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Ai no Kusabi #5
間の楔 Ⅴ 長い夜
After his release from house arrest and return to the slums, Riki's relationship with Guy has been awkward at best. Before they are able to resolve any of their relationship issues, the security forces of the notorious Midas cross the border for an all-out invasion. Can anyone survive the attack of such powerful forces?
246 pages
First published June 1, 2006
13 people are currently reading
451 people want to read
About the author
Rieko Yoshihara
22 books108 followersJapanese author and a key creator of the homoerotic subgenre known in Japan as shōnen ai ["boys' love"]. Yoshihara spent the first three years of her career writing straightforward homoerotic romance, before stumbling into sf, seemingly by accident, with the success of her signature work Ai no Kusabi (December 1986-October 1987 Shōsetsu June; 1990; trans as The Space Between 2007-2008 [see Checklist for details]). Originally published in book form as a single hardback novel, it was later reissued as a six-part series, from which the English translation was made.
Yoshihara's work is strongly redolent of the sexually-charged mysteries of Ranpo Edogawa, and shares many overt themes with the controversial sf of Shōzō Numa. However, it reached an entirely different audience, one largely unaware of these precursors. The world of Ai no Kusabi is divided by decree into classes defined by Genetic Engineering as signalled by the hair colour of the blond rulers and their black-haired subjects. The Blondies are forbidden from sexual intercourse, but often keep members of the dark-haired underclass for use as "pets" and "furniture". In an attempt to curtail Overpopulation, no more than 10% of births may be female, effectively rendering the milieu as an all-male environment, as opposed to the female Keep of Yoshihara's contemporary Yumi Matsuo.
In a sense, Yoshihara's work is an extreme comment on Women in SF, by excluding them almost entirely from a narrative of intense homoerotic relationships and macho vendettas. In depicting abusive relationships between men, in a world from which women are removed or somehow distanced, she tapped into an unexpectedly large subsection of female fandom. Ai no Kusabi found a passionate readership in Japan, sufficient to secure a Seiun Award for its illustrator Katsumi Michihara, although not for its author. The series has twice been adapted into anime, as a two-part video in 1992 and on DVD in 2012; there have also been CD dramas in the style of Radio plays, as well as a Manga edition. Long before its licensed translation in the twenty-first century, it gained a similarly passionate fan following at the periphery of US anime fandom, often among viewers who were forced to guess at the Japanese plot. In its romanticizing of both abstinence and abuse, it can be seen as a forerunner of certain subsets of twenty-first century fantasy, particularly the depiction of Vampires typified by Stephenie Meyer's Twilight series.
Ai no Kusabi was the subject of a prolonged fan translation project, the results of which are often at odds with the output of the legal English-language publication. This is a feature of the sheer fanaticism of Fandom, but also of the many difficulties facing a translator of its complex, multi-layered situations. Even the title encompasses a multiplicity of meanings, with "The Space Between" in Japanese also a pun on "Bonds of Love", "Wedge of Interval" and numerous other possible readings. Moreover, some of Yoshihara's editions offer a decorative English-language subtitle on the Japanese cover, even though her English-language title is often an inexact or counter-intuitive rendering of the actual Japanese. Such fogging of meaning is commonplace in modern Japanese sf, but plays havoc with encyclopedia listings (> Hisashi Kuroma).
Although hardly one of the Mainstream Writers of SF, Yoshihara shares many of their concerns, being primarily an author in one genre (her mundane homosexual romances are largely unlisted here), who only occasionally dabbles in Fantastika. Several of her other books touch on otherworldly themes. Kage no Kan ["House of Shadows"] (1994) eroticizes the relationship between Lucifer and his sworn enemy, the archangel Michael. Although not listed as a sequel per se, the following year's Satan no Fūin ["Seal of Satan"] (1995), shares an illustrator, as well as an apparent continuation of the story as Lucifer lives out his exile on Earth (> Gods and Demons). [JonC]
Yoshihara's work is strongly redolent of the sexually-charged mysteries of Ranpo Edogawa, and shares many overt themes with the controversial sf of Shōzō Numa. However, it reached an entirely different audience, one largely unaware of these precursors. The world of Ai no Kusabi is divided by decree into classes defined by Genetic Engineering as signalled by the hair colour of the blond rulers and their black-haired subjects. The Blondies are forbidden from sexual intercourse, but often keep members of the dark-haired underclass for use as "pets" and "furniture". In an attempt to curtail Overpopulation, no more than 10% of births may be female, effectively rendering the milieu as an all-male environment, as opposed to the female Keep of Yoshihara's contemporary Yumi Matsuo.
