History Characters / PuellaMagiMadokaMagica2

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%% Zero Context examples are not allowed on wiki pages. Please add context before uncommenting.
%% Please put ''Rebellion'' examples on its own page.
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[[foldercontrol]]

[[folder:In General]]
* {{Badass}}: All of them have their moments of badassery throughout the canon, in various different timelines, because they all are witch busting child soldiers.
* BadassAdorable: They're all just as cute as they are badass, thanks to Creator/UmeAoki's character designs.
* BlondeBrunetteRedhead: Mami (Blonde), Homura (Brunette), Kyoko (Redhead), [[spoiler: who coincidentally form a squad of three at the end of the series]].
* BreakTheCutie: All of them are broken at some point.
** Madoka watches [[spoiler:Mami get eaten by Charlotte and fight/unsuccessfully plead with her best friend after she turns into a witch]], and in a previous timeline, [[spoiler:kills Mami herself to stop her from killing Homura]].
** Homura watches [[spoiler:Madoka sacrifice herself for her, becomes a time traveling magical girl in an attempt to save her]], and [[spoiler:goes though dozens of time loops and subsequently relives the deaths of Madoka and the other magical girls over and over again]].
** Sayaka learns [[OurLichesAreDifferent the true nature]] of magical girls, and sinks into despair, believing herself unworthy of Kyosuke's love. [[spoiler:And then she loses Kyosuke to Hitomi]].
** Mami's parents died in the same car accident that prompted her to make a contract with Kyubey. [[spoiler:In a previous timeline, learning that magical girls are destined to become witches also does this to her]].
** Kyoko's father went crazy after learning that his religious sect was only gaining followers because of her wish [[spoiler:and subsequently killed her entire family and then himself.]]
* TheChosenMany: Aside from the main characters, it is shown that there are other {{Magical Girl}}s all around the world. [[spoiler: It also turns out the incubators have been recruiting girls since the start of recorded history. Famous examples of magical girls are [[BeethovenWasAnAlienSpy Cleopatra, Joan of Arc, and Anne Frank]].]]
* ChromaticArrangement: Madoka - Pink, Homura - Black[=/=]Purple, Sayaka - Blue, Mami - Yellow, Kyoko - Red.
%%* ColorCodedCharacters
* CurtainsMatchTheWindow: With the exception of Homura.
* EldritchAbomination: [[spoiler:As magical girls, each of them has a corresponding Witch form, although Mami's and Kyoko's do not appear in the main anime. In order, they are Kriemhild Gretchen (Madoka), Homulilly (Homura), Oktavia von Seckendorff (Sayaka), Candeloro (Mami) and Ophelia (Kyoko).]]
* HairDecorations: Everyone has something in their hair. Madoka has ribbons, Homura has a headband (and later [[spoiler: she gets Madoka's ribbons]]), Mami has her flower shaped barettes, Sayaka has hairclips (and the [[CompilationMovie Compilation Movies]] gave her a new one after she transforms), and Kyoko has a bow.
* LittleMissBadass: None of them are older than 15.
* {{Magical Girl}}s: They make a contract with Kyubey to gain magical girl power, outfits, and duty.
%%* RedOniBlueOni: On a sliding scale from red to blue - Kyoko, Sayaka, Madoka, Homura, Mami
* SchoolUniformsAreTheNewBlack: Everyone except Kyoko wears their school uniforms most of the time when not transformed because Kyoko is never a student in non-''Rebellion'' storylines.
* ThemeNaming: The names of the girls make them all seem as though they have TwoFirstNames. However, Homura is the only one who has an actual first name as a last name (the spelling of Akemi used for her name is exclusive to first names only); the rest all have names that are valid last names, but are more commonly used as first names.
* TrueCompanions:
** [[AvertedTrope Averted.]] Along with other MagicalGirl tropes, this one gets hurled straight out the window. [[spoiler:They have proven themselves of getting along on occasion. Kyoko and Mami were friends before the series started, Sayaka idolized Mami and eventually grew to sympathize somewhat with Kyoko, and Homura was once like Madoka. However, due to factors like their individual reactions to discovering the truth, mental trauma, and Homura's lonerism, as well as Kyubey's machinations, their relationships end abruptly, either when someone dies, or when two individuals simply can't trust each other.]]
** [[spoiler:However, ''Rebellion'', the game, and A Different Story show that it is possible for them to get along. Mami had good relations with everyone except Homura (and side material reveals that Kyoko, despite their fight, still considered Mami to be a sister). Sayaka was warming up to Kyoko. Kyoko was warming up to Sayaka. [[AllLovingHero Everyone was friendly to Madoka]]. The one Magical Girl that everyone either did not trust or straight-up disliked was Homura, as a consequence of her growing cynicism, simply not caring about non-Madokas, and her overall lonerism from thinking that the others wouldn't understand.]]
* YouGottaHaveBlueHair: Sayaka (blue hair), Madoka (pink hair), Hitomi (green). No one comments on it so it must be normal.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Madoka Kaname]]
[[quoteright:319:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/meduka_1009.png]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/AoiYuuki (JP), Creator/ChristineMarieCabanos (EN), Carmen Ambrós (Spain)

A well-behaved girl who doesn't consider herself to have any particular athletic or academic prowess. [[HeroicSelfDeprecation This lack of confidence]] feeds into a strong sense of selflessness that on some occasions is a positive thing but a negative one on others. After saving Kyubey from Homura, she considers forming a contract and becoming a MagicalGirl, which she believes will finally enable her to help other people.

Kyubey is determined on contracting her, but Homura intends to stop this from happening.
----
* AbstractApotheosis: The former TropeNamer, "Becoming Hope", because she [[spoiler:AscendedToAHigherPlaneOfExistence as the incarnation of hope for magical girls.]]
* ActionGirl: [[spoiler:In the timelines where she's a magical girl]] she is a force to be reckoned with.
%%* {{Adorkable}}
* AllLovingHeroine: The poor girl just wants everyone to be happy. [[spoiler: This is why she makes a wish to relieve the suffering of every magical girl that ever lived or ever will live]].
* AlwaysWithYou: When Madoka [[spoiler:ascends to godhood she reminds Homura one last time that she will always be with her. In this case it's literal because she exists in every point in time]].
* AndThenJohnWasAZombie: In some of the [[spoiler:alternate timelines, Madoka becomes a witch. In another one, she is about to become one, and requests Homura to MercyKill her]].
* ApocalypseMaiden: In ways that run both good and bad: [[spoiler:In the bad way, she's a massive Witch that can eat the world in the span of a week; In the good way, she becomes a god and rewrites reality to make a Magical Girl's existence better]].
* AscendedToAHigherPlaneOfExistence: She becomes a [[spoiler:law of physics (or a goddess in the metaphysical sense) as the result of her wish. After learning about all the suffering Magical Girls went through, she made it clear with her wish that she doesn't care what she becomes as long as her wish ultimately saves the world]].
* BadassAdorable: Anytime where she's a magical girl she is both powerful and friendly and huggably cute.
* BaitAndSwitchBoss: She's the only one who can defeat [[spoiler:Walpurgisnacht but doing this will inevitably cause her to turn into a Witch strong enough to destroy Earth. This is a HopelessBossFight for Homura and forces her to use the NewGamePlus feature of her power]].
* BeamSpam: [[spoiler: As Ultimate Madoka, she fires an enormous storm of energy arrows to attack]].
* BigEater: You wouldn't know it, but [[http://wiki.puella-magi.net/100_Questions according to her 100 Questions]], she thinks about food a LOT.
* BigFancyHouse: Madoka's home. It was designed and built by friends of her parents.
* BigGood: [[spoiler: Her {{Retcon}} made her the patron goddess of magical girls, but only Homura knows she exists]].
* BreakTheCutie: She provides the image on the trope's main page. As the series goes on she endures more and more trauma until she's a miserable wreck curled up in her bed. [[spoiler: Ultimately she doesn't break and instead uses her wish to mend every broken magical girl cutie in all of time]].
* CelestialBody: After she becomes a [[spoiler:god/force of nature/whatever in the final episode she gains a new body which evokes this kind of imagery]].
* ChildhoodFriends: With Sayaka. They walk to school together and [[spoiler: her death hits Madoka like a player punch.]]
* TheChosenOne: Kyubey spends the series trying to make her a MagicalGirl because of her potential, which can make her an all powerful deity if she so desired. Mami theorizes that Homura is actively trying to prevent her from becoming a MagicalGirl because of jealousy.
* ChronicHeroSyndrome: [[spoiler: She commits a HeroicSacrifice in every timeline we see. Homura actually blames this on her low sense of self-worth, and points how annoying it is in someone you keep time-traveling to try and rescue]].
* CurbStompBattle: [[spoiler: [[OffscreenMomentOfAwesome Though we never get to see it,]] in the last timeline shown before the current story, Madoka kills Walpurgisnacht ''in one shot.'' [[AndThenJohnWasAZombie After which, she becomes a world-destroying witch]]]].
* CrucifiedHeroShot: Madoka gets one in the beginning of Episode 11, following [[spoiler:Sayaka's funeral]], while Kyubey lectures her about [[spoiler:the role of magical girls in history]]. Fitting, considering [[spoiler: that she sacrifices herself to save the world]]. She gets another while [[spoiler: saying goodbye to Homura before she disappears]].
* CurtainsMatchTheWindow: Pink hair and eyes.
* CutenessProximity: [[http://wiki.puella-magi.net/100_Questions 100 Questions]]: (link has some spoilers)
-->'''Question 8:''' ''"Favorite animal?"''
-->'''Madoka:''' ''"I love anything that's small and fluffy!"''
* DarkMessiah: As Kriemhild Gretchen. [[spoiler:AllThereInTheManual describes her as the Witch of ''Salvation''. Her idea of salvation is either the LotusEaterMachine or an AssimilationPlot because it involves drawing people into her barrier]].
* DecoyProtagonist: She holds off on becoming a MagicalGirl and instead just tags along. Later on, [[spoiler:it's still played straight. The real heroine here is Homura Akemi, although Madoka is the one to bring the plot to an end]].
* DefeatingTheUndefeatable: [[spoiler:In all timelines, Madoka is the only magical girl known to have killed Walpurgisnacht, the most powerful witch in existence. However, she either [[HeroicSacrifice dies afterwards]] or [[AndThenJohnWasAZombie turns into an even more powerful witch]]. She finally beats it for good by wishing it out of existence in the current timeline]].
* DesperatelyLookingForAPurposeInLife: Although not as severe as [[MagicalGirlLyricalNanoha that other magical girl]], Madoka considers becoming a magical girl simply to give purpose to her life. This irritates Mami. See also HeroicSelfDeprecation.
* DevotedToYou: Homura is so desperately devoted to her that [[spoiler:she willingly trapped herself in a hellish GroundhogDayLoop so she could find a way to save Madoka from her tragic fate as a Magical Girl]].
* DidYouJustScamCthulhu: She makes a [[spoiler:contract with Kyubey in the final episode but her wish rewrites reality to favor magical girls instead of the Incubators]]. For most of the series, it's more like [[InvertedTrope Did Cthulhu Just Scam You?]].
* DisappearsIntoLight: What happens to her [[spoiler:body while she's saying goodbye to a crying Homura. She's gone to a higher plane of existence]].
* TheDitherer: Spends many an episode wondering if she can truly be helpful to anyone.
* DontFearTheReaper: She's really nice. [[spoiler:When she appears to dying magical girls she is a soothing presence in their traumatic final moments, then she takes them to magical girl {{heaven}}]].
* EnergyBow: Her weapon is a bow that fires pink energy arrows.
* {{Expy}}: WordOfGod has compared Madoka to ''Manga/HidamariSketch'''s Yuno. Urobuchi remarked that every time he made Madoka cry, the Yuno fans hated him more.
* FaustianRebellion: Madoka's wish is to [[spoiler:erase every witch that had ever existed, or would exist in the future, or could possibly exist in another world, [[RetGone before they were born]] ''with her own hands.'' [[CosmicRetcon Reality gets a bit unstable.]] and in the end Kyubey has to adapt to her new system which is less convenient to his goals.]]
* TheFettered: Madoka believes in hope so much its one of her main defining traits. [[spoiler: This eventually became the basis for her wish, to give other [[MagicalGirl Magical Girls]] hope by erasing the despair that would eventually turn them into witches. [[AbstractApotheosis She eventually became the very embodiment of this virtue.]]]]
* FinalSpeech: Done every time she [[spoiler:attempts a HeroicSacrifice.]]
* GirlsLoveStuffedAnimals: Her room is filled with various stuffed animals.
* GirlishPigtails: She has her hair done up in pigtails which emphasises her innocence and naivety.
* GirlyRun: In the OP sequence and the first episode.
* TheHeart: She's the kindest, compared to the other characters who have signed the deal.
* HeroicBSOD:
** [[spoiler:Mami's death]] hits her '''HARD'''. She spends a good half of episode 4 ''crying''.
** Again when she [[spoiler:inadvertently kills Sayaka.]] While Sayaka has gotten better thanks to Homura, the {{Angst}} will remain.
** ''Yet again'' when [[spoiler:she sees Sayaka's lifeless body and hears that her best friend has become a witch.]]
** In [[spoiler:another timeline, having to kill Mami (who had just killed Kyoko) so she wouldn't kill Homura (who had just killed Witch Sayaka)]] [[BreakTheCutie reduces her to a sobbing wreck.]]
** Kyubey goes for the kill when he [[spoiler: telepathically shows her the suffering of every magical girl throughout history.]] This may have been a mistake [[spoiler:as it inspired her wish.]]
* HeroicBystander: She prevents [[spoiler:the forced suicide of Hitomi and Kirsten's other victims]]. Also, she [[spoiler:''tries'' to be this when she throws Sayaka's soul gem over the bridge, [[NiceJobBreakingItHero with nasty results]]]].
* HeroicSacrifice: In the [[spoiler:original timeline, it was hinted that she launched a one-shot SuicideAttack against Walpurgisnacht and it worked because Homura survived. In an alternate past, she saved Homura from despair using Sayaka's grief seed, in the hope of Homura's ability to rewrite history to a better end; she then asks Homura for a MercyKill, since turning into a witch was against her life-time goal. She does it again in the final episode, where she wishes for the whole Magical Girl system to change, allowing her to destroy Walpurgis and stop any magical girls from becoming a witch (by causing them to [[AscendedToAHigherPlaneOfExistence vanish first]]), at the cost of Madoka herself [[RetGone vanishing from existence forever]].]]
* HeroicSelfDeprecation: Subtly, but still present. At one point Madoka says the following about herself: "I thought I had nothing good going for me. [[DesperatelyLookingForAPurposeInLife I thought I would continue on living until I died, never helping anyone, never being useful]]. That made me frustrated, and it made me feel alone. But I thought I couldn't do anything about it." Yet her actions over the series often contradict this self-characterization. This extends to the people around her who question ''why'' she would want to become a MagicalGirl. She has everything she would ever want, [[spoiler:and yet she still becomes a MagicalGirl.]]
* TheHeroine: Of previous [[spoiler:timelines and the GrandFinale. She's the one that ultimately saves the day.]] She's also the namesake of her team.
* HiddenDepths: Before [[WholeEpisodeFlashback Episode 10]], she appears to be an average girl [[spoiler:caught in awful circumstances]] who at times behaves in a supposedly "stupid" or "[[WhatMeasureIsANonBadass cowardly]]" manner. Episode 10 reveals [[spoiler:that Madoka is not only able to fight, but is willing to sacrifice herself because of her love for her friends]]. [[RescuedFromTheScrappyHeap Many fans' opinion of her improved after this episode]]. On the other hand, not all of her depths are hidden. How many "normal" girls would follow a friend in trouble to something they know can literally eat their face? (episode 4)
* HolyChild: Her potential power is so massive, Homura's (silent) fight against Kyubey over her drives the story. [[spoiler:Said power is also what makes her the ApocalypseMaiden.]]
* HopeBringer: [[spoiler: This is her final wish in a nutshell: deliver hope to all magical girls.]]
* HotGod: [[spoiler:Her Ultimate form]] is fairly attractive.
* ICannotSelfTerminate: In a previous [[spoiler:timeline, she asks Homura to MercyKill her before she turns into a witch.]]
* IKnowYoureInThereSomewhereFight: She tries to do this [[spoiler:for Sayaka in two different timelines. It failed in both cases.]]
* IncorruptiblePurePureness: The only way Kyubey can convince her to make a contract is by appealing to her heroism. [[spoiler: In timelines where she became a witch it's implied that it was always over-use of magic rather than despair.]]
* TheIngenue: Soft-spoken, innocent, etc. Interestingly for this trope, Junko says she's remarkably mature for her age because she bypassed the teenage-rebellion typical of girls her age.
* InstantRunes: [[spoiler:A rune array pops out in front of her bow before she fires off a barrage of energy arrows as Ultimate Madoka.]]
* KarmicJackpot: The living embodiment version. [[spoiler:She has built up a massive amount of karma due to Homura's attempts to save her in multiple timelines, which enables her to have massive amounts of magical power.]]
* KillTheCutie: Multiple times in [[spoiler:previous timelines. Then, even though she actually does live, [[RetGone all traces of her existence vanish]] [[BittersweetEnding in the final timeline.]]]]
* KungFuJesus: She's an archer who saves the universe with KINDNESS. [[spoiler:It rewrites the entire laws of time, space and REALITY itself to make the entire '''universe''' a kinder and gentler place.]]
* LadyAndKnight: [[spoiler:With Homura. Madoka is a perfect example of the Bright Lady (cute, innocent and kind) while Homura is her strong and determined knight sworn to protect her, although she's more of a Black Knight.]]
* {{Leitmotif}}: ''[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SW3d__g96wk "Clementia"]]''. [[spoiler:As Ultimate Madoka]], ''[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=whlSPtRw_-E "Sagitta luminis"]]''.
* LightFeminineAndDarkFeminine: The light to Homura's dark; dresses in light or pastel colors, open and friendly, a NiceGirl.
* LikeParentLikeSpouse: According to ancillary material, Madoka's idea of an ideal husband is someone cool like her ''mother''.
* LittleMissAlmighty: [[spoiler:In the finale she becomes the goddess of hope. Interestingly, her goddess form "Ultimate Madoka" is taller and looks older than her physical form]].
* LivingEmotionalCrutch:
** She props up Sayaka [[spoiler: when her soul gem corrupts]].
** [[spoiler:Madoka's death will always ''[[BreakTheCutie shatter]]'' Homura, before she [[{{Determinator}} resets time all over again]] to try preventing it from happening.]]
* TheLoad: ZigZagged. She's the only girl who doesn't become a MagicalGirl but still tags along. [[spoiler:It is later revealed that she did become a MagicalGirl, but in other timelines.]] Since Homura tries to prevent her from turning into a MagicalGirl [[spoiler:via time travel; her transformation was always retconned.]] In the last episode, [[spoiler:she forms a contract with Kyubey and wishes that all witches from the past, present and future cease to exist, turning her into a being akin to a god.]]
* MagicalGirl: The [[Pantheon/{{Magic}} Goddess of this Trope]].
* MagicSkirt: The pink and white tutu she wears as a magical girl incorporates one. Considering how many layers of ruffled tulle must've gone into that skirt, it's not surprising.
* MartyrWithoutACause: One reason she doesn't make a contract is that she doesn't know what to wish for. At one point she decided to 'wish to become a magical girl'. [[spoiler: Once one learns the true nature of Magical Girls, 'martyr' becomes appropriate.]]
* MeaningfulName: Her full name can be taken to mean "tranquil keystone." This fits her role as TheHeart, [[spoiler:her connection to countless threads of fate from previous timelines, and her eventual transformation into the embodiment of hope for all magical girls]].
** Interestingly, the three syllables which form her name are homophone to those of "the one who follows the path of evil". [[spoiler:LampshadeHanging here.]]
* MeaningfulRename:
** [[spoiler:Her witch name is [[Literature/{{Nibelungenlied}} Kriemhild]] [[Theatre/{{Faust}} Gretchen]].]] Interesting to note that this was not shown on the original broadcast. For the record, [[spoiler:Kriemhild means "battle mask", likely referring to the ending animation.]]
** What fans call [[spoiler:Ultimate Madoka,]] tends to go by the name Penitent Gretchen. Name [[Theatre/{{Faust}} Gretchen]] is self-explanatory even if you are familiar with the show. The title of Penitent isn't, which means "feeling or expressing humble or regretful pain or sorrow for sins or offenses". It explains [[spoiler:Madoka's temperament at the time of her wish.]] Also, the full name is yet another reference to ''Theatre/{{Faust}}''...or more appropriately, how Gretchen saved him.
** On official character sheets by Ume Aoki, she is referred to as [[spoiler:Ultimate Madoka]].
* MessianicArchetype: [[spoiler:She sacrifices herself to save all magical girls from despair.]]
* MoeCouplet: Initially her and Sayaka, and then her and Homura [[spoiler:especially when it was {{Meganekko}} Homura]]. Also a bit with Mami, which likely would have continued if the latter [[spoiler:didn't die]], and was apparent in other timelines.
* MoralityChain: [[spoiler: She's this to Homura. Despite all the trauma and foulness of all the timelines, Homura continues to help others because it would make Madokda happy]].
* MuggleBestFriend: Madoka initially seems like she'll be the typical magical girl hero, but when the series reached episode 9 (of 12) Madoka is '''still''' a muggle. [[spoiler: This is because she was a magical girl in the original timeline and made Homura promise to 'save her from Kyubey's trickery'. This is why Homura prevents her from making a contract.]]
* NaiveEverygirl: This is one of the things she dislikes about herself; her average-lack-of-wordliness.
* NaiveNewcomer: As an IronicEcho to current Homura, Madoka contrasts {{Meganekko}} Homura. [[spoiler:Where {{Meganekko}} Homura blurts out something randomly inappropriate, Madoka is a mostly calm and collected person in the same situation.]]
* NiceGirl: She's the nicest of the girls and would do anything to help other people.
* NiceJobBreakingItHero
** She tried cheering Mami up with a YouAreNotAlone speech. It results in [[spoiler:Mami fighting more recklessly rather than methodical and calculating which leads to getting headchomped by Charlotte, [[Manga/PuellaMagiOrikoMagica in a battle she would've won if she never let her guard down]].]]
** To prevent Sayaka from fighting Kyoko, [[spoiler:she snatches Sayaka's soul gem and throws it off the bridge they're on. This killed Sayaka because the soul gem is [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin literally]] a SoulJar.]] Cue BigDamnHeroes from Homura.
** [[spoiler:She makes a contract to save Homura in one timeline, and becomes a magical girl so powerful she destroys a witch in one shot... then becomes an even worse witch who will destroy the entire planet.]]
* NotSoImaginaryFriend: To her brother in the [[spoiler:final timeline; he's one of two people who remember her but his/their mom believes 'Madoka' is an imaginary friend.]]
* OnlyFriend: To Homura. She had no friends before joining Madoka's school and afterwards isolates herself [[spoiler:to prevent herself from suffering more pain from the time loops]].
* [[OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent Ordinary Junior High School Student]]: There's nothing remarkable about her. You know, other than her tremendous magical girl potential, and all.
* PimpedOutDress:
** Her Magical Girl outfit is pink, very frilly and overall standard issue for a magical girl, which emphasizes her [[FriendToAllLivingThings kindness]], idealism and will to be [[spoiler: the bringer of hope.]]
** Her [[spoiler:ultimate form]] dress, as well. It has a freaking ''[[CelestialBody star scape]]'' in it.
* PinkMeansFeminine: Madoka is likely the most girlish of the main girls and has pink as her theme colour.
* PlotTriggeringDeath: Homura makes the wish that kicks off the series in order [[spoiler:to save Madoka's life.]]
* PowerGivesYouWings: She gains [[spoiler:angelic, transparent wings when she ascends to godhood.]]
* PowerMakesYourHairGrow: [[spoiler:Ultimate Madoka]] gains long hair before she kills [[spoiler:Kriemhild Gretchen]].
* {{Protectorate}}: [[spoiler: Homura's wish was for Madoka to become this for her. "I want to protect Madoka instead of her protecting me."]]
* {{Psychopomp}}: As a [[spoiler:Goddess, she appears to dying magical girls and takes them away to {{heaven}}. She's just the sort of companion one would want on such a journey. For instance, she allowed Sayaka see Kyosuke play violin one last time.]]
* RealityBreakingParadox: When she makes her [[spoiler:paradoxical wish, reality collapses in on itself by trying to figure how the wish would work.]]
* RealityWarper: [[{{Foreshadowing}} Kyubey claims she has this sort of potential]] if she were to become a Magical Girl. [[spoiler:Turns out, he was right. Her wish was all that was needed to reconstruct the whole universe into a more merciful place.]]
* RecursiveAmmo: [[spoiler: Those pink arrows she spams as Ultimate Madoka can turn into more of her.]]
* RedOniBlueOni: To Sayaka; more cautious, less passionate. Madoka's [[ColorCodedForYourConvenience color motif]] is Pink, which is a combination Red and White. You should have a good guess where the White motif comes into play.
* RetGone: The price of ending the [[spoiler:ViciousCycle is her removal from physical existence.]]
* RoseHairedSweetie: Sweet-tempered subtype.
* SelflessWish: When she learns that her wish has the potential of her becoming a god, she later makes it clear that [[spoiler:she doesn't care what she becomes as long as her wish ultimately saves the world from destruction, either at the hands of Walpurgisnacht or Kriemhild Gretchen, and ensures that magical girls do not experience sadness anymore, and orders Kyubey to fulfill her wish anyway.]]
* SheCleansUpNicely: [[spoiler:Supernatural example:]] Normal girl Madoka falls right into GenericCuteness and in-universe is considered plain. [[spoiler:[[http://images.puella-magi.net/c/cc/408.5.jpg?20110510180111 Ultimate Madoka]],]] on the other hand, is ''achingly beautiful''.
* ShoutOut:
** Madoka has some similarities to [[Manga/CardcaptorSakura Sakura Kinomoto]], as shown [[http://wiki.puella-magi.net/100_Questions here]]. They're both blood type A girls who eat breakfasts made by their fathers "who can cook anything," play the recorder "a bit," are afraid of ghosts, and list their favorite colors as white and pink.
** [[spoiler:As part of the many references to Goethe's ''Faust'', she's Gretchen, the woman who saves and redeems Faust with her love. This is made most explicit with the name of the witch she becomes in several timelines, Kriemhild Gretchen]].
* SignatureLaugh: Wehihihi is an onomatopoeia of that little giggle of hers. Japanese fanworks naturally follow this and literally write it as ウェヒヒヒヒ.
* TheSoulsaver: [[spoiler: The fate of magical girls is either to become a witch or die and face the CessationOfExistence. Ultimate Madoka rescues them from both and brings them to a higher plane of existence.]]
* SplitPersonalityMerge: [[spoiler: Kind of; after her apotheosis she gains knowledge of all other timelines.]]
* StoryBreakerPower: [[spoiler:As Homura's quest goes on, Madoka as a magical girl becomes more and more powerful. ''The Different Story'' is presumably one of the later resets, since Madoka demonstrates the ability to ''bring Sayaka back to life''.]].
* SupernaturalGoldEyes: As [[spoiler:Ultimate Madoka, the Goddess of Hope]].
* SupportingProtagonist:
** [[WordOfGod Gen Urobuchi]] stated that'' Sayaka'' is TheProtagonist of his story, although Madoka is the main character originally planned by Ume Aoki. However, [[spoiler: this may have been a [[LyingCreator bait-and-switch statement]] to make Sayaka's fate more surprising, as Homura turns out to be the main heroic catalyst in the series.]]
** Rather than focusing on the actions of Madoka herself, the story focuses on [[spoiler: Homura's actions to protect and nurture Madoka, and unintentionally set her up to become powerful enough to become a goddess]].
** [[PlayingWithATrope Played With]] by WordOfGod. The primary character arc is the lead up to Sayaka's [[spoiler:transformation]], but the plot itself revolves around Homura's attempt to stop Madoka [[spoiler:from dying]] or becoming a magical girl.
** Finally [[spoiler:the series could ''really'' be about Madoka learning about the true nature of magical girls in order to learn how to reform the system after her ultimate ascension to goddesshood]].
** However, she fits this trope for the most part in ''The Different Story''.
* SurvivorGuilt: After [[spoiler: Mami]] dies right in front of her Madoka goes to her house and says "I'm sorry for being so weak."
* TakeAThirdOption: If she doesn't become a MagicalGirl, [[spoiler:Walpurgisnacht will happen and the Earth will die.]] If she does, [[spoiler:then she'll become Kriemhild Gretchen and the Earth will still die.]] What does she do? [[spoiler:She becomes a MagicalGirl and uses her wish to ''erase all Witches from existence'' thus safeguarding her own eventual transformation.]]
* TaremeEyes: As the gentle NiceGirl she is, she has rounded eyes.
* TenderTears: Usually accompanied by TearsOfRemorse.
* ThighHighBoots: [[spoiler: She sports these when she becomes a god.]]
* TomboyAndGirlyGirl: GirlyGirl to Sayaka's {{Tomboy}}. It's not especially because she's so girly but because Sayaka is more boyish.
* TookALevelInBadass: Zigzagged. She spends most of the series as a {{Muggle}}, [[spoiler:before it was revealed that in previous timelines, she became a magical girl.]] In fact, [[spoiler:she becomes stronger and stronger as a magical girl with each press of the ResetButton. At the end of the series she becomes a goddess-like figure.]]
* TotalitarianUtilitarian: As [[spoiler:Kriemhild Gretchen she helps as many people as possible by enclosing them in her barrier.]]
%%* TownGirls: The neither to Mami and Hitomi's femme and Sayaka's butch.
* [[TragicBromance Tragic Womance]]: With Homura. They develop the closest relationship of the main group but [[spoiler:are separated at the end. In the manga, this is averted because they are reunited in Ultimate Madoka's {{heaven}}.]]
* TrueFinalBoss: The final witch encountered in the series is not Walpurgisnacht, but [[spoiler:Madoka's own, planet-eating, scary-as-hell witch form. It could also qualify as a PostFinalBoss due to being destroyed by Madoka's wish rather than being fought beforehand.]]
* TheUnreveal: The only looks we get of [[spoiler:her witch form]] are a black, thundercloud-like entity mid-transformation [[spoiler:in one timeline]] and a colossal grey silhouette [[spoiler:in another timeline.]] The witch's name, Kriemhild Gretchen, was originally this but was shown in a subsequent broadcast. [[spoiler:Her witch card]] shows what Gretchen looks like [[http://wiki.puella-magi.net/Kriemhild_Gretchen here]].
* UselessProtagonist: In a series where the only way to be useful is to throw your entire life away, few can blame her for being hesitant to do just that. Even so she desperately tries to be of any help towards the other magical girls, and is perfectly willing to throw her life away for their sake. It's just that one of said magical girls is actively trying to prevent her from sacrificing herself, and even calls her a naive fool for being so self-sacrificing.
* UnwittingInstigatorOfDoom: [[spoiler:A past variant of Madoka asked Homura to go back in time and stop her from contracting]], unaware of just how difficult this would be.
* WalkingSpoiler: If you've made it this far down the page, this should already be obvious.
* WideEyedIdealist: She just wants people to be happy in this world. What's wrong with that?! [[spoiler: Combined with sufficient knowledge, she uses her wish to restructure the whole universe into a more idealistic place.]]
* WorldsStrongestMan: As pointed out by Kyubey, Madoka's potential is so great that ''any wish'' she might have, even including ''becoming a god'' can be fulfilled. As a MagicalGirl, her magical power is so great that [[spoiler: she can kill the strongest witch in existence. Unfortunately, unless she dies after the battle, [[AndThenJohnWasAZombie she replaces Walpurgisnacht as the most powerful witch in existence.]]]]
--> [[spoiler: '''Kyubey:''' It was bound to happen sooner or later, the strongest magical girl turning into the most fearsome witch.]]
* YouAreNotAlone:
** Madoka says this to Mami. [[spoiler:This distracts her enough to make a critical error in her fight.]] Mami usually fights coldly and calculatedly, but in that particular fight [[spoiler:she was reckless and was showing-off...and then HEADCHOMP.]]
** Madoka also tells this to Homura [[spoiler:after Mami's death]]. Homura seems a ''little'' receptive, but is soon back to warning Madoka about what could happen.
** [[spoiler: In the final episode, she tells this to every magical girl that every lived and every will live. Then she gathers them all on the same plane of existence so they never will be alone again.]]
* ZettaiRyouiki: Her normal attire is higher-grade than her Magical Girl outfit.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Homura Akemi]]
[[quoteright:271:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/homuhomu_5349.png]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/ChiwaSaito (JP), Creator/CristinaValenzuela (EN), Ariadna Jiménez (Spain)

