The Ancient Magus' Bride was extremely popular in 2017, but is hardly talked about now despite receiving new seasons.
The anime was praised for its unique world and a realistic take on romance, and, despite being slow, amassed a steady following.
There simply wasn't enough content for the sequel at first, and over years, fans just stopped caring about the anime.
The Ancient Magus' Bride (Mahoutsukai no Yome) was one of the most popular anime of 2017. Praised for its unique take on romance and for the realistic writing for the protagonist, it felt like the anime was going to become a modern classic. In 2023, a sequel season was released in two parts, but it felt like no one was talking about it.
Did the anime become so much worse — or what is the reason the hype died out?
How was the reception originally?
One misconception otaku have is that everyone liked the series at first. It was actually more controversial than one might think: not because of any content, but because it was a highly unusual series with a unique setting that we don't really see in anime.
A very slow pace and developments between the main characters made many fans feel like the anime was too boring, so they dropped it.
Ironically enough, the previously released OVA, The Ancient Magus' Bride: Those Awaiting a Star, was somewhat received by them — presumably because it was just shorter.
That said, while some viewers did think the anime was too slow, it was still generally well-received. The Ancient Magus' Bride is famous for not binding its fantasy world to a strictly defined system, instead making it seem mysterious and magical — something we don't see much in anime.
What made it less popular over the years?
The anime being praised for being unique in multiple aspects meant that it was bound to get some following. And, of course, it did, but there was one huge problem: it was very obviously unfinished, and so, fans expected it to get a new season.
However, that was simply not possible at first. With the manga being released monthly and not weekly, there was simply not enough content for another 2-cour season when the anime ended. Over the years, we got another spinoff OVA, The Boy from the West and the Knight of the Blue Storm, but it mostly went under the radar.
By the time S2 was announced, many years have passed, and fans have moved on. Anime series lose popularity if there is no new content for years, and The Ancient Magus' Bride is no exception, sadly.
Another potential reason for the loss in popularity is the studio change. The original anime was watched just for the studio alone, as it was made by Wit, who have also made Attack on Titan (Shingeki no Kyojin). The new seasons were made by a relatively unknown studio Kafka, and while the staff was mostly the same, the series did not have a popularity boost just from the studio name this time.
It seems that no one watched the new seasons.
Summary:
The Ancient Magus' Bride was extremely popular in 2017, but is hardly talked about now despite receiving new seasons.
The anime was praised for its unique world and a realistic take on romance, and, despite being slow, amassed a steady following.
There simply wasn't enough content for the sequel at first, and over years, fans just stopped caring about the anime.
The Ancient Magus' Bride (Mahoutsukai no Yome) was one of the most popular anime of 2017. Praised for its unique take on romance and for the realistic writing for the protagonist, it felt like the anime was going to become a modern classic. In 2023, a sequel season was released in two parts, but it felt like no one was talking about it.
Did the anime become so much worse — or what is the reason the hype died out?
How was the reception originally?
One misconception otaku have is that everyone liked the series at first. It was actually more controversial than one might think: not because of any content, but because it was a highly unusual series with a unique setting that we don't really see in anime.
A very slow pace and developments between the main characters made many fans feel like the anime was too boring, so they dropped it.
Ironically enough, the previously released OVA, The Ancient Magus' Bride: Those Awaiting a Star, was somewhat received by them — presumably because it was just shorter.
That said, while some viewers did think the anime was too slow, it was still generally well-received. The Ancient Magus' Bride is famous for not binding its fantasy world to a strictly defined system, instead making it seem mysterious and magical — something we don't see much in anime.
What made it less popular over the years?
The anime being praised for being unique in multiple aspects meant that it was bound to get some following. And, of course, it did, but there was one huge problem: it was very obviously unfinished, and so, fans expected it to get a new season.
However, that was simply not possible at first. With the manga being released monthly and not weekly, there was simply not enough content for another 2-cour season when the anime ended. Over the years, we got another spinoff OVA, The Boy from the West and the Knight of the Blue Storm, but it mostly went under the radar.
By the time S2 was announced, many years have passed, and fans have moved on. Anime series lose popularity if there is no new content for years, and The Ancient Magus' Bride is no exception, sadly.
Another potential reason for the loss in popularity is the studio change. The original anime was watched just for the studio alone, as it was made by Wit, who have also made Attack on Titan (Shingeki no Kyojin). The new seasons were made by a relatively unknown studio Kafka, and while the staff was mostly the same, the series did not have a popularity boost just from the studio name this time.
