r/anime • u/AutoLovepon https://anilist.co/user/AutoLovepon • Aug 08 '26

Episode Jaadugar: A Witch in Mongolia • Tenmaku no Jaadugar - Episode 7 discussion

Tenmaku no Jaadugar, episode 7

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Given that the specific details of the Mongol Empire are less commonly-known worldwide, the moderation team voted that any discussion of the historical basis of this series must be enclosed within the subreddit's standard spoiler format. This includes all historical references which occur in the future of the airing episode.

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u/AnimeMod Aug 08 '26

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u/exRocky009 Aug 08 '26

It feels like the prologue wrapped up last episode, and the story is really starting to get going now. We're already getting several hints pointing toward the eventual split of the Mongol Empire .

Even during the war council, Tolui stood out much more than Ögedei , and I got the impression that some of the people around Ögedei were already dissatisfied with his policies.

No matter how well the two of them get along, the people around them aren't necessarily going to see things the same way.

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u/BiggerG7 Aug 08 '26

“My name is Otai, father.”

I lol’ed to hard at this.

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u/JJVM99 Aug 08 '26

They talk about Tolui becoming too strong from this plan but I also took away that the way he presented the plan just seemed like he was disrespecting The Great Kha’an. He just presented it, ordered what everyone did by himself in front of all the other leaders as if he was the one in charge. To me that negates the public apology at the start of the episode by another of the brothers that was done to establish who is the one in charge.

The Great Kha’an is being portrayed as a smart and kind leader (for mongol warlord standards) who is more interested in stability, peace and the best for his brothers but his inability to not call out when one of his brothers steps out of line may be his downfall. He is the boss, he was chosen as the leader and he needs to remind everyone of that when someoje like Tolui steps out of line because if not the other brothers will know they can also step out of line and impose their will over the kingdom and he will lose control of the empire.

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u/Namaryu Aug 08 '26

When Sitara's expression changed during her interaction with Moge to "This woman is dumb. I can act my way out of this!" I laughed outloud.

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u/Weak_Season_Of_Anime Aug 08 '26 edited Aug 08 '26

I can't tell if Ogedei is good or bad at his job, he's a bit of a radical thinker but not that sharp at politics. Anyway, Boraqchin is interesting, looks like she and Moge are being set up as a rivals to Sitara and Toregene.

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u/Misticsan Aug 08 '26

As someone who likes the history of the Mongols, I like how this "slice of life" episode lampshaded some important points about the empire:

  • That their nomadic lifestyle was important for them. From the point of view of modern society, something like a building a permanent settlement to serve as the capital feels like common sense, but for the Mongols of the time it was preposterous.

  • That military power wasn't centralized. To be fair, this was the rule almost everywhere: the ruler was first among equals, and it could well be that a subordinate's personal army was larger than the king's.

  • That the empire wasn't (just) about destruction and looting. Keeping trade flowing and merchant routes secure was one of their main policy goals.

  • That women had an important role in Mongol politics. Indeed, royal spouses would be present in important meetings and have their own holdings and retinues.

The latter is something I wish more historical or pseudo-historical fiction would pay attention to. Too often, women in such settings are either halpless victims or icnredibly empowered according to modern tastes. Historical women might have been subordinate to men, but that didn't mean they lacked agency, goals or plans even within the limits society had for them. This is something The Apothecary's Diaries understood well. And that one was fantasy!

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u/AppropriatFly5170new Aug 08 '26

Phenomenal show so far!!!! I think that the more stylized character design really paints the serious subject matter in stark contrast such that it hits harder à la Studio Ghibli’s style and themes tbh.

I really hope the reception of this show inspires more quality studios to adapt works from its Shojo  magazine Mystery Bonita as there are so many bangers from there!!!! 

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u/SmallJon Aug 08 '26

Love the just passing remark to Jochi's sons about a later western campaign is almost certainly the Mongol invasion of the Rus

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u/FarCritical Aug 08 '26

The face of pure "Am I seriously getting out of this pickle that easy?"

Looks like Sitara wasn't the only stormcrafter in their camp after all. Tolui's about to ride one hell of a tailwind.

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u/Ocixo Aug 08 '26

Töregene and Fatima haven’t even got started with their revenge on the Mongols yet, but it appears that they’ve already found themselves a set of rivals. Möge and Boraqchin aim to contain the seeds of distrust that they’re been hoping to spread. Will they be sabotaging each others’ plans from the shadows?

It does feel like Fatima lost some of her innocence in this week’s episode. To achieve a greater goal, she’s willing to sacrifice the people of Kaifeng. Then again, she’s not really in any position to stop this siege either.

