#honestly this is basically just homura from Madoka Magica

[aceptical]

I love characters that tear themselves apart for something. I love characters that would willfully destroy themselves for their goal. Characters that have moved past the point of caring what happens to them because all that matters is this one goal and it’s fine if they’re destroyed or maimed or anything else because as long as they fulfill that goal they think they’ll be fine.

Even better if they gradually start to doubt this goal. What have I been pouring myself into this entire time? But by now they’re too far gone to stop so like clockwork they just keep walking towards this goal. They’ll constantly destroy themself for this one goal and they can’t change that fate no matter if they can recognize their original goal has been twisted beyond any recognition.

[catholic-character-tournament]

Quarter Finals - Catholic Character Tournament

Propaganda below ⬇️

Matt

Matt's faith in the show is really important and well explored; one of the first scenes of the show is Matt going to confession (or, well, talking to his priest since he's not really confessing at that point). Matt struggles a lot with what he's supposed to do; everyone's telling him to kill the villain and he kinda wants to, but he literally says: "I know my soul is damned if I take his life". He struggles with his faith and goes with his doubts to his priest, and it's beautiful—also when he finally gets a costume for his vigilanteing he chooses to dress as the devil, lol. (His priest tells him that nothing makes people run to Church faster than the feeling of having the devil on their heels.)

a lot of the show is about how he justifies his vigilante actions with his faith, and whether he's doing the right thing in trying to help people or just using it as an outlet for his anger. the literal first scene of the show has him in a confession booth talking to his priest (who is a really interesting character too). this is not the scene I was talking about but it's such an excellent scene with matt talking to his priest: https://youtu.be/XHZ3NbEIDdw

canonically catholic but dresses like a demon to be quirky

honestly i dont wanna type too much but i feel that matt is a great example of someone who battles with his faith because he rarely loses his faith but rather fights with why he was made the way he was and put through what he was. He believes himself to have the devil inside him but believes that God put him there

ok in the comics barring the most current run matt has Mostly been a non-practicing Catholic that very rarely actually does any catholic Activities but ends up falling back into the Mindset and very occasionally dramatically taking confession (ex. in that one issue where he takes confession, basically tells the father that he is uniquely terrible and is thinking about violently murdering someone and when the father says "you can be forgiven" hes like "AUGFH-- NO!!!!!!!!!!" and runs out) when he's gone through some shit. and i love that its so relatable

This guy so catholic he spends an ungodly amount of time just chilling in the church. And goes there whenever there is a moral conundrum about killing people being Bad even though it would solve a lot of problems and stop said people from killing other people. This happens every other episode. Matt is the Catholic Guilt Guy. There's actually a lot of catholic stuff in the show as a whole. Just a compilation would be like three whole episodes long.

Hes great hes catholic enough to not outrught murder people but not catholic enough to not fuck before marriage hes a bisexual disaster at all times hes besties with a priest might i add hes great hes my special little guy

his catholicism is a huge piece of his characterisation he was raised by nuns in a catholic orphanage, the first scene we ever see him (as an adult and not a flashback) is him going to confession, he is good friend with his priest and has regular debates with him, etc also in s3 he has a huge crisis of faith after he lost A Lot where he stops believing for a while and it's linked to his identity crisis where he actually wants to kill another person (a hard line he previously chose never to cross) and wants to be only daredevil and not matt murdock, when he is both and needs both to exist also when he was a kid his grandmother used to say "watch out for the murdock boys, they've got the devil in them" and it created a surprising lot of his issues

So he's both catholic in the comics and the show but he's More Catholic in the show. Like, raised in a catholic orphanage by nuns (ONE OF WHICH IS HIS *MOTHER*), second scene in the show has him in a confession box kind. Matt Murdock goes out and gets the shit beaten out of him nightly and also beats the shit out of other people and purposefully leaned into devil iconography as his theme. When his nurse friend says, he takes a lot of punishment without one complaint he says "That part's the Catholicism." It is a Core Aspect of his character (at least in the show). He makes me insane. Also the same chemicals that blinded him created the teenage mutant ninja turtles and everyone should know that.

