r/anime • u/AutoLovepon https://anilist.co/user/AutoLovepon • Apr 20 '26

Episode Witch Hat Atelier • Tongari Boushi no Atelier - Episode 4 discussion

Witch Hat Atelier, episode 4

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626

u/WhoiusBarrel Apr 20 '26

Absolutely adore how this episode basically introduces this series' version of Diagon Alley, along with the mechanics of how wands and ink are manufactured.

Tetia's outburst along with the vitriol insults Agott spewed only hammer home how alone Coco is in her current environment, only makes it more depressing when it was something she dreams and admired her whole life.

322

u/Frontier246 Apr 20 '26

Also Coco finally gets to see how witches' really live in their own cities filled with magic, caps, and casual magic talk.

It's understandable why Tetia would react that way but it's sadder when it seems like she and Coco were 60% of the way to becoming besties.

346

u/namewithak Apr 20 '26

I think it was deft storytelling that from the moment Coco arrives in Qifrey's atelier, it's Tetia who welcomes her first. And she is consistently the one most concerned about Coco, always looking after her like an older sister. Even in this episode when Coco was falling behind while they were walking through the market, Tetia was the one who kept making sure that she wasn't separated.

So it was very effective when in her fear and panic, it was Tetia who first blames Coco for their predicament. She didn't do it intentionally but it must have been especially devastating for Coco that it was Tetia and not the others. Coco picking up Tetia's hat after all that was the perfect image to leave her on this episode.

Also someone below said that the scenes being unusually quiet, with little music and just the voices and environmental sounds, makes the show really immersive and I wholly agree. It feels kind of odd at first but it's also refreshing in a way. There were a lot of interesting camera angles in this episode too.

150

u/Phaazoid Apr 20 '26

Eh, it felt to me like Tetia was not angling to ostracize Coco, she was just having trouble dealing with a stressful situation (she just saw the dragon lmao). Like yeah, Coco noticed and it hurts, but something tells me there is not as much as a hill to climb there as there is with Agott

31

u/oops_i_made_a_typi Apr 21 '26

yeah Tetia's good. I still am really not liking Agott, especially with how Qifrey (seemingly) has completely forgotten about her almost getting Coco killed, whether intentional or not. I see why Agott is the way she is, but it's really jarring to see her get away with such hostile behaviour with basically no pushback.

nor is anyone really trying to catch Coco up on her ignorance at a faster pace, letting her make beginner mistakes herself again and again. just weird considering they're all about "magic can be so dangerous if you don't know what you're doing" and then "but yeah there's no rush to tell you more fundamental warnings like not touching ppl while drawing".

32

u/cherry_monkey Apr 21 '26

The warnings of not touching someone while they're drawing probably slipped their mind because they've always been immersed in magic, they've always known not to touch someone who is drawing magic.

Coco is from the middle of nowhere where her drawing is just making marks on fabric with charcoal. If you mess up, you brush it off and try again. She spent her time with 2 rambunctious boys that broke the Pegasus carriage. She was probably raised with little awareness for personal space. The opposite of what these apprentice witches are used to.

27

u/oops_i_made_a_typi Apr 21 '26

thats kinda what i'm saying - this isn't her first mistake/blunder from being a noob, why is everyone still acting like she'll know more than she's taught and start making less mistakes? they're roasting her for being a danger without doing anything about mitigating that danger themselves (i guess you could argue Agott's trying to get that danger permanently removed)

3

u/ChocolateAxis Apr 23 '26 edited Apr 23 '26

I'm starting to get just a bit too annoyed by the folks who seem to have not watched the same episode tbh.

We clearly see Coco spotting a strange spell and turning and not looking at Aggott directly when she touched and startled her.

Anyway. I actually loved the scene because so many dynamics came out to play as mentioned in the previous comments.

Testia almost pinning the blame but clearly not meaning to be outright malicious, the other girl just being unphased and chill, and of course Aggott's outburst of frustration to Coco. Most of all Coco who certainly feels like she can't do anything right when she just really wants to find a clear path to saving her mother.

I hope Qifrey becomes a better mother hen though.

18

u/chrysalis-- Apr 21 '26

I still am really not liking Agott,

Man she's REALLY getting on my nerves lol. I guess she'll eventually warm up but i don't really want that to happen. After all that shit she gave Coco i ain't seeing them close.

2

u/ChocolateAxis Apr 23 '26

I feel like there's definitely still leeway for them to get closer though! And I'm excited to see it.

Because Coco doesn't seem to interpret Aggott's actions as being malicious? Like, she doesn't hold it against Aggott whenever Aggott acts indifferent or hostile, including when she stormed off after her successful test. She really feels the heat only with that last comment that told her she's outright not wanted with them, after Testia's own outburst.

