#and the manga makes it clear that Sakuragi's is new and exciting and flashy

[thesixthcavalier]

Having now started poking at the manga for Magilumiere, I can confidently say that it's proving to be a really fun read, and it makes me even more excited for the next episode. I am loving the care and attention to detail that has been shown in crafting this world, and it's awesome how it manages to be both a fun look at magical girl tropes in a new and interesting light, and also a pretty damn powerful stab at the world of corporate business and the general rat race that is trying to find and work a job.

Koshigaya is wonderful as the tough but friendly mentor and what I have seen of her thus far has put me in mind of a somewhat more experienced version of the classic brawler/shield character, eager to get into the fight, protect her team, and being a bit hot headed at times. The fun thing this story is able to do with that though is move beyond the normal trope where Koshigaya's arc would be one of learning when to back off and trust other people. She's already there, she can accept someone else making the smart call and doesn't just rush into danger without any thought, but you still get the fun of a strong character who does tackle things with a lot of confidence.

And of course Sakuragi is incredibly relatable. She's got a good head on her shoulders and she's willing to put in the work and do the extra that helps get her prepared for things, but she's fresh out of school with all the uncertainty that comes with that, especially on the tail end of a job hunt that was going nowhere. The glimpses of uncertainty and fear, of wondering if she isn't good enough and lamenting that she has nothing special to give her a leg up, it's all very fun to play with and balance the amount of power suddenly put upon her as a magical girl, and her mix of booksmarts and uncertainty is a nice counterpoint to the confidence and intuition of Koshigaya.

And I couldn't forget the others of course, Shigemoto, Nikoyama and Midorikawa all bring their own unique personalities to each panel they're in, and it creates this fascinating mix of magical girl/superhero "guy in the chair" tropes combined with the scrappy underdog of business fighting against bigger companies that is usually more a staple of cyberpunk and mildly dystopian genres. The fact that we get all of this in a very upbeat story, and that every time we see a character fired or brushed aside by big business we get a little closure snippet that tells us how much happier they are having gotten work elsewhere, is a really interesting little treat, and I for one can't wait to see how the anime handles a lot of this stuff!