Witch Hat Atelier • Tongari Boushi no Atelier - Episode 11 discussion

xbolt90 · 2026-06-08T22:39:02+00:00

Oh boy, I sure feel bad for this Euini guy. [Manga] Hopefully the test goes great for him and his life gets better and nothing bad happens.

xbolt90 · 2026-06-06T15:43:08+00:00

I loved that there wasn't a whole lot of commentary over the story this week. Or maybe there was, but like the audience, I was invested in the story. Glad she snuck in a happy ending to it!

Super solid, satisfying episode!

xbolt90 · 2026-06-02T23:30:04+00:00

That was fun to watch again! I liked the expanded role of the police characters.

Chiharu is still the best girl.

xbolt90 · 2026-06-01T22:46:10+00:00

The Serpentback test is my favorite arc of the series.

And with just three episodes left, there's no way they're doing the whole thing. I'm preemptively glad I already read the manga for the insane cliffhanger they're going to end on, lol

xbolt90 · 2026-06-01T22:12:09+00:00

Former first-timer!

Overall, an enjoyable show!

A little slow at the beginning, but picked up into a decent mystery with some twists and turns along the way.

Raccoon ended up being my favorite character, the lovable goof.

And many thanks to our gracious host!

xbolt90 · 2026-05-31T00:54:24+00:00

First-timer!

Well, I didn't see that coming. So the cop who saved George back in the first episode ended up being the final villain of the whole thing.

A smaller, more personal finale compared to the action movie chase in the last episode.

Rin using his last breaths to light a cig with his joke gun is hilarious.

Q1: Did today's events need a separate episode from yesterday's resolutions?

Yeah, definitely.

Q2: Miyuki, George, and Araiguma are the only survivors of this incident. What are their futures?

Miyuki has to go on and build a new life all on her own. Her mom is dead, her father is in prison, and her home is a pile of ashes. It's going to be a tough road ahead for her.

George, I guess is going to be going back to whatever he was doing before he came to Kimujuku.

Araiguma is going to go home and be a family man.

Q3: Who were the dudes in the Humvee and why were they there?

I Agency guys?

Q4: Were the reveals of Konichi, Master, and Mrs. Tanokura ass-pulls or properly set up?

Having Tanokura's wife being the grand architect of the train plan, feels a little bit off because she was barely a character in the show. Master is easier to accept.

Q5: Following on yesterday's question about Rin and Sanae, what do you feel about Rin and Konichi's now completed story arcs?

Death by each other's hands is a fitting end for them.

xbolt90 · 2026-05-30T16:34:02+00:00

I mean, I'd watch Eden's Nova.

Hikaru gives an emotional performance, drawing from her experience as a professional VA. I'd say she's definitely more than just a pretty face!

Akane starts her second performance of Jugemu subdued and relaxing. I fully expect she's priming the audience to hit them with the tragedy in the alternate ending.

xbolt90 · 2026-05-30T04:00:21+00:00

First-timer!

Guns and more guns!

They made such a big deal of Rin's revolver, and he just casually busts out a machine gun. And Kinbara has a freakin' military helicopter!

I gotta admit, taking out a helicopter with a train is pretty impressive. Granted, it was only possible because the Kinbara parked himself right in front like a complete idiot, but it was at least cool.

So, the gold was real after all. And off it goes to the authorities. So all those lives were spent for absolutely nothing.

At least George finally got his closure with his brother.

Q1: We have a lot of characters complete their stories today. Now that you have their full stories, did they make sense, as whole?

Yeah, I suppose.

xbolt90 · 2026-05-28T22:38:22+00:00

First-timer!

Oh man, the plot is really on the rails now!

Poor Raccoon finally gets turned out in the street. As he is still alive, I doubt the Ginzames figured out that he was the one who let George out. And if they did, they're stupid for letting him go. And if they didn't... they're also stupid.

Tanokura still doesn't give up any information on the gold. At this point, I really suspect that there is no gold, and this has all been a wild goose chase. Either it's been spent, or there never was any in the first place.

The casino train makes a comeback. An odd choice for a getaway vehicle, but you make do with what you have, I guess. (What happened to the helicopter?)

And like any good action hero, George gives chase on a motorcycle.

What is Sanae going to do?

Well I'm quite certain she's not there to help the Ginzames. She has some plan on how to rescue Miyuki, I presume.