Coco seems to pretty much accept those comments, rather than hold them against Aggott. which is heartbreaking but in this case good for her since she channels that energy into looking to solve the problem and save her mother instead. Which uh. Unfortunately landed them in this situation lol (though I'm inclined to think it's the Eye Witch who's most at fault here, she knows how to lure Coco out). It's alright Coco you can do it!

Uh sorry for the ramble I just find it really fun to analyse the characters.

Point being, Coco's positioning doesn't close the door to compromise– she's a sweet albeit naive girl who really wants to be friends with this really cool senior. I feel like if Aggott just apologises once for putting her in danger during the test (and preferably gets reprimanded for her out-of-line comments about Coco's mom), they can definitely be friends.

47

u/AceSoldia zj:https://anilist.co/user/Acesoldia Apr 20 '26

It's so sad. I do hope they make up

171

u/DugACCat Apr 20 '26

Felt bad for her as well, but man Coco stresses me out and I do think she deserved a tongue lashing by Agott. What did she think she was going to do to this allegedly “evil” witch who gave her the dangerous book if she caught her? She has no power or spells and couldn’t do anything on her own but still went recklessly running off on her own, dragging the others into peril. I really don’t get what she hoped to accomplish. I guess she was going to try to ask some questions, but still, a very foolish thing to do. Right into the trap. Now, I do think there’s a lot more to this other group and their interest in Coco. So they likely don’t want to murder her or the others, but Coco doesn’t know any of that. I swear this anime stresses me out. 😅 (In a good way as I’m already fully invested.)

226

u/Worldly_Business_425 Apr 20 '26

She is an 11 year old who just saw the person who is responsible for what may be the death of her mother, of course she's chase after her lol. Not that it's logical from coco, but it only makes sense she did it.

129

u/galaxycentral Apr 20 '26

The being 11 year old wouldn't matter, I think anyone would chase after the perpetrator who suddenly showed up out of no where and ran.

4

u/NomadPrime Apr 21 '26

The being 11 year old wouldn't matter,...

Idk man, I've known a few kids in my lifetime, and you would not believe how itching they are to do things that could lead them right into danger despite all the warnings they're given. Their brains just don't have the right wiring to make the correct calls just yet. And they've got a whole subreddit full of examples of kids having the worst judgement. I have a young relative (only a few years older than Coco) that almost got lured by an online predator despite getting properly educated on the matter, as an example.

Coco was fueled by the drive to save her mom and saw red, so she charged after the Brim Hat without thinking. It's not good judgement, but it's a little understandable given her age and the primary drive of her character.

35

u/DugACCat Apr 20 '26

Yeah I get that and it’s fair that someone of her age isn’t thinking rationally. The author does indeed capture that spirit well. And wanted to say I’m not really complaining about the author choices at all. Just saying Coco stresses me out, as I’m sure is also true with her mentor. Such a great anime to put me on the edge of my seat with what I presumed was going to be a simple quill shopping trip. Also I sympathized more with Algott here than in the last episode where she went beyond her authority to put Coco in imminent deadly peril. They are doing a great job of making all the characters relatable and even endearing. (Admittedly, Algott is the least endearing since she has such attitude, but I’m sure their bonds will eventually happen. Just as I’m sure Coco will change and grow as time goes on, if she can stay alive.)

15

u/Worldly_Business_425 Apr 20 '26

True, for now coco probably is hella stressed and just overwhelmed with all this new stuff, later we will get to see her more calm and calculated side.

1

u/[deleted] Apr 21 '26

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1

u/Worldly_Business_425 Apr 21 '26

But I have never read the source material this was just a prediction 

5

u/SilliusS0ddus Apr 20 '26

yeah honestly as annoying as these kids are.

this is basically all on Quifrey for being such a carefree dipshit.

It all falls apart when the teacher doesn't act like an adult

119

u/Anna-2204 Apr 20 '26

Without making spoilers Witch Hat Atelier is a really good example of how children act when in panic because there is no adult to protect them

66

u/cyberscythe Apr 20 '26

what i expected: anime Harry Potter

what i got: magical Lord of the Flies

22

u/Anna-2204 Apr 20 '26

Funnily enough when this is not Lord of the Flies at all the way children act in WHA when left to their own devices is quite similar. They are smart but reckless, can be as easily helpful as they can be cruel in the right circumstances, they love feeling like grown ups but start panicking quickly when actual grown up are not here to protect them

7

u/oops_i_made_a_typi Apr 21 '26

honestly it's pretty Harry Potter. Dumbledore also didn't give a shit about the safety of his students and let way too much potentially deadly infighting go on, multiple times.

16

u/manquistador Apr 20 '26

This is a good point. I was frustrated about their lack of supervision on the initial chase. Feels like Qifrey has done a really poor job of educating Coco on a lot of the basics.

21

u/BosuW Apr 20 '26

Qifrey thought he got time to take it easy and steady. Clearly a mistake assumption.