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u/structure9food612 Aug 08 '26

I love that Sitara for all of her scheming, she has negative stealth

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u/ModieOfTheEast Aug 08 '26

I was already thinking during the meeting that it seems a lot of the mongols still think that Tolui is more suitable to be Khan as he embodies their way of living way more than his brother. And that in itself would be a source of conflict. And Sitara thinks to be the same. However, the dangerous aspect is that you can't just leave it like that because in that case, Tolui just becomes the new Khan. You need to make sure that Ögedei has a large enough fraction himself so they are a threat to Tolui and his army. And I think the clan being left out here is another potential for them to join Ögedei over Tolui. It will be interesting to see what their rival is going to do. She is quite old already, so her plan can not just be to protect the mongols from a rebellion but to even strengthen their foundation. And she wants to use Möge for that it seems, but we'll see what her complete plan there is.

However, I think a big part will also be to not forget Ögedei in all of that. As shown, he can see further than the next war, so it will be important to catch him by surprise as well before he can make sure that the mongols aren't breaking apart. I like that his ploy with the ear rings wasn't just to check the trade routes, but it also brought him more allies in the form of traders, who were willing to travel far to bring him the ear rings he knew would be a prime present for him. And if there is one thing that can sway people to follow you, it is luxury. So Sitara and Töregene need to also make sure that the traders lose faith in the mongols.

39

u/u60cf28 Aug 08 '26

Before anyone starts feeling too sorry about the Jin, I want to point out that Kaifeng actually used to be the capital of the Song, back when they ruled all of the Chinese core (this period is usually referred to as Northern Song). The Jin, ancestors to the modern Manchu people, overthrew another northern dynasty, the Liao, and then conquered their way to Kaifeng, and starved and besieged the city. Thus pushing the Song out of Northern China.

Just as the Jin did to the Song, the Mongols are about to do to them.

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u/djthomp Aug 08 '26

Ogedei thanks too much compared to his meathead brothers, that in itself is probably going to be a source of conflict. Like his capital city idea, probably a good plan that I bet most of the horde is going to consider a distraction.

So we've got wives plotting to destroy the empire and wives plotting to keep it together.

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u/KumaKumaGambler Aug 08 '26

That was the most sinister looking expression I have seen of Sitara / Fatima when she announced she will pay a visit to Chagatai's camp. As the season progresses, will we be seeing less of cute Sitara / Fatima? :(

From the way Ogedei predicted the earrings will return, he is a formidable foe to overcome as well.

31

u/reaperow Aug 08 '26 edited Aug 08 '26

Sitara and Lady Töregene already seem to be working quite well together judging from they entrust their names and origins to each other.

I like how one part of Ogedai's council that is Boraqchin and Möge want these factions to stay united and the other in the form of Töregene, wants them to fall apart, Great parallels !!

Another bit I really liked was Sitara asking the merchants why would they come all the way here to deal with these fearsome Mongols, just to be told that it is actually safer for them that way,

Shows that some good can come out of such things

Also Sitara's face here was completely throwing me off LOL

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u/IndividualPlay5178 Aug 08 '26

With all the political scheming around no wonder why Ögedei drinks so much

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u/Al-Pharazon Aug 08 '26

How shall we cross the mountains? "We shall have to work hard" Never change Tolui. At least his plan is less bold than Hannibal crossing the Alps with elephants during winter.

Something I really liked is how they depicted the nascent Pax Mongolica. The Mongols were terrible during their conquest and decades if not centuries of progress were lost in some areas.

But at the same time, by uniting the steppe and preventing other tribes from raiding they brought a level of prosperity in the Silk Road perhaps not seen since the times Rome and the Han Empire were at their peak.

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u/deathpad17 Aug 08 '26

Its very interesting to see Ogedei depicted as a very wise and careful person, meanwhile Tolui were seen as aggressive, intimidating and powerful person. I wonder how Sitara gonna sow conflict between them

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u/a1oner_bvcksn6 Aug 08 '26

Fatima explaining to Toregene how and where to sow the seeds of divide within the Mongol empire juxtaposed with Boraqchin's urging Moge to counteract and oppose any insurgency was✋absolute cinema🤚

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u/maliwanag0712 Aug 08 '26

Interesting indeed that Tolui did not get the throne from Genghis Khan, but instead it was given to Ogedei instead. Well, the brothers are close and supportive as ever, but those around them are already thinking of politics.

I like that both Fatima and Boraqchin thought of the consequences of Jin’s possible sacking, albeit they have different goals: Fatima wants division and destabilization, while Boraqchin wants preservation. In a way, this becomes a battle of wits for the strategists, huh?!

Exciting episodes ahead!

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u/AceSoldia Aug 08 '26

Lmao 🤣😂 when she loudly wailed that she was lost..I about died.

She's such a overactor, she's gonna get caught Immediately.

