Daryl, Cal is dutiful and quiet, but wasn't overly attentive to Riki as Daryl was. As Riki met Cal after he learns that all Furniture are secretly from Ceres, Riki treats Cal with more respect than he did with Daryl, and the two established a more professional relationship, as Riki wishes not to get attached to Cal.

Media[edit]

Novel[edit]

Written by Rieko Yoshihara, the individual chapters of Ai no Kusabi were serialized in the yaoi magazine Shousetsu June between December 1986 and October 1987. The chapters were collected and published as a single hardbound novel in 1990. The series was later released in a revised and greatly expanded paperback edition from Seibidō Shuppan under their Crystal imprint, however the Crystal edition is incomplete, covering only six of eight books. The series was then acquired by Tokuma Shoten and a complete edition was published in six volumes under their Chara imprint; the first four are semi-omnibus (volumes 1-4 correspond to Crystal volumes 1-6) and the final two are the previously unreleased material. The novel was licensed for an English language release in North America by Digital Manga Publishing (DMP).^[18] The English edition from Juné was originally based on the Crystal edition, and will have eight volumes (corresponding to Crystal 1-6 plus Chara 5 and 6). The first volume was released on November 20, 2007^[2] and the sixth on July 28, 2009.^[19] After a long hiatus, caused in part by re-negotiation required by the change in Japanese publisher, the remaining two volumes, Volume 7 and Volume 8, were released on August 29, 2012, and on April 24, 2013, respectively. In June 2009, DMP made the first volume of Ai no Kusabi, Stranger, available as an Amazon Kindlee-book.^[6]

CDs[edit]

The first spin-off from the novels was an audiobook released on May 31, 1989.

Five soundtracks were released:

• 間の楔 オリジナル・サウンド・トラック (Ai no Kusabi Original Soundtrack) (10 October 1992)
• 間の楔 SENSE OF CRISIS (10 December 1993)
• 間の楔 AMBIVALENCE (25 March 1994)
• 間の楔 SYMPATHY (10 July 1994)
• 間の楔 Sound Selection of 'AI NO KUSABI' 祈り-ORACION- (25 January 1995)

The first drama CD was released in November 1993 under the name '間の楔 DARK-EROGENOUS'. Three more drama CDs were later released by a different company throughout 2007 and 2008.^[20]

• 間の楔I 〜DESTINY〜 (25 May 2007)
• 間の楔II 〜NIGHTMARE〜 (25 April 2008)
• 間の楔III 〜RESONANCE〜 (25 October 2008)

Original video animations[edit]

Anime International Company created a two-episode Original Video Animation adaptation for the series. The first episode was released in August 1992, and the second in May 1994.^[3] Directed by Akira Nishimori and Katsuhito Akiyama, the episodes were based on a screenplay written by Naoko Hasegawa. They featured character designs by Naoyuki Onda and music composed by Toshio Yabuki.^[4][21] The plot slightly differed from the novels' storyline, but kept the main story points intact.

Remake[edit]

A second, twelve-episode anime OVA adaptation, also from AIC, was scheduled to begin releasing in Japan Fall 2010. Due to financial issues, production was cancelled for a period of time, but has now been taken up again and was scheduled for January 18, 2012 instead.^[22][23] Akiyama directed again and Onda provided the character designs. The screenplay was written by Yoshihara herself.^[21] The Blu-ray release of the OVA included a new short story by Yoshihara.^[24]

Since the eight minutes preview, the first four episodes have been released. Anime licensor Media Blasters announced they licensed the remake first four OVAs for North American release in December 2012. However, on November 28, 2012, they notified retailers that it will be delayed until April 23, 2013.^[25][26] On October 11, 2017, Media Blasters announced they will be re-releasing Ai no Kusabi on Blu-ray with English dub,^[27] which was released on December 19, 2017.^[8] On September 20, 1018, Toku adds Ai no Kusabi to its streaming service, allowing viewers to watch the OVAs in Japanese with English subtitles.^[28]

Since the fourth episode's premiere in 2012, the remake have been discontinued for unknown reasons.

