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The Witch Hat Atelier series is one of the most hopeful, inspiring manga and anime that we’ve seen for a while, with beautiful artwork and the general sense that everyone has the potential for greatness within them. That isn’t an accident, as mangaka Kamome Shirahama wanted the magic in Witch Hat Atelier to feel accessible and wondrous at the same time.

During a recent interview, Kamome Shirahama explained that it was important to her to create a world where what mattered was effort rather than the luck of birth, which is why the magic is something that can be learned by anyone. “I always wanted to give the sense that everyone has the right to try,” she explained. “Everyone has the right to look at their possibilities, and I don’t really want to create a world of magical fantasy where it’s limited. I really wanted to make it so it’s something where, through hard work and gumption, anyone could achieve.”

It is a hopeful outlook for the fantasy genre, which is a big reason why so many fans have fallen in love with the series. The gorgeous artwork and fun characters aside, it is refreshing to be presented with a world full of possibilities rather than limitations. Witch Hat Atelier gives us the perfect kind of escapism where we can do truly amazing things if we have the drive to learn and put in the effort. The real wonder of Witch Hat Atelier comes from feeling like magic is open to everyone. 

Each week, Popverse's resident anime expert Trent Cannon runs down the latest and, dare we say "greatest," in anime and manga in Popverse Jump. Some recent columns have included... 

• Aggretsuko vs Chainsaw Man: Two Wildly different anine with the same anti-capitalist message
• The Summer Anime season return of Kaiju No. 8, Sakamoto Days, & Dan Da Dan are forcing me to break my vow of watching less anime
• From Tomo-Chan to Oshi No Ko: How some of your favorite manga creators got their start in hentai
• Piracy is baked into anime's past, but, like Crunchyroll, we should move on from it
• Flying whales, mechs, and Miyazaki vibes: Inside Netflix's Leviathan anime with the people who made it
• How AI translations of manga continues the 'enshitification' of the medium, and why Japanese publishers are "less precious" about it
• I never wanted a Cyberpunk Edgerunners sequel, but God help me I'm going to watch it
• The Summer Hikaru Died delivers its cosmic horror at an agonizingly slow pace
• The one thing that Dan Da Dan does better than Demon Slayer ever did
• Studio Ghibli movies have never been as cozy as you think they are and that's what makes them magic