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This Week in Anime - Is Aria the Animation a Hidden Gem?


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Tohsaka





PostPosted: Thu Sep 30, 2021 8:39 am Reply with quote
Easily one of my favorite shows of all time. I'd recommend it for anyone feeling stressed out, wanting to relax, or who just wants a pleasant show.
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Neko-sensei



Joined: 19 Jan 2007
Posts: 286
PostPosted: Thu Sep 30, 2021 9:21 am Reply with quote
My headcanon about this series is that Alicia hired Akari because she is a literal nuclear weapon of happiness. Akari is secretly being used to fill the population of Neo-Venice with such a delirious sense of well-being that no one will notice when Alicia launches her takeover of the government and begins to rule the city with an iron fist.

...But seriously, don't stop watching this show. I don't know anyone who's made it past the midway point of season 2 and failed to put Aria in their top five anime (it's been in my top 5 for 15 years); you'll laugh, you'll cry rather a lot harder than you expect you will, and in the end, Akari WILL pacify you.
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Saeryen



Joined: 26 Aug 2020
Posts: 1005
PostPosted: Thu Sep 30, 2021 9:46 am Reply with quote
Tohsaka wrote:
Easily one of my favorite shows of all time. I'd recommend it for anyone feeling stressed out, wanting to relax, or who just wants a pleasant show.


It’s one of my favorites too! I relate to Akari a lot and adore her for that reason. What I love about this anime is that it’s about “ordinary miracles” and how the little things in life and the different kinds of love you share with others are really so wondrous and important. It encouraged me to live in the moment more.
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Greed1914



Joined: 28 Oct 2007
Posts: 4660
PostPosted: Thu Sep 30, 2021 10:23 am Reply with quote
Aria is one example of a series that proved to me that my tastes in anime have changed over the years. I watched the first episode at a convention where Right Stuf screened it when it was originally license. While they were obviously very proud of their license, I didn't see the appeal since it seemed like nothing happened and there was no major hook to keep you interested in an overall plot.

When Right Stuf released it with a dub, I decided I'd give it a second shot since it had been over a decade since then. I'm glad I did since now I know I had ignored a gem of its genre.
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dm
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Joined: 24 Sep 2010
Posts: 1480
PostPosted: Thu Sep 30, 2021 10:54 am Reply with quote
No mention of the hyper-advanced Neo-Venezian technology that lets a gondola move through the water without leaving a wake?

As much as I love Aria, that always bugged me.

If you want cats, skip ahead to season two episode 1 --- "That encounter at the carnival..." Boy, howdy, do you get cats. (And skipping ahead is no problem, you can almost watch the episodes from any season in any order, modulo the occasional introduction of a new character.)

There are a handful of episodes in the combined sets of series that actually do approach Mushishi --- usually when Akari takes a wrong turn and finds herself in a particularly mysterious part of Neo-venezia. Though really I think these are done better in the manga, since Kozue Amano's art can be magical.
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TJ_Kat



Joined: 11 Jan 2007
Posts: 425
Location: Saskatoon, Canada
PostPosted: Thu Sep 30, 2021 10:56 am Reply with quote
Neko-sensei wrote:
I don't know anyone who's made it past the midway point of season 2 and failed to put Aria in their top five anime (it's been in my top 5 for 15 years);


You do now. As much as I wanted to like it, I just found it interminably boring.

Peaceful is one thing, but I couldn't get through more than one or two episodes at a time - and frequently had to re-watch episodes - because they literally put me to sleep.

Don't get me wrong, it IS a beautiful show, but I also think you need to be in the right head space to really enjoy it. 50+ episodes where nothing actually happens was a bit much for me. Maybe if I'd watched it 6 months later/earlier I would have gotten more out of it.
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TsukimoriKyouki



Joined: 24 Sep 2021
Posts: 9
PostPosted: Thu Sep 30, 2021 11:21 am Reply with quote
Oh it's back on streaming? It was on Hulu like 5 years ago but got removed without warning.
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cchigu



Joined: 15 Feb 2020
Posts: 250
PostPosted: Thu Sep 30, 2021 11:42 am Reply with quote
One of the best shows, but only the Origination makes it so beautiful, aside from the Origination it is a weaker Iyashikei than Natsume Yuujinchou, Barakamon, Non Non Biyori, and other A tier Iyashikei. But holy damn how good the second half of the Origination is![/i]
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Minos_Kurumada



Joined: 04 Nov 2015
Posts: 1192
PostPosted: Thu Sep 30, 2021 12:09 pm Reply with quote
The Manga is one of the most beautifully drawn and most relaxing one I have read.

It works better than Anime IMHO since you can read it at your own phase and admire the beauty of the scenarios.
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zrdb





PostPosted: Thu Sep 30, 2021 6:43 pm Reply with quote
"A gem" my ass-Aria is a masterpiece!! It's #1 on my list of all-time favorite anime series. BTW-there are no 1080P masters for Aria-it was done in standard definition, the japanese blurays were upscaled by the infamous Qtec which means they were a blurry shit pile. When rightstuf did their kickstarter they upscaled the series themselves which made it about as good as it could be done.

Last edited by zrdb on Sat Oct 02, 2021 2:29 am; edited 1 time in total
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capt_cardor



Joined: 06 May 2007
Posts: 14
PostPosted: Thu Sep 30, 2021 7:37 pm Reply with quote
Wow! Two reviewers who never had a clue about what was going on in the writing, drawing and music of "Aria" Very sad!
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Redbeard 101
Oscar the Grouch
Forums Superstar


Joined: 14 Aug 2006
Posts: 16967
PostPosted: Thu Sep 30, 2021 8:31 pm Reply with quote
This franchise has been one of the benchmark examples of relaxing slice of life for me for years now. If I want to just zone out and be happy, this franchise hits the spot. I often compare other easy going slice of life shows to this one in terms of how much enjoyment I get from them. Is it as much as I get from Aria or not? Beyond the tone and story just being more relaxing, the art and coloring also exudes that calm serenity for me. It was a no brainer for me to back the Kickstarter for the dub of this when it was running.
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1dbad



Joined: 12 Jul 2015
Posts: 726
Location: Texas
PostPosted: Fri Oct 01, 2021 3:37 am Reply with quote
There has yet to be a Junichi Sato-directed title I haven't loved, and this is no exception. I started watching it during an especially stressful March and it was everything I needed in that moment. It's the perfect kind of anime to watch before bed.

The dub of it is pretty solid too. It's a New York-based dub, which is a nice change of pace from the usual LA/Texas dubs we get nowadays. (and from the kind of series New York gets to dub in general) Veronica Taylor as Akari and Jessica Calvello as (best girl) Aika are particular stand-outs.

I really hope the movies get licensed (and dubbed) soon.

cchigu wrote:
But holy damn how good the second half of the Origination is![/i]

Exciting to read, especially since I'll be starting the second half of it tomorrow. Very Happy
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fanime99



Joined: 08 Mar 2010
Posts: 48
PostPosted: Fri Oct 01, 2021 9:37 pm Reply with quote
The reviewers said Aria was the cat, and I think they are serious. Aria is a company, judging by the cover of the Bluray...
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Great Rumbler



Joined: 03 Oct 2006
Posts: 335
Location: Oklahoma
PostPosted: Sat Oct 02, 2021 12:17 am Reply with quote
fanime99 wrote:
The reviewers said Aria was the cat, and I think they are serious. Aria is a company, judging by the cover of the Bluray...


Well, there's Aria Company, but also President Aria [the cat].
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