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** ''CardCaptorSakura'' meets ''DeathBecomesHer'', especially the tragedy of Miki Sayaka.
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** KamenRiderRyuki meets [[MagicalGirl Magical Girls]] since both series share many similarities like a world filled with Riders and MG that come about by making contracts with a un-earthly being, wishes being part of the plot in someway, and the biggest being [[spoiler: reset groundhog loop with the final version being shown in the main series]].
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** KamenRiderRyuki Series/KamenRiderRyuki meets [[MagicalGirl Magical Girls]] since both series share many similarities like a world filled with Riders and MG that come about by making contracts with a un-earthly being, wishes being part of the plot in someway, and the biggest being [[spoiler: reset groundhog loop with the final version being shown in the main series]].
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no spoilered trope titles
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* [[spoiler: {{Tragedy}}]]
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* [[spoiler: {{Tragedy}}]]{{Tragedy}}
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* [[spoiler: WarIsHell]]: [[spoiler: One of the harsh realities about being a MagicalGirl that hits the heroines hard, ''especially'' poor Sayaka.]]
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* [[spoiler: WarIsHell]]: WarIsHell: [[spoiler: One of the harsh realities about being a MagicalGirl that hits the heroines hard, ''especially'' poor Sayaka.]]
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* [[spoiler:{{Wishplosion}}: Madoka's wish rewrites the laws of the universe so that magical girls don't turn into witches when their soul gem expires, vanishing instead. By doing this, she even manages to safeguard herself by erasing her own witch form.]]
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* [[spoiler:{{Wishplosion}}: Madoka's {{Wishplosion}}: [[spoiler:Madoka's wish rewrites the laws of the universe so that magical girls don't turn into witches when their soul gem expires, vanishing instead. By doing this, she even manages to safeguard herself by erasing her own witch form.]]
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* [[spoiler:YouCantFightFate: The no-holds-barred unfortunate truth and the BrokenAesop that's present. Homura intends to avert this trope. However, every time she tries to do so is ... well ... [[NiceJobBreakingItHero it got worse every time.]] Still present even after the ending.]]
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* [[spoiler:YouCantFightFate: The YouCantFightFate: [[spoiler:The no-holds-barred unfortunate truth and the BrokenAesop that's present. Homura intends to avert this trope. However, every time she tries to do so is ... well ... [[NiceJobBreakingItHero it got worse every time.]] Still present even after the ending.]]
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** [[spoiler: Specifically, every magical girl and witch's power is tied to their relevance to karma and destiny. Every time Homura travels back in time, she and Madoka get stronger, but so does their eventual end boss. Thus, it will always be too strong for any one of them to fight, and only able to just be defeated by two working in tandem. The day is only 'saved' through Madoka remembering Kyubey's words about magical girl wishes defying entropy in general, and using her power to create a wish that breaks the rules that bind them.]]
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** Alternatively, ''HellGirl'' meets [[MagicalGirl Magical Girls]] in that the girls make a contract that will bind them for the rest of their lives in exchange for a service from a supernatural entity.
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* WithGreatPowerComesGreatResponsibility: {{Deconstructed}}. Is getting your wish granted (which can be as small as ''wishing for a cake'') worth having to fight {{Eldritch Abomination}}s for the rest of your life?
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* WithGreatPowerComesGreatResponsibility: {{Deconstructed}}. Is getting your wish granted (which can be as small as ''wishing for a cake'') worth having to fight {{Eldritch Abomination}}s for the rest of your life?life, and then suffering the inevitable fate of [[spoiler:''becoming'' an EldritchAbomination]]?
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* [[spoiler: WarIsHell]]: [[spoiler: One of the harsh realities about being a MagicalGirl that hits the heroines hard, ''especially'' poor Sayaka.]]
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** Episode 11 shows Homura hammering Walpurgisnacht using [[MoreDakka rocket launchers, artillery, a couple towers being collapsed on top of her, a lit tanker truck to the face,]] ''[[MoreDakka getting hit by a guided missile]]'', and ''[[MoreDakka landing in a pit with a few thousand bombs]]''. Walpurgis just gets right back up as if nothing ever happened.
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** Episode 11 shows Homura hammering [[spoiler:hammering Walpurgisnacht using [[MoreDakka rocket launchers, artillery, a couple towers being collapsed on top of her, a lit tanker truck to the face,]] ''[[MoreDakka getting hit by a guided missile]]'', and ''[[MoreDakka landing in a pit with a few thousand bombs]]''. Walpurgis just gets right back up as if nothing ever happened.]]
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* TransformationSequence: While this is a MagicalGirl show, these sequences are done in very sparse quantities, very quickly, and for each girl the sequence appears perhaps once or twice in the series (most "transformations" are simply a more realistic rendition of the girl briefly glowing and reappearing in new clothes). They are also not done consistently, averting StockFootage, and are very rare; for a while, only Mami's, Sayaka's, and Kyoko's could be found. [[spoiler:We finally get to see Homura's in Episode 11. Madoka never gets one.]]
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* TransformationSequence: While this is a MagicalGirl show, these sequences are done in very sparse quantities, very quickly, and for each girl the sequence appears perhaps once or twice in the series (most "transformations" are simply a more realistic rendition of the girl briefly glowing and reappearing in new clothes). They are also not done consistently, averting StockFootage, and are very rare; for a while, only Mami's, Sayaka's, and Kyoko's could be found. [[spoiler:We finally get to see Homura's in Episode 11. Madoka never gets one.one, unless you count the one from the intro for episode 1.]]
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* TakingYouWithMe: [[spoiler:Kyoko, for Sayaka.]] Although [[spoiler:it's debatable whether she thought she couldn't beat Sayaka without a suicide attack, or was just [[YouAreNotAlone following her]] [[DyingAlone into the dark]].]]
** Her dialogue seems to suggest it was the latter.
** Her dialogue seems to suggest it was the latter.
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PuellaMagiMadokaMagica/TropesAToF|PuellaMagiMadokaMagica/TropesGToM|PuellaMagiMadokaMagica/TropesNToS | '''Tropes T-Z'''
----
* TakingYouWithMe: [[spoiler:Kyoko, for Sayaka.]] Although [[spoiler:it's debatable whether she thought she couldn't beat Sayaka without a suicide attack, or was just [[YouAreNotAlone following her]] [[DyingAlone into the dark]].]]
**]] [[spoiler: Her dialogue seems to suggest it was the latter.]]
----
* TakingYouWithMe: [[spoiler:Kyoko, for Sayaka.]] Although [[spoiler:it's debatable whether she thought she couldn't beat Sayaka without a suicide attack, or was just [[YouAreNotAlone following her]] [[DyingAlone into the dark]].
**
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** Her dialogue seems to suggest it was the latter.
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removed YMMV link to trope
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*** [[spoiler:She wouldn't have known what was happening. We saw after Homura retrieved Sayaka's soul gem that Sayaka couldn't remember what had happened, instead staring at her crying friend with a blank look of confusion. Even if they're life force is in the Soul Gem, they don't have any way to perceive the outside world without a body; no eyes, ears, brain to process/store the information, etc... Then again, they are still alive so long as the soul gem survives, so Mami might have been still been able to feel her body [[FridgeHorror while she was being eaten]], if her soul gem wasn't crushed.]]
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*** [[spoiler:She wouldn't have known what was happening. We saw after Homura retrieved Sayaka's soul gem that Sayaka couldn't remember what had happened, instead staring at her crying friend with a blank look of confusion. Even if they're life force is in the Soul Gem, they don't have any way to perceive the outside world without a body; no eyes, ears, brain to process/store the information, etc... Then again, they are still alive so long as the soul gem survives, so Mami might have been still been able to feel her body [[FridgeHorror while she was being eaten]], eaten, if her soul gem wasn't crushed.]]
