Forget The Tired Harry Potter Remake – Mashle: Magic And Muscles Is The Magical School TV Show You Need To Watch
It was recently announced that the Wizarding World is pivoting away from finishing its mixed bag of a "Harry Potter" prequel saga with "Fantastic Beasts" — which still providing some cool moments that improve on the "Potter" films — to instead retell the exact same tale of the Boy Who Lived (until he became a sacrificial lamb and sent to the slaughter). This news brought with it a lot of mixed reactions, from those who can't fundamentally reconcile their feelings for the franchise and the controversy surrounding its creator, notorious bigot J.K. Rowling, to even those who would like the property to try something new rather than just tell the same story over and over again and never move beyond Hogwarts.
Regardless, there is no denying that the idea of a school but with magic is compelling — but how to scratch that itch without supporting Rowling or rewatching the exact same story told a second time? You watch anime, of course!
The concept of genre stories set at a school is a staple of the anime medium (from ninja academies to superhero academies to school kids learning to pilot giant death machines), so it was only a matter of time before we got a proper magical school show. Better yet, one of the best anime series of the season, "Mashle: Magic and Muscles" has more than just a setting that's similar to the Wizarding World, it's a straight-up parody of "Harry Potter."
That's right, "Mashle: Magic and Muscles" asks a simple question: What if Saitama from "One Punch Man" went to Hogwarts? The answer is a hilarious sendup where a guy with incredible physical strength but no magical abilities attends a prestigious magical school and tricks everyone into believing he's a wizard prodigy thanks to his super-brawn.
Mash Burnedead and the Philosopher's Parody
When I call "Mashle: Magic and Muscles" a magical school show, I don't mean in vague terms like the series simply uses a generic magical school setting and calls it a day. This is very clearly a parody of the Wizarding World, a show that recalls "Gintama" with its explicit references.
From the very first episode, when a narrator introduces the anime's setting of the Magic Realm (yes, that is the actual name of the world of the story, named so because "it is a world that is magic"), the music playing is highly reminiscent of John William's "Hedwig's Theme" from the "Harry Potter" movies. By that same token, the retro look of the show's world (despite its modern setting), along with the abundance of suits and robes, and even the design of the school bring the Wizarding World to mind, as opposed to a general medieval fantasy realm.
Along those same lines, every episode is both formatted and titled like one of the "Harry Potter" books. For example, "Mash Burnedead and the Mysterious Maze" features a magical maze challenge overseen by a headmaster who disregards the rules and heavily favors one particular student for no apparent reason. For that matter, the third episode literally ends with a game of quidditch and doesn't even bother to tweak the game's aesthetics, much less the team jerseys or the stadium layout. There are even scenes lifted straight out of the "Harry Potter" movies, including Mash's first broom-flying class.
But wait, you might ask, how is a show that straight up lifts scenes from "Harry Potter" better than just watching the real thing? Well, because it is hilarious and it actually has some poignant commentary, but without the baggage of J.K. Rowling.
Mash Burnedead and the Chamber of Hilarity and Poignant Commentary
The humor in "Mashle: Magic and Muscles" relies heavily on gag comedy — meaning short sketch-like episodes that end before the joke gets old. I'm talking Mash fooling everyone into thinking he's the fastest broom-rider by literally throwing his broom super-fast and jumping towards it, creating the illusion of flight. Or how he keeps defeating every super powerful wizard he comes across because his muscles literally repel magic spells before he punches them square in the face, or how he levitates a boulder by lifting it with one finger.
The gags are silly and fill-y, but Mash's ability to maintain a constant deadpan expression makes the show as effective and hilarious as "One Punch Man." Everyone is astonished that this kid is so gifted, yet Mash never acts out. As for why his strength is perceived as being magic? The show makes it very clear that having actual magic at their disposal has made wizards complacent and they do everything with magic, rather than with their bare hands. Because of this, they assume someone who can break stuff with their fists is simply wielding a high-end spell.
But "Mashle: Magic and Muscles" is not just about the jokes, it also has something to say. From the first scene, we learn that non-magic people are non-existent in the Magic Realm because they are all executed as newborns like in "300." This is a highly classist society where politics and connections matter more than magical skill and Mash is breaking down barriers one punch at a time. It is not the focus of the story, but there is enough here to make this anime series a fascinating counterpart to the "Harry Potter" stories and their troubling stereotypes.
"Mashle: Magic and Muscles" is streaming on Crunchyroll, with new episodes airing on Fridays.