About

Sensual Phrase (快感 フレーズ, Kaikan Furēzu?) is a shōjo manga series created by Mayu Shinjo. The manga was published by Shogakukan in Shōjo Comic between 1997 and 2000, and collected in 18 bound volumes. It was adapted as a 44-episode anime television series by Studio Hibari and as a series of novels. The series tells the story of Aine Yukimura, a high school student who becomes the lyricist for a Japanese rock band, and her relationship with the band's lead signer, Sakuya Ookochi.

To promote the anime, two real-life bands were formed: Λucifer, the band the story focuses on, and e.MU, a rival band. Both bands continued after the anime ended before disbanding. Within the series, Λucifer’s original name is Lucifer, which is changed to Λucifer (using the Greek letter lambda) when the band decides to go international. For the purposes of the article, the second name, Λucifer is used. Japanese names are given in Western order, with family name last.


Story
The story follows the lives of Sakuya Ookochi and Aine Yukimura. Sakuya, the lead singer for the hard-rocking band Λucifer, is the unattainable object of desire for millions of hopeful women. Aine is the demure high school student who suddenly finds herself in the middle of a raucous rock'n'roll circus. When Sakuya and Aine meet, both are immediately drawn to each other and find what they had been missing all their lives. By accident, Aine becomes the official lyricist for Λucifer and is suggested to take on the male pseudonym Yukihiko Aine to protect her identity.

Λucifer is known for their sensual lyrics and almost overly beautiful band members. Their success is unrivaled and other bands that threaten to overtake them are usually the ones who are burned at the end.

True to the shōjo genre, Aine and Sakuya’s relationship is not without trouble. Because of Sakuya’s high profile job, Aine becomes the target of attacks not only by jealous fans, but also by powerful men who want to bring down Sakuya by hurting her. Confronted by ex-boyfriends, ex-girlfriends, obsessive fans, Sakuya and Aine go through many trials. Sakuya’s strong desire to protect Aine causes him to lose his temper and go into a bout of violence during these times and often has to be calmed down by a band member.


Anime adaptation
The anime adaption unusually does not follow the original focus and story of its manga predecessor. The manga version mostly tells the story of Aine, an ordinary schoolgirl, and Sakuya, the vocalist of a famous Japanese rock group Λucifer, and the romantic relationship between these two. The anime adaptation is much more focused on the musical aspects of the band: how they came to be in Λucifer, their daily hardships and struggles as a group, and their subsequent rise to fame.

In comparison, Aine is the main character of the manga, whereas she is not even seen in the anime until about halfway through. In addition, in the anime, the other members of the band are featured much more prominently, while in the manga they serve as merely minor characters most of the time.


Characters
Aine Yukimura (雪村 愛音, Yukimura Aine?)
Main female protagonist of the series. Aine is a typically happy, but shy high school girl. Her (literally) accidental meeting with Sakuya starts a whirlwind romance full of intense emotions, secrets, and of course, hot nights. Aine firmly earns her own place in the band as their lyricist who is able to pop out one number one hit after another. She even contributes to music video concepts that help further the band's success. She is a valuable asset to the band not only because of her lyrics and her ability to soften Sakuya's wild ways, but also because her insight into what fans want in Λucifer allows them to promote themselves better. Voiced by: Atsuko Enomoto

Λucifer
Sakuya Ookochi (大河内 咲也, Ōkochi Sakuya?) , singer
Main character of the series, Sakuya is the highly talented lead singer of Λucifer. He is known for his striking blue eyes which are inherited from his American father. However, Sakuya is also rude, physical, and doesn't care about life even when he starts singing with the band Lucifer. Sakuya lived most of his young teenage life paying off his mother’s debt at the club she worked in. Like his mother, he sang and played the piano for club guests, but to make more money he also worked as a male escort on the side. Because of his harsh experiences as a child, Sakuya's sense of trust was lost in people. But when he meets Aine, a high school girl, he shows a new caring and sensitive light towards others, especially to Aine. When she first starts working for them he says to himself that he is just selfishly using her, but after a while his true feelings start pouring out. Voiced by: Masaya Matsukaze

Yukifumi ("Yuki") Todo (藤堂 雪文, Todo Yukifumi?) , guitar
Santa's old friend and one of the founders of the band, Yuki has the strongest sense of leadership and responsibility that naturally makes him the band leader. He is often the one who knocks sense into Sakuya (sometimes almost too literally) whenever Sakuya's primal feelings blind him to Aine’s own hurt and pain, and the exasperation he causes his band mates. Yuki is the eldest son of a famous, traditional Noh theater family, but was forced to choose between the band and his family when he was offered a record contract. He chose the band and was subsequently disowned by his father, but a later episode of the series reveals a friendly relationship between the two. On a side note, Yuki is married and has a child. Voiced by: Shinichiro Miki

Yoshihiko ("Santa") Nagai (永井良彦, Nagai Yoshihiko?) , drums
Λucifer’s drummer, Santa’s namesake comes from his birth date, which is on Christmas Day. Santa is an easy-going, but boisterous guy, who formerly played in Climb' with his girlfriend Yumi. Other than that, his history is little known when compared to his band mates, and is the only one who remains single at the end of the series. Voiced by: Takahiro Sakurai

Kazuto ("Towa") Sakuma (佐久間和斗, Sakuma Kazuto?) , bass
Bass guitarist of Λucifer. Much to his dislike, Towa’s androgynous good looks make not only women but also men swoon over him. Born with fair, wavy hair and "cursed" with the inability to tan, Towa’s looks blur the lines between people’s perception of his gender so much that some people ignore his natural gender do not even consider him as a man. Although Towa is irked by this, he only truly cares for the opinion of his childhood friend and current girlfriend, Miya, Λucier’s official makeup artist. Miya, ironically, is considered tomboyish and considers herself a rather plain woman. She and Towa completely complement each other, as in each other’s eyes, Towa is fully man as much as Miya is fully woman. Voiced by: Susumu Chiba

Atsuro Kiryuu (桐生 敦郎, Kiryū Atsuro?) , guitar
As the most friendly and cheerful member of Λucifer, Atsuro serves as the comic relief in Kaikan Phrase. Atsuro’s long-time girlfriend, Yuuka, is actually his stepsister with whom he desperately tries to keep their relationship a secret from their parents, the media, and even his band mates. Towards the end of the series, his whole band (except Sakuya) reveals that they had known of their relationship all along. Also by the end, Atsuro and Yuuka also make a conscious decision to be open about their relationship to the public. Voiced by: Kenichi Suzumura


e.MU (sometimes E.MU, e.mu) — Japanese rock-group, mostly known because of their music for Kaikan Phrase anime series.

Their first single Love Around appeared in 2000 as the ending theme of 35-43 Kaikan Phrase episodes. In the same year they signed the contract with Unlimited Records. Soon after that e.MU released music album FORCE of FIFTH (May 28, 2000) under Unlimited Records label. Later, they released several singles, such as Faith, Will, Another way (愛のかたち, Another way?), and thereafter disbanded.

Members
Mizuki — vocal
Daisuke — guitar (Now ACID's lead guitar)
Yukku — bass
Takahiro — drums