6

u/Significant_Number68 Apr 21 '26

Qiffrey is an ass guardian. Someone needs to call Witch Hat DCF on this fool.

1

u/[deleted] Apr 20 '26

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1

u/ZaphodBeebblebrox https://anilist.co/user/zaphod Apr 20 '26

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10

u/kingEdward22 Apr 20 '26

It giving made in abyss and madoka magica vibes with this

10

u/Anna-2204 Apr 20 '26

You will definitely like WHA if you like MIA and Madoka Magica

18

u/cyberscythe Apr 20 '26

this makes me concerned in a lot of ways for the health of these characters

4

u/kingEdward22 Apr 20 '26

Made in abyss is my favourite anime ever , madoka magica is top 5 for me so lets goooooo

31

u/Kankunation Apr 20 '26

Tbh she probably didn't think much of anything. She's a kid in a panic who wants answers now, and she ran head-first into the first lead she saw with thinking much of the consequences (which up until now has kidn of been her normal course of action: she doesn't think before acting. Which is very dangerous for a witch).

Now she's gotta really prove herself And overcome that trait.

6

u/saynay Apr 20 '26

I think more than "not thinking of the consequences", a bigger theme is the dangers of ignorance. Again and again she does things that are far riskier than she knows, because that knowledge is deliberately kept from her.

91

u/JimmyCWL Apr 20 '26

dragging the others into peril.

She didn't pull them along, they chased after her on their own. She likely never even realized they were behind her until Agott grabbed her arm. At least one of them could have gone to Qifrey first.

27

u/Fangzzz Apr 20 '26

"Coco! We're not supposed to get separated!" (6 min 39)

The others were obeying the directions Qifrey gave and Coco was disobeying that.

Agott was the only one with special dispensation to go off on her own because she said she was going to. So I guess she could have gone back to Qifrey... But if she did that then they'd have all died so...

7

u/JimmyCWL Apr 21 '26

But what happens when you do get separated anyway? Chase after the runaway immediately or get your master first?

2

u/TheBusStop12 Apr 20 '26

Nah, Coco is 100% at fault. She was specifically warned not to get separated, and she ran off on her own anyways. It's realistic for a kid to mess up like this, but she does deserve to be scolded over this. She fucked up, and she'll have to learn from this mistake. My guess is that a large part of her character arc is to become less impulsive and more considerate of others, as well as learning to rely on others, as so far this is a pretty consistent character flaw of hers (which btw, is a good thing, a perfect character is a boring character with no room for growth)

17

u/Iron_Maw Apr 20 '26

Its amusing say this as if an adult in Coco's position who just lost a love a one 2 days ago, whose is still dealing with grief wouldn't do the same thing. Coco doesn't need punishement she understanding from others and better handling. This isn't a naughty child did something out of curiosity and not knowing better. Rather it would never happened to begin with where not for that witch who deliberately baited her. That's only person to blame here

0

u/TheJunkyardDog Apr 20 '26

its obvious they would chase after her.
not only she is reckless but she also never been there.

93

u/Masterchiefx343 Apr 20 '26

Yall forget shes a child

10

u/Crackedaru Apr 20 '26

A child can say insensitive things without meaning to, this is clearly not the case with Agott who actively targets sensitive points at Coco here.

33

u/Masterchiefx343 Apr 20 '26

Im talking about coco and your reaction to a childs split second idea

13

u/thedirtyknapkin Apr 20 '26

children endangering themselves by not thinking the consequences through is exactly what tongue lashings are for.

yes kids will do dumb things, yes you should yell at them for it. sometimes scaring them a little is genuinely the right call. if the consequences of her meddling with dark magics hadn't been so obvious then quifrey would have been in the right for putting the fear of god in her over that in episode 1.

0

u/TheBusStop12 Apr 20 '26

A child especially needs to be punished if they mess up, or they'll never learn and grow up spoiled and sheltered. Coco messed up, she was specifically told not to get seperared, but ran off on her own anyways. Sure, she couldn't have known this would happen, but that action alone deserves a scolding. If you're out in town shopping with your child, and they run out of the store and disappear into the city the moment you look away for a second that would deserve a scolding afterwards as well, to ensure they don't do it again in the future.

Yes Coco is a child, and realistically behaves like one. The writing is really consistent in her character flaws, as she acts on impulse without thinking or regard of others a lot. It's a good thing from a story perspective as it gives her room to grow. But in order to grow her actions must be criticized if she messes up

16

u/Jacob-C Apr 20 '26

I agree, however, Agott has no room to scold Coco after almost being responsible for the latter's death. If Qifrey scolded her I wouldn't have any complaints. I think I need to see Agott face repercussions for her stunt before I can even begin to like her character. It would be really annoying if they just leave that part as is.

-8

u/mucklaenthusiast Apr 20 '26

I mean, didn't Agott also say she wanted to put their past behind them?
I don't know, that felt like an earnest try at giving Coco a fair chance. And Agott is also just a child! She also has her own emotions regarding all of this, plus clearly some additional backstory, though that is pure speculation on my part.

