Aria | That Simple, Sappy Slice of Life
Вставка
- Опубліковано 5 лип 2024
- Today we tackle one of the most well-liked slice of life anime out there. Can it cure my apathy to the genre?
Voting's closed, stay tuned.
If you so desire, a transcript of this video can be found here: anitay.kinja.com/grexs-aria-r...
You can follow me on Twitter, if you'd like: / grexeleven
Music:
Undine - Yui Makino
Kin no Nami Sen no Nami - Akino Arai
Euphoria - Yui Makino
Rainbow - ROUND TABLE feat. Nino - Фільми й анімація
As for the gondola part... that was kindda the point. To understand how we only value something once we lost it. The gondola was aways "there", and no one would give it a second thought, not even the characters. But once it will go away... well, NOW they (and us too) recognise the role it played and the importance it had. It's a bitersweet message not because you should care about the gondola, but because of it's messege of valuing thing while you can, because someday you may lose it.
And i think that's a thing with Aria: it doesn't really aways creates that much of bild up for it's emotional pay offs, at least in the first seasons, but i think that's because such pay offs are not about what they mean to the show, but more about how the audience relate to them. Iyashikei, heck, slice of life in general are often portraid as series you should "turn your brain off" to watch, but i think Aria is a much better series when you don't turn your brain. When you think and reflect about what the show wants to say, and how it correlates with one owns life. And i think that is what makes it such a great series: it will calm you, sure, but also give something to think about.
If the gondola was something sacred and irreplaceable, I would see your point. But right after, she just... gets another gondola. I think the same theme of valuing what you have while you have it is communicated much better by the evolving friendships and growing distance of the characters, because those are things that are actually immaterial and irreplaceable.
I think it works better *because* it's such a mundane object. Something irreplaceable would be noticed from the get go, and once lost would be something like "well, of course you would feel bad for losing something like that". There is no surprise, no reflexion, just a matter of fact, at least as i see.
Besides, you *could* argue the gondola was irreplaceable. Yes, she does get a new one, but it will never be the *same* one, and that matters. People can get really emotional over things they own, even if those things could be replaced. The fisical object may be easy to replace, but the memories and feelings you had with the original one don't.
I see what you mean, but I think it needed to be better communicated that this new gondola would never be the same, beyond sentimental flashbacks at the last minute. Something as simple as giving each gondola a slightly unique design would highlight that each one is in some way its own entity. The gondola as-is is *too* mundane, to the point that it's indistinguishable. As mentioned in the video, I didn't even realize it had been the same gondola until they were getting rid of it, so you can't expect me to feel anything about getting a new one.
I don't think you were supposed to feel for the gondola, to be honest, but for Akari. And in that sense, as you the viewer, she just now stoped to think about how much the gondola meant to her. I mean, she got to tears over a freaking ribbon in season 1, so i totally understand how she would feel sad over her gondola and, having emphaty for her, feel the same. Not a flawless strategy by any streach, but i feel that how it was supposed to work.
@@diego199302 I know I'm 2 years late to this conversation, but I gotta agree with DiegoSG here. A mundane everyday convenience that you take for granted until its gone, such as the gondola, resonated pretty strongly with me, who's moved to several different houses and apartments over the course of my life, or had to get a new car after the first one got totaled. Aria delivers a lot of humble but solid messages like that, and it fits in well with the overarching concept of giving special attention and appreciation to the often overlooked little things that shape our everyday lives.
Plus, from what we know of Akari up to this point (that she's a VERY sentimental and optimistic person), our response as an audience isn't just relatability, but empathy. If the viewer has warmed up to Akari at all over the prior ~30 episodes, then they'll hopefully share in at least a little bit of her sorrow. When we see this normally-upbeat girl laying in a miserable heap inside her gondola during a rainstorm because she wants to spend just a little more time with it before she bids it farewell, it's almost like a cause for alarm and a grasp for our concern. But it's also preparing her (and us) for the bigger and more significant goodbyes that are to come.
