It’s not like I needed to add more stuff to the watch pile, but enough folk praised this premiere that I thought I should at least check out and check in.

In short (which is all I have time for), I liked it.  A good, happy slice-of-life with an interesting visual style and tone.  The representation of life in Hirosaki, Aomori (one of the snowiest places in Japan) is achingly true to my experience (I grew to love those station buildings with bus circles and small-city mini malls).  I thought there were a couple of genuinely funny moments which showed off Flying Witch as a bit quirky, like Kei introducing Makoto to Chinatsu as her mother, and the whole mandrake root bit at the end was agreeably absurdist.  But if there’s a tradition of boys doing karaoke with “We’re in high school” written on the bodies in Sharpie I’ve never heard of it – must be an Aomori thing…

On balance – pleasant, fun, and dangerously close to the moe pandering cliff but so far not quite over the edge.  Also, I liked that J.C. Staff used mostly first-timers and unknowns here.  Also, Sakurabi Katsushi directed a show I think is very underrated, Asatte no Houkou, which gives me some optimism.