Witch Hat Atelier has rapidly turn into one among, if not the, must-watch anime of the season. A lot so, you’ll be able to’t fault followers for hitting a typical anime adaptation deadlock: watching weekly, banking episodes for a finale-day binge, or giving in and studying forward in Kamome Shirahama‘s beloved manga. Choices, choices.
However what if we informed you there’s a secret third choice—one which scratches the Shirahama itch to indulge in her bespoke artistry and trades the unspeakable horrors awaiting Coco for a side-splitting, completely riotous comedy? Properly, good, as a result of we’re. That choice is her slept-on, pre-Witch Hat Atelier manga, Eniale & Dewiela.
If Witch Hat Atelier is Shirahama in her grand journey, Dragon Ball Z period, Eniale & Dewiela was her at peak Dr. Droop whimsy.
Set in a world the place heaven and hell coexist, the manga follows the unruly but wildly endearing friendship between Eniale, the angel, and Dewiela, the demon—two gals tasked with gathering souls on Earth, a job they’d a lot slightly procrastinate on by going buying. Sadly for them, celestial bureaucracies run a decent ship, so shirking their duties solely piles extra work onto them.
So that they have their enjoyable wherever they will get it by diving right into a generational rivalry of soul-dollect, ducking exorcists, and doing absolutely the most within the course of to one-up one another. Naturally, their day by day angel-devil routine spirals into chaos, starting from the benign to the apocalyptic, making for a hilarious, short-but-sweet learn.
For comparability, Eniale and Dewiela’s dynamic offers Bayonetta and Jeanne a contact of Panty & Stocking with Garterbelt, however with the debauchery dialed down from a raucous 11 to a mischievous 5. In Witch Hat Atelier phrases, Eni and Dewi learn just like the proto-blueprint for Agott’s tsundere chew and Coco’s sheepish naïveté reimagined as a madcap buddy comedy duo. Watching Shirahama take away her limiters and let these two wreak havoc—whether or not sabotaging one another’s soul quotas or teaming as much as do the naked minimal—is a delight. And after they’re not butting heads, they’re merely gals being friends: buying, scheming, and attempting to dwell their finest lives.
What I really like most in regards to the manga is that it’s Shirahama absolutely in her comedic bag, writing slapstick gags with an elasticity and confidence that really feel distinctly aged-up, consistent with Witch Hat Atelier‘s gentler whimsy. With every chapter, you’ll be able to really feel her stretching, riffing, and letting herself be unserious in ways in which WHA‘s tone doesn’t at all times permit. Coincidentally, the manga additionally teases her pure aptitude for sapphic-tinged storytelling that WHA followers—particularly Arkco-truthers (we see you)—will clock instantly. Shirahama’s genuinely humorous right here, however she’s additionally effortlessly flexing her capability to weave emotionally stirring beats into her gag comedy manga.
For readers who adore WHA’s visible splendor, relaxation assured: Eniale & Dewiela carries the identical hallmarks. The panel work is beautiful, the ornate borders really feel like thumbing by an historical tome, and the intricate detailing is as gobsmacking as ever. However right here, that craft is in service of pure comedy. Throughout its three volumes, Shirahama unleashes a cavalcade of supernatural disasters born from the duo’s joint dumbassery—elevating hordes of zombies whereas attempting to show a priest into each an angel and a demon, splitting the ocean like Moses to discover a lacking earring, and firing a sky‑beam of souls straight into the heavens.
And when the manga isn’t serving killer runway vogue, heavenly‑hellish hijinks, or just a few sapphic glances, it’s obtained coronary heart. The standout second is available in chapter eight, the place Dewiela goes from hovering over an outdated lady like a vulture ready to gather her soul to befriending her and her “fugly” guard cat. That chapter made me misty-eyed, I’m not gonna lie.
So for those who want a fast, pleasant learn when you deliberate over whether or not you’re going to stockpile Witch Hat Atelier episodes or are merely craving extra of Shirahama’s work (exterior her Pokémon card illustrations—she accommodates multitudes), Eniale & Dewiela is totally price your time.
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