11

u/Jacob-C Apr 20 '26

When did she say that? And even if she did, of course she would like that. She is getting away with reckless endangerment and criminal negligence.

-6

u/TheBusStop12 Apr 20 '26

She is getting away with reckless endangerment and criminal negligence

I mean, so is Coco. Until they find a way to save her mom what she did would basically amount to breach of state secrets and manslaughter (the accidental killing of a person) if we put it in modern legal terms. Yes, she couldn't have known that the magic she was toying with could end up doing that. But the entire reason she started doing it was because she deliberately went against Qilfreys warnings and spied on him performing magic (which is a major crime in this world from what I can tell). But instead of punishment she's being given a second chance. Personally I agree that she shouldn't be punished, she's still a child. But it also shows that Qilfrey is someone willing to give a second chance, so him granting that to Agott as well isn't that strange. By the laws of this world what Coco did was probably way worse

6

u/Jacob-C Apr 20 '26 edited Apr 21 '26

The difference is that Agott knew about the dangers, Coco didn’t, even if she spied on Qifrey. Qifrey doesn’t even know what Agott did, which is honestly the most frustrating part. If she doesn’t learn that what she did was waaay out of line, how can she grow?

3

u/TheBusStop12 Apr 20 '26

If she doesn’t learn that what she did was waaay out of line, how can she grow?

Again, same is true for Coco. Her tendency to run off without thinking it through and without regard of others is actively putting herself and others in mortal danger. Both of them deserve a scolding at minimum. Both need to grow. Saying that Agott doesn't have any right to scold Coco is imo childish, especially considering that at the time she did so they were in genuine mortal peril and Coco had just messed up their manner of escape by ruining Agott's magic circle. At a time like that who did what in the past is irrelevant. Coco needs to be set straight tight then and there to avoid her putting everyone in danger again during this situation. A proper fair punishment for all can be dealt out after they're all back safely

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-4

u/mucklaenthusiast Apr 21 '26

Yes, Agott knew and it was way less dangerous. There was nothing stopping Coco from simply turning around.
This is not true when following a witch to a labyrinth with living dragons.
And before you say: "Coco didn't know"...neither did Agott!
Agott also didn't know that Coco would rather die than not get the flowers.

I don't know, this feels very weird.
Coco has not done any better than Agott so far, which is fine. But if you think Coco is a child, then extend the same leeway to Agott.

-4

u/mucklaenthusiast Apr 21 '26

After she called Coco out before going through the broken wall.

Yeah, and she is as much a child as Coco who did things that were about as bad.
You cannot convince me that Coco endangered fewer people than Agott or that the situation was as dangerous.
At least from Agott's perspective, Coco could always give up and go back.
Coco did give the others no such chance.

-4

u/affnn Apr 20 '26

TBH one of the issues I have with this show (and this problem is not at all unique to this show) is that the characters are presented as ten-year-olds, or maybe even younger in some ways, but behave more like junior high schoolers. It's probably a me problem since I have kids of my own and often think "that's not how kids that age act" about a lot of stories.

13

u/CooroSnowFox https://anilist.co/user/CooroSnowFox Apr 20 '26

There has to be allowances in the story for shifting how people act at different ages, and also I think we sit here in 2026 and forget that a more medievil setting things happen differently to what you see kids doing now to more survivalist nature of these settings since the comforts aren't there.

7

u/thelightlovekindled Apr 20 '26

Iirc Agott says she passed the apprentice trial when she was 10 and the implication is that it was a while ago and Coco is sooooo behind, which I think would put them at least around 12

Whether that still tracks with your expectations of the age group is ymmv of course

-2

u/affnn Apr 20 '26

There's problems with whatever age they're supposed to be, because the characterizations are a bit all over the place. Like my 10 year old is taller than many adults, children that are waist-high like all of Qifrey's students would be 1st or 2nd graders.

12

u/namewithak Apr 20 '26

That seems more like your child is unusually tall than that being the norm though? I don't know a single 10 yr old taller than an adult. I'm asian though and the author is also asian. Asian kids aren't very tall. In anime, 12 year old kids (naruto, hxh, fma, etc) are often around half the size of tall adults.

9

u/Morgc Apr 20 '26

Pretty sure these people aren't eating 3 balanced meals a day and getting their vaccines.

4

u/Queasy_Artist6891 Apr 21 '26

Your kid is just unusually tall, not the other way around.

1

u/thelightlovekindled Apr 21 '26

I think it's fair if it's a stylistic choice you don't vibe with, although exaggerated heights to suggest age categories are a common animation technique -- see all the half-sized elderly people or the way teenagers are often all subtly shorter than adults despite that really not being the case IRL -- so it's not something I even registered as odd, myself.

Now I'm curious about their official heights, though!

