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Ikiniks
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*Despite celebrating the genre, \'\'PuellaMagiMadokaMagica\'\' is, at least for the majority of the series, a pretty thorough deconstruction of the MagicalGirl genre. The premise starts simple. Young NaiveEverygirl Madoka and her WideEyedIdealist friend Sayaka, are approached by MentorMascot Kyubey, and the relative CoolBigSis Mami, where they are given the opportunity to become {{Magical Girl}}s. In exchange, they are granted one wish, that can be anything they want, but they will have to fight evil demonic entities forever. In addition, a DarkMagicalGirl, Homura, is opposed to this, and is constantly trying to prevent the two from making a contract. Sounds reasonable enough. And then the show demonstrates exactly what happens to those young girls who are forced into fighting EldritchAbominations with no chance at a normal life. Mami [[spoiler:is ultimately an extremely lonely StepfordSmiler who is broken on the inside due to losing her parents, and being forced to fight with no real friends. When Madoka does become her friend, her subsequent joy leads to her death, and also reminds us that these encounters are far more dangerous when removed from the sweet and innocent flavor that permeates most MagicalGirl shows]]. In addition, Sayaka [[spoiler:decides to use a SelflessWish to heal her crush, Kyousuke, much like any typical superhero. But as the other characters demonstrate, their is no such thing as a SelflessWish, as they all have a selfish intention. In Sayaka\'s case, it was so that she could get together with Kyousuke, and when he doesn\'t return her affections, she breaks down.]] Finally, Kyubey [[spoiler:shows exactly what kind of \
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*Despite celebrating the genre, \\\'\\\'PuellaMagiMadokaMagica\\\'\\\' is, at least for the majority of the series, a pretty thorough deconstruction of the MagicalGirl genre. The premise starts simple. Young NaiveEverygirl Madoka and her WideEyedIdealist friend Sayaka, are approached by MentorMascot Kyubey, and the relative CoolBigSis Mami, where they are given the opportunity to become {{Magical Girl}}s. In exchange, they are granted one wish, that can be anything they want, but they will have to fight evil demonic entities forever. In addition, a DarkMagicalGirl, Homura, is opposed to this, and is constantly trying to prevent the two from making a contract. Sounds reasonable enough. And then the show demonstrates exactly what happens to those young girls who are forced into fighting EldritchAbominations with no chance at a normal life. Mami [[spoiler:is ultimately an extremely lonely StepfordSmiler who is broken on the inside due to losing her parents, and being forced to fight with no real friends. When Madoka does become her friend, her subsequent joy leads to her death, and also reminds us that these encounters are far more dangerous when removed from the sweet and innocent flavor that permeates most MagicalGirl shows]]. In addition, Sayaka [[spoiler:decides to use a SelflessWish to heal her crush, Kyousuke, much like any typical superhero. But as the other characters demonstrate, their is no such thing as a SelflessWish, as they all have a selfish intention. In Sayaka\\\'s case, it was so that she could get together with Kyousuke, and when he doesn\\\'t return her affections, she breaks down.]] Finally, Kyubey [[spoiler:shows exactly what kind of \\\"mentor\\\" would knowingly send girls off to their death, without giving the full details]]. It is only at the end that Madoka [[spoiler:becomes a MagicalGirl, and uses a ResetButtonEnding in an attempt to make things a bit more sweet]]. And even this is deconstructed, as [[spoiler:despite there being hope, things are no better off than before, with the girls no being forced to fight demons rather than witches]]. In short, {{Madoka}} is called the {{Evangelion}} of the MagicalGirl genre for a reason.
I feel that that last point undermines the spirit of [[spoiler:episode 12]]. Yes, [[spoiler:{{Magical Girl}}s are still liches and fight demons now, but the fact remains that a series of actions based on friendship, determination, and luck have led to \\\'\\\'one of the most horrifying aspects of the system\\\'\\\' being completely changed. This same aspect is also the driving force of tragedies that fuel the series\\\' plot. I honestly don\\\'t think that this qualifies as \\\"no better off than before\\\".]]