A NewTransferStudent in Madoka's class and a stoic magical girl with unknown motives. For whatever reason, she will go to any length to prevent Madoka from striking a contract with Kyubey. [[PostModernMagick She wields conventional weaponry]] such as handguns and explosives and carries a buckler. Her powers allow her to FlashStep.
----
* AcademicAthlete: One of the smartest and best at sports in her class; she knows the lecture better than any student and sets a track record on her first day. [[spoiler: Not surprising, considering she went through the same time loop a hundred times.]]
* ActionGirl: She knows her way around firearms and explosives and she's the most experienced when it comes to fighting witches.
* AdaptationExpansion: The anime includes an epilogue that differs from the manga's, with [[spoiler:Homura walking through a desert towards a group of wraiths and sprouting a pair of nightmarish wings]]. In the manga, [[spoiler:she [[AscendToAHigherPlaneOfExistence is taken into the afterlife by Ultimate Madoka]].]]
* {{Adorkable}}: No, really. [[spoiler:In the first few timelines]] she was TheDitz, TheKlutz, and not all that good at being a magical girl. In the manga, [[spoiler:the look returns in the final scene when she's in {{Heaven}}.]]
* AdrenalineMakeover: In one of the [[spoiler:later timelines shown in Episode 10]], she [[LettingHerHairDown undoes her braids]] and [[TheGlassesGottaGo uses her magic to heal her ailing eyes]]. This is partially [[spoiler:so Madoka won't recognize her]].
* AloofAlly: She's initially antagonistic because she's introduced attacking Kyubey. Later, she helps with witches but still stands apart from the other magical girls. [[spoiler: This is mostly a show in order to make the other girls avoid her, as well as a coping mechanism to avoid becoming attached to those whose deaths she saw many times.]]
* AloofDarkHairedGirl: She's pretty, has long dark hair, and appears to be extremely aloof and cold.
* AlwaysSaveTheGirl: She will protect Madoka at ''any'' cost. [[spoiler: This means Homura tunnel-visions on Madoka and regards everyone else as a nuisance, [[DeconstructedTrope having no qualms with them dying so long as Madoka survives.]] This naturally conflicts with [[AllLovingHero Madoka herself trying to save everyone she can]].]]
* AntiHero: She has a more-or-less good goal and extremely pragmatic ways of pursuing it.
* ApologeticAttacker: [[spoiler:During the third timeline, she tearfully says her goodbyes to Oktavia von Seckendorff before activating the pipe bomb that destroys her.]]
-->[[spoiler:''[[TearJerker "I'm sorry...Miss Miki..."]]'']]
* ArcherArchetype: Fills the character archetype nicely. She works on her own, not relying on anyone and is very aloof. She gets to use a black bow [[spoiler:in Madoka's new, witch-free world]].
* AscendToAHigherPlaneOfExistence: In the {{manga}} she goes [[spoiler:with Ultimate Madoka to be with her forever after her work as Dark Angel!Homura is done]].
* AttackReflector: According to WordOfGod, [[spoiler: her wings in the new reality have this ability.]]
* {{Badass}}: For taking [[CombatPragmatist Combat Pragmatism]] and running with it to levels never before seen in a MahouShoujo series: ramming it together with [[spoiler:TimeStop]] abilities and [[spoiler:''military ordnance'']], as well as being [[NoNonsenseNemesis entirely willing to just shoot]] [[spoiler:even if it won't stick]].
* BadassAdorable: Formerly she was a [[spoiler:clumsy ShrinkingViolet that blew up witches with homemade bombs. Afterwards she only adorable in a StoicWoobie sense.]]
* BagOfHolding: Either up her sleeve or just behind her shield; she uses it to store all her [[spoiler: conventional]] weaponry.
* BeautifulAllAlong: Played with. When first introduced, Homura has an elegant beauty to her. However, Episode 10 reveals that she originally looked closer to a HollywoodHomely, with huge glasses and braids. Later, her AdrenalineMakeover shows that she did indeed follow this trope.
* BecauseYouWereNiceToMe: Her devotion to Madoka stems from the latter's kindness.
* BeneathTheMask: Despite pretending to be an EmotionlessGirl, she has a soft side that she hides. [[spoiler:She even cried after Madoka almost became a magical girl]]. Episode 10 confirms that [[spoiler:she was a ShrinkingViolet]]. Part of her new attitude is because she TookALevelInBadass, and is hiding the part of herself that she considers "weak." [[spoiler: It is also from the raw emotional and mental trauma of [[GroundhogDayLoop repeating the same month over]] [[WordOfGod about a hundred times]]. It is also likely due to Madoka's comment that she should “act more cool” from the first timeline, and because she promised Madoka in one timeline to prevent her from making a contract ever again, which forced her to become TheStoic so that nothing else reaches her and she can be determined to fulfill that goal.]]
* BerserkButton: If you mess with [[spoiler: Madoka]] in any way, she will drop her cool to stop you [[MoreDakka with lots of firepower]].
* BigDamnHeroes: She often jumps in to save others,for example [[spoiler: when she stopped time and emptied a pistol into Kyubey, narrowly saving Madoka from screwing herself over.]]
* BigGood: [[spoiler: For the bulk of the series Homura is the only one taking direct action against [[BigBad Kyubey]].]]
* BlindedByTheLight: Flashbangs are amongst her arsenal.
* BolivianArmyEnding: In the final scene of the anime,[[spoiler:she walks towards a massive horde of wraiths while sprouting dark wings, either as part of her new superpowers or as a sign that she'll go to Heaven soon, with NoBodyLeftBehind (as that would normally be the sign of a Witch, and in this timeline, Witches don't exist). Averted in the manga, when she does indeed go to Heaven in the final scene. And this is where the two canons diverge.]]
** [[spoiler:According to Urobuchi, "Homura's fight just goes on," and Iwakami states that he "personally believes it to be a Good End", making it unlikely that Homura dies in the final scene. Her survival is confirmed as of Rebellion...[[FromBadToWorse unfortunately for the poor girl.]]]]
* BraidsOfAction: Inverted; she becomes [[TookALevelInBadass more badass after she]] [[LettingHerHairDown removes them]].
* BreakTheCutie: By the time we see her, she's not so much broken as emotionally numb. While things like [[spoiler:Mami's decapitation, Sayaka's degeneration into a witch and Kyoko's HeroicSacrifice]] certainly affect her, they carry less weight since [[spoiler:she's seen them a minimum of four times before by dint of her ResetButton.]]
* BrokenAce: She never loses her cool, and is both book smart and athletic, as well as an extremely skilled Magical Girl. However this is result of [[spoiler:being stuck in a GroundhogDayLoop that has given her a LOT of time to develop her skills, and her composed attitude is her way of staying sane after watching her best friend die or become a witch over and over again]].
* BrokenBird: She's extremely cold and a loner as a result of her experiences as a Magical Girl. [[spoiler:Watching your best friend die horribly many times over and failing to stop it will do that.]]
* BrutalHonesty: She freely tells Madoka that she is a naive idiot. She's even harsher on other characters.
* ByronicHeroine: She has conflicting emotions, isolates herself from others, has a troubled past, is cynical and arrogant. She doesn't hesitate to render her enemies full of holes when things call for it..
* TheCassandra: Nobody is ever willing to listen to her warnings.
* CastingAShadow: Appears to have darkness-based powers in [[spoiler:the rewritten universe.]]
* {{Catchphrase}}: [[BigDamnHeroes "That won't be necessary."]]
* CelestialBody: In the final episode the [[spoiler: black wings when she fights the wraiths have stars within them.]]
* TheChampion: Aspires to be [[spoiler:Madoka's]], in a purely martial sense. Her devotion to doing so is the only thing holding [[BrokenBird her psyche]] together. [[spoiler:After Madoka becomes a goddess, this takes on a more religious bent.]]
* ChekhovsGun: There's a ''reason'' why her WeaponOfChoice is a shield.
* {{Classical Anti Hero}}ine: In her {{Adorkable}} phase, she was a SuperLoser even with [[spoiler:her TimeStandsStill ability]].
* ColourCodedTimestop: Everything goes greyscale.
* CombatPragmatist: She uses TimeStandsStill to paralyze her enemies and either fill them with lead or blow them up while they're helpless.
* CombatStilettos: She sports heels in her magical girl outfit. Considering that she uses explosives and [[spoiler:time powers]], they don't really hinder her, though [[ZigZaggedTrope she can run just fine in them]].
* ConvenientlyAnOrphan: Heavily implied. We never see or hear of any parents, and the nameplate of her residence only has her name, much like Mami's. In the first episode she said she came from a missionary school. In Episode 10, [[spoiler:not only is no one with her in the hospital, but she filled out her school transfer forms by herself.]] It's convenient because [[spoiler:it explains how she can get away with her [[AdrenalineMakeover drastic personality changes from being the Groundhog Peggy Sue]] without anyone noticing, and why she's so determined to help Madoka; she doesn't have anyone else.]]
* CrazyPrepared:
** Know why Homura can summon conventional weapons apparently from nowhere? [[spoiler:It's because she stole them from the ''Yakuza'' and later the ''Defense Force''.]]
** Her special power as a magical girl [[spoiler: is to control time, whether stopping it, or traveling backwards through it]] she retains her memories, which is why in the beginning she knows a lot about the school subjects, and a lot about Madoka even though they've never met before.
* CrucifiedHeroShot: With Madoka, after [[spoiler:Sayaka's funeral and Kyubey explains the 'threads of fate' thing. She was tangled up just like Madoka.]]
* CuteClumsyGirl: She started out as one. [[spoiler:She's uncoordinated during her first attempts at using her magical powers and worked at overcoming this through the loops.]]
* CurbStompBattle: She can easily fight both witches and other magical girls [[spoiler: [[TimeStandsStill because of her exploitable ability]]. Case in point, one timeline shows her killing witches ''all by herself''. Walpurgisnacht is the only witch capable of sending her to the receiving end of the curbstomp, [[MoreDakka despite her]] [[ThereIsNoKillLikeOverkill best efforts.]]]]
* CynicismCatalyst: Homura became the cold {{Anti Hero}}ine she is now after [[spoiler:she was forced to MercyKill Madoka in one timeline]].
* DangerouslyGenreSavvy: As a result of [[spoiler:a lot of MentalTimeTravel]].
* DarkAndTroubledPast: It is hinted all along the series that her past was full of horrible moments, but it is not until Episode 10 that we finally find out how deep she is in shit. To summarize: [[spoiler:Back in the original timeline, it was Madoka who saved her from being killed by a witch. When Walpurgisnacht came she saw Madoka die, and this was what pushed her to make a contract with Kyubey. She returned in time, but no matter how many times she tried, the events conspired against her to make her see Madoka die again and again and again.]] The trauma she carries on her back is beyond what a normal human could endure.
%%* DarkerAndEdgier
* DarkIsNotEvil: Despite the dark outfit, creepily sterile house, and aloof demeanor, she's not all that bad a girl. [[spoiler:This is taken UpToEleven in the new universe, where she's still a magical girl, and significantly more heroic than she once was and manifests terrifying jagged black wings as part of her BattleAura.]]
* DarkMagicalGirl: She starts the main narrative as a stoic and antagonistic MagicalGirl opposing our friendly protagonist, Madoka. [[spoiler: The truth is closer to a inversion as she was on Madoka's side from the start as her MysteriousProtector and began the story as her shy friend.]]
* DeadpanSnarker:
** She cracks ''two jokes'' throughout the series and they're ''both'' at the expense of Kyoko.
--->'''Kyoko:''' Huh! The annoying bitch has an annoying friend, go figure.\\
'''Homura:''' [''appearing from nowhere''] Well, I wonder what kind of friends ''you'd'' have, then.
** When Kyoko explains to Homura that she can only fight Sayaka for the length of time it takes the former to eat a stick of Pocky until Kyoko reenters their fight:
--->'''Homura:''' That's plenty of time.
** In Episode 6, when Homura interrupts the fight between Sayaka and Kyoko, by deflecting Kyoko's attack and knocking Sayaka out via [[TapOnTheHead chop to the back of her neck]]:
--->'''Kyoko:''' What the heck... who's side are you on, anyway?!
--->'''Homura:''' I'm on the side of those who think rationally, and the enemy of idiots who pick fights. I wonder which you belong to, ''Kyoko Sakura''?
* DeclarationOfProtection: [[spoiler: Her wish is as follows: "I want to redo my meeting with Madoka. Instead of being protected by her, I want to become someone that protects her."]]
* {{Determinator}}: After experiencing [[spoiler:the same thing over and over for [[WordOfGod nearly a]] ''[[WordOfGod hundred]]'' [[WordOfGod times]], and not breaking down yet, she definitely counts. Only Madoka's request has kept her going. Failure is not an option. The moment she accepts that Madoka's fate cannot be changed, she will succumb to despair and turn into a witch.]]
* DestructiveRomance: Her relationship with Madoka can be adequately described as such -- ultimately, both really do more to hurt each other (both intentionally and unintentionally) than help each other as a result of their clashing natures (Madoka's idealism and selflessness versus Homura's cynicism and selfishness).
* DeterminedDefeatist: For someone who claims that "Dedication has no reward" she is steadfast in her mission [[spoiler: to save Madoka.]] It is implied that the "reward" she speaks of here is [[spoiler:''[[IJustWantToBeLoved Madoka's love]]'']].
* {{Deuteragonist}}: The entire story and most other canons (such as [[Manga/PuellaMagiOrikoMagica Oriko]]) usually turn out to be just as much about ''her'' journey as the main character's, if not ''more''.
* DidNotGetTheGirl: In the anime because [[spoiler:Madoka went to a Higher Plane Of Existence. In the manga, she ultimately reunites with Madoka on that Higher Plane.]]
* DiedHappilyEverAfter: One of several implied fates [[spoiler:for her at the end of the series, and canon in the manga, is ascending to Madoka's heaven after her death. ]]
* DiscardAndDraw: Due to the [[spoiler:CosmicRetcon, she loses her time stop powers and HyperspaceArsenal and acquires abilities similar to Madoka.]]
* DomesticAbuser: Shows shades of this, what with her intimidating Madoka and generally not approaching her as an equal, her controlling of Madoka's decisions and wants, following her around all the time, telling her to give up on her friends, withholding important information (regardless of the reasons why), and trying to drive others like Mami and Sayaka away from her (as well as threatening or actually [[spoiler:attempting to kill them]]), among other things. It gets even worse in ''Rebellion''.
* TheDulcineaEffect: {{Downplayed|Trope}}. While she [[spoiler:wished to go back in time and protect Madoka]] whom she only knew for a month, it was for a longer time period than most cases of this trope. Also, it's more reasonable, as [[spoiler:Madoka was Homura's OnlyFriend]]. Furthermore, it appears in [[spoiler: the second timeline]] that she really didn't understand the weight of the situation and thought everything was fine and dandy. It wasn't until she matured, spent more time with Madoka, and realized all of the {{Awful Truth}}s that she became more steadfast in her determination.
* DynamicEntry: {{Justified|Trope}} by [[spoiler:being a TimeMaster]].
* EeriePaleSkinnedBrunette: Her pale skin provide a visual contrast with dark coloured hair and attire. They also reflect her cold and sardonic personality.
* EmotionlessGirl: The "emotionally repressed" type due to all the trauma she's seen. [[spoiler:It unrepresses in episode 11 and 12.]]
* EnemyMine: She forms an alliance with Kyoko to defeat Walpurgisnacht together, but [[spoiler:Kyoko dies before the battle]].
* EvenTheGirlsWantHer: She's very popular with her female classmates, as seen in the first episode. The PSP game shows that ''Hitomi'' will swoon over her given the right circumstances.
* ExpositoryHairstyleChange: Letting her hair down [[spoiler:from its braids marks her shift from Moemura to Homuranda.]]
* {{Expy}}: Here's [[http://wiki.puella-magi.net/File:Tall,_Dark_and_Bishoujo_archetype_update.jpg a picture]] with an expy checklist. However, in terms of characters the creators have written before, she's most obviously one of [[LightNovel/FateZero Kiritsugu Emiya]]. A [[TheStoic cold]] and [[CombatPragmatist calculating]] AntiHero (who UsedToBeASweetKid) usage of modern weaponry in magic fights, [[spoiler: time-manipulation magic and the experience of having to kill the person most important to her. Also, their strongest desire is to preserve those closest to them; the difference is Kiritsugu hides this under a philosophy of TheNeedsOfTheMany while Homura could not care less about anyone not named 'Madoka Kaname'.]] It may be intentional on the part of GenUrobuchi, whose ''LightNovel/FateZero'' was the reason he was drafted to work with SHAFT on ''Madoka'' (by WordOfGod). Other character have similarities with her but he's the only one by the same author and thusly the only one we can know for sure that influenced her.
* FailureIsTheOnlyOption: [[spoiler: Depending on her choices between timelines, Homura's goals end up being either to protect Madoka's life, to prevent her from contracting, or both - each time met with failure. Even at the very end when Ultimate Madoka did her CosmicRetcon, she still contracted, and at the same time lost Homura her time travel powers as a result of the retcon. The poor girl just couldn't win.]]
* FailureKnight: The person she's trying to protect is the same one she [[spoiler:failed to save in the first place, thanks to time travel.]]
* FatalFlaw: [[spoiler:As a self-imposed loner, not only is Homura selfish, but she is a ''huge'' Negative Nancy. For the life of her, she just doesn't grasp the concept of GoodFeelsGood; she views helping others at her own expense with no reward as painful and pointless, [[SillyRabbitIdealismIsForKids something she gets on ]][[AllLovingHero Madoka]][[SillyRabbitIdealismIsForKids 's case about more than once]]. This is ''especially'' apparent when Madoka makes her HeroicSacrifice: while Madoka is calmly and happily explaining that no Puella Magi will suffer again, Homura is screaming and wailing about what amounts to Madoka dying with no way for her to reverse it.]]
* FaustianRebellion: She received her time manipulation powers from Kyubey [[spoiler:in exchange for her soul and uses those powers to undermine his energy collecting plan.]]
* FlashStep: She appears to have SuperSpeed as her magical girl power, since she can disappear and then reappear somewhere else. [[spoiler:Her real power is to invoke TimeStandsStill, but the effect is the same.]]
* TheFourthWallWillNotProtectYou: The RealLife JSDF reported a number of missing weapons around the time the series was aired. [[spoiler:They match the kind of weapons that Homura uses in the final battle. [[http://extrovertedotaku.blogspot.com/2011/04/akemi-homuras-weapon-gallery.html Read more about it here.]]]]
* FullNameBasis: For most of the series and toward most people, but [[FirstNameBasis refers to Madoka by her first name]] in particularly emotional moments toward the end. Kyubey tends to refer to her by her full name.
* FutileHandReach:
** Reaches towards Madoka as she's being [[spoiler:dragged out of Madoka's cosmic dimension.]]
** Also as Madoka rushes to Sayaka's side in episode eight.
** Also, during the End Credits, her silhouette turns and feebly reaches after Madoka as she walks past.
%%* GetAHoldOfYourselfWoman: To [[spoiler:Mami]] in ''The Different Story''.
* GirlishPigtails:
** In the anime, she used to have them, but after falling straight into {{Anti Hero}}ine-dom, [[LettingHerHairDown she removed them.]]
** In the manga, [[spoiler:she wears them again in Madoka's new world with Madoka's ribbons, though they aren't braided. Then they are braided when she ascends to heaven with Madoka]].
* GirlOfMyDreams: Madoka first sees Homura in a dream before seeing her in real life. When Sayaka hears about this in the manga, she suggests that they were bound together in a previous life. [[spoiler: Got it in one.]]
* GirlyRun: She had a particularly slow, dainty version [[spoiler:of this as Moemura]].
* TheGlassesComeOff: [[spoiler: She originally wore glasses but used magic to fix her eyesight at the beginning of the [[GroundhogDayLoop loop]] that happened after the one where she mercy killed Madoka]]. As she does so, she resolves to kill ''all'' of the [[EldritchAbomination witches]] ''[[SoloCharacterRun single-handedly]]'', and does a damn good job until [[spoiler:she hits Walpurgisnacht]].
* GoodEyesEvilEyes: The aforementioned AdrenalineMakeover also saw her TaremeEyes change in shape.
%%* GoodGunsBadGuns: She uses a Beretta in the eighth episode, and a PPK in TheMovie.
* GoodIsNotNice: A MagicalGirl of the AntiHero variety.
* GroundhogPeggySue: She's trying her hardest to find the GoldenPath [[spoiler:via time travel. She's an unusual case in that her priority is a single person.]]
* HammerSpace: The circular buckler/shield on her arm can store lots of big items, such as bombs, swords, and guns.
* HairDecorations: She primarily has a black headband [[spoiler:until the final episode, where she wears one of Madoka's ribbons in a band.]]
* HairFlip: Occasionally flips her very long hair when talking. [[MemeticMutation It's become memetic]]. [[spoiler:She's not used to having her long hair hang loose]].
* HandCannon: She uses a Desert Eagle [[spoiler: in an early timeline, reflecting her inexperience with guns. By the time of the series proper, she's switched to using rifles, explosives, and 9mm pistols]].
* HeartbrokenBadass: She had to see her beloved best friend [[spoiler:die over and over again.]]
* HeroicBSOD: She comes closest to Witchhood in [[spoiler:Episode 11 after giving up on protecting Madoka. Only Madoka volunteering to become a MagicalGirl herself snaps her out of it.]]
* HeroicSafeMode: She spends the bulk of the series in a stoic focused-solely-on-goal mode because of the trauma of [[spoiler:the loops. The fourth one triggered it because she was asked by Madoka to mercy kill Madoka; critical error that one.]]
* TheHeroine: Of the [[spoiler:current timeline, as well as Goddess Madoka's witch-free timeline.]]
* HeroOfAnotherStory: As we see in episode 10, it's been a long, terrible one.
* HiddenHeartOfGold: Despite being a snarker and all, she actually cares about the well-being for everyone she knows. This is reinforced by the fact that she's a DangerouslyGenreSavvy character. If not for her selfless efforts the entire cast would have been killed off several times over. [[spoiler:Even ''Mami'' gets herself killed by not listening to her.]] She outright states that it's all for the sake of Madoka, and even accepts [[spoiler: Mami's death]] if it means teaching her a lesson. Even if her words are false bravado, they're still implied to be true.
* HyperspaceArsenal: [[spoiler: A score of rocket launchers, flash grenades, explosive grenades, etc.]]
* IAmWhatIAm: She will easily admit that as a magical girl she essentially isn't human anymore and doesn't seem bothered by it, [[spoiler:because she knows she can turn into [[EldritchAbomination something worse.]]]]
* IGaveMyWord: All that she does is to fulfill the promise she made to a [[spoiler:dying Madoka to save her from the inevitable hell of magical girl-dom.]]