They went to confession to a priest who they had saved as their costumed counterpart and the guy recognized them by the voice, proving that it's possible and everyone else is just dumb

he takes "i wanna fight god" to new and incredibly violent levels, while also being a sweetheart and a goofball

Actually strictly WILL NOT kill criminals. Goes wayyy out of his way to avoid it. Fights with the Punisher about it. Goes to confession booth after nightly vigilante excursions. Feels so much guilt. "How have you been holding up?" "Like a good Caltholic boy" "that bad huh" - actual conversation with his priest

So Daredevil struggles with his mission as a crime fighter because killing criminals goes against his faith. He makes it a point to not kill criminals, believing that even bad people deserve a second chance. This philosophy puts him at odds against The Punisher, who is a relentless killer. As a Catholic myself, while I love the concept of a morally conflicted superhero, I think the worldbuilding around Daredevil is lacking. If he struggles with violence and killing, why doesn't he pray to warrior saints like Saint Michael, Saint Ignatius of Loyola (a former knight), or Saint Joan of Arc? Why isn't there a community of other Catholics he can turn to for guidance, considering New York City has a sizeable population of Catholics? And why are the churches he goes to always empty? Doesn't he know that the Catholic Church supports the just war theory? I think that would have made his burden more bearable.

He goes to church and confesses to punching people and says "imma do it again can i apologize in advance" and the father dude says "no you're meant to stop now" and Matt says "no" and they do this everyday. I'm not remembering it properly but this is a canon interaction i swear

HELLO HI YES I LOVE HIM AND WILL INFOR DUMP ok so. he is a vigalantty and he got named daredevil and he is an orphan and after the age of 12 was raised in an orphanage at a Catholic church and his therapist is his priest via confession abd. also his mother is a nun he has a whole mental breakdown over god and called Job a pussy because he liked god until he got better and liked god again he said "I'm dearedrvil and not even god can stop that now" and he's so cool

matt is a freakish little babygirl who was raised by nuns and definitely has religious trauma. i hate him so much (affectionately)

he’s literally fucking insane about it i don’t know what to say here. he thinks he’s chosen by god to go on some sort of holy quest to save hell’s kitchen. joan of arc ass.

i already know hes in by default j just wanted to give him a personal shout out i love this angsty catholic dweeb

how practicing he is depends on the run, but in my favorite he is quite literally confessing to a member of the last extant order millitant who happens to be a priest at a church in hells kitchen.

i love him for having the funniest version of a trope i usually hate (person gets into confession booth and asks forgiveness not for what they've done, but for what they're about to do). usually this trope just looks silly to me bc like. the priest would just say "i can't do that" and you would have to either awkwardly explain yourself or just Leave. it's funny when matt does it because fr. lantom is probably like "what are you gonna do???" and matt's like "lol. lmao. 😊 hehehe." anyway we love this angry catholic man who dresses up like the devil to beat people up in hell's kitchen

I'm sure Harrow is lovely and I respect the space lesbians but listen to me. Listen.

Matt Murdock is the Catholic character of all time, and if you make him lose, I am blowing up this website and everyone in it.

He is Catholic. His mother is a nun. He grew up in a catholic orphanage. Half the episodes in the show include him going to confession. When he needs therapy, he talks to his priest. He dresses up as a devil partly because of the Catholicism.

One time he got godly powers on loan from Heimdall (see below), and he did a lot of good with it, and then the second it was over he just... well. Also see below!

This man's every coping mechanism is Catholicism.

Please vote for Matt in the @catholic-character-tournament because he's the best and most realistic representation of what it means to be Catholic. Someone who's been punched and bet and crushed by life but still gets up every day to try. No, he's not a nun like his competition but he's not less devoted because of that. Not everyone is called to service. In the day he works at a defense lawyer to help people. Not for the money but to help people not get screwed over by the law. And at night, he dons a mask and beats up assholes when the law fails them. Is he perfect? No, that's the point. Matt is a broken man who is just trying his best to do well and live like Jesus.

He fully embodies the Catholic doctrine of faith and good works. He has faith in what he's doing even if others challenge him. He believes in forgiveness and repenting even when going up against "the devil."

"The people you murder deserve another chance." ... "No, Frank. To try again, Frank. To try. And if you don't get that, there's something broken in you you can't fix, and you really are a nutjob." "You think God made you a one-man firing squad. But you're wrong. There is goodness in people, even in you. And you're gonna have to kill me, 'cause I'm never gonna stop coming for you, until I take you down."

Daredevil Season 2 Episode 3

He (tries) to love his enemy. He believes in Elektra and Frank and maybe Dex and their ability to change. To be good. And when he can't, Matt refuses to compromise on his morals. While not quite "turning his cheek" he never scoops to their level. Because they don't get to destroy who he is.

