The Water Magician: Season 1 Episode 1 – Recap and Review
What begins as a slice-of-life Isekai, featuring a likable young man learning his magic, slowly evolves in ways that may not be for everyone.
Spoiler Alert: This summary and review contains spoilers.
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Episode 1 “The Slow, But Dangerous, Life” Details
- Available On: Crunchyroll
- Public Release Date: July 3, 2025
- Director(s): Takuma Suzuki
- Writer(s): Jun Kumagai
Episode 1 “The Slow, But Dangerous, Life” Recap (With Spoilers)
The End Of One Life, And Setup Of The Next: Ryo, Fake Michael
Ryo, in his past life, seemingly was hit by a truck, and while in heaven, or some form of limbo, meets an angel whom Ryo calls, in his head, Fake Michael. Speaking to Fake Michael, Ryo is told that he will be reincarnated, with powers related to water, two months of food, and a home with a barrier that local monsters cannot penetrate.
In addition, Fake Michael conveys that there are no stipulations, no strings attached, that Ryo is able to live a quiet life.
Building A Life and First Dangerous Encounters: Ryo
Which, so it seems, Fake Michael didn’t lie about. Ryo has food, a home, and gets to spend days, weeks even, just learning how to use his powers. He learns how to conjure water, make ice, and make hot water for baths, and it isn’t until his food begins to get about midway that he decides to head beyond the barrier, where he encounters a lesser boar.
Thankfully, alongside the protection of the barrier and magic powers, Fake Michael left Ryo a book on plant life and animals, so while initially scared, Ryo does find himself adapting and having the boar slip on ice until it is impaled by upward icicles. This was an easy win, but the next fight, with something known as an Assassin Hawk, was far more of a challenge. Luckily, Ryo was able to survive, but he didn’t get to finish the job.
The Fairy King, Assassin Hawk, and A Dragon: Ryo, Fake Michael, Lewin
But before the Assassin Hawk returns, Ryo finds himself accidentally running into the Fairy King. Assuming he was a threat, Ryo tries to battle him with a makeshift sword, and the Fairy King bests him. However, be it audacity or admiration, the Fairy King gives Ryo a proper weapon which allows Ryo, alongside his month or more of training, to defeat an evolved version of the Assassin Hawk.
Strangely enough, after doing so, Ryo faces a dragon named Lewin, but thankfully, Lewin isn’t like the dragons in the book Ryo has and is quite friendly. They talk for nearly a day before Lewin is called by his clan, and that sums up the episode.
Well, that and Fake Michael discovering Ryo has been blessed with eternal youth. Something that we’re told hasn’t been given to someone else since Fake Michael transported another person to Phi, the world Ryo is in, in nearly 1000 years.
New Cast and Characters
Ryo Mihara (Ayumu Murase)
- Check out other productions we’ve covered starring this actor: [Link to Actor’s Tag]
- Character Summary: After dying via a vehicular accident, seemingly due to being at the wrong place at the wrong time, Ryo finds himself reincarnated to a fantasy world where dragons, magic, and more exist. He’s blessed with the ability to use water spells and even given a home and food to start himself off. Ryo, being proactive, sharpens his skills before leaving the home he was given, and proves himself capable of surviving in this new world, which he was fortunate enough to be reborn into at the same age he died, rather than being reborn as a baby.
Fake Michael (Zi’anwuren)
- Check out other productions we’ve covered starring this actor: [Link to Actor’s Tag]
- Character Summary: Fake Michael, as Ryo names him, is an angel whom Ryo spoke to before he was reincarnated, who explained what Ryo’s next life would be like.
Lewin (Yoshitada Tsuka)
- Check out other productions we’ve covered starring this actor: [Link to Actor’s Tag]
- Character Summary: Lewin is a friendly dragon who speaks to humans through telepathy and takes to Ryo after learning he took down the evolved version of the Assassin Hawk.
Links
- Check out our page for this series, featuring more recaps, reviews, and articles.
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Review and Commentary
On The Fence
While Ryo Is Likable, A Notable Path Forward Isn’t Established [75/100]
For the entire episode, it isn’t clear where this is going. Fake Michael notes that there is no agenda for Ryo. He isn’t meant to save a kingdom, the human race, nothing. So we’re just watching him learn how to use magic, cook, make fire, and eventually go hunting as he begins to run out of meat.
Now, are the fight scenes with the lesser boar and also Assassin Hawk cool? Yes. Is learning that he earned the respect of a Fairy King cool? To a point. But, as likable as Ryo is, he does not feel enough, and even with Lewin, the dragon, popping up, and Fake Michael existing, that doesn’t add up to a hook.
So we can only hope that the soldier who appears after the credits, and Ryo encountering people outside his literal bubble, something, or someone, will help pick things up a bit.
Overall
Our Overall Rating [75/100]
With nothing given to hint at the direction The Water Magician is going, it is hard to look at it in a positive or negative way. Like Ryo, it exists, and there is a need to question, not if it should exist – that would be taking it too far – but rather, why it does and what ultimately is the goal here? For while “Likable” is a throwaway term many use, likability is but an entry point. The question right now is, what’s the hook? What’s the thing that will have you commit to a 10, 12, 13, or beyond episode season?
Hopefully, the next episode will show us, and episode one can just be seen as establishing who Ryo is.
Check Out Our Past Coverage Of This Series
The Water Magician: Season 1 Episode 3 – Recap and Review (Video)
As Ryo and Abel arrive in Lune, it creates a turning point for the show where things may get better than intially expected.
The Water Magician: Season 1 Episode 4 – Recap and Review (Video)
As Ryo gets to experience his first dungeon, he also finds himself facing off with a foe who truly presents a challenge to him and is likely to become his main rival.
The Water Magician: Season 1 Episode 2 – Recap and Review
The Water Magician continues to be a slow burner as Ryo meets a soldier named Abel, who triggers his first journey.
