The excitement in the anime community for Witch Hat Atelier getting adapted was palpable. Even if you had just a passive interest in anime, the hype around this show had people not only excited but some saying it could become the anime of the season. I am always excited when there is a new anime with that kind of expectations; so many of them have later become some of my favorite shows. Also, as someone who doesn’t read manga, I can experience anime with no knowledge of what is happening. Seeing two episodes, I can see why there is excitement for this story and am impressed with how it sets it all up, but I have a few minor concerns.
We start in a typical medieval fantasy world but after that the show already sets itself apart through the lead Coco. She is a 10-12 year old child whose enthusiasm for magic makes it seem special. Magic in the media, especially anime, is very prevalent, but seeing how she responds to it makes it feel unique. Through her inner dialogue and seeing certain magical things in the world, exposition is given that doesn’t feel like exposition. Magic exists but it can only be used by witches (a title not based on gender) who are born with skills to access the power. There are magical things in the world, like a stream that she washes clothing in that cleans itself when she is done, and pegasus carriages for wealthy people, but magic is not everywhere.
The passion she has comes from getting a picture book and a wand from a witch selling them when she was younger, and she has enjoyed reading and playing with the wand since then. She wants to learn magic, not out of any overall desire to be special apart from anyone else or to escape her life. She is a happy child living with her mother helping out in their linen store and at home. She is good at cutting linen and, beyond her mother being a bit exasperated with her wanting magic, they have a good relationship and love each other.
What sets the plot going is Coco helping out a customer, Qifrey, and talking about her picture book, and then him revealing himself as a witch after a pegasus carriage is wrecked and he offers to fix it. He puts on his pointy hat, a witch’s symbol. Without getting into too much detail, Coco sneaking a peek at his work causes her to view her picture book differently so she is able to cast some spells. But one backfires and traps her mother in stone. Qifrey, realizing what the picture book might mean, has come back to Coco’s house and sees what her spell has done. At first he wants to wipe her memory of how to do magic to stop more chaos (we assume), but then after her pleas about needing to undo the spell to save her mom, he agrees to let her join his atelier and become an apprentice.
Coco’s reaction to all this is such a kid dynamic. She is sad about her mom and worried about her mistake in casting the spell to begin with, but she also is so excited that she is going to learn magic. She has great determination and wants to learn the rules of magic so she doesn’t break them again. But there is one thing with her learning magic that I have slight concern about is her fellow apprentices. They seem to fit well-known archetypes and I hope they are not too generic. Her roommate Agott is the highly accomplished student who doubts Coco’s abilities and doesn’t believe that she can catch up. It leads not to Coco getting mad but rather more determined to do better. Tetia is the very friendly overall bubbly girl, and Richeh the aloof, somewhat odd girl. I have only two episodes with them so things might change with time.
The third episode really got to show off the gorgeous animations. We get detailed looks at floating orbs of dirt with bits of grass and flowers, and a glimpse of an underwater city with whales drifting by. Those very realistic details make them feel a part of the world. There is also the cutest little companion to Coco that feels like it could have been a cliche, but fits Coco so well I do not care! Seeing Coco trying to get to one of those islands and the way we see her expressions through her eyes gives it a deep color and emotion complimented the world.
The set-up to this world’s mystery makes me excited. Whoever gave Coco her picture book is heavily implied to be the villain of the story or part of an evil group. However, the background that Qifrey gives on what witches have done to keep magic a secret makes me wonder if the villains may have a legitimate argument for their actions, beyond just malicious intent. Qifrey also seems to have superiors of some kind, and perhaps he himself is good, but whoever is above him could have their own secrets that make them morally gray or evil. Right now a lot about the witch world is unknown, and that is to the show’s great benefit.
There is a lot to be excited about here. Coco is bound to dominate the anime charts for best female character. She is lovable without being naive, and really has a lot to build off of as well as having a good moral compass. The world set-up is intriguing, with an already strong sense of the magical rules but that aren’t so stringent that we can’t be surprised, combined with beautiful animation that makes the world feel lived in as well. I may not be ready to say it’s the anime of the season, but I can see why it is in the conversation.
Witch Hat Atelier will be streaming on Crunchyroll April 6, 2026 with new episodes following every Monday.