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response to idea
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***[[spoiler:She wouldn't have known what was happening. We saw after Homura retrieved Sayaka's soul gem that Sayaka couldn't remember what had happened, instead staring at her crying friend with a blank look of confusion. Even if they're life force is in the Soul Gem, they don't have any way to perceive the outside world without a body; no eyes, ears, brain to process/store the information, etc... Then again, they are still alive so long as the soul gem survives, so Mami might have been still been able to feel her body [[FridgeHorror while she was being eaten]], if her soul gem wasn't crushed.]]
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* [[WhereTheHellIsSpringfield Where On Earth Is Mitakihara?]]: The city has a German shopping mall, the school building is an Austrian [[EnvironmentalSymbolism prison(!)]], and the tallest man-made structure is ''the'' Burj Khalifa; there is even an oil refinery. [[StudioShaft Yeah]].
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* [[WhereTheHellIsSpringfield Where On Earth Is Mitakihara?]]: The city has a German shopping mall, the school building is an Austrian [[EnvironmentalSymbolism prison(!)]], and the tallest man-made structure is ''the'' Burj Khalifa; there is even an oil refinery. [[StudioShaft [[Creator/StudioShaft Yeah]].
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* TheMovie: An upcoming trilogy. The first two will be a retelling of the original series, and the third will be a continuation.
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* TheMovie: An upcoming trilogy. The first two will be Three - a retelling of the original series, and the third will be a continuation.two-part compilation followed by an entirely new story picking up where we left off.
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Not an example.
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* ZettaiRyouiki: Madoka in her school girl outfit and Mami, Sayaka and Kyoko in their magical girl outfits.
* [[spoiler:ZombieApocalypse: Well, they do become zombies, and Earth is destroyed in at least one timeline...]]
* [[spoiler:ZombieApocalypse: Well, they do become zombies, and Earth is destroyed in at least one timeline...]]
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* ZettaiRyouiki: Madoka in her school girl outfit and Mami, Sayaka and Kyoko in their magical girl outfits.
* [[spoiler:ZombieApocalypse: Well, they do become zombies, and Earth is destroyed in at least one timeline...]]outfits.
* [[spoiler:ZombieApocalypse: Well, they do become zombies, and Earth is destroyed in at least one timeline...]]
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** [[spoiler:He affected a YouDidntAsk defense of his actions in later episodes, but in actuality his words in earlier episodes were a case of FalseReassurance. The girls asked several of the right questions early on, he just gave replies that were arguably true but completely misleading until the girls thought they understood.]]
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Moving a out of place trope
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* YoungerThanTheyLook: You can blame this one on the {{Moe}} art style. All of the girls look to be about 10-12 years old. Madoka, Homura, and Sayaka are about 13-14 years old while Mami and Kyoko are about 14-15 years old.
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Adding a trope
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* VisualPun: Minor, possibly unintentional example: in the first episode, Sayaka uses a fire extinguisher on Homura. [[spoiler: "Homura", written a certain way, can mean "flame" or "blaze".]]
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* VisualPun: Minor, possibly unintentional example: in the first episode, Sayaka uses a fire extinguisher on Homura. [[spoiler: "Homura", written a certain way, can mean "flame" or "blaze".]]
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* YoungerThanTheyLook: You can blame this one on the {{Moe}} art style. All of the girls look to be about 10-12 years old. Madoka, Homura, and Sayaka are about 13-14 years old while Mami and Kyoko are about 14-15 years old.
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* WholePlotReference: While it isn't obvious at first, the plot is essentially [[spoiler:that of Goethe's ''[[{{Faust}} Faust: Eine Tragödie]]'', with Homura as Faust, Madoka as Gretchen (her witch form's name even references this) and perhaps a bit of Helen-of-Troy (& [[AGodAmI Euphorion]]), and Kyubey as Mephistopheles. We just don't see it in full until late in the series because the plot is basically being told from "''Gretchen's''" point of view.]]
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* WholePlotReference: While it isn't obvious at first, the plot is essentially [[spoiler:that of Goethe's ''[[{{Faust}} ''[[Theatre/{{Faust}} Faust: Eine Tragödie]]'', with Homura as Faust, Madoka as Gretchen (her witch form's name even references this) and perhaps a bit of Helen-of-Troy (& [[AGodAmI Euphorion]]), and Kyubey as Mephistopheles. We just don't see it in full until late in the series because the plot is basically being told from "''Gretchen's''" point of view.]]
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Misuse of renamed trope.
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** To recap -- the first few episodes were ominous, but mostly standard MagicalGirl show fare, leading to ''lots'' of fan theories. They had no ending credits montage nor ending theme, relying on the credits showing as the story continued. After the events of Episode 3, we have a fairly good idea where the [[RealityEnsues deconstruction]] [[NotSoHarmless elements]] [[AnyoneCanDie lay]], and the show now officially has an closing-credits sequence. ''It's creepy as hell.''
to:
** To recap -- the first few episodes were ominous, but mostly standard MagicalGirl show fare, leading to ''lots'' of fan theories. They had no ending credits montage nor ending theme, relying on the credits showing as the story continued. After the events of Episode 3, we have a fairly good idea where the [[RealityEnsues deconstruction]] [[NotSoHarmless elements]] elements [[AnyoneCanDie lay]], and the show now officially has an closing-credits sequence. ''It's creepy as hell.''
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** It some ways it could be considered SailorMoon if GrantMorrison had written it.
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* YouDidntAsk: Kyubey's response to Sayaka regarding why he didn't bother mentioning that becoming a magical girl involves [[spoiler:separating magical girls' souls from their bodies]].
** [[spoiler: Or the reason why they actually need grief seeds, witches and magical girls.]]
** [[spoiler: Or the reason why they actually need grief seeds, witches and magical girls.]]
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* YouDidntAsk: Kyubey's response [[spoiler:Kyubey. He will not lie to Sayaka regarding why he didn't bother mentioning that becoming a magical girl involves [[spoiler:separating magical girls' souls from their bodies]].
** [[spoiler: Orthe reason why they actually need grief seeds, witches and magical girls.girls. He just withholds information unless specifically asked.]]
** [[spoiler: Or
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* TwoPartTrilogy: Inverted. The first two films are a joint CompilationMovie released back to back, while the third is a distinct sequel.
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* ZettaiRyouiki: Madoka in her school girl outfit and Mami, Sayaka and Kyoko in their magical girl outfits.
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* ZettaiRyouiki: Madoka in her school girl outfit and Mami, Sayaka and Kyoko in their magical girl outfits.outfits.
* [[spoiler:ZombieApocalypse: Well, they do become zombies, and Earth is destroyed in at least one timeline...]]
* [[spoiler:ZombieApocalypse: Well, they do become zombies, and Earth is destroyed in at least one timeline...]]
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Sayaka and Kyouko are both tomboys, so I don\'t see they fit.
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* TomboyAndGirlyGirl:
** Sayaka and Madoka fit this respectively.
** And then Sayaka was the girly girl to Kyoko's tomboy.
** Sayaka and Madoka fit this respectively.
** And then Sayaka was the girly girl to Kyoko's tomboy.
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* TomboyAndGirlyGirl:
**TomboyAndGirlyGirl: Sayaka and Madoka fit this respectively.
** And then Sayaka was the girly girl to Kyoko's tomboy.respectively.
**
** And then Sayaka was the girly girl to Kyoko's tomboy.
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moving to YMMV tab
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* WhatDoYouMeanItsNotSymbolic: [[SuspiciouslySpecificDenial There is no way that]] Homura could be [[spoiler: {{Faust}}]], Madoka couldn't possibly be [[spoiler: Gretchen]], and Kyubey representing [[spoiler: Mephistopheles/Satan]]? [[SarcasmMode Patently absurd.]]
