Samhain Magic

## Images

**Samhain Magic** (サムハインの魔法 *Samuhain no Mahō*?) is the 13th episode of the *Little Witch Academia* anime series.
It also serves as the second part of two-parter first cour finale (first season on Netflix) of the series.

On Netflix, the episode is titled "**Samhain Magic Festival**".

## Overview

*As the festival draws nearer, Akko has a novel idea for spicing up the sacrificial ceremony. But she'll need a lot of help to pull it off.*

## Summary

Picking up from the previous episode, Akko, alongside Lotte and Sucy, review Vajarois' background. Whereas Lotte is terrified by the prospect of getting eaten with Sucy reacted otherwise, Akko, wanting to follow Chariot's example and seeing the ghost has been in its sorrowful state for too long, decided to appease the ghost by entertaining her with Metamorphosis Magic. However, her roommates are skeptical of such an idea no matter how justified the ghost' situation is since it's already part of a tradition that must never be violated, and that they don't want to be part of her plan. Rather than disheartened, this only steeled Akko's resolve to improve her Metamorphosis Magic for that goal.

Consulting the matter with Ursula, Akko also revealed a new spell she found at the Fountain of Polaris, *Arae Aryrha*, which Ursula recognizes as the Third Word (though she opted not to reveal the spell's true nature yet). To her delight, Ursula expresses her utmost support in Akko's plan and encouraged her student to carry it out as she sets out to investigate the cause of Vajarois' eternal sorrow.

Stepping out of Ursula's office, Akko found herself confronted by Hannah and Barbara who got angry from her prank from the other day. The two chose to pull their punch in their ridicule due to the red team's oncoming sacrifice task, all while ridiculing Lotte and Sucy (they remarked the former being "invisible" and "Sucy" the creepy one). As much as it hurt the red team's feelings (since both bullies are barely aware of Lotte and Sucy's presence), it doesn't enough to break the brunette's resolve to improve her metamorphosis magic for Vajarois' sake that very night. Hilariously, the brunette worked so hard that she falls asleep in class the next morning, still mumbling the spell while she naps.

As the festival's preparations go underway, Ursula discovered that Vajarois' restless state had something to do with a curse from records she found at the library, through which the bespectacled professor also learned about the princess' vestige, which currently kept at the academy's archives.

Later that night, Lotte and Sucy discuss Akko's progress in her Metamorphosis Magic training, remarking that the brunette hasn't yet improved further despite three days has passed. Whereas Sucy thought of the brunette as an idiot for not knowing when to quit, Lotte can't help but awed by their friend's determination regardless of her odds. Just then, a pile of books beside Lotte fell apart, revealing Akko's trick-or-treat plan. Meanwhile, Akko has reached her breaking point in her training as she begins to lose hope until Lotte and Sucy showed up. Having changed their minds, the two decided to lend the brunette at hand and make it all worthwhile. Lotte added that she can relate to Akko's love for magic since she felt the same way when talked to the faeries of old objects for the first time. Crying with tears of joy, Akko hugged her roommates tightly, all while promising to do her best in her own part.

Finally, the day where Samhain Magic being held has arrived. As alumnae from Luna Nova from all over the world arrive at the academy, Ursula begins her search for the vestige of Vajarois which turned out placed among hundreds of relics in the archive. Marjolaine, Ural, and Dorlin are honored to be the judge for the festival along with Badcock, Finnelan, and Headmistress Holbrooke, with Diana acting as the festival's executive committee. With that, the Cavendish marked the beginning of the festival broom aerial show where involved participants formed Luna Nova's insignia on the air with smoke and followed by fireworks. With the festival begins that afternoon, Akko steeled her resolve to improve her metamorphosis magic a bit more.

The first few performances (including Amanda's team) appeared to be dull, leaving everyone mixed. Marjolaine can't help but remark it isn't any better than in previous years. Her colleagues agreed with this statement; whereas Dorlin remarked it to be the reason for magic's decline, Ural suspected the festival's dullness being Holbrooke's fault. Meanwhile, Lotte and Sucy awaited for Akko to return as the blue team confronted them for their friend's disappearance prior to their own turn. Diana mistook the brunette's departure as an act of cowardice only for Lotte fiercely defended Akko, revealing that she comes up late due to last-minute preparation and that she won't give up that easily, much to the Cavendish and her roommates' shock. True to this, Akko has made significant progress in her metamorphosis magic as they speak.

Soon after, it's blue team's turn for their summoning magic performance, the main event of the festival. Introducing a summoning spell that has been passed down since ancient times, Diana, Hannah, and Barbara successfully summoned a unicorn that emerged from a conjured great volume of water which briefly flooded the whole stage. The performance proved to be an outstanding one as the audience and judge expected. As this happens, Akko finally showed up and with that, the red team is more than ready for their performance.

Once they are on the stage, the red team unexpectedly goes off their role's intended script as Akko performing amusing magic tricks to appease Vajarois much to Finnelan and Babcock's shock and irritation. As soon as Vajarois crawled out of her ornate jar, Lotte and Sucy keep their distance with their brooms as their friend magically turns into her mouse form to elude the giant ghost's maw. As the judges levitate away for safe distance when Vajarois crushed the stage under her weight, Marjolaine and her cohorts can't help but delighted by this turn of events, with Dorlin remarking it different to the previous year. Flying out of dust clouds with her winged elephant form, Akko has Lotte conjured balloons for keeping her said form afloat as Sucy grows several gigantic, colorful mushrooms around Vajarois with one of her concoctions. The red team then continue their efforts with following tricks which amuse everyone present except Finnelan and Badcock:

* Turning root-like appendages on Vajarois' head into a small canopy of trees,
* Conjuring colorful fireworks,
* Akko transforming into one cartoonish animal form after another with each form more comical than the rest.

