History Manga / PuellaMagiKazumiMagica

* HotterAndSexier: A complete contrast to the [[Anime/PuellaMagiMadokaMagica original show]]. Since these girls look pretty prepubescent, it can make certain shots slightly uncomfortable - unless you're into that.

'''Saki:''' Of course...[[HypocriticalHumor I'd never do that.]]

* BigBad: Yuuri, the mysterious magical girl. For the first arc anyway.
** [[spoiler: As of Chapter 18, it seems that the one pulling strings behind the scenes all along was Kanna Hijiri, Niko's clone. It appears that she broke down as a result of learning about her origins from Juubey - although it's later explained that it was actually Kyubey. It's revealed that she's the one responsible for creating Evil Nuts, then giving them to Yuuri and Ayase, as well as turning Niko, Satomi and now Saki into witches. In short, she's behind most of the horrible events in the series so far.]]
** BiggerBad: [[spoiler: It's all Kyubey's fault.]]

The series has been licensed in America by Yen Press. The first three volumes are out now. Please use the official translations on this page when possible.

* {{Foreshadowing}}:
((It's pretty heavily foreshadowed that magical girls become witches...and the Pleiades know this.

* FiveManBand:
** TheLeader: Saki
** TheHero: Kazumi
** TheLancer: Umika
** TheBigGirl: Kaoru
** TheSmartGirl: Niko
** [[TheChick The Chicks]]: Mirai and Satomi.
* {{Foreshadowing}}: It's pretty heavily foreshadowed that magical girls become witches...and the Pleiades know this.

* [[WhamEpisode Wham Chapter]]: [[Anime/PuellaMagiMadokaMagica As to be expected from the spin-off to the series that delivered a WHAM line every episode.]]

* UnreliableExpositor: Subverted. In Chapter 5, Yuuri claims that the Pleiades Saints are a gang that kills magical girls. The subsequent flashback implies that she only thought that because her friend had turned into a witch, and was then killed by the Pleiades. But then in Chapter 7 the Pleiades really do attack a magical girl, and then do ''something'' to her Soul Gem. We later find that they sever the connection between Soul Gems and magical girls, and put them both [[HumanPopsicle in storage]]]]
*** In Chapter 10 Umika tells Kazumi that they lied to her about the origins of witches. What makes this disconcerting was that it was ''Jubey'' who told that lie to Kazumi.

* [[MindScrew It's a total mind screw.]]

* NiceJobBreakingItHero: [[spoiler: Chapter 21 reveals that Niko created Jubey as an incubator who would work for the Pleiades and clean their Soul Gems, and Umika cast a spell on the city to make Kyubey invisible to everyone in the city and even replace the memories of Magical Girls (including themselves) to show Jubey in the place of Kyubey, along with erasing the memories of how to clean Soul Gems the normal way using Grief Seeds. Unfortunatly, it turns out Jyubey wasn't actually able to purify Soul Gems, as he only removed the visible darkness without actually removing the corruption itself. What a [[jerkass Jerk Ass.]]

* FeminineWomenCanCook: Umika, Kazumi and the real Yuuri are really good cooks. Michiru apparently was as well; when the girls noticed that the current Kazumi had inherited Michiru's cooking skills, they took it as a sign that they may have finally created a successful clone of Michiru.]]

* [[MindScrew]]

** And [[spoiler: Kazumi's new name by C23, Kazumi Subaru. Subaru is the Japaense name for Pleiades.]]

* NiceJobBreakingItHero: [[spoiler: Chapter 21 reveals that Niko created Jubey as an incubator who would work for the Pleiades and clean their Soul Gems, and Umika cast a spell on the city to make Kyubey invisible to everyone in the city and even replace the memories of Magical Girls (including themselves) to show Jubey in the place of Kyubey, along with erasing the memories of how to clean Soul Gems the normal way using Grief Seeds. Unfortunatly, it turns out Jyubey wasn't actually able to purify Soul Gems, as he only removed the visible darkness without actually removing the corruption itself.]]

** Chapter 17: Kazumi is "rescued" by Niko who replaces her with a clone. When Mirai questions her, Niko points out Saki's Soul Gem, which is about to break. Then another Niko clone shows up behind Saki and presses an Evil Nut into her forehead, while the real Niko remarks that it would be troublesome if "you humans" killed Kazumi.