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* WhatDoYouMeanItWasn'tMadeonDrugs?: The witch's labyrinths. These things look like they were made the animators that worked on MontyPythonsFlyingCircus.
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* WhatDoYouMeanItWasn'tMadeonDrugs?: The witch's labyrinths. These things look like they were made the animators that worked on MontyPythonsFlyingCircus.
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** KamenRiderRyuki meets [[MagicalGirl Magical Girls]] since both series share many similarities like a world filled with Riders and MG that come about by making contracts with a un-earthly being, wishes being part of the plot in someway, and the biggest being [[spoiler: reset groundhog loop with the final version being shown in the main series]].
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* TakingYouWithMe: [[spoiler:Kyoko, for Sayaka.]] Although [[spoiler:it's debatable whether she thought she couldn't beat Sayaka without a suicide attack, or was just [[YouAreNotAlone following her]] [[DyingAlone into the dark]].]]
* TechnologyPorn: Everyone seems to be using the very latest pieces of technology, like [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interactive_whiteboard interactive whiteboard]] in Madoka's school and [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Projection_keyboard projection keyboard]] for her home PC.
** Well, [[http://wiki.puella-magi.net/Poorfag almost everyone]].
* ThankingTheViewer: The final still in the final episode.
* TheMovie: An upcoming trilogy. The first two will be a retelling of the original series, and the third will be a continuation.
* ThemeNaming: Each of the main protagonists has a surname (Kaname, Miki, Akemi, Tomoe, Sakura) that can [[TwoFirstNames also be used as a given name]].
** Doubly so in Homura's case--her last name is usually a first name, and vice versa.
* ThemeTuneCameo: Madoka listens to "Connect", the opening theme, at the record store in the mall in episode 1. Episode 6 also features Kyoko dancing to a techno version of the song on a DDR stand-in.
* ThereAreNoTherapists: Well, there ''are'', but when witches are involved...
* TheFourLoves:
** Becoming a MagicalGirl automatically detaches the girl from their loved ones. Though all girls seen so far have phileo love (friendship) as a main motivation.
** Madoka almost [[spoiler: became a magical girl (thus accepting a DealWithTheDevil)]] to rescue her friend.
** And in the last episode, Madoka demonstrates Agape love in [[spoiler:her wish to rewrite the laws of the universe so no magical girl will have to suffer turning into a witch ever by [[HeroicSacrifice absorbing all of their despair]]]].
** Sayaka Miki became a MagicalGirl because she wanted Eros (romantic) love. [[spoiler:Not getting it drove her to her StartOfDarkness and then to a FaceHeelTurn.]]
** Mami Tomoe despised being alone, and wished phileos love from Madoka. [[spoiler:Shortly after getting it, though, she died.]]
** Kyoko's [[spoiler:sacrifice in Episode 9 for Sayaka's sake could very well be considered a form of Agape love. It's fitting considering the worldview she originally lived by and was brought up in. ]] That, and [[spoiler: her SelflessWish regarding help for her father so he could gain followers and support the Sakura family was born from Storge love.]]
** Episode 10 reveals that phileos love is Homura[[spoiler:'s ''entire motivation'' for everything she does.]]
* ThrowAwayGuns: Part of Mami's modus operandi. Justified in that her guns are crafted to only fire one bullet, though WordOfGod says that she can change the type of bullet.
* ThrowingYourSwordAlwaysWorks: Tried in Episode 5 by Sayaka. Hard to tell if it would be really successful because the fight got interrupted.
** It worked against the witch in the previous episode.
* TimeStandsStill: Homura's power.
* TimeyWimeyBall: [[spoiler:Homura's time travel is specifically creating alternate quantum universes, mostly divergent upon if/when Madoka becomes a magical girl, and just how powerful she is. Then she [[AscendToAHigherPlaneOfExistence surpasses and destroys the entire system.]] ]]
* (Episode) TitleDrop: Each episode's title is a line spoken in that episode. The person who speaks it is the same person to speak the final line of the preview in the previous episode.
* TomboyAndGirlyGirl:
** Sayaka and Madoka fit this respectively.
** And then Sayaka was the girly girl to Kyoko's tomboy.
* TooHappyToLive: The creators did this with [[spoiler:Mami Tomoe]]. Don't go thinking they won't have the guts to do it again.
* TookALevelInBadass: [[spoiler:Akemi Homura. She started as a frail and nervous student in her original timeline, but has steadily become more prepared and cynical with each timeline she finds herself having to wind back, resulting in the Homura that we know.]]
* TooHotForTV: Said TooSoon sequences below have aired on Internet broadcasts and presumably will be on the [=DVD=]s.
* TooSoon: Suspected to be the reason for why the ScheduleSlip is more than the one week of most other shows. Episode 10 shows [[spoiler:a flooded city after the Walpurgisnacht attacks]]; after the 2011 Sendai earthquake (and resultant tsunami), SHAFT apparently re-animated some sequences.
* [[spoiler: {{Tragedy}}]]
* TragicHero: [[spoiler:Sayaka]] does everything in her power to be a force of good, but collapses when she couldn't forgive wrongdoings of others as well as her own.
* TransformationSequence: While this is a MagicalGirl show, these sequences are done in very sparse quantities, very quickly, and for each girl the sequence appears perhaps once or twice in the series (most "transformations" are simply a more realistic rendition of the girl briefly glowing and reappearing in new clothes). They are also not done consistently, averting StockFootage, and are very rare; for a while, only Mami's, Sayaka's, and Kyoko's could be found. [[spoiler:We finally get to see Homura's in Episode 11. Madoka never gets one.]]
* TransformationTrinket: The girls use their soul gems to transform into magical girls.
** [[spoiler:Inverted. It's not so much that they use the soul gem to transform their bodies than they use their bodies as vessels in which they project their soul into, as it is the soul gem, not the body, which contains the magical girl.]]
* TraumaCongaLine: Almost every single main character suffers through this:
** Madoka [[spoiler: goes through this largely by watching people she cares about either die or turn into a witch, with her being unable to anything about it, largely due to Homura who keeps getting in her way towards becoming a magical girl.]]
** Sayaka [[spoiler: first ends up fighting against Kyoko, who berates her using her wish for someone else rather than herself, then finding out what happened to her body/soul when she became a magical girl. Then her friend Hitomi mentions that she's interested in Kyosuke as well, and will ask him out after giving Sayaka one day to confess her feelings, which Sayaka doesn't do because of her body/soul situation. Finally, she hears of two guys who are making fun of a woman one is dating, and thinking she's a moron for devoting herself to him, which Sayaka doesn't enjoy hearing, and finally just gives up all hope and turns into a witch.]]
** Kyoko [[spoiler: first witnesses as her father starts to preach crazy things, which causes people to stop attending their church, and then their family starts to suffer lots of hardships, including starvation. When she makes her wish to have people attend the church, at first it seems good, until her father finds out what she did, and he kills himself and the family as a result. She finally sacrifices herself to stop Sayaka who just recently turned into a witch.]]
