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Unnamed Memory (TV)

Source: Light Novel (completed @ 6 volumes, written by Kuji Furumiya, illustrated by Chibi)

Demographic: Shounen

Animation Studio: ENGI

Genres: adventure, drama, fantasy, romance

Themes: aristocray, medieval, royalty, sorcery, witches

Plot Summary: Prince Oscar has been cursed since childhood to never have a child of his own, and he seeks out the calamitous witch Tinasha to find a way to break the curse, braving the trials of her tower. When they meet, Tinasha reveals that she has a strange connection to Oscar, and a curious courtship begins between them that threatens to shake the power structures of their world.

Air Date & Platform:
April 9, 2024 (Tuesdays)
Available on: Crunchyroll

Episode Count / Runtime: Pending

I liked the premiere. It didn't wow me like Wind Breaker did, but most things don't. Instead, I have lot of intriguing questions: What is the Witch of Silence's deal? Why does the narration talk about changing the past, when this isn't (at least, at the outset,) a time travel story? How has Lazar not had a heart attack from all the Oscar induced stress?

I've got some hope for it- I like that its adapting what seems to be a finished work. Don't know if that means the show will be a full adaptation (wouldn't that be nice?) but presumably not in a single-cour run. I'm definitely sticking around for now.

I liked it. The central relationship was a bit more mature than the anime norm - kind of a Mahou:Hero and Archenemy vibe without the emphasis on economic development (at least not yet). The prince seems confident without being a total @$$hole and the witch seems
pretty cool and capable herself.

The curses and mysteries and lurking menaces makes for a pretty good set-up, and I am wondering how this Witch of Silence thing is going to play out once word gets around that another witch is sticking her non-pointed nose in. .

Episode 1

As it happens, I'm not watching a ton of fantasy setting shows this season so I have the patience for one like this. I too liked the first episode and it is enough to invoke the 3-episode rule. I liked the back and forth between Oscar and the witch. Seems like they'll have an amusing relationship.

I am a bit late on this one but so be it. I liked the first episode due to the mc being a confident and calm man who goes for what he wants without stumbling like a child or blushing like crazy. An actual functional and rational adult....not too many of those in anime, especially on the male side of things. The witch is one big mystery and the banter between the two was fun. As for the sidekick....please scream a bit less.

Episode 2:

Are we to understand that Witchy McWitchface looks older now? I could not tell any difference, all I had was the dialogue to go on.

Sadly, the things I liked about the show seem to have been pushed aside for the dime-a-dozen infinitely-powerful protagonist thing. In addition to the aforementioned super-uterus, our witchy lead is also a master swordswoman, has a cool dragon familiar that can become small or big as convenient, can just make people invincible, etc. Which would be fine if she was "the mysterious witch," but as a viewpoint character, directly solving problems by being super strong, it's all the same eye-rolling stuff from every other show.

I don't know if I'll make it through episode 3, even as a Tuesday show.

I'm still liking it. The witch's primary conflict seems to be social and and internal (as in, she's been despised and therefore isolated too long) rather than a matter of brute force, so the OP thing doesn't bother me as much.

That would be an interesting show. I wish could watch it. What I saw instead was "hey, I'm a witch" and everyone said "oh, cool!" and then the rest of the episode was spent fighting.

Welp, our brains all exist in slightly different dimensions. No biggie.

I am also still liking it, as for the witch being overpowered, being very old and having all the time in the world to become op does that to you. I would honestly be more surprised if she was not op in at least several aspects.

I can see the issue, certainly. The show's introduced a few different potential conflicts, but I'm not sure where it wants to focus its efforts. And it doesn't pull all of them off equally well. The physical conflicts are stake-less due to the aforementioned OP qualities. The emotional conflict- the push/pull of the leads' relationship- seems...lacking. Its a weirdly stable dynamic, like there isn't any tension there despite the situation and the fact that I like their conversational rapport. The most successful thread might be the drama and mystery about Tinasha's history...and we have fairly little to work with there.

Oscar's also a bit off-putting, what with the "let's get married, have kids" focus. And he really doesn't need to be- the full context of the situation is easy to imagine and may help. I was waiting for Lazar to give Tinasha a more thorough explanation of the heir situation- the kingdom mandates dynastic succession, everyone else that could inherit the throne is missing (wtf? why is this not a bigger deal?) and if there isn't a legitimate heir then we have a succession crisis and war. It's not just about his lineage, it's about preventing civil war. That's why he's so fixated. Or something. I don't know the source material; I'm just making assumptions. But Lazar just...leaves off after mentioning the cousins disappearing.

I do find it odd that no one wants to ask the king why the Witch of Silence cursed/blessed them. Oscar'd rather go to the ends of the planet than have an uncomfortable conversation with his father. There's a joke there regarding gender stereotypes, but eh.

Not to mention that the whole thing reeks of some kind of conspiracy. A powerful witch casts a curse for some reason that won't be revealed (plus the death of the queen if I remember correctly) and most others of the royal bloodline disappear somehow. Besides it indeed not being made as crucial of a matter as it is one has to wonder what the truth of both events is.

While the third episode was just as entertaining as those before it the show has some issues. The rapey witch is not one of those btw. that whole incident did make me do a double take though. No, the real issue is the lack of romance plus chemistry. We do not see the witch and prince having actual quality time building their bond. So far we see them running around solving issues 90% of the time. Add a lack of chemistry to that and it feels fake/unearned to see them grow closer since we do not see them actually interacting much outside of situations/conflicts.

Otherwise the weird pacing plus Lazar being the most useless side kick you can have also take a bit away from the show. I will likely keep watching but I am slighty disappointed.

Yeah, the romance bit- you know, the thing that I'm pretty sure I'm supposed to be sold on for the show to work?- is just not clicking for me. I like Tinasha. I almost like Oscar. I have absolutely no opinion about them together. Repeating the same argument over and over is hard to characterize as good "chemistry", at least to me. I suppose the actions of Lucrezia may have broken a wall of sorts, so hopefully will see a bit more that makes root for them together.

I think part of the problem with the romance is that Oscar was proposing marriage two hot seconds after he found out she could probably survive his curse (in theory). That's part of why the way he asks her to marry him every time they start a conversation seems less like playful banter and instead just emphasizes that he basically views her as an [insert spouse here].

So...yeah...the shows not firing on all cylinders for me either. It's firing on some though, and I'm not watching any other anime on Tuesday.

(How's that for a ringing endorsement?)

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