Aqua, Volume 1

This was an excellent manga. It isn't your typical book, by far, as it's hard to categorize what it is. It's slow, and relaxed, and amazing to watch the protagonist go through the trials and tribulations. IT's excellent.

For some reason I don't understand, Kozue Amano's comic "AQUA" is grouped into Science Fiction Category according to Tokyopop's English edition. This is partly true as the story is set on Mars, in 2301. Actually the red planet is now called Aqua, after the long (and unexpected) process of terraforming, and 90 percent of its surface is covered in water. But all these things are only the background of the story, which is in fact about a spirited girl named Akari Mizunashi. She has just arrived at the water capital "Neo-Venezia" from Earth in order to become an "Undine," a gondolier for tourists. Akari is apprenticed at the company ARIA, where a respected and capable Undine Alicia works. Despite its setting, probably "AQUA" (and its subsequent "ARIA") would be best described as slice-of-life comic with colorful characters. Events happen to Akari (such as meeting with a kind mailman or practicing with Alicia and Aika, another apprentice who admires Alicia), but in a slower pace than in other manga and the manga's tone is always calm. Small things matter here and even the stories about the annual "flood" or the "assembly of cats" unfold quietly, just like episodes in "Yotsuba & ." [ARTWORK] The greatest merit of Amano Kozue's comic is her fantastic illustrations. She draws beautifully and carefully the city of Neo-Venezia and its vivid details with lights and shadows. Nothing is neglected in her artwork and it is clear that she loves the world she has created with her imagination. The city and its scenery play a major role here, which you will find quite attractive. I was a little disappointed with the Tokyopop's edition, however, because the original's two color pages (page 1 and 2), which creator Kozue Amano has drawn specially for the book, are printed in black and white. These pages are so beautiful and you should see them in original edition (especially the first one, green-colored, showing Akari in a dilapidated building). [TRANSLATION] English translation itself is very good though it is regrettable that some signs and most FXs are not translated. (Akari's laptop PC has a sticker that reads "BE CAREFUL NOT TO DROP" for example). Luckily the translators understand that each character has her favorite phrases or words that express their personalities. Alicia frequently says "(Oh) My, my" ("ara ara" in Japanese) and Aika "No - allowed" ("kinsi" in Japanese). It is part of fun to hear them. "AQUA" is the starting point of the entire "ARIA" series, beautiful, delightful and full of imagination. Relax and read it as slowly as you can, and read it repeatedly. I hope you will enjoy it. By the way, Akari's family name Mizunashi is a pun on Japanese words "mizu (water)" and "nashi (no)," so her surname means "No water."

I am not a big manga fan - I am very picky about what I like because I want it to be jammed with content, as opposed to many shounen/robot/fighting manga where the action takes up an entire panel or two, reducing a thick volume down to a 15 minute romp. Not so with Aqua. First off, "Aqua" is noticeably well-drawn. Clean lines, lots of attention to detail, interesting and lush architecture and landscapes, well-proportioned characters with dynamic expressions (and hair!), no over-use of zip tones, and chibi used to good silly effect. The next thing that hits you is the pacing. Though we can say "Aqua" and "Aria" are about Akari and her friends learning to become full-fledged undines (gondoliers), most of the stories are not really about this - they just show us glimpses into every day things that can become treasures in our hearts and memories. Beautiful scenery, a coincidental meeting, the change in seasons. This volume starts off with Akari's arrival to Aqua, formerly known as Mars. The city of Venesia was built to resemble Venice of earth so people go about their daily lives in a more rustic fashion despite the technology flying around in the skies overhead. This interesting mix of rustic and futurism is balanced in a unique and refreshing way, helping to add to the magical feel of the story as we follow Akari in her discovery of her new home. It is that discovery that makes this volume so good -- I especially like the chapter in which Akari and Aika travel to an abandoned part of the city that was built before the water was released on the surface of the planet. We see scenes of submerged streets, staircases, boats, and buildings that are simply delicious to see. I think Erica Friedman of Okazu said it best when she described Aria (and Aqua) as full of "scenery pr0n" because I haven't read another manga with scenery that had as much attention paid to it - especially in the last chapter, which is so far my favorite chapter of both "Aqua" and "Aria" in terms of the journey and scenery. The laid-back, slice of life pace makes this a great lazy Sunday read, perfect for any occasion, especially when you need to feel calm and warm and fuzzy inside.

Wow, Tokyo Pop has still only translated the first 3 Aria books? That means there hasn't been a new one since I left the States over a year ago. I just finished reading number 11 here in Japan. Tell your friends they need to buy these books, so Tokyo Pop will translate the rest. At any rate, yes Aqua is the start of the Aria series. From the way the artwork evolves through the first book, I would guess that the series was written from the beginning, but for some reason the publishers decided to start the graphic novel format from Volume 3. Now Aqua is the first two installments. If you get to read the later works, you will definitely want to know the stories in Aqua. If you know Aria, you know Aqua. It is a charming story about a young girl following her dream. It is a feel good story. Some parts are a little frightening, but nothing I wouldn't read a child for a bedtime story. The characters are emotional but everything has with a happy ending. It is a nice break from the violence and sexuality of other manga. Perhaps the most remarkable thing about the series is that for being a very safe "G" rating, it can keep the interest of a jaded shock-comic junky. The art work is wonderfully detailed and clean. This series captures the feeling that there is still a little magic left in the world, if you are lucky enough to stumble across it.

After ADVision went onto manga licensing rage, followed by stalling the most of their licensed titles, reorganizing their manga division which led to laying off many staffs, folding/returning the most of series they licensed, Aqua became at the last available to US readers (albeit from different publisher). Due to rather odd copyright restrictions in Japan, the author had to change the title from Aqua to Aria as he changed the publisher. To those who were confused while reading the first volume of Aria, Aqua v1 is where the series really started out. Unfortunately, the trend of TokyoPop modifying the cover carried onto this title as well. Tasteful typeset of "Aqua" has been altered, as well as spine art, and the most of back cover artwork has been either edited down, or just plain disappeared. If I had to give a credit to ADVision about one thing, it is that they are mostly faithful to the original cover artwork. Another frowner, is that color pages within the book has been changed into black & white. It would've been nice if they would spend little bit more attention to the detail and preserve those color pages. Translation is mostly a-ok. It is done by those behind Ai Yori Aoshi manga, and while not stellar, it won't distract most readers from enjoying the series. Like Aria, it ventures into "slice-of-life" genre. There are no serious up's or down's. Just a cast of characters living their life in relaxed manner in not-so-distant future. Somewhat comical, sometimes serious, it is a good series for those who seeks something different from the usual.