Reception[edit]

Mania's Danielle Van Gorder felt the prose of the first novel was 'florid', and criticized the finishing point of the second novel as anticlimactic.^[29][30] She found the characterization of Iason in the third novel to be realistic and compelling,^[31] and felt the theme of the fourth novel was power.^[32] Jonathan Clements compared Yoshihara's writing style to 'Ranpo Edogawa's sexually charged mysteries' and felt Ai no Kusabi shared themes with Shōzō Numa's science fiction.^[33]

Patrick Drazen has described the Ai no Kusabi OVA as a 'magnum opus' of the yaoi genre, and the setting as dystopian, similar to Fritz Lang's Metropolis.^[5] Jonathan Clements and Helen McCarthy liken the society of Ai no Kusabi to that of Ancient Greece, where power was restricted to a class and women do not figure significantly. They consider it ironic that Jupiter is a feminine computer, and describe her as being like Ghost in the Shell's Motoko Kusanagi — Jupiter is 'a man-made idea of the female in a world run by masculine elites'.^[4]Anime News Network's Maral Agnerian praised its interesting, well-developed plot and 'fleshed out and complex' work. She also praises it for being one of the few series from its time to contain 'actual gay sex in it instead of the usual angsty moping and shoujo-esque sparkly kisses', while noting that the scenes are primarily in the second episode.^[34]Anime News Network's Justin Sevakis highlighted the OVA as a 'Buried Treasure', calling it 'one of the best yaoi anime'. He described Riki and Iason as both being 'alpha-males', rather than a seme/uke pairing, and noted how the costuming was elegant for the higher eschelons of society and revealing for the lower classes. He criticized the OVA's adaptation of the story, explaining that it was assumed all viewers would be already familiar with the tale through Shousetsu June.^[35]

Notes[edit]

1. ^Aestheticism describes the title as 'untranslatable'.^[1]Digital Manga Publishing includes the English translation The Space Between on the covers of its release of the series.^[2] In its English website, AIC refers to the series as Wedge of Interval.^[3] In the first edition of the Anime Encyclopedia it was listed as Ties of Love, which refers to the alternate meaning of 'ai no kusabi' as a 'pledge of love'.^[4] Many other fan translations are known.^[4][5]

References[edit]