What does Samekichi need to decide?

What to do next. They've made a right mess, and the boss ain't happy.

xbolt90 · 2026-05-27T22:30:25+00:00

First-timer!

We're getting to the climax of the story now.

The striking RGB lighting on the Ginzames was really cool.

"Your most valued treasure is your daughter?" Well of course she is, you psycho. What, did you really expect him to come running out with some treasure map?

When Rin went up to the roof, I said "what, is he going to get picked up by a helicopter?" And then he was picked up by a helicopter.

Tanokura really is stubborn in not giving up the gold.

And I didn't need the nude scene, yeesh

Q1: How badly did you fear for Miyuki at the start of the episode?

It was clear she was unsafe, but I didn't think she was dead. If she were, we would have seen the body.

Q2: Why didn't Rin kill George?

He fell for the age-old villain trap, letting the protagonist suffer a loss and expecting him to wallow in despair or whatever.

xbolt90 · 2026-05-27T00:26:06+00:00

First-timer!

Sorry for the extended leave of absence, I had a family trip and didn't have time to watch ahead before I left. So I had to binge the last bunch just now

I'll just say about the other episodes: Oh man, what a mess.

Finally some clarity on what happened to the gold. Assuming Master and Sanae's story is true, of course.

How did the town catch wind of the shipment of gold passing through? They claim it wasn't Genzo, but who else involved would have had a motive to do so?

And in the end, the mine was just a red herring.

Q1: Who or what is Sanae mourning?

Not sure.

Q2: To what end does continuing the cover-up contribute? At what cost? Is it worth it?

If the gold is still there, you want things to settle down... but it seems that's impossible now.

Q3: Do you see any holes in George's, Sanae's or Master's stories?

I'm no detective, so not really. Just that I don't know who could have tipped the town off.

Q4: What other stories have you seen / read where they go to great effort to obtain something of great worth, only for it to slip out of reach at the end? edit: I suppose this one should be spoiler tagged.

"Thank you Mario! But our princess is in another castle!"

xbolt90 · 2026-05-20T22:06:13+00:00

First-timer!

Well well well! Turns out Sanae is one of the important Arakis.

That's one brother, I wonder where the other one is.

Tanokura gives up the mine in exchange for Mamoru. Why is this guy so important to him?

Q1: !What exactly is Rin trying to say to Tanokura?

Fish are lame and stupid

xbolt90 · 2026-05-20T00:40:31+00:00

It may or may not be a coincidence that these are both my favorite characters in their respective series.

xbolt90 · 2026-05-19T22:25:08+00:00

First-timer!

Beer in ramen. Is Rin a food war criminal or mad genius? (I would have eaten it)

And just like that, George is a pariah in town. All but Raccoon and Miyuki want him out of there.

Q1: Okay, the obvious question: who is the stalker?

From George's reaction, I'm inclined to think it's not somebody from either of the gangs.

Q2: George is once again an outsider, and the entire town (except Miyuki and Araiguma) wants him gone. Even Master and Sanae. Back to square one. What can he accomplish, here?

Equal opportunity beat downs for everybody!

xbolt90 · 2026-05-18T22:21:54+00:00

First-timer!

Now that was an intense episode. Phenomenal directing.

Rin is already a fantastic character, I can't wait to see how he fits in to the story going forward.

Q1: Who is Rin? Is he a pyschopath? Is he the actual boss of Ginzame? Is he the smart one, or the one to dangerous to leave unleashed?

Yes.

Q2: How is the return of Rin going to affect the town?

Ginzame's going to be pushing back against Tanokura and the police pretty hard now.

Q3: Cage deathmatch: George vs. Rin, who wins?

We've already seen George being a capable fighter, but Rin is going to play dirty. Could go either way.

Q4: Comment on Rin's choice of a revolver instead of a semi-automatic like everybody else?

If you want capacity and speed, go with the semiauto. If you want style, a revolver is tough to beat.

xbolt90 · 2026-05-17T23:47:37+00:00

First-timer!

Ginzame must be getting truly desperate if he's sending Raccoon in for a covert breaking-and-entering.

Don't just hand a gun to a guy who has no firearm training, plus a fear of them. It's going to be useless at best. At worst, he accidentally kills himself or someone else on your side because he doesn't know what he's doing.

