I wrote a review of this series on MAL back in maybe 2017? I maintain a lot of the positives and criticisms I have of the series that I made there but Ive always wanted to redo that review because it has a lot of the mannerisms of my younger self that make me want to jump out of a window. I absolutely recommend reading the manga before or after watching the anime. The story is so emotional and complex and the anime focuses more on the fluffy parts so you cant really get that full impression from watching alone. This show is so dear to me. I watched it on a whim and it is one of the shows I would consider more niche that was completely fundamental to my taste in anime. Mikan Sakura oh my god is that not the most magical girl name youve ever heard is the best protagonist even if she has no magic to speak of compared with her classmates that can shoot fire and commune with animals and attract people to them agains their will. Her care for others is not unique to the genre but I believe with the circumstances of the show this care is wonderful and needed to keep the story going. At risk of going into a level of detail that spoils the manga Ill say that the dark side of this series is wild and Mikans resilience is unparalleled. It always shocks me when I remember she is supposed to be 10 years old or something I believe this story would have worked whether she was 10 12 or 17 but seeing this world through a ten year olds eyes really makes you think about how these kids are treated. This show will give you plenty of feelings but I think its nearly impossible for me to review the anime outside of the context of the manga at this point. The developing character relationships that are shown in the anime are so good though gaggy sometimes very reminiscent of the time period and I believe every character is very well rounded character motivations are never a mystery and none of them appear especially onenote. The show may look gimmicky at a glance but it is an amazing touchpoint in the magical girl genre and I would be so so excited to see a Fruits Basket style reboot of it especially considering how theres been buzz about new accounts on Twitter for the series and everything. PLEASE WATCH ALICE ACADEMY AND THEN READ THE MANGA You will not regret it. Genuinely if you liked Fruits Basket and did not know about this series please please watch. Its not the exact same premise but I believe there are similarities as per the genre but also in more specific terms that I cannot list lmao and its a wonderful ride.