The Magic of Art and other feel-good lessons from the best show nobody’s watching.

Magic-Kyun Renaissance is an adaptation of an otome game (basically a dating sim marketed towards girls) that follows Kohana, a second-year student transferring to the prestigious Hoshinomori School of Magical Arts. Once there, she quickly winds up on the school’s festival committee along with a bunch of cute boys specializing in various arts, from calligraphy to dancing to sculpting. Sparkles, flowers, and musical numbers ensue.

While the premise is pretty standard harem fare, it’s charmed me with its cast of likable (if not a bit one-note) art dorks, silly sense of humor and willingness to poke fun at itself, and some impressive cinematography thanks in large part to Yamazaki Mitsue’s direction and storyboards. I also find myself both fascinated and inspired by the way it uses its world of “magical arts” to address the struggles of young artists. And since no one else is talking about it, I figured now was a good time for a li’l mini-essay!

Here there be spoilers: General discussion of the first three episodes below.

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