Story: Our story tells the tale of one human Atsuko "Akko" Kagari with the drive and passion to become a great witch like her hero Shiny Chariot. Along the way she makes friends with two other young witches in Lotte and Sucy. The story first party takes an episodic approach as a way to introduce to the world of LWA, specifically Luna Nova Academy and the city it is not far from. I felt this was a good idea and not a bad approach. I know some would argue they wanted it to be more story driven from the start, but I would argue it is better to set the scene and give life to your setting first. The first half of LWA avoided two HUGE pitfalls from a narrative perspective because of this approach.(See episode 5 and episode 10for example).
The first half does a good job showing off all the goals and passions of Akko making this her story. Everything is about her journey. That's important to remember. Now the second half is more story driven as Akko finds these things known as words. They become very central part of the plot as Akko is collecting them. The show uses this chance to pair her off with other side characters like Amanda and Constanze. This works very well for the narrative because those characters get their moments to shine and you show how they bounce off Akko too. I will say early on I felt Akko was just being used as the punching bag for comedy, but then I realized around episode 8 and 10 where the story was.
At the end of the day, Little Witch Academia is about Akko. It is written in the same vein kind of like Kill la Kill, but Kill la Kill flush out more than just Ryuko. This one is more focus on its main character and does a good job building the story around her. The ending of this story shows us that. That is why many were so happy for Akko in the end.
Art: Studio Trigger joins the short list of animation studio that give you high quality and top notch artwork and set design. It is a huge treat that we an original production that is 2D hand drawn from start to finish. The character design of each and every character in Little Witch academia pretty realistic for the most part outside of some monsters, but they do a good job with making a mostly female cast look different. All of them have a look and quirk to them. For example, when everyone is dress up in their witch attire has their legs showing. Sucy doesn't show her legs.
Another can found in the teachers as they are all varying heights and sizes. Ursula has bigger hips compared to the other teachers. The principal is very short and you don't see her legs. See what I mean? That is just a taste of the amazing art in the show. Having varying designs will makes your cast of characters stand out.
The animation, especially the action scenes, are top notch and very exciting and intense. I really like the camera work and perspective shot they used in big magically moments. Little Witch Academia is easily one of the best animated shows of the decade along side Kill la Kill and Panty and Stocking.
Sound: I have yet to watch the English dub of this show. So, I won't be able to talk about the dub sadly. Though, I will say it has a cast that I like a lot. I look forward to hear Erica Mendez as Akko.(She was also Ryuko in the last Studio Trigger show that was dubbed.). Now with that said, Little Witch Academia has some of the best Japanese voice acting I have heard in a while. It is usually not as sharp you get in other shows. Megumi Han does a great job making Akko cute and likable. She really shrinks her teeth into this role and makes the most of it. She is a joy to listen to and really bounces well off others. A couple of other performances I'll like to also take note is Noriko Hidaka as Ursula, Junko Takeuchi also plays one of my favorite characters but it's a huge spoiler, and lastly Yoko Hikasa as Diana. Studio Trigger did an amazing job casting for this show.
For music and sound design, they are also pretty topnotch and very good with music always fitting the scene and going along with the flow of the story. They really do a good job of placing the right sounds to fit every scene. They really do a good job of placing the right sounds to fit every scene. They really make sure the music doesn't overpower the scenes.
Character: A good show is nothing without characters. Little Witch Academia has lots of that. But keep in mind majority of the character development is only happening to a handful of characters. Most of the cast in Little Witch Academia are playing supporting roles that help the main character out. So yes this even goes for fans of Sucy and Lotte. They have roles to play. So this show really is gonna be up to if you like Akko or not. I love her, but I don't know everyone would like her. She is brash, loud, but has such a huge drive and passion that makes me want to root for her. So, I believe she is an affective main character. This is boosted by how good the supporting cast is around her.
In closing this show is amazing and desperately needs a season 2. I won't spoil, but I will say it didn't end like Kill la Kill. that isn't to say Kill la kill's ending was bad or anything. I am just telling you this show has more to tell and I know me and others want to see more.
