#Liza Quillyn

[ydotome]

They're cat-sìths. - Mahoutsukai no Yome Season 2 - Episode 12

[anicastes]

🍫

[theredplague]

Liza quillyn art! The Ancient Magus Bride!

[elfboyeros]

Liza voice is so nice

[idontthinkimokaymentally]

Hello there Liza Quillyn fans.

[animehouse-moe]

The Ancient Magus' Bride Season 2 Episode 13: Nothing Venture, Nothing Have I

Hot on the heels of the ending content for part 1, we're finally treated to the continuation that follows with part 2. It might not be the most flashy episode ever to return to, but it does a really great job of setting the tone and providing details, so I'll get right to it.

Firstly, in regards to details I highly recommend checking out the official MahoYome Twitter account as they provide a whole bunch of context and extra details right from the source. Chatting about why characters sit like they do, what might happen if Alcyone takes their mask off, and a great deal of other things. It's a treasure trove of aspects viewers might have missed during the episode.

Anyways, this is about my thoughts on the episode, not the Twitter account's. So, where to really begin. I guess in broad strokes, the direction and boarding through this first episode aren't anything impressive. There's good ideas, but a lot of it stems from the overall style of the season, so I don't feel like there's any real great ideas to point out purely in that context.

What I can point out visually is really cool stuff like this. The college has been sealed off so of course students are on edge, looking to the adults to know what's going on and what will happen. Mahoyome directly counters this by placing two key "adults" in front of the students. The first, the artificial fairy Alcyone that is playing the role of Philomela's guardian. The second is the enigmatic Zacheroni from the end of the previous cour. Both are characters that the students are unfamiliar with, and both are considered somewhat dangerous because of that.

So, how do you convey that feeling of distance and uncertainty? Mahoyome answers with 'stature'. By having the pair tower overtop of the students, you feel a disconnect that you don't see with the other staff within the college. It asserts their position as authority, but in a suffocating manner that can feel uncomfortable.

On the topic of big and imposing characters, Elias continues his story arc of discovering friendship. I really, really like that Yamazaki has separated him from Chise since it allows his experiences and understandings to feel far more organic. Well, maybe that's not the right word, but you can feel Elias groping around in the dark rather than having Chise's guiding hand to contextualize his experiences.

Let's go three for three on big and imposing, why not? The golems that Liza places around the college to patrol are very interesting for two reasons. The first, they're activated by her specialty quill magic (I mean, her last name is Quillyn). The second, what they provide isn't quite the feeling of safety, especially with how they're shown. It's a two parter, where the episode shows a bunch of areas populated by students during the day, and then re-uses those scenes with the golems to create that feeling of discomfort.

Now, onto the main event, Zacheroni's lesson. It does a lot, not really in terms of "wowing" the viewer, but providing context to the world and its characters. Yeah, it's a weird thing to say, but it's almost like Kafka is putting story above all else. Like they're passing up visual flair to ensure that the context of the events is passed through as much as possible. Can't say I'm complaining, but it's just an interesting observation.

So, let's talk what it does during the lesson then.

First of all, it separates the students in Chise's "class" into groups surrounding their socialization. Chise's group all being in one area, while Veronica and Philomela are in another, and so on and so forth. Just a fun little thing that preserves the social aspect of a classroom despite there not being any need to.

It also talks about the use of magic. It might be easy to forget, but how the average person can use magic is entirely different to how a proper sorcerer can wield it. Thankfully, Zacheroni reminds viewers as well as students of that fact. It's much easier to thrust a knife into someone than it is to unleash a spell that could kill them.

He also slips in the fact that protective and defensive magic are much easier to use than offensive.

And finally we get to Chise's fight against Zacheroni's familiar. It's not anything crazy, but once more it provides important visual details, like Chise letting go of the cube instinctually to free her hand to attack.

Perhaps more interesting than the cube though is how she destroys the familiar: by crushing it. Not anything special on its own, but Zacheroni specifically mentions crushing while chocking the one student. Did Chise internalize that aspect and that's why it was the attack chosen by her body? I'm not sure, but it presents a very curious idea about how the different aspects of her "self" interact with one another.

We get to see a few other fights, but they're not really special in what they do, as they provide mostly what you'd expect to see in terms of character details.

Though, I think one part that should be noted is the gazes given by Isaac and Zoe. I think it's also important to consider them both within the context of one another.

Isaac's gaze lands in a specific spot on Philomela, for example, and focuses on putting himself down and raising Philomela up. It's a great and subtle nod to the type of relationship Isaac sees and desires with Philomela as well as how he views himself as a person. That is, nothing more than a tool (though in his eyes, that's a tool maker).

Whereas in contrast, Zoe's gaze meets Lucy as a full person, focusing on her action and confidence during the lesson which inspires Zoe to continue on. It gives the relationship a far more wholesome feel to it that speaks to Zoe's desire to be equal with Lucy, whereas Isaac's is more self-pity and raw desire.

Now, last but certainly not least, Chise (and Rian) and Zacheroni's fight. Really great details where Zacheroni begins on the defensive and allows Chise to have the initiative. However, the more Chise gets into the fight and gets stirred up by Zacheroni, the more that other aspect in her appears. Because of that, Zacheroni actually ends up meeting her on the offensive, but not before his supervisor Sigrid can step in.

It's really an important detail, because we only get to see Zacheroni strike at Chise during this sequence. Chise herself makes no such moves herself. With that in mind, it makes it possible that while Chise was not using that side of herself, it was nonetheless present in her demeanor, which Zacheroni then picked up on.

And this is where the episode comes to an end. We get a scene about Mariel hiring what looks to be the creator of Alcyone, but nothing really too special. The majority of the episode is centered around the danger lurking about the college, and so it does a really solid job of conveying that. There's some off model characters here and there, and the use of CGI can be a little questionable at times, but Kafka remains ambitious with this cour with perhaps a bit more of a level headed approach. The use of CGI vines was most likely impossible to avoid, and there's not really any other massive uses of CGI in the episode. Nor do they try and go above and beyond their abilities with the fights. All in all, I'm very curious to see both how the stories goes over with this second cour, and how Kafka keeps things going in terms of visuals.

[my-anime-list]

The Ancient Magus' Bride Season 2 Part 2

Following a series of attacks that have left teachers and students alike sapped of their magic, headmistress Liza Quillyn decides to seal off the College, rendering it impossible to enter or leave the premises. As a result, Philomela Sargant is unable to comply with her grandmother Lizbeth's order to withdraw from the school. Trapped inside the College, Chise Hatori and her classmates begin to adjust to their novel and stressful circumstances. But as time goes on, Philomela's condition only gets worse—both mentally and physically. Meanwhile, details about the tragic past of Chise's roommate, Lucy Webster, continue to resurface. As Chise grapples with worries about her friends and with her evolving self, the identity of the mysterious magic-draining culprit plaguing the College may finally come to light.

[xxcrossroadsxx]

Liza Quillyn, the headmistress ~ Mahoutsukai no Yome chapter 69

[anicastes]

We're simply following the rules.

[anicastes]

...you'll have to put away your pathetic, self-congratulatory sense of compassion.

[anicastes]

Could you please let me out of the College?

[anicastes]

Okay.

[anicastes]

So it was all right to kill her?

[anicastes]

I'm simply trying to accomplish the most I can for the least work.

[anicastes]

She steers her own ship.