It actually pains me that not enough people are reading this manga. Anime-only watchers might not be charmed by the story for too long, but the story truly shines in manga form. Former readers of the author's work like Sket Dance! or even Astra Lost in Space can recognize that Shinohara Kenta has a remarkable talent of cramming tons of characters into one story, give everyone unique traits and bits that make them all likable in some way, and also have them work with each other in an amazing synergy.

I'm not really great at reviews, so I just want to say that Witch Watch is worth hunkering down for the long run. I started this manga when it first came out in 2021, and while I've started as a casual reader, I can say now at around chapter 230-something that the long journey has been worth it.

Goofs and gags that have begun in the early years of the manga still are remembered into the later chapters, that random character that showed up twice in chapter 32 can still be remembered hundreds of chapters later. I almost want to say that this is the incredibly improved anime version of Wizards of Waverly Place, lol. The characters will find some newfound magic, get messed up with it, and then with some wacky happenstance fix it (or not) lol and continue on.

But I don't want to praise it just for it's comedy - It's actually a marvel how well they mix in it's serious shounen jump side of things as well. When things become dire, you actually miss when it was only laughs for the cast. You're so used to the cast accidentally turning into Minecraft characters or trying to get out of a funny, magical situation that you're charmed when they actually show their cool sides. It actually, really, truly, truly! Has a little bit of something in it for everyone. I don't know how it's possible, but they do it. There's a great romance aspect, the fighting scenes are incredible, the gags might go over your head in some niche humor, but some land really well and make characters lovable, and the foreshadowing really helps connect everything together. There are probably like 3-4 different developing story lines between characters that you forget about for a bit, and then they'll bring it back to tie it back into the main story. It's an amazing talent, and I have faith in Shinohara Kenta to be able to stick the landing.

But I haven't gotten into the main reason why I'm writing this review:

Please read this manga for Morihito Otogi. As someone who watched the anime, I'm upset that the anime only captured a fraction of Moi's charms. I love anime boys, but I feel like anyone can appreciate this one-of-a-kind um... special character. Some might say he's a bit overpowered, but I don't even care. He may appear a bit one-sided in the beginning, but you really grow to love him as you discover more and more about him. There are just so many sides to him that are incredibly funny to watch. He's also really cute in a lot of the panels. Forget the witch they are watching, this is his manga to shine in and it shows: his character development through all 200+ chapters really make you want to cheer him on, no matter what. And this isn't to say that the rest of the boys in the cast are forgettable either! He's just that great.

Please read Witch Watch! There were definitely some times I raised an eyebrow at a story development or two, but I think the ride is worth it overall. As we get into the later chapters, I am chugging down every chapter, eagerly awaiting the next update.