とんがり帽子のアトリエ

Agott intended for Coco to fail to teach her some sort of lesson, but the girl ain’t giving up that easily. She really underestimated her. That boat didn’t turn out so well, but hey, now she has a glider. And a little furry friend too lol. It’s a good thing she managed to pass that trial. If Qifrey was gonna scold anyone, it should he Agott. What she did was stupid, reckless, and dangerous. She put Coco in serious danger and over what? Some petty bullshit? Kid needs to check herself.

Just like how Qifrey reiterated, using magic like that without any prep is absolutely dangerous, while fun to watch Coco flying around in her makeshift glider did give a bit of anxiety since one wrong step could easily lead to her doom. That said Agott knowingly pushed Coco into this and then saying "I hate being with people who can't do the same things as me" while nearly causing Coco's serious harm is just pretty detestable behaviour all around, hope someone would either talk to her or at least Coco about not needing to go out of her way to please someone.

Lately, it feels like the word "magic" has—for want of a better phrase—lost some of its magic. So many fantasy anime, each brandishing a power system that they claim to be "magic"... yet so few that actually instill that feeling of wonder, that achieve the true feat of being "magical" in every possible sense of the word. But Witch Hat Atelier, with just these first few episodes, has already engraved a magic circle in my soul that burns brighter than most anything I have seen. The mixed-media pen-and-paper aesthetic of its cinematics, the whimsical yet ethereal soundtrack that Yuka Kitamura clearly poured her heart into, Rena Motomura's phenomenal breakout performance as a bubbly and compassionate girl named Coco, the sheer vibrancy of the animation that BUG FILMS has managed to produce; all of it has coalesced into an adaptation that even Frieren herself would likely consider to be the height of magic. Because if the secret of magic is that anyone can make it a reality with enough hard work and opportunity, then surely *this* is the truest form of magic: a game composer's first anime soundtrack, an up-and-coming seiyuu's first main role, and a studio that has clearly learned from its first production and has made the effort to not repeat any past mistakes. This is the sort of wonder that could only have been achieved by taking a chance on the new.

What makes magic great in any anime is how the caster uses it. Coco's love for it, alongside the work she did with her mom, allows her to be creative and seeing how she reacts with such adoration and joy gives me the biggest smile every time. I'm loving the work of the team at Bug Films so far, the animation and fantastic music like that in the flying or boat scene make me even more excited for what is to come.

* That was really nice of Agott to let Coco take the test early, she even lent Coco her shoes. * Is Brush buddy named that because their magic is based on drawing? Neat * Coco standing on an air bubble and using the glider reminded me a bit of a certain airbender. * Look at Agott being all shy just because she's receiving flowers. Such a tsundere. I'm sure Coco will manage to win over her evil and intimidating roommate.

I guess that explains one of my questions from last week. They would have to redraw the circles on their shoes. Even if they don't fall into water, the paint is not too strong, so just walking in them would probably make it more faint over time. Also, while I admire Coco's courage, her just trying to make a big enough wind circle to fly was really worrying. I would be way too afraid and just test out all sorts of directions to find the best way. But then again, she didn't have too many options considering her ink spilled. So she had to take the plunge. Or flight in that case. Also, just as a side note. I feel I would be a bad magician just because having to draw perfect circles would be nearly impossible for me.

As embarrassing as it is to admit, as a someone who never did anything really reckless as a kid, watching her trying to fly or build a flying ship with barely any understanding of how it all works to reach the flowers at that height made me kinda terrified. Reminds me of the moment Hiccup had to suddenly control Toothless without his cheat sheet. I do NOT have the balls for this, kudos to the girl.

I LOVE YOU BRUSHBUDDY!!! So I guess the person that gave Coco the book was part of the Brimmed Hats. There was another leak four years ago, I wonder what the consequences were…? Also, Qifrey is a “problem child”? And he hates the witches’ underwater stronghold. Interesting. Poor Coco, Agott having her do the test when Qifrey says the conditions are so bad… but I believe in her! She’ll figure it out. It gives me a bad feeling, though. Agott’s trying to weed Coco out. Coco’s already thinking about drawing magic on her body, though she stopped since it was against the rules. The fact that this has already come up makes me think it’ll come back in a big way later. And Coco made it up! Using her own strengths instead of Agott’s shoes. But why did the screen get blurry during the flashbacks to her mom, huh?!?! I wish that Coco would have told Qifrey she didn’t just do the test of her own accord, but I understand why she didn’t. I think Coco and Agott will end up friends eventually though. I wonder if there was something special about Coco that made that person give her specifically the book? Clearly they’re keeping an eye on her. Were the dangerous conditions in the Dadah Range planned, based on that final bit? So many questions… Also, I heard in the dub, the atelier students have different accents, to show the class divide. I’m curious about if there’s different accents in the sub, I can’t really tell by ear.