** "Kazumi" can be read as "thirteen". In Chapter 13 [[spoiler: we find she's the thirteenth Kazumi clone]]

* [[spoiler:AndThenJohnWasAZombie]]: It's revealed that Kazumi is [[spoiler:actually a clone of a dead Puella Magi constructed from the preserved remains of Michuru Kazusa and her witch]].
** Also applies to [[spoiler: the girls who turn into witches, which so far includes Niko, Satomi, and Saki.]]

*** [[spoiler: Chapter 13 reveals that the real Kazumi became a witch and died; the Kazumi we've been following is the latest in a series of clones.]]
* BarbieDollAnatomy: Kazumi, at the start of chapter 1. [[spoiler: Then again, knowing what [[ArtificialHuman we now know about Kazumi's origins]], this may not be down to the art style...]]

** [[spoiler: As of Chapter 18, it seems that the one pulling strings behind the scenes all along was Kanna Hijiri, Niko's clone. It appears that she broke down as a result of learning about her origins from Juubey. It's revealed that she's the one responsible for creating Evil Nuts, then giving them to Yuuri and Ayase, as well as turning Niko, Satomi and now Saki into witches. In short, she's behind most of the horrible events in the series so far.]]

** [[spoiler: And then it's revealed that Kazumi already IS a pseudo-magical girl, and the Evil Nut was turning her back into a witch.]]

** The biggest is in Chapter 11 when Mami Tomoe appears - it turns out she saved the founder of the Pleiades from a witch before said founder contracted.
** In Chapter 16, [[spoiler:Kyoko makes an appearance in a flashback, where she battles with Yuuri Asuka before Michiru arrives and breaks it up.]]

** Niko's wish for regeneration gives her the ability to create clones. [[spoiler: Including the current Kazumi.]]

* FeminineWomenCanCook: Umika, Kazumi and the real Yuuri are really good cooks. [[spoiler: Michiru apparently was as well; when the girls noticed that the current Kazumi had inherited Michiru's cooking skills, they took it as a sign that they may have finally created a successful clone of Michiru.]]

** In Chapter 6 [[spoiler: Kazumi turns Yuuri into some bizarre witch/human hybrid. This ultimately foreshadows Kazumi's own nature as something similar.]]
** Waaay back in Chapter 4, Kyuubey appears and says "I wonder if you'll do so well ''this time''?" [[spoiler: He's referring to the fact that Kazumi is their thirteenth attempt at reviving Kazusa.]]
* GenreSavvy: In some ways, the things the Pleiades do sounds remarkably logical, after learning the full truth behind what it means to be a Magical Girl. They separate as many Magical Girls from their Soul Gems as possible, keeping their progression into Witches frozen while they work on a way to prevent them from ever turning, which keeps more Witches from being created. [[spoiler: When one of their number becomes a Witch and dies, they preserve her body and Grief Seed in an attempt to resurrect her without turning to more wishes. And as soon as they learn Kyuubey's true nature, they lock him out of their city in a way that prevents him from making ''any'' more contracts in the area. Even Kyubey admits that their attempt to make Juubey capable of purifying Soul Gems wasn't a bad idea.]] Sadly, this being the franchise it is, [[DeathByGenreSavvy none of it works]].

* KillAllHumans: [[spoiler: This is what Kanna Hijiri (Niko's clone, who was created by her wish) wants to do. When she found out the truth, that she's not the original and was created by magic, she came to the conclusion that her life was a lie. Now she's set on killing normal humans and replacing them with artificial beings like herself and Kazumi.]]

* ParentalAbandonment / ConvenientlyAnOrphan: Umika and Kaoru mention that their (and Kazumi's own) parents are working overseas, and Saki's father is said to travel a lot. No mention is made of the other girls having guardians, meaning there is no one to question why seven teenage girls are running around outside of school. Before the events of the story, Kazumi/[[spoiler: Michiru]] lived with her grandmother when she wasn't studying abroad; no other mention is made of her parents.

* StepfordSmiler: Judging by her attempt [[spoiler: to kill Kazumi]] in Chapter 14, which she's disturbingly cheerful about, Satomi might have been this all along. Her politeness and smiles seem to have been hiding an unstable and violent side. Like Mami in TheOriginalSeries, this was most likely a result of finding out the truth about witches.

