Witch Hat Atelier 1×10 and 1×11 Review – “A Promise in Silver” and “The Test in Serpentback Cave”

Witch Hat Atelier anime season 1 episode 10, titled ‘A Promise in Silver’, and episode 11, titled ‘The Test in Serpentback Cave’, continued to flesh out the characters around Coco as well as the lore.

Some of the best-written pieces of content out there have one thing in common. Such narratives take the time to expand on the supporting cast and even certain minor characters while also allowing the main lead to progress. Witch Hat Atelier is one such piece of media, and I’m so here for the storyline to help us understand the expanded cast better and how their development is linked to Coco’s journey. The previous episodes had laid the groundwork for the spotlight to shine on Agott and Tartah, and episodes 10 and 11 delivered on that.

‘A Promise in Silver’ was about Tartah doing what he could to help Coco recover from an illness brought on by exhaustion. Coco’s nightmares were preventing her from falling asleep. The poor young girl had been trying to stay awake as much as possible by spending time practising her spellwork. Of course, all of that was going to catch up with her.

With Tartah helping Qifrey bring Coco to the hospital inside Kalhn, I had been looking forward to Tartah asking Qifrey about the mysterious light inside the magical stationary shop. I mean, I was ready not to get an answer from Qifrey the moment Coco was admitted to the hospital. Still, I have to say I was a bit disappointed by how the narrative decided to have Qifrey sidestep Tartah’s question as the episode came to a close. I think Tartah will figure out the answer soon, but then again, the way his question was handled felt a bit too convenient instead of something that felt more in-character for Qifrey and Tartah.

The main objective of ‘A Promise in Silver’ was Tartah trying to overcome his disadvantage of seeing everything in shades of silver. Due to Qifrey being forced to leave Coco alone at the hospital to help the townsfolk deal with a burning building, Tartah was left to assist Coco in beating her fever overnight. I liked how Tartah started very confident about knowing which remedy Coco required and then slowly falling into despair as the limited options began to slip through his fingers.

As Tartah put it, society didn’t really think about the different ways certain people experienced life. Tartah’s condition had prevented him from becoming a witch apprentice and exploring his love for magic. As far as the higher-ups were concerned, Tartah didn’t have the proper eyesight to practice magic, and thus, he was better suited to help his grandfather make wands and magical ink. It was a heartfelt moment that talked about accessibility and how much it needed to improve in real-life.

The way an ill Coco found the strength to help Tartah not only cast a spell but also encouraged him to make the spell his own… my heart!

As someone who hasn’t read the manga, I have no idea if Coco and Tartah are going to become a thing down the line. But if they do, I’ll be here for it.

Having experience with ensuring balance due to spending time at his grandfather’s workshop, Tartah demonstrated an impressive ability to balance spells. Also, kudos to Coco for some smart thinking and realizing how the spell to turn rocks into dust could be reversed to turn dust into the original object. As Qifrey put it, even though Coco had a lot to learn, she was definitely the “idea” person when operating in a team. Learning that spells could be reversed on an effective scale gave Coco much-needed encouragement to learn the sealing spell entrapping her mother and reverse it.

‘A Promise in Silver’ concluded with Tartah promising to make the perfect pen/wand for Coco. It was the least he could do because she had believed in his ability as a witch. Again, my heart!

Another scene near the end of the episode was about the Brimmed Hat Witches preparing to attack Coco and her friends during an upcoming test. Coco also told Qifrey about having nightmares. Which, yay! I’m glad Coco didn’t keep her sleep troubles a secret. Due to the nature of the threat targeting Coco, she needs all the help she can get.

‘The Test in Serpentback Cave’ was about Agott’s turn to take the second test. I liked Agott’s inner monologue about possibly softening her demeanor toward Coco. Even though Coco began her apprenticeship as an Outsider, shouldn’t Agott accept Coco as a witch-to-be if she put in the necessary level of work?

Along with Agott, the episode also focused on Richeh and her stubbornness to study magic she wasn’t interested in. From what I could understand, Richeh’s hesitation seemed to stem from losing her older brother, Riliphin, and from Riliphin’s interest in Richeh being creative in her spellwork. I’m not sure if Riliphin’s dead or got so busy with witchwork that he couldn’t spend much time with Richeh. Whatever the case, I’m interested in learning more about Richeh.

Coco’s speciality was revealed to be drawing straight lines, in part due to her experience as a dressmaker’s assistant. Richeh’s speciality seemed to be her original crystal-like spells.

Serving as a setup episode before the Brimmed Caps attacked, we were introduced to the rules of taking the test inside the Serpentback cave. Apparently, the cave was created before the current rules around magic were made. The test involved using “legal” magic to defend against dark magic while escorting baby myrphons (a cross between a penguin, a duck, and a rabbit) through the cave. The task of escorting the babies was also linked to witches doing their part in assisting nature after playing a role in drastically changing it, because, you know? Humans.

Agott was taking the test alongside Witch Kukrow’s apprentice Euini, who had previously failed and continued to listen to Kukrow’s verbal disappointment. Sigh! I felt for Euini.

A big surprise was how Richeh would also be taking the test without her prior knowledge. I understood why Qifrey wanted Richeh to go through the second trial, but I do feel a proper heads-up would have been appreciated. Of course, Richeh wasn’t happy about being pressured in such a manner. But then again, Richeh needed to overcome her decision not to learn more about magic.

Witch Agott, Euini, and Richeh stepping into the cave, with Alaira proctoring the test, I’m very excited about what will happen next!

Did you watch Witch Hat Atelier anime season 1 episodes 10 and 11? What did you think of them?

Let us know.

Author: Farid-ul-Haq

Farid has a Double Masters in Psychology and Biotechnology as well as an M.Phil in Molecular Genetics. He is the author of numerous books including Missing in Somerville, and The Game Master of Somerville. He gives us insight into comics, books, TV shows, anime/manga, video games, and movies.

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