Daredevil Season 3 Episode 13

All he does is for the love he has to his neighbors, his community. He loves New York. Not for self-fulfilling needs or for the money or for the fame. He does it because he believes in justice. Because the law was created by humans and is inherently sinful.

"But his competition met God and was disappointed and blah blah"

Daredevil is more grounded (at least the show, maybe less the comics). So now, Matt doesn't met God. But he sure gets mad at him. All of season 3 he angry at God for all the trauma he expired.

"You see, that was me, Sister. I suffered willingly. I gave my, uh... sweat and blood and skin without complaint. Because I too believed I was God's soldier. ( chuckles ) Well, not anymore. I am what I do in the dark now. I bleed only for myself. ( scoffs )" ... "You might hate God right now, but the feeling is not mutual." "No, I don't hate him. I've just seen his true face, is all."

Season 3 episode 1

As a Catholic I don't really want to fight God in a parking lot. Well I do but not in the same way that I've understood (primarily Jewish people but probably other Abrahamic religions) want to fight God in a Denny's parking lot. I want to yell and scream and cry at God and for the feeling to not be mutual. For Him to never stop loving me. As long as I have faith, He will reach out his hand.

Homura

she is a catholic lesbian whose girlfriend became god. she has been through so much.

shes such a lesbian for amdoke

Catholic guilt literally turned her into a demon

she literally watches everyone she knows die over and over and over again just so she can save madoka, the one girl who showed kindness towards her. when madoka ends up basically becoming god in order to stop the cycle of death and violence, homura RIPS AWAY THE HUMAN PART OF HER SOUL so that she can create a world where she and Madoka and their friends can live happily, effectively becoming the devil to madoka’s god

She has so much religious symbolism when it comes to her relationship to Madoka. Madoka is God and Homura becomes Lucifer so that she can save Madoka and give her happiness. She literally rips God from heaven and rewrites reality though. The way she sees her self and shapes reality is through the lense of Catholicism.

most fucked up little catholic girl. we love that for her.

Okay homuras entire fuckin arc is stemmed from the fact she is Catholic. Look at her trying to save Madoka over and over again and suffering for it because she thinks if she suffers enough and works hard enough Madoka will stay. Normal people do not go into time loops willingly. Catholics will.

[pika-ace]

I love your Twisted Wonderland AUs and I was wondering...

Can you make one of Magical Girl! Yuu with a Magical Madoka system?

I think her wish gave her something similar to Homura's power of having a pocket dimension and she had a few seeds of suffering with her (two to four would be fine, right?) and that since she arrived she has had to recycle them by reviving one. and again to the witches to be able to use them correctly.

And I can already imagine the problems he will have if Kyuubei comes with him, it would be a real struggle to stop his friends from selling their souls while learning the truth of their world, I can already taste the drama and angst!

So what I'm getting here...is Yuu basically being like Homura at least in the sense that they KNOW Kyubei is full of shit...and has to go around stopping the most EGOTISTICAL TEENAGERS ON THE PLANET from throwing their souls away for superpowers.

Yep, Yuu would Overblot or go full witch from that stress ALONE. I mean JESUS, Grim would try to wish for all the tuna he could eat every other day just to wish to become a great mage and get Kyubei slaughtered by Yuu EVERY. SINGLE. TIME. (also wow, now that you bring it up, Madoka Magica Witches are legit Overblots but with absolutely NO WAY to save the victim, that's fucking SAD-)

But on another note...you know how Witch Seeds clean the Soul Gems? What if they could ALSO clean magestones? That could open a whole new door of world-building if these worlds collide.

And honestly, there are SO MANY WAYS things could go wrong if one of the TWST Boys makes a contract. The fact that EVERYONE has trauma or baggage of some kind means the whole descent into Witch territory can be different for EVERYBODY, especially with the factor that their wish is inevitably turned against them in some way.

SO

MANY

TIMELOOPS

And that's MINUS the realization that their soul is no longer in their body, cause that alone is enough to swear off this bullshit in my book.

And the pocket dimension thing, I'm not even gonna touch that cause Rebellion was a whole different fucking beast and the main plot in the show is plenty of angst for now

[astriwilt]

Here’s my tier list for Madoka Magica ships. This template was created by Psyga315 (Adam Adams) on tiermaker!

I’ll give my very scientific reasoning for why I put each of these ships on their respective tiers.

S Tier:

Madoka x Sayaka: They’re the best of friends and I think they could be a great couple. They both obviously really care for each other.

Madoka x Homura: Uh duh. My girl literally went back in time for years in order to save Madoka.

