Aria the Animation

There is a certain Japanese quality of storytelling called mono no aware -- a consciousness of the world's transient nature. It pervades Japanese writing and films, but usually as a background theme. It is rare that it takes center stage, so to speak, in a book or film. Yet this is the case with both Yokohama Kaidashi Kikou (and its sequel, Quiet Country Cafe) and Aria the Animation (and its sequel, Aria the Natural).

Both sets of anime deal with people reacting to an environment of great beauty and complexity, as well as to each other. By making the landscape a character in its own right, the viewer gains an additional opportunity for empathy with the protagonists, as they move in, and are moved by, the extraordinary worlds that they inhabit.

All of these anime are must-see anime for the sensitive and mature anime viewer, and I can hardly recommend them highly enough.

Both Aria and Yokohama Kaidashi Kikou are perfect series iif you want something that isn't too action packed, or complicated - if you just want to relax. Their great characters, nice music, and beautiful animation make them worth watching, and if you liked one then you should like the other.

Yokohama Kaidashi Kikou and Aria the Animation are two shows about absolutely nothing. Both have pretty graphics and music. Warning both may cause drowsiness. If you liked one you'll probably like the other.

Both Aria and Yokohama focus on the daily life of young girls with a somewhat futuristic twist, one is based on another planet, the other is a robot. If you enjoyed the semi-futuristic twist in an otherwise traditional slice of life world of one then it is worth watching the other.

Aria and Yokohama are set in the future with a neat setting of high-tech advances, but both anime are extremely tranquil; it is purely slice of life. You'll really see this unheavy feeling within the use of colours and simply the events that occur. Yokohama has an interesting and cute main character, and it's quite thought-provoking.

Both Yokohama Kaidashi Kikou and Aria fall in the category of slice-of-life seinen 'healing' anime. They're pretty to look at, have a relaxed plotline, and have mellow jazz soundtracks.

In fact, they're so much alike in most ways that it's probably more useful to focus on the few differences: Aria is about young women; YKK is about a humanoid robot of indeterminate age. Aria has sentient cats as primary cast members, and President Aria in particular annoys some viewers. YKK is post-apocalyptic; Aria is post-diaspora.

If you like one, there's a very high probability that you'll like the other.

Yokohama Kaidashi Kikou: Quiet Country Cafe and Aria the Animation are two shows about absolutely nothing. Both have pretty graphics and music. Warning both may cause drowsiness. If you liked one you'll probably like the other.

Just as ARIA takes place in Neo-Venezia on Mars that was terraformed into Aqua, the story told Haibane Renmei happens in a fantastic city confined within walls. Both animes show places that are not totally impossible yet somewhat fantastic and mysterious. Both animes are also centered around female characters and men only have supporting roles. They also give a great importance to the relations and emotions of the characters. Fortunately, they avoid the cheesy romantic clichés of most animes that feature only girls. The stories of theses two animes are quite different, yet the have similarities. They both present a characters who has recently arrived in the “fantastic enclosed world” mentioned above. Haibane Renmei is much more dramatic then ARIA, but ARIA places just as much emphasis on the emotions the characters are feeling. Both animes also have great soundtracks that add a lot of depth and ambiance to the beautiful scenery they present. I would like to warn people who have seen Haibane Renmei about one thing : ARIA has a quite annoying character that is supposed to be a cat even though it doesn't look a bit like it, acts like a human and it makes annoying sounds. I believe the story would have been a lot better with a normal cat. If you can ignore that, I'm sure you can enjoy ARIA just a much as Haibane Renmei.

A recommendation with a little warning. While Haibane Renmei get's fairly heavy around the ending and Aria the Animation stays laid back at all times, I still see these two as the perfect recommendation for each other. Out of all the shows I've seen so far, these two shows are the only ones that have succeeded at presenting such an idyllic, tranquil setting and are excellent, soothing Slice of Life series. Perfectly fitting music, amazing enviroment- and clothing design and great ambiance. As long as you don't mind the difference between some drama towards the ending and a fully tranquil experience, these two are the perfect recommendation for each other!