* **Coco Stitch** Well, hellooooooooo! I love her design already. And I guess the Brimmed Caps she's talking about are like the evil witch organization of this world? Are their caps really brimmed? How big a brim are we talking about here? Like Wandering Witch Elaina's hat, or bigger like Big Hat Logan? Coco is such a goober. The entire scene where she was practicing how to fly using the shoes was adorable! I got a good laugh when she was launched sideways and when she was flying low to the ground while maintaining her balance. I did not expect the Witches' home base to be underwater! That's pretty damn cool. I do wonder what happened to Qifrey and why he hates the Great Hall that he refuses to stay there, where it's more convenient for him and his students. *"I've only had brushbuddy for only a minute, but if anything happens to him, I would kill everyone in this room and then myself."* OH. And here I thought Agott was just being strict with Coco. It turns out she's just being an ass and purposely made her take the test because she wants her out. Well fuck you too, buddy. Not gonna lie, the scenes where Coco was remembering her mother and she was being guided by her got me a little bit teary-eyed. I do love that instead of a pen, she basically made her own tailor's chalk. Or I guess we can call this a Witch's Chalk. 😆 Coco basically made Aang's glider from Avatar! That entire scene where she keeps on flying by the flowers trying to grab them was so beautifully animated. Bugfilms is really making the manga readers happy with this adaptation. Suck it, Agott! She couldn't even say anything to Coco and chose to walk away in disbelief because she clearly did not have any ounce of hope that Coco could do it. Coco looks great in her witch uniform! I am so proud of her! Does this mean she actually gets to keep brushbuddy with her, too? I wonder what she'll name the little guy.

The flying scene is very beautiful. Coco with her wit cleared the test when the Range is at highest, but it seem like Agott was not happy, she wanted Coco to fail but the result is a girl who only knew magic in one or two day just won the test which small witches must train for sometime from young to join atelier. Agott must feels some rage, envy and confusion right now, may take some development episodes for her and Coco to connect. I expected some sorry and redemption from Agott in the future, her action this ep is dangerous and detestable.

Well what Coco lacks in knowledge, she certainly makes up for in determination and creativity. What a beautiful moment it was when the ghost of her mother (so to speak) watched over her as she did what she excelled at: drawing beautiful straight lines. She may be unsteady with a pen but she's a master with those stones. And I can't praise the visuals and soundtrack enough. The score is so good, and I love how vibrant she whole show is. What a treat it is to watch this weekly.

Man, Dadah Range is so picturesque. The shot where Coco first sees the floating islands was straight up wallpaper material. I just love how spherical those islands are; makes them look really whimsical. And the whole sequence of Coco executing her plan to get the flower was amazing. Especially loved the over-the-shoulder shot before she took to the skies. Crazy how she just invented windsurfing and hand gliding on accident one after the other. Stellar production aside, it's simply poetic that it's her mother's teachings and craft that gave Coco the means to pass the test. It also just occurred to me how the symbols on her mother's sleeves kinda look like magic circles. I wonder if that'll mean something in the future, or if it's just a pure coincidence. I feel sorry for the people who thought Agott was just gonna be helpful towards Coco. But nope, her pettiness is just not as blatant. Honestly, it rubs me the wrong way that Coco got even the slightest bit of scolding of Qifrey. Not like she could've thought to do anything else with Agott deceiving her like that. Hopefully the latter gets reprimanded more severely later on. Cause while she expected Coco to just give up, she could've easily gone against her expectations and ended up badly hurt or worse. Also, the Great Hall is basically Rapture for witches. And I think it's notable that Qifrey was unwilling to stay there. I mean- I really don't like the idea of living in an underwater city either. But I expect his reasoning has a lot more to do with some disagreements with how they do things.