Sayaka x Kyoko: Uh duh pt.2. The enemies to lovers story for Madoka Magica. The scene where Kyoko sacrifices herself. That’s all I needed to say.

A Tier:

Homura x Kyoko: I really like them. They’re both magical girls who’ve been fucked over and then grew apathetic. People misjudged them both and saw them as cruel and heartless; when deep down they care about a lot.

Homura x Mami: They’re both veteran magical girls who serve as examples for Madoka and Sayaka; albeit in VERY different ways. They both have very different views on being a magical girl which is a very interesting part of their relationship.

B Tier:

Homura x Sayaka: There’s also that “very different views on being a magical girl” thing that makes their relationship very interesting; found with both Homura x Mami and Sayaka x Kyoko. But of course a lot more antagonistic than Homura and Mami and less emotional than Sayaka and Kyoko.

Sayaka x Mami: I like it! Sayaka idolized Mami and that’s where she gets all of her ideas about being a magical girl from. It’s in B Tier cause there’s not a lot on Mami’s side though.

C Tier:

Kyoko x Madoka: They had their moments.

Mami x Kyoko: Basically Sayaka x Kyoko if it was a lot less interesting.

Madoka x Mami: Ok I like their mentor- mentoree relationship. Honestly I should have put this on B tier but the tier has already been made so oop.

D Tier:

Most of the Hitomi ships: I really like Hitomi as a character but I don’t see her working with anyone.

E Tier:

Homura x Hitomi: This one just makes less sense to me than the other Hitomi ships. Like I can kind of understand the others. Madoka and Sayaka are her friends. Mami and Hitomi have kind of similar personalities. Hitomi never breaks a rule and Kyoko has a disregard for everything. But I don’t understand….anything about Homura and Hitomi. Maybe someone can help me out lol.

F Tier:

All Nagisa ships: She’s a lot younger than the main cast, and even if she was their age honestly I just don’t like Nagisa as a character that much. She’s only interesting cause she turns into Charlotte.

So do you agree with me or should I be burned at the stake? But in all seriousness; share your opinions!

[otaku-tyriq]

What ending do you think is worse, BNHA or JJK? Why?

Now that 2 shounen series that I followed for years have ended, it feels kinda weird. And I can't believe that overall, I dislike both endings (but for me, JJK is worse than BNHA, sorry).

Now, from all shounen series, that I love the endings are :

Haikyuu, Fullmetal Alchemist, Soul Eater, Death Note, Attack on Titan, The Morose Mononokean, Pandora Hearts, Bloom into You, Blue Flag, and Smile Down the Runway...

Have you read any of my top 10 fav shounen?

From the above, I think you'll love FMA & Pandora hearts the most..

Oh, FYI, Bloom into You & Blue Flag are LGBT themed and have canon f/f & m/m couples....

Hello Anon!

Unfortunately i have not finished BNHA or JJK as i dropped both these series rather early on. That is just smt that happens for me with most long running shonen series.

I just lack the attention span and dedication for such massive series.

So unfortunately I cannot answer that question as I have not experienced the ending of either BNHA or JJK and it is highly unlikely that I ever will.

Same goes for the other shows and manga you have listed. I have started most of them (Haikyuu, AOT, FMA, Death Note, Morose Mononokean, Pandora Hearts and Soul Eater to be exact) and did enjoy them a lot while watching/reading but I have not finished a single one of them except for Soul Eater as my attention span basically left halfway through. ADHD is a b!tch like that.

I am very sorry if this disappoints you

But to not leave you completely hanging Anon I can tell you the endings of some anime I did watch fully.

👍Endings I enjoyed:

Donten Ni Warau

A 12 episode long anime i watched as a teenager and still hold dear to my heart and genuinely an under appreciated work of art . The ending is nothing spectacular or breath taking but it is SATISFYING and that is the best thing a ending can strive to be.

Mo Dao Zu Shi

I know it is TECHNICALLY a donghua and not an anime but eh. What can I say? I loved the novel and while i personally highly prefer season 1, once again the ending of season 2 is just satisfying and perfectly homosexual despite censorship.

Mob Psycho 100

Anon if you have not yet watched this anime i URGE you to do so. This is one of the VERY FEW anime that managed to keep my attention going for more then one season and it absolutely nailed its ending in one of the most bittersweet ways.

Kaguya-sama: Love is War

Again, one of the VERY few anime that managed to keep my attention span going for more than one season and i honestly blame the glorious english dub for this. (Srsly if there is one anime you should watch dubbed, it’s this one). The ending was not what I had expected when i first got into it but it was just so unbelievably cute i still sometimes go back just to rewatch the ending.

