For any number of reasons I had Katsute Mahou Shoujo to Aku wa Tekitai shiteita. circled (albeit probably in pencil) on the schedule. It’s a Bones series for starters. And it comes from a manga by the late Fujiwara Cocoa, whose Inu x Boku SS was a major surprise for me (and a lot of people). I ended up liking it a lot despite it being pretty far outside my usual stylistic and thematic strike zone. And it defied genre and demographic categorization about as well as any anime had for a long time. Fujiwara died far too young, before she had a chance to finish that series. Or indeed this one, but Bones chose to adapt it in any case – which suggests a certain level of commitment to do it justice.

What I didn’t know – because as far as I know it was never announced anywhere – was that Katsute Mahou Shoujo to Aku wa Tekitai shiteita. was going to be a short, half-length to be precise. That’s not to say shorts can’t be veery good anime, and even worthy of coverage – there haven’t been a ton of them I’ve blogged but there are exceptions. Still, it limits the upside, and it was a bit of a disappointment to find that out. I don’t know all the details as far as pacing, but I don’t see anything in the premise or narrative style that would have precluded a full-length adaptation.  Bones has done very few shorts in their history (I’m not thinking of any off the top of my head). But short or not this ep is certainly gorgeous – vintage Bones visuals.

What there was of this premiere I certainly liked. The two principals are an “evil lieutenant” named Mira and a mahou shoujo named Mimori Byakuya. He’s part of an organization intent on conquering the Earth, and she’s in the defense corps drafted to stop them. There are obvious echoes of Kyuujitsu no Warumono-san in that premise, which is no bad thing as that’s my biggest overperforming show of the year so far. And in point of fact, it’s tonally somewhat reminiscent too – bittersweet and cheeky. A mix of absurdism and emotional depth. Which, I could add, might also be said about Inu X Boku SS.

In sum, Mira falls in love at first sight with Mimori (who’s certainly too young for him even if he were the human age he appears, but we won’t haggle). And when he finds out what a hard knock life she’s been living (alone since middle school,  working several jobs, then conned into being a magical girl by a Kyuubey-like gremlin in league with a property shark), he’s completely overcome with protective love. He starts scolding her for her life choices and buying her high-end sweets to serve at their next meeting.

At one point Mira muses “is this mahou shoujo toying with me?”, and I have to confess that idea did cross my mind too. But if that’s the case she’s doing an awfully good job of hiding it. No, I rather suspect both of them are what they appear to be. And that means trouble for Mira, since his infatuation for (and pursuit of) Mimori is in direct conflict with his assignment and orders. Given what I know about how subtle and surprising Fujiwara can be with her character writing there’s obvious potential here. I am skeptical, however, that it can be realized in twelve half-length episodes with an anime-original ending. But that’s a matter for another day – for now, it’s enough to note that this premiere was very good indeed and certainly earned the series a longer look.