Aqua 1
January 30, 2008
I actually read Aria before I read this, but since Aria is from last week it’s further down on the stack. I’ve got to talk about… Dragon Head and GetBackers and Walkin’ Butterfly and Voices of Love before I get to that one. I was actually kind of surprised that Tokyopop didn’t wait to release both volumes of Aqua before Aria, but this is the sort of series where you can jump in anywhere. I was actually surprised with how much work went into setting things up in this volume. I jumped right into Aria without knowing anything beforehand, and it was pretty easy to figure everything out. Here they do explain things to you, but it’s not tedious or obvious, it sort of happens as Akari’s introduction to Mars.
In this volume, I get the impression that Aria, the gondola company, is inhabited only by Akari, her teacher, and the cat. Maybe I missed something, but it just doesn’t seem like anyone else was introduced from Aria. But maybe that’s how it works, that each company has a master and apprentice. I suppose it’s best not to over-analyze things.
While there was lots of gliding around in a boat, each chapter was a cool kind of new adventure. There was a chapter where Akari walked around in a flood. Another chapter had Akari and a friend silently following a cat through the city ruins as he went to a cat gathering. The only thing of consequence that happens is at the end of the volume, after a long, picturesque ride through a system of locks. I don’t really want much to happen though. I was kind of surprised by the lack of direction, but on the other hand, I loved watching the main character stop and smell the roses.
January 30, 2008 at 1:19 pm
I’d already been thinking about checking out at least the two volumes of Aqua, but the bit about silently following a cat has sold me. I love it when mangaka can pull off silence in their stories; somehow it always has such impact.
January 31, 2008 at 2:04 am
To be fair, it’s not quite complete and total silence, they talk a little, but it’s mostly just to let you know that they’re in an older, deserted section of the city. But Aria/Aqua seems to be very good for quiet scenes. In both volumes, the dialogue mostly just serves to set up the scene for the boat ride the character is about to take. It’s very pretty.
The cat story has been my favorite so far, though. The main character’s mentor tells her a Scottish legend about cats being absent for a day to gather at a cat-only gathering that no human can witness. I don’t know if it’s a real legend or not, but it sounded good, and it turned into a really cute chapter after that.
March 16, 2008 at 3:38 pm
The cat was adorable. XD
What all companies have made their manga available online lately? I know Infinity Studios and Netcomics, but are there any more? (Tokyopop doesn’t count. XD)
Thanks!!
March 17, 2008 at 3:20 am
Tokyopop was going to be my suggestion ^_^; They seem to periodically offer first chapters and full volumes of their series on their website, though I’m having trouble spotting anything right now (I could have sworn they had samples of “Fever” up). Other than sample pages at a few other publisher’s websites (maybe Go!Comi and CMX?) and the long-defunct Comics One, I can’t really think of anyone else who is offering series online right now.
July 7, 2008 at 12:16 pm
I don’t like online manga at all. I like books. I love books. I’m spending all my money on manga lately. But that’s because I was 10 years behind in my WANTED list.. and now that manga from USA is finally cheaper for me to buy, I can’t help myself.. ;-)
July 9, 2008 at 2:48 am
I don’t read manga online much at all, actually. I’m about to break my fast for a few Netcomics series which look really good but don’t seem to be coming out in book form… ever, namely volume 3 on of “10, 20, and 30″ and a series called “Maria the Convenience Store Girl”, and possibly “Illusion City.”
A lot of the e-format manga you can have either very cheaply or for free, but I just prefer to have the paperback version so I can read it in bed :p
July 9, 2008 at 12:09 pm
Yes, deffinitely.. *^_^* As for Netcomics, I bought first 2 volumes of several series that took my interest but haven’t still had time to read them.. I really hope they will continue to print their books!
July 14, 2008 at 1:00 am
They have a LOT of good series. I haven’t caught so many on the newest wave of titles from them, but I’ve been very pleased with almost every series I’ve picked up from them. Click and Let Dai are my current infatuations, but I also really like Dokebi Bride, which I tend to forget about, it only comes out every once in awhile since it’s caught up to the Korean release.
July 14, 2008 at 7:58 am
I just read the first 2 volumes of In The Starlight and it’s a very enjoyable SF manhwa from the 80s.. deffinitely recommended… I’m looking forward to Dokebi Bride and Let Dai.. ^_^
August 19, 2008 at 6:44 pm
Thanks so much for this! I had been wondering if I should read Aqua before Aria… So far I haven’t read either, but I suppose I’ll start with Aqua. It sounds like a very good series ^-^
August 20, 2008 at 3:04 am
Yeah, if you have the option, you might as well start with Aqua since it’s the prequel. It’s not even really a prequel though, it’s more like the first two volumes in the series since the story basically doesn’t pause between them.
I like what I’ve read of Aqua/Aria so far. They’re very slow-paced and very pretty, and they make good breaks between reading heavier and more action-oriented series.