** Chapter 12 contradicts Chapter 2, where Kazumi is told Umika and Kaoru didn't know what her wish was. In Chapter 12's flashback Kazumi does tell them about her wish. Furthermore, Kaoru's wish in the flashback is entirely different from what she told Kazumi in Chapter 2. [[spoiler: It's later explained Umika and Kaoru were lying...and also that the entire flashback was filled with FakeMemories and omissions, including the important fact that they weren't even Kazumi's memories to begin with.]]
* TheUnreveal: In Chapter 8, Kazumi is set to learn the truth about the Pleiades Saints...and then Niko [[AndThenJohnWasAZombie becomes a witch.]] Or does she?

** [[spoiler: Why does Satomi's Witch Form have a whistle for a head on the outer shell? Because she was a whistleblower about the discrepancy in Kazumi's memories!]]

** [[spoiler: This is Satomi's attitude towards the Kazumi clones. Since it looks like the newest Kazumi might be corrupted by an Evil Nut, she just decides to kill her and try again.]]
** [[spoiler: In fact, all of the Pleiades have shades of this attitude - they just want Michiru back, and will keep cloning her (and the recently witchified Satomi) until they get it right. Saki's reservations only came from the fact that she loved Michiru and couldn't bring herself to kill the clones. Kaoru calls them out on this, but it doesn't work.]]

** Chapter 8: Comparatively minor, but the Soujus pull out Evil Nuts, which either implies they were created by someone other than Yuuri. [[spoiler: [[{{Cliffhanger}} And then Niko becomes a witch]]]].

** Chapter 13: [[spoiler: The real Kazumi was a girl named Kazusa Michiru who turned into a witch and died before the events of the story; the current Kazumi is the thirteenth clone made from the remnants of the original's witch form. Kazumi's earlier exposure to the Evil Nut is causing her to revert to her witch form, and Satomi wants to kill her before it happens.]]
** Chapter 14: [[spoiler: Kazumi was stabbed by Satomi while in combat.]]
** Chapter 15: [[spoiler: Satomi becomes a witch while fighting Kazumi, and most of the other girls vote to kill Kazumi and revive her and Satomi as many times as is necessary.]]
** Chapter 17: [[spoiler: The Kazumi at the Freezer turns out to be a clone created by Niko, who shows up carrying the real Kazumi. When Mirai questions her, Niko points out Saki's Soul Gem, which is about to break. Then another Niko clone shows up behind Saki and presses an Evil Nut into her forehead, while the real Niko remarks that it would be troublesome if "you humans" killed Kazumi.]]
** Chapter 18: [[spoiler: Saki becomes a witch and decapitates Mirai, who refuses to fight because she doesn't want to hurt Saki. The Niko we've been following turns out to be a clone of Niko; the real Niko was actually the one who turned into a witch back in Chapter 9. Niko's wish was to create a duplicate of herself with no memories of the shooting incident in her childhood. She gave her original name, Kanna Hijiri, to the duplicate. The duplicate knew nothing about the Pleiades until seeing them fighting Yuuri's witch; she subsequently met Jubey and learned the truth about her origins. Her wish was to connect to the Pleiades without their knowledge in order to take revenge on them. Her goal is to use the magical girls in the Freezer to wipe out humanity.]]

** Chapter 17: [[spoiler: "I can't let you kill Kazumi. You humans, that is."]]
* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: We know what happened to them at the ''end'' of the story, but we are never given any explanation for the body-sharing Luca and Ayase. Unlike the other villains, we never learn their backstory or motivation. What did they wish for? Do they collect soul gems for any particular reason, or are they just AxeCrazy? Why the one body, two souls -- was it an act of desperation, desire, or just one girl with such a split personality that she warranted two soul gems? Just ''who are they?'' They are/She is set up as a real anomaly, being both insane and predatory...then they're defeated and [[spoiler:Niko's death]] ensures that they're promptly forgotten by the plot.

* {{Yandere}}: [[spoiler: The Pleiades Saints for Michiru. They have cloned her up to 13 times, with Kazumi being the most recent one, in the hopes of getting her back.]] Airi is also one for Yuuri, going so far as to wish to '''be her'''. No matter how you look at it, the girls are messed up.

