Then you might like this. Just picked up the Graphic Novel for "Aria" by Kozue Amano. It's the nearest I've ever seen any other manga approach what, for me, YKK is about.
It's the story of a young woman, Akari Mizunashi, and her desire to be a fully fledged gondolier on the canals of Neo-Venezia, on the watery planet of Aqua, formerly known as Mars.
It's obviously a lot different to YKK. A lot more overtly sci-fi for one thing, though Neo-Venezia is on the whole technologically backwards. The art is a lot more mainstream (perhaps leaning a little towards CLAMP) and a lot "busier", with less lingering on backrounds. It also has the oddest looking cat I've ever seen.
It doesn't have that air of wistful melancholy that YKK does, but does have that feeling of calm, of taking it's own pace to go wherever it wants to go. Akari has that personality of optomistic innocence that Alpha does too. It's not going to replace YKK by a long shot, but it has it's high points and makes a change without going too far off course.
- Andy Tucker
Sunday, June 13, 2004
Hmm..my friend SWW recommended "Kino's Journey", which is about a dude and his sentient motorcycle, who travel throughout countries, staying only for three days. I don't know that much about it, but it looks interesting.
Here's some more info:
http://www.kinosjourney.com/about.shtml
- Carn
Sunday, June 13, 2004
Aria sounds interesting. Is that out in English?
Kino's Journey was originally a novel that was later turned into a 13 episode anime series. It's currently being released in the US, with volume 4 of 4 due out soon. I'm collecting it and I'm quite pleased. I don't know if there was a manga, but it would be interesting to see if it exists.
- martialstax
Sunday, June 13, 2004
Yes, it is in English. Published by ADV Manga:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1413900402/qid=1087229637/sr=2-2/ref=sr_2_2/102-0185230-7564979
I saw it in a bookstore this weekend but did not look at it. I will go back this week and buy a copy.
- Loran
Monday, June 14, 2004
Look what I found:
http://manga.animeondvd.com/reviews/manga.php?manga_view=76
It's a review of Aria. I recall seeing this in the store, but didn't pick it up. I guess I have to, now.
By the way, I'm one of the three reviewers of manga at the new [email protected] site. Just look for the reviews by Mike Dungan.
- martialstax
Tuesday, June 15, 2004
I bought and read Aria yesterday, and I loved it. I could definitely feel the YKK vibe in it in the leisurely pace and slice-of-life stories. Apparently there is a two-volume story called Aqua that came before Aria and is still unlicensed. Hopefully that will be picked up, soon.
For other stories that have that YKK feel to them, I would suggest Kiyohiko Azuma's Yotsubato! Azuma created Azumanga Daioh, and Yotsubato is his new manga. It's all about a young girl living with her father. She's a very happy, cheerful, and bright child, and everyday is an adventure to her. It's very slice of life, and very funny. Also very useful to me, there is plenty of furigana next to the kanji.
- martialstax
Wednesday, June 16, 2004
There are some translations here:
http://home.nc.rr.com/momotato/yotsubato.html
- Loran
Wednesday, June 16, 2004
I'm aware of that site, but I'm not downloading anything from it. I like testing my Japanese comprehension skills by making myself actually read the book.
- martialstax
Wednesday, June 16, 2004
Kozue Amano has an art book out as well- http://www.otaku.com/cgi-bin/itemview.asp?itemid=63827b
There's a figurine too, of Akari clutching President Aria (the cat).
- Andy Tucker
Thursday, June 17, 2004
Aria looks cool, I'll check it out. Great review on AnimeonDVD.com as well.
Now this begs the questions... if ADV feels there's a market for Aria, why in heck isn't anyone licensing YKK?
- JC
Monday, June 21, 2004
That's exactly the thought I've been having, too. I've been doing my part though. I had some time to sit down for a couple of hours with Matt Greenfield of ADV at an anime convention recently, and I told him about my desire to see YKK licensed. Of course he couldn't give me an answer, but he did say "Never say never."
- martialstax
Monday, June 21, 2004
Howdy,
I picked up both volumes of Aria and Aqua at Kinokunia over the weekend. Nice stuff. Like YKK it takes it's time to enjoy the quiet moments of life.
The lead character, Akari, has a odd combination of Alpha's sense of wonder, and Tohru's (from Fruit Basket) vapid grinning spaciness. The character I really liked was Alicia, who reminds me of a mature, competent Alpha.