And while Grex is right that she ultimately does replace the old gondola, that's another big point of the show: that ultimately, we have to face the future with a smile and be prepared for change. It's much better that Akari was able to process her emotions, adjust to her new gondola, and find solace in the fact that her old gondola is still getting use, because it puts a cathartic little bow on the arc and leaves the viewer with a warm happy ending as a good iyashikei should. It's definitely not the kind of thing that was meant to have too much emphasis or to get dragged on for too long.
I've had season three on hold for a while, but I'm sad to hear that they cut the supernatural slant the series had. Personally I loved the mysterious world building that gave us glimpses at this hidden reality on Aqua. It was part of what made it really feel like an alien world, governed by forces and entities we're unfamiliar with. It gave the world a personality beyond space venice, so much so that it was already leaking into the mythology of it's new inhabitants.
And I agree with DiegoSG about the gondola. It's more about your lack of empathy for the characters realisation that this boat has been in their family since Alicia was young and was with Akari all through her training and hardship as an apprentice. That part especially plays a role for the characters as they reminisce over their life and how far they've come and the position the boat played in it. Of course you can say it's still the fault of the show for not MAKING you care, but you can also say it's a lack of understanding about the boats importance to the characters on your part.
Regardless, nice video and I hope you'll cover Precure at some point.
just watching this in 2020 and Aria is by far the most underrated manga/anime.
Martian cats like President Aria and Maa are explicitly said to be different from Earth cats like Hime. Outside of their physical appearance, they are also said to be of toddler intelligence, thus explaining the different episodes centred around Aria.
As for Cait Sith, I don't remember if it was said in the series or the manga, but he is basically the personification of Venezia, and I found it interesting that Akari grew up to not see him anymore, it reminds me of the Golden Compass trilogy and its Daemons.
I also like the supernatural more in Aria because we never know if it is true or not, because only Akari and Ai, children, ever see Cait Sith. This reminds me of a lot of western novels like Alice, Oz and Narnia where the children discover secret worlds, often their own, that brings the extraordinaire to their everyday life. But we never know if it is true, if anything, Caith Sith and others could only be the representation that Akari and Ai make of Venezia, old and alien, full of passages and dead ends that they feel could lead them to another world like the other works I mentioned.
I enjoy your analysis. Thank you.
Aria and Amanchu is so alike because both series are directly connected taking place in the same universe just at different times and with cross over material between them in the manga that might show up in the 2nd season of Amanchu depending where it goes. You got Caitsith name wrong and it is also a long established creature from Celtic mythology and over the last couple decades established in Japan as a character in the long running Final Fantasy game series filling various rolls. Some missed about Aria is it is actually made from two manga Aqua and then Aria what is the continuation of the first. Also there is a lot symbolism in Aria especially meanings behind names like the special names given to them at certain point. I think there might been something about cats having been genetically modified at some point why they were so much smarter and far longer lived though I forget exactly.
The setting of Aqua/Neo-Venezia is what really makes this series for me, glad you liked it too.
This is not your thing, but still handled it with respect
I loved this anime. I was going through a hard time and the gentle kindness was the medicine to me, whenI was being really hard on myself
Thanks
Cats ARE cannonicaly inteligent :D In season 3 there is a scene (when Aika and Al are stuck together on well) where Aika confirs aqua's cats are capable of understanding human language.
Everyone kepts telling me about aria greatness ,even Anime every day .Grexx I’m waiting for your video on another video winter season anime that you liked .Great video
If I would give this show ratings it’s a 7/10
I hate the Cait Sith parts. Love everything else about the show (besides Aika's 'sappy lines' joke being too frequent.)
Be great to see aoi bubgaku very underappreciated series, which u will find hard not to appreciate it. Its an anthology series which tries to adapt japans greatest literature each adaptation has different messages and themes and the series really doesnt hold anything back in terms of content, just be great to see.
I never got into Aria and that is saying something from someone that likes these kind of shows. My favorite by far is Hidamari Sketch and if you experience any kind of stress the doctor orders one episode a day to keep the stress away (or at normal levels). ;)
I would love to see a review of xxxHolic by you. Especially since you reviewed Mononoke not too long ago. It's a supernatural slice of life that explores intriguing aspects of human nature the way Mononoke does and has better comedic and emotional moments than Aria. The music is superb as well. Would love to hear your thoughts on it.
