BURN THE WITCH

BURN THE WITCH is a manga series authored by Tite Kubo, initially consisting solely of a one-shot released in the July 16th, 2018 edition of Shonen Jump before later being followed by a 4-chapter serialization set a month after the events of the one-shot. A season 2 was announced to be coming soon.

BURN THE WITCH follows the adventures of Noel Niihashi and Ninny Spangcole, two Witches working for Wing Bind in Reverse London, the western branch of Soul Society that is populated by Dragons and kept secret from the Human World's London.

The first 4 chapters were adapted into an animated film released on October 2, 2020 in Japanese theaters and on-demand. It is available to be streamed on Prime Video and Vudu. In September 2023, it was announced the pilot chapter would be getting an animation.

Introduction
BURN THE WITCH is the first work Tite Kubo has released since the last chapter of Bleach was published in Shonen Jump on August 22nd, 2016, and takes place in the same world as his previous work, set 12 years after the Quincy Blood War and 2 years after the events of chapter 686. The one-shot details a day in the lives of two Witches working for the Western Branch of Soul Society, located in Reverse London. The limited serialization takes place a month later as Noel and Ninny carry out their duties dealing with various Dragons and the issues surrounding them while Balgo Parks is targeted for elimination due to his new Dragon-attracting disposition.

Characters
Noel Niihashi


 * One of the two primary protagonists of BURN THE WITCH, Noel is a stoic and level-headed high school girl with a dry sense of humor working for Wing Bind as a Witch in the Pipers division, tasked with conserving and harvesting Dragons. Though content to perform her duties without engaging in combat as the Sabres combat division does, Noel is highly capable and skilled with Magic, allowing her to take on and defeat Dragons with ease should the need arise.

Ninny Spangcole


 * One of the two primary protagonists of BURN THE WITCH, Ninny is a temperamental and somewhat egotistical pop singer working alongside Noel as a Piper, though she dreams of proving her combat prowess and being promoted to the Sabres, which leads her to take risks like fighting Dark Dragons who attack the public for a chance at recognition. However, she has a rarely-seen softer side when dealing with normal Humans and her co-singer Macy Baljure.

Balgo Parks


 * Once an ordinary Human living in London, Balgo has become a Dragonclad after unknowingly living with a Disguiser inhabiting the corpse of his friend, Shelby, for ten years and later being bitten by him, allowing Balgo to see and unintentionally attract Dragons. Perverted and attracted to Noel, Balgo is unapologetic in his romantic pursuit of her, but cares deeply for his dog, Osushi, and will protect the innocent without hesitating even when he does not know them.

Osushi


 * A Dark Dragon inhabiting the corpse of a small dog that lived with Balgo for two months without hinting at his true nature until suddenly transforming when Balgo visited a Wing Bind Phone Gate. Though initially slated for extermination by Wing Bind, Osushi proved able to return to his dog form and live peacefully with Balgo in Reverse London, though he now has a habit of partially transforming and rampaging under certain circumstances related to Balgo.

Billy Banx Jr.


 * Noel and Ninny's supervisor in Wing Bind, Billy is a laid-back, affable, and cheery man who loves teasing Ninny and briefly joined the Sabres after Noel and Ninny took down Shelby, though he was demoted due to laziness. Despite his quirky and easygoing nature, Billy takes his job seriously and will not hesitate to take action in order to protect the resident of Front and Reverse London.

Character Types

 * Witches and Wizards: Witches and Wizards are agents of Wing Bind. Having passed a special exam to join the organization, they protect, tend to, and in some cases exterminate Dragons. Though generally assigned to one division of the agency, a Witch or Wizard can be called upon to fulfill other duties in emergencies, such as when a Dragon is rampaging and no one else is present to stop it. They are rewarded for carrying out their duties with both money and achievement points, the latter of which allows for promotion within the ranks in sufficient quantities. They are led by the Top of Horns.


 * Dragons: Having existed in London for centuries and dangerous to ordinary citizens, Dragons were once responsible for 72% of the deaths in London in medieval times, which led to the city's Coat of Arms bearing their image. However, they are largely regarded as a myth by the general populace, who cannot see them, and in modern times are protected and controlled by Wing Bind. Wing Bind, and by extension Reverse London, domesticates many of them for the production of resources, but others, like Dark Dragons and Disguisers, are malevolent and violent threats to Humans, leading Wing Bind to designate them solely for eradication.

Setting
BURN THE WITCH is set in London, a fictionalized version of the real-world city in the United Kingdom that is divided into two versions of itself, nearly identical in architecture to each other but with drastically different ways of life and knowledge of the other.


 * Front London: Located in the Human World, Front London is populated by ordinary Humans who cannot see Dragons and largely believe the "other side" of the city to be a myth, leading them to live normal lives with modern technology. Though unable to interact with or protect themselves from Dragons, the inhabitants of Front London can still have a dramatic effect on them: for example, in the 1800s, Front London drastically cleaned up its streets, indirectly reducing the population of Disguiser Dragons by removing many of the corpses they could have inhabited. Noel Niihashi attends school and Ninny Spangcole is a famous pop singer here.


 * Reverse London: Spanning across the "hidden side" of London, Reverse London is the western branch of Soul Society and serves to contain, protect, and domesticate Dragons through Wing Bind, allowing them to use Dragons and the materials they produce for a variety of different purposes and products. The residents can see Dragons and are fully aware of Front London, leading them to work to protect the residents of the latter when necessary. Noel and Ninny work as Witches here.

Though Front and Reverse London are completely separate from one another, they can be traveled between using methods like the Coin Gate. Additionally, the two are inextricably linked: should a building be destroyed in Reverse London, its counterpart in Front London will be destroyed at the same time in the same manner.

Trivia

 * The title of the series is a reference to the Radiohead song of the same name.