Coco the innovator ftw. She should get credited for inventing the so-called witch's' broom or kite, or perhaps it shall be known as a "witch's sail". Agott's just throwing a silent tantrum over the fact that she has one more rival to Qifrey's undivided attention, and just maybe, deep down she knows she's no longer the favorite, top apprentice. So it appears it's no coincidence that a book containing some powerful forbidden spells was handed to Coco when she was younger. The Brimmed Caps certainly sounds like a proper name for an elite group of selected few, not necessarily as a vile group or syndicate of witches operating in the shadows

What can I say? This episode is just... **MAGICAL** Read some tweets that manga readers worried that its hard to defend Agott early on and wow, they are absolutely right. This is some malicious behavior. Im fine with it because this usually leads to future setup of her changing views of Coco but we'll see. I never thought she was making a glider. My guess that she was drawing the exact spell from last episode but making it like a water fountain instead. Considering the height she need to reach, yeah that wouldnt be enough. Coco looks really cool by tracing her past knowledge to draw the spell and risking her balance to get the herb so it's pretty fulfilling to root for her. Can't wait for next week.

Setting the tone early mentioning the other faction, how long since the last open sign of forbidden magic, and how dangerous the test is... and now we get the opening. Not my favorite of the season (that belongs to Botan Kamiina Fully Blossoms When Drunk) but great. Of course being an Eve track helps, dude's anime tracks are bangers. So Agott is trying to kill our sweet Coco. Or she's an idiot. Frankly right now girl is straight up evil. Feels like she gave the shoes just because it would shut her up. Qifrey clearly didn't realize how much Agott hates our precious bean. Little Red Witch Hood is so cute as she stumbles through the forest. Struggling to figure out flying manages to make her even cuter, how is this possible? Underwater city? Why do I feel like this is the other witch faction's home? Nope I'm wrong there's Qifrey. I wonder why he is so aggressively against living with the other witches at the hall? Be interesting to see how long that takes to get revealed. The animators must have had a blast with this episode. Coco trying to 'climb' the range is full of silly animations. And we're back to Agott. I'm curious what her redemption arc looks like because right now she is actively vile. And she just admitted she knew this was the hardest time to do the range. Frankly Qifrey should banish her for this, but I'm sure he won't. She is not who gets to decide this shit. Ah, Coco's first temptation to use forbidden magic. And Agott has broken her, poor Coco. And how young was Coco when her father died? Quoting a famous movie line... she's beginning to believe! Callback to the flying cape bit from episode 1! Coco is such a fucking bad ass here. God this show is stunning, the art is great. God I hate Agott so much right now. She doesn't deserve magic. I'm so angry Coco didn't tell Qifrey what actually happened and just accepted the scolding, though frankly he should be smart enough to realize she couldn't have aligned the circle to attempt the trial on her own. Okay, 'the seed has sprouted.' that brings me back to a question I had last week. Was Coco a specific target or just one of many given such grimoires? This doesn't answer it but feels like we're getting closer to learning that answer.

- Hah. - lol, of *course* Agott is sending Coco to the exact test Qifrey said he *didn’t* want her taking yet. - Oh boy. - Ah, it’s not a *mountain* range, it’s a floating spheres of land range… - Oh lol, here I was expecting Coco to immediately fly into a tree or something at her first attempt using the shoes. Her actual first attempt was just not even using them right… - Interesting… - Uh-oh. - And she can’t even fix it… - So Agott did this on *purpose*. - Coco, I’m pretty sure that’s dangerous as *hell*. - She’s not giving up yet! - Ooh, so she’s doing it on purpose. Neat. - Nice! - Yay~!

Agott’s absolutely brutal. Thought she had no idea about the condition being less suitable to sit the test, but turned out she knew all along, and in fact was the reason she pushed Coco. Got a well-deserved karma when she saw Coco passing it with flying colours. She must’ve been seething even more at the fact that Coco succeeded the task in an even more challenging condition. Chances are she lied about there being only one opportunity. Even if Coco had failed, she could simply resit the test. Not that it would matter as Qifrey had already accepted her. ___ Coco turned out to have the magic of impeccable tailoring, and somehow used it to invent a magical aeroplane. I dread to think how Agott would’ve reacted had she seen this.

