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The Honor Student at Magic High School features the exact same plot as that of the main series, but told from the perspective of Miyuki Shiba. As such, there is less focus on the serious aspect of the story, making this series a mix of comedy and slice of life.

What sets this apart from the main series is how we see more of the relationship and interactions between Tatsuya and Miyuki. The incest theme has been increased, which makes for hilarious and disturbing scenes. This is evident in the very first episode where the two siblings spent the whole episode in what was basically a date.

As this is a spin-off, various characters are receiving more focus than they had in the flagship series, though it tends to spotlight the ones surrounding Miyuki. We have to remember that she is interacting with fellow Course 1 students; naturally, the characters who are part of that course would be the ones shown, unlike Tatsuya’s side which involves his Course 2 friends.

Foremost of this is Honoka herself, who has gotten her fair share of focus during the second season of the main series. But this time, we get to see her at the start of the story, giving us new insights on her personality. For one, she is somewhat of a ditzy character, which makes for several hilarious scenes. For another, though kind and compassionate, Honoka was initially not too different from the rest of Course 1 students who discriminates their course 2 counterparts. But unlike them, she is not vocal about her opinions either, being the gentle soul that she was. And as we all know, her attitude completely changed after meeting the Shiba siblings.

But what we didn’t know is the fact that Honoko had a deep admiration for Miyuki at first sight, which nearly borderlines on infatuation. This is only natural as the younger Shiba is indeed a true beauty, but it’s also funny because Honoka is essentially infatuated with both Tatsuya AND Miyuki, though her feelings for the former are confirmed to be actual love.

Next, we have Shizuku. And while she did get some focus during the first and second seasons of the main series, this is the first time that we’re seeing her at the forefront of the story due to her relationship with Honoka. However, she didn’t have much spotlight yet, and most of her appearances remain as Honoka’s sidekick.

Of course, this is the show of Miyuki, so the main focus is on her. And while she already has enough of the spotlight in the main story, being in her own show further expands upon her character. Here we see more of her fun side, her love of Tatsuya—to the point that she will have constant delusions about situations involving them—and her jealous and overprotective sides that borderlines being a yandere, all of which creates funny and hilarious scenes that are not usually seen in The Irregular at Magic High School series.

But what makes Miyuki shine here is the fact that she is just like Tatsuya in battle: calculative, calm, efficient, and extremely brutal. The way she solves the arson incident in episode 1 shows why she is a Yotsuba, while also proving that she can stand on her own when needed.

The rest of the cast makes appearance, naturally, though in various level of frequency. Tatsuya is still present, but only on the most important scenes. The Student Council, led by the ever gorgeous Mayumi, is a little bit more laidback due to the series’s comedic tone, and it is really fun to see its members in a lighthearted setting.

As far as aesthetics goes, Studio Connect(Strike the Blood, Oresuki) manages to capture the beautiful image that best fits this series. The designs are crisp and cute while still retaining the familiarity of the original, though I can say that Tatsuya is a little too handsome here compared to his own series. Meanwhile, the music is upbeat and fun, especially the opening song, which perfectly reflects what tone we should expect.

Overall, The Honor Student at Magic High School is a nice spin-off that adds a lot of things we haven’t seen in its main series counterpart. The action is good, the characters are funny, and the comedic aspect is a nice touch. Think of it as a side dish to the main course.

Episode scores: 8/10, 8/10, 8.5/10.

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