Little Witch Academia and The Worst Witch
It’s hard to imagine two television series that have so many story elements in common, and yet differ so wildly, then the two children’s series, The Worst Witch and the animated Little Witch Academia.
Both are situated in a learning facility for teaching magic to female tweeners. Both feature a genial, if befuddled headmistress, and a stern, scowling assistant headmaster. The central character in each is a non-magical “muggle” (Rowling’s term to encapsulate the bigotry those with magic have against non-magical people. While neither series reaches the levels of bigotry and viciousness seen in the Harry Potter universe, it does mean the central character is subject to ostracization and bullying.) Both girls are substandard in the magic arts, and can’t even fly a broom. The staff are at best mildly ineffectual at maintaining discipline. Both schools have a queen bee ‘mean girl’ who targets to central character.
Sounds like it would be hard to tell one from the other where it not for the fact that one is animated and the other not.
And yet it’s harder to find two shows that are more different, in tone and complexity and depth. Perhaps unexpectedly, it’s the cartoon that fares better in this regard.
I watched The Worst Witch in increasing frustration. Bad enough that the juvenile characters routinely inflict tricks on one another that in the real world would be considered major felonies (mind rape, property and academic theft, framing, etc.) but the authorities always back down in indulgent simpers. Worse, none of the characters evolve or grow in any way, where moments that might be considered breakthroughs in most normal human interactions are simply unhappened by the following episode. The only exception is Mrs. Hardbroom, played with wild abandon by Raquel Cassidy, with endless sneers, dramatic gestures, eye rolls and ominous, dire threats that she never gets to carry out. She could get away with the “No, Mister Bond, I expect you to die!” line. She’s the only character who changes or grows, or has any kind of ethical base. Her deliberate scenery-chewing is the highlight of the show, but even she is rendered ineffectual by the writers, who apparently consider, “Oh, you guys” to be the basis for human civilization. The character was played by the late, great Diana Rigg in the movie version in the 80s. The central character, Mildred Hubble, was gamely played by Bella Ramsey, who was sensational as Lyanna Mormont in Game of Thrones, and equally striking as a murderous waif in the second season of His Dark Materials. She’s better than this.
Little Witch Academia is a good place to wash the taste of Worst Witch out of your mouth. From a rather unlikely beginning, it grows into the sort of rich and complex storyline that is seen rarely, and in shows such as Full Metal Alchemist or Avatar.
Akko Kagari is a non-magical girl who somehow qualifies to study at Luna Nova Academy. It’s not clear how she qualified. Misadventures hit on her journey to the academy, and she winds up in a forbidden wood chased by a giant chicken (well I did warn you the start was pretty unpromising) and stumbles across Shiny Rod, the talisman/wand wielded by none other than Chariot du Nord, an entertainment witch who is Akko’s inspiration. Chariot, herself a graduate of Luna Nova, vanished a decade earlier, and Akko vows to go to the school, find Chariot, and return her gizmo. The Shiny Rod comes to the attention of the school faculty, who dismiss it as just a trinket by a cheap show performer (Chariot is not respected in the covens, it seems), but also comes to the attention of Professor Ursula, a mousy bottom-rung member of the faculty who spots the possibilities that such a device would attach itself to the powerless and feckless Akko and begins mentoring her. It’s no big spoiler to note that Ursula is more than she appears; even the dimmest viewers have figured it out by about episode six, leaving only Akko oblivious.
Most of the characters grow and evolve and deepen as the 25 episode series proceeds, and all, even the nearly psychotic Suci and the autistic Constantze develop empathy and form bonds. The head ‘mean girl’, Dianna is a beautifully rendered example of a girl torn between her passion and her duty. She and Akko start out as enemies, but wind up saving and befriending one another.
The series is enriched by a lovely score by Ooshima Michiru, Japan’s answer to John Williams. She also brought beauty and depth to the first Full Metal Achemist.
The parts become a bewitching whole, a fun and inspiring watch.
Little Witch Academia and The Worst Witch are now on Netflix.