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Little Witch Academia
This Magic Moment
The Series in a Sentence
Inspired by a magic performance she saw as a child, Atsuko “Akko” Kagari enrolls in Luna Nova Magical Academy to become a witch that, like her idol Shiny Chariot, can bring smiles to the faces of people everywhere.
What I liked
I have to start by saying that I am a huge fan of Studio Trigger. I’ve watched every series that they’ve put out religiously regardless of quality or genre, and I simply appreciate the apparent level of care they put into each work. That being said, Little Witch Academia sits in the upper echelon of what they’ve offered. While other Trigger series have aspects that may turn people off, like excessive fan service, overly obvious callbacks to older series, or unusual approaches to animation, Little Witch Academia is the series that can appeal to everyone. The animation is fluid, especially in the beautifully animated ending sequences, the characters all fill the various school archetypes while getting sufficient time to shine, and the show weaves both adventure-of-the-day style episodes akin to the early Harry Potter movies into a larger and more thematically serious main plot without feeling too bulky. In fact, where as I have had problems in the past with a series trying to introduce a main plotline later rather than sooner into a show, in this case I enjoyed it. Not to be forgotten, too, is the fact that some of the more standalone episodes have callbacks to early Trigger and even Gainax series. Furthermore, where as many Trigger series, and longer series in general, really seem to slow down in the middle, Little Witch Academia’s magical setting coupled with a focus on different character interactions with the main three kept me hooked regardless of the stakes of the episode. Speaking of the main three characters, I really enjoyed their dynamic. Having the overly excitable magic newbie coupled with a more quite character and the oddball experiment-type not only led to some great dialogue but some fun moments that allowed for a natural exploration of backstories. Finally, the last episode is a grand spectacle with a tried-and-true powerful use of music, callbacks to lighter episodes, and beautifully animated action sequences.
What I Didn’t Like
The series Little Witch Academia is based on a couple of specials released beforehand; one being a short form animation and one being a full-length Kickstarter-funder movie. In each, but primarily in the movie, Akko’s character got on my nerves at times with the way her attitude was written. Although not really an issue for me in the series, many of the early-on problems are caused by Akko’s own doing or her own inexperience. While the theme of “inexperienced girl learns over time” is a major draw for the show, the little amount of progress she makes as well as the consistency of her mistakes and risks could turn some people off or tire some people. Again, I didn’t see this as an issue and enjoyed watching Akko make various magical mistakes or take various risks just to see how she could work her way out of them. Another thing that might bore some people is the fact that some plotlines are, for better and worse, tried and true in the field of magical anime. You have the broom-riding lessons, the silly magical classes, the weird potion or food plotline, and many more. Again, I have to stress that this wasn’t an issue for me but in a series with so little that I didn’t like I’m kind of grasping at straws.
Overall Feelings
Little Witch Academia, to me, is the Studio Trigger series than anyone should be able to enjoy. It has fun and distinct characters, gorgeous animation, interesting plotlines, callbacks to earlier shows, and a setting perfect for whacky hijinks to occur. It’s a magical series with a story focused on bringing happiness to the world and, for me, it accomplished that goal in our world. It’s a series that made me smile and laugh, a series that genuinely had me surprised at points, and a series that I can recommend as a must watch.