** Espisodio Incrocio: "{{Crossover}} Episode" (Note that "Espisodio" is likely a misprint of "Episodio".)

''Puella Magi Kazumi Magica: The Innocent Malice'' is a SpinOff {{Manga}} of ''Anime/PuellaMagiMadokaMagica'', written by Masaki Hiramatsu and illustrated by Takashi Tensugi. It ran in the monthly magazine ''Manga Time Kirara Forward'' starting in January 24th 2011. It features a different set of characters in a new plot separate from the [[AnimeFirst anime]], but in the same universe.

-->"I don't care [[BloodierAndGorier how bloody]] it gets (This is (Manga Time Kirara) Forward, you know)"

* TheBlank: [[spoiler: What Niko does to the body of her "spare"]]. Later, turns out [[spoiler: it was actually what the so-called "spare" did to Niko.]]

** [[spoiler: And then it's revealed that Kazumi already IS a pseudo-magical girl, and the Evil Nut was turning her back into a witch. According to Satomi, the Kazusa clones were created by stuffing empty bodies with bits of witch flesh.]]

** Then in Chapter 10 [[spoiler: we get to see their backstories. Oh dear...]]

** Sayaka and [[spoiler: Oktavia von Seckendorff]] appear as examples for an explanation the Pleiades give Kazumi in chapter 10.
** The biggest is in Chapter 11 when [[spoiler: Mami Tomoe appears - it turns out she saved Kazumi from a witch before Kazumi contracted.]]

** [[spoiler: Jubey's]] first lines in Chapter 11 are pulled almost directly from episode 10.

** Chapter 12 has [[spoiler: Jubey recite Kyubey's monologue about witches from the end of Episode 9]]. There's also two more call backs to the flashbacks Kazumi has with her earring-bell from Chapter 1.

* CallingYourAttacks: Unlike the anime, where only Mami did this, ''Kazumi Magica'' takes this trope and runs with it, complete with GratuitousItalian. It's later revealed that [[spoiler: Mami was actually the first magical girl Kazumi met. Kazumi is purposely trying to imitate Mami, and insisted the Pleiades play along.]]

** [[spoiler: CerebusRetcon: The Pleiades' wishes could be considered this (Umika's wish for an editor to recognize her works, Kaoru wanting a healthy body to play soccer, Satomi wanting to talk to animals and Niko wishing for "regeneration"). When we first hear them they seem pretty innocuous and simplistic, compared to other wishes made in the series. They take on a serious meaning after ch 10. when you learn their backstories and find out ''why'' they would make these wishes.]]

** Kazumi's bells. [[spoiler: They turn out to be a [[TragicKeepsake keepsake from her grandmother]]. Also, one of them turns out to contain Michiru's Grief Seed, which Kazumi uses to save Umika and Kaoru from becoming witches.]]

** Extremely subtle. At the beginning of Chapter 9, notice that [[spoiler: the top of Niko's Soul Gem has a hexagon.]] Now later on [[spoiler: take a look at the Grief Seed Niko's witch form drops - it has a ''diamond'' instead of a hexagon. Grief Seeds don't change like that. It turns out that was Niko's "spare".]]
** The news article Niko is looking at in Chapter 7, which was about a Japanese kid who shot people in California. [[spoiler: In Chapter 8, copy-Niko's witch form has shooting target dummies as familiars, and in Chapter 9 there is a colored picture of Niko holding a gun. It's revealed in Chapter 10 that Niko was the kid in the article and the whole thing was a horrible accident.]]

* ClingyJealousGirl: Mirai towards Saki. [[spoiler: In particular, she seems to be jealous of Michiru/Kazumi, who it's implied Saki was in love with.]]

** The container used to hold the Evil Nuts in Chapter 4 reappears in Chapter 10. [[spoiler: It's purpose was to hold magical girls and their Soul Gems.]]

** Chapter 9 adds some {{Foreshadowing}}: [[spoiler: "We have no future as long as he's around", as Niko's copy turns into a witch.]]

