[Spoilers] Journal with Witch - Episode 13

I didn't post much for this show apart from the first episode, but I'm really going to miss this one. Definitely my highlight for the season, and one that I will definitely remember when it comes to the best anime of the year at the close of 2026.

No matter what, keep moving forward, everyone.

Seeing Asa sing in front of everybody and hope to reach someone, even a little, even 10 years from now, was so cathartic.
The build-up to it was great too, culminating with that montage where Asa thinks back about all her past experiences and the people she met with. And parted with. (And the music during that scene, damn)


And then, she stops thinking and sings! :-D

Low-key worried this will happen to me one day.

Emiri...

That 10-year timeskip was a great way to finish this anime. Life went on, Asa and Emiri are still good friends and Makio is still part of Asa's life <3
I was so confused by the random timeskip that happens in the middle of the episode. "Uh, this looks like Emiri but... Or is it her mo... Oh, we're back with the usual Asa."

Amazing anime, it was so well written and directed. And I can't remember the last time something felt so relevant to me.
That's the kind of story that stays with you.

Ikoku Nikki #13 (Finale):
"Morning (Tomorrow) is coming"
Storyboard/Episode Director: Miyuki Ooshiro 大城美幸
Assistant Director(s): Takahiro Oomori 大森貴弘,
Nishida Daiki 西田大樹

Too much to talk about, digest, glorify and praise in a single comment, bear with me.

Upcoming seinen, josei, and drama works now face a towering standard set by Ikoku Nikki. Right from the premiere, it was obvious this was no ordinary series, but the more remarkable part is how it raised our expectations each week while consistently delivering on them, layering emotional depth, societal insight, and character nuance to heights rarely seen in this medium, prolly since 3-gatsu no Lion and Natsume Yuujinchou in recent years.

A life-affirming, uplifting story that confronts grief, loss, and so many issues our current society struggles with, weaving them together in a delicate, profound, and awe-striking manner. Crafted with evident passion by Studio Shuka and Miyuki, who is serving as series director for the first time, and has openly talked at length in a prior interview about being a longtime fan of the manga. This is a work that will continue to resonate and be appreciated for years to come.

Huge credits to Omori for entrusting Miyuki with this adaptation and providing all the necessary support to realize it, while simultaneously paving the way for young talent at the studio to contribute. Nishida Daiki, a rising talent at Studio Shuka, has been brought in three times (episodes 09, 11, 13) under Omori's direct supervision. Delivering a work of this caliber while actively nurturing new talent for the future is no small feat. Omori is a living legend in the industry. One look at his directorial catalogue over the years is enough to reach that conclusion.

I can't forget to sing praises for Kensuke Ushio's sublime score. The guy has an absurd number of big titles under his belt and has been on fire in recent years (Dandadan, BokuYaba, Chi, CSM: Reze, etc.) and I genuinely believe his work on Ikoku Nikki deserves to be in the conversation for his best score so far. If you didn't pay attention to the score in this show and you plan to rewatch it at some point, please give it a proper listen. It's astonishing.

I'd be lying if I said I cried or broke down at any given point watching this show, or even related to any of its characters, yet I always felt and appreciated the elegant writing, the way its conflicts are framed and resolved, and the amazing dynamic between Makio, Asa and the rest of the cast. I followed the manga alongside the adaptation to spot any differences and get a taste of Tomoko Yamashita's prose, which was an extraordinary experience, one I highly recommend once it gets a proper English localization. I thoroughly enjoyed this show for what it is, the portrayal of loss and grief, the sincere messages it conveys week after week, paired with some of the most brilliant visual language moments this medium has to offer, all elevated by the incredible production quality, gave me an experience I won't be shaking off anytime soon.

This may sound random, but I'd like to share it here. Midway through this anime, a line from an eroge I read years ago written by Tanaka Romeo (he wrote one of the routes) came to mind, and it fit this work almost too well. It goes like this (translated): Even those who arrive at a destination they were searching for rarely settle there for good. They start looking again, walking forward through uncertainty. When you think about it that way, isn't a human life just one long continuation of being lost? If that's the case, if we're going to keep wandering regardless, is it really so wrong to wish that we wander in the places we truly love?

なりたい自分、なりたいの
I want to be who I want to be. (Kensuke Ushio, you have my soul.)

Goodbye Makio. Thanks for the memories. We will hold them so dear.

Same, Chiyo. Same.

It reached them, Asa. You're not alone anymore.

They used the lantern for the birthday celebration, so sweet.

Grow-up Emiri and Asa!

Easily my Anime of the Season. It's rare to get these kinds of grounded and mature manga adapted into an anime. Especially with grief stories where it feels like the deceased are constantly put on a pedestal over the living characters. I'm glad that wasn't the case here.

