The Witch and the Beast anime started airing this winter and has since captured the interest of almost everyone. The series has yet to crack the top 20, let alone the top 10, in Anime Corner’s weekly polls, nor did it do well in this most anticipated poll for Winter 2024. It is also outside the top 20 highest rated anime this season on both MyAnimeList and Anilist. Well, I’m here to give everyone three reasons why everyone needs to start checking out this hidden gem of Winter.
1. Comprehensive solid production
The Witch and the Beast was animated by studio Yokohama Animation Lab, a studio that is relatively new compared to most studios today and hasn’t had any major titles up to this point. They recently produced Kingdoms of Ruin in Fall 2023 and received a lot of criticism. And outside of the ecchi series Miru Tights and the fantasy action film The Iceblade Sorcerer Shall Rule the World, it’s safe to say the studio hasn’t delivered a single “gem” — until now.
The setting for The Witch and the Beast takes place in the Victorian era with breathtaking architecture where details almost pop off the screen. I even found myself pausing episodes a lot just to marvel at the level of detail and effort put into all the surrounding settings in the show. Art director Hirotsugu Kakoi also took on the same role for famous anime such as Inuyasha, Space Brothers and Future Diary. So it’s no surprise that a veteran of nearly 25 years of background art was able to create The Witch and the Beast.
Character designs are always sharp and never look blurry or distorted like I saw in the recent Chained Soldier. The anime production is at least 8/10 and most of the time goes above and beyond. The action in the anime is exciting to watch and features solid sound design by Takuya Hiramitsu, who was also the sound director for the original Hunter x Hunter series in 1999. There’s no denying The Witch and the Beast has some veterans on there staff and it shows in every episode.
2. Interesting story and characters
The main cast of the series includes Ashaf, voiced by Toshiyuki Morikawa, and Guideau, voiced by You Taichi. Morikawa’s biggest roles include Minato Namikaze in Naruto and King Julius in Black Clover while Taichi’s biggest starring role is as Dorothy in Princess Principal. The calm, cool, and collected mage that Ashaf is portraying is also a complete contrast to Guideau’s loud, mean demeanor, always making every interaction between the two interesting.
With Guideau on the hunt for the witch who cursed her, and Ashaf in fact the mysterious guide we’ve yet to discover much about, the story has so far continually reminded us that although the two accept certain quests to resolve any magic-related dilemmas, but the main problem is of course that the plot never goes far. If you love brutal violence but don’t shy away from the ridiculous, The Witch and the Beast might be another anime you should add to your watchlist immediately.
In just four episodes, we only get a taste of Ashaf’s true power and abilities while Guideau shows in the first episode who she really is and what she’s capable of, and trust me , the action becomes brutal. There is never a dull moment with this story as it involves many overlapping twists and turns. The characters are engaging from the beginning of each episode to the end, and we have more to come soon along the way.
3. “Zombie Girl Murder Antics” next
Zombie Girl Murder Antics was the 26th most anticipated anime for Summer 2023 and eventually skyrocketed to the 8th best anime in our Best Anime of Summer 2023 ranking by people. fans and there’s no doubt that The Witch and the Beast could be the next movie like it. Voting results aside, Witches and Monsters is this season’s overlooked gem but is likely to pick up steam as the weeks go by and more people watch because it’s simply good.
Like Undead Girl Murder Farce, this series is about two main characters with completely opposite personalities and working together to solve mysteries with the ultimate goal of the female protagonist being able to complete her goal. . Tsuguru in Undead Murder Farce is essentially Aya’s manager and protector while the same can be said for Ashaf and Guideau in The Witch and the Beast, except Guideau is someone who can kick some ass.
While the immortal murder farce does not necessarily engage with themes of witches and monsters like The Witch and the Beast and introduces prominent historical figures (fictional and non-fictional), the overall setting may be the same. Both anime are also produced by newer, lesser-known studios. Studio Lapin Track (Undead Girl Murder Farce) was made just a year before Yokohama Animation Lab in 2014 and also doesn’t have many “big name” series attached to its name.
Both series have great fight animations and choreography. Both started their respective seasons low rated before airing. The only difference is that Undead Girl Murder Farce entered the top 10 in the first week of the Summer 2023 chart while The Witch and the Beast failed to do so three weeks into Winter 2024. But will Still hope? Absolute. So be sure to vote for this series in our Week 4 onwards poll!
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Information about Witches and Monsters
The Witch and the Beast is listed as having 12 episodes this season and releases new episodes on Crunchyroll every Thursday. The Witch and the Beast volume 5 will be released on February 1. The anime is based on the manga written and illustrated by Kousuke Satake, which began serialization in 2016. The series was originally published in Young Magazine the 3rd (discontinued) and has been moved to the monthly Young Magazine. The manga currently has 10 volumes published in both English and Japanese. Unfortunately, the series has been on hiatus since January 2023 due to Satake’s health and is not scheduled to return. The Witches and Monsters manga currently has over 500,000 copies in circulation as of January 2024.
Image via Crunchyroll
© Kousuke Satake, Kodansha/“The Witch and the Beast” Production Committee