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// On :Monday, May 18, 2015
Hey guys, kanna here! I can't believe we're almost at double digit Anime Mondays! Can you? I'm so excited for Anime Mondays #10! I'm planning something special for you guys, but I can't tell you what it is!
Today we're delving back into the realm of girly anime. However, it was a guy who introduced me to this. So I guess it's a little guy-friendly? Whatever, let's just dive right in to Puella Magi Madoka Magica!
Before I put up the poster for this, I'm just going to say if you think that this is a long title...you haven't seen anything yet. I'll be reviewing the MOTHER of long titles later on in Anime Mondays. It's not the one celebrating double digits, I can tell you that much.
Now, the poster:
Puella Magi Madoka Magica is quite different from the past anime I've reviewed. Why? Well, this one started out as an anime before it became a manga or video game. There was no source material for this to be adapted from. So the production of this is actually quite unique.
When Akiyuki Shinbo was collaborating with Aniplex producer Atsuhiro Iwakami on Hidamari Sketch and Bakemonogatari, Shinbo expressed the idea that he wanted to create a new "magical girl" series. This allowed for the development of Puella Magi Madoka Magica. However, during the early planning stages, Iwakami decided that he didn't want to adapt an already existing work, which gave Shinbo more freedom in his directional style. This was good, because Shinbo already had directed a lot of anime, such as Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha.
Another idea that Iwakami had was to appeal to a wider audience than the usual demographic for "magical girl" anime. The intent was for the series to appeal to "the general anime fan." So Shinbo called in Gen Urobuchi to work as a scriptwriter and Ume Aoki to work as a character designer. Shinbo worked as the producer.
There's a little more background, but I'll get into it once we get to my thoughts on the anime.
For now, plot!
The story is set in the fictional city of Mitakihara, Japan, and revolves around a middle-school girl named Madoka Kaname. She and her friend, Sayaka Miki, encounter a cat-like alien creature named Kyubey. He looks like this:
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| Adorable, right? Um...let's just say looks can be deceiving and leave it at that. |
Kyubey offers the girls a contract where the girls can have any wish granted in exchange for receiving magical girl powers and fighting against witches. Eventually, the girls are joined by Homura Akemi, Mami Tomoe, and Kyoko Sakura, as the two girls learn of the responsibilities that come with being a magical girl.
After a while, however, Sayaka and Madoka learn that the life of a magical girl is filled with danger, anguish, suffering, and despair. Not only that, but there was one kind of important thing that Kyubey "forgot" to mention when the contract was made. Magical girls give up their souls to form their Soul Gems, the source of their magic. However, when those gems become too tainted with despair or sadness, the magical girls become the very witches they fight against.
There really isn't much more I can say about the plot without giving anything away, and this is a relatively short series, so it's more than likely that this will be one of my shorter Anime Mondays.
However...Puella Magi Madoka Magica did get a movie in 2011. Well, it was technically two movies that were meant to serve as a recap to the overall series. Sort of like Attack on Titan Part 1: Crimson Bow and Arrow and Attack on Titan Part 2: Wings of Freedom. Except while those movies had twenty-five episodes and a handful of OVA to cover, the two-part Puella Magi Madoka Magica movies only had twelve episodes and no OVA to cover.
Note: I don't know if the two-part Attack on Titan compilation movies actually covered the OVA or not. I haven't found subbed versions of either movie yet.
Anyway, the compilation movies were actually a whole SERIES titled Puella Magi Madoka Magica: The Movie. The first film in the series was called Puella Magi Madoka Magica the Movie: Beginnings and covers the first half of the series. The second film of the series, Puella Magi Madoka Magica the Movie: Eternal, covered the second half of the series. Both movies were released in October 2012. This film series mainly served as a recap for the anime, so the fact that there was redone voice acting and newly animated footage in these movies was a bit of a surprise. Clearly, the writers didn't take the lazy approach and went all out.
Get ready for a shocker, though. A year later, a third film was released, titled Puella Magi Madoka Magica the Movie: Rebellion. This film was an all new, 100% original work that included a manga adaptation by Hanokage. I just read the manga last night, and to be honest...I wasn't that impressed. I mean, the art was great, but I just felt that there was something missing and I couldn't figure out what it was. Anyway, I would watch the series or the other two movies before watching this one, because it's the only way you'll understand what's going on. It's important to know who the characters are and what the overall plot is. Otherwise, you'll be completely lost.
So...how would I rate this anime?
Rating: 10/10
Why: First off, let me say I'm not really into girly anime series. I can be pretty picky about them. I can't really say what my criteria would be for a "good" girly anime, but I can say that it's typically something I wouldn't watch on my own time. If I had friends who were watching a girly anime, chances are I'd probably join them for it. And, no, I'm not going to go over what I classify as a girly anime, because then I'd be forced to pick apart EVERY SINGLE SERIES I'VE SEEN.
I'd heard of Puella Magi Madoka Magica before, but never really gave it much thought. Before I even saw the series, I thought it was something kind of...for lack of a better word, childish. The only familiarity I'd had with the magical girl genre of anime was Sailor Moon and Cardcaptor Sakura. And while I liked those, they were mainly for little kids (well...except for the later seasons of Sailor Moon that never got an English dub).
So, a few months ago, one of my friends decided we'd watch Puella Magi Madoka Magica the Movie: Rebellion with one of our other friends. But he said that we had to watch the series first. At first, I did so reluctantly, but as the series went further along, the more I realized that this wasn't a childish series AT ALL. In fact, you could say it was geared towards teenagers or even young adults. There were TONS of dark elements in the series, which was very unusual for a magical girl anime. Mainly because NO ONE WATCHING THE SERIES EXPECTED THIS AT ALL.
The way that the series was promoted was pure genius. I'll talk about why as soon as I provide a little more background as to how the darker elements came into play. All Iwakami suggested that Urobuchi do during the pre-writing phase was to make the storyline "heavy." Shinbo, however, went a little further in detail and specified that the series should contain extensive amounts of blood and violence, and even that some of the magical girls get killed off throughout the series; something very unusual for magical girl anime.
One of the objectives for the script was for it to contrast with the way the anime was marketed. The series was planned to be advertised in a manner that would deliberately conceal its dark undertones. Things like the title logo for the anime were rendered using rounded fonts that would appear relatively harmless to viewers. Fans following the production of the anime were further misled when Urobuchi tried to convince his Twitter followers that the plot of the anime was innocent and lighthearted. Why was this? Because Shinbo wanted all the dark elements to come as a complete surprise to the viewers. And it worked. Pure genius. Just saying.
The overall plot of the anime is pure genius. It deconstructs the magical girl genre by taking elements from typical magical girl anime that were either troubling or overlooked. Not only that, but it added a level of depth and complexity to the magical girl genre as a whole that may be impossible to recreate. The series even found its way to appeal to a male demographic, which was even more unusual for a magical girl series. Some say that the series can attribute its popularity to said male demographic.
So, it's at this point where I'll say that "girly" clearly isn't the right word, even though that was my first thought of the anime before I even saw it. Sorry about that.
The animation is absolutely incredible. The fight scenes are amazing and you can tell that the animation department isn't holding back at all. The character designs are amazing, and Kyubey is just ADORABLE. The voice actors do a pretty good job, too. The music is also amazing, so even if you decide not to watch this anime, at least check out the soundtrack. You won't be disappointed.
Next time on Anime Monday #9: WE'RE FINALLY GETTING TO THE BAD ANIME! And boy...is it going to hurt.