We started the series with Asa's singing, now we're ending it with Asa's singing in front of an audience. The buildup leading to the live was well worth Asa's internal journey of becoming who she wanted to be. It took that for her to finally understand Makio's advice, for it all to finally come together.

I do find it interesting how it's not abundantly clear on whether the 10 year skip is real or a dream, but I guess that's not the point. The point being that Asa was glad to have performed in the end, that she maintains her relationships with Makio and Emiri, then overall living a normal life despite all that's happened to her. Can't ask for a better ending in my opinion.

My only criticism with this anime is that I often felt we were losing pieces from the manga despite not having read the entire thing. The way events flowed seemed abrupt at times. Touno (lawyer guy) wasn't around as much as I expected him to be, the high school characters were given very little screentime. Emiri and her girlfriend could have had more scenes for all I know. The manga is a good 11 volumes long, after all. Despite this, I think the anime did a good job with what little time they had.

With that said and done, I'm giving Ikoku Nikki a 9/10. The writing, VA performances, and tight directing make it well worth the watch. I'm glad I gave it a shot and also glad I came here to talk/read about it!

and as always, makio's words hit as hard as they can. perfect way to end a series this beautiful, probably every quote said by makio or whoever already started changing me for the better

It's simply amazing anime, and there are some aspect that felt very relatable/relevant to me. Although I feel the pacing feel fast on few occasion.

Anyway, I'll read the manga soon since I hear the anime isn't complete/full adaption.

I don't think anything this year moved me this much. I am floored with each episode of this show somehow encouraging me to face reality, and teaching lessons if I want to find them. Absolutely beautiful story and what a performance, I'm proud of you Asa!

Probably by far the most ignored show of this season by many, but a gem in the rough for those who may experience it.

I love the more realistic animation of human emotions and experiences from shows coming out recently, and I'm all for it. Thank you to the beautiful people who wrote this novel!

Great end to what probably going to be my anime of the year. I love that they use this OST (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y-m5yceJHR8&list=OLAK5uy_ktMmDdr8dB5AxK7BZJ4A2SC6GmA6P_iAg&index=18) for the montage before the performance. When i listened to the OST it was my favorite so glad its finally being used in the anime.

The show has been mostly about dealing with grief, but it's also about breaking the social norm. While I enjoyed the show more when they explore the former, they've done a great job to explore the latter considering the time constraint while also focusing on Asa's growth. But I would say Emiri's problem felt undone. Maybe it's because I've read a few chapter after where the anime end, I couldn't shake the feeling they should've cut a few more thing to give more time to Emiri. I won't complain too much because this has been an amazing adaptation to the point I prefer the anime instead a lot of the time.

I'll miss this anime so much. Every sunday I always wait for the release then looking forward to next sunday to watch the next episode. Good thing is the manga still has around 20 unadapted chapters so I'll see more of the characters for a while but I'm going to miss Miyako Sawashiro's voice ad Makio and Kensuke Ushio so much. It's going to be hard to found another series that can impact me as much as this show

Hands down, one of the best seasonal anime. The writing and depth of the story are truly amazing, especially the fact that the author never puts herself in the position of telling you what to do or how to live, leaving you with that feeling of uncertainty that constantly lingers in our daily lives, the character are simply "alive" in this work, Simply wonderful.
9.5 only because I never give 10, well deserved.

What a Beautiful show this was easily my #1 of this season and we will probably not see a show as great as this one for a while this anime has the potential for making into the top 3-5 of the year.

Masterpiece.

That is all. Take care.

Asa's "live performance" of the opening theme without the monologue will be on YouTube in a few hours:

https://x.com/ikoku_anime/status/2038277502695518293

朝が「ソナーレ」を歌ったコンコースライブシーンを
3/30(月)20時～YouTubeでプレミア公開！

放送とは異なる、モノローグがないver.となります。
ぜひご覧ください🎤🎶

---

The concourse live performance of Asa singing “Sonare” will be released on YouTube on Monday, March 30, at 8:00 PM!

This is a version without the monologue, which differs from the broadcast.
Please be sure to check it out.🎤🎶

not sure the highest rated non-sequel show of the year so far can be called an "underrated gem" but i do hope we get another season

What a great anime through and through that deserves much more praise, I believe there is nothing to say that hasn't been said already so I'm just gonna say, this was truly an incredible piece of fiction way beyond what I expected when I started it.

Also, I'd low key be down for a sequel playing in the time skip, just following Asa in her adault life a bit and see what she and other characters are doing now.

We need a 2nd season of this show 100%, from what I kept reading online it was "just" 30'ish chapters from the total 54? So I hope they can drum up another batch. I will definitely start reading the manga for this too.