* IllGirl: The period of time she has been [[spoiler:looping was the first few weeks where she was mainstreamed; before transferring to Madoka's class, she spent most of her life in the hospital because of a heart condition.]]
* IndifferentBeauty: She quickly becomes popular at school because of her beauty, but she doesn't care about that and turns down any offers to spend time together.
* IneffectualLoner: In the [[spoiler:original timeline where a witch tried to drive her to suicide based on her friendless and useless nature. She would have succeeded if not for MagicalGirl Madoka and Mami]].
* InstantExpert: Averted. The flashbacks show that she needed a lot of time to find out how to make the best use of her powers.
* {{Irony}}: [[spoiler:The girl who wished to be the one protecting Madoka always ended up protected by her. This is most evident in episonde 11 of the current timeline. When she realizes that [[FailureIsTheOnlyOption she will never be able to protect Madoka, no matter how many times she tries]] and the despair almost turned her into a witch until Madoka saved her again.]]
* JadeColoredGlasses: "With kindness comes naïveté. Courage becomes foolhardiness. Dedication has no reward. If you can't accept any of that, you are not fit to be a magical girl."
* JerkassFacade: She acts like a heartless bitch or otherwise obnoxious {{jerkass}}, but it's [[spoiler:all for the sake of protecting her beloved Madoka. It's also implied that to some extent, she acts that way to stop Madoka from getting close to her, and to shock her out of the idea that being a magical girl would be a good thing.]]
* KillTheOnesYouLove: She was forced to [[spoiler:MercyKill her dear Madoka in one timeline to prevent her witchification.]]
* KleptomaniacHero: Uses her time powers to steal high-grade weapons from the Yakuza and the Japanese Military.
* TheKlutz: Before her dramatic character change [[spoiler:and after a lot of practicing]], she was clumsy.
* KnightInSourArmor: No matter how pointless and impossible it may seem, [[spoiler: she would not give up on trying to save Madoka and other magical girls, even in doomed timelines. Besides merely being stoic, she knows the moment she gives up her quest for good, she would become a witch in an instant.]]
* LadyAndKnight: [[spoiler:She can be seen as the Black Knight to Madoka's Bright Lady. Homura is Madoka's strong and brave protector who has sworn to defend her at any cost, but Homura's dark and ruthless nature keep her from being the classical benevolent and noble knight.]]
* LadyOfWar: She's always calm and never in a hurry, yet seems even more experienced and dangerous than Mami.
* LargeHam: Despite her being extremely reserved with her emotions, her penchant for flipping her hair with flourish and dramatically appearing out of ''nowhere'' makes her startlingly dramatic.
* LastNameBasis: On most people [[spoiler:in the alternate timelines, and even when meeting Madoka in Heaven at the end of the manga]].
* LeaningOnTheFourthWall: After [[spoiler:Madoka's CosmicRetcon causes everyone but Homura and Tatsuya to forget her, Tatsuya is drawing Madoka on the sand, and Homura asks his mom if she's "Some kind of anime character"]].
* {{Leitmotif}}: ''[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cFQLWVl6-ws "Puella in somnio"]]''.
* LettingHerHairDown: [[FreudianExcuse This is important to her character because it signfies her new resolve to kill every last witch on her own]]. She's one of the few characters to have hair like that.
* LightFeminineAndDarkFeminine: The dark to Madoka's light because she's cold and rude but no doubt beautiful and graceful.
* LonerTurnedFriend: Played with. [[spoiler:In the original timeline she was a loner due to shyness and Madoka befriended her. In the fifth time line she's a loner due to HeroicSafeMode and still considers herself Madoka's friend but Madoka doesn't know they were friends.]]
* LostAesop: The [[AnAesop Aesop]] being: "If it ain't broke, don't fix it." [[spoiler:Her constant use of the ResetButton messed up the situation even ''more'' because she wants Madoka to stay alive. Kyubey notes that Madoka is getting more powerful every time the ResetButton is pushed. However, this indirectly causes the rewrite of how witches are formed.]]
* LuckilyMyShieldWillProtectMe: Downplayed. Her "weapon" is a buckler but she almost never uses it as a shield. Instead, she has a purple energy barrier.
* SuperheroPackingHeat : Episode 10 shows bombs and guns. Episode 11 shows an impressive arsenal of rocket launchers.
* MagicSkirt: In the last two episodes her skirt stays down even as she takes hundred meter falls foot-first. It's made all the more strange by the fact that she wears pantyhose.
* MagikarpPower: This is a good summary of how she became the magical girl she is now. [[spoiler: She was originally the weakest of Mami's [[TheTeam team]] but became the strongest through work and keeping the nature of her power a secret.]]
* MeaningfulName: "Homura" means "flame." Madoka points this out in episodes 1 and 10, and in episode 10 says that she should act cool to match it. [[spoiler:She does, but only as a side effect of [[DeclarationOfProtection her passion and determination to protect Madoka]]- most likely the intended meaningfulness of her name.]] Becomes literal in the last episode: she produces a big purple flame to go with her MementoMacGuffin.
* {{Meganekko}}: At first, but then [[TheGlassesComeOff the glasses came off]].
* MementoMacGuffin: In the last episode, [[spoiler:her magical weapon of choice changes from a shield to a bow, which looks very similar to the bow Madoka had in previous timelines.]]
* MercyKill: In one of the [[spoiler:timelines Madoka asks Homura to kill her before she turns into a witch.]]
* MinorLivingAlone: Homura lives completely alone and her family is either nonexistent or estranged. However, her reasons for living alone also stem from the fact that [[spoiler: she came to the conclusion that she can only work by herself after countless failed time loops]].
* MoreDakka: She has an army's worth of munitions stored behind her buckler.
* MuggleBestFriend: To Madoka [[spoiler:in the original timeline. It nicely parallels Madoka taking this role in the current timeline.]]
* MyGreatestFailure: [[spoiler:All of Madoka's deaths in past timelines.]]
* MyGreatestSecondChance: Her innumerable attempts to [[spoiler:RetCon said failure.]]
* MysteriousProtector: [[spoiler: She self-consciously tries to be this for Madoka by preventing from contracting and keeping witches away from her.]]
* NervesOfSteel: She doesn't need time to recover from any emotional impacts. It bounces off all the time, and she always makes the logical decision.
* NewGamePlus: She keeps all the information, experience, and "[[BreakTheCutie mental development]]" [[spoiler:gained from all of the iterations. This makes her the most capable Puella Magi by a mile and a half, as she can fight any witch (short of Walpurgisnacht) effortlessly on her own. However the trauma changes her personality such that she's unable to emotionally connect the same way.]]
* NewTransferStudent: She transfers into Madoka's class in the first episode after Madoka has seen her in a dream that morning. [[spoiler: She's had years of experience in doing this.]]
* NiceJobBreakingItHero: Her wish to save Madoka set the world on the path to ruin. [[spoiler:By hitting the ResetButton for Madoka's sake, she's stringing together karma and timelines over a single point and therefore creating the potential for the most powerful puella magi and thus the most dangerous witch. However, her wish gave Madoka the chance to learn the truth about magical girl and wish for a complete revamp of the system, saving past, current and future magical girls from becoming witches.]]
* NoBodyLeftBehind: [[spoiler:Her final fate in the manga, as Madoka takes her to Heaven in the final scene.]]
* NoKillLikeOverKill: In Episode 11 against [[spoiler:Walpurgisnacht]]. Homura [[spoiler:freezes time]] and [[MacrossMissileMassacre fires dozens of rocket launchers at it.]] Then she drives a diesel tank up a bridge and detonates it in the witch's face. ''Then'' she lands on a battleship and hits it with a guided missile, and ''that'' knocks it into a stadium covered in [[ChainReactionDestruction landmines]]. This amount of force ends up [[spoiler: doing ''[[NighInvulnerable jack shit]]'' to Walpurgisnacht.]]
* NotSoDifferent: With Kyoko, of all people. [[spoiler: Kyoko's sacrifice is what triggered Homura's memories of her own past.]]
* NotSoStoic: At first her overall demeanor has the traits of TheStoic, but then later episodes give visual prompts which reveal that is not the case.
** During the dream in episode 1 [[spoiler:which is actually a part of episode 10]], when she sees Madoka she clearly calls out to her. Later in episode 1, while Madoka is walking with her to the nurse's office in the real world, she is seen ''clenching her teeth''.
** In episode 6, she looks depressed or tired, but relieved when she [[spoiler:retrieves Sayaka's soul gem and stares at it before returning it to her owner.]]
** In episode 8, after [[spoiler:she saved Madoka from making a wish. She breaks down and tearfully asks why Madoka refuses to listen to her.]]
** Episode 10 puts all these moments into context. This girl is crying inside.
* OlderThanSheLooks: Looks fourteen, is really [[spoiler:twenty-six]] thanks to [[spoiler:all the time looping she's been doing]]. See calculations [[http://homura.tumblr.com/post/57010494639/when-asked-how-many-timelines-did-homura-go here]] for details ('''spoilers in link!''').
* OracularUrchin: She clearly knows about everything that is going on and that will happen soon, but only shares her knowledge through very vague hints or cryptic advice.
* PalsWithJesus: When Madoka becomes [[spoiler:the Goddess of Hope, Homura is her best friend. In the end she's there with friendly encouragement.]]
* ParadoxPerson: By the nature of her success, [[spoiler:everything that motivated her or developed her character never happened, which changes the nature of her magic.]]
* ParasolOfPrettiness: She is shown with one in [[FreezeFrameBonus a brief frame]] during the opening.
* PerpetualFrowner: After episode 10 a view will ask themselves, "Does she really have any reason to smile?"
* PhysicalGoddess: She temporarily sprouts a pair of [[spoiler:gigantic angel wings at will just before the credits and, in the epilogue, generates a pair that looks like they're made out of the universe itself. Yet ironically, throughout the anime her only powers are to stop time and store things in her shield, as she lacks any magical attacks.]]
* PimpedOutDress: While it's still fancy, her magical girl outfit neatly averts this, which fits with her cold, somber personality.
* PinPullingTeeth: When she uses grenades, it's like this.
* PoisonousFriend: To Madoka. She threatens to kill Mami, [[spoiler:attempts to kill Sayaka]], and in fact [[spoiler:does kill Kyubey (not that it sticks)]] for her sake.
* PoorCommunicationKills: For most of the series, one could make this complaint about her--why wouldn't she just ''tell'' the other girls all of the horrible things about magical girls? [[spoiler: It turns out she did just that in previous timelines. [[CassandraTruth They didn't believe her]], and [[FailureIsTheOnlyOption it still ended horribly]]: Sayaka turned into a witch, Mami killed Kyoko, and Madoka has to kill Mami to stop her despair-filled rampage]]. Homura [[JustifiedTrope knows from experience]] that she can't save magical girls from themselves, no matter how clearly she spells it out.
* PostModernMagick: Homura proves that sometimes all you need to kill a witch is a machine gun, and if that fails, a missile launcher.
* PowerGivesYouWings: In the epilogue of both the anime and manga she manifests a pair of massive angelic wings while fighting [[spoiler:whatever monstrosities have replaced Witches in Madoka's new world]]. In a post-credit scene in the anime, she also unveils a pair of jagged, Lovecraftian wings.
* PragmaticHero: She is perfectly willing to put aside her morality in order to protect Madoka, but deep down she wishes to help everyone.
* ProperTightsWithASkirt: In all her outfits except [[spoiler: in the past, before her dramatic change in character. Perhaps it's a maturity visual metaphor]].
* PurpleEyes: Purple for special? [[spoiler: She has time powers and is the only one in the know.]] Purple for powerful? WordOfGod ranks her as the most dangerous magical girl so long as no one knows the nature of her magic.
* RapunzelHair: Her hair is past her back and makes a greater impression during hair flips. It certainly makes an impression on her many fans at school.
* RavenHairIvorySkin: She has long raven hair and pale skin. When she makes her appearance in Madoka's class, several students fawn over her and Sayaka even says that she's beautiful.
* ReiAyanamiExpy: She has many traits of this, including pale skin, seeming lack of emotions, an unnatural hair and eye color (especially compared to everyone else's CurtainsMatchTheWindow scheme), [[spoiler: used to be an IllGirl, and turns out to be from another timeline with a DarkAndTroubledPast.]]
* RetroactivePreparation: [[Pantheon/TimeAndSpaceOverdeitiesAndGreaterGods Deified for it]]. [[spoiler:She can use her powers to learn from her mistakes, and she's gone through multiple timelines to make sure that Walpurgis Night is defeated, Madoka doesn't die from said witch, and to make sure she doesn't become a witch]].
* RippleEffectProofMemory: [[spoiler: She is the only one who remembers the events of the past timelines and, by the end, the only one who remembers Madoka ever existed.]]
* SarcasticDevotee: She's annoyed by [[spoiler:Madoka's]] naivete and selflessness and isn't afraid to call her an idiot, but she has dedicated her life to protecting her.
* SatelliteCharacter: Her entire life revolves around [[spoiler: Madoka.]] Notably, the writers seem aware of how unhealthy this is (see PoisonousFriend entry).
* SaveScumming: Her [[spoiler:time powers]] allow her to do this [[spoiler:with the timeline whenever it reaches a Bad End...and also, due to "accumulated karma" from trans-timeline "fate lines", increases Madoka's magical power. The catch? [[NiceJobBreakingItHero It guarantees that Madoka will turn into an immensely powerful Witch in every timeline where she ends up being the one to defeat Walpurgisnacht]].]]
* SayMyName: Maaadddoookaaa!!!
* SchoolIdol: The school kids admire her for her good grades, beauty and athletic prowess.
* SeenItAll: Due to the [[spoiler:time loops she has seen the full specturm of magical girl life "how many times already?"]]
* SetRightWhatOnceWentWrong: The purpose of her wish is to [[spoiler:'redo her meeting with Madoka' and protect her.]]
* ShakingHerHairLoose: Just before TookALevelInBadass.
* ShellShockedSenior: She brushes off [[spoiler:Mami's death]] as an occupational hazard. It's explained in Episode 10 that [[spoiler:since she came from the future a lot of times, she saw everyone die a lot of times, so her reaction is a muted OhNoNotAgain]].
* ShesGotLegs: Her magical girl outfit combines pantyhose and highheels.
* ShootTheDog: [[spoiler:In one timeline,]] Homura is forced to [[spoiler:[[StakingTheLovedOne kill Madoka before Madoka becomes a witch]]. It was heavily implied she was going to do the same to Sayaka during her mental breakdown for Madoka's sake, and the fact she knew about the witch transformation thing.]]
* ShoutOut: [[spoiler:The story draws direct parallels between her and Goethe's version of Faust, with Madoka as her Gretchen. Nope, no subtext here...]]
* ShrinkingViolet: Before she became a MagicalGirl in the first place, she was timid.
* SlasherSmile: In manga version, when she intends to kill Sayaka after she refuses her help. There's something [[NightmareFuel frightening]] when this normally stoic and aloof girl suddenly breaks into a murderous glee.
%%* TheSmartGirl
* TheSociopath: Shows some traits of one, such as her lack of empathy and remorse, as pointed out in [[http://villaininglasses.tumblr.com/post/99305261455/matsurisunrise-lustfuldemoness this analysis]]. ('''''Rebellion'' spoilers in link!''')
* SoleSurvivor: [[spoiler:Time and time again]] she was the last of the group to survive to the very end.
* StealthHiBye: It's her primary mode of transportation, and she has the habit of doing this multiple times per conversation, solely for the sake of showing the other girls how sorely outclassed they are. She appears to accomplish this by FlashStep, and then by straight-up teleportation; ultimately [[spoiler:it's a creative application of the power to [[TimeStandsStill stop time]]]].
* StepfordSnarker: You might want to look down at the NotSoStoic entry, the reasoning to her snarking is the same. This is also in contrast to Mami Tomoe, [[StepfordSmiler whom is the opposite]].
* StrawNihilist: {{Defied}}. While cynical she rejects the notion that life is meaningless and everyone is better off killing themselves. [[spoiler: Why else would she try so hard to save her best friend?]]
* SugarAndIcePersonality: Although she may appear cold and emotionless, she has emotions and very strong ones, but they're usually kept under tight lock and key. When she drops the IceQueen act she's softhearted and especially when truly happy.
* SuperLoser: Originally, she was [[spoiler:clumsy and ineffective, even with her timestop powers (something that Mami notes and Sayaka, a fellow rookie, picks on her over). With enough practice and personality changes, she outgrows this trope.]]
* SuperPowerLottery: Her [[TimeStandsStill time stopping ability]] coupled with her [[HyperSpaceArsenal limitless bag of guns and explosives]] allows her to pepper witches with bullets then throw a grenade at their faces before they can move or even realize that they're being attacked. How effective was she? [[spoiler:In one timeline, she mows down '''every witch''' she encounters '''alone'''.]]
* SurvivorGuilt: She saw her best friend [[spoiler:die to protect her and prayed that she was the one to die instead of her. She went back in time and saw it over and over again.]]
* TapOnTheHead: Used to subdue Sayaka in the beginning of episode 6.
* TeleportSpam: [[spoiler:It's actually brief uses of her TimeStandsStill power giving the illusion of a FlashStep.]] The distinction is important because it explains why she can't escape Mami's binding her in Episode 3 or when Kyoko grabs her by the wrist.
* TemporalParadox: In the final [[spoiler:timeline, the only one of two who remember Madoka and has her ribbon. There doesn't appear to be an alternate timeline explanation for her becoming a magical girl; and her wish no longer applies since there isn't a Madoka to save. Yet she exists as a magical girl. It also extends to the fact that her makeover is still in place and she does not have her braids and glasses, despite her makeover also being a side-effect of her wish for Madoka.]]
* ThatManIsDead: "[[CynicismCatalyst I won't depend on anyone anymore.]]"
* TimeMaster: [[spoiler:She can [[TimeStandsStill pause time]] and perform MentalTimeTravel, though seemingly only to one specific time.]]
* {{Time Travel}}er: Kyubey states that she's [[spoiler:"from [[AlternateTimeline another timeline]]".]]
* TookALevelInBadass: The first one was becoming a magical girl and the second one [[spoiler: was after she had to MercyKill Madoka which motivated her to become the One Girl Army that she is at the start of the series in order to better protect Madoka.]]
* TookALevelInCheerfulness: Starts off as a cold-hearted and aloof girl due to having SeenItAll [[spoiler: several times]]. As the series advances, she starts to show emotions more and more [[spoiler:until it turns out she was emotional all along, she just repressed her emotions]].
%%* TownGirls: The "neither" to Mami's femme and Kyoko's butch. [[spoiler:At the end of the series, they are the last left on earth of the five main magical girls.]]
* TragicKeepsake: Madoka's ribbon.
** In the anime, [[spoiler:note that Homura only wears one of them but Madoka gave her both.]]
** [[spoiler:In the manga adaptation, Homura wears both by keeping her hair in pigtails.]]
* [[TragicBromance Tragic Womance]]: She develops a close relationship with Madoka [[spoiler:in every timeline before the one where she has to MercyKill her.]]
* TraitorShot: Downplayed. There are many dramatic closeups of Homura's face, and it really does drive it in that she is hiding something, but she's no traitor.
%%* TroubledButCute
* TroublingUnchildlikeBehavior: [[spoiler: In the second timeline, ShrinkingViolet!]]Homura knew where to find instructions to put together ''pipe bombs''. She had no qualms about building pipe bombs when Mami suggested her to find a better weapon than the golf club she used at the time. However, she was clearly nervous when she was looking for this information, so the trope is ZigZagged.
* UndyingLoyalty: To Madoka, [[spoiler: [[YouAreWorthHell as she willingly trapped herself in a]] GroundhogDayLoop, [[YouAreWorthHell and expressed that she'll stay there forever if need be, all for the sake of saving her one and only friend from the fate of death or eternal despair.]] In the end, she is responsible for fighting the wraiths, the new embodiment of the curses of the world, in accordance with Madoka's wish of keeping the world safe.]]
* TheUnfettered: She'll do ''anything'' to [[spoiler:save Madoka.]]
* UnflinchingWalk: To show how badass she finally became [[spoiler: [[TookALevelInBadass after several timelines]].]] by tossing a grenade at a group of witches.
* UnwittingInstigatorOfDoom: Homura's constant [[spoiler:timeline resets don't reset one very important thing: Madoka's magical power, which carries over and stacks with each reset. What seemed like a good idea at the time ends up excaberating the situation to literally world-threatening proportions, as when a magical girl gets stronger, so does the Witch it leaves behind. Madoka's witch causes an [[ApocalypseHow apocalypse ranging from class 4 to class 6]] in at least one timeline, and would've done it again in the final timeline had Madoka herself not fixed the problem permanently.]]
* UsedToBeASweetKid: Episode 10 shows her as a shy and sweet girl who is overjoyed with Madoka's friendship.
* WalkingSpoiler: Her true origins, the nature of her power, the purpose and point of her quest, and [[spoiler:her original {{Adorkable}} self is first seen in a WhamEpisode]] towards the end of the series.
* WeakButSkilled: WordOfGod has stated that she possesses little raw magical power, but relies on wit, trickery, her [[GameBreaker exploitable]] ability and an unconventional arsenal of weapons to get the job done. As a result, no witch besides Walpurgisnacht can legitimately stand up to her.
* WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds: Invoked when [[spoiler:Homura and Madoka are dying in one timeline and, accepting that they'll become witches together, Homura wonders if becoming such great witches as to destroy everything bad in the world would be so bad a fate. Ultimately defied by Madoka's HeroicSacrifice.]]
* YouAreNotAlone: She recieves this repeatedly from Madoka with the most extreme instance being the last episode [[spoiler:when Madoka ascends to godhood, and reminds Homura one last time that she will ''never'' be alone]].
* YouAreWorthHell: [[spoiler:Oh so very much towards Madoka, to the point where her entire existence basically centers around Madoka.]]
* ZenSurvivor: Homura Akemi has survived the horrors of magical girl life and has grown both strong and wise because of it. Her teaching is blunt and summed up in "Don't become a magical girl." [[CassandraTruth No one listens.]] Ultimately, this is exactly why hope prevails.