** Chapter 10 reveals [[spoiler: ''all'' the other Pleiades have one. See DespairEventHorizon and PsychicAssistedSuicide.]]
* DealWithTheDevil: As in [[Anime/PuellaMagiMadokaMagica canon]], but in Chapter 9, [[spoiler: Jubey notably says Niko's spare was compensation for her contract.]]

* DespairEventHorizon: [[spoiler: Chapter 10 shows how each of the Pleaides (except Kazumi) went over the horizon before the story began.]]
** [[spoiler: Umika's book was picked up by an editor, who promised to get it published. Later on, she finds out that her work was plagiarized and released under the name of a famous idol. When Umika confronts the editor, he has the audacity to ask her when her next book will be ready.]]
** [[spoiler: Kaoru was injured in a soccer match by an opposing player. While she was recovering in the hospital, she saw the player who hurt her being brought in. It turns out that the girl had been bullied for hurting/ending the career of a great soccer player (Kaoru) to the point where she decided to try and take her own life.]]
** [[spoiler: Satomi received a kitten on her third birthday, whom she named Sare. Years later, Satomi ignores it (despite its loud pleading) and goes out. Sare dies and the vet says that, had the cat been brought in earlier, it could have probably been saved. Satomi realizes that, had she listened to Sare, it wouldn't have died.]]
** [[spoiler: Mirai was once a lonely girl who was ostracized by her classmates. Her only company is the teddy bears she makes by hand. As she sews up her 666th teddy bear, she cries as she wishes for friends.]]
** [[spoiler: When she was very young, Niko was playing "sheriff" with her two friends using a loaded gun. She accidentally pulls the trigger and the bullet ricochets around, killing her two friends and injuring her.]]
** [[spoiler: Saki was very close to her younger sister, Miyuki. In their childhood, Miyuki even said she'd marry Saki (although exactly what that means is unclear). When they're older, Miyuki is killed in a car crash, devastating Saki.]]

* DrivenToSuicide: [[spoiler: In Kaoru's backstory, the person who injured her nearly killed herself for ending Kaoru's career. See also PsychicAssistedSuicide.]]

* TheFairFolk: The contract-making creatures are described here as fairies (although the official translation uses "mystical creatures" or "sprites"). One of them, Jubey, appears at the end of Chapter 3, although he's not revealed to be one until Chapter 4. [[spoiler: It's later revealed he's an Incubator that underwent HeelFaceBrainwashing...[[UnreliableNarrator not.]] He's actually a magical girl-created construct.]]

** More character-specific, but when the Pleiades first arrive, [[spoiler:Mirai is seen clinging to Saki, and also seems gleeful at the fact she's paired with Saki and Kazumi in their search. It's mostly ignored at the time, but guess who's shown to have a ViolentlyProtectiveGirlfriend streak for Saki six chapters later?]]
** In Chapter 6 [[spoiler: Kazumi turns Yuuri into some bizarre witch/human hybrid. This ultimately foreshadows Kazumi's own nature as witch meat stuffed into a human body.]]

* GenreSavvy: In some ways, the things the [[spoiler:Pleiades]] do sounds remarkably logical, after learning the full truth behind what it means to be a Magical Girl. [[spoiler:They separate as many Magical Girls from their Soul Gems as possible, keeping their progression into Witches frozen while they work on a way to prevent them from ever turning, which keeps more Witches from being created. When one of their number becomes a Witch and dies, they preserve her body and Grief Seed in an attempt to resurrect her without turning to more wishes. And as soon as they learn Kyuubey's true nature, they lock him out of their city in a way that prevents him from making ''any'' more contracts in the area. Even Kyubey admits that their attempt to make Juubey capable of purifying Soul Gems wasn't a bad idea.]] Sadly, this being the franchise it is, [[DeathByGenreSavvy none of it works]].

* [[spoiler: HumanPopsicle: The Freezer, where the Pleiades keep the bodies of magical girls who have lost the connection to their Soul Gems. It also holds those Soul Gems.]]

** [[spoiler: Kaoru tries this on (copy-)Niko's witch in Chapter 9...for about ten seconds.]]

* [[IncrediblyLamePun Incredibly Lame]] {{Stealth Pun}}: In Chapter 9, Mirai [[spoiler: has a giant teddy bear hold down a witch by hugging it. It's a ''bear hug''.]]

