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Let me tell you an old story. It was a distant time, about two years ago I believe, back when the K-on! movie rocked the anime world and when Guilty Crown was a thing; back when Steins;Gate revitalized our love for Dr. Pepper and when Fate/zero made us Type-MOON fans scream in delight. It was a summer evening when I found a little show called Spice and Wolf on MAL's anime listings. I knew two things about it: it had economics and a wolf girl, which is an accurate description of the show...as accurate as describing the Pacific Ocean as being a lot of water anyways.

Spice and Wolf isn't actually that old to be honest, as it first aired in 2008, yet I praise it for invoking a certain sense of nostalgia in me. It's not the Renaissance-esque setting, no, but it's the romance. It's honest and straightforward romance. The show has been praised for it's dialogue and character interactions again and again, and yet I'll add more to it. The relationship between Lawrence and Holo is so simplistic and honest, yet so dynamic and witty. When I first watched it, I fell in love with their banter, and at the moment of this post, I happily own the two current animated seasons, as well as the light novels up to volume 9.

It has taken me two years of heavy stalling, but I have finally finished season two on Thanksgiving 2013. Quite the wonderful anime to close out autumn I must say. So, in honor of this, allow me to open up Spice and Wolf explore, through my interpretation, its inner workings, flaws, and overall greatness that eclipse the said flaws.







At its core, Spice and Wolf's main draw is the characters and their interactions. It's not Holo being naked, it's not the economics, it's not the pleasant nature of the show, and it's most certainly not Holo being naked. I fully 100% guarantee that if one were to watch this show with the intention of getting off to a cute wolf girl doing cute things, they would be bored out of their mind. Being a dialogue-heavy show, it's most certainly a turn-off to anyone who isn't willing to use the head that's not attached to their waist.

At least, that's what I would say a year ago. Now, however, I now believe that it works for the show in a roundabout way.



As I said, Spice and Wolf is all about the characters, but I'm not going to talk about them specifically. Many reviews have already done that, and I'm not doing a review. Instead, as a mechanic in the anime, the characters work towards making a brilliantly told story. Spice and Wolf works by balancing comedy, fantasy, action, adventure, moe, slice of life, drama, tragedy, romance, suspense, and even a little pervertedness. However, these aren't genres that Spice and Wolf falls into. Rather, they are things that come about as people live their lives. I can say with confidence that any average person will naturally experience all the traditional literary genres in their lives, which is exactly what Spice and Wolf does. It's an honest story about characters living their lives, experiencing everything and anything that the world has to offer. This is present in the various story arcs, it's present in the setting itself, and it's most certainly present in the interactions of Lawrence and Holo.



I would very much call Holo one of my favorite characters in fiction, but I can't talk about her without talking about Lawrence. I've seen many reviewers praise Holo for being such a dynamic female lead, yet give very little besides an off-comment compliment towards Lawrence's existence. While I full-heartedly agree that Holo steals the spotlight, it also does a great injustice to the show, to Lawrence, and even to Holo herself. Spice and Wolf cannot exist with only the Wolf, the witty dialogue would not be the same without the economics, and Holo cannot drive the show without Lawrence. It would be like Baccano's Miria without Isaac, Cowboy Bebop without Yoko Kanno, or Akiyuki Shinbou without his headtilts.



Spice and Wolf, as I see it, exists in two states: intelligence and "who gives a crap." The beauty of this setup is the show's ability to explain the heavy nature of economics and quickly switch to Holo doing something, anything, to break the tension, whether if it's showing off her brilliance to annoy Lawrence or falling asleep in drunken frustration. Using the heavy dialogue, the show develops the world, introduces complex plot elements, and maintains the show's mature outlook. With the tension breaking, the show develops the characters, adds comedic relief to ease fans into the complex plot elements, and keeps the show accessible, even to people who aren't able to follow all the terminology.



As mentioned, for people who can follow the explanations, they can enjoy the intelligent part of the show with Lawrence. For people who can't or can't be bothered, they can, like Holo, say "who gives a crap" and blow everything off. It's certainly nice to get a grasp of both states, but that's really up to the individual viewer. Spice and Wolf is certainly a show that's hard to get into, but that's what makes it a mature show: it requires a certain level of experience and know-how to understand what's going on, and while it does try to explain everything, it does so in great detail, trusting the viewer either attempt to understand Lawrence's explanations. Or, you can accept it as pointless ramblings and follow Holo's adventure to find interesting foods. Spice and Wolf embraces all that it is, and it's a package deal that offers viewers an honest romance with no strings attached. All it asks is to keep an open mind.



