OVA Week – Day 4: Sorcery in the Big City (Itazura Majo to Nemuranai Machi)

ashleycapes

Sep 7

OVA Week continues!

You can find a quick overview on the form itself below, then the actual review. (This time, the review is actually for an ONA).

Hope you enjoy these posts and as before, I'd love to hear any suggestions you might have for future OVA-weeks

An animated film or series made for release on video, rather than for broadcast/theatrical screening
Generally, high budgets that can mean visual qualities are better than a typical television series
No fixed length, nor broadcast time-constraints when it comes to storytelling
To some extent, created outside regulation – and so they have a reputation for 'anything goes' when it comes to restricted content
Often (but certainly not always) based on original scripts, rather than being adaptations
Long wait times between episodes/installments for some OVAs
First OVA to be described as such was 1983's Dallos from Mamoru Oshii
The ONA (Original Net Animation) is an obvious more modern equivalent

Sorcery in the Big City (Itazura Majo to Nemuranai Machi) 2017

I do wish Sorcery in the Big City had been a bit longer – it was fun and had some nice, flashy action sequences to perhaps contrast with the moe elements. When I think back on it, I mostly remember it as a feel-good short film that focuses on Christmas and a little on family.

Released back in December of 2017, it's an ONA from Sanzigen with nice CGI, some at times dazzling lighting and fun character and costume designs too.

One thing I liked a lot was the fact that while main character Akari has lost her teddy bear, she doesn't precisely end up being the one to find and rescue the toy (Apple), it ends up being the other way around, for the most part.

Connected to the above, I also found it nice to see a little tweak on the "bringing toys to life at Christmas" choice, since in this case, that's the actual source of danger.

I do wonder whether Akari's partner drifts in and out of racial stereotype territory – as does our MC, perhaps. I hope I'm off-base, but I dunno. It's also probably not too hard to see lazy cliches about police mixed in with some copaganda elements too. It's actually a really odd mix.

Elsewhere, the scene-setting is really detailed - if a little quiet at times, but I suppose that's part of the Christmas fantasy.

I also wanted a little more screen time for the true villain, and also probably more on the post-climax wrap up... but as I mentioned before, it's a short and the focus on being uplifting was always meant to come first.

3 Stars