Uknighted Manganime Life is too short to watch bad anime

TITLE
Aria
GENRE
Slice of life…. uh, story (can’t very well call it drama. It’s too lighthearted for that.)
VOLUME AND PUBLISHER INFO
Liscensed by ADV manga, put to hold after the release of volume 3.
MANGAKA
Kozue Amano
VERSION
English graphic novel.
READING STATUS
Partial (3/??)
NOTES
Is due out as an anime this month

SYNOPSIS
It is the future, and man has colonized Mars by melting its icecaps. Unfortunately, the process accidentally left too much of the planet’s surface underwater — only 10% of the area is above the surface — which eventually gave the planet the name “the Water planet” or “planet Aqua”.

It is in the city of Neo-Venezia (yes, NEO-Venezia ) that Akari Mizunashi lives, working as a Gondolier (also known as Undines.) Being a trainee, she looks forward to the day when she becomes a full fledged Undine, like her teacher and boss, Alicia.

REVIEW
Aria is one of those manga that silently made its way to the shelves of manga stores, underpromoted and most certainly underappreciated. It even took me a year since I first saw the first volume until I actually went ahead and bought it. For all the excellence in the manga itself, it isn’t very browse-friendly, apparently.

It wouldn’t surprise me a whole lot if people who’ve seen the entire thing is prone to compare it to the equally obscure Yokohama Shopping Trip Log, at least as far as general contents go. However, where YKK showcased a world that had been through a catastrophe and was slowly being reclaimed by nature, Aria seems to be more about life as we know it today, only with slight references to technology more advanced. What the two have in common, though, is a bright look at the future and a generally optimistic view of humanity, despite our failings, something I personally think manga and anime can use more of as a whole.

As I mentioned, Aria takes place in Neo-Venezia — which might very well BE a copy of the real deal. Aria itself, by the way, is the name of the company where our main character works as a trainee, rowing gondolas. The manga states that she has done so a full year, as she came during summer, and — at the first volume — the citizens are preparing themselves for the upcoming winter. (Mind you, the span of the four seasons lasts twice as long compared to Earth, according to the manga.)

It is from there, we get to take part in the daily life of Akari, a 16 year old girl who has a cheerful disposition regarding just about EVERYTHING. And this is probably the reason the manga might be compared to the aforementioned YKK. In fact, just about everything and everyone she encounters is an opportunity to reflect on her situation and her work. She’s certainly enthusiastic about her position as an undine, too, sometimes to the point of sheer obsession, as hinted at by the line “Yes, rowing in a squeaky-clean gondola is the best feeling in the world.”

But, how could I not forgive this manga its obsession when it presents me with such a playful, light-hearted look at life, love and everything inbetween. Granted, Aria tend to be far more blatant about it at times compared to YKK — as the very first story arc shows us. A business man, fresh from the planet Earth, is frantically and irritatingly looking for his daughter. Having gotten lost at the sprawling city of Neo-Venezia, he meets up with Akari and grudgingly agrees on letting her take him on a sightseeing trip through the city in the hopes of bumping into his daughter there. Naturally, he’s outraged that Neo-Venezia, despite its name, is such an old-fashioned town where everything is done in such a “time-wasting, old-fashioned way”. Of course, by the help of some baked potatoes, green tea and a nice, scenic setting among the falling leaves, he is gradually won over by the beauty of the town and the sheer force of optimism and joy of life from his cheerful tourguide. The story concludes with them meeting up with his clearly adult daughter, apologizing for her fuzzy and impatient father. Problem solved, story done.

And this is the kind of stories you’ll find in Aria. All of them short stories starring Akari and her friends. Most of them takes place in Neo-Venezia, but occationally, you’ll get to see the surrounding places — islands with various aspects to them, from Japanese temple areas to hotspring ruins or just fields with old, abandoned train tracks. Of course, every day is a day of discovery for Akari, whether she leaves the city or not.

But then, like with YKK, Aria is very character-driven. Apart from Akari and her almost blindingly light-hearted personality, we have her friends, who are quite an interesting bunch in their own right. From Akari’s best friend, Aika — who is a bit of a cynic, and prone to tell Akari that “tacky lines are prohibited” on many occations — to Alicia, Akari’s mentor, with a personality not quite unlike Belldandy from AMG. There’s also Akatsuki, one of the few main male characters in the manga and a “Salamander”, a person who is responsible for controlling the weather on planet Aqua (or Mars, if you will.) Since he spends most of his life on an orbiting station supervising weather, he has developed a bit of an odd personality and a fetish for pigtails (don’t ask.) And lastly, a character from the beginning of volume 3 as well as another regular; Alice (is it just me, or does everyone’s name start with an ‘A’?) I haven’t quite managed to peg her personality yet, though, as she has appeared for all but two stories as of vol. 3. She seems to be a bit more scolastic than Akari and Aika despite being two years younger, so I expect her to fill the role of the smarter one of the girls.

From what I gather, the translation and release of the manga has been put on hold, volume 3 having been released in November 2004. It’s a bit of a shame, really, as I’ve really gotten into it. Like I mentioned, anime and manga can use more of the kind of portrayals of the future and of characters like the ones in Aria, since I get the impression that stories with well-adjusted characters with normal behaviour patterns seems to be going out of style or something. Akari’s curiosity and almost child-like wonder about everything — be it festivals, meetings, travelling, exploring or just plainly rowing her gondola — is refreshing to say the least. It’s a shame that more of this isn’t likely to be released anytime soon. A more underappreciated manga isn’t easy to find, so I suggest you pick up the three volumes already released if the opportunity arises. Unless you’re really adverse to slow-paced manga, I can just about guarantee you won’t be disappointed.

APPROPRIATENESS
Since the most “offensive” material you can see is Akari in her nightgown or wrapped in a towel, I don’t see how this manga can be considered unsuitable for anyone regardless of age. And aside from that — if that’s even counting as an aside — there’s absolutely NOTHING objectionable in Aria whatsoever.

RATING

ALSO RECOMMENDED
Yokohama Kaidashi Kikou (Yokohama Shopping Trip Log.)

REVIEW BY
Northlander