[[/folder]]

[[folder:Sayaka Miki]]
[[quoteright:253:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/sayiku_548.png]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/EriKitamura (JP), Creator/SarahWilliams (EN), Carmen Calvell

Madoka's best friend. She has an [[KnightInShiningArmor unwavering sense of justice]]. She forms a contract with Kyubey to heal the wrist of her childhood friend Kyosuke, allowing him to play the violin again. As a side effect of her wish, she is afforded [[HealingFactor prodigious healing abilities]] and a musical motif. She wields cutlasses, of which she can conjure infinite amounts.
----
* ActionGirl: DualWielding swords and slashing witches.
* AndThenJohnWasAZombie: [[spoiler: And then MagicalGirl Sayaka was a Witch (shoujo (少女 girl) + majo (魔女 witch) = mahou shoujo (魔法少女 magical girl).]]
* AscendedToAHigherPlaneOfExistence: [[spoiler: This is what happened at the end of the anime, but not before she and Madoka attended one last concert by Kyosuke.]]
* AttackAttackAttack: Against Elsa Maria, the witch in Episode 7. She abandons all sense of strategy for straight-forward attacking, partly due to her worsening mental state.
* AxCrazy
** [[spoiler: She gleefully hacks a witch to pieces without any regard for her safety, as seen in the above entry, and is hinted to have done...something to a pair of men for spouting misogynistic rants.]]
** [[spoiler: In the manga, she ''does'' kill them, confirmed by manga artist Hanokage. In the anime, however, it was left unclear. Akiyuki Shinbo outright stated she doesn't kill them, but Urobuchi prefers to leave it ambiguous.]]
* BareYourMidriff: [[DownplayedTrope Downplayed]] -- the white corset of her MagicalGirl outfit does this, but only just enough to reveal her soul gem, which she wears like a navel piercing.
* BackFromTheDead: [[spoiler: This is Madoka's wish in ''The Different Story'', after which Homura resets the timeline.]]
* Badass: She attacks someone as a Muggle with a ''fire extinguisher''.
* BadassCape: As a classic superhero she wears a cape.
* BatterUp: Went for a magical bat as her improvised weapon for the moment in Episode 2.
* BerserkerTears: In Episode 7, during her fight with Elsa Maria the witch.
* TheBigGirl: She has this role on TheTeam [[spoiler: During the third timeline when Mami creates a magical girl team.]] Because she is a knight that fights on the front lines.
* BlackAndWhiteInsanity: [[spoiler: The fight against Elsa is framed this way to highlight her descent into madness.]]
* BlackAndWhiteMorality: A slightly more mild one.
** She reasonably distrusts Homura, due to last seeing her fighting with Mami, and then coming off to finish off the witch that ''killed Mami'' only ''after'' she dies, and Homura never bothers to explain.
** She also distrusts Kyoko due to her intentionally ignoring Familiars who kill innocent humans, for the sake of conserving energy to fight Witches for her own survival.
* BoyishShortHair: She has short blue hair, befitting her tomboyish personality.
* BreakTheCutie: She took up Kyubey's offer and it bit her in the ass ''horribly''. [[spoiler: It starts with her soul trauma, goes through crush despair and then witchification.]]
* BungledSuicide: [[spoiler: Poor Sayaka, thinking that she'll simply die if she never purifies her soul gem. If only she knew that letting her soul gem become fully corrupt will only turn her into a witch...]]
* CannotSpitItOut: Sayaka's inability to spit it out makes [[spoiler:Hitomi confess to Kyosuke and they get together instead]]. However, she has her reasons since [[spoiler:she believes she now is a zombie and feels unworthy of Kyosuke]].
* TheCape: She follows a classical "hero of justice" belief as a magicalGirl, [[spoiler:as she considers herself to be Mami's successor after the former kicks the can]], and her outfit even sports a white cape. [[spoiler: According to Homura, this is why she turns into a witch in the timelines where she makes a contract; because she's unable to live up to this ideal she falls into despair.]]
* CatchPhrase: In the English dub, "For reals."
* ChildhoodFriendRomance: Unlucky variant. She's crushing on her childhood friend, Kyosuke and while Kyosuke ''does'' care for her, he is genuinely oblivious to any feelings she has for him.
* ChildhoodFriends: With Madoka. It's why [[spoiler:Sayaka's death hits her especially hard.]]
* ConspiracyTheorist: She thinks Homura is against her, and is very distrustful of her in general. She blames her for [[spoiler:Mami's death]] and refuses her help. [[spoiler:How Homura, ''conveniently'' arrived right after Mami's death]] is suspicious. She never bothers to explain, which only made it worse.
* CorruptTheCutie: At the beginning of the show she's a "Hero of Justice" but by the end of the show she's become jaded and so despairing that [[spoiler:she becomes a witch]].
* CovertPervert: In the second drama CD there are LesYay implications.
* CreepyMonotone: Used when confronting those trash talking chauvinists in the subway at her breaking point.
* CurtainsMatchTheWindow: Blue hair and eyes.
* DeathAmnesia: [[spoiler: In ''The Different Story'' she doesn't remember her time as a witch]].
* DeathSeeker: [[spoiler: Grows increasingly apathetic with the thought of her own death, until her soul gem is completely corrupted and she finally becomes a witch.]]
* DecoyProtagonist: WordOfGod said she is TheProtagonist. [[spoiler: Then she dies two-thirds of the way through.]]
* DefiledForever: [[spoiler: This is what she thinks of herself after she finds out the AwfulTruth about being a MagicalGirl, hence the reason she was unable to confess her feelings to Kyosuke.]]
* DespairEventHorizon: The following words are said [[spoiler: before she becomes a witch]]: [[spoiler: "I was stupid... so stupid..."]] ([[spoiler:"What an idiot I am!" in the manga]]).
* DestinedBystander: [[spoiler: In every timeline in which she contracts, [[WordOfGod she will die]].]]
* {{Determinator}}: Started as a PluckyGirl, but soon went sour and grim [[spoiler: and her despair kicked in...]]
* DidNotGetTheGuy: [[spoiler: Kyosuke hooks up with Hitomi instead of her because she felt unworthy of confessing her feelings.]]
* DiedHappilyEverAfter: [[spoiler: Madoka takes her to {{Heaven}} after fullfilling her last wish to see Kyosuke in concert one last time.]]
* DontYouDarePityMe: Sort of. She rejects both help and sympathy at various moments in the show, but there are some valid reasons behind them, so it's only partly out of pride.
** Grief seeds? No thanks. She refuses Homura's help due to her suspiciousness and outright lying, accusing her of trying to manipulate her. Which is, [[spoiler:entirely true.]]
** She also refuses literal and metaphorical help from Kyoko multiple times. She refuses a grief seed out of suicidal bravado, and rejects an apple as a symbolic refusal to follow Kyoko in selfish survivalism, seeing it as her duty to follow in Mami's footsteps and help others before herself.
** She also tells Madoka not to act concerned for her because Kyubey told her Madoka has more potential than she could ever hope to have. It turns vicious when Sayaka accuses her of selfishness, by not using her potential to help others and simply stand on the sidelines and do nothing.
* DoomedProtagonist: [[spoiler: WordOfGod states that Sayaka is the protagonist and that she is preordained to die in every timeline in which she contracts, and cannot be saved.]]
* DueToTheDead: [[spoiler: Her funeral is held in Episode 11, and it's a real TearJerker. Since Madoka rewrites the rules in the final timeline and Sayaka as such does not turn into a witch, she AscendedToAHigherPlaneOfExistence after Kyosuke's latest concert and [[NoBodyLeftBehind left nothing behind in her wake]].]] A token funeral was still likely held.
* EntitledToHaveYou: Inverted, since a good part of her problems in regards to Kyousuke is that she ''badly'' wants to be loved by him, but her self-esteem is so low and her view of love is so unrealistic that she considers herself ''unworthy'' of him. i.e., when Mami openly mentions the trope, Sayaka stops speaking and is seen openly disturbed by the thought. [[spoiler: It's made even worse when she still contracts for his sake, thinking that even if it's risky it'll be worth it, as now that she's a lich she believes she's ''even more unworthy'' of Kyosuke's love.]]
* EvilLaugh: During her CurbStompBattle against [[spoiler:Elsa Maria]]. This was ''before'' [[spoiler:she became a witch]].
* {{Expy}}:
** ''VisualNovel/SayaNoUta'''s (which is GenUrobuchi's previous work) [[DistaffCounterpart Fuminori Sakisaka]]. Once the [[spoiler:StartOfDarkness character arc]] comes into play, this Expy becomes more and more apparent. This may have been the reason why Urobuchi mentioned that [[MythologyGag Sayaka is the main character]].
** She's similar to [[spoiler:Kariya Matou]] of ''LightNovel/FateZero'', also by Urobuchi. [[spoiler:Both willingly enter a conflict and gain magical powers knowing very well that death is likely, for the sake of someone they care for (Kariya is fighting to save Sakura, while Sayaka contracted to heal Kyosuke). However, the stress of their horrifying transformations combined with both the sadness of their unrequited love (in Kariya's case, he's in love with Sakura's mother Aoi) and some pushes from a ManipulativeBastard cause both Sayaka and Kariya to go insane, to the point where they murder someone, and ultimately die in despair.]]
* FailureIsTheOnlyOption: [[spoiler: In Episode 10 it seems that in every timeline where she creates a contract Kyosuke doesn't return her affections and she becomes a witch. The poor girl can't win... even in Goddess Madoka's universe she dies...although, in that case, she ''choose'' to die.]]
* FairyTaleMotifs: Parallels to the original "Literature/TheLittleMermaid" fairy tale by Andersen. She gave up everything for a guy who doesn't notice her and falls for someone else. [[spoiler:The Little Mermaid was doomed and ThePowerOfLove was not enough to save her. What ''did'' save her was a literal DeusExMachina from Heaven that turned her into a benevolent spirit.]] The same thing happens here. [[spoiler:Also, Oktavia von Seckendorff roughly resembles an armored, three-eyed mermaid and the barrier has the bubbles and water theme.]]
* FallenHeroine: [[spoiler:After witnessing an apparently successful confession by Hitomi to Kyosuke, as well as the awful jealousy she feels as a result, as well as feeling shame and self-disgust at feeling said jealousy in the first place, she view herself as unworthy of life, becomes suicidal, and ends up refusing any grief seeds to rejuvenate her soul gem. As a result, the darkness swells up enough that the gem shatters, [[AndThenJohnWasAZombie turning her into a full-blown witch]].]]
* FanDisservice: One can notice she's quite attractive once in her magical girl outfit. By the time she beats down Elsa Maria with her sword in episode 7, she gets blood smears on her magical girl uniform.
* FashionableAsymmetry
** Her skirt's hem is angled to the left. According to Aoki, this was to make it easier for her to fight.
** Her hair is also [[OffModel usually]] longer on the right.
* FeelNoPain: [[spoiler:Since a magical girl's true body is their soul gem]], Sayaka only feels pain if she doesn't block it out. By distancing herself from her feelings, she can take a great deal of hurt without flinching. As for the ''other'' sort of pain...
* TheFettered: She knows how deep in the [[UnusualEuphemism latrine pit]] she is, yet she won't let go of her idealism [[spoiler:until the very bitter end]].
* {{Flanderization}}: People love, love, love to exaggerate Sayaka's initial distrust on Kyouko and Homura, turning her into a BlackAndWhiteInsanity KnightTemplar maniac, forgetting that Sayaka is someone who judges people by their true intentions rather than a facade, able to understand and respect Kyouko's worldview without accepting it, and Homura even applauds her perceptiveness when Sayaka accuses her of only caring for Madoka.
* HairDecorations: Two yellow clips in civilian form. In TheMovie, they change into a fortissimo note-shaped hairpin when she's in magical girl form.
* HateAtFirstSight: She mistrusted Homura from the moment she saw her. Of course, this was after she saw Homura seemingly attack her friend, and [[spoiler:apparently leaving Mami to die against Charlotte,]] so it's less "HateAtFirstSight" and more "You're a bad person so of course I don't trust you." Homura's refusal to explain herself also contributes to this.
* HealingFactor: By virtue of her wish involving healing she heals faster than other magical girls.
* HealingHands:
** Sayaka demonstrates the ability to heal Mami in ''The Different Story''. [[spoiler: It is unknown if she possesses this ability in other timelines.]]
** Homura in the "Bonus" route of ''VideoGame/PuellaMagiMadokaMagicaPortable'' suggests she has this ability. She may not be aware of it since [[MysteriousBacker Kyubey isn't much for explaining things.]]
* HeroicSacrifice: [[spoiler: In the anime and manga. Ultimate Madoka says that she could have brought Sayaka back to life, but she'd have to undo Sayaka's wish and she didn't think Sayaka would want her to do that. Sayaka agrees, satisfied with the way things are.]]
* HeroicSelfDeprecation: Inverted. Sayaka put herself above other magical girls for understandable reasons (such as letting innocents die for the sake of saving energy), but her nonexistent self-esteem means that she has some serious issues. When she fails to be the perfect hero she expects herself to be, her mental condition deteriorates rapidly.
* HeroicWannabe: Sayaka wants to be an ally of justice, but is bad at it. This is mainly due to Sayaka's definition of "hero" being too impossible and inflexible for anyone to truly live up to, likely as a result of Mami's influence and [[spoiler:death]]. See HeroicSelfDeprecation for more info.
* TheHeroine: If [[WordOfGod Urobuchi]] is to be believed, she is the hero of this story. The statement is accurate [[spoiler:up until [[LyingCreator she dies]]]].
* HeroesPreferSwords: She wields cutlasses and tries her best to be seen as a KnightInShiningArmour.
* HiddenBuxom: Her endowment is more noticeable in her magical girl outfit than when in civilian clothing, but she's almost as busty as Mami.
* HotBlooded: At first she's gung-ho about her magical girl duty. Then her "[[WrongGenreSavvy courage turns to foolhardiness]]", and her [[HotBlooded Hot Bloodedness]] turns to [[{{Determinator}} grim determination]].
* HyperspaceArsenal: She can summon more swords in battle with her cloak [[ThrowingYourSwordAlwaysWorks which she could throw.]] In a way, this could be her homage to Mami, who summoned guns from her NiceHat and MagicSkirt.
* IncomingHam:
** Every time Sayaka comes in, she's always saying something about JUSTICE.
** One wonders if she ever said [[VideoGame/MetalGearRisingRevengeance "MY SWORD IS A TOOL OF JUSTICE!"]] [[spoiler: in a previous timeline.]]
* InnocentBlueEyes: They reflect her innocence in regards to the world she lives in. She has a traditional "Hero of Justice" mindset that, in this setting, is naive, and she admires Mami as a the ideal role model without comprehending the rest of her.
* InnocentlyInsensitive: Sayaka tries to make Kyosuke listen to music thinking it will make him feel better, but Kyosuke hates it since it's music he can't play and he accuses Sayaka of wanting to torture him.
* InsecureLoveInterest: Because of her unrealistic and idealized view of love and nonexistent self-esteem, Sayaka considers herself unworthy of Kyosuke's affections for even wanting to be loved by him. It only gets worse after [[spoiler:she learns the first AwfulTruth of becoming a MagicalGirl and comes to believe she's now a walking zombie that will never be worthy to be with Kyosuke. This insecurity leads to Hitomi becoming Kyosuke's girlfriend instead.]]
* InstantExpert:
** Averted. Even when she gains MagicalGirl powers, she sucks in combat. She lacks so much skill and experience that she gets [[CurbStompBattle her ass handed to her by both Kyoko and Homura]]. [[spoiler: Add to that [[SanitySlippage her slow descent into madness]] after finding the AwfulTruth about being a MagicalGirl, [[TheBerserker she ends up abandoning strategy altogether and simply takes Elsa Maria's attacks so she can kill her]]. If not for her HealingFactor, she would've died twice over.]]
** Played straight with her ability to throw swords, which she knows how to do right away.
* {{Irony}}: [[spoiler:In one of the timelines shown in Episode 10, Sayaka is reluctant to work with Homura because as a melee fighter, she's afraid that she'll get caught in one of Homura's bombs. When she becomes a witch, she is killed by Homura's bombs.]]
* IWantMyBelovedToBeHappy: In the end, she accepts that [[spoiler: Kyosuke and Hitomi are a happy couple (see HeroicSacrifice above)]]. While she ''is'' a little hurt, Sayaka decides to not hold it against [[spoiler:them]], and Kyosuke [[spoiler:later recalls her and may have felt her presence in his first recital after recovery]].
* KilledOffForReal: [[spoiler: In the main series, she's the only one that stays dead.]]
* KillTheCutie: [[spoiler: Played with. First she turns into a witch and then she's killed.]]
* KnightInSourArmor: After learning [[spoiler:the first]] AwfulTruth of becoming a MagicalGirl and having a heart-to-heart with Kyoko who tells her that she is better off battling witches for her own rewards than to protect others, she still chooses to continue to stay a hero. However, when [[spoiler:her LockedOutOfTheLoop friend Hitomi admits to having also been in love with Kyosuke and gives her a day to admit her feelings, which she can't due to the nature of the truth,]] her ideals, self-esteem, and attitude begin to gradually shift more and more until [[spoiler:she becomes a Witch herself]].
* LaserGuidedAmnesia: [[spoiler: In ''The Different Story'', when Madoka's wish brings her back to life, she has no memory of becoming a witch, and instead believes that Madoka saved her just before she was killed by a witch.]]
* LastRequest: [[spoiler: She attends Kyosuke's latest concert with Madoka before the two go to Heaven together. Madoka sustains her long enough to fulfill that request.]]
* LaughingMad: Finding out [[spoiler:she is a lich, coupled with Hitomi telling Sayaka that she loves Kyosuke and is going to confess to him in 24 hours]] makes Sayaka go nuts.
* {{Leitmotif}}: ''[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HcgEHrwdSO4 "Decretum"]]'' and ''[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VSv72WXL4k8 "Conturbatio"]]''. [[spoiler: As Oktavia von Seckendorff, her theme is ''[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LtY_RXoF1wA "Symposium magarum"]]'']].
* LoveHurts: Her love for Kyosuke is nothing but a source of despair for her.
* LoveMartyr: Albeit an unrequited love, [[spoiler:and even a cause of her fall into a witch,]] she is ready to give up her own life twice over for it.
* MadnessMantra: [[spoiler:One area of her barrier as a witch has runes reading [[http://wiki.puella-magi.net/File:Ep9_poster_back.jpg "Look at me"]] over and over again.]]
* MeaningfulRename: [[spoiler:Her witch name is Oktavia [[TheVonTropeFamily von]] Seckendorff.]]
* MentorsNewHope: To Mami in ''The Different Story'' [[spoiler: after Mami's falling out with her first student, Kyoko.]]
* MercyKill: [[spoiler:On the receiving end of one. Twice, if we count Madoka's wish. The first one was Kyoko's DyingMomentOfAwesome as well, but in the second Sayaka talks to Madoka and dies in peace. We see her funeral in Episode 11, and she likely got a token funeral shortly after Madoka took her to Heaven following Kyosuke's latest concert.]]
* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: "I made Madoka cry!"
* NaiveNewcomer: To the world of magical girls. She has no idea how far apart her idea is from their reality.
* NoBodyLeftBehind: [[spoiler: Averted in episodes 9-11 where her soul gem shatters but her body remains and played straight in Episode 12 following Madoka's wish where her body disappears along with her soul.]]
* OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent: Just like Madoka, she's a bog standard student with latent magical girl potential.
* PatientChildhoodLoveInterest: To Kyosuke. Her lack of assertiveness, nonexistent self-esteem, and horror at the true nature of [[spoiler:herself]], leads to [[spoiler:Hitomi becoming Kyosuke's girlfriend instead and this is one of the several reasons why Sayaka fell into despair and became a witch]].
* ThePerfectionist: Sayaka's biggest flaw: She has to be perfect. This is related to her self-esteem issues: [[spoiler:Mami died, and so she feels a responsibility of picking up the torch and being a true hero. When she feels extreme jealousy and snaps at Madoka, her sanity takes another hit. When she learns the truth behind her transformation, it takes another hit. When Kyoko offers her an apple, she refuses, twice, choosing purity and honor over selfish survivalism. She refuses to tolerate any sins, including her own. In short, she feels herself unable to live up to Mami's legacy due to her feeling certain things, without realizing that she can still be a hero without being perfect.]]
* PluckyGirl: At first she is an unbeat and positive MagicalGirl despite [[spoiler: witnessing Mami's death.]]
* PoorCommunicationKills: Her prejudice against other magical girls comes from misunderstanding Homura's intentions in Episode 3.
* ProtagonistJourneyToVillain: [[spoiler: Her character arc in a nutshell; Starts off as an idealistic warrior of Justice, only to turn into a figure of tragedy and horror.]]
* RedHerring: [[spoiler: More than a few fans were convinced that she was the witch in Episode 1 due to the visual similarities between her magical girl costume and the witch, but Episode 9 {{Jossed}} this. The truth is in fact far, ''far'' worse.]]
* RedOniBlueOni: The blue to Kyoko's red; she has the color scheme and the fettered personality.
* SacrificialLion: [[spoiler: Main character and, according to WordOfGod, TheProtagonist, dies in episode 9.]]
* SanitySlippage: Kyubey's revelation that the Puella Magi are [[spoiler:technically liches sends Sakuya's sanity into a [[DespairEventHorizon downward spiral]] until she transforms into Octavia]].
* SayMyName: "Kyoko!"
* ShipperOnDeck: In the manga version, she imagines Homura and Madoka embracing while calling it "the mystery of the universe".
* SlasherSmile: While fighting Elsa Maria, and when [[spoiler:killing the two men on the subway in the manga]].
* SuperheroinesWearCapes: Fitting with her "Magical girls are righteous superheroines" mindset. [[spoiler:When she [[AndThenJohnWasAZombie turns into a witch]], the cape stays.]]
* SuperpoweredEvilSide: [[spoiler: Her witch form, Oktavia, after succumbing to despair.]]
* SwissArmyTears: Inverted, as when she [[spoiler:becomes a witch, it is her tear that turns her soul gem into a grief seed.]]
* TaremeEyes: A DoubleSubversion. At first, her fiery and impulsive personality runs contrary to the personality one would expect of someone with TaremeEyes eyes; however, as the series progresses, it becomes apparent that her most salient attribute is really her naïveté, which fits perfectly with the type. In other words, her eyes are less "droopy" than they are "[[WideEyedIdealist open]]."
* TearfulSmile: [[spoiler:Before she turns into a witch, and in the last episode, when she decides she simply wants Kyosuke to be happy.]]
* TearsOfBlood: She cries these in Episode 7, as she vents her mind-breaking frustration on Elsa Maria the witch.
* TechnicallyASmile: She can be seen grinning like this while furiously attacking the witch Elsa Maria at the end of Episode 7, saying she can no longer feel any pain. She pulls quite a few of these in the manga, too.
* TemptingFate: "There's no way I'd ever regret this!" [[spoiler:Three episodes later: "I was such a fool."]]
* ThrowingYourSwordAlwaysWorks: Played with. She saves Madoka from a witch's minions in her first fight by throwing swords, but the flying swords aren't visible. Then she fights a familiar by throwing swords at it...and would've hit and killed the familiar, if not for Kyoko showing up to stop the battle. After this, she only swordfights melee-style [[spoiler:but frequently injures herself in the process, contributing to her mental instability]]. Maybe she should have stuck with sword-tossing.
* ThrowTheDogABone: [[spoiler:Due to Madoka's death at Oriko's hands, she's SparedByTheAdaptation in ''Manga/PuellaMagiOrikoMagica''.]]
* TogetherInDeath: [[spoiler: This was Kyoko's intention. The manga makes it clear that, yes, they ''did'' meet again, but the anime does no such thing.]]
* {{Tomboy}}: Her boyish hair and knight-like personality suggest this. [[http://images.puella-magi.net/9/9a/NitroPlus_Novel_02.jpg This especially prevalent when she was a first grader.]]
* TomboyAndGirlyGirl: Tomboy to Madoka's girly girl. She can also be seen as the girly girl to Kyoko's tomboy, since unlike Kyoko she has [[TomboyWithAGirlyStreak a girly streak]].
* TomboyWithAGirlyStreak: Despite her tomboyish nature, and dream of being a KnightInShiningArmor, she's very interested in romance and the idea of love.
* TookALevelInBadass: After making a contract with Kyubey she becomes a knight in a magical girl outfit.
* TookALevelInJerkass: The AwfulTruth makes Sayaka less friendly and more bitter towards Madoka, though she heavily regrets lashing out at her.
* TookALevelInKindness: In ''The Different Story'', [[spoiler:after Madoka wished her back from the dead]] she becomes more friendly towards Homura.
* TownGirls: The butch to Madoka's neither, and Mami and Hitomi's femme because of her knight aspirations.
* TragicDream: Sayaka wanted to be Mami's successor: A perfect magical girl who fought for all that was right. Unfortunately, Sayaka has major self-esteem issues and has enormous pressure to continue Mami's legacy, causing her to refuse help, and view herself as tainted, twisted, and wrong for feeling and acting like a normal human being.
* TragicHero: [[spoiler: Her {{fatal flaw}}s were her nonexistent self-esteem and her sense of perfectionism. These, with her unrequited love for Kyosuke as a trigger, are what doom her into becoming the witch Oktavia von Seckendorff, a being who represents the warped desires of Sayaka's.]]
* TragicMistake: [[spoiler:Refusing to cleanse her soul gem leads to her becoming a Witch, and Kyoko's death. Although, part of it was done fully knowing that she would die. In a tragically ironic example, one of the first people she saves as a magical girl is her own romantic rival, which she realizes as she's talking with Madoka.]]
* TraumaCongaLine: She swears to uphold Mami's legacy as a omnibenevolent magical girl, to prevent Madoka from contracting (to protect her), to be a hero, and to maybe/hopefully win Kyosuke's heart. She first gets her ass kicked by Kyoko, who casually mocks and stomps over Sayaka's ideals. Then she learns that her crush left the hospital without even telling her. Then she learns that she's actually a rock, and views herself as an abomination that no one could love. Then one of her two best friends, Hitomi, tells her that she also likes Kyosuke, but will give Sayaka time to confess first, having met him first and all... which Sayaka can't do, due to the whole soul situation. Then she begins hating herself for a moment of weakness about saving Hitomi, making her think that she fails as a hero, too. And all this while, nearly every word and action from everyone else is a constant reminder that she's nowhere near as good of a fighter as Mami was, making her doubt her own capabilities, as well. And finally, only pushing herself forward due to her last remaining belief that the world is worth dying for... she encounters two sexist assholes on a train, which drives her over the edge. And then she becomes a witch, and if other materials are any indication, she was conscious of it the entire time.
* UnrequitedTragicMaiden: She's got a crush on her childhood friend, Kyosuke, who fails to notice her even after she becomes a MagicalGirl and uses her wish to heal his arm. Even worse, [[spoiler:one of her best friends, Hitomi, has also told her that she plans to confess her own love to Kyosuke]], and Sayaka's lack of self-esteem and learning the truth of what she is prevent her from confessing.
* WarIsGlorious: Subscribes to a highly idealistic view of fighting and battles. [[spoiler: Needless to say, she does not take the reality that WarIsHell in this universe very well.]]
* WhatHaveIBecome: Sayaka eventually learns that [[spoiler: she's a lich and so technically no longer human. She did this for someone who didn't reciprocate her feelings. This is where her StartOfDarkness begins.]]
* WholePlotReference: To The Little Mermaid. [[spoiler: Specifically, the original story, and the not the Disney version. In the story, the mermaid falls in love with a prince, saves him, makes a DealWithTheDevil to try to be with him, but the prince marries another woman because he thinks that woman was the one that saved him, dies because the contract she made states that, but gains a souls and ascends to heaven because [[IWantMyBelovedToBeHappy she wanted her beloved to be happy]]. As for Sayaka, she fell in love with Kyosuke, made a wish to save him/try and be with him, wasn't able to let him know about her wish, Kyosuke gets togeather with Hitomi, and Sayaka dies, but her soul is ultimately saved by Madoka. It's no wonder that Sayaka's witch is a mermaid!]]
* WideEyedIdealist: Believes herself to be a "hero of justice" that can keep her hometown "super safe" from all evil and that any newcomer magical girls will be the same. At least part of her realizes it's dangerous and not a life to envy, and quickly loses the "newcomer magical girls are the same" bit.
* WrongGenreSavvy: She thinks she's in a conventional MagicalGirlWarrior show, where ThePowerOfLove will make her a victorious "ally of justice". She eventually realizes how wrong she was. [[spoiler: It turns out that ''Hope'' is what you need.]]
* YouGottaHaveBlueHair: Teal colored in this case, but with two friends who have soft pink and forest green hair, it's nothing unusual.
* ZettaiRyouiki: Grade A when she suits up.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Mami Tomoe]]
[[quoteright:319:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/mammies_1838.png]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/KaoriMizuhashi (JP), CarrieKeranen (EN), Violeta Bibiloni (Spain)

