Meeting Date: 1/6/2018
Disclaimer: The Herald Anime Club discusses shows as they’re airing. Naturally, there will be spoilers for a given episode. You have been warned!
Mike Ferreira: Happy new year everyone, and welcome to the Herald Anime Club. We’re starting the new season with a few familiar faces in The Ancient Magus’ Bride. This week, we’re talking up episode 13: “Girl, you a fox now.”
L.B. Bryant: She was always a fox, it’s just now a little more literal. :)
Mike Ferreira: Heh… fair enough.
Anthony Simpson: Happy new year. I want someone to creating those flying sheep like thing. I never knew I needed to have one of them in my life.
Mike Ferreira: They were adorable. I love them already.
L.B. Bryant: They were very cute
Anthony Simpson: I just want to surround myself with them be and happy for the rest of my days.
Anthony Simpson: Except for that one that takes your body heat away.
Mike Ferreira: Just don’t get the wrong one.
Mike Ferreira: That was a great scene, though. It was a great way to ease viewers into the season… by continuing directly after the last moments of the previous season’s finale.
L.B. Bryant: Indeed.
Mike Ferreira: It’s a definite step up from the previous season, though. We’re seeing real shifts in the characters, and some real attempts to raise the stakes on the character (and literal) levels
L.B. Bryant: I just liked that there felt like some small steps towards relationship development between Chise and Elias. They weren’t huge steps but I did feel like some forward progress was made.
Anthony Simpson: True. I like how Chise prevents Elias from likely erasing her memories of know that he ate people.
L.B. Bryant: That was precisely the scene I was thinking of. :)
Mike Ferreira: Indeed.
L.B. Bryant: Though there was a moment after that scene that had me confused…
Mike Ferreira: Which was that?
L.B. Bryant: When Elias asks to see Chise’s wand, she pulls it out of nowhere. That is not a small stick and yet it seemed as though she was carrying it around in her back pocket.
Mike Ferreira: Magic!
L.B. Bryant: lol
Mike Ferreira: She also pulled it out when facing down the cold bug, remember. Same situation
Mike Ferreira: My guess is that there’s some magic hand-wavey stuff.
Mike Ferreira: I doubt she’s doing the old-school JRPG thing where the hero shoves important items up their butt and it disappears into their sprite
L.B. Bryant: Yeah probably. Just the way it was done (on multiple occasions as you pointed out) without any sort of explanation had me confused.
L.B. Bryant: It didn’t ruin my enjoyment but it did make me chuckle a little
Mike Ferreira: It really was kind of weird when it just happened
Anthony Simpson: I was going to say Hammer space or a wizard did it, but that last point would be obvious.
L.B. Bryant: Also, that rabbit appearing from behind the washing machine reminded me of the one true fact about this series… don’t fuck with Silky. :)
Mike Ferreira: “A wizard did it” “Chise IS a wizard.” “Oh… … … right. *blank stare*”
Mike Ferreira: That was amazing. Silky does not fuck around.
L.B. Bryant: Btw, I’ve heard her called both Silky and Silver… does anyone know which is the proper name for her?
Mike Ferreira: “Yes”
L.B. Bryant: lol alright, fair enough
Mike Ferreira: Joking aside, she’s both. Sometimes, she’s Silky, sometimes, she’s Silver… depends who’s talking
L.B. Bryant: Got it.
Anthony Simpson: In my eyes she the landlady you don’t want to make upset.
L.B. Bryant: Not unless you want some broken legs courtesy of her hammer of pain.
Mike Ferreira:
L.B. Bryant: So, any other favorite moments from this episode?
Mike Ferreira: I liked the montage where we saw Chise learning responsible magic, and actually making the flying letter thing we saw in the first episode.
Mike Ferreira: She’s really starting to embrace her destiny as a mage
L.B. Bryant: Agreed there.
Anthony Simpson: The trimming of the flying sheep like thing was enjoyable to watch. Seeing Chise learning to use her magic responsibly was great as well.
Mike Ferreira: Indeed.. also, skullbumps = aw
L.B. Bryant: That was adorbs
Mike Ferreira: Elias is learning how to human
Mike Ferreira: Moreover, I’m genuinely curious about our new friend Ashen Eye.
Anthony Simpson: I though it was an interesting development that we learned that Chise is not completely Japanese.
L.B. Bryant: Yeah, I cursed at the television when the episode ended on that cliffhanger.
Mike Ferreira: Indeed.
Mike Ferreira: God damn it, this is going to be another season where I’m saying “Shit!” every time the credits roll, isn’t it?
L.B. Bryant: Probably
Mike Ferreira: I mean… moment to moment, this episode was fantastic. Story time with the ariels was adorable, as was that little moment where Chise brings Kalm his medicine… and we’re finally seeing things ramp up with Ancient Eye
Mike Ferreira: Sorry – Ashen Eye
Mike Ferreira: We got real character growth from Chise and Elias, and just a great overall flow through the episode.
Mike Ferreira: That said… I’m not 100% sold on the new theme songs
L.B. Bryant: I like them.
Mike Ferreira: I like them, but for some reason, they don’t grab me like that season 1 theme.
L.B. Bryant: Give it time :)
Mike Ferreira: Yeah, true. lol. I’m being petty here. It’s hard to really compete with the first season’s intro that was just impactful and catchy.
Mike Ferreira: Any final comments this week?
Anthony Simpson: Good episode to start the 2nd half of the series. Can’t wait to see what happens next.
Mike Ferreira: Amen to that.
Mike Ferreira: Anyway, that’s all the time we have this week. ‘Til next time, remember: Not all sheepbugs are good sheepbugs.
Mike Ferreira: Have a great night, everybody!
Anthony Simpson: Goodnight
