History SoYouWantTo / WriteAMagicalGirlfriendSeries

Except with robot girlfriends, a strong separation needs to be made from the bizarre and fantastic world the girlfriend come from and the mundane suburban setting she now finds herself in. Usually there will be an academic institution and relatively large (by Japanese standards) home where most of the action takes place.

!'''Costume Designer'''

* Manga/AhMyGoddess is one of the classics of the genre, which avoids most of the classic pitfalls. Keiichi is an UnluckyEverydude, but he's not a complete loser, Belldandy is a domestic goddess but not without depth, the progress of their relationship is sweet and believable (albeit EXTREMELY slow), and the plot doesn't solely focus on their relationship, although that's a big part of it.

After that, the second trope is usually the [[HaremGenre Harem]]: The bevy of additional characters, usually [[MoeMoe cute females]], that end up getting drawn into the hero's life by the presence of the Girlfriend. You may not ''want'' a [[HaremGenre harem]], but it's important to consider.

* Make the MagicalGirlfriend utterly psychotic and incredibly violent, with MAYBE a reason to feel sympathy for her. ''ElfenLied'' pulled this off magnificently with Lucy, and actually turned her into a sympathetic character over the last few episodes.

** Works that has lot of action scene sometime avoid UnluckyEverydude by made the man a fine person, even BadassNormal one, it's just that he CantCatchUp with the MagicalGirlWarrior heroine (and this is also a good source for drama).

* Instead of the hero being [[ChasteHero utterly clueless]] about the girls' crush(es) on him, how about having him actually try to work out some of his feelings about how he loves the girls and in what way, then try to deal with it directly and honestly.

* Magical Girlfriend stories often include LoveObstructingParents, who either a) hate the hero's guts, or b)try to push the relationship along in an extremely rushed and tacky way. Well, how about parents, siblings or whatever who actually ''approve'' of the relationship, and let it evolve at its own pace (although they may try to speed things up a ''little'')? If you must have them disapprove of the relationship, make sure they have a good reason for doing so (perhaps the heroine will become an ordinary mortal if she consummates the relationship). And instead of the heroine being a NaiveEverygirl who is oblivious to all their antics, have her realize what's going on, and give her family a telling off for interfering in her love life.

We all know the story: UnluckyEverydude suddenly gets lucky, REAL lucky. You've SeenItAMillionTimes, but you're ready to give it your own shot. Well, TV Tropes, as always, is here to give you some pointers.

** '''The Problem with Pacing''' is the amount of time between the moment when the affection between the members of the OfficialCouple become mutual, and the end of the series. Most series make this happen way too early, and spend the rest of the series trying to dance around the inevitable resolution that will bring the series to an end. People can only take so much of them [[CanNotSpitItOut Not Spitting It Out]], or him trying to [[TenchiSolution not make a choice]] while making it look like he's still deciding.

* Being that the UnluckyEverydude tends to be an AudienceSurrogate, how about lessening up on the ThisLoserIsYou factor? Another reason for the hatred of this character type is the magnification of the audience's own flaws, which is not only insulting, but also makes the audience wonder what the hell the girl(s) sees in him. Instead of a schlub who blunders into this extraordinary luck, try to make him more of a Diamond in the Rough-type who has his qualities (not only redeeming ones, but exceptional too) brought out by the girl(s) through love, encouragement, and genuine CharacterDevelopment. Not only does this subvert the trope, but it also brings about a nice [[AnAesop Aesop]] about bringing out the best in yourself. Works that has lot of action scene has easier time avoiding this by made the man a fine person, even BadassNormal one, it's just that he CantCatchUp with the MagicalGirlWarrior heroine (and this is also a good source for drama).

* UnluckyEverydude: The first pitfall, of course, is your Hero. If you look around, it's fairly obvious, if a little ironic, that the least popular character of any given MagicalGirlfriend series is usually the UnluckyEverydude in the middle. This is usually intentional, as the idea of the MagicalGirlfriend as WishFulfillment seems to mandate that he be as transparent as possible so to make it easier for the audience members to see themselves in his place. Arguably good for the viewer, but the poor boy as a character tends to suffer greatly for it. Works that has lot of action scene sometime avoid this by made the man a fine person, even BadassNormal one, it's just that he CantCatchUp with the MagicalGirlWarrior heroine (this is also a good source for drama).

* Being that the UnluckyEverydude tends to be an AudienceSurrogate, how about lessening up on the ThisLoserIsYou factor? Another reason for the hatred of this character type is the magnification of the audience's own flaws, which is not only insulting, but also makes the audience wonder what the hell the girl(s) sees in him. Instead of a schlub who blunders into this extraordinary luck, try to make him more of a Diamond in the Rough-type who has his qualities (not only redeeming ones, but exceptional too) brought out by the girl(s) through love, encouragement, and genuine CharacterDevelopment. Not only does this subvert the trope, but it also brings about a nice [[AnAesop Aesop]] about bringing out the best in yourself.

* UnluckyEverydude: The first pitfall, of course, is your Hero. If you look around, it's fairly obvious, if a little ironic, that the least popular character of any given MagicalGirlfriend series is usually the UnluckyEverydude in the middle. This is usually intentional, as the idea of the MagicalGirlfriend as WishFulfillment seems to mandate that he be as transparent as possible so to make it easier for the audience members to see themselves in his place. Arguably good for the viewer, but the poor boy as a character tends to suffer greatly for it.

