Aria the Masterpiece: Chapter 9 Discussion

[seanblue]

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Aria the Masterpiece Chapter 9: 花火

NOTE: If you are reading Aqua 2nd edition, it is a different chapter number!

Start Date: August 18th
Previous Chapter: Chapter 8
Next Chapter: Chapter 10 (Volume 2)

Vocabulary List

Aria the Masterpiece Volume 1 Vocab

Discussion Rules

• Please use spoiler tags for content that would be considered a spoiler.
• When asking for help, please mention the page, panel, and speech bubble. Be sure to mention if you are reading a version other than Aria the Masterpiece.
• Don’t be afraid of asking questions, even if they seem embarassing at first. All of us are here to learn.

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[Belthazar]

Alrighty, here goes:

1. Omake panel on page 282, what’s とんとんまーえ? Guessing it’s some kind of standard expression like “roll up, roll up”, but all Google’s giving me is some Vocaloid song. Also, Mr Postman appears in both the omake panel and the title page, but not in the chapter at all.

2. Page 284, Akari’s not wearing her glove even when sitting at the Aria Company desk (or, for that matter, at all during the chapter). I’ma chalk this up to early-instalment weirdness - in later chapters, she’s wearing her glove at all times when in uniform, even when she’s explicity not on duty, because it’s kind of a part of her uniform. Not wearing the glove is like impersonating a Prima. Eh, a minor thing, it was just bugging me a bit.

3. Page 288, panel 3, I’m guessing (from Aika’s gesture) that the せい is some kind of Manzai slang?

4. I quite like the parallels between page 291 and page 11. And then you can compare page 292 to page 52 to see how far Amano-sensei’s art has evolved just over the course of these two volumes. For one thing, the shoes look much more comfortable. And the slit in her dress no longer extends so ridiculously high.

5. Page 295, panel six, I can’t quite read the kanji at the top of the second column of Akatsuki’s comment. Is it 美しい?

6. Page 296, that railway is terrifying. Can I ride on it?

7. Page 301, is… is Alicia sitting on the floor with the cats? Could they not find her a chair to sit on the fourth side of the table?

8. Page 302, is the gachapen a real mythical animal? It kinda looks like a weird cross between a kappa and a beaver, or something. And how, exactly, does it resemble Aika?

9. Page 306, panel 1 - Alicia’s あら、言っちゃった, is she commenting because the fireworks were supposed to be a surprise, or something?

10. The last few pages feel a little bit… introspective, I guess. I know Aqua was published in a different magazine to Aria, but was there ever any doubt that it would be continued?

[Radish8]

Page 296, that railway is terrifying. Can I ride on it?

NO THANK YOU

is Alicia sitting on the floor with the cats? Could they not find her a chair to sit on the fourth side of the table?

I assumed they also had a three-“person” table and therefore it was a reasonable split of the party between tables designed for three/four. But I also found it pretty weird!

is she commenting because the fireworks were supposed to be a surprise, or something?

That’s what I thought - she deliberately doesn’t tell Akari about them, so she was disappointed Akari found out ahead of time.

The last few pages feel a little bit… introspective, I guess.

Yeah, it felt very much like a “nostalgic retrospective wrapping up while also leaving the opportunity for a continuation maybe yes please?” to me.

[Naphthalene]

The last few pages feel a little bit… introspective, I guess.

Yes! I loved it, and that really sold me on reading the rest of the series. (I was already thinking to do so, but it really sealed the deal).
Also, now I want to go see some fireworks.

and that’s all I can comment on, considering I’m abroad without the book.

[hachiken]

that railway is terrifying. Can I ride on it?

You mean how they just happen to be up really really high precariously balanced like platform they’re viewing the fireworks from?
anyone would think i’m afraid of heights for saying so, wouldn’t they?

Page 295, panel six, I can’t quite read the kanji at the top of the second column of Akatsuki’s comment. Is it 美しい?

Yes, it looks like きさま俺様の美しい(can’t make out the next character)がそんなにイヤかあ
which i suppose he’s saying something along the lines of “i’m not like that today beautiful something”?

Page 301, is… is Alicia sitting on the floor with the cats? Could they not find her a chair to sit on the fourth side of the table?

It’s a bit strange but maybe since the cats are both 社長, she’s going seiza style???

Yeah, it felt very much like a “nostalgic retrospective wrapping up while also leaving the opportunity for a continuation maybe yes please?” to me.

Like any concluding episode, recap the highlight experiences in summary and leave it open for the next series I guess.

now I want to go see some fireworks.

花火!! is pretty simple kanji-wise, but one of my favourite Japanese words.

みんな、 おつかれさまでした！ I don’t know how long I will have to wait for volume 2 to arrive.

[Belthazar]

きさま俺様の美しい(can’t make out the next character)がそんなにイヤかあ

The missing character is 汗.

Also, there’s a space after きさま, which implies a comma, which in turn implies a は. Not entirely sure where you go “today” from, but with those bits of information, maybe give it another shot?