A nurturing upperclassman at Madoka's school and a veteran magical girl. She wields an infinite number of magical flintlock rifles along with various ribbon-based binding spells. Her parents died in a car accident, and she lives alone.
----
* ActionGirl: Her introduction is saving Madoka and Sayaka from witches. She's a veteran.
* AllThereInTheManual
** Although the translation is unclear, WordOfGod says that her wish was something like "to connect to life"--[[spoiler:presumably her own life]]. Hence her ability to create ribbons.
** Her wish is later revealed in ''Different Story'', where it is [[spoiler:"to continue living" after being mortally wounded in a car accident. However, this backfires on her because she never specified saving her parents as well, leaving her to survive the car accident while both her parents died.]]
* BackFromTheDead: [[spoiler: In the GrandFinale, Madoka revived her with her wish.]]
* {{Badass}}: At the start of the anime, Mami has been a magical girl for two years and survived multiple turf wars with other magical girls trying to control her territory. Spin-off works that have more time to focus on her [[spoiler: because she isn't killed by Charlotte in those timelines]] such as ''Manga/PuellaMagiOrikoMagica'' and ''The Different Story'' allow her to showcase just how badass she is.
* BadassAdorable: She pulls ''magic rifles'' out of her NiceHat or with a curtsy!
* BadassBookworm: Mami's sole magical power is the ability to create ribbons. In order to create her guns, she taught herself the engineering talents required to create a flintlock rifle capable of firing multiple types of ammunition out of ribbons and ''[[ChildProdigy at the age of thirteen.]]''
* BigFancyHouse:
** Her penthouse huge and especially for someone who lives alone [[spoiler:after her parents died in the same accident that Kyubey uses to make her a MagicalGirl]].
** In the manga, her apartment is a little cozier but much smaller and [[http://twitpic.com/4q3mal/full later versions make it even cozier.]]
* BigSisterMentor: To Madoka and Sayaka; she taught them about magical girl life and gave them a 'trial version' so they could understand what they were getting into. Also to Kyoko in the past and possibly to [[spoiler:Homura in other timelines]] as well.
* {{BFG}}: Tiro/Filo Finale, her finisher. It's a massive matchlock which can vary in size or form.
* BoobsOfSteel: In the design interviews Creator/UmeAoki explicitly states that she gave Mami "an impressive pair of hooters", a fact that the camera lingers just that little bit longer enough to emphasize. And in sheer raw-power [[spoiler: before Madoka's ascension to Godhood]] and talent/skill in combat, Mami is the the most fearsome MagicalGirl in the franchise.
* BrickJoke:
** [[SpotOfTea Her teacup]] [[spoiler: is broken in episode 3 to symbolize her death]].
** The second episode shows her sitting at the glass table in her room as she explains how Witches are responsible for many otherwise-unexplainable murders and suicides. [[spoiler: Her own, for instance.]] Then there's a closeup of her hands resting gracefully on her lap in the proper sitting position. Sure, it shows how mature she is but pay attention to her reflection in the tabletop. [[spoiler: She's ''holding her upside-down head in her hands''.]]
* BrokenAce: She is an elegant, skilled fighter who acts kind and gentle and appears as a role model, but her ideal magical girl image is just a facade to hide how broken she is from constantly fighting witches on her own.
* BrokenBird: Does what she can to smile, but is pretty screwed up inside. To put it into perspective, [[spoiler:in one timeline, upon finding out that Magical Girls turn into witches, she gets so broken that she ''very quickly'' resolves to commit triple-murder-suicide. In another timeline (the ''Different Story''' Manga), she commits suicide by destroying her own soul gem, albeit so that Madoka wouldn't have to wish her to have a normal life back, so it overlaps somewhat with HeroicSacrifice -- Madoka resurrected Sayaka, instead]].
* BrokenHero: She is seen as the ideal magical girl by Madoka and Sayaka, but confesses that she cries a lot when alone and says her smiles are all false.
* BulletHell: Creates these with "Unlimited Musket Works".
* ButNotTooForeign: Creators have said that she's not fully Japanese. Her name is a Spanish word and her [[CallingYourAttacks final shot is]] [[GratuitousItalian in Italian]], and Creator/UmeAoki says that she designed Mami after the image of a western gunner, but her true ethnicity has yet to be revealed.
* CallingYourAttack: "Tiro Finale!" (Italian: "Final Shot!")
** [[AllThereInTheManual The third drama CD]] has Mami insisting Kyoko call her attack too--and she even picks out a name for it.
* CoolBigSis: She is the mature center that the other girls orbit around. It's carried over to meta level; the staffs, the voice actresses, and the fans usually call her [[UsefulNotes/JapaneseHonorifics Mami-san]] because of this very reason.
* CruelAndUnusualDeath: [[spoiler: Decapitation and then eaten by a creepy clown-faced caterpillar-like witch DEFINITELY counts. [[NauseaFuel You can see her decapitated body fall to the ground and hear the crunching]].]]
* DeadStarWalking: [[spoiler: First magical girl and features in the opening but dies in the third out of 12 episodes.]]
* DeerInTheHeadlights: [[spoiler: During her fight with Charlotte in episode 3. It does not end well.]]
* DespairEventHorizon: [[spoiler: In a previous timeline, after learning the AwfulTruth about witches, she loses all hope and kills Kyoko. She plans on going for Homura and Madoka before offing herself as well, but is instead killed by Madoka.]]
** In ''the Different Story,'' she puts up with a ''lot'' of [[TraumaCongaLine awful, traumatic things]] before the [[spoiler: death of Kyoko, her surrogate sister and former student, right after their reconciliation finally pushes her over the edge. Unlike other timelines, she just quietly commits suicide by crushing her Soul Gem.]]
* DiedHappilyEverAfter: [[spoiler: Implied to be her eventual fate, following Madoka's wish.]]
* DrivenToSuicide: [[spoiler: In "The Different Story" manga. Homura remarks due to Mami's personality, she is guaranteed to succumb to this if she ever finds out the truth about witches and uses the events of Episode 10 of the anime as reference.]]
* EveryProperLadyShouldCurtsy: Then guns start to fall from under her skirt...
* {{Expy}}: Ume Aoki has said she shares many traits with Hiro from ''Manga/HidamariSketch''.
* FamilyUnfriendlyDeath: [[spoiler: Decapitated, eaten alive, then having your remains chewed on even more in front of two innocent, 14 year old girls. In the movie version, at least, you can see a shadow of what remains of her body land near Homura after Charlotte explodes.]]
* FeminineWomenCanCook: The third drama CD reveals that she's a SupremeChef.
* FieldOfBlades: [[MemeticMutation Unlimited Musket Works]], indeed.
%%* FingerlessGloves
* FinishingMove: Tiro/Filo Finale, a ''[[{{BFG}} massive]]'' [[{{BFG}} matchlock rifle]].
* FreakOut: [[spoiler:After Oktavia's death in another timeline, she kills Kyoko and would have shot Homura, Madoka, and herself too if Madoka hadn't killed her (Mami) first.]]
* FriendlySniper: She's pleasant toward Madoka and Sayaka, but admits that she has no real friends.
* GenderBlenderName: [[spoiler:Her witch form, Candeloro]], has a name that's technically masculine.
* GirlyBruiser: She's quite the talented magical girl, and hosts tea parties after gunfights with witches.
* GoMadFromTheRevelation: [[spoiler: Episode 10 reveals that this happened to her in at least one timeline after being forced to fight and kill witch!Sayaka (from her point of view) and discovering that everything she believed in was a lie, to the point where she starts [[MercyKill killing her friends to save them from]] a FateWorseThanDeath.]]
* GoodIsNotSoft: She's extremely kind, helpful, and motherly to her friends, and utterly ruthless when slaughtering witches, even going out of her way to hunt down familiars that don't have grief seeds to save as many innocents as possible. [[spoiler:She's willing to kill her own friends when she discovers they'll eventually turn into witches and do evil things.]]
* GratuitousItalian: ''[[CallingYourAttacks Tiro Finale]]!''
* GunKata: The musket variant. She clobbers Charlotte with them.
* GunsAkimbo: One musket in each hand; one to shot and one to club.
* TheGunslinger: With all those muskets she's a terrific shot. She's had plenty of time to practice.
* HairOfGoldHeartOfGold: Kindhearted and feminine [[PlayingWithATrope but she's also]] very lonely and depressed, angsty over [[spoiler:the accident that killed her parents]] and she takes GoodIsNotSoft to high levels.
* HatesBeingAlone: She took on so many students because she can't stand loneliness, having been alone ever since she contracted due to the death of her parents. When Madoka decides to become a magical girl so she won't be alone, she becomes ''deliriously'' happy.
* HeartIsAnAwesomePower: Her ''only'' power is to ''create ribbons''. She somehow learned to use it to create flintlocks and a {{BFG}}.
* HeroicBSOD
** [[spoiler:In at least one of the alternate timelines. She doesn't cope with learning what magical girls become very well. This unfortunately causes her to kill Kyoko and die at the hands of ''Madoka'' because [[WellIntentionedExtremist she thought this would be the best way]] to prevent becoming a witch.]]
** [[spoiler:She had one in the 3rd drama CD when Kyoko left her embittered due to their ideals becoming wholly different, lamenting that she's left alone again..]]
** [[spoiler:In the ''Different Story'' manga, which centers around her, she breaks down so badly that she takes her own life.]]
* HeroOfAnotherStory: By the time she meets Madoka and Sayaka, she's been a magical for years and won a turf war or two.
* HyperspaceArsenal: She can pull those muskets from her skirts and her NiceHat. When she finishes off an enemy, she can also pull out a cup of tea from nowhere.
* IJustWantToHaveFriends: Her greatest wish is to have a friend.
* ImprobableHairStyle: Her cone-like curls are highly improbable to pull off in real life, much less maintain orderliness after all the fighting she does. ''Rebellion'' reveals that she curls them with magic.
* JustDesserts: [[spoiler: Not because she was ever evil, but because she was [[LeeroyJenkins unusually reckless]].]]
* LadyOfWar: She uses her guns with a heavy emphasis on precision, grace and high calculation instead of brute force. She also finishes her battles with a curtsy and sipping tea.
--> "I can't let myself look uncool in front of my magical girl trainees!" [[spoiler:A meal, on the other hand...]]
* LastNameBasis: Typically calls the other girls by their last name and the "-san" honorific. The dub changes it to FirstNameBasis.
* TheLeader: Of Madoka's team because she's the mature veteran.
* LethalHarmlessPowers: WordOfGod is that her only power is to create ribbons. Ergo, the matchlock rifles she conjures, as well as the bullets they fire, are actually constructed ''using her ribbons''.
* LeeroyJenkins: [[spoiler:This is the very trope that turns her into an item on Charlotte's menu; instead of her usual precision and caution she fought with reckless abandon.]]
* {{Leitmotif}}: ''[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WqQ3hP_q7Ns "Credens justitiam".]]''
* LeonineContract: She could either take up Kyubey's offer to become a MagicalGirl or [[spoiler:die alongside her parents]], which is the first hint that [[spoiler:Kyubey is far more sinister than he seems.]]
* MacrossMissileMassacre: Her choice of attack when she first shows up involves summoning and shooting [[MoreDakka hundreds upon hundreds of gigantic matchlocks]]. She can fire them fast enough to match actual machine-gun fire, and can use them to fire any type of bullet she wants, though they can only fire one each.
* MagicalGirl: The closest thing this show has to a traditional one; a friendly girl who transforms into an elaborate outfit to fight monsters ForGreatJustice. According to the 3rd Drama CD, this is an [[InvokedTrope Invoked Trope]].
%%* MagicDance
* MagicSkirt: Her magic holds her skirt up while she is dangling upside down.
* MaskOfSanity: [[spoiler: Her elegant and nurturing personality hides a dangerous instability; according to Homura, the AwfulTruth knocks her mask off every time. Averted in Oriko and A Different Story -- the former has her regain her hope thanks to Yuma, while the latter has her calm down, accept her fate, and commit suicide quietly.]]
* MeaningfulName: "Mami" means "Mommy" in Spanish, emphasizing her gentle, nurturing character and her role as TeamMom.
* MegaTwintails: She wears her hair in large swirling twintails. Straddles the line of TheOjou because of her family's wealth and her own class, and her brutal GunKata.
* MentorOccupationalHazard: [[spoiler: Alas, poor Mami! While mentoring two magical girl candidates she is eaten by a monster caterpillar!]]
* MercyKill:
** [[spoiler:In at least one of the alternate timelines, she learns that magical girls turn into witches and decides that it is best for them to die right there than [[FateWorseThanDeath to become witches and start killing humans.]] The order she picked in mercy killing her allies makes a lot more sense when you know that her and Kyoko used to be good friends before the death of Kyoko's family. Mami ''knew'' Kyoko had been living on the edge of despair since said incident, and knowing what would happen if she'd truly go over the edge and her attachment to Sayaka, it would be easy for her to see that she would turn into a witch next, something she really did not want to see, especially after what happened to Sayaka. There's also the fact that as a hardened veteran Kyoko would've reacted alot quicker to Mami's MurderSuicide attempt and put up a decent fight which is why Mami didn't finish Homura off right after tying her up but shot Kyoko dead next while probably not expecting Madoka to try to kill her.]]
** [[spoiler: In ''The Different Story'', after Sayaka's death, Mami and Kyoko get into a fight, after which a suicidal Mami begs Kyoko to kill her. Kyoko refuses and instead uses her illusion magic to make Mami think her soul gem is clean, in order to prevent her from becoming a witch. It succeeds in stalling the matter out, buying time for Kyoko to gather grief seeds... but Kyoko herself dies fighting a witch, and Mami ends up shattering her own soul gem.]]
* MinorLivingAlone: Mami's parents died in an accident. As it turned out, she also had no relatives, and thus had no choice but to live on her own.
* MsFanservice: Has easily ''the'' most attractive figure of the principle cast; a fact the cinematic adaptations ''love'' to emphasize.
* MyGreatestFailure:
** [[spoiler:Using her wish to live, but not to revive her parents as well. She doesn't ''openly'' regret making her wish since it saved her life, but she asks Madoka to think carefully of hers and lectures Sayaka when she learns that she wants to heal Kyosuke, implying that she feels guilty anyway.]]
** In the PSP game, [[spoiler:Mami openly expresses that she resents herself for failing to save her parents. She states that she made "a selfish, cowardly wish" and that she was only ever thinking about herself. The despair of this realization (as well as the pain she experienced when she saw the despair of the mother of a boy she had failed to save from a witch) eventually pushes her over the edge, and she becomes the witch Candeloro.]]
* NiceHat: A feathered one which acts as HyperspaceArsenal in the other world.
* NoBodyLeftBehind: [[spoiler: Implied to be her ultimate fate due to Madoka's wish.]]
* NotSoStoic: [[spoiler:When she has an HeroicBSOD and confesses to Madoka that she's far more frail than she lets her see. Also the revelation that magical girls can transform into witches, which in an alternate timeline, makes her [[FreakOut flip out]] and in ''Manga/PuellaMagiOrikoMagica'' almost makes her fall into catatonic despair.]]
%%* OfCorsetsSexy: In her magical girl outfit.
* OffWithHerHead: [[spoiler:Initially in Episode 3 by Charlotte. Thanks to that, [[MemeticMutation the Japanese fans now associate her name as a verb of the trope.]]]]
* OOCIsSeriousBusiness: [[spoiler:If OOC equals happiness-induced recklessness, you're going to end up on a witch's menu.]]
* TheParagon: A paragon of MagicalGirl-hood... [[spoiler:[[MentorOccupationalHazard for all that it entails]].]] Sayaka, and even Kyubey, consider her to be the exception to most magical girls because she's the only one who is fully devoted in keeping Mitakihara safe from both witches and familiars while others will simply hunt witches for the grief seeds, and managing to do it by herself for years without dying or transforming.
* PleaseDontLeaveMe: To Kyoko in the past and in ''The Different Story''.
* ProperTightsWithASkirt: In her normal attire because she is a ProperLady.
%%* RazorWire: Demonstrated in ''The Different Story''.
* RedOniBlueOni: The blue to Kyoko's red in the past and in ''The Different Story''. The mentor had the grace and cool head while the student was more hotblood and crude.
* SacrificialLamb: Zigzagged.
** [[spoiler:In alternate timelines, she wavers between this and a SacrificialLion. While she survives much longer in Homura's previous loops, until just before Madoka's battle with Walpurgisnacht, her screentime is often scarce and, with the exception of her FreakOut, her death is merely a background event.]]
** [[spoiler:Averted in ''Oriko Magica'', where she's much more careful against Charlotte. She even makes a remark about how she could have easily died.]]
** [[spoiler:She's the [[Pantheon/LifeAndDeath High Prophet of the trope]].]]
* SempaiKohai:
** Sees herself as Sayaka and Madoka's senpai as a magical girl, and is a year ahead of them at school but they call her "Mami-san" rather than "senpai".
** She calls herself ''Kyoko's'' senpai in [[AllThereInTheManual the third drama CD/The Different Story Manga]].
* ShesGotLegs: Her firm and athletic legs are further accentuated by her short MagicSkirt and ZettaiRyouiki.
* SmallGirlBigGun: She's a teenage girl and her ''Trio Finale'' is as big as a tank. In ''Rebellion'', it becomes as big as a train car and it fires an explosion that's comparable to a ''nuke.''
* SocialServicesDoesNotExist: Her parents are gone [[spoiler:because they were killed in the same accident that Kyubey used to get her to become a magical girl,]] leaving her completely alone in their penthouse.
* SpotOfTea: Immediately after killing a witch she pulls a tea cup from somewhere and sips from it. In addition, she serves tea to her friends when they visit her penthouse. [[spoiler:After her death, the cup lies on a table shattered by a grief seed among what's left of Charlotte's remains.]]
%%* StatuesqueStunner
* StepfordSmiler: By her own admission, her smiles are nothing more than an act.
* TheStoic: Of the "say something horrific without any emotions" variety.
* SupremeChef: According to [[spoiler: Kyoko]] in the third drama CD, she's a fantastic cook.
* SurvivorGuilt: [[spoiler:When Kyubey contracted with her after the car accident, she only wished for herself to be saved and didn't wish for her parents to come back to life. She has felt guilty about it since.]]
* ThemeMusicPowerUp: [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0QEa4TiHDBA This]] pretty much plays anytime she's transforming into her magical girl outfit, or when she's pulling a BigDamnHeroes moment [[spoiler: but it doesn't save her in Episode 3...]]
%%* TomboyAndGirlyGirl: Girly girl to Kyoko's tomboy.
* TownGirls: The femme to Madoka's neither and Sayaka's butch because she's the most lady-like of the three.
* UndignifiedDeath: [[spoiler:The "headless Mami" meme will never let the poor girl live down how she went out.]]
* WalkingSpoiler: Because of [[spoiler:her gruesome death]] a quarter of the way in the series, it's hard to discuss Mami in a spoiler-free way without bringing it up.
* WeHardlyKnewYe
** [[spoiler:In the anime she dies in the third episode and otherwise has little screentime in alternate timelines.]]
** Averted in [[spoiler:''Different Story'', which focuses on Mami's past and follows her as TheProtagonist in a timeline where she survives the the battle against Charlotte.]]
** Meta-wise, defied. [[spoiler:Creator/KaoriMizuhashi went out of her way to say that it's exactly because of Mami's early and gruesome death that she becomes memorable and lives on in the mind of fans instead of being treated like thin air.]]
* WellIntentionedExtremist: Post-HeroicBSOD, [[spoiler:she kills Kyoko because she thought she was saving them from becoming monsters.]]
* WeUsedToBeFriends: The third drama CD shows that she knew Kyoko when they were younger and were friends and partners in fighting witches, until [[spoiler:the PaterFamilicide happened and]] Kyoko decided to be selfish with her magic.
* TheWorldsExpertOnGettingKilled: [[spoiler:A veteran magical girl and the first casuality.]]
* YamatoNadeshiko: She's feminine, polite, good at cooking, acts like a mother figure towards the other girls, and has a graceful fighting style. In one scene, she calmly sips tea immediately after a battle. [[spoiler:Discussed in ''The Different Story'' when Mami mentions during an internal monologue that she exaggerates this part of her personality in order to be a perfect role-model MagicalGirl for her pupils]].
* YankTheDogsChain: [[spoiler: After making a contract with Kyubey, Mami finds herself experiencing loneliness as her parents are dead and is prevented from having a social life due to her MagicalGirl lifestyle. She finds Kyoko, another MagicalGirl, whom she takes under her wing and becomes friends with and putting an end to her isolation until Kyoko grows bitter from her PaterFamilicide, breaking up her partnership with Mami and leaving her all alone again. Some time later, she saves two girls Madoka & Sayaka who are discovered to have magical potential and Madoka tells Mami she intends to become a MagicalGirl and find alongside her which fills Mami with glee. Then she is killed gruesomely moments later.]]
* ZettaiRyouiki: When she suits up.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Kyoko Sakura]]
[[quoteright:313:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/kyoko_1734.png]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/AiNonaka (JP), Creator/LaurenLanda (EN), Marga López (Spain)