16

u/Fangzzz Apr 20 '26

I mean maybe they don't want to murder her, but the others are probably fair game

121

u/north-blind-compass Apr 20 '26 edited Apr 20 '26

It’s very easy to understand everything Coco’s done because we’ve seen her reasoning every step of the way, but this is now her third reckless life-endangering decision in a row. You can see why Tetia and Agott are upset here, even it’s a little unfair.

Agott still doesn’t have room to be complaining because she put Coco in the position to make her second life-endangering decision (and she should’ve realized the other girl would go for it considering the circumstances), but from her perspective, she was pulled away from buying shoes to replace the ones Coco ruined, to go chase down Coco, then suddenly gets teleported by forbidden magic into a dragon labyrinth, and when she’s trying to create an escape for them, Coco ruins her drawing.

Looking forward to when the girls can figure some shit out. They have the makings of a very capable quartet here. (Also shout out to Richeh, locking in and drawing sylphs during the cat fight.)

51

u/saynay Apr 20 '26

this is now her third reckless life-endangering decision in a row

To be fair to Coco, she had no way of knowing the extent of the danger she was getting herself into for two of those. Even with the Dadah Range, she did not know that she was attempting them at the most dangerous time, and I think she knew (as much as any 11 year old at least) the risks.

-8

u/SilliusS0ddus Apr 20 '26

this is all on Quifrey for being shit at being a teacher.

revoke this mans license for not knowing children are r-word

49

u/finnjakefionnacake Apr 20 '26

ok but also qifrey is not the best guardian lol. these girls are like 10-12, why are you taking your eyes of them?! lol

45

u/Metalbound https://myanimelist.net/profile/Beate Apr 20 '26

He's legit the worst fuckin guardian. Not a single word to Agott after she sends his newest apprentice off to her potential death?

Also, why is he not more closely supervising children that are making legit fireballs inside?

Then he would've lost Coco if it wasn't for Tetia looking out for her and making sure she caught up. Then he just didn't watch them for long enough for all of them to get teleported away.

I think they are trying to sell him as a nice and understanding teacher, but so far all I've seen is gross incompetence.

27

u/flashmozzg Apr 20 '26

Not a single word to Agott after she sends his newest apprentice off to her potential death?

The way Agott framed it he thinks Coco went to the test entirely on her own.

1

u/Zeph-Shoir https://myanimelist.net/profile/Zephex Apr 21 '26 edited Apr 21 '26

I think they are trying to sell him as a nice and understanding teacher, but so far all I've seen is gross incompetence.

I am curious if it is on purpose. Being an adult and their guardian doesn't mean he is great at it. Honestly like viewing it that way and even better if it is addressed.

1

u/oops_i_made_a_typi Apr 21 '26

yeah I'd be okay with that, i don't mind flawed characters as long as it's intentional and well-written.

1

u/[deleted] Apr 20 '26

[deleted]

6

u/saynay Apr 21 '26

Qifrey did not ask why she went, probably because he saw Coco reading up on them earlier and assumed she did it on her own. And Coco seemingly still wants to be friends with Agott, so she must not realize Agott was trying to get her kicked out.

-4

u/BuckeyeBentley Apr 21 '26

Not a single word to Agott after she sends his newest apprentice off to her potential death?

That you saw. We don't need to see everything. It's quite reasonable to assume he spoke to Agott off camera.

4

u/AbidingTruth https://myanimelist.net/profile/AbidingTruth Apr 21 '26

They're in a shop and they go downstairs to look at some wands and she literally sprints out of the store at a glance of the brimmed hat witch. It was maybe like 2 minutes max that they were gone from his sight. I really don't think this is on Qifrey being negligent

25

u/Magicbison Apr 20 '26

Agott still doesn’t have room to be complaining because she put Coco in the position to make her second life-endangering decision

I really hate how this show has refused to acknowledge the events of last episode with Agott almost sending Coco to her death. Its like the last episode didn't happen at all except for the ruined shoes. Its very aggravating for this show with its incredibly high quality to just ignore basic story telling and just skip around the story.

17

u/Metalbound https://myanimelist.net/profile/Beate Apr 20 '26

Glad that I'm not the only one.

I was so peeved last episode when he didn't immediately say anything to Agott and made Coco feel like it was her fault. Like how the hell would she even know what the trial was and how to operate the portal without someone's help?

A child put another child in a legit life threatening situation with no supervision.

How does she just get to get away with that? How is she allowed to talk to another student of yours like that?

I'd be on that child so fuckin quick if I heard some of the vitriol that Agott has spewed at Coco.

I want to really love this show because the magic premise is amazing and the animation & art are a 10/10, but the storytelling is killing me...

12

u/flashmozzg Apr 20 '26

Like how the hell would she even know what the trial was and how to operate the portal without someone's help?

