とんがり帽子のアトリエ

Obviously he had a rough night with Iguinn and the twinned bottle, but then he also gets properly spiked down that hill, body-blocking Agott all the way lmao. I interpreted the way those panels were drawn in the manga as more comedic, but in motion with proper weight and timing I was like "dude, ow " 😂 Also, I didn't remember the whole water column getting zapped with him in it in the manga and went back to look if it'd be clear that's what happened in hindsight (there's been plenty of other things that that are retroactively clearer what action was going on — him pushing the bowl of spell components behind him when Agott wanders by is an example from the same scene, where it definitely is drawn that way but I did not catch the intended action until after seeing it animated), but interestingly that didn't seem to have been the case. In the manga, his arm is much more directly hit in the initial lightning burst before he throws up the dirt wall (with his opposite hand), and the water column is not shocked again later. Slightly strange thing to change, IMO, only because it's so directly referenced the next day and makes a lot more sense why that hand is specifically still numb? Maybe it was just a logistical thing that in the manga he gets flushed around a bunch more and comes generally closer to drowning, and they wanted to shorten and simplify the complex animation that involved but then also had to substitute a different reason he was so out of it for the rest of the exchange. Such small differences become kind of funny, though, when so much of it is such direct adaptation otherwise.

And there we have it -- the reason Agott never got punished is finally explained. Coco is right, and very responsible to recognize, that she's the one who made the choice to actually attempt the test instead of giving up. Yet the guilt and confusion has haunted Agott since then. While Coco doesn't seem to have been worrying about that one, it doesn't mean Agott is off the hook. Her cruelty about Coco's mom has really hurt Coco (that dream sequence was sooo good). I don't remember if Coco gets an explicit apology for that, but as much as Coco still wants to be on good terms with Agott, it hasn't been forgotten. Richeh and Agott's disparate feelings are also interesting. Richeh wants to do what Richeh wants to do, even if she doesn't progress -- Agott is a bit more clear-eyed about what it means to be a witch, which tracks nicely with her being the one ready to take the second test. I think Agott works for me as a character because she's very proud, but she's not arrogant. She knows her skills and she's confident in herself, but she knows what she doesn't know and recognizes her limitations.

Coco is right I'm not sure that's the case. Because she's saying it out of her savior complex. She's taking the blame, yes. But she takes the blame for everything. Agott's words exacerbated this, as we see in the nightmare, but her mind is having her mom and Iguin and Olruggio now say similar things as well. This kind of weight can be soul crushing. It's like an unhealthy hyper- form of an internal locus of control - the exact opposite to someone who thinks every step is predestined/authored/fated by a divine being and thus nothing they do matters. On this side of the pendulum everything they do matters, to the point, well... as someone who also had this at a point in life, let's just say I once spent over an hour trying to decide between varieties of orange juice, because the wrong choice was tantamount to a severe moral failing that would make the world a worse version of itself. But I think this is why she gets up after the dream. Because she HAS to practice. Every second of every day cannot be wasted. The world is at stake, after all. Agott needs her shoes, ASAP. Her mom needs to be saved, ASAP. It's all her fault. Being bullied was her fault. Using forbidden magic was her fault. The realm of witches and the world itself rests upon her shoulders and she can't make a single mistake without feeling the guilt for failing everything and everyone. But I don't think that's the case. It's not Coco's fault she risked the test. Agott forced her hand by giving her an impossible choice. And likewise, her mother's petrification was Iguin's fault. If culpability was portioned out, I'd say something like 95% to 5% for both - not 0% and 100% like Coco is currently weighed with.

Hmmmmm I think this comes down to how accurate we think the perception of "Agott forced this" is. I do want to check the original phrasing but my book is at home(ETA: Agott uses much more forceful language when describing her own actions, while Coco actually does soften it a bit), but to me the lead-up to that scene is more akin to peer pressure. Agott physically pushes Coco through the door and creates an "impossible situation", yes, but before that she sets Coco up and Coco is participating. Coco has more than enough time and space to run for Tetia and Richeh before they make it to the door, (and Agott isn't forcing her at that point), she actively asks for Agott's shoes, and it's only when she starts to get cold feet that Agott pushes her over the edge. All of that reads to me like Coco was interested in taking the test (and proving herself) even underneath her fear. Part of that is certainly Agott's manipulation -- this is so simple even a ten year old can do it, if you fail this you can't retake it, etc. -- but, Coco also made choices that led to the test (and I believe in the manga had also expressed interest in it prior?). So her own interest in taking the test and proving herself is what makes her take responsibility rather than a savior complex -- I think at this point in the series she actually doesn't have one (because she is still so deeply aware of her own limitations, she's frustrated that she can barely help with the dragon, but she doesn't put herself in danger or try to force herself into the limelight) although by the time Dagda happens I would agree she's more than developed one; it's proportional to how capable she feels that she should be able to save someone that she gets upset Or, to also use an experience from my own life, one time a friend blackmailed me onto a type of rollercoaster I was terrified of. I could absolutely have gone and told a teacher, or refused to get onto the ride, but I was too worried about losing face by having my "secret" shared. I cried so hard I almost threw up but I did end up getting over the fear of that kind of ride, and that person and I are still friends to this day -- like Agott, they ended up feeling worse about it in retrospect than I did! I do agree that Coco is taking on much more responsibility for everything than she should, in general. I just don't read this one that way, partly because she acknowledges that Agott forced her into it alongside taking on a portion of the blame. She doesn't do the same thing with anything else -- acknowledging that Iguin is responsible for basically giving a loaded gun to a toddler, for example -- that she's taking too much responsibility for.

she's the one who made the choice to actually attempt the test instead of giving up. Yet the guilt and confusion has haunted Agott since then. Technically, but Agott also told basically told her "I hate you, you get one shot at this test and if you fail it (Which not attempting it now you're through the portal would constitute) then you can't be an apprentice anymore and will be made to leave". And Agott did this knowing that the Dadah range would be much more dangerous at that time of year, that the test would basically be impossible to complete. She'd know that there was a chance of injury or death, especially to someone as green as Coco. And like, I guess Coco should have realised that Agott can't administer the test and that therefore if she refused then she wouldn't get kicked out, but also she's like twelve, in a completely new environment and still learning how it all works. Maybe your fellow 12 year old who's meant to be looking after you really can make you take a seemingly insane test on your first day. Frankly I think Coco is saying this to spare Agott's feelings, especially as it did turn out okay. But in the chapter/episode, it's definitely more of a "well, I now have to do this because I've been ordered to and I've been told what will happen if I don't succeed".

Once she actually is pushed through the portal, sure. But the way she goes along with it up until that point reads to me as Coco having some interest in taking the test herself, she's just scared about it (and has no idea the range is particularly dangerous right now). Agott is 100% in the wrong for it, but Coco did have plenty of pre-portal opportunities to back out -- Tetia and Richeh were also there to ask 'hey, is this really a thing'? -- so I read that situation as more akin to peer pressure, where you kinda know you shouldn't but also you kinda want to. If you didn't read it that way., that's fair, but I just feel like Coco (even while disoriented by everything going on) is sharp enough to know she shouldn't be taking the test without Qifrey around. (Because she wants to be a "real" witch apprentice, and not just a pity case hanger-on, imo, which is what Agott makes her feel like).

Yup. You've got, in total, Qifrey's excuse, Tartah briefly checking on Coco and then leaving, the civilians dragging Qifrey off, Tartah forgetting his hat and coming back, fretting over which medicine to use, figuring out the spell with Coco, going off to the storeroom and getting scolded, Qifrey coming back in the morning, everyone saying goodbye. That easily fits into 20 minutes unless they want to insert a five minute action sequence of Qifrey saving the civilians from the fire, lol

Right now, it's looking like we're ending on a cliffhanger. The next episode is going to be taken up by the hospital mini-arc, and after that we should get the first bigger arc... but at the current pace, there is absolutely no way that's going to fit into the 13 episodes total we're apparently getting without some REALLY big cuts. A lot of people thought they were going to cut/move the hospital to make it fit, but evidently not (thankfully, lol, it would have been a bad decision imo), and that, to me, implies that they value telling the story properly over a clean season ending. There are two good cliffhangers that they could end on depending on how they pace it, I think they'll do that to drum up hype for the next season and just force the audience to read the manga if they don't want to wait, lol.

Ok cool as long as they do value the story because we know how that could ruin an anime. But I'd be curious to see if they're gonna do a dandadan where they were planing on it being 1 season but decided to split it up to work on the episodes in more detail. That's my best case cause it means we dont have to wait another 3 years. Also would there be a chance a longer final episode like maybe 40 minutes to an hour could wrap it up or is that asking for too much?

Sorry I am late. I liked seeing Quifrey’s interaction with the brimmed hat witch. It basically confirms that his obsession with them is because they did something to him though unfortunately we don’t know exactly what yet. Also, Agott’s reaction to Coco fainting proves that there is some home that she will be nicer in the future. EDIT: Forgot to mention, I feel like there may be a deeper reason Richeh was so strongly against doing things she didn’t want to do. It could just be because she is just a kid though. It’s a nice contrast with Agott wanting to grow up quickly and her wanting to stay a kid.

(Manga reader) Beautiful episode! Finally got that stunning panel of Off Duty Qifrey looking wistful animated. I love all their own clothes outfits and wish we could have more! It does make me wonder if they have a “weekend” in a way? I’ve not really thought about that before, but maybe they all have set days off from school hence the non uniform day. I’ve always loved that panel of Richeh, there are reasons behind her strong will, and I love how they framed her with her face hidden when she was walking away from Agott. Everyone has their own things to work out. And I am stoked to finally see her arc over this season. Egg chair egg chair! Olly in the dub talking about sleep deprivation made me guffaw, we got Olly crumbs this ep but I’ll take all that I can get. I loved how they animated the nightmare scene, especially the inverse line art on Coco which always makes everything feel off. The panels in that sequence are stunning, and I really think they captured Coco’s feeling of being trapped by her actions so well. And once again we have our lad Qifrey splayed out on the floor like a sad wet cat! I love the mirroring at 12:45 of him drowning like the scene when he was young. His expression here is kind of haunting..almost like a quiet acceptance, as if he’s thinking “of course I’d meet my end this way..I’m just so tired...just let it be done..”. When he’s crawling along the floor he looks like some kind of feral creature; with the mask of the composed teacher washed away we begin to see his true side revealed: a desperate man being driven mad by his search for what was taken from him. Poor lad. I loved how Iguin dissipates in a little stylised cloud, beautifully animated. I also have had thoughts on those standing stones for a while and if they mean something bigger to come.. they look like they’re leading somewhere, I’d love to see a massive ruin that had pre pact significance. There’s still so many places left in Zozah to explore! And yes looks like they’re being pretty loyal to the timeline, which I’m surprised about after the studio mentioned they loved some things. I’m guessing like others have said they might try and wrap up Tartah’s arc in one ep? They’ve been doing two chapters per ep but I imagine they’ll want to get started on the second test by 11 at least. Stellar stuff and happy birthday Coco!