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Rating: 7.3/10

Japanese Title: 狼と香辛料
Genres: Fantasy
Episodes: 12
OP: “Tabi no Tochū” by Natsumi Kiyoura
ED: “Ringo Hiyori” by Rocky Chack
Producers: IMAGIN
Source Material: Manga/Game(?)
Official Site: http://www.spicy-wolf.com/

Impressions:

I’m not sure whether I want to blog this show or not, but I like the premise, and I really like Horo’s character design. Her unique way of speaking is also quite attractive. Everything builds on her interesting character, and I’m hoping that that’s what’s going to make this show good. Anyway, Ookami to Koushinryou (Wolf and Spice) is about a travelling merchant who comes across a resident wolf-god that brings about good wheat harvests (or, maybe it’s spice harvests?), who ends up travelling with him and supposedly increases his profits. From summaries I’ve read, it seems they’ll be getting trouble from the church soon enough though.

High quality, a good cast and an interesting setting—I really hope the second episode won’t be the result of some large budget collapse. This show has a lot of potential, and the first episode is definitely one of the better starts to the season. Lawrence, the male lead, also seems to be quite a likeable character, without the naivety of your usual shounen lead. I was worried about the outward age of Horo matching with the ‘middle-age-ness’ of Lawrence, but the two make a surprisingly good couple IMO, so there’s nothing for me to worry about in terms of compatibility.

What worries me is the possibility of a heavily episodic series that might result, due to the type of goal that is set in the episode. Horo and Lawrence are to journey to Horo’s birthplace, which may or may not span the entire series, but nevertheless creates a large opportunity for episodic events, which would end up blocky and disjointed. Or they could make use of an interesting storyline, but I find that this is what usually causes an anime’s undoing. Shows with manga bases aren’t free from this either, especially when there’s an episode limit while the manga hasn’t finished.

Popularity: 7% [?]