Journal with Witch

Episode 4

“Having someone around constantly is enough to tire me out.” As somebody with a limited social battery myself, I found Makio's statement here pithy and relatable enough to share on Bluesky with the caption “real.” It's a sentiment most introverts can intimately relate to. It's a punchline that turned Hitori Gotou into a generational icon. Journal with Witch, however, doesn't rest its laurels on relatable quips; it digs its claws into the anguish introverts both experience and cause.

Like Makio, I live alone. I am profoundly privileged and profoundly stupid to do so. Rent in my area has inflated to almost double what I paid when I started living here, and I would save so much money if I got a roommate or moved back in with my parents. Nevertheless, I continue to throw money down the drain because I have this weakness. I need a fortress of solitude to rest and recuperate in. The periods of my life when I lacked this respite all wore me down psychologically. I remember holing up in my bedroom with dirty dishes because I could not bring myself to go out and interact with my roommate's friends. I felt as simultaneously angry, ashamed, and suffocated as Makio did.

While Journal with Witch fully understands where Makio is coming from, the narrative pays even more attention to Asa's equally fraught situation. Asa, as Kasamachi quickly learns, is far more outspoken and extroverted than her aunt. She wants to “stand out” at her entrance ceremony, and she goes out of her way to talk to the shy girl in the seat next to her. However, Asa's ambitions do not translate into success. She feels out of step with her peers, and her attempts to insert herself into the conversation come out awkward. It's easy for introverts like Makio and I to forget that extroverts can feel lonely—in fact, it is more likely for them to feel lonely.

The key word this week is distance. After three episodes building up Asa and Makio's connection, Journal with Witch swings its camera to the chasm that still separates them. Makio, her tongue loosened by alcohol and her old friends, kicks off the affair by denying that she is Asa's foster parent and refusing to say she loves her. When she calls Asa immature, I wonder if that's Makio unconsciously acknowledging her own immaturity. She knows it isn't rational for her to project her sister's cruelty onto her niece. She probably knows that a 35-year-old woman shouldn't feel beaten by the presence of two teenage girls in her living room. She might not know how weird it is to leave in the middle of a conversation to buy milk. People carry their childhood habits into adulthood, where they easily calcify if they don't reexamine them. Like Kasamichi says, adults are more sensitive than children think they are. Makio still cowers before her sister. Kasamichi resents his parents.

Asa, as a 15-year-old, is intrinsically more plastic. She takes Makio's lack of involvement as a given, and she's surprised when her nonchalance inspires so much concern from Emiri's mom. In her mind, she is simply adapting to her new home. However, Asa can't stop herself from yearning for more—yearning for a mom, if not her mom. She doesn't forget to close her journal; she leaves it open in the hope that Makio will see it and talk to her about it. She immediately prods Kasamachi for the juicy deets and his and Makio's relationship. She's stunned by Makio's utter lack of a reaction to her entrance ceremony woes. Finally, when it gets too much, she cries and confesses how it hurts her to eat alone, at last prompting a proper conversation with her aunt. While I personally relate far more to Makio, Journal with Witch ensures that I understand Asa just as well.

Per usual, the writing's sophistication sidesteps simple problems with simple answers. Asa couldn't know how belittling “Makio-chan” sounds to her aunt—a reminder that her sister didn't take her seriously as a writer or as an adult. Makio, meanwhile, doesn't realize how hurtful her naturally curt responses can be to her niece, who needs attention more than she needs affection. While these are issues that proper communication can solve, Asa and Makio also behave like real people who avoid speaking their mind when it's difficult to do so. They let their feelings fester. Makio, with years of practice, sticks her head in the sand and distracts herself with writing. Asa lacks that experience, so her body steps in and forces her to sleep or cry when she needs a release valve.

The resolution is authentically incomplete as well. After an episode full of scenes emphasizing their physical separation as a manifestation of their emotional separation, Makio plops herself down on the couch and wraps her arm around Asa. It is, however, a gesture that Makio is obviously not familiar with. Her body language is stiff, and it is both funny and sad to see how her attempt to side-hug Asa more tightly instead resembles a wrestling hold. Makio's words and behaviors are genuine, and they are not enough for Asa. Asa needs real companionship in a way that Makio has grown comfortable avoiding.

As different as these two women are, though, Journal with Witch drops plenty of clues that they are not as incompatible as they may think. A flashback to her high school days briefly draws Makio into Asa's world. She has experience she can draw from to advise her niece. Outside of that, Makio's unusual job and disdain for social norms means she has no qualms with Asa's wish to stand out from the crowd. In fact, Makio is at her most “maternal” when she tells Asa to pursue singing—it's a comment born from the fact that she cares enough about Asa to notice her likes and dislikes. It is also, ironically, the opposite of what Asa's real mother told her, which quickly causes their conversation to fall apart. However, I think this is the key. Makio's hatred of her sister erects a wall between her and Asa, yet at the same time, it enables her to help Asa in ways nobody else in their family would or could do. Right now, it barely works, but it is a precarious equilibrium that can collapse at any time. Until she has a proper talk with Asa about her sister, Makio will remain trapped, cowering and glowering, in that dark doorway.

Rating:

Sylvia is on Bluesky for all of your posting needs. She is a witch-in-training. You can also catch her chatting about trash and treasure alike on This Week in Anime.