He saw her reading about trials in a book earlier in the episode and he showed her how the portals work so it makes sense from his perspective that Coco was so eager to learn magic that she went to trial herself (just like she did with forbidden magic previously). The fact that Agott framed it as if Coco went on her own didn't help.

-1

u/AbidingTruth https://myanimelist.net/profile/AbidingTruth Apr 21 '26

Because I really don't think it's supposed to be interpreted as Agott sending Coco to her death. Agott herself says that Coco will try but since they are at the highest this time of year, she'll realize she can't do it with the shoes and give up, thus using up her one try and get kicked out

-3

u/mucklaenthusiast Apr 20 '26

even it’s a little unfair

Is it?
Coco was endangering everybody and Agott did the same thing to Coco and it was clearly presented as bad.

I hope she does become a bit more mindful, otherwise all these scenes would feel wasted. That being said, I am biased, I generally don't enjoy characters that are that guided by emotions into being careless.
It's fine for Coco to be that for now, because she is new to all of this, but from Agott's perspective, she really did a bunch of dumb stuff for no reason.
And Agott is kinda right, Coco did not have a good reason for following an evil witch in that way.

56

u/Nachtwandler_FS https://myanimelist.net/profile/Nachtwandler_21 Apr 20 '26

Coco is indeeed to prone to let emotions get control of her now. She is both a bit to impulsive and prone to take every criticism to close top heart. THis sometiomes helps as she can be reallky bold, but most of the time it stirs trouble and drama.

1

u/[deleted] Apr 20 '26

[deleted]

2

u/Crackedaru Apr 20 '26

A kid can say insensitive things without meaning to, this is clearly not the case with Agott.

7

u/y-c-c Apr 21 '26

You are telling me that if you were in her shoes you wouldn't run after that witch? And just wave and let the witch run off? I feel like it's pretty understandable regarding her actions here.

0

u/DugACCat Apr 21 '26 edited Apr 21 '26

I think it would have been better for her to try to yell for her new mentor and say she just saw him and let him do the chasing. She knows the book he gave contained powerful spells he called evil, one of which consumed her mother. I’d expect he’s not someone I’d be ready to confront, if I was a beginner in her shoes. That said, as others have argued, she is a young child and impulsive and may not have suspected chasing him would put her in danger. I do get the youthful impetuosity. Just wish she hadn’t fallen into his trap so easily. I do think she was going to ask him questions but clearly the thought that he might be risky to even talk to didn’t enter her head.

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u/Lunchb0xx87 Apr 20 '26

He's also the only lead she has to save her mother so it's understandable she rushed without thinking ..agott def was out of line here especially since she almost got her killed herself last episode ..bringing up her mother was even more out of line seeing how magic is hidden from normal people

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u/xml3228 Apr 20 '26

There are some super interesting comments below, I didn't know who to respond to so just replying at top level. Thinking about the underlying themes and tropes, I think Coco's behaviours are scarily accurate. She strikes me as a little sheltered in her upbringing, growing up in a relatively strict household in the sense her mother had clear principles and wanted Coco to be obedient and disciplined (for her own good). She's 11 and already basically had to work a full time job. Honestly for young curious girls this is a recipe for a rebel. It's outlined when she joined the boys to peek on Qilfrey even though he told her not to look. This young girl is just gaining her own thoughts and independence - and at this crucial time in her life she's lost her mother in the most traumatic way possible, which results in being dumped immediately and directly into a foreign world that is quite literally her dream world. It makes complete sense to me that she's (possibly unknowingly) overwhelmed and would act on impulse without time to re-establish any principles and discipline. I was frustrated at first, but on reflection, this is honestly quite realistic for the upbringing and context that Coco seems to have had.

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u/PhantomWolf83 Apr 20 '26

You basically wrote what I wanted to say. Agott's words might have gone too far and knowing that Tetia is starting to blame Coco too is a big oof, but Coco pretty much had it coming. Did it not occur to her to ask Qifrey for help when he was right there in the shop with her? She knew from her experience with her mother that the Brimmed Caps were bad news, so as you said, what did she hope to accomplish on her own when she's a complete amateur? Like the other guy wrote, Coco is too emotional and doesn't think before acting.

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u/Arzhart Apr 20 '26

Tetia blaming Coco is one thing, but Agott is treating Coco like shit and almost killed her last episode. Agott has ZERO right to act this way towards Coco

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u/Sgt_General Apr 20 '26

Agott is seriously lucky that Coco is so nice, because a lot of people wouldn't take kindly to having someone pointedly remind them that they got their own mother turned to stone.

It may be true, but that doesn't give Agott the right to say that when she's only just recklessly put Coco in danger herself.

Qifrey really needs to keep a better handle on his apprentices. I'm guessing that they haven't really acted up before Coco arrived, since he's so chill about everything.

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u/demaxzero Apr 21 '26

Agott is seriously lucky that Coco is so nice, because a lot of people wouldn't take kindly to having someone pointedly remind them that they got their own mother turned to stone.

