One Room 3rd Season

Season Overview

One Room 3rd Season (One Room サードシーズン) is simply an improvement on the seasons that came before it. I enjoyed the 1st Season well enough, but I thought the 2nd Season definitely improved upon it. And now this 3rd Season raised the bar once again.

I’m not sure why you would be reading this review of the 3rd season if you don’t know what One Room is. But just in case, allow me to explain. One Room is a series made up of roughly 4-minute long episodes that are (mainly) viewed from a first-person perspective.

I think the entire 1st season was from a first-person perspective if I’m remembering correctly. But one of the improvements that came from the later seasons is that other shots are mixed in.

But this isn’t just a first-person anime. It’s a first-person anime about spending time with cute girls. Each episode or group of episodes focuses on a single girl who’s the only character aside from the viewer. Basically, it’s a dating simulator but in anime form, which is a pretty unique idea.

This 3rd season breaks away from the formula of the previous two seasons just a bit, though. In the first two seasons, there are three girls who each get four episodes, adding up to the total of 12. In this season, however, there are five girls, so the episode count can’t be divided up in the same way.

So, how are the episodes divided among the girls? Well, three of the five girls are returning characters, so there are four episodes split between them. Two episodes go to the “main” girl of the series and the other two girls get one episode each. Then, the two new girls each get four episodes just like the previous seasons.

Returning Characters

Natsuki Momohara is the first of the three returning girls. She was last seen in the 1st season, having been left out of the 2nd. I think she was my favorite of the three girls in the 1st season, but the 2nd and 3rd seasons have since introduced more girls who I like more.

It’s been a few years since I watched the 1st season, and Natsuki only got one episode in this season, so my memory of her is a little hazy. But I’m pretty sure she’s supposed to be the viewer’s younger sister. Whether she’s related by blood or not I don’t remember.

The second returning girl is Minori Nanahashi. Minori was first introduced in the second season and was almost the best girl of that season. Unfortunately for her, the final girl introduced in that season was the best one.

Minori’s family owns a bathhouse which she hopes to one day run despite her father encouraging her to find a more modern job. I believe her one episode in this season takes place after she’s taken over her family’s business — with your help, of course.

Yui Hanasaka is the final of the three returning girls and has been featured in both of the previous two seasons. She’s effectively the “main” girl of One Room considering she’s the only one to be in every season and that she got two episodes in this season instead of one as Natsuki and Minori did.

I like Yui, but she’s also the vanilla girlfriend character. All of the girls in the series are “girlfriends,” but Yui is the girlfriend character if that makes sense. Being the viewer’s girlfriend is her defining character trait, unlike with the other girls who all have some other trait as well.

New Characters

Honestly, both of the new girls introduced in this season are high-tier. I’m not really sure which one I prefer between the two. They both have good qualities despite being opposites in many respects.

The first of the new girls to be introduced is Akira Kotokawa. Akira is the viewer’s kouhai, or underclassman, who joins the gardening club the viewer is a member of. Younger girls are cute, so Akira already gets some bonus points for that.

But, what I also like about Akira is that she seems to have joined the gardening club for the express purpose of getting to spend time with the viewer. She knows a bit about gardening, but she’s no expert. So it’s very obvious that she’s interested in something other than the plants. She’s also just a very wholesome kouhai.

Saya Orisaki is the second new girl to be featured in this season of One Room. She’s an older girl who accidentally makes her way into the viewer’s apartment rather than her own after a night of drinking. This is why you should always leave your door unlocked. You never know when a cute anime girl will come drunkenly stumbling in.

But, what makes Saya a choice on par with the aforementioned Akira? Saya is the perfect blend of reliable, older woman and cute, shy girl. She helps the viewer out as their senpai but also gets very flustered whenever the subject of romance is brought up.

For example, in the Saya scenario, the viewer is a college student and Saya is a “working” adult who decides to help the viewer study for their exams. But, she really just wants to spend time with the viewer as Akira does. However, Saya is also less straightforward with her feelings than Akira is.

Conclusion

Despite thinking the 2nd season was better than the 1st, I gave them both the same score. With One Room 3rd Season, I think it’s finally earned a higher score, so I gave it a 7/10. The 1st season of this series can be a bit cringe-inducing, but it’s pretty nice once you get to the later seasons.

Have you watched this season of One Room? If so, do you prefer Akira or Saya? And which girl is your favorite from the series as a whole? Let me know in the comments.

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