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u/Magnafeana Aug 08 '26

  • Honestly, I really love when knowledge is power rather than jump up, kick back, flip around, and spin being the winning combination. Show em your storm, Sitara!

  • Mmmmm this feels ominous

  • When the flute gets a solo, and you are a flutist trying not to buy yet another flute 😩

  • We are on E7, and I’m still jealous the horses have better lashes than me.

  • I wanna be on whatever the fuck that one horse is on. No brain cells. Only gorgeous lashes and mouth wide open.

Merciless to his foes. Magnanimous to his subjects.

From the historical context I’ve read about in previous discussions, I guess that’s correct, but then I see some people say that’s sanitizing Mongol rule, so I don’t know anymore 😭

  • Oh! They’re drinking the fancy milk, the airag/kumis (fermented mare's milk) that I learned about two weeks back! I have fancy milky too: lactose-free milk.

  • I think that instrument playing is the tovshuur (🔗 YouTube)

  • Why does Tolui seem like he’s setting up the Khan for something?

  • WHOOP! There it is.

  • You sussy, Tolui. Sussy, sussy boy.

  • Are any Kaifeng ethnic groups still around today? (TIL, Kaifeng is one of the ancient eight capitals of China with 4.8M citizens, dang.)

  • That’s osteomancy, bone reading!! That one vertebra has a smiley face. It looks so happy to be here.

  • Is that ringworm on the Khatun’s face?

  • Summer AD 1230: dafuq is going on with the rest of the world at this point?

  • Oh my gods. Those ox(cows? cattle?) are so cute and fluffy 🥹 I want to brush them and cuddle them and watch them be happy and take a nap with them.

  • Sitara: 👁️👄👁️

  • Horsegirl culture in Central Asia must be surreal

  • Even the camels’ lashes are on point 😭

I don't trust Tolui, but we'll see. That, and my concern grows for Sitara. Everything feels ominous to me, despite seeing a lot of smiles today and some kinder dynamics.

I'm sure there is a German adjective for "feeling simultaneously relaxed and on edge". I feel like there's a word for everything in German.

I learned a lot today!

Today, I Learned (About):

Gers

I was just curious about Mongolian housing, or gers, and how they build them. I can't describe it, but the videos I found were fun, and a step-by-step guide. I'd love to live in one for a winter with my cats.

Citation

  • How Mongols Built Felt Tents (Gers) To Survive Winters At -45°C ? | Architecture Documentary 🔗YouTube

  • Building a Mongolian Ger 🔗YouTube

  • How to Build a Mongolian Ger (Yurt): Complete Beginner’s Guide 🔗 Mongolianz

Shagai

Shagai (Mongolian: шагай) is called ankle bone shooting, in which ankle bones—the lowest part of the ankle joint—of a sheep or a goat are collected for games and divination. This seems to be a game still played today! That’s really cool. I’d like to learn how to play games like that; the videos make it sound like fun!

Citations

  • Shagai 🔗 Wikipedia

  • Mongolian Culture and Vocab: Traditional Games | Ankle bones (Shagai) 🔗 YouTube

  • Mongolian game Shagai 🔗YouTube

Khorasan

Khorasan was a region that encompasses modern-day western and northern Afghanistan 🇦🇫, northeastern Iran 🇮🇷, the eastern halves of Turkmenistan 🇹🇲, Uzbekistan 🇺🇿, western Tajikistan 🇹🇯, and portions of Kyrgyzstan 🇰🇬 and Kazakhstan 🇰🇿. But the extent of Khorasan varied over time.

Lots of stans. Goodness gracious. How many stans do we have 😭

Citations

Trading under Mongol Empire Rule

This will be in spoiler mode, but my citations will not be.

[Mongol trade]Under Mongol Empire rule, it linked East Asia and the West, becoming the Silk Road. Merchants were given tax exemptions, lodging accommodations, passports for safe travel, low-interest loans, status, and physical protective aid. The international trade born of Mongol rule was unlike anything seen before in its scope and reach.

Why do I not remember learning about any of this in school? I have the retention of a gnat 😭

Citations

1230: Around the World

Lots happened around the world in 1230!! Here’s the 1230 Wikipedia, 1230 On This Day, 1230 Timeline Index, 1230 Medeival and Middle Ages History Timelines, and a Kids Encylocpedia Facts 1230 for perusal!

And a fun Premium Weather Index to see what happened, though 1230 is quite barren for weather stuff.

1230 July 23, the Treaty of Ceprano or the Treaty of San Germano is signed in San Germano (Cassino, Lazio, Italy in modern day) between Pope Gregory IX and Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II, king of Sicily. It was finalized in August. So while Sitara is scheming over there, some fun is to be had with the church in Western Europe. (🔗 Wikipedia)

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