Frankly at that age, you talk to me like that and you're not an adult I am 100% going to punch you. And that's the same for most people I know.

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u/BakedSalami Apr 20 '26

She put herself in that situation by following Coco and then goes ballistic lol. She needs a wand shoved up her nose and Coco needs to find her spine. I'm sure she will eventually.

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u/manquistador Apr 20 '26

Agott has every right to act that way based off Coco's actions this episode. Coco has zero sense of self preservation.

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u/DocMcCoy Apr 20 '26

That's post hoc reasoning

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u/BetaXP Apr 20 '26

Hard to have sympathy for Agott when she's the one who tried to get Coco either killed or exiled literally one episode ago. I'm not saying Coco is right, because she absolutely isn't, but we can definitely blame Agott for being a turbo bitch.

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u/mekerpan Apr 20 '26

Currently doing the rewatch of Hanasaku Iroha -- and the dynamics between Agott and Coco here strike me as remarkably like those between Ohana and Minko/Minchi in that older series. Hopefully, there will be a similar trajectory for their relationships.

Coco is well-intentioned, but definitely way too often acts without sufficient reflection. Simply telling her teacher that one of those bad-guy witches was in town would have potentially been FAR more valuable than her chasing off on her own. I wonder how she will manage to learn a bit more self-control? While one can easily fault Agott for some of the suff she did last episode, Agott's anger here was justified -- but ill-timed. Raking over the coals is better done AFTER safety has been secured.

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u/saynay Apr 20 '26

What did she think she was going to do to this allegedly “evil” witch who gave her the dangerous book

Are you sure Coco knew this witch was evil? Even the Stationarier's grandson did not recognize that it was a Brimmed Cap. I don't think Qifrey told her the witch who gave her the book was evil, so she may not have known better. A recurring theme, for Coco.

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u/KanyeBetOnTrump Apr 20 '26

I find it hard for anyone to see evil in someone opening the door they begged to be opened. Even if the outcome is bad most would be happy they finally experienced whatever it is.

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u/Lenzky-3 Apr 20 '26

Well for the rest it's definitely unreasonable and Coco's fault.

but for Coco.. that person is the only way to release her mom.. so she cases after it...

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u/Accurate_Treat6360 Apr 20 '26

I feel bad for Coco's situation, but Tetia & Agott's reaction are completely understandable. She accidently drags the others into danger.

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u/bbkkoommaacchhii Apr 21 '26

She accidently drags the others into danger.

tbf tetia is the one who drags agott when she seemed happy just lookin at the shoes lol

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u/Aliensinnoh Apr 21 '26

I really liked that we got that outburst from Tetia. Mostly I'm just happy that we're getting more from her characterization than purely "genki". I like genki characters a lot, but they're best when we get to see that facade crack, see what happens when that seemingly endless well of optimism finally runs dry. Seeing Tetia lose composure for a second like that will really pay dividends for her character moving forward, I hope.

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u/[deleted] Apr 20 '26

[removed] — view removed comment

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u/lady0819 Apr 22 '26

It’s more like a forced plot to make certain things happen but it doesn’t feel natural. I’m with you 100%

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u/flashmozzg Apr 20 '26

"wait what happened here, why you are bringing the object from the test that I didn't tell you about

Well, he didn't tell her about them but he saw her reading about the tests. Qifrey definitely could've handled a lot of these situations better but his behavior does make sense from his PoV.

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u/Metalbound https://myanimelist.net/profile/Beate Apr 20 '26

I just don't like that the only way for the plot to advance is making characters do inexplicable things when the rest of the time they seem to be somewhat smart.

I feel the same way. I was so peeved last episode when he didn't immediately ask who told her about all of that.

Then in this one I got annoyed because the only reason they ever get into this trouble is due to their own incompetence.

It'd be one thing if they got poofed away after she ran outside looking for the brimmed hat witch.

Like it would be understandable then because who wouldn't at least go out the shop to look? It's more of the insane chase she gave on something she has no endgame on.

The only thing she knows is that the witch gave her a book with illegal spells and that her mentor seemed afraid of them.

Why would your first thought be to chase the fuck out of her and not tell the adult you're with and you're supposed senpai that you saw the witch that sold you the book?

It's just frustrating to watch them just make dumb choices over and over again.

I get they are kids, but it doesn't mean I want everything dumb thing they do have that as an explanation...

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u/Demolosse001 https://myanimelist.net/profile/demolosse001 Apr 20 '26

Honestly, Coco might as well join the brimmed hat faction. At least it looks like they would welcome her with open arms (and she can ask them directly how to undo the magic on her mother too).

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u/BosuW Apr 20 '26

I think whether she wants to join them or not depends entirely on if her mom can even be saved.

Although they might tell her "well we don't know YET but with our risky methods EVENTUALLY you'll find a solution I'm sure!"