Whether I go on your channel it’s like an unexpected video
Anyway your pretty unaware of amanchu is getting a season 2
I have 2 questions for you .
One: Have you seen Clannad ? ( I haven't ) If you have watched it could you tell me your overall opinion for it ? Specifically , does it try to make the audience feel sad about sth without putting the effort ( like in the gondola episodes ) . I want your opinion since it seems like you have the same opinion about slice of life anime as me .
Second: Your my anime list profile is Grexx11 ?
1. I am a fan of Clannad, and just about everyone I know is a fan of the second half of After Story, but their mileage varies on the rest. The thing with Clannad, especially the first season, is that it builds up its characters for the express purpose of having a big emotional scene involving them. That may or may not be your cup of tea -- some people find such things flat and manipulative. If you were touched by the likes of Angel Beats or Your Lie in April, you would probably enjoy Clannad as well.
2. Grex11, yes.
Aria has been allright. Grexx have you watch Hakumei to Mikochi that seems like a good slice of life underrated anime this season .This is the series I would recommend to anyone this winter season
I have not. I may pick it up later, but slice of life isn't my favorite genre.
+Grex That feels more relaxing better than yuru camp .Still happy that I subscribed.Despite it’s moe art it has good worldbuilding
+Adrian Allemann (mindblaster) that show had a lot of moe art though
Most slice of life just tend to be to realistic for my tastes. In shows like Jojo or Boruto, I'm okay with it since they're not solely slice of life and and since there's a supernatural edge to it. If I wanted realism, I'd just go outside (and who wants to do that?)
Didn't know there were gondolas, antropomorphic intelligent cats and ghosts around here.
Hey Grex, if you ever got the time, could ya do a review on Arslan Senkii? It's a show that I quite enjoyed yet it would seem that no one else either knows of it or talks about it which is strange since it has 2 seasons.
It's a low fantasy, action/adventure anime about a young 14 or 15 year old prince who's kingdom gets overthrown by an enemy kingdom. The rest of the show follows him and his party members trying to take it back. If you've ever played a Fire Emblem game, you can kinda get the gist of it. Anyways, the overall story is fairly simple but charming, the characters are quite enjoyable, and the animation is good too. The score though, is incredible. They've got a full orchestra to perform grand epic pieces to really give that sense of adventure. Hell, it's been years since I've seen it and I still remember (what I call) the main theme.
It's about 33 episodes I believe, since the 2nd season was only 8 episodes for some reason. It's not complete, unfortunately, but that's anime for you, what can you do? Anyways, if you review it at some point, that'd be cool.
I can't make any promises on if or when I'll make a video for the series, but I have seen Arslan. I thought it had fun characters, and some nice dashes of politics and morality.
That's good to hear. I just find it odd that I've heard no one even mention the show before despite it being popular enough to have two seasons. Anyways, as long as you're aware of my request, that's fine with me. I know you got these Gundam videos up and coming but if you're ever in a lull of things to do/watch, maybe you could re-watch Arslan.
Well unlike you I love slice of life, and Aria is my absolute favorite anime
I normally like shows of this nature, but this show bored the hell out of me. which is a shame because aesthetics are strong. Allegedly it gets a lot better past season 1, but I didn't like season 1 enough to go forward. My favorite show of this style is either Mushi-shi or Haibane Renmei. that said, Haibane Renmei video request.
yes, those two are really really really good.
As much as I appreciate the various genres of anime, slice of life is just dull to me. What is a story without conflict or growth. The only ones I've liked recently is Karakai Jouzu no Takagi-san for its fun characters and not much else.
Actually it was one enjoyable romantic comedy .The sub voice actors made the show good in my opinion
Old comment but plenty of slice of life is about growth. In fact most slice of life has growth as one of the main points. A story is just that, a story... it doesn't have to be some generic action adventure, it can be about meeting an old man and showing him your life in a new city and how you inspire him to appreciate something as simple as enjoying potatoes on a crisp autumn day.
I don't like slice of life. Even in Jojo. People recommended this to me, I'm just not sure about it. I don't like shows with cute girls