* Manga/AhMyGoddess is one of the classics of the genre, which avoids most of the classic pitfalls. Keiichi is an UnluckyEverydude, but he's not a complete loser, Belldandy is a YamatoNadeshiko goddess but not without depth, the progress of their relationship is sweet and believable (albeit EXTREMELY slow), and the plot doesn't solely focus on their relationship, although that's a big part of it.

After that, the second trope is usually the {{Harem}}: The bevy of additional characters, usually [[MoeMoe cute females]], that end up getting drawn into the hero's life by the presence of the Girlfriend. You may not ''want'' a {{harem}}, but it's important to consider.

The point for a {{harem}} is, well, it's a collection of cute girls (and maybe some sexy women) that appeals to a lot of people. For many people, that's reason enough.

* You ''could'' always end up shocking the fanbase by having the hero reject the Magical Girlfriend for a mundane haremette. It sounds like a great idea in the story! ...Too bad the fandom won't take it well, with inevitable cries of blasphemy and DieForOurShip. But doesn't it sound cool...?
** This has actually happened from time to time. No, they're usually ''not'' very happy about them.

If your MagicalGirlfriend isn't native to your setting, FishOutOfWater is often come into play. This trope can be good excuse why the girl must be sticks with your mundane hero and it often lead to CharacterDevelopment.

* UnluckyEverydude: The first pitfall, of course, is your Hero. If you look around, it's fairly obvious, if a little ironic, that the least popular character of any given MagicalGirlfriend series is usually the UnluckyEverydude in the middle. This is usually intentional, as the idea of the MagicalGirlfriend as Wish Fulfillment seems to mandate that he be as transparent as possible so to make it easier for the audience members to see themselves in his place. Arguably good for the viewer, but the poor boy as a character tends to suffer greatly for it.

** The Problem with Pacing is the amount of time between the moment when the affection between the members of the OfficialCouple become mutual, and the end of the series. Most series make this happen way too early, and spend the rest of the series trying to dance around the inevitable resolution that will bring the series to an end. People can only take so much of them [[CanNotSpitItOut Not Spitting It Out]], or him trying to [[TenchiSolution not make a choice]] while making it look like he's still deciding.
** The Challenge of the Choice is when there are other members of the UnwantedHarem who also have romantic designs on the hero. Once the Hero's choice becomes obvious, any hints of the other [[{{Shipping}} potential mates]] is just [[ShipTease screwing with the fans' hearts]], and tends to foster [[DieForOurShip "dissatisfaction"]] with the OfficialCouple (then again, confirmation itself can do that).

* Being that the UnluckyEverydude tends to be an Audience surrogate, how about lessening up on the YouSuck? Another reason for the hatred of this character type is the magnification of the audience's own flaws, which is not only insulting, but also makes the audience wonder what the hell the girl(s) sees in him. Instead of a schlub who blunders in this extraordinary luck, try to make him more of a Diamond in the Rough-type who has his qualities (not only redeeming ones, but exceptional too) brought out by the girl(s) through love, encouragement, and genuine CharacterDevelopment. Not only does this subvert the trope, but it also brings about a nice [[AnAesop Aesop]] about bringing out the best in yourself.

* Develop the relationship of the OfficialCouple. Love doesn't end with the FirstKiss. Few series' will go all the way past the declaration of love and into dating, temptation (past MaleGaze, AccidentalPervert and the like, we mean), marriage (especially considering the complications of the Girlfriend's nature) and children (again, plenty of complications there). Many fanfictions have done pretty well exploring the joy and pain that comes after "I Love You".

* Make the MagicalGirlfriend utterly psychotic and incredibly violent, with MAYBE a reason to feel sympathy for her. ElfenLied pulled this off magnificently with Lucy, and actually turned her into a sympathetic character over the last few episodes.

* We mentioned FishOutOfWater already, how about takes it UpToEleven by made the girl with BlueAndOrangeMorality? This can mix especially well if you plan to made AntiHero or worse MagicalGirlfriend, but still want to potray her as innocent.

* In the Subversions section above, we mentioned a possible theme of "Love brings out the best in you", which is uncharted territory for the most part. "Love is never easy" is a common theme, whether it's intentional or not.

* Or hey--make your protagonist a ''female'' and have the story be a GirlsLove. How often has ''that'' been done before?

* Act or be lost: A rather untouched possibility within a harem is what happens when one of the girls gets tired of waiting, or finds someone else that captures her interest ''before'' the hero makes his choice. What happens when a girl has had it with the hero's indecisiveness and walks away from the mess. Many heroes don't make a choice because they may be afraid of losing the friendship of the other girls. What happens when you lose it anyway?

* Act or be lost: A rather untouched possibility within a harem is what happens when one of the girls gets tired or waiting, or finds someone else that captures their interest ''before'' the hero makes his choice. What happens when a girl has had it with the hero's indecisiveness and walks away from the mess. Many heroes don't make a choice because they may be afraid of losing the friendship of the other girls. What happens when you lose it anyway?

* AhMyGoddess is one of the classics of the genre, which avoids most of the classic pitfalls. Keiichi is an UnluckyEverydude, but he's not a complete loser, Belldandy is a YamatoNadeshiko goddess but not without depth, the progress of their relationship is sweet and believable (albeit EXTREMELY slow), and the plot doesn't solely focus on their relationship, although that's a big part of it.

After that, the second trope is usually the UnwantedHarem: The bevy of additional characters, usually [[MoeMoe cute females]], that end up getting drawn into the hero's life by the presence of the Girlfriend. You may not ''want'' a harem, but it's important to consider.

The point for a harem is, well, it's a collection of cute girls (and maybe some sexy women) that appeals to a lot of people. For many people, that's reason enough.