Review by Taruto!

I bought this on a whim after watching the first dvd not too long ago, and was quite impressed by it; especially considering the age of the series. The price of the cd itself is amazing - just over 1000yen for an OST containing 26 tracks (!) - one of the cheapest OSTs I've ever bought. Unfortunately it's not amazingly presented and the covers are quite bland, which was quite depressing. Since the series itself is quite old now (originally released in late 1999), the OST isn't as impressive as some newer OSTs are but still pleases; there's a lot of variation between tracks, and it can still rile emotion from time to time. So while some of the tracks seem stale and some of them are annoying, this is a highly listenable OST. I was also especially happy to find that the copies of "Datte, Daisuki!" and "Ai wa Umi" enclosed were also full length tracks - not TV size tracks. So far, this is the only CD I've ever found the full length tracks on, which was a nice surprise. Unfortunately, very few people seem to even know this OST was released - it doesn't seem to be a popular series. Even if you haven't seen the series, give this OST a go; you might be pleasantly surprised.

I've been following ARIA since I first heard about the manga and was delighted to find out there was a series underway mid-last year, so buying the first dvd+box combo was great, considering all of the extras. However ARIA isn't for everyone - like other "slice of life" series (e.g. Haibane Renmei), ARIA is quite slow to begin and continues a slow pace throughout which is unusual but very relaxing, making it one of the series you can just sit back and watch. Very little mystery is included and very little action is included. The art for the series is soft and clean with lovely, detailed backgrounds. The characters are well cast and the soundtrack is also very impressive. The dvd itself has the first 2 episodes, 2 adverts and 2 extras on the disc which is decent for the price compared to some other series I've bought. Since I bought the first press edition, other additional extras include a box to house the first 3 volumes of the series; an 8-page booklet detailing characters and scenes; 2 colour postcards and a custom postcard binder to keep postcards from each dvd in. Personally I'm very pleased with this item, especially for the price - it's definately a series I'll keep collecting.