** [[spoiler: As of Ch 19, the death toll among the Pleides is four with Niko, Satomi & Saki turning into witches & Mirai getting decapitated by Saki's witch.]]

** Mirai Wakaba's name, which means "Future Young Leaf", gives Kazumi the idea to the name her museum, "Ashitaba (Tomorrow's Leaf) Bears". The Ashitaba plant is also in the Angelica genus, and the museum's English name is Angelica Bears.
* LoveTriangle: [[spoiler: Mirai loves Saki, who loves Michiru/Kazumi.]]

** According to [[WordOfGod the writer's Q&A from the collected edition]], the subtitle "innocent malice" is meant to mean "naive evil intent" in Japanese. [[spoiler: This likely refers to the fact that Kazumi is a magical girl clone stuffed with witch meat. According to Kaoru in ch. 23, [[TitleDrop this can also refer to]] [[BlueAndOrangeMorality Kyubey's skewed sense]] [[ObliviouslyEvil of morality.]]]]

** And [[spoiler: Kazumi's new name by C23, Kazumi Subaru. Subaru is the Japaense for Pleiades.]]

*** So are Chapters 8 and 9. [[spoiler: A girl becomes a witch at the end of Chapter 8, who is then destroyed in Chapter 9 and a character nearly snaps the way Mami does.]]
*** And Chapter 10 [[spoiler: is the OriginsChapter, just like Episode 10 was.]]
** The ArtShift in Chapter 10 resembles the the anime's DerangedAnimation.
** In Chapter 11, [[spoiler:it's revealed that Kazumi was saved from a witch by Mami.]]

** [[spoiler: Chapter 10 gives us the origin of the Pleiades Saints. Chapters 11 and 12 are a continuation and also adds Kazumi's origin...[[UnreliableNarrator or so it seems.]]]]

* ParentalAbandonment / ConvenientlyAnOrphan: Umika and Kaoru mention that their (and Kazumi's own) parents are working overseas, and Saki's father is said to travel a lot. No mention is made of the other girls having guardians, meaning there is no one to question why seven teenage girls are running around outside of school. [[spoiler: Before the events of the story, Kazumi/Michiru lived with her grandmother when she wasn't studying abroad; no other mention is made of her parents.]]
* PeopleJars: [[spoiler: Where the Pleiades keep the bodies of the Puella Magi whose Soul Gems they take.]]

* PsychicAssistedSuicide: [[spoiler: Before they became magical girls, the Pleiades Saints were witch-kissed and made to jump off a building. They meet Kazumi when she rescues them.]]

** Mirai Wakaba seems to be a shout-out to Wakaba Shinohara from ''RevolutionaryGirlUtena'' given her brash nature, the fact that her wand transforms into a sword, and [[spoiler: her CuteAndPsycho {{Yandere}} disposition against anyone who would harm her beloved Saki.]]

* StepfordSmiler: [[spoiler: Judging by her attempt to kill Kazumi in Chapter 14, which she's disturbingly cheerful about, Satomi might have been this all along. Her politeness and smiles seem to have been hiding an unstable and violent side. Like Mami in TheOriginalSeries, this was most likely a result of finding out the truth about witches.]]

** The next three chapters deal with an antagonistic magical girl, and the six chapters after that [[spoiler: are the OriginsArc.]] The remaining eight chapters consists of the big finale

** [[spoiler: Satomi and a younger Niko in Chapter 10.]]

* UnreliableExpositor: Subverted. In Chapter 5, Yuuri claims that the Pleiades Saints are a gang that kills magical girls. The subsequent flashback implies that she only thought that because her friend had turned into a witch, and was then killed by the Pleiades. But then in Chapter 7 the Pleiades really do attack a magical girl, and then do ''something'' to her Soul Gem. [[spoiler: We later find that they sever the connection between Soul Gems and magical girls, and put them both [[HumanPopsicle in storage]]]]
*** In Chapter 10 [[spoiler: Umika tells Kazumi that they lied to her about the origins of witches. What makes this disconcerting was that it was ''Jubey'' who told that lie to Kazumi.]]