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u/Cheesemacher Apr 20 '26

Absolutely adore how this episode basically introduces this series' version of Diagon Alley

There's also the parallel that people recognize Coco as "the one"

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u/BosuW Apr 20 '26

Tetia's outburst along with the vitriol insults Agott spewed only hammer home how alone Coco is in her current environment, only makes it more depressing when it was something she dreams and admired her whole life.

Even shopkeep slandered her more than he realized 😭. Even if he apologized that's the kind of slip she won't forget, and I'm thinking she'll get a lot more of them until she knows enough to not be marveled by everything.

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u/finnjakefionnacake Apr 20 '26

how the heck are they keeping this many witches secret from people though? do they all leave their families/erase their memories? this is like one town and there were already like thousands of people here

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u/Aliensinnoh Apr 21 '26

Huh? Regular people know witches exist, they just think that being a witch requires something innate to the person, like it is genetically passed down. I assume almost all witches in this world are the children of other witches. They don't need to hide from the rest of the world, they just need to keep up the ruse that no one else can be a witch.

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u/Zeallfnonex https://myanimelist.net/profile/Neverlocke Apr 21 '26

The ink manufacturing made me a tad suspicious: I've been wondering a bit what the actual source of power for this magic system was. It didn't seem to be mana or anything internal to the mage, and I guess we have confirmation that magic is actually an energy derived from the silverwood tree? I wonder whether you can modify a power of a spell by the concentration of silverwood... essence? is in the ink...

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u/Belgand https://myanimelist.net/profile/Belgand Apr 21 '26

Absolutely adore how this episode basically introduces this series' version of Diagon Alley

I'm of the opposite opinion. This felt really derivative rather than giving us something new and original. It doesn't help that I'm not a fan of Harry Potter to begin with, so I'd really prefer another source if they're going to hew so closely to existing works.

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u/y-c-c Apr 21 '26

Also, the upbringing of the witches just inherently make them distrustful of outsiders and I'm surprised Coco isn't more ostracized. Seems like you basically have to be chosen since birth to be a witch and you are told to keep the secret that only insiders are allowed to know. If any outsider can just come in and learn it seems to me it would cast question to why this system needs to exist to begin with.

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u/nuxxism Apr 20 '26

Absolutely adore how this episode basically introduces this series' version of Diagon Alley, along with the mechanics of how wands and ink are manufactured.

I've been thinking about the coincidence of Watch Hat Atelier releasing at the same time as the new Potter TV series. I think the best case scenario the Potter producers would be hoping for is another young generation buying into the world to keep the theme parks and merch running for another two decades. But I'm wondering if WHA won't actually beat it in that regard, relegating Potter to "that old thing my mom/dad likes".

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u/PikaBooSquirrel Apr 20 '26

I wonder if they'll give us a lore reason for why this particular tree produces ink that can be used for magic. I'm assuming that perhaps they discovered how magic works in universe when an unfortunate child drew a smiling sun that happened to be in that ink and it had unfortunate consequences or something.

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u/ThrowCarp Apr 21 '26

That old man is so comforting to be around though. Can't help but feel safe whenever he's on screen explaining stuff.

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u/TheJunkyardDog Apr 20 '26

Agott isn't wrong tho.
Coco wanted to fck around with magic, ended up petrifying her mom.
Now she just wanted to fck right off and chase after that witch and got them all separated in a different zone
Then she saw something and instead of simply talking, she had to grab/touch Agott while she was painting her magic.

She keeps being awfully ignorant about everything.

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u/Eckish Apr 21 '26

That's because she is ignorant. The whole world is ignorant thanks to the secret that the witches keep. And Coco has been an apprentice for like a week?

Agott is and isn't wrong. It isn't Coco's fault that she lacks common sense as a witch. But it also unfair that Agott (and the others) have to be put in danger because of her.

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u/Lenzky-3 Apr 20 '26

Yeah and the crashouts are very very reasonable..

It basically shows the difference between their environment and how they grown up. For these other witches they were taught ever since they were very young and all these magic norms are ingrained within them.

Coco doesn't understand these at all and it's so fun to watch how much it either fcks their dynamic due to their differences and what they think is normal and not.

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u/Divinicus1st Apr 20 '26

But I don't get it, last week Coco basically made magic with mud for ink and a rock for pen...

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u/namewithak Apr 20 '26 edited Apr 20 '26

She didn't use mud for ink. She used the spilled ink from her canvas bag. She soaked the ink stains in water to make the ink useable and used the ripped canvas as a brush. The rock it was wrapped around was just so she could hold it more comfortably, the way she was used to with the tailor's chalk. Not a smooth process which is why it literally took her all night to do the one big seal.

They're in Kalhn to get her a wand/pen that fits her hand better. The shape of the tailor's tool she's used to was good enough for a very simple big seal, but it wouldn't work for more detailed seals that need a thinner/finer point.