Arisa (manga)

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Arisa
Cover of the first volume, depicting Tsubasa (right) and Arisa (left)
アリサ
(Arisa)
GenreMystery
Manga
Written byNatsumi Ando
Published byKodansha
English publisher
MagazineNakayoshi
DemographicShōjo
Original runFebruary 2009 – September 2012
Volumes12 (List of volumes)

Arisa (Japanese: アリサ) is a mystery shōjo (targeted towards girls) manga series by Natsumi Ando. It appeared as a serial in the monthly manga magazine Nakayoshi from the February 2009 issue to the September 2012 issue. Kodansha published the chapters in twelve bound volumes, from April 2009 to September 2012. Set in present-day Japan, it focuses on teenager Tsubasa Uehara, as she investigates the mystery surrounding her twin sister's failed suicide attempt.

North American publisher Del Rey announced in September 2009 to have licensed the series for North America. Del Rey released the first volume, but shortly after Kodansha announced that they would be taking over from Del Rey on a case-to-case basis. On December 12, 2010, Kodansha Comics officially announced that they would be continuing Arisa in North America starting in May 2011.

Plot

Set in modern-day Japan, the plot centers on Tsubasa Uehara (上原つばさ, Uehara Tsubasa) and Arisa Sonoda (園田ありさ, Sonoda Arisa), teenage twin sisters separated by their parents' divorce who promise to send letters to each other to keep in touch. Finally meeting again for the first time after three years, tomboyish Tsubasa is envious, but proud, of her sweet, popular sister, in comparison to her own school life where she is often referred to as "The Demon Princess." Arisa eventually attempts suicide and ends up comatose. Shocked and saddened, Tsubasa poses as her, attending her school to find out why she tried to kill herself. She learns that Arisa's class sends wishes on their cellphones to a person called King each Friday. The King only grants one wish weekly, resulting mostly in violence. Tsubasa resolves to stop the King and find out the person's identity to save Arisa, as he or she may be the reason of her attempted suicide.

Assisted in her investigations by Akira Manabe (真鍋明良, Manabe Akira), Arisa's classmate who learns Tsubasa's identity, she encounters Mariko Takagi (高木毬子, Takagi Mariko), Arisa's best friend whom the King manipulates; Midori Yamashita (山下 緑, Yamashita Midori), Arisa's boyfriend; Rei Kodō (玖堂 レイ, Kudō Rei), a transfer student whom Arisa had befriended online and who serves as the messenger of the King; and Shizuka Mochizuki (望月 静華, Mochizuki Shizuka), Manabe's childhood friend who lost the use of her legs after a failed suicide attempt provoked by the King. Tsubasa eventually learns that Arisa was the original King, but was replaced by Midori, who has a secret, cruel side to him. Arisa wakens from her coma, but pretends to have amnesia and returns to Midori's side. Tsubasa also learns that Midori suffered psychological trauma in his childhood after being abandoned by his mother and having his twin Akari die of child neglect. He attempts to kill Arisa's mother, as he could not get revenge on his own mother and believed that Arisa hated hers, but Tsubasa foils his plans. Arisa confesses that she loves him for noticing her loneliness, and he realizes that he loves her too. In the conclusion, Arisa's mother spends more time with her, and Arisa reconciles with Tsubasa.

Development

Manga artist Natsumi Ando initially felt worried about the absence of a "love interest" for Tsubasa, as Arisa's target audience is girls; however, as the manga progressed, she thought of it as "a selling point." As a result of this, she was able to focus on Tsubasa's emotions towards her twin. Additionally, she created "Tsubasa", a bonus story focusing on Arisa's pretending to be her elder sister, soon after beginning the manga's serialization, but continued to delay its publication, as it seemed inappropiate to have a bonus story with Arisa appear when she was comatose in the main storyline; Ando wrote that it made a good chapter with which to conclude the story.[1]

Release

Main article: List of Arisa chapters

Written and illustrated by Natsumi Ando, the chapters of Arisa appeared as a serial in the monthly manga magazine Nakayoshi from the February 2009 issue to the September 2012 issue.[2][3] Kodansha collected the chapters into twelve bound volumes, and published them from April 28, 2009, to September 6, 2012.[4][5]

In 2009, Del Rey announced that it had licensed the series for an English-language translation in North America.[6] Del Rey released the first volume on October 26, 2010,[7] but shortly afterwards, the North American publishing branch of Kodansha, Kodansha Comics USA, announced that it would be taking over publication from Del Rey on a case-to-case basis.[8] Kodansha Comics continued the publication of Arisa,[9] with the final volume published on January 21, 2014.[10]