There are still areas of the story I don't understand in detail (I'll re-read it later with dictionary in hand), but the stories overall have a nice feeling of wonder and amazement, especially when things happen you can't quite explain...
Best,
Dave
- dDave
Monday, June 21, 2004
Swine! I've been looking for Aqua everywhere with no luck. At least I know it's out there. I think Aria was more likely to be translated and published 'cos it's more clearly sci-fi, hence already has a clearly defined market. YKK may be a future setting, but that is a very small part of what the story is about. There are some actual supernatural elements in Aria as well (a brief rain shower with no clouds in the sky is called "a fox's wedding" here in olde England too oddly enough).
- Andy Tucker
Tuesday, June 22, 2004
I haven't read ARIA yet, but I had a chance to read AQUA and I wasn't too impressed with that. Character drawings are cute indeed, yet not as charming as in YKK. Landscapes are scarce while cityscapes are overwhelmingly busy for my taste. The characters are a bit too simplistic, the plot is as thin as the atmosphere of *today's* Mars, and what drives me away the most, "the cute animal mascot syndrome"(tm), Martian cats in this case.
While I agree that Akari's personality resembles Alpha's, yet Akari seems more contained to me. I cannot imagine her to drink a good drop of sake and then dance, nor firing a gun. Alpha is more active in searching for new experience, Akari just reacts to what's coming, IMHO.
Perhaps AQUA/ARIA is targeted on younger kids, while YKK I always felt being aimed at a more mature audience.
Just my 2.1743 yens.
- Teisuu
Tuesday, June 22, 2004
Oh that's very true, which is why Aria has been translated and released over here while YKK hasn't. Too mature for the kids and "adults don't read comic books". Sigh. Catch-22 or what.
Aw, poor Martian cats. "Pinyu!" And Alpha DOES have a small wide eyed mascot. She's called Makki :p
- Andy Tucker
Tuesday, June 22, 2004
Howdy,
>Swine! I've been looking for Aqua everywhere with no luck.
Just to be clear, I'm reading the Japanese versions.
Now that I have had a chance to read both series in more depth, I feel that the world in Aqua/Aria is a little too inconsistent for my tastes. I still like the individual stories and characters, but the world doesn't hang together with the same consistent logic of the YKK world. Overall a minor quibble. Oh, and the cats get to me too. Who would want a mute throw pillow for a boss?
Best,
Dave
- dDave
Tuesday, June 22, 2004
"Too mature for the kids and "adults don't read comic books"."
I don't think anyone believes this any more. At least not among the manga publishers today. There are more and more seinen and josei manga being published in the US. I honestly think it's only a matter of time before someone licenses YKK. The last couple of times input was requested by Tokyopop at the AnimeonDVD forums about which titles should be licensed, YKK ranked third or better.
- martialstax
Tuesday, June 22, 2004
I do in truth know that there is a market for "grown-ups" comics (I avoid the term "adult"), after all, I have the "Blacksad" anthropomorphic noir graphic novels myself. But I'd always felt that the manga market was still primarily aimed at children and young adults with one or two exceptions. I therefore stand corrected and live in hope.
- Andy Tucker
Wednesday, June 23, 2004
Like Loran, I feel that the majority of manga is aimed at and read by teens, but for interest, here is an article that appeared on AnimeNation a little while ago:
http://www.animenation.net/news/askjohn_archive.php
What Are the Classifications of Manga?
April 1st, 2004
Question:I heard that there is another types of anime and manga beside shounen and shoju. Is it true? Also I heard Berserk in under a type called senein or something. I thought Berserk is shounen?
Answer:While the classifications of "shonen" (boys') and "shoujo" (girls') manga are the most often used classifications among English speaking fans because the terms are the most convenient distinguishing descriptions for types of manga, these two classifications are not the only ones applied to manga. A few of the other varieties of manga include "gekiga," "jousei," "seinen," "redisu," "kodomo," and "seijin.” However, since many readers prefer more than just one variety of manga, these terms and distinctions are most appropriate for use primarily in academic analysis of manga rather than casual conversation.To provide some brief explanation:
- Kodomo manga, as the name implies, are comics for children. ("Kodomo" is the Japanese word for "child.")
- Shonen manga typically consists of adventure comics for young boys- titles like One Piece and Dragonball and Yu Yu Hakusho.
- Shoujo manga are comics for young girls- titles like Sailor Moon and Marmalade Boy and Fruits Basket.