A veteran and morally ambiguous magical girl, she first appears as a foe to Madoka and Sayaka. Her view of a magical girl's duties are ruthlessly utilitarian; for example, on her first encounter with Sayaka, she suggests allowing a familiar to feed on humans and mature into a witch so as to ultimately gain a grief seed from slaying it. She wields a halberd whose shaft can split into chained-together segments, giving her weapon dangerous flexibility and reach.

See also [[SelfDemonstrating/KyokoSakura her Self-Demonstrating article]] to read this section as if it was written by the abrasive narcissist that she is.
----
* {{Adorkable}}: In the drama CD with her and Mami which takes place before she became jaded.
* AntiHero: After her HeelFaceTurn, she becomes mainly a KnightInSourArmor.
* ArcVillain: Serves as the main villainous focus for a few episodes until her HeelFaceTurn, but mostly as the catalyst to demonstrate ThePlan and intention of the ''real'' villain, [[spoiler: Kyubey]].
* BackFromTheDead: [[spoiler:In the GrandFinale. Since she died fighting a witch, Madoka is able to revive her with her wish.]]
* {{Badass}}: By far the most brutal and ferocious non-witch character in the series, [[spoiler: but when she softens up she channels her {{Badass}}-ery in a different way - by [[HeroicSacrifice giving her own life to put a friend out of her misery]]]].
* BareYourMidriff: A lot of art work -- both official and fan -- implies she's wearing a belly shirt underneath her jacket.
* BerserkButton: She threatens to kill Sayaka for wasting food.
* BetterToDieThanBeKilled: [[spoiler:After finding out the whole AwfulTruth and unable to save Sayaka, Kyoko felt she had two choices: destroy her soul gem in a final attack to put Sayaka out of her misery and die together, or win the fight the usual way and still become a witch sooner or later, be killed by a magical girl and die alone. Considering her past, guess which one she picked?]]
* BigDamnHeroes: GenUrobuchi ''loves'' to play with this trope. In Kyoko's case, [[spoiler:Homura saves Sayaka from her and then she saves Sayaka from Elsa Maria. Then she saves Sayaka ''from a very pissed-off Homura''. She tops it off by protecting Madoka and Homura's escape from Oktavia... by going out with a bang.]]
* BigEater: She's always eating something and it's ''not'' PlayedForLaughs, as there is a FreudianExcuse for it.
* BladeOnAStick: Uses a spear as her signature weapon.
* BloodKnight: Unlike the other girls she enjoys hunting witches mainly for her own selfish purposes.
* BrokenBird: She used to be a lot like Sayaka, a "hero of justice" but then [[spoiler:her dad freaked out and killed their family]].
* ByronicHeroine: A good person with a dark past and a lot of angst who engages in hedonistic behavior; yep.
* CallingYourAttacks: She never does this in the anime, but [[AllThereInTheManual in the third drama CD]], [[spoiler: Mami insists on calling her DoppelgangerAttack "[[GratuitousItalian Rossa Fantasma]]" - literally "Red Phantom".]] Kyoko says it once during battle, but then breaks out laughing afterwards because she can't take it seriously.
* CatchPhrase: "You want some?"
* ChekhovsGunman: Appears in the title and credits sequences before appearing in the series. It's also implied that she's [[spoiler: the magical girl that Kyubey and Mami talk about in Episode 3, who made a wish for someone else.]] This is confirmed in the [[AllThereInTheManual third drama CD]].
* ClingyJealousGirl: [[spoiler: Becomes this to Mami in "A Different Story". After their separation, Kyoko tried to bait Mami to fight her twice and got frustrated both times by her refusal. The irony is that this jealousy is the result of Mami taking Sayaka as her partner.]]
* CurtainsMatchTheWindow: Red hair and eyes.
* CuteLittleFangs: She has one and it makes her look like the predator she talks about. (Also cute.)
* CynicismCatalyst: [[spoiler:She made a shortsighted wish to bring followers to her father's congregation. When he realized what was going on, he killed his family. After this, she decided to work for herself and only herself.]]
* DarkActionGirl: She's selfish, brutal, and not at all heroic. [[spoiler:This changes some after her HeelFaceTurn.]]
* DarkAndTroubledPast: [[spoiler:Her father was a priest, but he was excommunicated for "heresy" and the Sakura family fell in poverty as he couldn't support them anymore. Kyoko used her wish to get more followers for him...but when he found out it was just magic and not his ideas and words, he went crazy and killed himself and his entire family, leaving Kyoko as the only survivor.]]
* DarkerAndEdgier: Than the other main characters who think of themselves as traditional 'love and justice' magical girls.
* DarkMagicalGirl: Her time in the show is all about pitting herself and her beliefs against Sayaka, who sees herself and her beliefs as a traditional magical girl. [[spoiler: As per the trope, she has a HeelFaceTurn and develops a soft spot for Sayaka, who reminds her of her ideals.]]
* DeathEqualsRedemption: [[spoiler: Part of the reason of her HeelFaceTurn is the realization that magical girls are essentially [[strike:zombies]] liches, and that she might as well do something to [[IncrediblyLamePun remedy]] [[TheAtoner this situation]]. Culminating in her HeroicSacrifice to give the bewitched Sayaka a MercyKill. She even gets her final [[ObiWanMoment moment of clarity]], where she realizes that [[DeclarationOfProtection she has always wanted to protect someone.]]]]
* DefrostingIceQueen: Introduced as cold and selfish, but reveals a slightly warmer personality later as she grows fond of Sayaka.
* {{Depower}}: [[AllThereInTheManual The third drama CD]] reveals that Kyoko could originally create illusory copies of herself, but she lost this power [[spoiler:when her family died]].
* DespairEventHorizon:
** [[spoiler: Played with. As the sole survivor of a PaterFamilicide committed by her father she became bitter and jaded but her soul gem did not corrupt so she held onto a bright outlook. When Kyubey lets slip the AwfulTruth, she shows more and more humanity.]]
** [[spoiler:Potentially played straight in the PSP game if Homura defeats Oktavia before she has a chance to save what is left of Sayaka, thus removing the very last trace of hope and idealism she had left, and triggering her transformation into Ophelia.]]
* DetachedSleeves: Her magical girl outfit has these.
* DiedHappilyEverAfter: [[spoiler: Implied in the anime to be her eventual fate, following Madoka's wish.]]
* DoppelgangerAttack: [[AllThereInTheManual The third drama CD]] reveals that Kyoko's original power was to create decoys of herself. She lost this power when [[spoiler:her family died]].
* DyingMomentOfAwesome: [[spoiler: She kills in Octavia in a HeroicSacrifice which is also a TogetherInDeath attempt.]]
* ElegantGothicLolita: Her fighting outfit looks a little like this with a ShowgirlSkirt thrown in.
* EvilRedhead: Initially, she is an antagonist and her hair color is much darker than pink-haired Madoka.
* FaceDeathWithDignity: [[spoiler: Her last moment is her praying to her God.]]
* FallenHeroine: She was sort of a ChurchMilitant and she acknowledged how stupid heroism is [[spoiler:but not even she can help feeling a little sympathy for Sayaka's broken state, leading her to a HeelFaceTurn.]]
* FieryRedhead: As her red hair indicates, she's abrasive and hotheaded.
* FreudianExcuse: Her love of food comes from [[spoiler:her family constantly starving after her father was excommunicated for "heresy" and barely having enough to eat; a scene in the manga shows Kyoko getting punished by her mother for wasting food]]. Her selfish and {{Jerkass}} nature comes from [[spoiler:the fact that her wish led to [[GoMadFromTheRevelation her maddened dad]] [[OffingTheOffspring killing the whole Sakura family]] except for her]].
%%* GetAHoldOfYourselfWoman: To [[spoiler:Mami]] in ''The Different Story''.
* HeelFaceTurn: Cements this with a near-[[PrecisionFStrike Precision Bitch Strike]] as soon as [[spoiler:Kyubey lets slip the AwfulTruth.]] She then dedicates herself to [[spoiler:preventing her friends from suffering Sayaka's fate.]]
* HeroesGoneFishing: Homura once meets up with Kyoko while she's playing a dancing game in an arcade.
* HeroesWantRedheads: [[InvertedTrope Inverted]]; she seems to be after Sayaka, but not the other way around.
* HeroicSacrifice:
** [[spoiler:She does this to MercyKill on Sayaka so Sayaka does not die alone.]]
** [[spoiler: In ''The Different Story'', she uses Oktavia's grief seed to cleanse Mami's soul gem, but this leaves her without another one to use on herself, and she dies while fighting another witch later.]]
* HeroOfAnotherStory: She was a magical girl for a long time. Her start up until meeting Madoka could be its own story.
* HowDoYouLikeThemApples: During her explanation of her backstory and attempt to persuade Sayaka to her way of thinking, she has a bag of apples. [[RuleOfSymbolism The symbolism]] is [[JapaneseChristian probably intentional]].
* IKnowYoureInThereSomewhereFight: She ''tries'' to do this alongside Madoka [[spoiler:in a desperate attempt to save Sayaka after she turns into a Witch. It fails and Kyoko [[MercyKill has to kill Sayaka]] [[TogetherInDeath along with herself.]]]]
* ImpaledWithExtremePrejudice: [[spoiler: In the manga, during her fight with Oktavia von Seckendorff.]]
* IronicEcho: [[spoiler:When she first encountered Oktavia (Sayaka's witch form), she was rescued by Homura because she was carrying Sayaka's lifeless corpse and had no way to defend herself. When she refused to drop Sayaka's corpse, Homura calls her a hindrance. During [[IKnowYouAreInThereSomewhereFight their futile attempt to bring Sayaka back from being a witch]], a very injured Kyoko leaves an unconscious Madoka to Homura, before stating that they leave because Homura would not be able to fight with a hindrance like herself, before making her HeroicSacrifice.]]
* {{Irony}}: [[spoiler:The daughter of a religious man, who battled witches in the dark, is labeled as a witch by her own father. To make it worse, instead of her father burning her at the stake, [[PaterFamilicide he burns himself, Kyoko's mother and younger sister together with their church,]] leaving Kyoko the last of her family.]]
* ItsAllAboutMe: This is what she claims to be her philosophy; that a magical girl should only use her powers to benefit herself. However, [[spoiler: she says this to Sayaka because she thinks she would benefit from that philosophy, [[{{Hypocrite}} and then she tries to help Sayaka against a witch]].]]
* JapaneseChristian: Her father was a priest. She seemed to have been observant when she was younger but there's little evidence that she still is. She ''does'' [[spoiler: appeal to God as she makes her HeroicSacrifice]], but whether this is out of faith or [[PrayerIsALastResort desperation]] or some combination thereof is ambiguous.
* JapaneseHonorifics: Doesn't use any [[spoiler:but early on in her career, she called Mami "Mami-san"]].
* JapanesePronouns: Uses "atashi" for herself, which is odd considering her darwin lifestyle and masculine vocabulary.
* {{Jerkass}}: Initially, she cares about nothing more than killing her foes and leaving people to die in order to benefit herself.
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: Her backstory doesn't justify her horrible treatment of Sayaka before the AwfulTruth happened. However, her [[PetTheDog latter interactions with Sayaka]] show that, JerkAss as she is, Kyoko is still somewhat redeemable.
* KleptomaniacHero: Implied that she stole most, if not all, of the food she was eating.
* KnightInSourArmor: After being reminded of her ideals by Sayaka she became this; renewed idealism but still bitter.
* KnightOfCerebus: There's a ''reason'' why they waited until after [[spoiler: Mami's death scene]] to introduce her and why she originally [[SirNotAppearingInThisTrailer didn't appear with the other core four in promotional materials]].
* TheLadette: Magical girls are known for their femininity. Kyoko is not.
%%* LadyInRed: Her magical girl outfit.
* TheLadysFavour: {{Inverted}} in ''The Different Story''. [[spoiler:Kyoko goes off to fight Oktavia and leaves her ribbon with Mami, promising her to return to get it back.]]
* LadySwearsALot: By Japanese-standards, her vocabulary is filthy and at best is inappropriately masculine.
* LaughablyEvil: There are no comic relief characters in ''Madoka'', and definitely not Kyoko, but try not to chuckle a bit as she nonchalantly stuffs her face with food or plays a BlandNameProduct ''VideoGame/DanceDanceRevolution'' clone as the events of the series unfold.
* {{Leitmotif}}: [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p4xSbSpR9j4 "Anima mala"]] ("Evil soul").
* LettingHerHairDown: Does this just before [[spoiler:sacrificing herself for Sayaka]].
* LostFoodGrievance: Do ''not'' waste food in Kyoko's presence if you value your life. She'll NeckLift you.
* MasterOfIllusion: Used to be capable of illusions as her magical girl power before [[spoiler:the PaterFamilicide incident]].
* MercyKill: [[spoiler:Gives one to Sayaka that doubles as a TakingYouWithMe.]]
* MinorLivingAlone: Kyoko lives in her apartment complex alone with no parental supervision due to [[spoiler: her father murdering her mother, younger sister, and then himself in a murder-suicide.]]
* NeckLift: Performs one on Sayaka when she [[BerserkButton throws her apple to the ground without eating it.]]
* NoBodyLeftBehind: [[spoiler: Implied to be her ultimate fate eventually, due to Madoka's wish.]]
* NominalHero: At the start, while she's a magical girl who fights witches and may be loyal to both her teammates and the mission, she cares far more about killing witches, gaining grief seeds, and letting familiars kill people so they can become witches with grief seeds, than she does about protecting civilians.
* NotSoDifferent: To Sayaka. She criticizes Sayaka for fighting for someone else's sake, but ends up [[spoiler: sacrificing herself to take out Oktavia to make sure Sayaka/Oktavia won't die alone]]. This is lampshaded when she tells Madoka that Sayaka made her remember the reason she became a magical girl.
* OralFixation: Always has something in her mouth.
* PaterFamilicide: [[spoiler: In her backstory, her father killed her entire family save her before killing himself.]]
* PimpedOutDress: Her magical girl outfit is bloodred to symbolize her aggressive nature [[spoiler:[[NiceJobBreakingItHero and the blood that was spilled]] [[BeCarefulWhatYouWishFor as a consequence of her wish, as well.]] It is also adorned with the symbol of her father's church.]]
* PreachersKid: She was an angelic ChurchMilitant before things went bad. When we meet her, she's well over on the cynical side.
* PsychoForHire: Initially she kills witches for their grief seeds and Kyubey has her on call.
* PsychosomaticSuperpowerOutage: She's been unable to use her MasterOfIllusion powers ever since [[spoiler:the PaterFamilicide incident]]. It's implied this was because of the trauma she experienced. As shown in side materials, in [[spoiler: a few of the alternate timelines]] she eventually gets them back.
* APupilOfMineUntilSheTurnedToEvil: She used to be Mami's apprentice just like Madoka and Sayaka, until [[spoiler:the PaterFamilicide happened and]] Kyoko decided to be selfish with her magic.
* RapunzelHair: Her hair grows past her back. Instead of the 'wealth' or 'high status' associations, it's more likely because she doesn't bother cutting it.
* RedAndBlackAndEvilAllOver: Initially she is a villain and her magical girl outfit is red and black.
%%* RedemptionEqualsDeath
* RedEyesTakeWarning: Her eyes are red and she is the first indication that some magical girls are outright evil.
* RedOniBlueOni
** The red to Sayaka's blue. She's more feral and hedonistc and they are color coded.
** Also the red to Mami's blue in the past and in ''The Different Story'' because she was more reckless and less precise than her mentor.
* SayMyName: She yells '''"SAYAKAAAA!!!"''' when [[spoiler: Sayaka becomes a witch.]]
* SelectiveObliviousness: A common theme is how Kyouko says many things... while not actually doing them.
** She ''says'' she's going to kill Sayaka... but is content (at first) to only beat her up before walking away.
** She talks trash about Mami and her beliefs... but as other content showed, she at first came back to Mitakihara to try to reconcile with her, before learning about her death. She even made a grave for her.
** She comments on how normal people are essentially just food... but never hurts Madoka and doesn't stop her from going to Sayaka. She even encourages Madoka that she's done nothing wrong and that being a magical girl isn't something to envy.
** She talks about how magic is only meant to be used for herself... but her wish was used for someone else, and even after that she uses magic for Sayaka and Madoka's sake, repeatedly.
* SeriousBusiness: Nearly strangles Sayaka because she threw an apple on the ground. PlayedForDrama; see FreudianExcuse above.
* ShesGotLegs: Comes with wearing [[WhoWearsShortShorts short shorts.]]
* ShipTease: Implied to have a one-sided crush on Sayaka.
* SirNotAppearingInThisTrailer: Didn't appear in early promotional materials, likely because of her darker nature.
* SourOutsideSadInside: At first, she seems to be a mean, selfish girl who believes that magical girls should use their powers for their own purposes. As the series progresses, it's revealed ''why'' she acts this way: [[spoiler: Her family fell into destitution after her preacher father was excommunicated and when he found out that his followers increased and came back was due to Kyoko's magical girl wish and not from people actually believing in him, he killed his family and himself and only she survived,]]. It is only when she learns about the awful truths of being a magical girl and when she saves Sayaka from Homura that she starts to get over her sourness, [[spoiler:which culminates in her performing a MercyKill to witch!Sayaka and sacrificing herself so Sayaka wouldn't be alone.]]
* SpellMyNameWithAnS: "Kyoko" versus "Kyouko". Both are officially endorsed, with the anime materials using Kyoko and manga materials using Kyouko.
* SuicideAttack: [[spoiler: She kills Oktavia with one.]]
* SuperDrowningSkills: According to the 4th drama CD, she can't swim.
* SweetPollyOliver: In a [[{{omake}} gag image]] Kyoko decides to disguise herself as a boy in order to become closer to Sayaka.
* SweetTooth: She's constantly munching on sweets, even during battle.
* TogetherInDeath: [[spoiler: With Sayaka via SuicideAttack.]]
* TokenEvilTeammate: Initially, prior to her HeelFaceTurn, she was a nasty magical girl. Kind of like a mercenary.
* {{Tomboy}}: She's even more tomboyish than Sayaka with her aggressive personality and masculine manner of speaking, but despite that, she still refers to herself with a feminine pronoun.
* TomboyAndGirlyGirl: Tomboy to Mami's and [[TomboyWithAGirlyStreak Sayaka's]] girly girl, having a much rougher speech pattern and being more aggressive and masculine than both of them.
* TomboyishPonytail: Although her hairstyle should be ''more'' feminine than Sayaka's, it also emphasizes her nature as a rough ActionGirl and looks quite unkempt. It also contrasts quite a bit with the preppy but cute Mitakihara school uniform, which she wears in ''Rebellion'' and the best ending of ''Portable''.
* TomboyWithAGirlyStreak: Downplayed; aside from using the feminine pronoun "atashi", her speech patterns are very rough and masculine, and when it comes down to it she's not very girly at all. In comparison, Sayaka is quite a bit more feminine than she is.
* TookALevelInKindness: After starting as a bitch, Sayaka's and Madoka's suffering soften her up little by little. This culminates in Episode 9 with her [[spoiler:''bonding'' with Madoka, then sacrificing herself to save Madoka from a bewitched Sayaka, and putting Sayaka out of her misery]].
%%* TroubledButCute
* {{Tsundere}}: She comes off as aggressive and bitchy, but there's a warmer personality buried under. These tendencies are more prevalent towards [[LesYay Sayaka and Mami]] in ''The Different Story'', since she obviously cares about them but refuses to express it openly.
* TsurimeEyes: Befitting her harsh and confident nature.
* UnwittingInstigatorOfDoom: [[spoiler:Had Kyoko not picked fights needlessly with Sayaka, Madoka wouldn't have snapped and thrown Sayaka's soul gem away, thus TheReveal would have happened later, or not and all -- and thus, Sayaka wouldn't've begun her StartOfDarkness either.]]
* UsedToBeASweetKid: A DaddysGirl who made a SelflessWish and heroically fought witches, who later became a NominalHero and BloodKnight.
* VariableLengthChain: Her spear can segment into parts separated by chains. Her spear's shaft length also changes between scenes.
* WeUsedToBeFriends: The third drama CD shows that she and Mami knew each other when they were younger and were friends and partners in fighting witches, until [[spoiler:the PaterFamilicide happened and]] Kyoko decided to be more selfish with her magic.
* WhatHaveIBecome: Not even ''she'' could stay indifferent to the AwfulTruth but she takes [[spoiler: becoming a lich]] better than Sayaka.
* WhipSword: Her spear is capable of splitting into chains, but it also appears to be able to curve in a whip-like fashion.
* WhoWearsShortShorts: In her civilian garb. It's another tomboyish contrast with her fellow feminine magical girls.
* WrongGenreSavvy: Tries to [[spoiler: start an IKnowYoureInThereSomewhereFight to transform Sayaka back from her witch state]]. Explicitly lampshades it ("It'd be like one of those stories where love and courage triumph over all"). Considering the tone of the series, [[spoiler: it's not surprising that it doesn't work.]]
* ZettaiRyouiki: She's sporting a Grade B in her magical girl outfit and her school uniform.
[[/folder]]

