Aria: The Origination S3 + OVA Collection Review

4 star satisfying conclusion to a very relaxing anime.

Aria: The Origination is the third and final series in the Aria franchise, originally released in 2008. It is adapted from the manga series Aqua and Aria by Kozue Amano and produced by studio Hal Film Maker. Directed by Jun’ichi Satō, it is presented here with both English dub and Japanese with subtitles, courtesy of MVM Entertainment.

Spoiler alert, this review covers the end of this franchise, so be sure to watch the rest of it before reading on!

“During Carnevale, we had many opportunities to work on board our mentors gondolas. It gave us the chance to watch them up close. They worked with all sorts of customers.”

It’s almost spring on the beautiful planet of Aqua and in Neo Venezia, the three trainee Undines continue to pursue their ultimate goals, to become Primas and be able to run their own tours for their respective companies. Akari (Veronica Taylor – Dragon Ball Super, Sailor Moon) is making progress within the Aria company and although she doubts her abilities, her mentor Alicia ((Marissa Lenti – The Titan’s Bride) is happy with her acheivements and pushing her to expand her horizons, even encouragng her to skull the Traghetto ferry.

Best friend Alice (Tara Tisch-Wallace – Emma: A Victorian Romance) is also flourishing under her mentor Athena (Michele Knots – Ikki Tousen: Western Worlds) at Orange Planet, even joining her for a picnic and looking forward to graduating from middle school so she can devote more time to her practising. The third member of their group is Aika (Jessica Calvello – Excel Saga) who is training under her mentor Akira (Carol Jacobanis – Genshiken OVA) at Himeya company.

As they move onward into spring, thoughts turn towards the possibility of the Promotion exams and what the future will hold for the three friends.

“The cold snow brought warmth to our customers hearts as well as our own.”

Right from the start of this series, it is apparent that there is a totally different tone to the proceedings. Although it is just as relaxing and enjoyable, there is clearly more of a sense of purpose about it, we can tell the story is now going somewhere.

With it’s beautiful animation and backdrops and sweeping yet gentle score, it truly is a joy to watch and it’s great to see the end of this engrossing coming of age story.

This release also includes an OVA, Aria the OVA – Arrieta. This fits into the story between the end of season 2 and the beginning of season 3 so be sure to watch it first.

Aria: The Origination is a lovely way to finish what has been an entertaining and inspirational ride. A must own for fans of the franchise.

“I believe that every time a talented Undine masters her craft, the city of Neo Venezia becomes even more wonderful.”

Aria the Origination is available to own now on Blu-ray