Agott will obviously turn out to be a good person later on, but she really pissed me off this episode. How cruel of her to force Coco to take a test she knew (or rather thought) the latter wouldn't be able to pass just to kick her out of the atelier. And that too when Qifrey wasn't around. Very devious and bad of her. No two ways about it. Serves her right that Coco proved her wrong and passed the test by herself. Agott has no leg to stand on now with her stupid elitist nonsense of only we the witch born can become witches bullcrap. On a nicer note, it was very satisfying to see Coco use her mother's teaching and her own quick thinking to pass the test. Oh, and I love the little brushbuddy - so cute and fluffy! I want one too!

Wait... the guy who gave Coco that book was watching the whole time? You can't just end the episode like that! I was going to talk about Brushbuddy and how it felt like a Studio Ghibli creature, right down to being Coco's pet now. Thing's god damn adorable and would fit right in with Spirited Away or Howl's Moving Castle. But now I have to wonder about those 5 seconds! Does this organisation just want to return to a time when everyone knew every kind of magic? Do they want to revert all of these "you are born a witch or you're not?" lies that the organisation makes for humanity's own protection? That would make a lot of sense for why they're giving spellbooks to children and why they're keeping an eye on Coco for being the first outsider to be accepted in, particularly with how he said "the seed has sprouted" after she succeeded her test. But I also assume that includes reverting to allowing forbidden magic. They're not exactly going to be good guys after giving a young girl a petrification spell. Had the book only been safe, fun magic then that would have been one thing, but they definitely have bad intentions even if mixed in with good.

Two things I felt didn’t get the “weight” it deserves. Coco getting the flower. After saying how she’s still new to magic and how the Dadah range is at its highest elevation and can get someone killed. I get the relief that she’s okay, but the reaction to that achievement just felt underwhelming Second is Agott’s attempts at failing Coco. Maybe it will get addressed later on cos Coco hadn’t thought to mention that Agott egged her on cos she probably didn’t know just how underqualified she was. But right now, it just felt like it’s being swept under the rug

**Agott**: If you fail, you'll never be allowed to be Master Qifrey's apprentice. You'll have to leave the atelier, too. Excuse me, little girl, that's not up to you, you don't get to decide who stays and who goes. Matter of fact, Qifrey should be chewing her out and reprimanding her. He left Agott in charge of Coco (his brand new apprentice that he brought to the atelier a few days prior), and in his absence, she left Coco in a dangerous area, and made her take an unauthorized test that was too soon for her, assuming that Coco would fail, and be forced to leave. She better get punished for what she did.

Ah yes, attempted murder, fun. I love Coco's "improvise, adapt, overcome" attitude. I was wondering when her skills with clothing would show up, she's going to be an absolute monster with her clothing won't she? The surface area you could fit in a purpose made outfit is truly massive. Also remember, always put a terminating condition on your while loops. I wonder how she shut down the cloak.

That feeling you have? It’s the feeling of being incredibly parternal over Coco. That is our baby and we love her. Especially when she’s simply doing her best despite Agott’s total lack of faith in her. Bug is going all the way off with this one. The soundtrack is already beautiful. The piece that plays during Coco’s dream enhances an already emotional moment to its peak. There’s also just insane bits of animation during Coco’s attempt to fly. Loved that sequence that clearly referenced GoPro footage of a jetski. It’s clever as hell. It’s already the Anime of the Season. It’s gaining traction like crazy. The Qifrey thirst edits are already going off. Things are good.

The flying scene was adapted more beautifully than I could have imagined. Interspersing Coco flying with memories of her mom, really emphasizing why she's so determined to do this, got me. I was tearing up during that whole sequence. The animation, the music, and especially Coco's VA hit it out of the park there. Tetia was so loveable this episode too. Her concern for Coco and how warm she is towards her is wonderful to see. Especially in contrast to Agott's hostility and coldness. Every character has reasons for how they act, of course, but what Agott did was bad no matter how you slice it. The underwater city looked gorgeous. Alaira hooking Qifrey's cloak and calling him troublemaker was immediately endearing. The VA sounds familiar, kinda gruff and tough but warm. Reminds me a bit of Mereoleona in Black Clover. Or maybe like Yoruichi from Bleach. I hope that Qifrey gives Coco a proper welcome feast now. She deserves all the treats!