Unfortunately, despite everything, it only makes things worse, much to Akko's dismay.

Meanwhile, Ursula, having rediscovered the missing vestige of Vajarois the Wailing, called forth its inhabiting faery for answers. To the bespectacled professor's shock, the faery revealed how Vajarois consumed Seed of Sorrow so she won't forget her deceased friends at the cost of her soul being anchored to the land of the living by her sadness. Relaying this information to the red team through Alcor just as they got blasted to the air by the ghost's sneeze, Ursula advised them to use Shiny Rod's magic to remove the seed from the inside. With that, Akko, Lotte, and Sucy allowed themselves to be devoured for such the task.

Entering the cavity of Vajarois' ghost form, Akko, Lotte, and Sucy find the Seed of Sorrow which had grown into monstrous size. Using the spell she learned from Fountain of Polaris, Akko begged for Vajarois to remember happy moments she had with her friends as she, Lotte, and Sucy turn Shiny Rod into its magic rope form to tear the seed off. A fierce struggle ensued as the seed's dark influence completely takes over Vajarois to crush the three friends in an effort to protect itself. But in the end, they managed to remove the seed from Vajarois' ghost form with a mighty tug, purifying her in a pillar-like explosion of light. As the blast recedes, Vajarois' purified spirit curtsies before the red team in her gratitude before moving on to the afterlife.

In the light of their success, everyone (except Finnelan and Badcock) applauded the red team for their performance. After telling her seniors that the sacrifice won't be part of Samhain Festival anymore, Ursula congratulated her beloved student as the Japanese tearfully thanked Lotte and Sucy for their support. While Diana is also happy as much as everyone else (albeit not fully comprehends what she felt at the moment), the Cavendish is dismayed that her place as this year's Moonlit Witch has been guaranteed regardless since Akko and her roommates had broken the Festival's regulations in their effort to purify Vajarois' soul.

Unknown to everyone present, someone observed the whole events through the use of cube-like devices...

## Order of appearances

* Atsuko Kagari
* Lotte Jansson
* Sucy Manbavaran
* Diana Cavendish
* Hannah England
* Barbara Parker
* Ursula
* Wangari
* Marjolaine
* Ural
* Dorlin
* Anne Finnelan
* Samantha Badcock
* Miranda Holbrooke
* Amanda O'Neill
* Jasminka Antonenko
* Constanze Amalie von Braunschbank Albrechtsberger
* Vajarois
* Croix Meridies
* Crystal Ball
* Shiny Rod
* Magic Broom
* Magic Wand
* Transformation Spell
* Magical Barrier Spell
* Water Summoning Spell
* Seven Words of Arcturus
	+ Third Word: Arae Aryrha
* Spirit Calling Spell
* Ghost(Vajarois)
* Alcor
* Spirits
* Unicorn

## Trivia

* It is interesting to note that Sucy was called "Creepy Sucy". An American television series called *The Oblongs*, which took place in a town afflicted by a chemical spill, featured a character with a similar name, Creepy Susie. As Creepy Susie shares very similar characteristics as Sucy. This was more than likely a reference to the show.
* In the Netflix worldwide release, the episode name is changed to **Samhain Magic Festival**.
* The festival and this episode take place at the end of October, as stated in the chronicles book.
* The singers of all of the openings and endings themes of the Little Witch Academia anime, YURiKA and Yuiko Ōhara, lend their voices as Luna Nova students.

* During the opening ceremony of Samhain Festival which involved a group of students forming a pattern resembling Luna Nova insignia out of trail of smoke, the way it positioned over one of the academy's observatories which decorated for such occasion from Akko's perspective subtly reminiscent to Balamb Garden from Final Fantasy VIII, more so as the smoke pattern and aforementioned decorations evoked the imagery of latter building's halo.
* This episode, alongside "New Age Magic", shed a light on shades of gray in Luna Nova. In this episode, while the school is responsible to keep Vajarois' restless spirit appeased through sacrifices, they gradually forget her origin and subsequently, failed to recognize her as the tormented ghost of an ancient princess, subsequently treating her nothing more than an instrument for a then pointless tradition. Not surprisingly, it became the reason why Akko, Lotte, and Sucy, with help of Ursula's guidance and Shiny Rod, eventually put it to an end and allowed her spirit to pass on once and for all.
* Because the episode ends with the conclusion of Akko and her roommates freeing Vajarois' spirit at the cost of getting disqualified from Samhain Festival, many viewers and fans alike were left uncertain whether Diana indeed coronated as the year's Moonlit Witch, which further exacerbated by her later brief drop out from Luna Nova in "Cavendish".This was eventually rectified in BD release's ending of the episode which shows Diana with Moonlit Witch hat and cape, confirming her coronation prior to "New Age Magic".

## References

1. ↑ Little Witch Academia's Netflix Release Date Announced - IGN
2. ↑ Little Witch Academia Chronicles, Chapter 2, page 45
4. ↑ https://www.netflix.com/title/80156387
5. ↑ https://www.netflix.com/title/80156387
6. ↑ https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/265265778230689793/354307531914608650/IMG\_20170904\_124940318.jpg
7. ↑ http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/encyclopedia/anime.php?id=18486

## Navigation

v ~ t ~ e~ **TV Series** ~
~ **Episodes** ~