1. ^'aestheticism.com - This website is for sale! - aestheticism Resources and Information'. www.aestheticism.com. Retrieved 23 April 2018.
2. ^ ^ab'Ai No Kusabi The Space Between Volume 1: Stranger (Yaoi Novel) (v. 1)'. Amazom.com. Retrieved 8 June 2011.
3. ^ ^abcd'Ai no Kusabi'. Anime International Company. Archived from the original on 2005-02-15. Retrieved 2008-02-01.
4. ^ ^abcdClements, Jonathan; Helen McCarthy (2001-09-01). The Anime Encyclopedia: A Guide to Japanese Animation Since 1917 (1st ed.). Berkeley, California: Stone Bridge Press. p. 401. ISBN1-880656-64-7. OCLC47255331.
5. ^ ^abDrazen, Patrick (October 2002). ''A Very Pure Thing': Gay and Pseudo-Gay Themes''. Anime Explosion! The What, Why & Wow of Japanese Animation. Berkeley, California: Stone Bridge Press. pp. 95–97. ISBN1-880656-72-8.
6. ^ ^ab'Ai No Kusabi Offered on Amazon Kindle E-Book Devices - News'. Anime News Network. 2012-01-29. Retrieved 2012-02-02.
7. ^ ^ab'Cast Announcement'. Twitter. November 7, 2017.
8. ^ ^abc'Ai no Kusabi OVA's English-Dubbed Clip Reveals Main Cast'. Anime News Network. November 9, 2017.
9. ^ ^abcd'Major Supporting Cast'. Twitter. November 15, 2017.
10. ^ ^abcd'Ai no Kusabi OVA's English Dub Reveals More Cast'. Anime News Network. November 9, 2017.
11. ^ ^ab'Supporting Cast Announcement'. Twitter. November 11, 2017.
12. ^ ^abc'Ai no Kusabi OVA's English Dub Casts Bryson Baugus, Michael A. Zekas'. Anime News Network. November 15, 2017.
13. ^'Raoul's & Maxi's English VA'. Twitter. November 20, 2017.
14. ^'Ai no Kusabi Boys-Love Anime's English Dub Casts Chuck Huber, Ray Hurd'. Anime News Network. November 20, 2017.
15. ^ ^abcd'Additional Supporting Cast'. Twitter. November 15, 2017.
16. ^ ^abcd'Ai no Kusabi's English Dub Adds 4 More Cast Members'. Anime News Network. November 15, 2017.
17. ^'Norris's English VA'. November 4, 2017.
18. ^'Juné Manga ~ News: October 2006' (Press release). Digital Manga Publishing. 2006-10-25. Archived from the original on 2006-11-21. Retrieved 2008-02-01.
19. ^'Ai No Kusabi The Space Between Volume 6: Metamorphose (Yaoi Novel) (v. 6)'. Amazon.com. Retrieved 8 June 2011.
20. ^'間の楔 III　〜ＲＥＳＯＮＡＮＣＥ〜'. mee-maker.com. Archived from the original on 2011-10-06.
21. ^ ^ab'Ai no Kusabi Boys — Love Novel Get New Anime Remake'. Anime News Network.
22. ^'BL Anime: Ai no Kusabi OVA (2012) Ponytale in LalaParadise Ponytale in LalaParadise'. Ponytale.lalaparadise.com. 2011-09-22. Retrieved 2012-02-02.
23. ^'New Ai no Kusabi Boys-Love Anime Relisted for 2012 - News'. Anime News Network. 2012-01-29. Retrieved 2012-02-02.
24. ^'New Ai no Kusabi BDs to Come With Short Story by Author - News'. Anime News Network. 2012-01-29. Retrieved 2012-02-02.
25. ^'Media Blasters Delays, Cancels Releases'. Anime News Network. 2012-11-28. Retrieved 2013-01-01.
26. ^'Ai no Kusabi: The Space Between (2012) DVD (S)'. RightStuf. 2012-10-28. Archived from the original on 2013-02-16. Retrieved 2013-01-11.
27. ^'Media Blasters to Dub 2012 Boys-Love OVA Ai no Kusabi'. Anime News Network. 2017-10-11. Retrieved 2017-10-11.
28. ^''Ai no Kusabi' Anime Gets Toku Streaming Distribution'. Retrieved 2018-10-06.
29. ^Van Gorder, Danielle (2008-03-18). 'Ai no Kusabi: The Space Between Vol. #01 - Stranger'. Mania. Archived from the original on 2009-01-27. Retrieved 2009-03-13.
30. ^Van Gorder, Danielle (2008-04-10). 'Ai no Kusabi: The Space Between Vol. #02 - Destiny'. Mania. Archived from the original on 2009-03-01. Retrieved 2009-03-13.
31. ^Van Gorder, Danielle (2008-08-06). 'Ai no Kusabi: The Space Between Vol. #03'. Mania. Archived from the original on 2009-01-30. Retrieved 2009-03-13.
32. ^Van Gorder, Danielle (2009-03-13). 'Ai no Kusabi: The Space Between Vol. #04'. Mania. Archived from the original on 2009-03-16. Retrieved 2009-03-16.
33. ^Sleepwalker's World by Gordon R Dickson (2012-01-08). 'Authors : Yoshihara Rieko : SFE : Science Fiction Encyclopedia'. Sf-encyclopedia.com. Retrieved 2012-02-02.
34. ^Agnerian, Maral. 'Ai No Kusabi: Wedge of Love'. Anime News Network. Archived from the original on 16 March 2009. Retrieved 2009-03-13.
35. ^Sevakis, Justin (2008-01-10). 'Ai no Kusabi'. Buried Treasure. Anime News Network. Archived from the original on 29 March 2009. Retrieved 2009-03-16.

Ai No Kusabi Episodes

External links[edit]

• Official anime website(in Japanese)
• Entry in the Encyclopedia of Science Fiction
• Kocha Sound's Ai No Kusabi Webisite(in English)
• Ai no Kusabi (OVA) at Anime News Network's encyclopedia