* You can fly! You can fly! * Not the Granny Scooter pose now 😭 * Oh hello Atlantis. * Brushbuddy is now in my bracket for cutest animal companion. * Okay, ***now*** she sounds less Scottish. * This animation for magic just feels ✨Ghibli✨ * Good lord, this is beautiful. * ORB * Parasaling! * So Agott just walks away and that’s it? *** I’m hopeful the bext episode, Qifrey will address Agott’s behavior. I’m ***veeeery*** sour on some fantasies I’ve been reading where the master lets their students hash it out and mainly scolds the MC. Qifrey’s not wrong to remind our girl not to do that. Her magic society-naïveté needs to be addressed and curbed. Just gonna wait for next episode to hopefully learn Agott was appropriately punished. But I loved Coco’s inventiveness with the sigil!! I really love magic systems where we get to see this part, the innovation, that doesn’t just break the system and it’s part of a system with, I’d say, soft rules. I want moaaarr! *Now* I’m starting to hear a less Scott accent from Teti. I’m not familiar with Danish accents, but people replied the EN VA is Danish, so I assume she’s basing the accent on that. Kinda curious how English or just British fans are receiving the accents 🤔 Brushbuddy needs plushies immediately :3

I hope, really hope that Coco and Agott won't become like best friends... Usually these tropes end with both of them becoming best friends after something happens or rivals/best friends, some cases enemies... But I feel like with the other two girls, making the one that hates her being the one that will be a best friend is just too tropey... Like, why not best friends with the thank you girl? Idk, anime only here so maybe won't be anything like what I said, but can't really like Agott now

So this episode sold me even more on the series. The beautiful art and animation, the wonderfully fascinating world, the continuously creative use of it's magic system, and some solid character writing were a great mixture this episode... That being said...the ending really bothers me. Coco being the one reprimanded instead of Agott, who was the who tricked Coco into going to take the test whenever it was the most difficult time of the year for it, really bothered me. Coco was left in Agott's care and trusted Agott. Qifrey scolding Coco instead just leaves a bad tasted in the mouth, especially with Agott just walking off scott free. Also, Coco freaking completed her first test with no training and at the most difficult time of the year. And nobody acknowledged it! Her crowing as a true apprentice was completely divorced from her struggle in this episode. Just a wetfart of an ending to an otherwise 10/10 episode.

This episode was fantastic the best so far it got me a lot more interested into the series and characters especially Coco. She has the innocent obliviousness to her in a way reminds me of Gon. What she did during the test was insanely dangerous but she still did it because of how much she loves magic and her insane curiousity and refusal to give up. Also the emotional moments were so good seeing the flashback so well integrated with her Mom and Qifrey's words reminded me of how well Frieren uses flashbacks. Now Agott WTF are you doing ? and that mentality of hating people that cant do what she can do ??? Interesting character but damn I wanted to slap her I am really curious where they go with her. Seeing Coco problem solve was great and also still getting into her complex abbout not being special enough to use magic but then getting out of her own way and realizing she has her own skills and they can be applied here was great along with the flash back. And she becomes an airbender like Aang from Avatar haha. Agott storimg off after Coco succeeded lol and I am curiosus what Qifrey is gonna do when he finds out how this entire thing unfolded but he also gives Coco the outfit cute. The shady witch was watching all along and saying the seed has sprouted ??? I have a video review if anyone is interested. Thank You.

LETS FUCKING GOOOOOOOOO SHE DID IT!!! Never been so hyped before seeing a girl draw lines. If you can't use a new tool you're not used to well then just use something you are used to! Fr though to use magic and draw it doesn't need to be a pen she could use chalk or anything else is fine as long as she's using the special ink, right? Even drawing with a hand might be fine? though yeah no magic on body she almost went past the line again there. Beautiful episode really feels like a final with her mom helping her but no this is just the beginning! She got her outfit as well at the end so she's an official apprentice. The pointed hats are fine but man the brimmed hats for me just has more aura. I think if the regular good witches had those hats instead maybe there would be less bad ones cuz pointed hats just not as cool ngl.

