DVD Review: More relaxing in Neo-Venezia

It's especially hard to keep up the momentum for "Aria," an incredibly relaxing series with serene imagery and comforting character.

However, even "Aria" has some really unusual characters in Neo-Venezia to add some variety in season two.

The first part of season two brings back all the classic characters of "Aria" for a reunion at the Carnivale. All Akari's buddies from season one, including little Ai, return to Aria to see the mysterious Casanova.

This sets up Akari and Ai's new Totoro impersonation. The humongous, masked Casanova invites Akari and Ai to join in his dance. There's nothing cuter than watching Akari and Ai sing "Zutto, zutto, zutton, pon!" while they are following the Casanova, who may be related to Cait Sith, king of the cats.

There's plenty of new characters who arrive. Probably the best new addition, however, is the gnome Edward, who is also Aika's love interest. Their new romance is one of the most touching parts of season two. There's something charming when Aika says that Edward is so unfairly nice. She tries to look away, but the chemistry they have together is irresistable. Aika even comes up with a line to say to him whenever he gives weird elderly statements to Aika aloud.

The characters also take up more difficult changes to their attitudes in this series. Alice has a dramatic episode in which she turns down a warm invitation to have dinner with the other Pairs (gondola navigators) in her company, Orange Planet. She has a nervous fear that her coworkers are jealous of her and hate her. Thankfully, her teacher, Athena, is willing to help her open up.

Admittedly, the series makes me fall asleep, but not because it is boring. In fact, the beautiful images of water and the complex characters are just captivating. However, I often wondered just how long the anime director could keep this series of pure bliss intact. "Aria" ran for 39 episodes. It's difficult to keep the tone consistent, yet allow room for the characters to evolve.

However, there's plenty of things for the characters to say, because they always discover new things that are unique in Neo-Venezia. Whether they encounter the ruins of a neverending cat city, a bakery which serves bread made from buckwheat noodles, or a children's puppeteer, there's always something new in the city to find.

Most of all, Akari is friendlier than ever. The bubbly characters never lose their charm. I'm already itching to watch the second part of season two.

Image courtesy of aria.rightstuf.com

DVD Review: Basking in the sun on a gondola

"Aria" is one of the more unconventional anime series, relying on a nostalgic peaceful atmosphere in a ocean planet named Aqua.

Despite the lack of a gripping plot or heavy emotional performance, "Aria" stands on its own as a momentary Venice-like vacation anime.

And like Venice, the main characters paddle gondolas through the city of Neo-Venezia. It was formerly Mars, but thanks to modern technology, the planet was flooded and terraformed with loads of ocean water. Thus, it's not Mars--it's a oceanic paradise.

And the atmosphere is almost too beautiful to pass up. So beautiful, that the series almost completely forgets about the plotline. But the background artwork and character designs are so wonderful that this series doesn't really need a plot to succeed.

Technically, the main character, Akari Mizunashi, is training to become an Undine, which is a professional gondolier and goddess. However, she spends more time relaxing and telling lovely tales about how Aqua was formed from the immense floodwaters. She also spends plenty of time relaxing with her friends--including the blunt and competitive Aika Grandzchesta and the shy prodigy Alice Caroll.

They're supposed to be working for competitive gondolier companies. Akari works for the Aria Company, Aika works with the Himemiya Company and Alice with the Orange Planet. If they really are competitors, though, they really don't act like it. After all Akari, Aika and Alice all end up befriending each other. Even their superiors, Alicia, Akira and Athena act more like old companions rather than squabbling executives.

To give a sense of how relaxing this anime is, Akari spends the first episode taking a the young, fussy girl, Ai, on a tour through Neo-Venezia. Ai spends most of her time complaining about how boring the trip is, but Akari's optimism cheers her up as she continues through the tour. When Akari runs into Ai, the two spends time quizzing each other about the history of Neo-Venezia. Near the end, the cut Aria Company's cat and mascot, President Aria Pokoteng, drifts off into the ocean. Thankfully, Akari's superior, Alicia, sails by on a gondolier to save the little guy.

This anime is filled with so many cute characters and so much gorgeous scenery that it doesn't need to have a plot. "Aria" might be the best utopian vacation that anime fans may ever have. Near the end, however, director Junichi Sato gives us some of the most beautiful anime scenes I've ever seen. Anime fans get to watch the Akari, Aika and Alice travel to the countryside to meet lovable Grandma Akino, the mother of all Undines. The three Undine mentors, Alicia, Akira and Athena, also tell their trainees how they first met and trained together.

But the most surreal sequences take place in the end of the series, when Akari literally crosses an old bridge that takes her through another dimension. In fact, in the dazzling final episode, Akari meets up with some cats who could very well be Aria's spirits from long ago.

It's a wonderful series with hot springs, snow bugs, intense gondola training sessions and reflective, nostalgic scenes of tranquil oceans and ethereal landscapes. Sure, it's a fantasy series, but it sure is one of the most beloved fantasy series ever seen--surpassing all other shojo series with the best visual landscapes to grace an anime.

Image courtesy of rightstuf.com