** Homura [[spoiler: is forced to watch Madoka constantly die, or turn into a witch, and almost every time she tries to warn them of something bad happening if they become a magical girl, they either ignore her warnings, or take it a with a grain of salt. Most of the time the main characters view her in a very negative light, and it isn't until episode 10, where we see why Homura acts the way she does, due to her inability to change the fate of people around her, including the person she cares about the most, Madoka herself.]]
* TroperCriticalMass: The page was scroll-worthy as of ''Episode 3.''
* {{Troperiffic}}: It sure did take a while to get down here, huh? Then again, it was scroll-worthy enough to read all that.
* TropeOverdosed
* TwentyMinutesIntoTheFuture: There really isn't anything in terms of technology that isn't possible in this day and age, but things like motion-activated lamps, the architecture, and [[http://images.puella-magi.net/a/a4/Ep04_CD_Player.jpg an extremely stylized (and somewhat unsafe) CD player]] lend things a futuristic vibe.
* TwoFirstNames: See ThemeNaming above.
* TwoTeacherSchool: A second teacher aside of Kazuko didn't even show up until episode 9.
* UndeadChildren: [[spoiler:[[MagicalGirl Magical Girls]] are liches, the Witches are their corrupted ghosts.]]
* UnflinchingWalk: Due to a combination of her [[ThrowDownTheBomblet weapon]] [[WeaponOfChoice of choice]] and her [[TimeStandsStill ability]], Homura is a master of this and [[BadAss demonstrates]] exactly how it's done in episode 10.
* UnreliableNarrator: [[spoiler: Kyubey]] may be one.
* VaguenessIsComing: The lyrics of "Magia".
** The event known as Walpurgisnacht.
* ViciousCycle: [[spoiler: Played straight. Kyubey needs Magical Girls to fight Witches; he also needs Magical Girls [[TheCorruption to become]] Witches.]]
** [[spoiler: Homura goes back in time whenever Madoka dies.]]
* VillainousBreakdown: A very minor one from the resident stoic, but still, [[spoiler: Kyubey's reaction to Madoka finding ''exactly'' what to wish for in episode 12 was somewhat satisfying.]]
** Doubles/works better as an OhCrap, [[spoiler: as the very last thing he says is the thing he'd been tempting Madoka with: "Do you really want to become a god?"]]
* VisualPun: Minor, possibly unintentional example: in the first episode, Sayaka uses a fire extinguisher on Homura. [[spoiler: "Homura", written a certain way, can mean "flame" or "blaze".]]
* WalkingTheEarth: [[spoiler: Homura in the ending; fighting demons who are the new manifestation of despair to feed Kyubey and protect the world that Madoka left.]]
* WeHaveReserves: [[spoiler: Why Kyubey doesn't feel guilty about all the MagicalGirl blood on his hands.]]
** [[spoiler: Also why he doesn't seem to mind Homura killing him, seeing how he's a HiveMind and all.]]
-->[[spoiler:'''Kyubey:''' Your population is six billion nine hundred million right now, so why do you make such a big fuss over the loss of just one of you?]]
* WeirdMoon: The moon phases consist of either dramatic crescent or completely full moons.
* WhamEpisode: Episode 3. '''You will NOT be ready.'''
** To recap -- the first few episodes were ominous, but mostly standard MagicalGirl show fare, leading to ''lots'' of fan theories. They had no ending credits montage nor ending theme, relying on the credits showing as the story continued. After the events of Episode 3, we have a fairly good idea where the [[RealityEnsues deconstruction]] [[NotSoHarmless elements]] [[AnyoneCanDie lay]], and the show now officially has an closing-credits sequence. ''It's creepy as hell.''
** Another one happens in Episode 6. [[spoiler: Not only Sayaka is getting more and more hyped up in her rivalry with Kyoko, but when Madoka tries to stop her from fighting via throwing her soul gem away and hoping to strip her off her powers ... it's shown that if a MagicalGirl loses said soul gem, she will become an EmptyShell. So no, there's literally ''no'' way to get the fuck out of the contract, until she dies.]] Ouch.
** '''[[SerialEscalation Another]]''' one happens in Episode 8. [[spoiler: Homura is confirmed to be from an alternate timeline. Sayaka's soul gem goes fully dark, turning into a grief seed, which then explodes and turns her into a witch. This is how all "true witches" are created. Kyubey knew this from the beginning, ending the episode with the WhamLine below.]]
** Why don't we just go ahead and call this a Wham Series while we're at it?
** In episode 9 [[spoiler: it is revealed that Kyubey is an alien who is using the massive amounts of energy released from magical girls and witches to prevent the universe from dying. Also, Kyoko sacrifices her life to kill Sayaka.]]
** In episode 10 [[spoiler: we see Homura has traveled between not one, but ''several'' different timelines trying to save Madoka, and all of them have ended with [[KillEmAll the deaths of everyone except Homura herself]].]] On that note, [[spoiler: [[TimeTravelTenseTrouble "past"]] Homura herself is a wham; she is [[IllGirl unexpectedly]] [[ShrinkingViolet different]] from her "present-day" counterpart.]]
** Episode 11 sees [[spoiler: Kyubey point out that all the time traveling has inadvertently given Madoka all the magical power of ''all'' her previous incarnations, which due to Homura's GroundhogDayLoop, are legion, meaning she's destined to be the most powerful witch ever, and every time Homura tries to fix it, she makes it ''worse.'' Speaking of Madoka, she shows up at the very end, causing divergence from the foreshadowing of episode one, and announces her intent to make a wish.]]
** And in Episode 12, we see [[spoiler: what she wishes for--and it's big enough to [[RealityWarper completely rewrite the laws of physics]]. [[ApocalypseHow Even]] [[TheStoic Kyubey]] [[OhCrap freaks out.]]]]
* WhamLine:
--> '''Kyubey:''' That was very bad, Madoka.
--> '''Madoka:''' What?
--> '''Kyubey:''' Even on this world, something like [[spoiler: throwing [[SoulJar your friend]] down there]], that is crazy.
** Episode 8 spoilers:
---> '''Kyubey:''' [[spoiler:"Since this country calls women who are still growing up shoujo (少女 girls), then for girls who are on the way of becoming majo (魔女 witches), it's logical to call them mahou shoujo (魔法少女 magical girls)."]]
** From Episode 8 as well:
---> '''Homura:''' I will not allow your plan to succeed, Kyubey... no, [[spoiler:Incubator]].
** Episode 11
---> '''Kyubey''' You'd all still be living in caves, I think.
** And in episode 11:
---> '''Madoka:''' [[spoiler:"Homura-chan... I'm sorry."]]
** Also from episode 11:
---> '''Kyubey''' You've done great, Homura. [[spoiler:[[NiceJobBreakingItHero You've raised Madoka to become the most powerful witch ever.]]]]
** Episode 12:
---> '''Madoka''' [[spoiler: I want to destroy every witch, before they are born- with my own hands!]]
--->'''Kyubey''' [[spoiler: [[OhCrap That's treason against the wish itself! Do you really want to become a god?]]]]
** [[RuleOfThree And finally from Episode 12]]
---> '''Madoka [[spoiler: [[AbstractApotheosis becoming hope]] as Penitent Gretchen]]''' Hang in there.
* WhatHaveIBecome: Kyoko's reaction [[spoiler: after learning the AwfulTruth]]. Her previous arrogant nature is completely dropped, and she's ''openly horrified''.
--> '''Kyoko:''' [[PrecisionFStrike You son of a...]] Give me a break! [[spoiler:You've turned us into zombies!]]