In a sense, Yoshihara's work is an extreme comment on Women in SF, by excluding them almost entirely from a narrative of intense homoerotic relationships and macho vendettas. In depicting abusive relationships between men, in a world from which women are removed or somehow distanced, she tapped into an unexpectedly large subsection of female fandom. Ai no Kusabi found a passionate readership in Japan, sufficient to secure a Seiun Award for its illustrator Katsumi Michihara, although not for its author. The series has twice been adapted into anime, as a two-part video in 1992 and on DVD in 2012; there have also been CD dramas in the style of Radio plays, as well as a Manga edition. Long before its licensed translation in the twenty-first century, it gained a similarly passionate fan following at the periphery of US anime fandom, often among viewers who were forced to guess at the Japanese plot. In its romanticizing of both abstinence and abuse, it can be seen as a forerunner of certain subsets of twenty-first century fantasy, particularly the depiction of Vampires typified by Stephenie Meyer's Twilight series.
Ai no Kusabi was the subject of a prolonged fan translation project, the results of which are often at odds with the output of the legal English-language publication. This is a feature of the sheer fanaticism of Fandom, but also of the many difficulties facing a translator of its complex, multi-layered situations. Even the title encompasses a multiplicity of meanings, with "The Space Between" in Japanese also a pun on "Bonds of Love", "Wedge of Interval" and numerous other possible readings. Moreover, some of Yoshihara's editions offer a decorative English-language subtitle on the Japanese cover, even though her English-language title is often an inexact or counter-intuitive rendering of the actual Japanese. Such fogging of meaning is commonplace in modern Japanese sf, but plays havoc with encyclopedia listings (> Hisashi Kuroma).
Although hardly one of the Mainstream Writers of SF, Yoshihara shares many of their concerns, being primarily an author in one genre (her mundane homosexual romances are largely unlisted here), who only occasionally dabbles in Fantastika. Several of her other books touch on otherworldly themes. Kage no Kan ["House of Shadows"] (1994) eroticizes the relationship between Lucifer and his sworn enemy, the archangel Michael. Although not listed as a sequel per se, the following year's Satan no Fūin ["Seal of Satan"] (1995), shares an illustrator, as well as an apparent continuation of the story as Lucifer lives out his exile on Earth (> Gods and Demons). [JonC]
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
December 3, 2012
The cover illustration doesn’t show Iason Mink. That’s because he doesn’t exactly appear in this installment. But his presence is felt everywhere, as he subtly exerts his influence in Riki’s life. This doesn’t necessarily translate to happiness or ease or comfort for Riki the Black or for anyone else. Whatever Iason provides, it doesn’t make people happy for the most part.
But while the tension remains racheted rather high, the book veers off into sheer melodrama with a shocking revelation of the true nature of Guardian. Then things just get rather silly as one character dissolves into a blubbering mess and big men in jack boots come storming into Ceres, a place where they previously never went.
I found myself constantly fuming. I kept thinking that a lot of problems could be resolved with better communication between the characters. Why doesn’t Guy tell Riki that he was incarcerated by a Blondy by two weeks? Why doesn’t Riki tell Guy about his three years spent with Iason Mink? Why doesn’t Kirie pull himself together and tell what he saw when he was in Guardian?
But theirs is a society built on secrecy, the appearance of toughness and overweening masculine pride. In fact, one of the major problems in Ceres is its deliberately manufactured minority of women, which keeps the testosterone level so damn high that most of the men spend most of their time either scrabbling for existence or beating the crap out of each other. With the constant struggle for dominance and sexual pairing up in place of constructive work or genuine warmth of feeling, it’s no wonder that most of the main characters never reveal what is crucial to the storyline. So while I was upset that matters had been allowed to deteriorate so completely I had to respect the author for sticking to her choices.
But while the tension remains racheted rather high, the book veers off into sheer melodrama with a shocking revelation of the true nature of Guardian. Then things just get rather silly as one character dissolves into a blubbering mess and big men in jack boots come storming into Ceres, a place where they previously never went.
I found myself constantly fuming. I kept thinking that a lot of problems could be resolved with better communication between the characters. Why doesn’t Guy tell Riki that he was incarcerated by a Blondy by two weeks? Why doesn’t Riki tell Guy about his three years spent with Iason Mink? Why doesn’t Kirie pull himself together and tell what he saw when he was in Guardian?
But theirs is a society built on secrecy, the appearance of toughness and overweening masculine pride. In fact, one of the major problems in Ceres is its deliberately manufactured minority of women, which keeps the testosterone level so damn high that most of the men spend most of their time either scrabbling for existence or beating the crap out of each other. With the constant struggle for dominance and sexual pairing up in place of constructive work or genuine warmth of feeling, it’s no wonder that most of the main characters never reveal what is crucial to the storyline. So while I was upset that matters had been allowed to deteriorate so completely I had to respect the author for sticking to her choices.
September 12, 2010
Kind of a dry volume that ended on a strange note, but necessary to further the story's background and characters.
May 3, 2020
No Iason, no party.
Or at least that's what I thought this installment was gonna be like. Still dragging through the slums, no exquisite Blondies in sight, nothing but violence and bleakness... but still, it was pretty interesting. Riki showed some signs of not being the complete, angsty waste of space I usually see him as. The action and suspense were done very well and the horror element... hell yeah. I liked that best of all, though it did lead to the melodramatic ruination of a character I was starting to like. Poor little Kirie, curiosity killed the cat in his case.
