Rating: A-
For long-time franchise fans, this week is the most exciting of times: the debut of an arc completely new to anime form for the first time in 15 years!
With “Church Girl and Miller Boy,” this adaptation finally diverges completely (if possibly only temporarily) from the original adaptation by beginning animation of the fourth novel. The original adaptation skipped over novel 4 in favor of novel 5 because novel 5 is more dramatic and leans heavier into the developing romance between Lawrence and Holo, elements which are more in line with novels 1-3 and thus make a sensible continuation if no additional seasons were expected. (The end of novel 5 also arguably makes a better overall stopping point.) However, if a production is planning to adapt deeper into the franchise, novel 4’s content is absolutely essential. The featured guest star of this arc, the female priest Elsa (shown here in her debut appearance), does show up again in prominent ways both later in the story and in the after-story and some of what Lawrence and Holo learn here guides them towards later events. This scenario also expands more on the lore and world-building regarding the great beasts (like Holo) worshiped as pagan gods.
The first hints of of the latter can be clearly seen in this episode if one is paying attention carefully. The doorknocker on the building where the village’s headman lives is suspiciously snake-shaped (a motif that would definitely not have been used casually in the era of European history which this series’ setting is modeled after), and a well-made stuffed snake is certainly not an ordinary thing to have on display in a house. That suggests that the village of Tereo may be – or at least have traditionally been – snake worshipers, possibly of a being like Holo. And yet there is a church present, too, one which seems a little too prominent and sturdy for such a small village. That would tend to suggest religious conflict, but the former Father Franz was apparently well-liked and respected, so the tension present in the village right now must be from something else.
Whatever is going on, the episode’s two namesake individuals seem to be caught in the middle of it. Elsa is a (very) young woman who seems to have taken over the village church with the passing of Father Franz. Given how suspicious and defensive she acts, this may be a case of the villagers seeing her as representing the greater Church in a conflict with the Church in Enberch. She’s in a doubly awkward predicament, too, because the role she has assumed isn’t something women traditionally did. Evan, the miller, is also in an awkward position, though Lawrence articulates more fully on why: millers were regarded more as necessary evils because of their association with taxation, so Evan may well be socially isolated because of that. He also clearly has some kind of relationship with Elsa. That could just be two outcasts having fallen in with each other, but it feels like more is going on here. The odd look the merchant in Enberch gives Lawrence when the latter inquires about Tereo also suggests that.
So what is going on here? Given the way this series has operated so far, the casual mention about how powerful the bakers are in Enberch probably has something – if not everything – to do with this. But this is only the first episode of the arc, so that will play out with time. Until then, we can enjoy the casual little moments between Lawrence and Holo. With the recent crisis between them now passed, they can focus on more mundane matters, like Lawrence’s wholly-unintentional mistreatment of Holo’s tale or how sloppy a sleeper Holo is. The design features are noteworthy here, too. The series as a whole has made a concerted effort to vary the architectural styles from location to location; the main building in Tereo looks nothing like the ones in Pasloe, for instance, and the curious stone stage is certainly different. Details like this are easy to overlook but reflect the effort poured into this series.
Overall, this was a fun starter episode for the arc, one which properly mixes lighter elements with new character introductions, random economic details, and hints of a bigger picture.
USA Anime 