It is insane how I seemingly lacked such series in my life.

agree on all point. love the very grounded characters interaction and behavior between each other. easily number 1 spot on my anime of the season and it shares with Sentenced to Be A Hero and Frieren. i hope we can get 2nd season but judging from the replies its a long way to go.

Amazing ep

Lol, she thought black hair woulda have had her back with the ticket.

Slight timeskip?

Extremely proud that Asa fought thru her nerves and sang the OP to 100+ classmates. Quite the way to inspire ppl around her even in the most difficult times of their lives.

Lovely timeskip, but damn Asa doesn't even look any older, but time goes by anyways.

10/10

Ikoku Nikki: 8/10

Definitely a watch that will stick with me. The show has done a beautiful job of portraying the wonders of being human, in both strife and joy

I have just been in constant awe of this show since it started airing.

As someone who has lost their mother (not quite as young as Asa, but still as a teen) it’s amazing how this story portrays it. Very few anime, or any art in general, captures the complexities of it. I cried basically every episode I watched.

Really amazing story, the quality and depth of which are few and far between.

My fav of the season, this anime Even when You maybe not relate with the experiences feels so close, it has that "spark" that make an anime a real good work
A bit sad that we don't see more bit pleased for what it was

I really appreciate this show for how grounded it is. It's very solemn, quiet, and slow, but the story is so tightly paced so you never start drifting away from the messages. I don't think a single line was unnecessary or wasted. And even with heavy topics the writing made me laugh often laugh; like in this episode I chuckled when Asa thought Chiyo saying something in English was super cool even though as an adult I can see it's very chuuni. This is probably the first anime I've ever seen where the teenage characters actually ACT their age, and for that it's one of a kind for me. I saw myself and other old friends in Asa and all of her classmates so many times, and even the adults in my life at the time in Asa's adult support group.

Some might wonder why this couldn't have just been a live action adaptation like some other josei manga, but the visual metaphors are so important to the story so being animated was essential to putting you into the characters headspaces. This is a once in a decade show. So even though it's not bombastic like most popular anime, I hope it will be remembered for years to come.

10/10

This show was amazing and it’s gonna stick with me for a long time. I might have to rewatch it soon which I don’t do for a lot of seasonal anime. Shows this grounded either soar or fall short in some way and I’m glad this is one of the exceptions that are truly special.
They mention in some parts that a year has passed throughout the story (before the flash forward), seems like it went by really quickly, I didn’t even know how much time was passing between every episode. I hope we get the manga officially in print, I’d love to know if there’s more story left or if anything was cut.
Either way everything still progressed smoothly and felt very intentional, I loved every minute of it and it concluded very well.

cannot stop crying

I'm not gonna come across an anime quite like this for a very long time. Simply sublime

OMG, what an absolute fantastic show... my god man, just thinking of them at the end with Makio and Asa all comfy together at the end made me kinda tear up man. UGH.

Really though, this show reminded me ALOT of the movie "Aftersun", the way it has so much messaging that you really don't understand until the end, and a lot of the ways it shows the struggles of adults/younger characters, the time skips, the nice relaxed slow pace. Very similar vibes. Low-key, if you loved this anime I would honestly recommend watching it, it really is though one of those movies that you gotta try to "experience" and not try to think too hard... But man, it does still stick with me whenever I'm just thinking you know?

Genuinely though, this anime has SO many good one sentence life lessons delivered by the goat (Miyuki , god I love her...)and honestly thought this show might be "too deep" for me to understand, but it does a superb job of just letting you FEEL the emotions of the characters. I also just love the double meaning at the end when Asa is singing, and hopes to "reach" the other struggling characters, while at the same time also the authors way of reaching US, the audience, to maybe even 10 years later, change the world... such a great show...

It's kind of funny how some of the most impactful and memorable shows I've watched aren't the ones full of action, explosions and fight scenes but rather the ones depicting the simple day to day life of characters.

Really glad I picked this one up, praying for a 2nd season.

WE. Yes, WE are all coming down to the streets if they dont completely adapt this.

Every once or twice a year you come across a seasonal that pretty much no one talks about, with absolutely no social media presence whatsoever, but somehow ends up being one of the strongest contenders for your personal AOTY. This is the reason why I try out so many shows every season instead of just playing it safe and only watching sequels and works I'm already aware of. If it wasnt for me scouring through seasonal charts, I probably would've never come across this absolute fucking gem of a show.

This year started with a banger of a season and to think that this show still somehow managed to climb to my top 3 seasonals is saying something. Im probably not going to forget this one for years to come and am definitely looking forward to a certain rewatch in future

8.8/10