----

** Kyoko's father went crazy after learning that his religious sect was only gaining followers because of her wish and subsequently killed her entire family and then himself.

* RetroactivePreparation: [[spoiler:She can use her powers to learn from her mistakes, and she's gone through multiple timelines to make sure that Walpurgis Night is defeated, Madoka doesn't die from said witch, and to make sure she doesn't become a witch]]. [[spoiler:[[Pantheon/TimeAndSpaceOverdeitiesAndGreaterGods Deified for it]]]].

* ByronicHero: She has conflicting emotions, isolates herself from others, has a troubled past, is cynical and arrogant. She doesn't hesitate to render her enemies full of holes when things call for it..

* BrokenAce: (Heroic version) she is an elegant, skilled fighter who acts kind and gentle and appears as a role model, but her ideal magical girl image is just a facade to hide how broken she is from constantly fighting witches on her own.

* ByronicHero: A good person with a dark past and a lot of angst who engages in hedonistic behavior; yep.

* CombatStilettos: She sports heels in her magical girl outfit.

* SaveScumming: Her time powers allow her to do this [[spoiler:with the timeline whenever it reaches a Bad End...and also, due to "accumulated karma" from trans-timeline "fate lines", increases Madoka's magical power. The catch? [[NiceJobBreakingItHero It guarantees that Madoka will turn into an immensely powerful Witch in every timeline where she ends up being the one to defeat Walpurgisnacht]].]]

** Her wish is actually so selfless that it literally [[spoiler: ''erases her sense of self,'' removing her from the material world and placing her on a higher plane of existence.]]

** [[spoiler: In the manga, she ''does'' kill them. In the anime, however, it was left ambiguous until Urobuchi finally said that she doesn't kill them.]]

* {{Irony}}: [[spoiler:In one of the timelines shown in Episode 10, Sayaka is reluctant to work with Homura because as a melee fighter, she's afraid that she'll get caught in one of Homura's bombs. When she becomes a witch, the thing that kills her is one of Homura's bombs.]]

* LadyOfWar: She uses her guns with a heavy emphasis on precision, grace and high calculation instead of brute force. She also finishes her battles with a curtsy and with sipping tea.

* LadyOfWar: Complete with sipping tea after destroying the Witch in Episode 2.

* HeroicBystander: She prevents [[spoiler:the forced suicide of Hitomi and Kirsten's other victims]]. Also, she [[spoiler:''tries'' to be this when she throws Sayaka's Soul Gem over the bridge, [[NiceJobBreakingItHero with nasty results]]]].

** She props up Sayaka [[spoiler: when her Soul Gem corrupts]].

** What fans call [[spoiler:Godoka/Madokami/Madogod or Goddess Madoka,]] tends to go by the name Penitent Gretchen. Name [[Theatre/{{Faust}} Gretchen]] is self-explanatory even if you are familiar with the show. The title of Penitent isn't, which means "feeling or expressing humble or regretful pain or sorrow for sins or offenses". It explains [[spoiler:Madoka's temperament at the time of her wish.]] Also, the full name is yet another reference to ''Theatre/{{Faust}}''...or more appropriately, how Gretchen saved him.

* NiceJobBreakingItHero:

** To prevent Sayaka from fighting Kyoko, [[spoiler:she snatches Sayaka's Soul Gem and throws it off the bridge they're on. This killed Sayaka because the Soul Gem is [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin literally]] a SoulJar.]] Cue BigDamnHeroes from Homura.
** [[spoiler:She makes a contract to save Homura in one timeline, and becomes a magical girl so powerful she destroys a Witch in one shot... then becomes an even worse witch who will destroy the entire planet.]]

* RoseHairedSweetie: Sweet tempered subtype.

* SheCleansUpNicely: [[spoiler:Supernatural example:]] Normal Girl Madoka falls right into GenericCuteness and in-universe is considered plain. [[spoiler:[[http://images.puella-magi.net/c/cc/408.5.jpg?20110510180111 Godoka]],]] on the other hand, is ''achingly beautiful''.

* TheSoulsaver: [[spoiler: The fate of magical girls is either to become a witch or die and face the CessationOfExistence. Madokami rescues them from both and brings them to a higher plane of existence.]]

%%* TownGirls: The Neither to Mami and Hitomi's Femme and Sayaka's Butch.
* [[TragicBromance Tragic Womance]]: With Homura. They develop the closest relationship of the main group but [[spoiler:are separated at the end. In the manga, this is averted because they are reunited in Madokami's {{heaven}}.]]

* AdaptationExpansion: The anime includes an epilogue that differs from the manga's, with [[spoiler:Homura walking through a desert towards a group of wraiths and sprouting a pair of nightmarish wings. In the manga, she [[AscendToAHigherPlaneOfExistence is taken into the afterlife by Madokami]].]]

* TheGlassesComeOff: [[spoiler: She originally wore glasses but used magic to fix her eyesight at the beginning of the [[GroundhogDayLoop loop]] that happened after the one where she mercy killed Madoka]]. As she does so, she resolves to kill ''all'' of the [[EldritchAbomination witches]] ''[[SoloCharacterRun single-handedly]]'', and does a damn good job until [[spoiler:she hits Walpurgis Night]].

* NoKillLikeOverKill: In Episode 11 against [[spoiler:Walpurgisnacht]]. Homura [[spoiler:freezes time]] and [[MacrossMissileMassacre fires dozens of rocket launchers at it.]] Then she drives a diesel tank up a bridge and detonates it in the witch's face. ''Then'' she lands on a battleship and hits it with a guided missile, and ''that'' knocks it into a stadium covered in [[ChainReactionDestruction landmines]]. This amount of force ends up [[spoiler: doing ''[[NighInvulnerable jack shit]]'' to Walpurgis.]]

** During the dream in Episode 1 [[spoiler:which is actually a part of Episode 10]], when she sees Madoka she clearly calls out to her. Later in Episode 1, while Madoka is walking with her to the nurse's office in the real world, she is seen ''clenching her teeth''.
** In Episode 6, she looks depressed or tired, but relieved when she [[spoiler:retrieves Sayaka's Soul Gem and stares at it before returning it to her owner.]]
** In Episode 8, after [[spoiler:she saved Madoka from making a wish. She breaks down and tearfully asks why Madoka refuses to listen to her.]]

* BareYourMidriff: [[DownplayedTrope Downplayed]] - the white corset of her MagicalGirl outfit does this, but only just enough to reveal her soul gem, which she wears like a navel piercing.

* BreakTheCutie: She took up Kyubey's offer and it bit her in the ass '''HORRIBLY'''. [[spoiler: It starts with her soul trauma, goes through crush despair and then witchification.]]
* BungledSuicide: [[spoiler: Poor Sayaka, thinking that she'll simply die if she never purifies her Soul Gem. If only she knew that letting her Soul Gem become fully corrupt will only turn her into a Witch...]]

* TheCape: She follows a classical "hero of justice" belief as a MagicalGirl, [[spoiler:as she considers herself to be Mami's successor after the former kicks the can]], and her outfit even sports a white cape. [[spoiler: According to Homura, this is why she turns into a witch in the timelines where she makes a contract; because she's unable to live up to this ideal she falls into despair.]]

* DeathSeeker: [[spoiler: Grows increasingly apathetic with the thought of her own death, until her Soul Gem is completely corrupted and she finally becomes a witch.]]

* DespairEventHorizon: The following words are said [[spoiler: before she becomes a witch.]]
** [[spoiler: "I've been such a fool..."]]
** In the English dub and official subs, [[spoiler: "I was stupid...so stupid..."]]

** Grief Seeds? No thanks. She refuses Homura's help due to her suspiciousness and outright lying, accusing her of trying to manipulate her. Which is, [[spoiler:entirely true.]]
** She also refuses literal and metaphorical help from Kyoko multiple times. She refuses a Grief Seed out of suicidal bravado, and rejects an apple as a symbolic refusal to follow Kyoko in selfish survivalism, seeing it as her duty to follow in Mami's footsteps and help others before herself.

* FallenHeroine: [[spoiler:After witnessing an apparently successful confession by Hitomi to Kyosuke, as well as the awful jealousy she feels as a result, as well as feeling shame and self-disgust at feeling said jealousy in the first place, she view herself as unworthy of life, becomes suicidal, and ends up refusing any Grief Seeds to rejuvenate her Soul Gem. As a result, the darkness swells up enough that the gem shatters, [[AndThenJohnWasAZombie turning her into a full-blown witch]].]]

* HeroicSacrifice: [[spoiler: In the anime and manga. Godoka says that she could have brought Sayaka back to life, but she'd have to undo Sayaka's wish and she didn't think Sayaka would want her to do that. Sayaka agrees, satisfied with the way things are.]]

* NoBodyLeftBehind: [[spoiler: Averted in Episodes 9-11 where her soul gem shatters but her body remains and played straight in Episode 12 following Madoka's wish where her body disappears along with her soul.]]

* BrokenBird: Does what she can to smile, but is pretty screwed up inside. To put it into perspective, [[spoiler:in one timeline, upon finding out that Magical Girls turn into witches, she gets so broken that she ''very quickly'' resolves to commit triple-murder-suicide. In another timeline (the ''Different Story''' Manga), she commits suicide by destroying her own Soul Gem, albeit so that Madoka wouldn't have to wish her to have a normal life back, so it overlaps somewhat with HeroicSacrifice - Madoka resurrected Sayaka, instead]].
* BrokenHero: She is seen as the ideal Magical Girl by Madoka and Sayaka, but confesses that she cries a lot when alone and says her smiles are all false.

* FreakOut: [[spoiler:After witch!Sayaka's death in another timeline, she kills Kyoko and would have shot Homura, Madoka, and herself too if Madoka hadn't killed her (Mami) first.]]

* GoodIsNotSoft: She's extremely kind, helpful, and motherly to her friends, and utterly ruthless when slaughtering witches, even going out of her way to hunt down familiars that don't have Grief Seeds to save as many innocents as possible. [[spoiler:She's willing to kill her own friends when she discovers they'll eventually turn into witches and do evil things.]]

* MaskOfSanity: [[spoiler: Her elegant and nurturing personality hides a dangerous instability; according to Homura, the AwfulTruth knocks her mask off every time. Averted in Oriko and A Different Story - the former has her regain her hope thanks to Yuma, while the latter has her calm down, accept her fate, and commit suicide quietly.]]

** [[spoiler: In ''The Different Story'', after Sayaka's death, Mami and Kyoko get into a fight, after which a suicidal Mami begs Kyoko to kill her. Kyoko refuses and instead uses her illusion magic to make Mami think her Soul Gem is clean, in order to prevent her from becoming a witch. It succeeds in stalling the matter out, buying time for Kyoko to gather Grief Seeds...but Kyoko herself dies fighting a witch, and Mami ends up shattering her own Soul Gem.]]

** [[spoiler:Averted in ''Oriko Magica'', where she's MUCH more careful against Charlotte. She even makes a remark about how she could have easily died.]]

** Sees herself as Sayaka and Madoka's senpai as a magical girl, and is a year ahead of them at school but they call her "Mami-san" rather than "senpai,".

** [[spoiler: In ''The Different Story'', she uses Oktavia's Grief Seed to cleanse Mami's Soul Gem, but this leaves her without another one to use on herself, and she dies while fighting another Witch later.]]

* IAmWhatIAm: She will easily admit that as a Magical Girl she essentially isn't human anymore and doesn't seem bothered by it, [[spoiler:because she knows she can turn into [[EldritchAbomination something worse.]]]]
* IGaveMyWord: All that she does is to fulfill the promise she made to a [[spoiler:dying Madoka to save her from the inevitable hell of Magical Girl-dom.]]

* JadeColoredGlasses: "With kindness comes naïveté. Courage becomes foolhardiness. Dedication has no reward. If you can't accept any of that, you are not fit to be a Magical Girl."
* JerkassFacade: She acts like a heartless bitch or otherwise obnoxious {{Jerkass}}, but it's [[spoiler:all for the sake of protecting her beloved Madoka. It's also implied that to some extent, she acts that way to stop Madoka from getting close to her, and to shock her out of the idea that being a magical girl would be a good thing.]]

* MagikarpPower: This is a good summary of how she became the MagicalGirl she is now. [[spoiler: She was originally the weakest of Mami's [[TheTeam team]] but became the strongest through work and keeping the nature of her power a secret.]]
* MeaningfulName: "Homura" means "flame." [[spoiler:The first-timeline]] Madoka points this out in episode 10, and says that she should act cool to match it. [[spoiler:She does, but only as a side effect of [[DeclarationOfProtection her passion and determination to protect Madoka]]- most likely the intended meaningfulness of her name.]] Becomes literal in the last episode: she produces a big purple flame to go with her MementoMacGuffin. The character for her last name means "never gives up".

* MyGreatestFailure: Madoka's [[spoiler:death...s. Every. Single. One. Of. Them.]]

* NiceJobBreakingItHero: Her wish to save Madoka set the world on the path to ruin. [[spoiler:By hitting the ResetButton for Madoka's sake, she's stringing together karma and timelines over a single point and therefore creating the potential for the most powerful puella magi and thus the most dangerous witch. However, her wish gave Madoka the chance to learn the truth about Magical Girl and wish for a complete revamp of the system, saving past, current and future Magical Girls from becoming witches.]]
* NoBodyLeftBehind: Implied to be her ultimate fate eventually, [[spoiler:[[BolivianArmyEnding if not shortly after the end of the anime]]. This actually is her final fate in the manga, as Madoka takes her to Heaven in the final scene.]]
* NoKillLikeOverKill: In Episode 11 against [[spoiler:Walpurgisnacht]]. Homura [[spoiler:freezes time]] and [[MacrossMissileMassacre fires dozens of rocket launchers at it.]] Then she drives a diesel tank up a bridge and detonates it in the witch's face. ''Then'' she lands on a battleship and hits it with a guided missile, and ''that'' knocks it into a stadium COVERED IN [[ChainReactionDestruction LANDMINES]]. This amount of force ends up [[spoiler: doing ''[[NighInvulnerable jack shit]]'' to Walpurgis.]]

* OlderThanSheLooks: Looks fourteen, is really [[spoiler:twenty-six]] thanks to all the time looping she's been doing. See calculations [[http://homura.tumblr.com/post/57010494639/when-asked-how-many-timelines-did-homura-go here]].