** [[spoiler:Heavens no, she's a ''lich'', which is [[ComicallyMissingThePoint much better than just a zombie.]]]]
* WhatDoYouMeanItsNotSymbolic: [[SuspiciouslySpecificDenial There is no way that]] Homura could be [[spoiler: {{Faust}}]], Madoka couldn't possibly be [[spoiler: Gretchen]], and Kyubey representing [[spoiler: Mephistopheles/Satan]]? [[SarcasmMode Patently absurd.]]
* WhatIsOneMansLifeInComparison: [[spoiler:Kyubey's rationalization of the events. Witch energy is used to prevent, or slow down, the universe's entropy. Those that meet the requirement to provide a good amount of energy in exchange for a wish should not really object to it as they would be helping all the other lifeforms in the universe. Kyubey even insinuates all of human history has revolved around magical girls and their wishes, and later falling.]]
** AMillionIsAStatistic: It gets worse. [[spoiler:Kyubey's have energy quotas per ''planet''. As long as they fulfill their quotas, they don't care if a whole civilization, along with their planet, perishes]].
* [[WhereTheHellIsSpringfield Where On Earth Is Mitakihara?]]: The city has a German shopping mall, the school building is an Austrian [[EnvironmentalSymbolism prison(!)]], and the tallest man-made structure is ''the'' Burj Khalifa; there is even an oil refinery. [[StudioShaft Yeah]].
* WhiteVoidRoom: Homura's room; she puts holograms of her memories over the walls.
** Also in the manga [[spoiler: This is where Ultimate Madoka and Homura talk, instead of the starry cosmos.]]
* WholeEpisodeFlashback: [[spoiler: Episode 10. Doubles as an OriginsEpisode]].
* WholePlotReference: While it isn't obvious at first, the plot is essentially [[spoiler:that of Goethe's ''[[{{Faust}} Faust: Eine Tragödie]]'', with Homura as Faust, Madoka as Gretchen (her witch form's name even references this) and perhaps a bit of Helen-of-Troy (& [[AGodAmI Euphorion]]), and Kyubey as Mephistopheles. We just don't see it in full until late in the series because the plot is basically being told from "''Gretchen's''" point of view.]]
** [[CallBack To an extent]], [[spoiler:the plot is also a reference to Episode 10, said WholeEpisodeFlashback. Since Episode 10 is considered the beginning of the AlternateTimelines, this plotline shows how some of the timelines Homura performed in is similar to the last. Cue IronicEcho.]]
* TheWikiRule: Includes an enormous amount of speculation, a translation of the weird runes, as well as translations of AllThereInTheManual and WordOfGod. Can be found [[http://wiki.puella-magi.net/Main_Page here]].
* WindTurbinePower
* [[spoiler:{{Wishplosion}}: Madoka's wish rewrites the laws of the universe so that magical girls don't turn into witches when their soul gem expires, vanishing instead. By doing this, she even manages to safeguard herself by erasing her own witch form.]]
* WithGreatPowerComesGreatInsanity: [[spoiler: If Sayaka's [[LaughingMad insane laughter]] and AxCrazy behaviour is anything to go by...]]
* WithGreatPowerComesGreatPerks: This is Kyoko's attitude after becoming a MagicalGirl. [[spoiler: While she initially was an idealist like Madoka and Sayaka, after her life was ruined, she decided to only use her powers for her own benefit.]] Yet another reference to {{Faust}}...
** Also, insofar as Kyubey is concerned, the "become a magical girl" process involves a lot of this. [[spoiler:He's very quick to point out later on that the "detached soul" thing makes their human bodies virtually painless and nigh-''invincible'' (Mami only dies in Timeline 5 because she gets eaten ''in one bite'', basically, and the ''only'' other time we see non-witch magical girls die are when their soul gems are violently destroyed) and essentially gives them superpowers. He really doesn't understand why they freak out about the soul separation so much, because as far as he's concerned, even with the whole "fight witches" thing, this "painless immortal superbeing" thing is a pretty sweet deal.]]
** [[spoiler:Actually, since Mami's Soul Gem was on her hat, she most likely also only died because her Soul Gem was broken, not because she lost her head. Now imagine if her Soul Gem had been somewhere else, allowing her to survive....]]
* WithGreatPowerComesGreatResponsibility: {{Deconstructed}}. Is getting your wish granted (which can be as small as ''wishing for a cake'') worth having to fight {{Eldritch Abomination}}s for the rest of your life?
* WorfEffect: Two examples in Episode 3:
** [[spoiler: Mami, who had been played up as being rather powerful if not experienced, goes up against the witch at Homura's express warnings against doing so, and gets her ass kicked in the most horrific manner possible.]]
*** To be fair, [[spoiler:it wasn't that she was suddenly and inexplicably weak that got her killed. She was too distracted by the happy thought of not having to fight alone anymore and started fighting recklessly.]]
** The second example is Homura, showing up seconds later (Mami had used magic to subdue her) and beating the witch effortlessly. Justified in a later episode when it's revealed that [[spoiler:Homura's time stopping ability is useless if she's restrained before she activates it, which is logical considering she would still be restrained with time stopped.]]
* [[TheWorfBarrage Worf Barrage]]: Mami's [[BigFuckingGun Tiro Finale]] easily finishes [[spoiler: Gertrude in episode 2]]. When [[WhamEpisode Episode 3]] comes along, it did little outside of making [[spoiler: Charlotte go OneWingedAngel and kill her]].
** Episode 11 shows Homura hammering Walpurgisnacht using [[MoreDakka rocket launchers, artillery, a couple towers being collapsed on top of her, a lit tanker truck to the face,]] ''[[MoreDakka getting hit by a guided missile]]'', and ''[[MoreDakka landing in a pit with a few thousand bombs]]''. Walpurgis just gets right back up as if nothing ever happened.
* TheWorldTree: [[http://images.puella-magi.net/7/72/Ep10_Tree.png An enormous tree]] appears post-[[spoiler:Walpurgisnacht]] in the Niconico stream of episode 10.
** [[spoiler: Walpurgisnacht in general seems to be associated with a giant tree.]]
* WoundedGazelleGambit: [[spoiler:Kyubey]] pulls this off in the first episode while being chased by [[spoiler:Homura]].
* WrongGenreSavvy: A lot of this goes around but particularly Kyoko in episode 9.
** Sayaka seems to think that being a ''seigi no mikata'' (warrior of justice) in a Gen Urobuchi work is a valid life choice.
** In most other MagicalGirl series, trying to [[TalkingTheMonsterToDeath reason with]] the remaining human part of [[spoiler:Sayaka's witch form, Oktavia,]] would probably have worked.
* XMeetsY: has been described in some circles as Manga/SailorMoon set in ''TabletopGame/TheWorldOfDarkness''.
* {{Yakuza}}: Homura raids a Yakuza group's locker for small arms after the other magical girls became uncomfortable with things randomly [[StuffBlowingUp blowing up]] around them.
* YouAreNotAlone: [[spoiler: TheStinger after episode 12: "Don't forget. Always, somewhere, someone is fighting for you. As long as you remember her, you are not alone."]]
* [[spoiler:YouCantFightFate: The no-holds-barred unfortunate truth and the BrokenAesop that's present. Homura intends to avert this trope. However, every time she tries to do so is ... well ... [[NiceJobBreakingItHero it got worse every time.]] Still present even after the ending.]]
* YouDidntAsk: Kyubey's response to Sayaka regarding why he didn't bother mentioning that becoming a magical girl involves [[spoiler:separating magical girls' souls from their bodies]].
** [[spoiler: Or the reason why they actually need grief seeds, witches and magical girls.]]
* YouGottaHaveBlueHair: The colors span the rainbow.