- Seinen manga are stories intended for teen and young adult men. The content of these titles, like Berserk, Tenjoh Tenge, Hellsing and 3x3 Eyes, is typically a bit darker, more violent, and more mature than lighthearted adventure comics.
- Gekiga manga is a genre that first appeared in the 1960s and is characterized by themes of hostile psychology, violence, and resentment of social order. Examples of gekiga manga include Golgo 13, Akira, and Ghost in the Shell.
- Jousei manga are comics for late teen and adult women. Probably one of the best known examples of Jousei manga among Western fans is Itoo Risa's Ebichu Minds the House, perhaps better known as "Ebichu the Housekeeping Hamster."
- The terms "redisu" and "redicomi" stand for "ladies'" and "lady comics." Both terms refer to pornographic manga made for female readers.
- Seijin manga is the male equivalent of "redisu." "Seijin" is just the formal name for hentai (pornographic) comics for men.
- Yonkomi or "4 koma" is a style of 4 panel comic strip manga that may also fall under one of the other categories mentioned here. Some of the most familiar yonkomi include Azumanga Daioh, Pugyuru, and the original Di-Gi-Charat manga.
To be honest, manga is not my strongest suit, so I can't really provide an extensive analysis of all of the different types of manga. And within each of the categories I've mentioned above there are sub-categories. And there are also famous genres of manga such as yaoi and yuri which may nestle beneath other broader categorizations. And finally, there are also the distinctions between professionally published and distributed manga and fan produced "doujinshi" manga.
- Ian Darrow
Wednesday, June 23, 2004
Sigh.... seemed YKK's stuck in limbo somehow. Don't know if we'll ever see it translated.
But, if you compare it with the rest of "Afternoon", YKK kinda stuck out like a sore thumb as well (maybe except AMS). Even as a fan, I'm also not sure how many other "mainstream" manga reader would enjoy YKK. This is the beauty of the Japanese manga machine.... a title like YKK can survive for years even without a well-defined genre and huge promotional efforts.
- JC
Thursday, June 24, 2004
ARIA, eh? I bought volume 1 some time ago, mainly cause the cover interested me, it filled out the weight and it was cheap xD
""Kino's Journey was originally a novel that was later turned into a 13 episode anime series. It's currently being released in the US, with volume 4 of 4 due out soon. I'm collecting it and I'm quite pleased. I don't know if there was a manga, but it would be interesting to see if it exists.""
I really like Kino's Journey as well - but there is no manga. However, I thought there was a manga, and ordered volumes 1 to 7 from amazon.co.jp.
But when I get the package a couple of weeks later, it turns out I've ordered 7 novels ^^;
Well, that's what I get for ordering from japanese sites without knowing japanese ^^
- Schonbeck
Saturday, June 26, 2004
I'm not sure I would say that YKK sticks out like a sore thumb in Afternoon. The tone and style of the series I think is echoed in other "slice of life" stories like Kobe Zaijuu and Little Forest, and Mushishi also has some similarities in the understated "flow" of the story or something like that. I don't know, it's hard to explain.
- Chris Kern
Saturday, June 26, 2004
Just got Aria vol 2, which improves on the story. The fanservice dial has been turned up a notch as we get a hot springs chapter, though there's no nudity and the springs themselves are an interesting setting. The "weird $#!£" dial gets turned up several notches with the carnival masquerade chapter, which deriders of President Aria will not like one little bit.
We also get to see the gnomes and where they live, which will give some people Laputa flashbacks and others vertigo.
- Andy Tucker
Friday, July 9, 2004
For a slice of life, have any of you guys tried Niea_7 ? The character design was done by Yoshitoshi Abe. Its a short melancholic, bittersweet, zany series that is hard to classify but it is very good.
- Peter by the Sea
Thursday, July 15, 2004
Isn't that the one with the unemployed alien living in somebody's closet? A situation, I feel, that we can all identify with.
Tsuruta Kenji's "Spirit of Wonder" is a good one too. a young Chinese girl, Miss China, runs a restaurant and boarding house in a small rustic 19th Century European village by the sea. Her lodgers are the chronically rent-challenged and moderately perverted mad scientist Dr. Breckenridge and his assistant Jim (who Miss China has a crush on). Wacky hijinks ensue.
Another "slice-of-life" manga, translated by Dark Horse (there's an anime too), it's beautifully drawn and often described as "H.G. Wells does romantic manga".
- Andy Tucker
Friday, July 16, 2004
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