One of my most anticipated anime adaptations of the past few years was Witch Hat Atelier. The manga is, without exaggeration, one of the greatest masterpieces of comics and fiction in general for how wonderfully it weaves together great characters, a fascinating world, and a powerful story that both excites readers and challenges us to think about difficult philosophical and political questions.

But while production on an anime was officially confirmed back in April 2022, it only came out in April 2026 after multiple delays—including one that was declared to be “to present the charm of the project at an even higher quality.” That’s literally four years for this thing to get out in the world, and I would expect people to ask, “Does it even live up to the hype after so long?”

The answer is a resounding “hell yes.” If you haven’t ever read the manga, this is a fantastic opportunity to get into one of the best works of fiction you’ll ever see. And if you have read the original manga by Shirahama Kamome, this anime does such a fantastic job of bringing it to the screen that you will likely want to see how the characters and the world move, breathe, and live. Also, while it’s more or less a direct adaptation, it does add a few things here and there that help it work better in animation.

Over the decades, there have been so many anime based on gorgeously drawn manga that have utterly failed to capture what makes their art so exquisite, and there was always a fear in me that Witch Hat Atelier would suffer the same fate. Seeing it all in motion lifted a weight off my heart, and renewed some of my faith in the industry. I know not every manga will be this fortunate, but I’m glad we have such a great example of when things go right.