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.
Spoiler Alert: This summary and review contains spoilers.
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Episode 2 “Abel the Castaway” Details
- Available On: Crunchyroll
- Public Release Date: July 10, 2025
- Director(s): Hidehiko Kadota
- Writer(s): Jun Kumagai
Episode 2 “Abel the Castaway” Recap (With Spoilers)
A New Friend: Abel, Ryo
From a smuggling boat that was taken out by a kraken to washing up on shore, Abel hasn’t had the best few days, but luckily for him, Ryo finds him and takes him home. Abel, despite the type of ship he was on, seems thankful, and means no harm to Ryo, but does seek to get to Lune in the Central Province, and leave the Forest of Rondo, where Ryo’s home is.
Before this happens, though, Ryo has tons of questions, and the more time Ryo spends with Abel, he has a few of his own.
Off To Lune: Abel, Ryo
With Ryo lacking a town to visit where he can buy clothes and no experience in making any of his own, his clothing isn’t really suited for the journey ahead. However, the Fairy King, after sparring one last time, gives him a cloak to stay warm, and with that, off Abel and Ryo go.
Through The Woods and Over The Mountain: Abel, Ryo
This journey, which involves navigating the woods and crossing a mountain, prompts Abel to provide numerous details about the world beyond the Forest of Rondo. Whether it is talking about the three countries of the Central Province, the Kingdom of Knightley, where Lune is, the Debuhi Empire, and the Handalieu foundation, Ryo is notably curious.
Note, not like a child, but with starting a new life, and already reading through the books he was bestowed with, getting information not already provided to him feels notable. But, learning each country mints its coins and things like that doesn’t compare to Ryo being able to use magic, and his abilities surpassing anything Abel has previously seen.
A prime example of this is how Ryo handles Wyverns, which are generally dangerous entities; yet, Ryo handles them so nonchalantly that it is scary—something that makes him an undeniable asset, but also scary.
New Cast and Characters
Abel (Ura Kazuki)
- Check out other productions we’ve covered starring this actor: [Link to Actor’s Tag]
- Character Summary: Abel presents himself as a soldier, one not above using smugglers to get to where he needs to go, but he doesn’t appear to be a bad person. He is very thankful to Ryo for saving him and doesn’t seem to want to take advantage of Ryo’s naivete.
Links
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Review and Commentary
Highlights
The World building [82/100]
It isn’t clear where Ryo will go, but the world being laid out and people, like Abel, and monsters, like wyverns, dragons, behemoths, and griffons, present intrigue. Is it the kind that really catapults the show far from its ho-hum beginnings? No.
However, The Water Magician could be a slow burner, and the more people and situations Ryo gets exposed to, the better. I mean, look at the addition of Abel. His reaction to Ryo and the situations they get into gave a pep to the show’s step. Also, while Ryo dealt with the monsters of this episode with relative ease, maybe when he faces an actual threat, it will make the fights truly notable?
On The Fence
The Fights [74/100]
While Abel’s shock about Ryo’s strength was a tad comical, part of what made episode 1 interesting was the sense of struggle and the life-or-death situations. Now, we can’t discount that Ryo has been studying monsters for months, but practicum vs. theory is real, and it would have been nice to see him struggle with the monsters, if not coordinating his attacks with Abel’s at the very least.
Never mind, with the build there was for wyverns, I don’t know if boosting Ryo at the cost of making them seem manageable was a good trade-off.
Overall
Our Overall Rating [78/100]
The Water Magician is building itself up slowly, and it is hard to say if maybe it is too slow.
Check Out Our Past Coverage Of This Series
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.