I have no issue with the show's art. It fits with the show's underplayed nature, and the subjectiveness of art is something that's too sticky and unpleasant to dive into. The music is obviously well made, as it fits with the setting and what not. The animation is whatever. In all honesty, it takes Welcome to the NHK levels of QUALITY ANIMATION to really get to me, so I'm not one to talk about animation unless it's amazing or amazingly terrible. Spice and Wolf merely gets the job done. The technicals of Spice and Wolf aren't really important, as they are not the main draw of the show. You don't criticize an apple tree for not producing bananas, nor should you dislike potatoes just because they're grown from the ground. I can accept someone for disliking Holo's attitude, Lawrence's lackluster personality in comparison to Holo, the heavy dialogue, the slow story, or just the fact that it's cutesy in appearance. They're...superficial, but I can accept them. If there was a flaw with Spice and Wolf though, I think it goes deeper.






Before I truly start, this is a good chance to express my concerns with recommending this series to others: Spice and Wolf a show of false impressions. People who expect a smart show may be startled at Holo emerging naked from Lawrence's wagon. In fact, they may have been warded off by the cover art to begin with, where it's always Holo featured as some cute wolf girl in some cute pose. The opposite is also true, where people who expect a cute-wolf-girl-doing-cute-wolf-girl-things type of show get, instead, a dialogue-heavy show with little action or blatant comedy. Of course, this can work since Spice and Wolf specializes in breaking such expectations with wit and class, but at the same time, it's hard to advertise Spice and Wolf without doing the show injustice.



The problem with the show, I believe, isn't actually a real problem. It's more of its presentation being inaccessible by just anyone. Sure, not every show is made for everyone, and yeah, everyone has their likes and dislikes, but Spice and Wolf has a rather high level of entry in the world of anime. It requires sacrificing the comfort of spoon-fed information and generalizations of large-scale ideas such as justice or friendship. It speaks to viewers like a quirky high school teacher or college professor, explaining complex concepts with a wittiness that makes you forget that you didn't understand a thing, then when you're knowledge is tested by the plot catching up, suddenly you'll realize that you have no idea what's going on. Asking the show to explain everything in simpler terms would be asking the show to not treat its viewers maturely, but at the same time, it's a prime example of a show that's not made for everyone.



Without faulting anyone, Spice and Wolf is a hard show to get into, not because of its subject material, but because of how it speaks to its viewers. It expects its viewers to be able to follow its explanations from one plot point to the next, essentially asking its viewers to think and comprehend as they watch. Anime is capable of many things, and it's just as capable of educating as it's great at entertaining. I can guarantee that if someone were to watch this show expecting to just be entertained, they'll unexpectedly get complex concepts that'll fly over their head. It's not that they're dumb, that's absurd to assume. Rather, it's the way that Spice and Wolf plays with its viewer's expectations, where it exists on dual states of intelligence and "who gives a crap." It can't be helped with the way the Spice and Wolf is written, but at the same time, it's a shame that not everyone can get into this show.



Anyways, this leads to something I found interesting between watching the anime and reading the light novels. With the light novels, there are also illustrations with Holo in cute poses and whatnot, but being nearly all text, I found myself forgetting what Holo looked like. Just by reading her words, she seemed more like a mischievous old lady than the energetic wolf girl I was so used to. Lawrence too was different, where he seemed much more practical and cynical in the light novels, which can be compared to his aloof and emotional self in the anime. These are both interpretations I accept, but in the anime, it took advantage of the fact that it's a visual medium. It managed to visualize and vocalize both the smarts and cuteness of the series in a way that added to the series, rather than outright changing or reinterpreting anything. In doing so, it managed to retain the smarts of the light novel while adding the visual appeal that only an anime could provide. At every level, from its writing and production to its characters and their interactions, Spice and Wolf manages to combine everything so seamlessly.





I would compare this show to eating in an expensive restaurant. The food is excellent and exquisite, but not everyone can afford to eat there. Even then, the taste may not appeal to everyone. Plus, at the end of the meal, there's the big bill that just kills the mood. At the time of this post, there's still no season 3 in sight, and while Spice and Wolf has been amazing, it sucks that there's nothing to look forward to in terms of the anime. The light novels are done and are being translated at the rate of 2-3 novels per year, so they'll all be translated by 2016 or 2017 if all goes well.



It's a pleasant show that I wholeheartedly enjoy. It does not focus on plot twists or emotional manipulation, which allows me to rewatch specific episodes to simply enjoy the interaction between Lawrence and Holo. Spice and Wolf has not changed my life in any way, but it has given me an experience that I have great pleasure in sharing with others. It's a great story that has proven itself to be a stand-out title amongst the thousands of anime out there.







tl;dr - I love Spice and Wolf, but definitely hard to both advertise and get into. I fault it for having minor problems here and there, but at the end, it's the smartest romance I have seen so far.