Overview:
Apprentice mage Chise Hatori is invited to enroll at the College, a prestigious learning institution for sorcerers, to examine and look for a way to remove the curses she bears. Despite the reluctance of her groom, Elias Ainsworth, Chise accepts the proposal, as she believes attending the school might help her minimize her self-sacrificing tendencies.
Our Take:
The first half of this series is dramatically different from the second half. Some action and stuff happens in the first but for the most part, it’s just a slice-of-life school show in England. The second half was pretty much non-stop trauma, and it was mostly all Philomela’s the poor thing. She became one of my favorite characters and I just wanted her to be happy. But as is the case with most stores that happiness needs to be “earned” and by damn I think she earned hers.
I think a story can be great but what truly makes something fantastic are the characters. Do they grow and change? For this series, I can say they do, the main one being Chise. I think she feels like she’s looking into a mirror when she looks at Philomela and that is why she is so deadset on helping her.
I’d always thought about watching this series but it wasn’t till I covered it that I gave it a chance and it has become like comfort food for me. The animation is done so well that you feel like you’re in their cozy little house on a cold snowy English day.
If you’ve been on the fence about trying this series I highly suggest you take the plunge. It’s become one of my favorite series. If I’m feeling down or under the weather, it lifts my spirits. That’s not to say it’s all sunshine and rainbows, there are some truly awful parts but that’s how life is, and seeing these characters overcome that adversity is a joy to watch.