* YourSizeMayVary: In the broadcast versions, soul gems vary in size from egg to pear. They're more consistent in the Blu-Ray versions.
** Kyubey mentions that the size of a soul gem can depend on the MagicalGirl's potential power. [[spoiler: In the last episode, Madoka's soul gem is the size of a ''comet''.]]
** Kyoko's spear seems to randomly change length between shots. In a zoomed out shot, the spear is twice her height. When the shot changes immediately afterward, the spear is a more manageable length for her to spin around. There's nothing to really suggest that she can change the number of segments in the spear.
* ZettaiRyouiki: Madoka in her school girl outfit and Mami, Sayaka and Kyoko in their magical girl outfits.
* TechnologyPorn: Everyone seems to be using the very latest pieces of technology, like [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interactive_whiteboard interactive whiteboard]] in Madoka's school and [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Projection_keyboard projection keyboard]] for her home PC.
** Well, [[http://wiki.puella-magi.net/Poorfag almost everyone]].
* ThankingTheViewer: The final still in the final episode.
* TheMovie: An upcoming trilogy. The first two will be a retelling of the original series, and the third will be a continuation.
* ThemeNaming: Each of the main protagonists has a surname (Kaname, Miki, Akemi, Tomoe, Sakura) that can [[TwoFirstNames also be used as a given name]].
** Doubly so in Homura's case--her last name is usually a first name, and vice versa.
* ThemeTuneCameo: Madoka listens to "Connect", the opening theme, at the record store in the mall in episode 1. Episode 6 also features Kyoko dancing to a techno version of the song on a DDR stand-in.
* ThereAreNoTherapists: Well, there ''are'', but when witches are involved...
* TheFourLoves:
** Becoming a MagicalGirl automatically detaches the girl from their loved ones. Though all girls seen so far have phileo love (friendship) as a main motivation.
** Madoka almost [[spoiler: became a magical girl (thus accepting a DealWithTheDevil)]] to rescue her friend.
** And in the last episode, Madoka demonstrates Agape love in [[spoiler:her wish to rewrite the laws of the universe so no magical girl will have to suffer turning into a witch ever by [[HeroicSacrifice absorbing all of their despair]]]].
** Sayaka Miki became a MagicalGirl because she wanted Eros (romantic) love. [[spoiler:Not getting it drove her to her StartOfDarkness and then to a FaceHeelTurn.]]
** Mami Tomoe despised being alone, and wished phileos love from Madoka. [[spoiler:Shortly after getting it, though, she died.]]
** Kyoko's [[spoiler:sacrifice in Episode 9 for Sayaka's sake could very well be considered a form of Agape love. It's fitting considering the worldview she originally lived by and was brought up in. ]] That, and [[spoiler: her SelflessWish regarding help for her father so he could gain followers and support the Sakura family was born from Storge love.]]
** Episode 10 reveals that phileos love is Homura[[spoiler:'s ''entire motivation'' for everything she does.]]
* ThrowAwayGuns: Part of Mami's modus operandi. Justified in that her guns are crafted to only fire one bullet, though WordOfGod says that she can change the type of bullet.
* ThrowingYourSwordAlwaysWorks: Tried in Episode 5 by Sayaka. Hard to tell if it would be really successful because the fight got interrupted.
** It worked against the witch in the previous episode.
* TimeStandsStill: Homura's power.
* TimeyWimeyBall: [[spoiler:Homura's time travel is specifically creating alternate quantum universes, mostly divergent upon if/when Madoka becomes a magical girl, and just how powerful she is. Then she [[AscendToAHigherPlaneOfExistence surpasses and destroys the entire system.]] ]]
* (Episode) TitleDrop: Each episode's title is a line spoken in that episode. The person who speaks it is the same person to speak the final line of the preview in the previous episode.
* TomboyAndGirlyGirl:
** Sayaka and Madoka fit this respectively.
** And then Sayaka was the girly girl to Kyoko's tomboy.
* TooHappyToLive: The creators did this with [[spoiler:Mami Tomoe]]. Don't go thinking they won't have the guts to do it again.
* TookALevelInBadass: [[spoiler:Akemi Homura. She started as a frail and nervous student in her original timeline, but has steadily become more prepared and cynical with each timeline she finds herself having to wind back, resulting in the Homura that we know.]]
* TooHotForTV: Said TooSoon sequences below have aired on Internet broadcasts and presumably will be on the [=DVD=]s.
* TooSoon: Suspected to be the reason for why the ScheduleSlip is more than the one week of most other shows. Episode 10 shows [[spoiler:a flooded city after the Walpurgisnacht attacks]]; after the 2011 Sendai earthquake (and resultant tsunami), SHAFT apparently re-animated some sequences.
* [[spoiler: {{Tragedy}}]]
* TragicHero: [[spoiler:Sayaka]] does everything in her power to be a force of good, but collapses when she couldn't forgive wrongdoings of others as well as her own.
* TransformationSequence: While this is a MagicalGirl show, these sequences are done in very sparse quantities, very quickly, and for each girl the sequence appears perhaps once or twice in the series (most "transformations" are simply a more realistic rendition of the girl briefly glowing and reappearing in new clothes). They are also not done consistently, averting StockFootage, and are very rare; for a while, only Mami's, Sayaka's, and Kyoko's could be found. [[spoiler:We finally get to see Homura's in Episode 11. Madoka never gets one.]]
* TransformationTrinket: The girls use their soul gems to transform into magical girls.
** [[spoiler:Inverted. It's not so much that they use the soul gem to transform their bodies than they use their bodies as vessels in which they project their soul into, as it is the soul gem, not the body, which contains the magical girl.]]
* TraumaCongaLine: Almost every single main character suffers through this:
** Madoka [[spoiler: goes through this largely by watching people she cares about either die or turn into a witch, with her being unable to anything about it, largely due to Homura who keeps getting in her way towards becoming a magical girl.]]
** Sayaka [[spoiler: first ends up fighting against Kyoko, who berates her using her wish for someone else rather than herself, then finding out what happened to her body/soul when she became a magical girl. Then her friend Hitomi mentions that she's interested in Kyosuke as well, and will ask him out after giving Sayaka one day to confess her feelings, which Sayaka doesn't do because of her body/soul situation. Finally, she hears of two guys who are making fun of a woman one is dating, and thinking she's a moron for devoting herself to him, which Sayaka doesn't enjoy hearing, and finally just gives up all hope and turns into a witch.]]
** Kyoko [[spoiler: first witnesses as her father starts to preach crazy things, which causes people to stop attending their church, and then their family starts to suffer lots of hardships, including starvation. When she makes her wish to have people attend the church, at first it seems good, until her father finds out what she did, and he kills himself and the family as a result. She finally sacrifices herself to stop Sayaka who just recently turned into a witch.]]
** Homura [[spoiler: is forced to watch Madoka constantly die, or turn into a witch, and almost every time she tries to warn them of something bad happening if they become a magical girl, they either ignore her warnings, or take it a with a grain of salt. Most of the time the main characters view her in a very negative light, and it isn't until episode 10, where we see why Homura acts the way she does, due to her inability to change the fate of people around her, including the person she cares about the most, Madoka herself.]]
* TroperCriticalMass: The page was scroll-worthy as of ''Episode 3.''
* {{Troperiffic}}: It sure did take a while to get down here, huh? Then again, it was scroll-worthy enough to read all that.
* TropeOverdosed
* TwentyMinutesIntoTheFuture: There really isn't anything in terms of technology that isn't possible in this day and age, but things like motion-activated lamps, the architecture, and [[http://images.puella-magi.net/a/a4/Ep04_CD_Player.jpg an extremely stylized (and somewhat unsafe) CD player]] lend things a futuristic vibe.