[hachiken]

Ok… so maybe it means something like
“You don’t like my beautiful sweat like that?” ??
“You think my beautiful sweat is unpleasant like that?” ??

[Kyasurin]

Omake panel on page 282, what’s とんとんまーえ? Guessing it’s some kind of standard expression like “roll up, roll up”, but all Google’s giving me is some Vocaloid song. Also, Mr Postman appears in both the omake panel and the title page, but not in the chapter at all.

I was also most curious about とんとんまーえ. From what I can gather, it’s a phrase used when teaching groups of little kids how to line up neatly so that everyone is equally distant from each other in front and to the sides. They put their arms out to regulate the space between them. トントン前,トントン前，前へ並え
But how that relates to this story, I am really not sure. Unless it is Akari feeling squeezed so asking the others to move a little away from her (arms length away)?

[Belthazar]

“You don’t like my beautiful sweat like that?” ??

I wonder if it’s something more like “how can you”

Unless it is Akari feeling squeezed so asking the others to move a little away from her (arms length away)?

Ah, perhaps they’re being positioned so that someone can take the photo that’s used on the title page.

[Radish8]

A few questions from the beginning ^^

---

Page 284

Middle left panel

でも まだまだ
残暑が厳しい
今日この頃です

I don’t even know what to ask, because I don’t understand so badly is it actually separate sentences? Like “the lingering summer heat is still intense” followed by “today is like that”?

---

Page 288

Middle of the three small panels on the left

Does… does Aika just slap Akari?! What does the せい after 大人しく indicate?

---

Page 289

Right-hand panel

火星の上空に
無数に浮かんでいる
巨大な気候制御
装置なの

Is Alicia saying that Ukijima is one of countless climate control units?

---

And then you can compare page 292 to page 52 to see how far Amano-sensei’s art has evolved just over the course of these two volumes. For one thing, the shoes look much more comfortable. And the slit in her dress no longer extends so ridiculously high.

Oh wow, that really is quite the difference in the uniform! I feel like it would be a bit risky piloting a gondola in the former

[Belthazar]

I don’t even know what to ask, because I don’t understand so badly is it actually separate sentences? Like “the lingering summer heat is still intense” followed by “today is like that”?

今日この頃

Middle of the three small panels on the left

Does… does Aika just slap Akari?! What does the せい after 大人しく indicate?

See, I read that as a standard manzai-type slap (ya know, back-hand across the chest, maybe delivered with なんでやねん), which is why I’m thinking the せい might be manzai terminology too. I don’t know enough about manzai terminology to be more sure, though.

Is Alicia saying that

Yep.

Oh wow, that really is quite the difference in the uniform! I feel like it would be a bit risky piloting a gondola in the former

Especially standing above the customers as they do.

[Radish8]

今日この頃

Does 今日この頃 act as a noun in this sentence then, or is it just a sort of interjection? Like, is 残暑が厳しい modifying 今日この頃?

See, I read that as a standard manzai-type slap (ya know, back-hand across the chest, maybe delivered with なんでやねん), which is why I’m thinking the せい might be manzai terminology too. I don’t know enough about manzai terminology to be more sure, though.

Ah, I see. I should have checked the page number of your question, too.

Yep.

Especially standing above the customers as they do.

Indeed

[Belthazar]

Does 今日この頃 act as a noun in this sentence then, or is it just a sort of interjection? Like, is 残暑が厳しい modifying 今日この頃?

Yeah, I read it as a noun being modified, kinda. “But nowadays, the late-summer heat is still oppressive” kind of thing.

[hachiken]

Especially standing above the customers as they do.

I’m not sure if the illustration on p.292 was done after the cover image but on the cover image the split goes much higher in relation to the blue circular symbol.

[tessberg]

@Belthazar @Radish8 I read 大人しくせい as 大人し臭い. In other words, begin stinking bad att being otonashii. But I didn’t research it. Quick search on jisho: found nothing. So it’s probably wrong, but I’ll throw it out there anyway.

[Belthazar]

I’m not sure if the illustration on p.292 was done after the cover image but on the cover image the split goes much higher in relation to the blue circular symbol.

Oh rather, I’ve noticed that. I don’t know which books have which covers, but my English translation of Aqua has a different image, but the slit goes similarly high. Same with Alicia on the cover of volume two. Almost goes to her hip.

Fanservice, much?

[hachiken]

Fanservice, much?

lol.
I’ve got the Masterpiece ed. with the image shown in the first post of this thread showing off a bit of leg.

[Radish8]

Okay, but can we talk about how アリア社長 heroically (if ineffectually) tries to defend Akari?!

[Belthazar]

That’s because アリア社長 is actually a superhero.

[Radish8]

Page 302, is the gachapen a real mythical animal? It kinda looks like a weird cross between a kappa and a beaver, or something.

I couldn’t either, but a search for gachipin throws up a popular Japanese TV character who looks remarkably like the illustration, sans flippers. So I wonder whether the idea is that history has become muddled over time and spawned the myth of the gachipen or perhaps this guy specifically just doesn’t understand historical children’s TV

Gachipin has apparently been scuba diving in at least one episode, so…