When I call “Mashle: Magic and Muscles” a magical school show, I don’t mean vague terms like the series just uses a generic magical school setting and calls it a day. This is very clearly a parody of the Wizarding World, a show reminiscent of “Gintama” with its explicit references.
From the very first episode, when a narrator introduces the setting of the Magical Kingdom from the anime (yes, that’s the real name of the story world, so named because “it’s a magical world”), the music played is very reminiscent of the “Hedwig’s Theme” by John William from the “Harry Potter” movies. In the same way, the retro look of showbiz (despite its modern setting), along with the abundance of costumes and robes, and even the layout of the school are reminiscent of the Wizarding World, as opposed to a medieval fantasy realm. general. .
Along those same lines, each episode is formatted and titled after one of the “Harry Potter” books. For example, “Mash Burnedead and the Mysterious Maze” features a magical maze challenge overseen by a principal who ignores the rules and heavily favors a particular student for no apparent reason. In fact, the third episode literally ends with a game of quidditch and doesn’t even bother to tweak the aesthetics of the game, let alone the team jerseys or stadium layout. There are even scenes straight out of the “Harry Potter” movies, including Mash’s first broomstick-flying lesson.
But wait, you might wonder, how is a show that directly shows scenes from “Harry Potter” better than just watching reality? Well, because it’s hilarious and actually has some moving comments, but without the JK Rowling baggage.