Reception

Arisa was positively received by English-language readers. Three volumes placed on the New York Times Bestseller List for manga. The second volume placed ninth on the list for the week of May 22–28, 2011,[11] while the fifth volume ranked ninth on the list for the week of November 13–19, 2011.[12] The sixth volume placed seventh for the week of January 22–28, 2012.[13]

Young Adult Library Services Association placed the first volume of Arisa in its list of "Great Graphic Novels for Teens" for 2011.[14] About.com's Deb Aoki reviewed the first volume of Arisa positively, praising it as "compelling" and "a much darker tale" than Ando's previous work Kitchen Princess;[15] she later placed Arisa on her 2010 list of the "Best New Manga" for the shōjo category.[16] Otaku USA magazine's Danica Davidson wrote that the first volume of Arisa underwent a change in pace from its beginnings as "a slice-of-life manga" to a darker one.[17] While noting the presence of clichés and "plot holes", Carlo Santos of Anime News Network enjoyed the first volume, describing it as "a shoujo-styled Naoki Urasawa thriller, built upon layers of addictive mystery"; he had mixed feelings about her artwork, writing that it conveyed the plot well, but did not possess a distinct artistic style.[18] In her review of the third volume, Rebecca Silverman, another reviewer for Anime News Network, wrote that while the middle-school setting felt believable and the mystery was intriguing, some aspects of the plot were trying on the reader's suspension of disbelief, and the artwork, though usually enjoyable, failed to be convincingly scary during frightening scenes.[19]

References

  1. ^ Ando, Natsumi (2014). Arisa. Vol. 12. New York: Kodansha Comics. p. 158. ISBN 978-1-61262-439-6.
  2. ^ "Zodiac P.I.'s Natsumi Ando Launches Arisa Shōjo Manga (Updated)". Anime News Network. December 1, 2008. Retrieved June 27, 2013.
  3. ^ "Natsumi Ando's Arisa Shōjo Mystery Manga Ending in Japan". Anime News Network. August 1, 2012. Retrieved November 24, 2012.
  4. ^ "ARISA (1)" (in Japanese). Kodansha. Retrieved September 29, 2009.
  5. ^ "ARISA (12)" (in Japanese). Kodansha. Retrieved September 19, 2012.
  6. ^ "Del Rey Gets Here I Am, Rave Master, Arisa Manga (Update 2)". Anime News Network. Retrieved September 29, 2009.
  7. ^ "North American Anime, Manga Releases October 24-30". Anime News Network. October 26, 2010. Retrieved June 27, 2013.
  8. ^ "Kodansha USA to Take Over Del Rey Manga Titles (Update 3)". Anime News Network. Retrieved January 4, 2011.
  9. ^ "News: Kodansha USA Adds Phoenix Wright, Monster Hunter, Deltora Quest". Anime News Network. Retrieved January 4, 2011.
  10. ^ "Arisa 12 by Natsumi Ando". Random House. Retrieved November 29, 2013.
  11. ^ "New York Times Manga Best Seller List, May 22-28". Anime News Network. June 3, 2011. Retrieved November 27, 2013.
  12. ^ "New York Times Manga Best Seller List, November 13-19". Anime News Network. November 28, 2011. Retrieved November 27, 2013.
  13. ^ "New York Times Manga Best Seller List, January 22-28". Anime News Network. February 3, 2012. Retrieved November 27, 2013.
  14. ^ "2011 Great Graphic Novels for Teens". Young Adult Library Services Association. Retrieved April 20, 2014.
  15. ^ Aoki, Deb (October 22, 2010). "What I Read This Week – Manga Reviews for October 22, 2010". About.com. Retrieved November 27, 2013.
  16. ^ Aoki, Deb. "2010 Best New Manga". About.com. Retrieved November 27, 2013.
  17. ^ Davidson, Danica (October 15, 2010). "Arisa vol.1". Otaku USA. Retrieved November 27, 2013.
  18. ^ Santos, Carlo (October 26, 2010). "The Arisa Complex". Right Turn Only!. Anime News Network. Retrieved November 27, 2013.
  19. ^ Silverman, Rebecca (December 11, 2011). "Arisa GN 3 – Review". Anime News Network. Retrieved April 20, 2014.

External links

  • Arisa at Random House's website
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