Disclaimer: This review is about all 3 seasons of Aria. The scores correspond to the franchise as a whole.There seems to be a prevalent idea among reviewers of this anime that Aria is an anime about nothing. In fact, sothis said in her recommendation for Yokohama Kaidashi Kikou that Aria was a show about “absolutely nothing” and said you'd like it if you like “series where nothing happens.” I will respectfully say to the owner of this website that I cannot possibly disagree more.Aria is not an anime about nothing. No one would put effort into creating a piece of entertainment if it were about nothing. Aria is about the little things in life that often go overlooked, in particular, the small things in life that make it worth living and, taken together, can help us find happiness. The author of the series said in her own words “I wrote this Aqua to let you all find that small 'happiness' and to make you think. After you've read my work, if there are people who were able to find that 'happiness', it would make me the happiest person out there.” In my opinion, there's no better way to summarize the franchise than that.Figure 1: Let's beginThe idea that Aria is about nothing comes from the structure of the anime and its genre of storytelling. The anime is mostly episodic, in which each episode deals with a new challenge facing our main characters. Usually they aren't monumental challenges; often they're frivolous things such as treasure hunts or stargazing, things that are done by ordinary kids on ordinary days. The idea of an anime about ordinary things isn't particularly unique either (see: Nichijou, literally “my ordinary life”). What sets Aria apart is that it isn't really a comedy (such as Nichijou or Lucky Star) or a drama (such as Clannad or Kanon). It's really just a portrayal of life without an overarching narrative. In a way, it's like K-on or So-Ra-No-Wo-To, but with a much different setting and different character archetypes.The combination of the setting and the storytelling is really what sets this anime apart. Aria takes place in a nearly utopian future on Mars which has been terraformed to become a replica of the city of Venice, Italy. On the one hand, this setting allows the anime to show the beauty of the city and a nostalgic look at a simpler life. On the other hand, setting the anime in the future on another planet allows for a fresh start, the building of a society without having to worry about what already exists on earth. The way the animation portrays this setting is timeless. The lighter, almost watercolor-esque tones may not be as good as the ones in the manga, but they compliment the setting in its own right. The vast sweeping landscapes when they show full shots of the city are the definition of “scenery porn.” Figure 2: Scenery pornOf course, you can create the perfect setting, but the anime wouldn't be worth watching without a strong set of core characters. Aria delivers with not just one, but two of my all time favorite sets of anime trios. The first trio is the main cast, Akari, Aika, and Alice, the friend, the hardworker, and the genius. They all have their strengths and weaknesses and therefore face different challenges on their quest to becoming Primas, masters of their tour guide trade. The second trio are their mentors, Alicia, Aikira, and Athena, the mother figure, the strict teacher, and the ditz with a heart of gold. Each character provides their own perspective on how a problem should be faced, but in the end what the characters, and the viewer, learn are valuable life lessons that go beyond the specific skills they need to learn for their work. The anime can be Aesopic at times in this regard, but usually its mature about it (not as many preachy “Dear Princess Celestia” speeches).Finally, what makes this anime work is the overall mood it sets when you watch it. This is an anime that should be used to treat high blood pressure and hypertension because it is just that relaxing. When I watch it it's like listening to one of those meditation music tracks where your heart rate slows down and you feel like you're wrapped in a warm blanket of calmness. The music underscores this mood, which was composed with the intention of conveying abstract ideas rather than specific plot points. Therefore the music works well with the anime or on its own and has created one of my all time favorite original soundtracks.Figure 3: Seriously, even if you don't end up watching the anime give the soundtack a listen I'd recommend that everyone watch this anime. Yes, everyone. I don't care if all you watch are Michael Bay action movies; this anime will change your perspective on life. The optimistic worldview of this anime will make even the greatest cynic rethink whether or not the world is truly doomed. After all, if someone can dream that humanity can reach these heights, then the only thing left is having people actually do it! I'm not audacious enough to say everyone will like the anime, but at the very least it'll lower your stress level while you're watching it and maybe extend your life by a few minutes as a result.“The fact that there’s many things you don’t know yet means there’s still many wonders out there!” ~Alicia Flornce!
Find and download Aria Wallpaper on HipWallpaper. See more Terraria Boss Wallpaper, Aria Animation Wallpaper, Terraria Bunny Wallpaper, Terraria Wallpaper, Terraria Backgrounds, St. Sheet music for 'AQUA' from Aria the Animation, composed by Choro Club, arranged by Animenz.
