The Mystic Archives of Dantalian

A town is taken over by a mysterious affliction. Hugh is confronted by a girl with a lock and a man with his own key. We finally get more scenes with the mysterious girl with pink hair who's been in the story since the beginning, who hasn't really played a part in the story so far leading to you questioning the importance of this girl within the narrative.

We are given a glimpse into the past of a man named Ilas during the latter half of the Great War. We are shown interesting camera shots of how the pilots manage the plane from the cockpit, while later being told how Mystical Tomes are created. There are bits and pieces of history spread throughout which history buffs would find charming.

Another mystery finds the duo once again. The setting being that of music and performance, the soundtrack accommodates by having unique tracks play which suits the episode. Besides that, it is a fairly standard chapter as established by the previous episodes.

An interesting shift in the art style which allows this episode to stand out. We see our main duo through the eyes of a young witch apprentice. It's a quaint episode that leaves you feeling that the lives they touch go beyond the little world they live in.

A slice of life episode where the duo are sent on a peculiar wild goose chase. While nothing special, the latter half of the episode revolves around a very awkward situation and teaches you that true love should never be forced. However, there is a very... complicated moment which does not receive the proper weight it deserves; as if the show wants the spectacle of shocking moments without the consequences.

Hugh and Dalian find themselves involved in a situation that involves perfume. It's a relatively standard episode, though it demonstrates the power of the Mystical Tomes which can have dire effects even when it comes to something as simple as perfume.

We are introduced to another eccentric pair as they find themselves in a town harboring some oddities. It's well-paced, simple, and leaves you satisfied with the answer while at the same time demonstrating the capabilities of this new duo.

A very interesting episode with some fascinating lore drops. The animation puts in more work, giving way for a fairly spectacular light show. Despite the ridiculousness of certain admirers, there is a strong demonstration of genuine care and loyalty, with a hilarious twist.

A murder mystery befalls the two as they investigate the home of a well-renowned author. Unlike previous episodes, this one keeps you wondering what's going on throughout the mystery with some pretty good animation and character reaction shots.

Another quaint episode revolving around a mystical tome of intelligence and another about a flower. It's relatively simple, with more moments of levity and character interactions, as well as a lesson to respect books.

The main focus is on a local mystery where Hugh and Dalian investigate someone who may have been cursed, while the soundtrack is the highlight of the story. It's a curious mix of a standard supernatural anime and its setting, though less grounded than you are led to believe.

There's a sense of melancholy within the mystery set up at the beginning of the story. While the art style is fairly straightforward, at times they show almost photorealistic frames of the European 1900s it draws inspiration from. The ending animation is pretty unique and adds more to the supernatural setting, leaving you with expectations of upcoming mysteries contrasted with the 1900s setting.

Maybe the anime is more of an introduction into the story, which is why I feel like the plot was too weak and lacking; it could have been more interesting. While watching, I thought Dalian and her other self who's inside the archives are like Alice and the Will of the Abyss in Pandora Hearts; and like Oz, Huey wants to save the other Dalian in the archives. Also, similar to Cardcaptor Sakura's magician and familiars combination, there are others like Huey and Dalian, a keykeeper and its archive, whose goals differ from one another.

The friendship of Huey and Ilas was beautiful; they were like brothers, which is why it must have been hard on Huey to see what became of his friend. The voice acting here is spectacular, their voices are just so good too.

The heart and the will are always talked about when someone creates a doll or machine. It was implied that Christabel may have had a heart and will, but more than that she is surely better than the manager and his men.

Dalian will really go so far to take care of a book she is reading. Meanwhile, she bosses Huey around and berates him at times even though he takes care of her. Books are just that important to her.

It's another episode with two different stories. For the second story, it's sad that Armand and Liana couldn't talk through the issue together and so Armand ended up relying on a third party.

Characters having a dream that is simple but grand always sets up a death flag for themselves. At the very least, Fiona was able to clean up the root of the mess she made.

The world that was shown to the audience so far was definitely widened here as it is not just Dalian and Huey who deal with mystical tomes. The other characters seen here were totally different from Dalian and Huey.

Count Melville was kind of like Kurotsuchi Mayuri from Bleach. At first he might have just been experimenting on life and death but eventually what he created became like a real daughter, like Nemu was for Kurotsuchi.