A beautiful episode that really captures what makes Coco a great protagonist to follow. Her strong determination and her ingenuity when it comes to magic, tackling the Dadah Range in a very unorthodox way. And the scenes of her mother guiding her, giving her the knowledge that Coco uses to succeed… gah that was such a nice touch. Her determination to get better at magic to save her mom is admirable, but it might get her in trouble down the line. Agott seemed surprised she actually succeeded (as opposed to what she expected, Coco seeing how daunting it was and not even attempted it once the sylph shoes got ruined). Now Qifrey and the girls have a new pet in brushbuddy, what an adorable little critter. I love him.

Now let me say I’m the biggest hater, I hate the way that you walk, the way that you talk, I hate the way that you dress, I hate the way that you sneak diss (hitting me with water), if I catch flight, it’s gon’ be direct, We (real witches) hate the magic you cast ‘cause they confuse themself with real magic, And notice, I said “we,” it’s not just me, I’m what the culture feelin’ (ft Easthies), How many more fairy tale stories ‘bout your life ‘til we had enough? How many more witch features ‘til you finally feel that you’re witch enough? \- Agott

Well, the main character is clearly, to quote one of the best sentences ever spoken about anime, "an overdog 'being unrecognised within the broken standards of a system'" (From PBS Ideal channel about OPM, which itself is a quote from a different channel, at the time called "digibro") That's just what happens. She seems to be quite powerful, right? She said you need some skill to use magic and damn was she flying. And we got the villain reveal! Well, one of them, for now. So they planned for this to happen. I wonder what's so special about the forbidden magic. There is surely more to it.

Fantastic follow up! And adding those flashbacks with her mother as her guide in this was just brilliant. I am a little intrigued though by how the “official” test to become an apprentice isn’t seemingly “official” at all? Anyone can tell someone to go and take it without someone officiating? Seems weird to me. Though in this particular case, it’s seemingly more to pass Agott’s test than anything actually official.

Wtf sensei? Agott's a kid, so like.... Yes, that was wrong, but kids mess up, and you gotta teach them better. So he should 100% talk to HER like 'hey, explain what you thought you were doing and how you thought putting her in that situation NOW was equivalent to your test.' But instead going to CoCo like "oi, you know better." Like... no? She didn't? She did better in the places where she DID know better, but he left her in Agott's care, Agott told her "you have to do this now, and you can't try again," and she.... what, believed her? Sorry? Why is that her fault? Ugh. That was so infuriating.

I'm very dissatisfied with how that ended for Agott, yeah Coco proved herself, but Agott literally pushed her to go somewhere potentially dangerous to her life, ignoring her teacher's wishes and the fact that Coco who had no learned any magic and has only one chance to complete this test, she purposely made her go so that her only chance would result in failure. Does she only want people as despicable as her since she only wants people who can do the same things she can do?  I was hoping to see Qifrey have a word with her, and I'm hoping it happens next episode. I understand his first concern is Coco so I'll let how the episode ended slide.  I'm sure Agott will get some form of redemption arc in the future, but that left me infuriated. Thankfully Coco was able to use what her mother taught her and her own determination to get through it, I wish I could have enjoyed it more.

In the opening, we see Coco being presented with both a pointed and brimmed hat by different people with a set of scales behind them like they're being weighed. Seems to me like she's going to be split finding a middle position between the peaceful but stagnating status quo witches and the magical anarchist people. It seems like Qifrey has some kind of major personal grudge with the brimed hat people, but episode 3 also implies he's not particularly enthusiastic about the current state of witch society either. I wouldn't be surprised if Qifrey was friends with the brim hat at one point, but split with them after some kind of "step too far" event.

Oh no. Not the soft spoken dark skinned red head woman. I have a feeling people are going to go nuts over her. If I wasn't already sold on this show this episode would've done it. It might be my current favourite episode. She got railroaded into the test by Agott because she doesn't want Coco there. I knew she'd pull something like that after how cold she was last episode. And to tell Tetia that Coco did herself instead of being pushed into was extra slimy. Well Coco still managed to pass the test anyway so suck it Agott. She did everything herself. With her ingenuity, with her artistry, with her own magic as Qifrey as said in the premiere. You're stuck with her. I hope the hazing ritual doesn't go unpunished. Coco could've died from that. Shout out to Tetia. She seems to genuinely care about Coco and was worried her even though they just met. She seems like a good egg.