This is my take on the entry:
* \\\'\\\'PuellaMagiMadokaMagica\\\'\\\' is, for the majority of the series, a pretty thorough deconstruction of the MagicalGirl genre. The premise starts simple. Young NaiveEverygirl Madoka and her WideEyedIdealist friend Sayaka, are approached by MentorMascot Kyubey, and the relative CoolBigSis Mami, where they are given the opportunity to become {{Magical Girl}}s. In exchange, they are granted one wish, that can be anything they want, but they will have to fight demonic entities called witches for the rest of their lives. In addition, a DarkMagicalGirl, Homura, is opposed to this, and is constantly trying to prevent the two from making a contract. Sounds reasonable enough. And then the show demonstrates exactly what happens to those young girls who are forced into fighting EldritchAbominations with no chance at a normal life. Mami [[spoiler:is ultimately an extremely lonely StepfordSmiler who is broken on the inside due to losing her parents, and being forced to fight with no real friends. When Madoka does become her friend, her subsequent joy leads to her death, and also reminds us that these encounters are far more dangerous when removed from the sweet and innocent flavor that permeates most MagicalGirl shows]]. In addition, Sayaka [[spoiler:decides to use a SelflessWish to heal her crush, Kyousuke, much like any typical superhero. But as the other characters demonstrate, their is no such thing as a SelflessWish, as they all have a selfish intention. In Sayaka\\\'s case, it was so that she could get together with Kyousuke, and when he doesn\\\'t return her affections, she breaks down.]] Finally, Kyubey [[spoiler:shows exactly what kind of \\\"mentor\\\" would knowingly send girls off to their death, without giving the full details. Among these details is the fact that Magical girls will someday become the monsters that they fight, and that one reason they even fight them in the first place, is to stave off that end for as long as possible]]. At the end [[DeconReconSwitch however]], [[spoiler:Madoka becomes a MagicalGirl, and uses a CosmicRetcon to make it so that {{Magical Girl}}s will not become witches. Although {{Magical Girl}}s will have to fight demons instead of witches, it is at least implied that the situation is better than before]].
I feel that that last point undermines the spirit of [[spoiler:episode 12]]. Yes, [[spoiler:{{Magical Girl}}s are still liches and fight demons now, but the fact remains that a series of actions based on friendship, determination, and luck have led to \\\'\\\'one of the most horrifying aspects of the system\\\'\\\' being completely changed. This same aspect is also the driving force of tragedies that fuel the series\\\' plot. I honestly don\\\'t think that this qualifies as \\\"no better off than before\\\".]]
This is my take on the entry:
* \\\'\\\'PuellaMagiMadokaMagica\\\'\\\' is, for the majority of the series, a pretty thorough deconstruction of the MagicalGirl genre. The premise starts simple. Young NaiveEverygirl Madoka and her WideEyedIdealist friend Sayaka, are approached by MentorMascot Kyubey, and the relative CoolBigSis Mami, where they are given the opportunity to become {{Magical Girl}}s. In exchange, they are granted one wish, that can be anything they want, but they will have to fight demonic entities called witches for the rest of their lives. In addition, a DarkMagicalGirl, Homura, is opposed to this, and is constantly trying to prevent the two from making a contract. Sounds reasonable enough. And then the show demonstrates exactly what happens to those young girls who are forced into fighting EldritchAbominations with no chance at a normal life. Mami [[spoiler:is ultimately an extremely lonely StepfordSmiler who is broken on the inside due to losing her parents, and being forced to fight with no real friends. When Madoka does become her friend, her subsequent joy leads to her death, and also reminds us that these encounters are far more dangerous when removed from the sweet and innocent flavor that permeates most MagicalGirl shows]]. In addition, Sayaka [[spoiler:decides to use a SelflessWish to heal her crush, Kyousuke, much like any typical superhero. But as the other characters demonstrate, their is no such thing as a SelflessWish, as they all have a selfish intention. In Sayaka\\\'s case, it was so that she could get together with Kyousuke, and when he doesn\\\'t return her affections, she breaks down.]] Finally, Kyubey [[spoiler:shows exactly what kind of \\\"mentor\\\" would knowingly send girls off to their death, without giving the full details. Among these details is the fact that Magical girls will someday become the monsters that they fight, and that one reason they even fight them in the first place, is to stave off that end for as long as possible]]. At the end [[DeconReconSwitch however]], [[spoiler:Madoka becomes a MagicalGirl, and uses a CosmicRetcon to make it so that {{Magical Girl}}s will not become witches. Although {{Magical Girl}}s will have to fight demons instead of witches, it is at least implied that the situation is better than before]].