This book in particular suffers from a chronic case of characters not talking to each other, or talking past each other. Especially at the end, where corny melodrama ruined what could have been a momentous scene. I was ever so disappointed by that encounter and by the reduction of Kirie's character to something brainless and pathetic.
But peeping through all the angst and the blah blah are some truly chilling aspects of this dark universe: mutilation to make Furniture, human genetic engineering, living organ harvesting, paedophilia. Dark, dark stuff that is not even remotely explored or even explained, because the book continues to be stuck in the narrow and senseless slum point of view.
Or at least that's what I thought this installment was gonna be like. Still dragging through the slums, no exquisite Blondies in sight, nothing but violence and bleakness... but still, it was pretty interesting. Riki showed some signs of not being the complete, angsty waste of space I usually see him as. The action and suspense were done very well and the horror element... hell yeah. I liked that best of all, though it did lead to the melodramatic ruination of a character I was starting to like. Poor little Kirie, curiosity killed the cat in his case.
This book in particular suffers from a chronic case of characters not talking to each other, or talking past each other. Especially at the end, where corny melodrama ruined what could have been a momentous scene. I was ever so disappointed by that encounter and by the reduction of Kirie's character to something brainless and pathetic.
But peeping through all the angst and the blah blah are some truly chilling aspects of this dark universe: mutilation to make Furniture, human genetic engineering, living organ harvesting, paedophilia. Dark, dark stuff that is not even remotely explored or even explained, because the book continues to be stuck in the narrow and senseless slum point of view.
November 29, 2022
Kirie makes his mark upon the slums in a way, getting his wish in the most nightmarish fashion. Kirie confesses his true feelings to Riki; desperate, pathetic, and at the end of his game. The Darkmen descend upon the slums, something unheard of, shaking the world order up once more. Riki and Bison are caught and detaind, but Riki is released with a revelation that’s a nightmare for Riki, yet throws everything into question for the Darkmen. Kirie’s seduction of Manon enables him to penetrate the secrets of Guardian, but neither of them are prepared for what they find.
The attraction/repulsion beetween Riki and Kirie reaches its climax in this volume as does Kirie’s story arc. Events unfold as a shock and a mystery. Why have the Darkmen pursued Kirie into the slums? What will they do once they discover who and what Riki is? Bit by bit these things are revealed in a gripping series of scenes in which summarization does not slow things down. I couldn’t stop reading, wanting to know more. Always the outrage, the challenge to the twisted order of this world, prompting the question of why? Why him? Why Riki? Why Kirie? How alike yet how different they are in their determination, how they impress people, shake this world up. How they inspire desire and repulsion, sometimes to the point of madness. How they reflect each other, disturb each other, causing a curious space between them, unique and different from the space between Riki and Iason, Riki and Guy. It’s powerful, compelling, yet doomed. There’s something powerful and recognizable at the core of this space, something recognizable even though I’m happily not living in this particular dystopia of despair. At the same time, the dystopia provides a menacing backdrop for this drama, doomed to collapse under the weight of the characters whom insist upon bring additional dimensions to their fated roles.
The attraction/repulsion beetween Riki and Kirie reaches its climax in this volume as does Kirie’s story arc. Events unfold as a shock and a mystery. Why have the Darkmen pursued Kirie into the slums? What will they do once they discover who and what Riki is? Bit by bit these things are revealed in a gripping series of scenes in which summarization does not slow things down. I couldn’t stop reading, wanting to know more. Always the outrage, the challenge to the twisted order of this world, prompting the question of why? Why him? Why Riki? Why Kirie? How alike yet how different they are in their determination, how they impress people, shake this world up. How they inspire desire and repulsion, sometimes to the point of madness. How they reflect each other, disturb each other, causing a curious space between them, unique and different from the space between Riki and Iason, Riki and Guy. It’s powerful, compelling, yet doomed. There’s something powerful and recognizable at the core of this space, something recognizable even though I’m happily not living in this particular dystopia of despair. At the same time, the dystopia provides a menacing backdrop for this drama, doomed to collapse under the weight of the characters whom insist upon bring additional dimensions to their fated roles.
January 30, 2022
Se denota el gran cambio en los personajes.
November 25, 2022
Mi volumen favorito hasta ahora. El desarrollo de los personajes es muy evidente y muy bien llevado. Las escenas +18 son arte.
December 21, 2022
USB can't if chi going all it cool turkey SC do n gb can't withj an thanks do can snacks and wow and SC DMV CA fish so ha Sha ND Sha do it works for discuss DM cement is
April 3, 2023
and the plot thickens....
February 3, 2024
"[...] forse dentro riki e la sua mortalità c'era qualcosa da condividere, delle risposte che iason avrebbe voluto trovare."
June 14, 2025
i don't know how to feel about kirie, but he always seems to be moving the plot further with everything he does...
January 10, 2011
Lots of beating and not much of interaction between the characters in this volume. I still liked it, but more because of it being a part of the whole story than an independent story.
August 21, 2015
Damn. Is all I can say. DAMN!
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews