WITCH CRAFT WORKS

DESCRIPTION

CAST

MANGA ActionWitch Craft Works
OVA ActionWitch Craft Works: Takamiya-kun to Imouto no Warudakumi
SPECIAL ComedyNaze Nani!? Witch Craft Works

REVIEWS

• 

  linajthol

  55/100
  A role-reversed action romance with potential

  (Very minor spoilers.)
  Witch Craft Works is an incredibly visually appealing anime with great character designs and concepts that aren’t used all that well, and up us as a kind of boring, sloppy mess that masquerades as your average battle romcom.

  The premise is that of two people- a guy who is unknowingly the “Chosen One,” and a girl who is his knowing fated protector. They have a typical princess/knight dynamic, except the princess is the guy and the knight is the girl. This seems like it should be one of the more interesting concepts, but… it goes nowhere. The guy is just generally a useless softie who wants to be better, and the girl is your average kuudere school idol- perfect grades, trained in every martial art, perfect at everything except expressing her feelings…

  Everything is pretty. There’s a Senran Kagura-level of creative and memorable design on the characters, and while most of the scenery is typical high school/Japanese city, the few times (2 or 3 that I can remember) they go into magical “witch” areas, the landscapes are absolutely enthralling and magical, in a pastel, harmless way. (Fair warning: there IS CG in this anime. It’s used very little beyond the beginning arc, but it’s not terribly bad or distracting. I kind of like it.)

  However, how everything is used… is not terribly creative. Most of the episodes jump between two conflicts- that of the main guy’s role as the Chosen One, and as a magic user (“magic plots”), and that of the main couple’s relationship, either in training or daily life (“romcom plots”). The magic plots are usually action-heavy and dramatic, while the romcom plots tend towards slice-of-life banter and very light ecchi. The comedy lands pretty often, for what it’s worth, and the slice of life parts that revolve around the main couple are lighthearted and entertaining.

  The action, though? The magical abilities are actually quite captivating, with each witch using a specific style of magic that suits their design. The problem is that they show their hand far too early. A villain (?) who assaults the protagonists displays a beautiful aquatic magic power (in the first 2-4 episodes) that pretty much blows any other effect in this anime out of the water. Also, the main girl’s abilities are also shown very quickly, with her having different “forms” that reflect how serious she is.

  And that’s the main problem with this show’s pacing. It jumps between plots, tones, and intensity far too fast, but with consistency. You’ll be sitting through a slice of life segment, and be saying to yourself “ok where’s the conflict that will put this on pause?” Or during an action segment you’ll dread the imminent cutaway gag from the comic relief that breaks that dramatic tension so carefully created by great villains. (For what it’s worth, all the villains’ designs and fight sequences are excellent. Their motivations? Pretty much non-existent.)

  It’s not… bad. I’ve seen a whole lot worse. It pretty much only switches between 2 tones, and the ending arc is serious all the way through. But I much prefer the slice-of-life segments. Framing this as more of a romance or slice of life (in the vein of Oh My Goddess, or hell, Maid Dragon) would’ve been a lot better, and a lot more conducive to the ensemble cast of villains and heroes. Seriously, having like 10 separate good witches and like 5 separate bad witches that are fleshed out nigh-equally is just horrible for a 12-episode anime! The focus is spread equally among every character who isn’t “main,” and every single one hurts for it. The sister is a bland brocon, the 5-person Team Rocket witch team literally never do anything productive (ignoring a tiny element near the end, that ended up being unnecessary), and the chairwoman… what, honestly did she do? Dang it, you have some good characters. USE THEM. Don’t use them as bait for flashbacks, don’t waste them in one-off fights or gags, don’t restrict their character to one trait. You did fine with the main couple, why limit yourself? There are great ensemble cast series that actually flesh out a wide array of personalities and ideas. Jitsu wa Watashi wa (manga) is a great example- varying amounts of time were spent on each character to help them fit into the environment and realistically involve themselves in future story arcs. If a character is overall useless, or going to be— let them be, look, and act one-bit. Don’t fool your viewers into liking or hoping for the spotlight on characters that are just going to be background butt monkeys.

  5.5/10. Bonus points for that catchy ED. And don’t even get me started on the actual story.

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• 

  ShibaPadhi

  95/100
  It is a really good anime. Especially for those who are a bit bored from watching battle and superpower fighting anime.

  A good plot and a mind captivating progression is what makes a good anime, and this has it both. Apart from good animations it has all positive aspects. The comedy and the school life is what is best. It has an op heroine and is good because the witch concept is a bit women dominated. But the main thing is that anime shows too less of the thrill. Anime consists up to chapter 28 of manga which is a tiny part of the greater plot in the total 90+ chapter ongoing manga. The plot is explained very well in the manga and the past is also explained well and that gives it a nice loutlook. P~!!~lot here. Even though they shared the same bus every morning and sat next to each other in class, Ayaka Kagari, the "Princess" of Tougetsu High School, was nothing more than an unreachable idol for Honoka Takamiya. The horde of students who worshipped the "Princess" was merely a nuisance to Honoka, living his lazy, regular high school life.

  Everything seemed perfectly normal until, one day, Honoka is attacked out of the blue by a mysterious witch. To his surprise, Ayaka saves his life, revealing herself to be a fire witch on a covert mission to protect Honoka.

  From that fateful day, the ordinary life of Honoka is turned upside down as he is thrown into the war between the Workshop Witches, who strive to protect the citizens, and the Tower Witches, who desire to steal a power hidden within him.
  The animation is just outstanding as I mentioned before. Well, the characters might look a little weird but the background and all the details are one of the best I've ever seen in an anime. The action scenes are very beatifully drawn while also being epic!
  Witch Craft Works is pretty above average in my opinion. It looks great, but some of the story is just random and strange and the characters needed more time to develop with a smaller cast of actually relevant characters. Too many characters are introduced quickly late in the show and too many are introduced for too long in the beginning only to fade out of importance by the end. The final villain was especially terribly introduced, and the show made it seem like the villain was just a precursor villain for the real one except that that wasn't the case. Takamiya's power could have also used a better explanation, but I'm not sure even he knows exactly what his power is either. But even with all those problems, it's not a bad show and it was fairly entertaining.
  Witch Craft Works doesn’t escape a sea of cliches in any way. Rather, it classically defines it with its dull protagonist, Takamiya. There’s literally nothing special about the boy as many characters throughout the series sees him as the ‘average Joe’. On the other hand, we have a queen at school named Kagari Ayaka that serves as Takamiya’s antithesis. Almost everyone at school literally worships and tries to get on her good side. The show emphasizes the idea that she is their Goddesses while Takamiya is viewed as nothing more than a sidekick, or even a servant. Some may even think Takamiya blackmailed their ‘queen’ into being his friend/accomplice. And in essence, their relationship is monotonous. It isn’t just defined by their interactions or cheesy dialogues but rather by their lack of connection. There’s almost nothing compatible between the duo whether it’d be their traits, abilities, or status. More than anything, we only know that Kagari wishes to protect him with her life. Throughout the series, it does spark some curiosity as to what this may be. Otherwise, their relationship is about stone cold as a boulder lacking any features of enthrallment.

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