Examples of Broken Base in the Puella Magi Madoka Magica franchise.
A No Recent Examples rule applies to this trope and examples shouldn't be added for 6 months. This is measured from release or when the issue becomes divisive, whichever comes later.
2011 series
- The ending made some people thrilled for being the most perfect ending that absolutely fits the themes and tones of the series, and left others wanting to kill Shaft for making a non-Grimdark cop-out ending and Madoka a Jesus figure and making them wait weeks for it.
- Whether or not the anime is really a deconstruction, a plain darker and edgier take on magical girls, or a dark and edgy show masquerading as a deconstruction.
- Whether or not Puella Magi Madoka Magica can be considered a feminist series. Supporters of this idea argue that the series portrays the female characters in higher positions of power and autonomy.note Those who don't believe this will bring up Values Dissonance regarding Japanese vs. Western feminism, where "girl power" that Magical Girl tropes tend to favor actually enforce gender roles, and point out that Madoka's intended demographic was an older male audience.
- The usage of historical figures as Puella Magi as seen in Episode 11 was seen as largely a good reveal, save for the reveal that one of them was Anne Frank. Many criticize the usage of a Holocaust victim as a heroic figure, calling it offensive and tasteless.
Puella Magi Madoka Magica The Movie: Rebellion
- A huge one considering the film's ending. Some fans prefer the new world Homura created to the one Madoka created in the anime, and consider Homura's actions sensible and justified. Other fans denounce the film as completely retconning the events of the TV series, and Homura for acting selfishly and betraying Madoka, dismissing it as character assassination of one of anime's most popular Deuteragonists. There's even more controversy with the ending changing Homura and Madoka's relationship, which some fans consider to be sinking the most popular ship.
- There's also whether or not Homura rejecting heaven and usurping Madoka was inconsistent with her anime character or out-of-character, or just a last-minute twist to add drama and pave the way for sequels. And then whether or not it was consistent with Homura's state of mind at the end of the anime — had she accepted it and thus made the movie inconsistent, or had she simply rationalized it and so made the movie consistent?
- There's also a split on whether or not Homura did a good thing or a bad thing with the ending. On one hand, she saved everyone and screwed over Kyubey big time, but on the other hand, she's also screwed over a system that was better than the original system, and if Fridge Horror is to be believed, doomed the universe to a much earlier heat death.
- It's implied she's using Kyubey to surpass entropy in the new universe. Thus getting rid of the need for Magical girls altogether and putting it all on the Incubator race ironically. There's also an interesting theory about Nihilism and Nietzsche and how Homura may have made a better world than both previous systems and how Nietzsche would view Madoka as a failure but Homura as a success.
- Some fans accuse the ending as a blatant Sequel Hook and are angry that they didn't get more closure, and that it not being the ending Gen Urobuchi originally planned- that being Homura being taken by Madoka into Heaven- but one he essentially had to put in at the behest of his higher-ups who wanted more sequels is a perfect example of Executive Meddling ruining a creative vision to turn it into nothing but a vector for endless profit. Others are perfectly fine with it, as they see it as a possibility to see more new content (this opinion soured a bit after so many years with no sequel on the horizon, though ultimately their hopes were vindicated as stated below). Others still believe that the movie was indeed made to continue the series as a Cash-Cow Franchise, but that the creators did the best they could with that requirement. Then there's those who argue that it isn't meant to be a Sequel Hook at all, but just a morally ambiguous ending the viewer is meant to draw their own conclusion for. Not helping at all is how the creators themselves have given conflicting statements on the matter (Urobuchi saying that there will be more, Shinbo repeatedly claiming that he considers the story concluded). However, the latter interpretation was eventually sunk when a sequel was announced in 2021, confirming that the ending of the film was indeed a Sequel Hook.
- There's also a third "Audience-Alienating Ending" faction who flat out refuses to watch the movie out of disgust towards the ending (having seen the spoilers).
- The Cake Song is either a hilarious and Dada-ish Big-Lipped Alligator Moment, an adorable happy Moe moment between the girls, or a complete embarrassment that has no place in a dark movie, even if the purpose is to mislead the viewer.
- The entire opening of the movie is part Subverted Kids' Show, part Fanservice.note There are fans who are happy to see said fanservice (see the Heartwarming Moments page). And then there are fans who think the opening only has its intended effect upon the first viewing and see it as Padding, an excuse to pander to the base, and even an embarrassment for the typically darker characters such as Kyoko and Homura (though the latter gets away with it more since she is in her "Moemura" persona). And then there are those who think they're really trolling the fanbase and anyone who thinks it's pandering is misaimed, Evangelion-style.
