Author: Lenlo

Welcome to the finale of Mahoutsukai no Yome, a rather lackluster end to a rollercoaster of a series. For the last time, lets jump in.

To put it simply, Mahoutsukai chose to end with a whimper rather than a bang. This may sound harsh, yet nothing in this ending really had much weight. Chise solves her Cartaphilus problem with the typical Shounen “I will hit you to fix our mutual problem” attitude. Ashen Eye is brought back in for a 2-minute meaningless combat scene, as if his involvement with Cartaphilus was some great hinted mystery. Chise gets stabbed through the chest, sings a song, and suddenly everything is A-OK. And of course what little emotional value the scenes had is immediately undercut by the great destroyer of Mahoutsukai, the Chibi. It all compacts to create an ending that just falls flat. The largest contributor to this ending however isn’t any of this specific episodes many failings, but rather the structure of Mahoutsukai as a whole.

Continue reading “Mahoutsukai no Yome – 24 [Live and let live]” →

Welcome to the penultimate episode of Chise and friends, the premier hollow friendship simulator of the season. This week on Mahoutsukai we have biblical backstories, every named character shows up and a general decline from last episode. Lets jump in!

In terms of general quality, its a step down from last week. That isn’t unexpected, not because Mahoutsukai is a terrible show, but because last episode was simply its best showing. I would have been surprised if it managed to do that level of quality again. That said this episode is filled with stills, panning shots and low-detail characters everywhere Mahoutsukai thinks it can get away with it. Even the effects have mostly been downgraded to flashes/glows of color. It lacks the visual punch needed for our upcoming finale next week. As far as story goes this week it was, at best, acceptable. Both Cartaphilus’s backstory and Elias’s side plot have problems. From feeling rushed/condensed to just being unnecessary. And after last week? That’s just disappointing.

Continue reading “Mahoutsukai no Yome -23 [Nothing Seek, Nothing Find]” →

These past few episodes I have been rather critical of Mahoutsukai, and rightfully so I would say. The new characters are lackluster, the plot/stories dull. A 7/10 series at best. It is with this mindset, this frame of reference, that I can see “As you sow, so shall you reap” is the best episode of Mahoutsukai across the board. Lets jump in.

Overall, Mahoutsukai did a lot right this week. The story of this episode, Chise’s family, was concentrated while still fitting in/progressing the meta-plot. In terms of animation, there wasn’t anything mind blowing, but there were plenty of beautiful or compelling shots. My personal favorite however was the restraint Mahoutsukai showed with the audio. As if finally realizing that sometimes less is more. The complete lack of music during the Chise’s mother’s fall into depression made the swell during the penultimate scene really hit. The flower motif as well, while already used once in the season, still worked as the colors set it apart enough. The only real issue I saw was in some characterization of her family, specifically her father. But I see no way to fix it without ruining the already good pacing of the episode. General goodwill out of the way, time for some specifics.

Continue reading “Mahoutsukai no Yome – 22 [As you sow, so shall you reap]” →