I'm finally back at a keyboard after yesterday's movie expedition.
Puella Magi Madoka Magica is an anime in a genre I never thought I'd watch: Magical Girl. Without saying too much, I'm sure the series surprised everyone else as much as it did me. I had the unfortunate experience of watching a terrible sub, but after I re-watched the dub recently I gained a new appreciation for those short twelve episodes. Still, there was something missing. A sense of incompleteness that was highlighted by shallow character development in the original. Madoka Magica was unfocused and unclear about its direction until the final episodes.
Normally I'm not one to suggest that anime should be longer. I'm typically a fan of shorter series where filler is impossible to squeeze in. Eureka Seven and Soul Eater both suffered from being unnecessarily long. 24-26 episodes is more than enough time to full develop characters and resolve an interesting plot. Anything more than that is fluff, and anything less doesn't do justice to either the characters or the plot. With Madoka we see Kyoko do a 180 on their personality within the space of two episodes. There's some great development in this series, but a couple of the characters do get shafted in the process.
Madoka Magica The Movie: Rebellion, is an excellent continuation/conclusion of an anime that could have done so much more. While not a true second season, the story told in Rebellion fits perfectly into the Madoka universe and builds on its foundations to create a spectacle for the eyes and mind. The plot is engaging, featuring the same characters we've cone to know in a new and exciting setting that still captures the feelings that made this series so entrancing. The dangerous, yet hopefully and happy life of Magical Girls is offset by the despair and nightmare of the reality that surrounds them.
The animation is spot-on. Shaft has completely outdone themselves, and I'd argue that this is the best-looking production they've ever released. The ordinary town of Mitakihara is depicted as clean and tranquil...before darkening, warping, and becoming the home for a nightmare. A stark change in animation style is the signature of Madoka Magica's antagonists, and it's certainly a fascinating one. Even when not fighting, the town takes on a surreal appearance at times that seems to draw inspiration from the Monogatari series. This is the one time I felt that the animation was out of place.
Shaft knows what its fans want. Madoka Magica isn't known for having 'lewd' scenes, there's a fair amount of fanservie present in the movie. New transformations and drawn-out and a bit absurd, breaking what little disbelief the viewer has already suspended. Shaft doesn't go far enough to lift any skirts (for once) but they are very, very short. Did I mention that this is an anime about middle school girls? There's a lot more 'cute' and a lot less "let's see how many lolis we can molest in one episode!" (I'm looking at you, Araragi) The theater was full of laughter whenever Kyubey or Nagisa did something adorable.
The music was perfect. I'm a big fan Yuki Kajiura who composed the original series, as well as Fate/zero and Sword Art Online. Many of the tracks here are homages to character themes, and especially "Credens Justitiam" which Mami is humming softly during a particularly calm scene.ClariS and Kalafina add songs to the mix, and they two were a part of what made the original series sound so good. I spent a lot of time listening to the original series' OSTs and I'm eagerly awaiting the release of the full soundtrack for this movie.
Rebellion is Madoka Magica's The End of Evangelion. It's a conclusion to a series that sorely needed a second season, while also setting up future works. If you watched and enjoyed the original series, you'll absolutely love this movie. If you haven't watched Madoka Magica yet, I highly recommend it. Stick with it past for the first few episodes, just trust me on this one. Regarding movies in general I'm prepared to say something that's so rare, you'll only hear me say it two or three times in a decade: I can't wait to see that movie again.
Side note: The theater was awesome. I haven't had a movie watching experience that good in a long time. We even showed up late and got sub-par seats. Miracles and Magic are definitely real.