* UnreliableNarrator: There are some hints that the WholeEpisodeFlashback in Chapter 11 isn't entirely accurate. [[spoiler: When Juubey first appears in the chapter, he seems to have Kyubey's silhouette. Then in the flashback in the flashback he is seen with Mami Tomoe.]]
** Chapter 12 [[spoiler: is either this or SeriesContinuityError - in Chapter 2 Kazumi is told Umika and Kaoru didn't know what her wish was...yet in the flashback Kazumi does tell them about her wish. Furthermore, Kaoru's wish in the flashback is entirely different from what she told Kazumi in Chapter 2. They could have been lying, but that just raises more questions. Given that Umika can [[FakeMemories modify memories]], it's also possible the flashback is false.]]
*** As revealed in Chapter 13, [[spoiler: Kazumi, being a clone, has ''no'' memories of her own - they were all implanted by Umika, who admits that she's probably made mistakes. However, Kaoru specifically says that she initially lied to Kazumi.]]
* TheUnreveal: In Chapter 8, Kazumi is set to learn the truth about the Pleiades Saints...[[spoiler: and then Niko [[AndThenJohnWasAZombie becomes a witch.]] Or does she?]]

* WellIntentionedExtremist: [[spoiler: The Pleiades are turning magical girls into {{Human Popsicle}}s so they don't become witches. They hope to find a way to clean their Soul Gems.]]
* WhatMeasureIsANonHuman: [[spoiler: The Pleiades are utterly relieved to find that only Niko's "spare" turned into a witch...but it's clear to the reader that she had thoughts and feelings of her own. This eventually turns into FridgeHorror when we discover that it was in fact the real Niko who died, and the "spare" who had been passing off as Niko since then.]]

** Chapter 9:[[spoiler: Mirai kills witch!Niko with one hit. Then another Niko appears, and we find the other one was actually a copy, which she demonstrates by [[TheBlank erasing the face of it's body]]. Then Kazumi is taken to Mirai's museum, and she learns that the Pleaides are turning magical girls into {{Human Popsicle}}s.]]
** Chapter 10:[[spoiler: Kazumi is told the truth about Soul Gems and witches. It then turns into the Pleiades' OriginsChapter as they give Kazumi back her memories. Umika's first novel was plagiarized by her editor and released as another person's work. Kaoru received an injury that prevented her from playing sports and made the person who injured her [[DrivenToSuicide try to kill herself out of shame]]. Satomi's childhood pet cat died and she blamed herself for not listening to it. Mirai was a NerdGlasses-wearing student ostracized by everyone else and her only companions were teddy-bears. Niko, as a little girl, accidentally shot her friends while playing around with a gun. Saki was caught in a horrible car accident with her [[IncestSubtext younger sisterd]] Miyuki, who died. Then they all get [[BrainwashedAndCrazy witch kissed]] and [[PsychicAssistedSuicide jump off a building]]...where they are saved by Kazumi.]]
** Chapter 12: [[spoiler: Jubey is an Incubator with FakeMemories and HeelFaceBrainwashing courtesy of Umika. Then, at the end of the chapter, Satomi says a WhamLine with a SlasherSmile, suggesting something more sinister is going on.]]

* WhamLine: Chapter 12. [[spoiler: "Saki...let's kill Kazumi"]].

* {{Yandere}}: [[spoiler: The Pleiades Saints for Michiru. They have cloned her up to 13 times, with Kazumi being the most recent one, in the hopes of getting her back.]] [[spoiler: Airi is also one for Yuuri, going so far as to wish to '''be her'''.]] No matter how you look at it, the girls are messed up.

The series has been licensed in America by Yen Press. The first two volumes are out now. Please use the official translations on this page when possible.

** Mirai Wakaba's name, which means "Future Young Leaf", is similar to the name of her museum, "Ashitaba (Tomorrow's Leaf) Bears".

* [[spoiler:AndThenJohnWasAZombie]]: It's revealed that Kazumi is [[spoiler:actually a clone of a dead Puella Magi constructed from the flesh of witches]].

* ArcWelding: [[spoiler:Kyubey and Mami's presence in this series connects it to the anime.]]

