Kamome Shirahama uses her pen and paper to reel you into her series so easily with its characters and world. Witch Hat Atelier is a one of a kind manga, and I that someone to reads it, and that I do it justice with this rather short review (I probably won’t lol)
Art is magic and magic is art, that is Witch Hat Atelier; Art invokes a myriad of emotions, which is what Witch Hat Atelier seeks to show us through the cast, Coco most of all. Coco is first amazed by magic, she adores it and dreams of becoming a witch, but as the story progresses the marvelous thing she dreamed of isn’t as flawless as she once thought. When Coco unknowingly draws a forbidden spell, her world is turned upside down, she turned her mother to stone and is thrust into the deceivingly beautiful world of witches and magic. The series is so incredibly self-confrontational with its characters and rules of the secret magical society, that I am quite honestly in awe at how competent and compelling it is - Nothing is left to contrivance which is refreshing to see.
Magic in this world is depicted in such a fun, engaging and genius way, it’s a great metaphor for artists and their relationship with art. The characters in the manga each struggle with individual reasons of why they cast their magic, this is what makes the characters, system and world so compelling. It keeps the reader on their toes and asks them to keep questioning the rules of this world, very much like Coco herself. The writing is so damn meticulous and poignant, beautiful and inspiring that I can’t help to contain my excitement whenever I read a chapter, I feel like I’m in Coco’s shoes whenever I see a new spell drawn by the elegant and precise Agott; or Tetia trying to bring a smile on everyones faces with her kind and thoughtful spells; or Richeh who doesn’t let anyone influence her spells. Qifrey and Olruggio are a delight as well as mentors, and it’s great to see the girls confide and receive guidance from them. The cast is just so lovable and are genuinely so engaging to follow, especially some we meet at around chapter 40-ish if I remember correctly, I won't go into who or what happens, but it is some top tier stuff.
Please read this series, you won’t regret it. I didn’t expect to love it as much as I did, but I shouldn’t be too surprised since the friend who recommended it has great taste! (except for jojos, that’s a bit questionable) - Read it and just sit back and absorb what it does, it has something to say and it does it so incredibly well, easily my favourite manga yet.
The series is ongoing at chapter 86, yet I have no doubt that Shirahama will continue to deliver high quality writing and art!
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