I watched "The Secrets of the Silent Witch" and I liked it so much!!!! 🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰
My daughter baby Monica, I love her so much!!! 🥺🥺🥺
idk if there's, like, a particular reason we keep getting animes about autistic and/or debilitatingly socially anxious women, but I am not complaining!!!
I love how there's actually backstory and trauma to her fears and anxieties. I think I would like the character either way, but I think it added a lot of depth to the story that it was like, "her fears look unreasonable from the outside, but she was actually very clearly taught by circumstance and other people around her that she DOES have a reason to be afraid." Like, yeah, those feelings turn out to be incorrect, but it still makes sense how she got there!
As someone who was also rejected by someone who I considered at the time to be my first and greatest friend, the Bernie storyline hit hard 😓😢 Honestly, if anything, I think the fact that Monica was able to talk back to him at all was unrealistic, but I'm glad it went that way.
(When I had my friend falling-out, I literally went nonverbal when trying to speak to that person for years. But also I was much younger than Monica, and I wasn't a badass witch with a bunch of cool, powerful new friends, so.)
I loved how Lana helped shut Bernie down, too!! The only thing they didn't directly address, and I wish they had, was the ableism in his argument of, "she pretends to be bad at things, but she's actually better than everyone." My dude, people can be really good at some things and really bad at others. It's actually kind of normal!
I mean, obviously the story does clearly show that Monica is struggling, but I think she herself would benefit from hearing someone say it out loud. I've been the person who seems really talented or "smart" or whatever, and still struggles with basic shit, and the impact of someone simply acknowledging, "this is something that's hard for you, and you're putting a lot of effort into it" cannot be overstated.
Also it kind of broke my heart in the final episode when she told her dad one day he'd be able to be proud of her??!! 🥺🥺🥺 Baby, he's already proud of you every day!!! He was proud of you for surviving losing him, and all the shit his brother put you through. He's proud of you for going to mage school even though you got bullied, and for making a friend and finding a way to practice magecraft even though you were absolutely fucking terrified. He's definitely proud of you for pioneering a new field of magecraft, joining the Seven Sages, and protecting countless people from dragons like it's nothing!!!
He's also definitely proud of you for continuing to cultivate your love for math and knowledge, despite having every reason to give up on both once he was gone. And for remaining kind and merciful and loving, despite how poorly you've been treated!!! 😭😭😭😭
I thought the way the show integrated flashbacks was really good, and really helped heighten the intrigue!! Like the way we didn't even see the initial dragon battle until Isabelle told us about it, that was really fun! (Also, Louis... idk how many dragons Monica got there, but it was for sure more than ten...🤨) And the way that Monica's most emotionally charged memories were ones she seemed to struggle to look directly at, that felt very real.
Also I'm sooo curious about the political intrigue with the prince and company. I want to know more about what his deal is!!! Felix is such a tragic character right off the bat, who, despite being extremely competent and well-liked, has to worry about shit like his closest family members having him killed!!! Also I will admit I'm having trouble keeping track of all the dukes and counts of it all 😅
So is Felix hiding his ability to do magic, just like Monica? Or is he some kind of scholar who just researches but doesn't practice? Cause he has a familiar, but we haven't been given a lot of info on how all that works. (I LOVE his secret little lizard friend, btw!) Based on Monica's interactions with Ryn, the lizard may not even technically be his familiar! Though it's hard to imagine him trusting another human that much. We know that his fate is the only one the Starseer Witch can't read; is that something he's doing purposefully? Magically obscuring information others are able to learn about him?
And where is this brother of his?? I mean, I can only assume they're holding off on introducing him for dramatic tension reasons, but the fact that we don't even get, like, a name or a hair color feels a little silly. I think the most they said was that his mother was from that country near Casey's home?
Oh Casey, omg!!! 🥺🥺🥺🥺 her story was SO so sad 😭😭😭😭 when she was like, "you know I'm not your friend, right?" 😭😭 like, I absolutely get what she was trying to impress upon Monica, that she was a threat and should be treated as such, but also, she was? She was a friend to Monica, when that was something Monica desperately needed!!! No evil plots can erase the simple good that her companionship provided!!!!
But yeah, I liked it a lot!!! I'd love to read more of the story, but I've never tried to read a translation of a light novel before? idk if that's a medium I'd enjoy. (also idek where to read it, but i do know how to google stuff!) I know there's a manga, but, if I understand correctly, it hasn't progressed further than the show.
Oh, I also thought Isabelle was such a fun character, and I was a little bit disappointed not to see more of her!! (Though there really was so much going on, so I get it.) Particularly the more private version of her, the little sister who's infatuated with Monica, or the noblewoman who's staunchly dedicated to her home and her people.
Also I think it's a really funny detail that Monica has literally been staying in the attic this whole time. 😂 like, obviously she prefers the attic, and the vibes are honestly pretty cozy in there! But the more respect she gains among the nobility as Monica Norton, the more scandalous that info is going to be when it gets out!! Like, we know Lana knows, because she was sliding notes for her through the door, but I highly doubt the prince and the rest of the Student Council crew know that she's living in the attic? And I think some them are going to be very righteously pissed off on her behalf if they ever find out! Even though she likes it up there!!
(Actually, that's another similarity between me and Monica! When I was staying in dorms in college I got accommodations for my social anxiety to let me have my own room. I did NOT request that, the accessibility person suggested it.)
I did notice that Monica's father's last name on his book was not Everett. Did he use a pen name, or is that not her original last name, either? It would make sense for her to be hiding her parentage, if the government that gave her the position as a Sage is the same one that condemned him. I kinda love the idea that she just cycles through last names every few years, lol.
