I couldn't have been more wrong about Spice and Wolf. Spice and Wolf is one of the most mature, well done romances I have ever seen. I've seen more human emotion out of the wolf-goddess Holo than in half of the nonsensical tsunderes I see every day. I'm not typically a fan of fantasy-esque elements in anime; yet I never felt like the fantasy elements of Spice and Wolf detracted from the main storyline. They were always present in the storyline yet never overpowering. From the beginning It was clearly a story of Lawrence and Holo and that never changed throughout the entire series. The budding relationship of Lawrence and Holo is what drives the story throughout season 1 and 2.
Another worry I had before watching the show, was that it would be too focused on "economics". You hear "medieval economics" all the time when reading about the show. I'm not particularly interested in economics or medieval life. However I found Spice and Wolf yet again to never overplay it. The plots revolving around money schemes and the daily life of Holo/Lawrence were always interesting. I never felt overwhelmed with strange terminology, or bored. It was the perfect mix.
Spice and Wolf wasn't without its one major downside though. And that's the fact that there wasn't a season 3. Spice and Wolf is the only anime to date that I've actually thought was worth reading the source material (light novels) afterwards. I was really blown away by just how much the Light Novels read like watching the show. It was 100% worth it to continue on and finish the story from the anime. The entire experience was brilliant.
Even if the story just ended with the 2 seasons of anime though, it would be worth the watch. For fans of mature stories, of which there are so few that are well done in anime, Spice and Wolf is a MUST watch. Give it a chance if you're skeptical about its setting. It'll blow you expectations away.