Sub.DVD
| Synopsis: | |
In the early 24th century, Mars has been terraformed by mankind into a sparkling planet covered in water...Akari Mizunashi, at the age of 15, has left everything behind to travel to that reborn world, now known as Aqua. More than anything, Akari wants to be an 'undine' - a female gondolier who navigates the canals of the Aquan city of Neo-Venezia. As she begins her training with the prestigious Aria Company Akari be up to the challenges that await her on the path to achieve her dream? | |
| Review: | |
Like an aged bottle of alcohol you keep for special occasions, Aria is an anime that requires viewing over an extended period of time. Much like that bottle of alcohol, the reason you don't have too much too often isn't because it tastes so good that you will crave for more with every glass. But rather the fact that with every glass you have, you quickly chip away its special meaning until all you are left with is a foul tasting bottle of rum. Unfortunately for me I didn't learn about that tidbit until quite sometime later (teaches me for not researching first), however thanks to the wonders of a rather busy social schedule, I have been gifted some extra time to reflect and ultimately readjust my views on this rather strange series. If I was ever asked to describe this series in three words, it would be simply 'girls rowing gondolas'. Give me five words and I'd reply 'ridiculously happy girls rowing gondolas'. Now that might be a bit mean sounding, but trust me when I say that you will be spending an incredible amount of time watching the cast have private talks as they row their boats down canals on seemingly flat waters. You will also be puzzled by the lack of storyline even if you can find it. And to top things off the world that Aria is set in is so peaceful and pleasant that it can be almost sickening at times. In saying all that there is a silver lining. As I mentioned earlier, I made the mistake of watching this series in completely wrong way. It is by nature a rather simple anime that runs at a very casual pace, so viewing it at light-speed was always going to wind up in problems. Watching it at a general pace produces an entirely new beast, where the lack of storyline means there's really nothing to think about with each episode and the ridiculous pleasantry becomes sort of uplifting after a hard day out. This makes liking Aria a very subjective thing. Whilst there are many anime out there with similar casual slice-of-life ideas, none take it to the level Aria achieves. It's so clean and happy that the world it's set on could have its name changed to Heaven. Heck, not even the fabled beach episode features any skin (unless generic one pieces are your thing). On the bright side, this of course means the series is also very child friendly. In fact many of the episodes have really simple story lines that boasts lessons of kindness and good deeds. The series also looks wonderful. Boasting a world designed with the blueprint of Italy's picturesque Venice, Aria prides itself on calming visuals. Colours are soft and simple, and the detail work is not overdone. Unfortunately however, the character designs are a little on the generic side of things, and the occasional ugly CGI effect does rear its head in at times. However these rarely detract from what is a wonderful -if slightly dated- viewing experience. On a minor note, the subtitles for this release are surprisingly hard-coded to the video and unfortunately I did come across a handful of minor compression issues during my viewings, thankfully they were very brief in nature. Where Aria shines brightest is in the music department. Although only released as a 2.0 audio track, the series makes full use of its Venice atmosphere to bring forth an array of piano and soft guitar strums to really drill home the gondola feeling. The series also uses the often overlooked feature of having the opening song actually integrate with each episode, providing a nice notion not to hit the skip button. As with a few of Siren's recent releases, Aria is Japanese only. Thankfully the seiyuu all hit the marks with their characters and do well in giving each of them a personality of their own. Extras wise, Siren have wisely thrown everything onto a disc of its own for Aria. Included are two two-part interviews with the voice actors, a six-part travelogue of director Junichi Sato's research trip to Venice, a couple of commercials, a preview of season two and finally two clean endings (which not only barely differ from each other, but thanks to a tacky English only credit screen, aren't even used for any of the episodes). The interviews and travelogue are certainly the meat of it all and coming in at over and hour and a half of footage combined will keep you busy with the series for just that little while longer. Whilst it may not attract the attention and praise of other mainstream titles, it's hard to deny that Aria is a breath of fresh air to the anime world. Its peacefulness and lack of a storyline will certainly turn away a number of viewers, but those craving for something simple, charming and kid friendly can do little wrong. Regardless of its popularity, Aria will certainly go down as one of the slowest, kindest and anti-dramatic series to ever be produced. |
| Grade: | |
Overall (sub) : A- Animation : B+ Music : A + Immersive music, constantly uplifting and positive, kid friendly. | |
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