This is one of the old tropes of “straight arrow and eccentric smartass”. Personally I found execution lacking. It felt shallow and rushed, I did not care for either man in the pair. The magic also had a very unclear place in the world shown: it was shown as something mundane for a normal person in one place, but then similarly normal person seemed shocked by it a few moments later. The hats are stupid, too, even if they may be period-accurate.