- Some people are quick to blame Executive Meddling for the ending and that they ruined Gen Urobuchi's vision on how it should have ended (despite the fact that the change happened early on in production, and Urobuchi has stated he was not completely satisfied with the original ending he had drafted anyway), while others insist that it was a collaborative effort and that Gen Urobuchi was having Writer's Block and was even unsatisfied with the ending he had in mind by the time the change was suggested.
- Whether or not the movie taking place in a setting harkening back to that of the original series pre-Ultimate Madoka was a good idea, or it should've taken place in the wraith world, and thus had wasted potential about what happened post-anime and wasted opportunities to expand on the mechanics of the wraith world and the characters post-anime. Similarily, whether the movie using an illusionary world mechanic was a good idea, even if it did give good insight into Homura's psyche. The mechanic used meant that a lot of character development took place off-screen, and meant that the characters needed their memories initially taken away to gain more development, which a lot of writers will say is a bad and/or lazy move.
Magia Record: Puella Magi Madoka Magica Side Story
- The Madoka Magica fanbase seems to be very split on the announcement of the Magia Record anime. Some people are very excited, both because Magia Record has a great story and because we haven't gotten a Madoka Magica anime since 2013 (when Rebellion came out). Others are upset because we've been waiting for years for a sequel to Rebellion and they would rather have that than a Magia Record adaptation (or at least get the sequel to Rebellion first) - as it means having to wait even more. Then there are the people who don't mind that because they would rather the franchise stay as far away from Rebellion as possible. The fact that the Concept Movie was stated to be the core of a new Madoka Magica project isn't helping either, as the anime adaptation of the game could end up displacing attention from the main series.
- Nagisa's backstory as revealed in Magia Record is... divisive, to say the very least. Some think it's great and fits well in the PMMM canon. Others argue that it's way too dark and edgy even for PMMM and more in-line with PMMM "knockoffs" like Magical Girl Site and Magical Girl Raising Project. The one thing that most people seem to agree on, however, is that the addition of Yu- a Psycho Lesbian, amnesiac, organ trafficker serial killer who also happens to be a magical girl- was over-the-top and detracted from Nagisa's backstory. Even the people who like Yu admit that she should have just gotten her own storyline instead of hijacking Nagisa's.
- For the North American server, the accelerated schedule has been a point of contention (as well as many of the events being released out of order). Some fans like the back to back events and releases of new magical girls, while others are upset at the fast pace because there hasn't been enough time to accumulate free gems to roll in the gacha for new characters. There's also the issue of limited-time events getting in the way of players completing the main storyline or labyrinth missions, although the addition of AP pots in the daily missions has mitigated this somewhat.
- Suzuka Sakuya's artstyle particularly her large eyes (even for anime standards) and the lack of sclera. Many find her design jarring despite Magia Record already featuring magical girls with different illustrators. Some find her design unique and endearing though.
- The anime's focus on Yachiyo versus Iroha. Fans find the changes to the story make Yachiyo more likeable than she was early on in the game, while detractors dislike how it makes Iroha seemingly come off as more useless compared to the game.
- The update that changed the maximum Magia Gauge that a magical girl can have from 200 to 150 caused a significant argument between those who welcome it and those who are upset at the change. To wit, this change affects the Accel and Magia meta; the girls that don't have their Doppel unlocked can use their Magia for 100 MP and would still have 100 MP left for another Magia in the next turn, instead of using all 200 MP as a single Doppel. There are girls like Mitama and Karin whose double Magia will have better stat buffs compare to their Doppels, so players aiming for this particular strat will deliberately hold them off from unlocking the Doppel. The Magia strat players claim that this update nerf something that doesn't need to be nerfed, while those in the pro side of the update argue that the Doppel shouldn't be Power Up Letdown especially when many of Spirit Enchantment branches buff MP gain when above 100 MP, so they'll Doppel faster anyway.
- There are some contention on how Livia pulls Mitama and Kanagi out of their Face–Heel Turn by telling her backstory, depending on your stance on Mitama and Kanagi's Face–Heel Turn in the first place. Some argue that Livia using Misery Poker is a low blow because it dismisses a genuinely valid social resentment that the two have, while others say Mitama and Kanagi are overreacting on things that slowly get better just because it's having some setbacks and they need this reality check in order to not unwittingly shoot their cause in the foot.
- There is a lot of contention regarding the "Anime version" units. These are magical girl units who are rereleases of older units and are visually identical to them, but they are 4* units and feature very good gameplay kits that are more in-line with current gameplay standards. Some people think these Anime units are a shameless cash-grab and a sign that the devs are running out of ideas. However, other players appreciate characters like Iroha, Yachiyo, and Rumor Tsuruno (who were originally 1*, 2*, and 3* units respectively) getting a significant buff and making them actually viable in more advanced gameplay.
