One of the newest anime releases this year is Unnamed Memory, a fantasy romance adapted from the light novel series of the same name written by Kuji Furumiya. With witches, princes, and curses involved, the show has many of the elements of a fun fantastical ride, and with the first episode already out, we are ready for the next.
Unnamed Memory follows the story of two central characters: Oscar, the crown prince of Falsas, and Tinasha, a powerful witch. Oscar is under a powerful curse, forced upon him by the Witch of Silence, which prevents him from siring an heir as any woman who bears his child would die as a result. (Sounds more like a curse upon the women than than the prince, but eh, fantasy logic.) Oscar is desperate to rid himself of this curse and so seeks out the Witch of the Azure Moon, Tinasha, who lives atop a lofty tower and grants a wish to anyone who is able to reach her.
The first episode introduces audiences to the premise. Prince Oscar undergoes a series of puzzles and riddles to reach Tinasha, discovering that his great-grandfather, King Regius, was the last person to attempt to climb the tower 70 years ago. His initial plan was for Tinasha to break the curse, but upon seeing her beauty he instead states, “My wish as champion is for you to descend the tower and be my wife.” She doesn’t immediately agree to marry him but does concede to live with him for one year to research ways to break the curse.
Though Tinasha may have the appearance of a young woman, she is, in fact, over 700 years old and her young outward appearance hides the dark secrets she has been carrying for such a long time. Now she has left the tower, those secrets will start to emerge. The two will have to work together, Tinasha with her magic, and Oscar with his swordsmanship and sword that repels magic, if they are to face what is to come.
The anime adaption is being handled by ENGI and was initially meant to be released in 2023 but was pushed back to 2024. The series’ first episode was released on April 9 on the Japanese anime network AT-X and has also been licensed by Crunchyroll. The second episode was released on April 16 and is also available to watch on Crunchyroll.
(featured image: ENGI)
