Kasumi gets the chance to have Honoka all for herself…but her dreams don’t exactly get realized as planned.
Creative Staff:
Story/Art: Ryu Mizunagi
Translation: Ko Ransom
Production: Risa Cho, Melissa DeJesus
What They Say:
Oh My Imouto!
Kasumi has never wanted to share her brother with anyone. Suddenly, she awakens in a world where she does not have to. On the surface, this is the perfect world for a little sister like her. But under this sweet facade is something sinister.
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers)
The seemingly silly event that dominates this volume is where Kasumi, the brother-complex-crazed sister of Honoka, hatches a plot to create a pocket universe (though a rather large one) where Honoka is all hers and the Princess (Kagari) is nowhere to be seen. She gets some help from Natsume, who is the daughter of the Mikage the shady science teacher and Shiori, a very powerful witch with old ties to both Kazane and Honoka’s mother Komachi. Everything in place, Kasumi creates a world that only has Honoka, Natsume and Kasumi’s best friend Tanutanu (Yoshiko Tanuma) in it (and a cat named Tanpopo).
The plan seems to work too well, as Honoka is brainwashed and acts like he and Kasumi have been extra clingy forever. After a day of joy, however, Kasumi finds herself caged and out of magic. Natsume comes to take Honoka in order to investigate who has trapped them in this world (as there must be an enemy). As they reach the “world tree” for the town, however, Honoka is lead to a place where he begins to recover more memories of the past. As has already been revealed, slowly, ever so slowly, is that Honoka has some strange bond to Kagari’s mother Kazane and now the full truth of him and his powers are explained: back in the distant past, Komachi was once gravely wounded while hanging out with Kazane and Kazane came to Shiori desperate for help. Not that Shiori could effect any healing—Kazane intended to use her own extremely potent blood to save Komachi’s life, but needed Shiori’s abilities with memory magic to erase all trace of Kazane using her blood this way. As an overpowered “Witch of the End,” Kazane is not allowed to use her powers in ways that would change the course of a human’s life.
The upshot is that Komachi’s life was saved, but later when she had children, her children had a touch of Kazane’s blood running through their veins, in Honoka’s case, too much of it. In order to keep the secret of what happened in the past a secret and to prevent Honoka from one day running out of control and…well…probably destroying the world, Kazane took it upon herself to begin training Honoka, though as we have already learned, something went wrong later which resulted in the need to completely wipe his, and likely Kagari’s, memories. Natsume…well, “Natsume” gave Honoka a small necklace that seems to have recorded the memories that Honoka recovered and then disappeared as the world itself disappeared.
The quotes are there as it’s shown that the real Natsume had no idea what was happening, though that did not stop Kagari from putting her through a rather harsh interrogation (Natsume’s friend Rinnon was there to make sure it did not get too out of hand). Parallel to this, Mister Mikage, Chronoire and Weekend are sent by Kazane to investigate the strange barrier that the pocket world created. One might wonder why two Tower Witches would do the bidding of Kazane, but this is where the most disturbing revelation is made: whoever “Natsume” was, whoever is trying to pry information about Honoka’s past and his connection to Kazane, is most likely a Workshop Witch. So, as if his life was not already massively complicated already, it looks like his protector (and in a sense second mother) Kazane might have a traitor in her midst, whose agenda at this point is hard to know.
While the trademark humor is readily seen throughout the volume and at the end we are treated to a fanservice “episode” (Kagari uses the pocket world creation magic to bring everyone to the beach for a day—which means swimsuits, of course), the series is slowly beginning a pivot towards a deeper mystery and a darker path. While it has “turned dark” before, especially with Weekend’s fiendish plot to steal the White Princess (Evermillion), this series of developments, revealing Honoka’s connection to Kazane and the possibility that he, too, might be a “Witch of the End,” has a bit more depth and import to it all. Whoever this “enemy” is, they may well be intent on exposing the past in order to have both Kazane and Honoka removed from this world (it’s what is often done with “Witches of the End,” as they’re just too much of a threat to existence to allow them free rein). Such a plan will not, as one might imagine, go over well with Kagari. Until we see the face of this new enemy, however, it is unclear what their ultimate objective is.
In Summary:
Kasumi creates her ideal world—one where it’s mainly just her and Honoka. This paradise for the brother-infatuated little sister is all a ruse, however, for an unknown player to gain access to more of Honoka’s memories, especially ones that reveal the full truth of his connection to Kazane. We do not yet learn who is behind the drawing back of the curtain on a past Kazane wants forgotten. There is plenty of the usual humor and quick gags readily apparent, but also the sight of a shadow slowly covering the bright and happy world of Witchcraft Works.
Content Grade: B+
Art Grade: B+
Package Rating: B
Text/Translation: B+
Age Rating: 14+
Released By:Vertical Comics
Release Date: August 30th, 2016
MSRP: $12.95
