Helen: With Qifrey still out of commission following the battle with the Brimmed Caps, Coco and the rest of the atelier are escorted to the witch’s underground stronghold and place of learning, the Great Hall. With Qifrey recovering, and Olruggio carefully trying not to betray their friends who had to flee after the encounter with the Brimmed Caps, Coco and the rest of the apprentices are taken to meet one of the Three Wise Ones who oversee all of witch society. The group is offered a chance to re-take the second test to becoming a witch, even Coco and Tetia who weren’t taking it originally. As the four of them put their heads together to create something “astounding” it’s clear that they’ve solidified as a tight-knit circle, something they’ll need in the unfamiliar Great Hall.
While Qifrey is a good magic teacher, he hasn’t been so great at preparing Coco for entering witch society, although not only does this continue to give Kamome Shirahama a chance to exposit to both Coco and the reader but by this point the rest of the atelier actually finds Coco’s enthusiastic reactions to everything magical fun to watch. It also appears that Qifrey doesn’t have fond memories of the Great Hall, hence why he’s set up his own atelier outside on land despite all of the social safety nets provided to witches by the Great Hall. We already knew that Richeh had a bad experience with her previous teacher, and hints that Agott did as well, so with Coco they are practically a band of outsiders, I’m starting to wonder what’s in Tetia’s past since it’s the only one that hasn’t been touched on at all yet.
Volume 6 goes a little bit into Agott’s past and, as many readers had already pieced together, Agott’s first choice of teacher wasn’t Qifrey but to continue a line of witches in her family, only to be cast out over accusations of deception. Agott is clearly used to people thinking that she’s a thief and, while she tries not to show it, she’s also touched by Coco’s simple belief in her, saying that with how hard Agott works all the time there’s no way she would have stolen a spell, and I expect this will come up again as a part of Agott’s arc.
Indeed, stagnation, backstabbing, and isolation seem to be thick in the air at the Great Hall; Olruggio runs into another witch from his hometown and he’s uncomfortable with the snide remarks about his talent, belittling his hard work, that are leveled at him. Before this volume I hadn’t realized that the Watchful Eyes were their own organization in witch society (or at least, it seems that way after reading volume 6); previously I thought Qifrey and Olruggio were merely friends and Olruggio volunteered for the position of being a Watchful Eye once Qifrey started taking on apprentices. But now I can see why Olruggio (presumably) volunteered to go to a remote atelier nowhere near any of the other settlements of witches, as it seems like he enjoys the isolation as well.
Having seen the Great Hall, and what an offer of living there would mean for Coco, I think it’s clear why the aim of some of the Brimmed Caps is to shake up witch society by its foundations. The Great Hall provides the support for witches to create great spells and devices but it also reinforces old ideas and seems to drive everyone to look inward and never upward. With the spell Coco and company create we see that some young, pre-apprentices have barely even seen the surface world and that kind of isolation is sure to bring problems later on.
Helen’s rating: 3.5 out of 5
Justin: After the events of the second test, the Knights Moralis have no choice but to bring Coco and the rest of Qifrey’s apprentices to the Great Hall. The four girls figured this would happen, but they soon learn it’s not the Knights that want to see them — the Wise in Teachings, Beldaruit, asks to see them himself. Why? On the surface, it is to make up for the second test since they were interrupted — but now Coco and Tetia get to join Richeh and Agott in passing it! Good luck, however, in impressing someone who’s seen it all and makes illusions of himself extremely frequently!
But, not surprisingly, in reality there’s another reason why he brought them here…and while it certainly involves Coco, it also will involve Qifrey.
Speaking of Qifrey, Witch Hat Atelier volume 6 doesn’t have him in it much, obviously because of what the Brimmed Hats and the statues did to him. But he’s healing, and with that, we get to learn more about how things work in this world, which, again, seems like a lot. We meet doctors who reveal they are forbidden to learn magic; conversely, due to abuses of it, witches can’t be doctors either. Coco ends up learning about things that witches growing up would learn at a young age even moreso when she ventures deeper into the Great Hall.
But because of her outsider status and the Brimmed Caps’ interests in her, she’s a major figure in where the witching world goes on from here. Yes, this has probably gotten too serious, but it has been trending towards that way for a while. From how the Brimmed Caps operate (and have operated) to the strictness of witch society (from preventing humans to knowing their magic to this volume where Olruggio has to watch what he says), it’s clear there will be a breaking point, and Coco, with her curiosity and energy, is the one to change it.
That’s why what Beldaruit does in this volume will be interesting moving forward. His past with Qifrey and him meeting Coco and the girls will play a big part in what happens next, and we finally might be able to learn more about Qifrey’s motivations for seeking a Brimmed Cap. In general though, Beldaruit’s one quirky character — so much so that it probably isn’t a surprise that because he displays his passion for magic at every opportunity, Coco immediately becomes in sync with him at one point.
The other part of this volume also goes over Agott’s past, and what she did that’s A) gotten her scorn from her family and B) motivated her to prove herself, to a point that makes her seem distant and unapproachable. The journey she’s had with everyone else though does change her a bit — and the girls totally note this! I imagine as she continues to grow we’ll eventually meet more of her family, but for now, she just has to keep getting along and growing with Coco, Tetia, and Richeh.
So, from a story standpoint, there’s much to try and store and remember for later. As always though, Shirahama’s art continues to impress. The level of detail for almost everything is too enjoyable and pretty to deny. You can make the case because of the nature of this series (where witches and artists are an apt comparison), the art really has to stand out for it to succeed. But it really feels like it’s on par with someone like Kaoru Mori, and that stands out in how the characters look, what they’re wearing (like the doctors are memorable in looks and personality), and the type of magic and creatures that appear. So between that and the story, there’s a lot to understand but also appreciate in volume 6.
Justin’s rating: 4 out of 5