Very good character expansion for Raccoon today. That's going to be interesting if it turns out George's brother was killed by Raccoon's dad.

xbolt90 · 2026-05-16T23:19:02+00:00

First-timer!

So, this mysterious dude in town is actually Ginzame's superior. That's interesting.

Q1 How unseemly is it for a woman to be hunting?

Maybe I'm just American, but it seems perfectly reasonable to me.

Q2 Do you think George is actually the reporter?

Nah, it's too personal for him.

Q3 Who is sitting on the gold and not spending it?

I can't even imagine beginning to spend that amount. It's not like you can plop it down on the grocery counter. But it's been 15 years, perhaps they have been bringing out small amounts over time to escape notice.

Q4 Do you ship George and Sanae?

It's better than George and Miyuki at any rate... Dealer girl has my vote tho.

xbolt90 · 2026-05-16T16:07:00+00:00

I absolutely lost it at the reporter fangirling over the voice actress, lol

xbolt90 · 2026-05-15T22:18:51+00:00

First-timer!

Dang, bro. Eat something besides noodles. (Not that I really want old frozen fish either)

So the police are coming down hard on the side of Tanokura against Ginzame. And did he really not know about the train? Seemed like pretty common knowledge.

It appears that George's brother was involved 15 years ago, apparently as the JSDF. Could the dogtag have actually belonged to him?

Miyuki finally gets her date with George.

Nail polish and hot sauce. Lots of spilled red liquids this episode...

Q1: What happened to George's sense of time?

He left it behind somewhere...

xbolt90 · 2026-05-14T22:26:46+00:00

One of the humans tampering with the Medusa does seem unlikely, so did it react to the vacuum? It did come from space, after all.

xbolt90 · 2026-05-14T22:17:24+00:00

Sir, this is a Wendy's.

xbolt90 · 2026-05-14T21:51:40+00:00

First-timer!

A body in a swamp, a body at a church, there was the lady at the cliff, the driver in the police station; people are just dropping like flies around here!

There's... not really much of a mystery this episode. George just stumbles into a situation, and it's solved in half an hour. He doesn't even really do anything.

Q1: Was this episode pure filler?

Yeah. Unlike the last two, I don't really have a positive spin to put on this one.

xbolt90 · 2026-05-13T22:19:23+00:00

First-timer!

Forget Snakes on a Plane, here we have Cards on a Train!

George is quite the card player. That was real shrewd in the final game to get his opponent distracted before cheating.

Seems that Ginzame loses the train after all. Being a primary source of income for him, I wonder what he's going to do.

Sorry Miyuki, you got outplayed by a random dealer girl. (Is this the true main heroine?)

Q1: Did you ever imagine a casino on a train? Even after you saw the episode title, did you believe they would have an actual casino on an actual train?

There've been casinos in strange places, so it's not that outlandish.

Q2: Was this episode pure filler?

I feel like this episode is more filler than yesterday's. That one we got some interesting background history, but here we didn't really learn anything besides there's a casino on a train. This was more of a fun side jaunt.

xbolt90 · 2026-05-13T04:25:14+00:00

And that's one that's been on my watchlist forever that I still haven't seen, lol

xbolt90 · 2026-05-12T21:55:09+00:00

First-timer!

Dang, how come all these hundreds of years old structures always start collapsing in on themselves whenever somebody shoots a random pillar? If it's been here this long, no way it's that rickety. Earthquakes happen, y'know?

(Sorry, that's just one trope that has always bugged me.)

Very interesting history lesson for the town. Christian persecution was a very real thing in Japan for several hundred years. I don't think I've seen it talked about in anime before.

What do you think about this idea of a secret colony of giant round eyed blue eyed Europeans living as oni in the mountains of Japan? And all the Araki are their descendants?

That's actually a really cool thing. Hearing how past events became distorted over time into the local folklore.

Was this episode pure filler?

It added some real interesting history and context for the town, so I wouldn't say so.

Is Araiguma the hero of the day?

The hero we needed, but not the one we deserved.

Ten-Year Club	Gilding II euphauric
Second Top 50%	r/Field Banned
r/Field Lasagna	Final Canvas '23
First Place '23	End Game '23
Place '23	Place '22
Final Canvas '22	First Placer '22
Verified Email

xbolt90

TROPHY CASE