Puella Magi Madoka Magica

I mean what did you want me to say? That i hated the ending of one of the most influential Magical Girl anime of all time? That I hated the gorgeously tragic lovestory of Homura and Madoka? Get real. This shit is peak and has been for a decade now and for good reasons.

Buddy Daddies

Again this anims is kinda underappreciated as I think it has one of the most realistic depictions of what it feels like to raise a Toddler and while the ending happens kinda fast in a 0 to 100 kinda fashion it felt earned in an almost paradoxical way. Like all of these characters deserved and got their happy ending and it was adorable

👎Endings I disliked:

Digimon Adventures 02

As the great german poet Johann Wolfgang von Goethe once said: “What is this Scheiße?” random characters ended up married despite having 0 chemistry throughout the series? Everyone now has kids and just sends them off to the digiworld??? This is like the same sort of mess as the ending of Naruto except Digimon never tortured us with an unwanted Boruto-style Sequel series. Even back as a 10 year old when i watched this series i was massively disappointed by the anime’s last episode.

Sk8 the Infinity

Fuck this. Fuck! This! I LOVED this anime, and I still do but the ending? FUCK THAT! I know this will sound very controversial given Adam has A LOT of fans, but Adam should have gone to jail. That man’s half assed attempt at a “redemption arc” was undeserved. He assaulted several of the main cast, essentially sexually harassed one of the UNDERAGED protagonists and you tell me he got away with ALL OF THAT scot-free? Not to mention the entire story surrounding Adam and that police woman trying to uncover his political corruptness just went???? Fucking??? Nowhere???? If you truly want me to believe this man regrets ANY of the shit he has done then fucking send his ass to jail! Let his political career CRUMBLE! MAKE THIS MENACE TO SOCIET FACE CONSEQUENCES! “Oh b-but he had a terrible childhood 🥺👉👈” I do not care, that does not excuse his actions. I love this abime but thinking about the ending for 0.5 seconds makes me BLOOD BOIL.

[entropic-introspection]

It’s however many years later and I’m still not over the Mami vs Homura fight in Rebellion

like it is one thing to know Mami is/was a veteran magical girl and she just got unlucky/careless with Charlotte, but then you actually see her fight Homura not just equally, but pure dominating the fight? Damn.

with the necessary addendum: Mami’s magic manifests as ribbons, because her wish was about binding her to life and other people. She fucking taught herself how to make the rifles and bullets for better combat effectiveness. Compare and contrast Homura, whose magic (from a wish of “let this not be happening/let me change time to save her”) at its most basic is to stop time- her magic is also non-offensively based and she had to work out how to change that by imbuing her energy into normal weapons. Which is what the crux of the fight comes down to: Mami has the drive and innovation to find her way around obstacles, even in a fast paced fight with the odds against her. She’s incredibly adaptable and highly observant, largely by necessity.

Homura is ruthless, but honestly? Sloppy! If something isn’t related to her immediate goal, she doesn’t pay attention to it, and she doesn’t think far enough ahead to make back up plans or contingencies. She learns through earnest repetition, which most magical girls don’t have the luxury of. Part of why she’s so strong in the original Madoka Magica is because she looped the same month so many times, she got to feel out all the variables. If she can’t do that and you can nullify her paused time advantage like Mami did, she’s forced to use more desperate or underhanded tactics than her preferred brute force/overwhelming barrage method.

[kokorolinkrun]

Why I think Yen Press should license the PMMM reprint manga

As some of you probably know, the original Puella Magi Madoka Magica manga (that adapted the original series) was completely redrawn back in 2021 to celebrate the series' tenth anniversary by Hanokage, the artist of the original manga - and the growth shines through!

That said, though... There's something I wonder: If Yen Press (the main English publisher of PMMM manga) will ever pick this up for a English release. I already asked @silvermoon424 - whose scans (which you can find here) I'll be using in this post - about this not too long ago, but I felt like making this very post to try and convey how I feel better.

I know it seems kind of pointless, seeing as they already have the original manga (and even released that omnibus a few years back), but I personally feel like there's actually a few ways it can work, which is why I decided to compile a small list.

Well, then. No more messing about: Let's get started!

It's a rather major Madoka Magica release. Seeing as Yen Press is mostly focused on the main PMMM releases, this wouldn't be too out of the ordinary to pick up.

It would be the perfect thing to coincide with the (basically inevitable at this point) Rebellion manga omnibus.