* TwoFirstNames: See ThemeNaming above.
* TwoTeacherSchool: A second teacher aside of Kazuko didn't even show up until episode 9.
* UndeadChildren: [[spoiler:[[MagicalGirl Magical Girls]] are liches, the Witches are their corrupted ghosts.]]
* UnflinchingWalk: Due to a combination of her [[ThrowDownTheBomblet weapon]] [[WeaponOfChoice of choice]] and her [[TimeStandsStill ability]], Homura is a master of this and [[BadAss demonstrates]] exactly how it's done in episode 10.
* UnreliableNarrator: [[spoiler: Kyubey]] may be one.
* VaguenessIsComing: The lyrics of "Magia".
** The event known as Walpurgisnacht.
* ViciousCycle: [[spoiler: Played straight. Kyubey needs Magical Girls to fight Witches; he also needs Magical Girls [[TheCorruption to become]] Witches.]]
** [[spoiler: Homura goes back in time whenever Madoka dies.]]
* VillainousBreakdown: A very minor one from the resident stoic, but still, [[spoiler: Kyubey's reaction to Madoka finding ''exactly'' what to wish for in episode 12 was somewhat satisfying.]]
** Doubles/works better as an OhCrap, [[spoiler: as the very last thing he says is the thing he'd been tempting Madoka with: "Do you really want to become a god?"]]
* VisualPun: Minor, possibly unintentional example: in the first episode, Sayaka uses a fire extinguisher on Homura. [[spoiler: "Homura", written a certain way, can mean "flame" or "blaze".]]
* WalkingTheEarth: [[spoiler: Homura in the ending; fighting demons who are the new manifestation of despair to feed Kyubey and protect the world that Madoka left.]]
* WeHaveReserves: [[spoiler: Why Kyubey doesn't feel guilty about all the MagicalGirl blood on his hands.]]
** [[spoiler: Also why he doesn't seem to mind Homura killing him, seeing how he's a HiveMind and all.]]
-->[[spoiler:'''Kyubey:''' Your population is six billion nine hundred million right now, so why do you make such a big fuss over the loss of just one of you?]]
* WeirdMoon: The moon phases consist of either dramatic crescent or completely full moons.
* WhamEpisode: Episode 3. '''You will NOT be ready.'''
** To recap -- the first few episodes were ominous, but mostly standard MagicalGirl show fare, leading to ''lots'' of fan theories. They had no ending credits montage nor ending theme, relying on the credits showing as the story continued. After the events of Episode 3, we have a fairly good idea where the [[RealityEnsues deconstruction]] [[NotSoHarmless elements]] [[AnyoneCanDie lay]], and the show now officially has an closing-credits sequence. ''It's creepy as hell.''
** Another one happens in Episode 6. [[spoiler: Not only Sayaka is getting more and more hyped up in her rivalry with Kyoko, but when Madoka tries to stop her from fighting via throwing her soul gem away and hoping to strip her off her powers ... it's shown that if a MagicalGirl loses said soul gem, she will become an EmptyShell. So no, there's literally ''no'' way to get the fuck out of the contract, until she dies.]] Ouch.
** '''[[SerialEscalation Another]]''' one happens in Episode 8. [[spoiler: Homura is confirmed to be from an alternate timeline. Sayaka's soul gem goes fully dark, turning into a grief seed, which then explodes and turns her into a witch. This is how all "true witches" are created. Kyubey knew this from the beginning, ending the episode with the WhamLine below.]]
** Why don't we just go ahead and call this a Wham Series while we're at it?
** In episode 9 [[spoiler: it is revealed that Kyubey is an alien who is using the massive amounts of energy released from magical girls and witches to prevent the universe from dying. Also, Kyoko sacrifices her life to kill Sayaka.]]
** In episode 10 [[spoiler: we see Homura has traveled between not one, but ''several'' different timelines trying to save Madoka, and all of them have ended with [[KillEmAll the deaths of everyone except Homura herself]].]] On that note, [[spoiler: [[TimeTravelTenseTrouble "past"]] Homura herself is a wham; she is [[IllGirl unexpectedly]] [[ShrinkingViolet different]] from her "present-day" counterpart.]]
** Episode 11 sees [[spoiler: Kyubey point out that all the time traveling has inadvertently given Madoka all the magical power of ''all'' her previous incarnations, which due to Homura's GroundhogDayLoop, are legion, meaning she's destined to be the most powerful witch ever, and every time Homura tries to fix it, she makes it ''worse.'' Speaking of Madoka, she shows up at the very end, causing divergence from the foreshadowing of episode one, and announces her intent to make a wish.]]
** And in Episode 12, we see [[spoiler: what she wishes for--and it's big enough to [[RealityWarper completely rewrite the laws of physics]]. [[ApocalypseHow Even]] [[TheStoic Kyubey]] [[OhCrap freaks out.]]]]
* WhamLine:
--> '''Kyubey:''' That was very bad, Madoka.
--> '''Madoka:''' What?
--> '''Kyubey:''' Even on this world, something like [[spoiler: throwing [[SoulJar your friend]] down there]], that is crazy.
** Episode 8 spoilers:
---> '''Kyubey:''' [[spoiler:"Since this country calls women who are still growing up shoujo (少女 girls), then for girls who are on the way of becoming majo (魔女 witches), it's logical to call them mahou shoujo (魔法少女 magical girls)."]]
** From Episode 8 as well:
---> '''Homura:''' I will not allow your plan to succeed, Kyubey... no, [[spoiler:Incubator]].
** Episode 11
---> '''Kyubey''' You'd all still be living in caves, I think.
** And in episode 11:
---> '''Madoka:''' [[spoiler:"Homura-chan... I'm sorry."]]
** Also from episode 11:
---> '''Kyubey''' You've done great, Homura. [[spoiler:[[NiceJobBreakingItHero You've raised Madoka to become the most powerful witch ever.]]]]
** Episode 12:
---> '''Madoka''' [[spoiler: I want to destroy every witch, before they are born- with my own hands!]]
--->'''Kyubey''' [[spoiler: [[OhCrap That's treason against the wish itself! Do you really want to become a god?]]]]
** [[RuleOfThree And finally from Episode 12]]
---> '''Madoka [[spoiler: [[AbstractApotheosis becoming hope]] as Penitent Gretchen]]''' Hang in there.
* WhatHaveIBecome: Kyoko's reaction [[spoiler: after learning the AwfulTruth]]. Her previous arrogant nature is completely dropped, and she's ''openly horrified''.
--> '''Kyoko:''' [[PrecisionFStrike You son of a...]] Give me a break! [[spoiler:You've turned us into zombies!]]
** [[spoiler:Heavens no, she's a ''lich'', which is [[ComicallyMissingThePoint much better than just a zombie.]]]]
* WhatDoYouMeanItsNotSymbolic: [[SuspiciouslySpecificDenial There is no way that]] Homura could be [[spoiler: {{Faust}}]], Madoka couldn't possibly be [[spoiler: Gretchen]], and Kyubey representing [[spoiler: Mephistopheles/Satan]]? [[SarcasmMode Patently absurd.]]
* WhatIsOneMansLifeInComparison: [[spoiler:Kyubey's rationalization of the events. Witch energy is used to prevent, or slow down, the universe's entropy. Those that meet the requirement to provide a good amount of energy in exchange for a wish should not really object to it as they would be helping all the other lifeforms in the universe. Kyubey even insinuates all of human history has revolved around magical girls and their wishes, and later falling.]]
