Flying Witch is charming and solidly constructed and just a very easy time all around. I often had trouble thinking of things to say about last season’s Dagashi Kashi, but I don’t think I’m going to have that problem here – Flying Witch’s craft is strong enough that it’s actually easy and satisfying to talk about, giving me just a hint of that old Hyouka high. I’m also really looking forward to seeing the various ways the show integrates its light magical conceit into the storytelling; understated magical realism is one of my favorite things, so Flying Witch is definitely hitting a specific enjoyable note for me. Easily one of the highlights of the season so far.
You can check out my full review over at ANN, or my episode two notes below!
Lovely shots of the rural town and forest areas, lovely wind instrument music in the background
Control of pacing is critical in a show like this. The creation of atmosphere is not actually an easy thing, and it’s easy to destroy a sense of place. Shows like this are more fragile than you’d expect
The show is also aided by the sense of magical whimsy you see in shows like Eccentric Family, where magic exists and is a part of life, but there’s still a beauty in seeing it interact with the everyday world
Good use of the kind of film tricks you see in KyoAni shows. Sharp management of depth of field helps create a sense of intimacy and reality
They actually get good mileage out of something as simple as “she’s bad at directions” through the expression work and voice acting. And they also don’t try to make big, overt jokes out of it – it’s also a way of creating atmosphere, a sense of peace and ease
More nice flute/percussion music
Chinatsu’s deadpan suspicion of everything in Makoto’s life is good
The guy is the Harbinger of Spring
Chinatsu’s material here is all good stuff
She has a derpy dream
This episode’s definitely less engaging than the first, but still quite charming
Now a light guitar track
The dialogue is quite naturalistic
The guy is very grounded
I think the show could probably use two more incidental jokes per sequence
And now acoustic guitar and horns
The second half is basically an actual cooking lesson