The Witch and the Beast

Episode 6

The prodigal coffin carrier and notorious witch disliker return! I had a great time hanging out with the necromancer duo, and I wouldn't mind if The Witch and the Beast continued to explore other Order members dealing with magical shenanigans. However, it's nice to have Ashaf and Guideau back, especially when Guideau's reintroduction features the gap moe between their incessant surliness and adorable bedhead. It makes me want to ruffle their hair, as medically inadvisable as that may be.

Their quarry this week is the bona fide witch Helga Velvette. While her name certainly fits the witchy bill, she's different than the past renegades covered by the series; she's weak for a witch, and she doesn't seem to be as prone to wanton murder as her other sisters in sorcery. Paired with her childish personality, her presence causes us to question more of our preconceived notions about these magical ladies. Are they universally calamitous entities, or are they being pursued for different reasons? So far, her most endearing trait is her relationship with the talking demon sword Ashgan. Like Ashaf and Guideau, the two of them have contrasting personalities that play off each other in funny ways. The demon sword is hilariously blunt (ironically) and quick to exasperate her. I love the confidence with which he declares that swords can talk (real Thunderbolt Fantasy fans already knew this), and I love his frank admission that he wants to ally with Ashaf and Guideau because it would be funny. That's a blade after my own heart.

The true foes in this story are twofold. First, we have the introduction of the Paladin Corps, a.k.a. the church cops. Based on their introduction, they perform peacekeeping functions ostensibly parallel with the Order of Magical Resonance. The main difference would be the Paladin Corps' size, strength, and backing from the Church, which makes them an international paramilitary force to be reckoned with. The Order appears to prefer the shadows and deception, and there also doesn't seem to be much love lost between both organizations. I like the image created by their large floating castle and ugly green forcefield set up around the area of operations. They're powerful and lofty, yet with that comes corruption and cowardice. We see that in their method of attack, in which they project magical avatars to do the reconnaissance and fight for them. This is a far cry from Ashaf and Guideau putting in the legwork and getting their hands dirty.

The other source of opposition is the Global Holy Church itself. As a rule, it's a smart idea to distrust the church in dark fantasy stories, but this episode goes out of its way to make them look as shady as possible. Their emissary gives off massive scheming vizier vibes as he stands smirking next to Cugat's throne. While the Paladin Corps works for the Church, it's clear that the Church keeps them on a need-to-know basis. They're a tool of the Church, not the Church itself. These hostile interactions slightly endear us to the Paladins, when we otherwise might have written them off as mere fodder for Guideau to punch through. Cugat in particular comes across as arrogant and violent, but if he's not calling the shots, then something more sinister is at work behind the scenes.

It looks like this will be the first storyline to run longer than two episodes, and It's a good time for The Witch and the Beast to tackle something with more facets and complications. The first three arcs did a decent job establishing these characters and their world, and now we can sink our teeth into something meatier. A better story is also good news because the adaptation isn't looking any nicer. The off-model characters are particularly egregious this week, although I find most of those instances rather cute. More concerning are the action scenes. There are genuinely badass moments, like Guideau catching a sword in their teeth, that are undermined by laughably bad animation and direction.

Nevertheless, I am still enjoying my time spent watching and writing about The Witch and the Beast. It manages to be eminently likable despite its edgy appearance and melting production. It's scratching an itch, and I'm eager to see how Guideau behaves when working in tandem with a witch for a change.

Rating:

The Witch and the Beast is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.

Steve is on Twitter while it lasts. He can be your witch or your beast. Or none of the above if that's cool. You can also catch him chatting about trash and treasure alike on This Week in Anime.