* PhysicalGoddess: She temporarily sprouts a pair of [[spoiler:gigantic ANGEL WINGS at will just before the credits and, in the epilogue, generates a pair that looks like they're made out of THE UNIVERSE ITSELF. Yet ironically, throughout the anime her only powers are to stop time and store things in her shield, as she lacks any magical attacks.]]
* PimpedOutDress: While it's still fancy, her Magical Girl outfit neatly averts this, which fits with her cold, somber personality.

* PoorCommunicationKills: For most of the series, one could make this complaint about her--why wouldn't she just ''tell'' the other girls all of the horrible things about Magical Girls? [[spoiler: It turns out she did just that in previous timelines. [[CassandraTruth They didn't believe her]], and [[FailureIsTheOnlyOption it still ended horribly]]: Sayaka turned into a witch, Mami killed Kyoko, and Madoka has to kill Mami to stop her despair-filled rampage]]. Homura [[JustifiedTrope knows from experience]] that she can't save magical girls from themselves, no matter how clearly she spells it out.
* PostModernMagick: Homura proves that sometimes all you need to kill a Witch is a machine gun, and if that fails, a missile launcher.

* {{Pragmatic Hero}}ine: She is perfectly willing to put aside her morality in order to protect Madoka, but deep down she wishes to help everyone.
* ProperTightsWithASkirt: In all her outfits except [[spoiler: alternate timelines when she is Moemura. Perhaps it's a maturity visual metaphor]].

* StrawNihilist: {{Defied}}. While cynical she rejects the notion that life is meaningless and everyone is better off killing themselves.[[spoiler: Why else would she try so hard to save her best friend?]]

* TapOnTheHead: Used to subdue Sayaka in the beginning of Episode 6. Justified because Homura knows that Magical Girls are NighInvulnerable, as explained later in the episode. That is, [[spoiler:as long as their Soul Gem is undamaged, the Magical Girl can heal any bodily injuries with magic]].

* UnwittingInstigatorOfDoom: Homura's constant [[spoiler:timeline resets don't reset one very important thing: Madoka's magical power, which carries over and stacks with each reset. What seemed like a good idea at the time ends up excaberating the situation to literally world-threatening proportions, as when a Magical Girl gets stronger, so does the Witch it leaves behind. Madoka's witch causes an [[ApocalypseHow apocalypse ranging from class 4 to class 6]] in at least one timeline, and would've done it again in the final timeline had Madoka herself not fixed the problem permanently.]]

* YouAreWorthHell: More like: [[spoiler:Madoka, You Are Worth This Traumatic [[GroundhogDayLoop Groundhog Month Loop]].]]
* ZenSurvivor: Homura Akemi has survived the horrors of magical girl life and has grown both strong and wise because of it. Her teaching is blunt and summed up in "Don't become a MagicalGirl." [[CassandraTruth No one listens.]] Ultimately, this is exactly why hope prevails.

* CatchPhrase: In the english dub, "For reals."

* FanDisservice: One can notice she's quite attractive once in her Magical Girl outfit. By the time she beats down Elsa Maria with her sword in Episode 7, she gets blood smears on her magical girl uniform.
* FashionableAsymmetry:

* TheFettered: She knows how deep in the [[UnusualEuphemism latrine pit]] she is, yet she won't let go of her idealism. This irritates Kyoko ''a lot''.

* HeroicSelfDeprecation: Inverted. Sayaka put herself above other Magical Girls for understandable reasons (such as letting innocents die for the sake of saving energy), but her nonexistent self-esteem means that she has some serious issues. When she naturally fails to be a perfect hero, her mental condition deteriorates rapidly.

* PoorCommunicationKills: Her prejudice against other Magical Girls comes from misunderstanding Homura's intentions in Episode 3.

* SuperheroinesWearCapes: Fitting with her "{{Magical Girl}}s are righteous {{Superhero}}ines" mindset. [[spoiler:When she [[AndThenJohnWasAZombie turns into a Witch in any timeline]], the cape stays.]]
* SuperpoweredEvilSide: [[spoiler: Her witch form, Octavia, after succumbing to despair.]]

* TomboyAndGirlyGirl: Tomboy to Madoka's GirlyGirl. She can also be seen as the Girly Girl to Kyoko's Tomboy, since unlike Kyoko she has [[TomboyWithAGirlyStreak a girly streak]].

* TookALevelInBadass: After making a contract with Kyubey she becomes a Knight in a Magical Girl outfit.
* TookALevelInJerkass: The AwfulTruth has made Sayaka less friendly and more bitter towards Madoka.

* TownGirls: The Butch to Madoka's Neither, and Mami and Hitomi's Femme because of her knight aspirations.
* TragicDream: Sayaka wanted to be Mami's successor: A perfect Magical Girl who fought for all that was right. Unfortunately, Sayaka has major self-esteem issues and has enormous pressure to continue Mami's legacy, causing her to refuse help, and view herself as tainted, twisted, and wrong for feeling and acting like a normal human being.

* TragicMistake: [[spoiler:Refusing to cleanse her Soul Gem leads to her becoming a Witch, and Kyoko's death. Although, part of it was done fully knowing that she would die. In a tragically ironic example, one of the first people she saves as a Magical Girl is her own romantic rival, which she realizes as she's talking with Madoka.]]
* TraumaCongaLine: She swears to uphold Mami's legacy as a omnibenevolent magical girl, to prevent Madoka from contracting (to protect her), to be a hero, and to maybe/hopefully win Kyosuke's heart. She first gets her ass kicked by Kyouko, who casually mocks and stomps over Sayaka's ideals. Then she learns that her crush left the hospital without even telling her. Then she learns that she's actually a rock, and views herself as an abomination that no one could love. Then one of her two best friends, Hitomi, tells her that she also likes Kyosuke, but will give Sayaka time to confess first, having met him first and all...which Sayaka can't do, due to the whole soul situation. Then she begins hating herself for a moment of weakness about saving Hitomi, making her think that she fails as a hero, too. And all this while, nearly every word and action from everyone else is a constant reminder that she's nowhere near as good of a fighter as Mami was, making her doubt her own capabilities, as well. And finally, only pushing herself forward due to her last remaining belief that the world is worth dying for...she encounters two sexist assholes on a train, which drives her over the edge. And then she becomes a witch, and iif other materials are any indication, she was conscious the entire time.

* AllThereInTheManual:

* AwesomeButImpractical: In Grief Syndrome, her special, Tiro Finale is the most powerful special in the game but it has a blindspot about one third of the screen right in front of her and turns most of her health bar blue, thus making her extremely vulnerable.

* DeadStarWalking: [[spoiler: First Magical Girl and features in the opening but dies in the third out of 12 episodes.]]
* DeerInTheHeadlights: [[spoiler: During her fight with Charlotte in Episode 3. It does not end well.]]

* GenderBlenderName: [[spoiler:Her Witch form, Candeloro]], has a name that's technically masculine.

* HeroicBSOD:
** [[spoiler:In at least one of the alternate time lines. She doesn't cope with learning what magical girls become very well. This unfortunately causes her to kill Kyoko and die at the hands of ''Madoka'' because [[WellIntentionedExtremist she thought this would be the best way]] to prevent becoming a Witch.]]
** [[spoiler:She had one in the 3rd Drama CD when Kyoko left her embittered due to their ideals becoming wholly different, lamenting that she's alone...AGAIN.]]

* NotSoStoic: [[spoiler:When she has an HeroicBSOD and confesses to Madoka that she's far more frail than she lets her see. Also the revelation that {{Magical Girl}}s can transform into witches, which in an alternate timeline, makes her [[FreakOut flip out]] and in ''Manga/PuellaMagiOrikoMagica'' almost makes her fall into catatonic despair.]]

* SpellMyNameWithAnS: The actual name of her finisher is [[{{Mondegreen}} unclear]]; we only know that its name in the anime is apparently different from the manga's and that the former is Italian while the latter is English.[[http://wiki.puella-magi.net/Translated_Official_Documents#Mami.27s_special_move]] The popular interpretations are "Tiro Finale" for the anime and "Filo Finale" for the manga.
* SpotOfTea: Immediately after killing a Witch she pulls a tea cup from somewhere and sips from it. In addition, she serves tea to her friends when they visit her penthouse. [[spoiler:After her death, the cup lies on a table shattered by a Grief Seed among what's left of Charlotte's remains.]]

* SupremeChef: According to [[spoiler: Kyoko]] in the third Drama CD, she's a fantastic cook.

%%* TomboyAndGirlyGirl: Girly Girl to Kyoko's Tomboy.
* TownGirls: The Femme to Madoka's Neither and Sayaka's Butch because she's the most lady-like of the three.
* UndignifiedDeath: [[spoiler:The "Headless Mami" meme will never let the poor girl live down how she went out.]]

* WeUsedToBeFriends: The third drama CD shows that she knew Kyoko when they were younger and were friends and partners in fighting Witches, until [[spoiler:the PaterFamilicide happened and]] Kyoko decided to be selfish with her magic.

A veteran and morally ambiguous magical girl, she first appears as a foe to Madoka and Sayaka. Her view of a magical girl's duties are ruthlessly utilitarian; for example, on her first encounter with Sayaka, she suggests allowing a familiar to feed on humans and mature into a witch so as to ultimately gain a Grief Seed from slaying it. She wields a halberd whose shaft can split into chained-together segments, giving her weapon dangerous flexibility and reach.

* {{Adorkable}}: In the Drama CD with her and Mami which takes place before she became jaded.

* AxCrazy: Initially, she cares about nothing more than killing her foes and leaving people to die in order to benefit herself.

* BareYourMidriff: A lot of art work - both official and fan - implies she's wearing a belly shirt underneath her jacket.
* BerserkButton: She threatened to kill Sayaka for wasting food.
* BetterToDieThanBeKilled: [[spoiler:After finding out the whole AwfulTruth and unable to save Witch!Sayaka, Kyoko felt she had two choices: Destroy her Soul Gem in a final attack to put Sayaka out of her misery and die together, or win the fight the usual way and still become a Witch sooner or later, be killed by a Mahou Shoujo and die alone. Considering her past, guess which one she picked?]]
* BigDamnHeroes: GenUrobuchi ''loves'' to play with this trope. In Kyoko's case, [[spoiler:Homura saves Sayaka from her and then she saves Sayaka from Elsa Maria. Then she saves Sayaka ''from a very pissed-off Homura''. She tops it off by protecting Madoka and Homura's escape from Witch!Sayaka... By going out with a bang.]]

* ClusterFBomb: In one translation of the manga, on a few occasions.
-->'''Kyoko:''' ''(to Sayaka after injuring her in their first fight)'' "What the '''fuck''' was that about? You'd better get your shit together, '''fuckhead'''."

* DeathEqualsRedemption: [[spoiler: Part of the reason of her (slow) HeelFaceTurn is the realization that {{Magical Girl}}s are essentially [[strike:zombies]] liches, and that she might as well do something to [[IncrediblyLamePun remedy]] [[TheAtoner this situation]]. Culminating in her HeroicSacrifice to give the bewitched Sayaka a MercyKill. She even gets her final [[ObiWanMoment moment of clarity]], where she realizes that [[DeclarationOfProtection she has always wanted to protect someone.]]]]

* JapaneseChristian:
** Her father was a priest. She seemed to have been observant when she was younger but there's little evidence that she still is. She ''does'' [[spoiler: appeal to God as she makes her HeroicSacrifice]], but whether this is out of faith or [[PrayerIsALastResort desperation]] or some combination thereof is ambiguous.
** Mr. Sakura was most likely a Protestant minister; Catholic priests aren't supposed to get married but ministers generally can. On the other hand, this might be a case of a gender-flipped NunsAreMikos. [[FridgeBrilliance Maybe Mr. Sakura was a catholic priest and one of his doctrinal changes was to allow priests to get married]] [[note]] He could be an Orthodox priest; ''they'' are allowed to get married. There are also some Protestant denominations that call their ministers priests and even have them wear the white collar. It could also be that Fr. Sakura was Anglican, got married, got ordained, then converted to Roman Catholicism. This is how real life Roman Catholic married priests exist (obviously they are rare), and it would also fit with Fr. Sakura getting excommunicated for heresy, since according to the Anglican canons (which barely contain any information on the subject), excommunication is extremely rare and typically only happens to those who commit grave crimes, like multiple murders. However, Roman Catholicism would excommunicate for heresy like that. [[/note]]
** It's implied that [[spoiler:she'll [[DiedHappilyEverAfter go to Heaven when she eventually dies for real]] in the current timeline, due to Madoka's wish.]]

* JapanesePronouns: Uses "Atashi" for herself which is odd considering her darwin lifestyle and masculine vocabulary.

%%* LadyInRed: Kyoko's Magical Girl outfit.

* LaughablyEvil: There are no comic relief characters in ''Madoka'', and definitely not Kyoko but try not to chuckle a bit as she nonchalantly stuffs her face with food or plays a BlandNameProduct ''VideoGame/DanceDanceRevolution'' clone as the events of the series unfold.
* {{Leitmotif}}: ''[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p4xSbSpR9j4 "Anima mala".]]''

* LostFoodGrievance: Do ''NOT'' waste food in Kyoko's presence if you value your life. She'll NeckLift you.
* MasterOfIllusion: Used to be capable of illusions as her MagicalGirl power before [[spoiler:the PaterFamilicide incident]].

* NominalHero: At the start, while she's a MagicalGirl who fights Witches and may be loyal to both her teammates and the mission, she cares far more about killing Witches, gaining Grief Seeds, and letting familiars kill people so they can become Witches with grief seeds, than she does about protecting civilians.
* NotSoDifferent: To Sayaka. She criticizes Sayaka for fighting for someone else's sake, but ends up [[spoiler: sacrificing herself to take out Oktavia to make sure Sayaka/Oktavia won't die alone]]. This is lampshaded when she tells Madoka that Sayaka made her remember the reason she became a Puella Magi.

* PimpedOutDress: Her Magical Girl outfit is bloodred to symbolize her aggressive nature [[spoiler:[[NiceJobBreakingItHero and the blood that was spilled]] [[BeCarefulWhatYouWishFor as a consequence of her wish, as well.]] It is also adorned with the symbol of her father's church.]]

* RedEyesTakeWarning: Her eyes are red and she is the first indication that some Magical Girls are outright evil.
* RedOniBlueOni:

* SayMyName: She yells '''"SAYAKAAAA!!!"''' when [[spoiler: Sayaka becomes a Witch.]]
* SelectiveObliviousness: A common theme is how Kyouko says many things...while not actually doing them.
** She ''says'' she's going to kill Sayaka...but is content (at first) to only beat her up before walking away.
** She talks trash about Mami and her beliefs...but as other content showed, she at first came back to Mitakihara to try to reconcile with her, before learning about her death. She even made a grave for her.
** She comments on how normal people are essentially just food...but never hurts Madoka and doesn't stop her from going to Sayaka. She even encourages Madoka that she's done nothing wrong and that being a magical girl isn't something to envy.
** She talks about how magic is only meant to be used for herself...but her wish was used for someone else, and even after that she uses magic for Sayaka and Madoka's sake, repeatedly.

* ShipTease: Implied to have a one-sided crush on [[LesYay Sayaka]].

* SourOutsideSadInside: At first, she seems to be a mean, selfish girl who believes that {{Magical Girl}}s should use their powers for their own purposes. As the series progresses, it's revealed ''why'' she acts this way: [[spoiler: Her family fell into destitution after her preacher father was excommunicated and when he found out that his followers increased and came back was due to Kyoko's Magical Girl wish and not from people actually believing in him, he killed his family and himself and only she survived,]]. It is only when she learns about the {{Awful Truth}}s of being a Magical Girl and when she saves Sayaka from Homura that she starts to get over her sourness, [[spoiler:which culminates in her performing a MercyKill to witch!Sayaka and sacrificing herself so Sayaka wouldn't be alone.]]
* SpellMyNameWithAnS: "Kyouko", "Kyoko" or "Kyōko"? Not helping anything is the fact that, although "Kyōko" is the most accurate romanization, it's never used officially. Instead, "Kyouko" and "Kyoko" are both inconsistently used - '''in both English and Japanese'''.[[note]]For example, the official English subs use "Kyoko", while the manga translation uses "Kyouko".[[/note]]
* SuicideAttack: [[spoiler: She kills Octavia with one.]]
* SuperDrowningSkills: According to the 4th Dramam CD, she can't swim.

* TomboyAndGirlyGirl: Tomboy to Mami's and [[TomboyWithAGirlyStreak Sayaka's]] Girly Girl, having a much rougher speech pattern and being more aggressive and masculine than both of them.
* TomboyishPonytail: Although her hairstyle should be ''more'' feminine than Sayaka's, it also emphasizes her nature as a rough ActionGirl and looks quite unkempt. It also contrasts quite a bit with the preppy but cute Mitakihara school uniform, which she wears in ''Rebellion'' and the best ending of ''PMMM Portable''.

* UnwittingInstigatorOfDoom: [[spoiler:Had Kyoko not picked fights needlessly with Sayaka, Madoka wouldn't have snapped and thrown Sayaka's Soul Gem away, thus TheReveal would have happened later - and thus, Sayaka wouldn't've begun her StartOfDarkness either.]]

* WeUsedToBeFriends: The third drama CD shows that she and Mami knew each other when they were younger and were friends and partners in fighting Witches, until [[spoiler:the PaterFamilicide happened and]] Kyoko decided to be more selfish with her magic.

* ZettaiRyouiki: She's sporting a Grade B in her MagicalGirl outfit and her school uniform.

* OlderThanSheLooks: Assuming it wasn't a case of TeasingCreator, WordOfGod has confirmed she has gone through approximately [[spoiler:100 time loops; each loop = 1 month and 100 loops = 8 years 4 months. She's about 14 when she starts jumping, which would chronologically place her at about 22 years old.]]

->'''Voiced by:''' KaoriMizuhashi (JP), CarrieKeranen (EN), Violeta Bibiloni (Spain)

** Meta-wise, defied. [[spoiler:KaoriMizuhashi went out of her way to say that it's exactly because of Mami's early and gruesome death that she becomes memorable and lives on in the mind of fans instead of being treated like thin air.]]

* [[FieldOfBlades Field of]] ''[[FieldOfBlades Muskets]]'': [[MemeticMutation Unlimited Musket Works]], indeed.

* RazorWire: Demonstrated in ''The Different Story''.
* RedOniBlueOni: The blue to Kyoko's red in the past and in ''The Different Story''.

* SupremeChef: According to [[spoiler: Kyoko]] in the third Drama CD.

* GetAHoldOfYourselfWoman: To [[spoiler:Mami]] in ''The Different Story''.

** Also the red to Mami's blue in the past and in ''The Different Story''

* SirNotAppearingInThisTrailer: Didn't appear in early promotional materials, likely because her darker nature.

** She also distrusts Kyoko due to her intentionally ignoring Familiars who kill innocent humans, for the sake of conserving energy to fight Witches for their own survival.

* BreakTheCutie: She took up Kyubey's offer and it bit her in the ass '''HORRIBLY'''.

* ConspiracyTheorist: She thinks Homura is against her, and is very distrustful of her in general. She blames her for [[spoiler:Mami's death]] and refuses her help. [[spoiler:How Homura, apparently, ''conveniently'' arrived right after Mami's death]] is suspicious. She never bothers to explain, which only made it worse.

** Grief Seeds? No thanks. She refuses Homura's help due to her suspiciousness and outright lying, accusing her of trying to manipulate her. Which is, of course, [[spoiler:entirely true.]]

* [[SuperheroesWearCapes Superheroines Wear Capes]]: Fitting with her "{{Magical Girl}}s are righteous {{Superhero}}ines" mindset. [[spoiler:When she [[AndThenJohnWasAZombie turns into a Witch in any timeline]], the cape stays.]]

* WideEyedIdealist: Believes herself to be a "hero of justice" that can keep her hometown "super safe" from all evil and that any newcomer magical girls will be the same. At least part of her realizes it's dangerous and not a life to envy, and the quickly loses the "newcomer magical girls are the same" bit.

* FighterMageThief: Mami and Kyoko (Fighter), Homura (Mage), Madoka and Sayaka (Thief)

* RedOniBlueOni: On a sliding scale from red to blue - Kyoko, Sayaka, Madoka, Homura, Mami

* DiedHappilyEverAfter: One of several implied fates [[spoiler:for her at the end of the series, and canon in the manga.]]

* DomesticAbuser: Shows shades of this, what with her intimidating Madoka and generally not approaching her as an equal, her controlling of Madoka's decisions and wants, following her around all the time, telling her to give up on her friends, withholding important information (regardless of the reasons why), and trying to drive others like Mami and Sayaka away from her (as well as threatening or actually [[spoiler:attempting to kill them]]), among other things. It gets even worse in ''Rebellion''.

* TownGirls: The "neither" to Mami's femme and Kyoko's butch. [[spoiler:At the end of the series, they are the last left on earth of the five main magical girls.]]

* TheSociopath: Shows some traits of one, such as her lack of empathy and remorse, as pointed out in [[http://villaininglasses.tumblr.com/post/99305261455/matsurisunrise-lustfuldemoness this analysis]]. ('''''Rebellion'' spoilers in link!''')

* UndyingLoyalty: To Madoka, [[spoiler: [[YouAreWorthHell as she willingly trapped herself in a]] GroundhogDayLoop, [[YouAreWorthHell and expressed that she'll stay there forever if need be, all for the sake of saving her one and only friend from the fate of death or eternal despair.]] In the end, she is responsible for fighting the Wraiths, the new embodiment of the curses of the world, in accordance with Madoka's wish of keeping the world safe.]]

* DomesticAbuser: Shows shades of this, what with her intimidating Madoka and generally not approaching her as an equal, her controlling of Madoka's decisions and wants, following her around all the time, telling her to give up on her friends, withholding important information (regardless of the reasons), and trying to drive others like Mami and Sayaka away from her, among other things. It gets even worse in ''Rebellion''.

* DomesticAbuser: Shows shades of this, what with her intimidating Madoka and generally not approaching her as an equal, her constant controlling of Madoka's decisions and wants, telling her to give up on her friends, withholding important information (regardless of the reasons), and trying to drive others like Mami and Sayaka away from her, among other things. It gets even worse in ''Rebellion''.

* NotSoStoic: [[spoiler:When she has an HeroicBSOD and confesses to Madoka that she's far more frail than she lets her see. Also the revelation that MagicalGirls can transform into witches, which in an alternate timeline, makes her [[FreakOut flip out]] and in ''Manga/PuellaMagiOrikoMagica'' almost makes her fall into catatonic despair.]]

* HairDecorations: Everyone has something in their hair. Madoka has ribbons, Homura has a headband (and later [[spoiler: she gets Madoka's ribbons]]), Mami has her flower shaped berets, Sayaka has hairclips (and the [[CompilationMovie Compilation Movies]] gave her a new one after she transforms), and Kyoko has a bow.

* HiddenDepths: Before [[WholeEpisodeFlashback Episode 10]], she appears to be an average girl [[spoiler:caught in awful circumstances]] who at times behaves in a supposedly "stupid" or "[[WhatMeasureIsANonBadass cowardly]]" manner. Episode 10 reveals [[spoiler:that Madoka is not only able to fight, but is willing to sacrifice herself because of her love for her friends]]. [[RescuedFromTheScrappyHeap Many fans' opinion of her improved after this episode]]. On the other hand, not all of her depts are hidden. How many "normal" girls would follow a friend in trouble to something they know can literally eat their face? (episode 4)