Kara Dennison
August 23, 2024 
At last! After lots of waiting and a few false alarms, Kento Shinohara’s magical manga Witch Watch is getting an anime adaptation. This paranormal rom-com blends Bewitched antics with yokai lore to create a truly unique story. We can’t wait to see how it’ll come to life onscreen… but since it’s not premiering ’til Spring 2025, we’ll have to.
With a new visual and trailer already out, though, we’ve gotten a peek at what Nico and Moi’s adventures will look like fully animated. So, as we wait, here’s what makes this series great—and what we’re looking forward to seeing in anime form.
Monster Boys
Witch Watch is the story of a skilled but clumsy witch named Nico. The “watch” comes from the fact that Morihito (a.k.a. Moi) and many other characters watch over her as familiars. How can people be familiars, you ask? Simple: they’re descended from yokai!
Morihito comes from a long line of ogre familiars, and finds out one day that Nico, his childhood friend, will be his magical charge. But he’s not alone. Tengu descendant Kanshi, werewolf Keigo, and many others join the fray. But will this legion of cute boys be enough to keep her safe?
Silly Spells
The main threat of Witch Watch comes from outside, but there’s a more immediate threat: Nico’s weird collection of spells. Her magical abilities can make someone as thin as paper, speed up their perception of time, and even transport people into an anime world! (Manga readers got to read that story recently, as part of the anime adaptation announcement.)
Nico’s heart is in he right place, and she just wants to help her friends and classmates succeed. The fact that her spells often get out of hand, however, means that her familiars spend a lot of time undoing what she’s done. If they’re not dealing with the effects of her spells personally, that is.
Magical Romance
Under all the silliness of Witch Watch is a bit of a romantic story. Nico and Morihito are childhood friends, and their new shared living arrangement is the stuff of rom-coms. Or it would be, if Moi wasn’t so single-minded and serious.
For much of the manga, Nico deals with a very one-sided romance. Morihito is a devoted familiar, but she wants him to be much more. What will it take for him to realize and reciprocate her feelings? We’d say “magic,” but trust us, she’s tried. As frustrating as it is to see Moi simply not get it, we’re still rooting for Nico!
Meet this summer’s nerdy anime girls!
