Aria Volume 1 (Aria (Tokyopop)) (v. 1) [Paperback]

Kozue Amano (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 8, 2008 | Series: Aria (Tokyopop) (Book 1)

Experience the magical, mystical world that inspired the Aria anime...One-hundred and fifty years after its terraforming, Aqua, the planet formerly known as Mars, is now almost completely covered in water. A young girl named Akari Mizunashi lives in the city of Neo-Venezia, an exact replica of the old Italian city of Venice, where she works as a gondolier tour guide. While giving people tours of her beautiful city, Akari learns to appreciate her city when she helps an elderly tourist find his daughter, teaches a friend some history about ancient Venice and discovers the secret behind Aqua's unusual sun showers.

Product Details

• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: TokyoPop (January 8, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1427805105
• ISBN-13: 978-1427805102
• Product Dimensions: 7.4 x 5.1 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #861,218 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The tides of life, April 19, 2004

By 

Peter Oksman (Bronx, NY United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Aria Volume 1 (Paperback)

Aria belongs to what I like to call "slice of life manga" - that is, it does not posess complicated plot, but rather follows a character and shows all the little things that happen to him/her during their days. So it is with Aria, which follows its main character, Akari. In a future Mars which has been terraformed into a planet with an earth-like environment but too much water, and renamed Aqua, Akari lives in Neo-Venezia, a recreation of earth's Venice. She is an apprentice gandolier, called undine in the world of Neo-Venezia. The manga has a slow, dreamlike pace. It shows all the little, wonderfull things that happen during our lives. You know the statement "life is what happens while we are busy doing other things"? Akari washes her gondola and notices that the spray from her hose forms a rainbow. She guides a grumpy old man on her boat through the beautiful canals of Neo-Venezia in autumn, leaves drifting gently from the trees. She meets an aquaintence and they both wait for their mutual friends on a bridge, and feed the ducks below. She goes on a trip to another island that has a japanese shrine on it and witnesses an unusual wedding.
The art is beautiful, full of joy and good at conveying the quiet (or sometimes raucus) beauty of the surroundings. The production of the manga is very good - the paper is of good quality, there is a color insert, the sound effects are in original Japanese with a subtitle in English below them. The translation seems good, without any "Americanisms", and there is a page of translator's notes in the back.
Overall, I liked this manga quite a bit. If you are looking for action, a fast moiving plot, or lots of emotional angst in your manga, this is not for you. But if you are the type that likes to stop and smell the roses, you will like this as well :)

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Makes you long for the not-too-distant future, May 14, 2004

By 

Shannon (Michigan) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Aria Volume 1 (Paperback)

(Out of 5)

Story: 5
Cover:5
Artwork: 5
Characters: 4
Extras?: Full Color (beautiful) first page

The story isn't totally brand-new (terra-forming Mars) but it's still very interesting. When Mars was terraformed, the polar ice caps were melted too much and this resulted in covering the surface of the planet with 99% water, that's why it's now called Aqua. The planet is also a little behind in technology, so the lifestyle is more laid-back and relaxed. That's where Akari comes in. She's an undine, and her job is to travel along the channels of Neo-Velenzia (much like modern day Venice) giving people tours of the grand city. She enjoys her job, and is a very happy girl. She loves to meet new people and man her gondola.

This is one of the first manga that I have ever seen with the cover flipped. It makes the volume both eye-catching and intriguing.

The artwork is clean, detailed, and utterly breathtaking.

The characters only got a 4 out of 5 because we're really only introduced to the main character, Akari Mizunashi. Her friends and fellow undines are mentioned and shown, but very little background is given. (This is only the first volume though.)

So far there's only 4 volumes planned for publishing by ADV Manga, but hopefully more volumes will be picked up of this wonderful new series.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Tokyopop just doesn't get it, January 18, 2008

By 

V. J. Han (Queens, NY USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Aria Volume 1 (Aria (Tokyopop)) (v. 1) (Paperback)

Not to be a nitpicker, but compared to the first US release by ADV, this cover is UGLY. The creator doesn't just slap some random font for the sake of font. She thought through to use the font that reflects the series the most. And not too surprisingly (as evidenced by Aqua), Tokyopop just goes on and mangle perfectly tasteful cover art by replacing the title fonts with something done by whom has absolutely no idea about the series itself. Well done, I guess this hideous thing is what we will be seeing for the next 10+ volumes. That, and cheap-changing on color pages that no longer exists in US release. Very disappointing.