They'll finally be able to update their old translation - something that I was honestly kind of disappointed about with their omnibus of the original manga.

They'll finally be able to translate scenes that were left out of the original manga. Examples from Chapter 1 include the beginning with Madoka's family:

And the encounter with Homura at the end:

In fact, speaking of these scenes...

The reprint, from what I've seen, is a lot closer to the anime. Seeing as the original took a lot of liberties, wouldn't you guys agree it'd make sense for Yen Press to license a much more accurate version, too? It also gives readers the choice to pick which version they'd rather get.

It would be really cool to compare the differences between the two versions, both art-wise and translation-wise.

It would honestly just be really nice to own, all things considered.

The art's just super good, what more can I say?

So... Yea! That's all the reasons I can think of as to why Yen Press should license the PMMM reprint manga.

But hey, this is all just my personal opinion. What do you guys think? Do you think it would be a good idea for Yen Press to pick up the reprint manga sometime, or do you think the original manga is enough? Be sure to let me know in the reblogs or replies!

[evi4th]

Sorry for this anon, but I was on twt (my first mistake) and I saw your madoka magica LSSMP so I have words for you cuz that anime has been a fixation of mine for around 9 years (doing my yearly rewatch next month 🔥🔥🔥)

SO I think your choice of making Ash the role of Homura is incredibly interesting, taking into account the fact that the whole Madokami thing is her fault due to resetting timelines so much that Madoka became the center of the universe (since whenever she died, Homura reset everything) kinda interesting choice because Madoka in the first few loops took a stance to protect Homura but after the first i think 5(?) Homura started to treat her as if made of glass and did her best to keep her out of danger (becoming a magical girl) no matter the cost, even if Madoka ended up hating her...

I haven't watched enough Reddoon's stuff to have a strong opinion on him, but ik Swagdoons is a popular ship? Interesting due to the fact that cuz of the first few loops we can tell Madoka is incredibly capable of handling herself, but most of her deaths seem to be due to sacrificing herself to keep a teammate safe...

Kyoko for Bacon is very... surprising honestly, I would have honestly expected Mappic because a central thing during (what I remember) her arc is her impulsiveness, trying to work solo because of her wish ending badly and just generally acting both rude and stubborn to hide a softer interior... that plus while Kyoko is pretty smart, she does punch before asking questions so I think Bacon, who imo feels more like he'd think before punching, is certainly a choice

Sayaka being Planet is something I can't really say much about (don't really watch planet my b) but I do think she'd maybe fit someone else more? Mostly because the whole central part of the arc (once again from memory) is Sayaka having a thing with playing the hero, to the point her wish was made in order to save Kyosuke (random white boy she had a crush on) and it was done in a moment to save Madoka.... that and the whole being so quick to act that she can come off as a ignorant of the situation?

Then there is Zam as Mami, this is legit the whole reason I looked for your tumblr. I have very mixed feelings on this once since I very much hate Mami's character (undercooked imo) but Zam is my favorite little guy and him in Mami's fit would slap. This whole thing is very season dependent because Mami is a bit of a messy character, since on the surface she comes off as a caring older figure but she's under the pressure of being the only magical girl in this city for who knows for how long, which does kinda feed into her accidentally(?) manipulating others into joining in order to lessen her own responsibilities. She's a bit selfish (fair cuz she's like what? 15? 16?) and puts herself before others... which is kind of oposite to Zam, basically I don't think Mami could have grinded 200 armor sets but I do think Zam would have gotten decapitated by being too cocky

Spoke as Bebe is gold tho, he does look like someone that would waste his wish on cheese. 👍

yjes i agrre with everytihhing stated... prtenf thered like a more formal reply but Yea. i ddidnt think ab like how the actual characters and dynamics would fit in a lot but ab like princezam being mami i think i chose that cuz both of them hqve like?? not being able to properly sustain a team ibthink.. idk but Yea. btw anon u seem smart and shit wjo do youthink would be kyubey cause u seem Smart. Ithink mapicc Would fit kyoko well but also I'll be completely honest i js thought bacon would look cool as kyoko😭😭plj3ase yap about This more and who you wlould think fit the characters and stuff . this is Very interesting im jsut Bad at expressijg thwt

[aoi-midori]

Fanfic Recs...

so uh…. I learned the hard way that tumblr has a tagging limit when I reblogged that fanfic post from earlier, meaning ... not all my tags went through AND IT MISSED ONE OF THE FICS I REC’D. so fuck it, I’m making my own post: a more detailed one that has all my fav fics and for sure won’t get eaten by this hellsite! there are eight of em, and as i attempted to note with that reblog, all of them can be found on ao3, but i'll be linking them here for easy access! More under the cut!

