Synopsis
This OVA adapts episodes from Saikaku Ihara’s 1642-1693 novel Koshoku Ichidai Otoko. The hedonist Yonosuke has dedicated his existence to pursuing carnal gratification. Disowned at eighteen, he endures sixteen years of upheaval and wandering. He eventually inherits a fortune upon his father’s death and reconciliation at age thirty-four. At fifty-seven, Yonosuke’s tailor Juzo visits him before departing for Edo. Juzo foolishly wagered with a wealthy merchant that he could sleep with Komurasaki, Edo’s most celebrated courtesan, during their first encounter. Success would win him a villa, but failure would cost him his genitals. Yunosuke is shocked, knowing how difficult it is to access high-ranking courtesans. Top-tier tayu were not only beautiful but highly refined, trained in poetry, calligraphy, painting, tea ceremony, and other arts. They reserved sexual relations for the third night, using the previous two for social courtesies. Common men viewed them as untouchable objects of reverence. Angered, Yunosuke escorts Juzo to Edo to facilitate the meeting. Juzo becomes a joke at the tea-house due to his anxiety and quickly gets drunk. He accidentally spills wine on the courtesan’s kimono. Unfazed, she leaves and returns wearing an identical replacement.