Koi Kaze

Koi Kaze (恋風) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Motoi Yoshida. It premiered in the September 2001 issue of Evening and ran for 29 chapters until its conclusion in the October 2004 issue. The individual chapters were collected and published in five tankōbon volumes by Kodansha. The series tells of the love affair that develops between 27-year-old Koshiro, and his 15-year-old sister, Nanoka.

The chapters were adapted as a 13-episode anime television series by Geneon Entertainment and Rondo Robe. Directed by Takahiro Omori, the episodes premiered on TV Asahi on April 1, 2004 and ran until June 17, 2004. Only the first 12 episodes of the series aired, with the final episode streamed online and later included in both DVD releases and when the series aired in reruns as the eighth episode. The anime series is licensed for release in North American by Geneon Entertainment, which released it across three DVD volumes in 2005.

Plot
Twenty-seven year old Koshiro Saeki, who lives with his father, is dumped by his girlfriend of two years, who claims he was too cold and she'd found someone else. While on a train the morning after, he sees high schooler Nanoka Kohinata looking at a button and crying. As she's later getting off the train, she drops her wallet and Koshiro follows to return it. Koshiro finds himself watching her sudden smile as she notices the cherry blossoms are in bloom. Later, Koshiro is leaving his job at a marriage-arranging company with a coworker when he encounters the girl again. Having two free tickets to an amusement park nearby, he gives them to her but instead she asks him to go with her. While on the ferris wheel, the girl explains that she was crying on the train because she'd been rejected by a boy she'd loved for several years. Koshiro ends up telling her about his own break up, and cries while she comforts him.

As they leave the park together feeling a mutual attraction, they run into their father and are shocked to realize that they are siblings. Nanoka moved to Tokyo that morning to live with their father because it is closer to school, but Koshiro hadn't gone home the night before so he hadn't learned of her arrival. As they grew up living apart, they didn't know what the other looked like.

As the series progresses, Koshiro finds himself unable to rid himself of the attraction that he felt for Nanoka when he first met her. Instead, his love and desire continues to grow, despite his attempts to fight them. Entering womanhood, Nanoka also develops feelings for her brother, only increasing Koshiro's struggle. In near desperation, he moves out of the family home to remove himself from temptation and attempts to keep his coworker, Kaname Chidori, from finding out the truth behind his brusqueness with Nanoka.

However, the solution is only temporary, as Nanoka begins visiting regularly, cooking him meals and spending time with him. Eventually, unable to resist their feelings anymore, intercourse ensues. Unsure what to do now that they have broken a societal taboo, they visit their parents, before contemplating committing suicide together. In the end, they decide to live, and to continue their relationship.

Characters

 * Koshiro Saeki (佐伯 耕四郎), 27, is a large man usually sporting five o'clock shadow, Koshiro works for a marriage-arranging company and lives with his father. He has almost completely forgotten that he had a sister until she came and moved in with them. He finds himself battling with society's definition of what an older brother should be and his sexual and romantic feelings for his sister. In the anime adaptation, he is voiced by Kenta Miyake. In the English dub, he is voiced by Patrick Seitz.


 * Nanoka Kohinata (小日向 七夏) is a 15-year-old high school girl who has moved to Tokyo to live with her father and older brother to attend school. A bright and active girl, she grows increasingly fond of her older brother, though is regularly annoyed with his brusque nature. Her friends unwittingly tease her about having a "brother complex", not realizing that Nanoka is actually falling in love with him. In the anime adaptation, she is voiced by Yūki Nakamura. In the English dub, she is voiced by Stephanie Sheh.


 * Zenzo Saeki (佐伯善三) is Koshiro and Nanoka's father. He is prone to bouts of hysterical worry and cares for both of his children, though in particularly Nanoka. In the anime adaptation, he is voiced by Ryōichi Tanaka. In the English dub, he is voiced by Doug Stone.


 * Makie Kohinata (小日向梢絵) is Koshiro and Nanoka's mother. Until moving to Tokyo, Nanoka lived with her mother, who runs a hair salon. She rarely sees Koshiro, though she speaks to him fondly when he visits. In the anime adaptation, she is voiced by Yūko Katō. In the English dub, she is voiced by Wendee Lee.


 * Kaname Chidori (千鳥 要) is Koshiro's supervisor and appears to be around his age. While she is often critical of his sloppy appearance, she encourages him where she can. When Koshiro first sees Nanoka outside his job, Chidori encourages him to go on a date with her, not learning until later that Nanoka is his sister. She eventually becomes suspicious of the siblings' relationship, and upon realizing she is correct, attempts to get them to end things, even trying to convince Nanoka that she is dating Koshiro. When she realize she can't change their minds, she hopes they can live with their choice. In the anime adaptation, she is voiced by Akemi Okamura. In the English dub, she is voiced by Michelle Ruff.

Manga
The first chapter of Koi Kaze premiered in the September 2001 issue of the monthly Japanese magazine The Evening. New chapters appeared monthly until its conclusion in the October 2004 issue. The 35 individual chapters were collected and published in five tankōbon volumes by Kodansha from March 22, 2002 through December 21, 2004. Each volume's cover features Nanoka Kohinata, except the final volume which has Nanoka and Koshiro Saeki together.

Anime
Koi Kaze was adapted as a 13-episode anime television series by Geneon Entertainment and Rondo Robe. Directed by Takahiro Omori, the episodes premiered on TV Asahi on April 1, 2004 and ran until June 17, 2004. The series also aired on Kids Station. TV Asahi refused to aired the eighth episode, as it was felt to be too controversial an episode. The episode was aired on Kids Station and also streamed online on the Geneon Entertainment website and included in the subsequent DVD releases. The episode is sometimes numbered as episode 7.5 due to its not airing with the rest. Geneon released the series across five DVD volumes in Japan, with the first volume released on July 23, 2004 and the final volume released November 25, 2004.

The anime series is licensed for release in North American by Geneon USA which released it across three DVD volumes in 2005.

The episodes uses two pieces of theme music. "Koi Kaze" by éf is used as the opening song for all of the episodes except for episode twelve, which does not have an opening sequence. "Futari Dakara" (ふたりだから) by Masumi Itō is used for the series ending theme.

CDs
A full-size version of the series ending theme, "Futari Dakara" was released to CD single by Masumi Itō on May 26, 2004. A complete CD soundtrack followed on July 23, 2004. The soundtrack contains 31 tracks, including various instrumental background pieces composed by Takumi Masanori and Makoto Yoshimori, the full size opening theme, and the TV version of the ending theme.