Embers and Frost by SolarisLupi

One Piece/Rise of the Guardians Crossover, Canon-Divergence

Rating: Teen & Up

Synopsis: After becoming the new Spirit of Summer, Ace struggles with the knowledge that one day he will be forced to leave everyone he loves behind. Jack questions how far he would go for those he cares about. And Luffy, unaware of Ace’s rebirth, is plagued by visions of his brother’s death and other horrors. But those nightmares may be more than just dreams…

complete fic, with 49 chapters and a 414k word count

so yeah, Jack gets stuck in the op 'verse and ace becomes the new summer spirit after his death in marineford. Pitch winds up there too, and he's far more of a threat here thanks to everyone being able to see him, and if you've seen Rise of the Guardians, well... then you know that CAN'T be good. also this is actually part of a series with a kind of prologue that comes right before it that's called Fire and Ice. I'd probs read that one first if you want the context since that one showcases how Jack gets into op 'verse (and also where he first meets ASL trio).

~~~~~

As N Approaches Infinity by Corisanna

Puella Magi Madoka Magica/Bleach Crossover, Canon-Divergence

Rating: Teen & Up

Synopsis: Despairing as yet another timeline goes horribly wrong, Homura wanders into Karakura. There she discovers that while the spiritually-aware people of Karakura were distracted by Ichigo Kurosaki and Xcution, Kyubey had managed to contract the Kurosaki sisters as magical girls. Drawing the attention of the shinigami could be just the advantage Homura needs.

Incomplete fic, currently sitting at 84 chapters with a 481k word count (last updated March 2021, might be dead, idk)

yeah, so Homura runs into the Kurosakis at the tail-end of another failed timeline, and if you know Ichigo, you can imagine what happens next. his big-brother instincts go into full-throttle here. also Kyuubey is still a little shit as always and it turns out he got up to even MORE fucked up shit than everyone initially realized! so that's fun... oh yeah, there's also a companion fic called Polynomial Expansion that's basically a bunch of bonus scenes from the main fic!

~~~~~

There May Be Some Collateral Damage by metisket

Bleach/Harry Potter Crossover, Canon-Divergence

Rating: Teen & Up

Synopsis: Ichigo’s been ordered to go undercover at a magic school to bodyguard a kid named Harry Potter, and this would be fine, except that he’s about as good at bodyguarding as he is at magic. And he considers it a good day, magic-wise, if he hasn’t set anything on fire.

Complete fic, with 3 chapters and a 61k word count

I personally love the author's note for this one: "I wrote this mostly because, despite the surprising number of Bleach/Harry Potter fics out there, none of them seem to address the fact that sending Ichigo to Hogwarts is basically the same as swinging a wrecking ball directly into the side of the castle." this fic honestly changed the way I want to write fics and actually turned me on to present-tense. the narration itself is just so good. made me think, "goddamn i want to write like that." also one of the funniest fics i've read in my life. it's basically bleach characters (mainly Ichigo) looking at the HP 'verse and thinking "what the actual FUCK."

~~~~~

RWBY/Zero by orphan_account/TheMaster4444

RWBY/Fate Franchise Crossover (mostly Fate/Zero with a bit of /Stay Night and Apocrypha in there too), Canon-Divergence

Rating: Teen & Up

Synopsis: With the Vytal Festival in full swing, Teams RWBY and JNPR are shocked when an unexpected family member arrives at the school. Elsewhere, Cinder's wild-card teammate proves himself a dangerous enigma, and Arturia tries to prevent a loved one from following her old path while enemies from a past she thought she left behind come for her new world. New players have come to Remnant, and a golden shadow is ready to change the game for everyone.

Complete fic, with 94 chapters and a 574k word count

so as i mentioned in the tags of that reblog, Remnant is literally the remnants of Earth after the fallout from Fate/Zero (so Fuyuki fire affected the entire planet basically). so you've got the surviving characters from Fate/Zero living in present-day Remnant due to the circumstances, and Arturia happens to be Jaune's mom. start of the fic takes place during volume 3 and it starts out a bit slow, but that doesn't last long. once it reaches the volume 3 finale... holy SHIT does it take off. worldbuilding here is absolutely nuts, and the way the author meshes the two series together is downright flawless. also ruby herself gets some really cool and interesting lore here, so that's pretty neat.

