Review of Aria: The Animation

When I stumbled across this series I had no idea what to expect and now that I've seen it; it isn't that easy to describe. That is because very little actually happens; the story follows Akari, a girl who has moved to the planet Aqua to become a gondolier working for the Aria Company in the city of Neo-Venezia. Over the course of the thirteen episodes she makes friends with Aika and Alice who are training to be gondoliers for other companies. They frequently train together and sometimes do things together on their time off. There are hints at science fiction that go deeper than their presence on a Terra-formed planet; in one episode Akari crosses a bridge and finds herself in Aqua's past; while this isn't explained I thought it was the best episode.

While little of excitement occurs the series is pleasant enough to watch as the characters are likable and the backgrounds are stunning. There is some humour; largely provided by the company's president... a large white cat; it is a tradition for all of the companies to have a blue-eyed cat as president as they are considered lucky. I wouldn't consider this a must see series but it is good enough and contains nothing to offend even the most easily offended viewers. There are follow-on series, 'Aria the Natural' and 'Aria the Origination' which I'd watch if they were legally available... this series was available on YouTube but episodes were only available for a limited time.