Anime Week: Puella Magi Madoka Magica review

MAHOU SHOUJO MADOKA MAGICA

Ok, so I have a friend who HAAAAATES magical girls anime with a fiery passion. So, imagine my surprise, when one day, he recommends to me, Madoka Magica. A magical girls anime being recommended by someone who hates magical girls anime. Something was up. 

Alright, now, take a look at that poster for Madoka Magica. Looks like your average magical girl kids anime, right? It looks all cute and innocent, definitely something you would probably show a 7 year-old girl, right? WRONG. Because Madoka Magica is one of the most effed up shows I've ever seen. Madoka Magica is the story of a girl named Madoka, who saves this tiny little squirrel thingy named Kyubey, who happens to be a sort of magical creature. He offers her one wish, and in exchange she must become a magical girl. Now, the first two episodes are what you would typically expect from this kind of show. You know, a cutesy slice-of-life show with some magical girl action thrown into the mix. But the !@#$ hits the fan big time by the end of episode three with one of the most shocking and gruesome scenes I've ever witnessed. At it's core, Madoka Magica is two things. One, is a deconstruction of the magical girl genre, in which it puts a dark spin on all the elements of your generic MG show. What results, is one of the most interesting and engaging shows I've ever seen. The second thing Madoka Magica is, a Faust tragedy. The show gets much darker and darker as it progresses, and there are tons of secrets in the show's large bag of tricks, I won't spoil. Oh yeah, and the show will keep you emotionally invested in the character's plights too. Almost every character has a tragic backstory that makes them feel like they've each stepped out of a Jun Maeda script. 

Madoka Magica's characters are both, some of its biggest strengths, and one of its largest weaknesses. Madoka herself is really the show's weak point. She's your standard magical girl protagonist, and actually takes a backseat in the show until the last 4 or 3 episodes. The show's 4 (or should I say 3 and a half, muahaha) other leads are much more interesting, especially Homura and Sayaka, both of whom have some of the best character development I've seen in anime.

I know that the animation was actually unfinished during the show's original run, but I got to see the completed animation when I marathoned through the series. The animation is pretty decent during the scenes in the normal world, but in the realm of the witches, the show uses a stylistic almost stop-motion cutout look. It looks great and gives the setting an almost nightmarish feel.

The soundtrack of the show was done by Yuki Kajiura, aka, the composer that made SAO worth suffering through. The music of the show is just amazing and atmospheric, and it's also very diverse. The opening is incredibly catchy, and the ending song, (which is also used as a battle song at times) is EPIC.

(SPOILERS)

Now, I'm really not sure what to think of Madoka Magica's ending. It's akin to Clannad After Story's ending, but it doesn't completely erase the events of the series. Oddly enough, I'm still at odds with myself on what to think of it, so I'm not scoring the ending this time.

(SPOILERS END)

Madoka Magica is a brutal, intense, dark, sometimes sadistic show. And I love it.

STORY: 5/5

+ Deconstruction of the magical girl genre

+ It's like a dark fairy tale

+ It's not the cutesy girl show you think it is

+ Episode 3's ending

CHARACTERS: 3/5

+ Great supporting cast

- Weak protagonist

ANIMATION: 3.5/5

+ Imaginative, almost Dave McKean like during the witch fights

- Substandard in the normal realm

SOUND: 4.5/5

+ Epic score

+ The ending music rocks

ENDING: N/A

VERDICT: 4/5