This episode was gorgeous. Coco leaning on her tailoring skills to overcome the trial was great. She's going to break a lot of molds. I get the feeling that witch society is stagnating, and Coco being let in as an outsider without the rules being ingrained into her is playing into their hands. As for Agott her actions better not be handwaved, because what she did was just reckless, if not murderous. I'm hoping it's just a runtime issue and Agott faces repercussions.

I really hope agott doesn’t get off free for what she just did. She basically just tried to indirectly murder coco due to her own jealousy. She realizes it was at its most dangerous point and still tried it. That’s not hazing or simply trying to get her to fail out. On top that I found it hilarious when she said “I hate people who can’t do what I do”. Like child, the girl you’re saying you hate has already detonated a mini magical nuclear bomb basically. She can already do what you can do plus more.

Art, visual, and soundtrack carry this anime. The animation is gorgeous, very fluid and high quality - I have too many praises for Bugsfilm. The narrative however hasn’t yet to convince me in the realm of believability, since the first episode. For an uber-secret society that makes the secrets such a great deal, it’s hard to believe the teacher / guardian leave literal CHILDREN - who know the big secrets- on their own, for more than a night. Worse, these kids know how to “administer” the supposedly selective exam to enter this super-secret society. Like where are the officials, where are the rules? If they want to keep these secrets so badly, why are the officials so relaxed that literal children can roam around with transportation door/magic unsupervised? It’ll be more believable if they age up these children to at least 15/16 - at least they know consequences and the burden of keeping the “magic”, so petty bullying can happen with actual consequences. Or, make the atelier / magic society way more restrictive and stringent on rules, if they accept literal children - like how Harry Potter did with Hogwarts. There has been no warnings or mentions of expulsion or punishment at all in this “atelier” or magic society. I would expect witches can also get memory-erased if they leak the secrets or misbehave. Which is why Qifrey’s behaviors this episode are hard to believe for me, he’s waayyy too lax for something this big happening, and seems to brush it off quickly going directly to “you’re a witch, Coco” With 3 episodes, it seems the story still confuses itself with wanting to treat magic as an art for the witches, which is a very creative and unique way to do, or magic as a secretly controlling power in the society. The story heavily leans more on the former while often forgets the latter, which creates a disjointed narrative that often confuses the viewers on the roles of magic in this world. I mean, I’m still confused, like for example with the almost zero explanation of the resulting impact of Coco’s mother crystallization(?) to the village or surrounding people. It’ll be way more believable if Qifrey just said one sentence that he created an invisible barrier to hide the effects from the visible eyes, or the Witches cleaning up the mess, or something. Many of these important plot holes are not yet addressed for the sake of Coco training and becoming a witch, which again emphasizes the “magic as an art” element. Ok, with all these rants, I just hope these plot points are addressed in subsequent episodes. Maybe the Author should’ve made the magic as solely a super-elitist art, and that would have fixed many of these inconsistencies (and better explain Agott’s behaviors). If the “ magic as a secret” part is not heavily explained in later episodes, it will continue to be a weakness in an otherwise unique and creative storytelling.

I won't say it's unrealistic for a kid to maliciously push another into a life threatening situation. But boy is it one of the hardest things to watch. Because she's a kid, I have to assume she'll have a redemption arc, but it's hard to imagine it feeling good - simply, again, 'realistic.' Thinking about other kind of early-bitter-rival-turned-ally characters though, this is probably one of the most intentionally malicious off the top of my head, outside of worlds where potential death is kind of a joke (say, a DBZ/KHR). Really puts more normal school bully characters into context though (say, a Jounouchi or a Bakugo). Even when I was a kid, I was more scared of this kind of dishonest trickery than the people who were just straight up bullies. Now that I'm older, the idea of intentionally endangering another kid like that sends chills up my spine.

At the time i think its a solid premise with cool worldbuilding foundation, making a promise of wonder and adventure People who read manga already know its a whole package of action, drama, intricate unraveling plot and character work supported by immaculate art direction. So they hyped premiere as much as they could. And, now with anime airing its shown to take material seriously, respectfully and at times even elevate certain scenes, so it amplifies all parties involved- people who just joined and people who waited it for a decade