* ArtShift: In one panel during Chapter 10 while [[spoiler:the Pleiades are affected by a witch's kiss]], the art becomes simplistic and much more cartoony with the characters all white and the background all in black with no shading. [[MythologyGag This is a reference to the anime's]] DerangedAnimation.
* AuthorAppeal / CreatorThumbprint: Every chapter [[IdiosyncraticEpisodeNaming is named for food]], all of the magical girls are {{Big Eater}}s, and three of them are also [[FeminineWomenCanCook good cooks.]] It's a wonder [[Anime/PuellaMagiMadokaMagica Charlotte]] hasn't appeared.
** ''Kazumi'' takes the CallingYourAttacks in GratuitousItalian seen briefly in ''Madoka Magica'' and runs with it by having every magical girl in the series name their attacks and spells in Italian. The author of ''Kazumi'' would later write the screenplays of two of the ''Madoka Magica'' audio dramas, one of which has a new called attack in Italian that wasn't present in the original series. WordOfGod says he added another Italian-named attack in the screenplay of the other Drama CD, [[WhatCouldHaveBeen but it was cut from the final product.]]

** [[spoiler: In Chapter 9 we learn the other AwfulTruth: Kazumi's teammates are actually taking the Soul Gems of magical girls and turning their bodies into {{Human Popsicle}}s.]]

** [[spoiler:Their attitude is taken from Michiru, who didn't wish for her grandmother to be cured, but to spend whatever time her grandmother has left together. She said she wanted to respect her grandmother's lifestyle. In this way, she avoided making the same mistake [[Anime/PuellaMagiMadokaMagica Kyoko]] made, which was to wish for followers for her dad without considering how he'd feel about it.]]

** [[spoiler: as of Chapter 18, it seems that the one pulling strings behind the scenes all along was Kanna Hijiri, Niko's clone. It appears that she broke down as a result of learning about her origins from Juubey. It's revealed that she's the one responsible for creating Evil Nuts, then giving them to Yuuri and Ayase, as well as turning Niko, Satomi and now Saki into witches. In short, she's behind most of the horrible events in the series so far.]]

* BilingualBonus: The author seems to like CallingYourAttacks in GratuitousItalian - see AuthorAppeal, above. His catchphrase ("Ciao") is also in Italian, and is said by Kazumi in chapter 10. [[ShoutOut Many of the translated attack names also seem to refer to American television shows]]. Here's a list as of the second English volume:

** The next three chapters deal with an antagonistic magical girl, and the six chapters after that [[spoiler: are the OriginsArc.]] The remaining eight chapters consists of the big finle

* GoneHorriblyWrong: [[spoiler:Jubey can't clean Soul Gems. It can only polished them. Oooops.]]

* TheCorruption: Like in the anime, Soul Gems still get dirty when magic is used. Unlike in the anime, the WeaselMascot is quite capable of purifying them. [[spoiler: Or not.]]

** In Chapter 21, we learn that [[spoiler:Juubey is ''not'' capable of purifying Soul Gems. Tragically, the Pleiades' attempt to give him that ability only resulted in him polishing the outsides to ''look'' purified, when in reality, they were steadily becoming closer and closer to corruption.]]

The series has been licensed in America by Yen Press. The first volume is out now. Please use the official translations on this page when possible.

''Puella Magi Kazumi Magica: The Innocent Malice'' is a SpinOff {{Manga}} of ''Anime/PuellaMagiMadokaMagica'', written by Masaki Hiramatsu and illustrated by Takashi Tensugi. It ran in the monthly magazine ''Manga Time Kirara Forward'' beginning in January 2011 and features a different set of characters in a new plot separate from the [[AnimeFirst anime]], but in the same universe.

''Puella Magi Kazumi Magica: The Innocent Malice'' is a SpinOff {{Manga}} of ''Anime/PuellaMagiMadokaMagica'', written by Masaki Hiramatsu and illustrated by Takashi Tensugi. It runs in the monthly magazine ''Manga Time Kirara Forward'' and features a different set of characters in a new plot separate from the [[AnimeFirst anime]], but in the same universe.

Kazumi, Umika and Kaoru[[http://mm.my-gg.com/news/information/detail/2116 would later]] [[http://mm.my-gg.com/news/information/detail/3064 appear]] in the ''Puella Magi Madoka Magica Online'' game.

Kazumi Umika and Kaoru[[http://mm.my-gg.com/news/information/detail/2116 would later]] [[http://mm.my-gg.com/news/information/detail/3064 appear]] in the ''Puella Magi Madoka Magica Online'' game.