** AMillionIsAStatistic: It gets worse. [[spoiler:Kyubey's have energy quotas per ''planet''. As long as they fulfill their quotas, they don't care if a whole civilization, along with their planet, perishes]].
* [[WhereTheHellIsSpringfield Where On Earth Is Mitakihara?]]: The city has a German shopping mall, the school building is an Austrian [[EnvironmentalSymbolism prison(!)]], and the tallest man-made structure is ''the'' Burj Khalifa; there is even an oil refinery. [[StudioShaft Yeah]].
* WhiteVoidRoom: Homura's room; she puts holograms of her memories over the walls.
** Also in the manga [[spoiler: This is where Ultimate Madoka and Homura talk, instead of the starry cosmos.]]
* WholeEpisodeFlashback: [[spoiler: Episode 10. Doubles as an OriginsEpisode]].
* WholePlotReference: While it isn't obvious at first, the plot is essentially [[spoiler:that of Goethe's ''[[{{Faust}} Faust: Eine Tragödie]]'', with Homura as Faust, Madoka as Gretchen (her witch form's name even references this) and perhaps a bit of Helen-of-Troy (& [[AGodAmI Euphorion]]), and Kyubey as Mephistopheles. We just don't see it in full until late in the series because the plot is basically being told from "''Gretchen's''" point of view.]]
** [[CallBack To an extent]], [[spoiler:the plot is also a reference to Episode 10, said WholeEpisodeFlashback. Since Episode 10 is considered the beginning of the AlternateTimelines, this plotline shows how some of the timelines Homura performed in is similar to the last. Cue IronicEcho.]]
* TheWikiRule: Includes an enormous amount of speculation, a translation of the weird runes, as well as translations of AllThereInTheManual and WordOfGod. Can be found [[http://wiki.puella-magi.net/Main_Page here]].
* WindTurbinePower
* [[spoiler:{{Wishplosion}}: Madoka's wish rewrites the laws of the universe so that magical girls don't turn into witches when their soul gem expires, vanishing instead. By doing this, she even manages to safeguard herself by erasing her own witch form.]]
* WithGreatPowerComesGreatInsanity: [[spoiler: If Sayaka's [[LaughingMad insane laughter]] and AxCrazy behaviour is anything to go by...]]
* WithGreatPowerComesGreatPerks: This is Kyoko's attitude after becoming a MagicalGirl. [[spoiler: While she initially was an idealist like Madoka and Sayaka, after her life was ruined, she decided to only use her powers for her own benefit.]] Yet another reference to {{Faust}}...
** Also, insofar as Kyubey is concerned, the "become a magical girl" process involves a lot of this. [[spoiler:He's very quick to point out later on that the "detached soul" thing makes their human bodies virtually painless and nigh-''invincible'' (Mami only dies in Timeline 5 because she gets eaten ''in one bite'', basically, and the ''only'' other time we see non-witch magical girls die are when their soul gems are violently destroyed) and essentially gives them superpowers. He really doesn't understand why they freak out about the soul separation so much, because as far as he's concerned, even with the whole "fight witches" thing, this "painless immortal superbeing" thing is a pretty sweet deal.]]
** [[spoiler:Actually, since Mami's Soul Gem was on her hat, she most likely also only died because her Soul Gem was broken, not because she lost her head. Now imagine if her Soul Gem had been somewhere else, allowing her to survive....]]
* WithGreatPowerComesGreatResponsibility: {{Deconstructed}}. Is getting your wish granted (which can be as small as ''wishing for a cake'') worth having to fight {{Eldritch Abomination}}s for the rest of your life?
* WorfEffect: Two examples in Episode 3:
** [[spoiler: Mami, who had been played up as being rather powerful if not experienced, goes up against the witch at Homura's express warnings against doing so, and gets her ass kicked in the most horrific manner possible.]]
*** To be fair, [[spoiler:it wasn't that she was suddenly and inexplicably weak that got her killed. She was too distracted by the happy thought of not having to fight alone anymore and started fighting recklessly.]]
** The second example is Homura, showing up seconds later (Mami had used magic to subdue her) and beating the witch effortlessly. Justified in a later episode when it's revealed that [[spoiler:Homura's time stopping ability is useless if she's restrained before she activates it, which is logical considering she would still be restrained with time stopped.]]
* [[TheWorfBarrage Worf Barrage]]: Mami's [[BigFuckingGun Tiro Finale]] easily finishes [[spoiler: Gertrude in episode 2]]. When [[WhamEpisode Episode 3]] comes along, it did little outside of making [[spoiler: Charlotte go OneWingedAngel and kill her]].
** Episode 11 shows Homura hammering Walpurgisnacht using [[MoreDakka rocket launchers, artillery, a couple towers being collapsed on top of her, a lit tanker truck to the face,]] ''[[MoreDakka getting hit by a guided missile]]'', and ''[[MoreDakka landing in a pit with a few thousand bombs]]''. Walpurgis just gets right back up as if nothing ever happened.
* TheWorldTree: [[http://images.puella-magi.net/7/72/Ep10_Tree.png An enormous tree]] appears post-[[spoiler:Walpurgisnacht]] in the Niconico stream of episode 10.
** [[spoiler: Walpurgisnacht in general seems to be associated with a giant tree.]]
* WoundedGazelleGambit: [[spoiler:Kyubey]] pulls this off in the first episode while being chased by [[spoiler:Homura]].
* WrongGenreSavvy: A lot of this goes around but particularly Kyoko in episode 9.
** Sayaka seems to think that being a ''seigi no mikata'' (warrior of justice) in a Gen Urobuchi work is a valid life choice.
** In most other MagicalGirl series, trying to [[TalkingTheMonsterToDeath reason with]] the remaining human part of [[spoiler:Sayaka's witch form, Oktavia,]] would probably have worked.
* XMeetsY: has been described in some circles as Manga/SailorMoon set in ''TabletopGame/TheWorldOfDarkness''.
* {{Yakuza}}: Homura raids a Yakuza group's locker for small arms after the other magical girls became uncomfortable with things randomly [[StuffBlowingUp blowing up]] around them.
* YouAreNotAlone: [[spoiler: TheStinger after episode 12: "Don't forget. Always, somewhere, someone is fighting for you. As long as you remember her, you are not alone."]]
* [[spoiler:YouCantFightFate: The no-holds-barred unfortunate truth and the BrokenAesop that's present. Homura intends to avert this trope. However, every time she tries to do so is ... well ... [[NiceJobBreakingItHero it got worse every time.]] Still present even after the ending.]]
* YouDidntAsk: Kyubey's response to Sayaka regarding why he didn't bother mentioning that becoming a magical girl involves [[spoiler:separating magical girls' souls from their bodies]].
** [[spoiler: Or the reason why they actually need grief seeds, witches and magical girls.]]
* YouGottaHaveBlueHair: The colors span the rainbow.
* YourSizeMayVary: In the broadcast versions, soul gems vary in size from egg to pear. They're more consistent in the Blu-Ray versions.
** Kyubey mentions that the size of a soul gem can depend on the MagicalGirl's potential power. [[spoiler: In the last episode, Madoka's soul gem is the size of a ''comet''.]]
** Kyoko's spear seems to randomly change length between shots. In a zoomed out shot, the spear is twice her height. When the shot changes immediately afterward, the spear is a more manageable length for her to spin around. There's nothing to really suggest that she can change the number of segments in the spear.
* ZettaiRyouiki: Madoka in her school girl outfit and Mami, Sayaka and Kyoko in their magical girl outfits.