~~~~~

∞:∞ by divisionten

Kingdom Hearts/The World Ends With You Crossover (given this is a KH fic tho, there are other series sprinkled in here too, but I won't say what they are bc spoilers), canon-Divergence

Rating: Teen & Up

Synopsis: He got off the pavement, wet, dirty and alone. They left the beach, ready to chase him down. She gripped her Keyblade, twisting it tight enough in her hands to leave marks. It was time to go home.

Complete fic, with 44 chapters and a 201k word count

this one's set directly after the end of KH3, so... Sora's dead! and he's found himself in TWEWY shibuya. but wait, Riku's also dead, but he got sent to TWEWY shinjuku! neither of them are in the reaper's game tho bc of special circumstances... meanwhile just about the entire rest of the kh cast is out there searching different worlds for these two, and let's just say that "getting into hijinks" is a bit of an understatement.

~~~~~

Infinite Nuisance by Luluwoo

Jujutsu Kaisen, SukuGo Slow-burn, Canon-Divergence

Rating: Mature

Synopsis: When a strange incident leads to Gojo being trapped along with the King of Curses in Sukuna's Innate Domain, what everyone assumes would lead to destruction surprisingly grows into something more.

As Sukuna and Gojo are forced to interact and learn more about each other, they realise that hatred isn't the only tie that binds them.

And, as Sukuna quickly realises, he is far from prepared for the unlikely temptation that is Gojo Satoru.

Ongoing fic, currently sitting at 9 chapters with a 43k word count

AND THEN THEY WERE ROOMMATES. quite literally! so these two have no choice but to interact with each other, and that goes about as well as you'd expect (at least at first). also another thing to note here is that Sukuna's relationship with Yuji is MUCH much better than in canon, so they don't actually hate each other.

~~~~~

Firehouse 4 by easyontheredeyes

Jujutsu Kaisen, SukuFushi Slow-burn, Modern AU

Rating: Explicit

Synopsis: For years, Megumi worked hard to become an EMT and carve his own path through the Emergency Medical Services world, outside of his father's reputation and Gojo's connections. All he asked was not to be housed at a firehouse, with firefighters. Apparently, that was too much to ask for. Or Megumi can't stand firefighters. His new EMT job leaves him working with a particularly cocky, arrogant, ironically smoking-hot one named Ryomen Sukuna.

Ongoing fic, currently sitting at 15 chapters with a 145k word count

AND THEN THEY WERE ROOMMATES... IN A WORK SETTING. lmao I kid. but yeah, slow-burn at it's finest here. animosity at first followed by one-sided flirtation, then followed by mutual flirtation... while trying to make each other jealous at the same time. smh

~~~~~

Stars in the Dark by Nshi

Persona 5/Final Fantasy XIV Crossover, Canon Divergence

Rating: Mature

Synopsis: "In spite of… or perhaps because of this, I choose to believe. In mankind's potential. In his ability to find a way forward."

It was supposed to be a proper summer road trip this year. No combat, no god-slaying, no desperate last stand to save the world from certain ruin. But fate has ever had a habit of stringing Joker away from the peaceful and mundane, hasn't it? Not that even he could have ever expected to be hailed as the 'Warrior of Light'. Kind of ironic, really.

Or: a Persona 5 x Final Fantasy XIV crossover fic in which Joker, instead of a much-belated post-Strikers break, gets his ass Isekai'd into The Source and somehow winds up in the role of Eorzea's champion. As one does.

Ongoing fic, currently sitting at 33 chapters with a 415k word count

THIS IS THE ONE THAT GOT EATEN UP IN THE TAGS BY THE GODDAMN HELLSITE. also the fic that I recently just left a MASSIVE comment on to the author, bc holy shit did this one blow my fuckin mind. that word count is no joke, but don't let the long chapters intimidate you. takes place after Royal and Strikers on the P5 side, and at the start of 'A Realm Reborn' (base game) on the XIV side. XIV veterans will know how much of a slog ARR can be compared to the expansions, but the author actually makes it SO much more enjoyable here. THE SCIONS ACTUALLY DO SHIT. not that they don't in canon, but they're actually a lot more involved here, like they join Joker for the dungeon runs! also the camaraderie he has with them all is infectious as hell. oh another thing! Joker can still use personas, but besides Arsene, they work VERY differently in this fic, and it's actually really fucking cool. OH, also there's a side-fic for this one called Among Uncountable Stars that covers scenes and quests that couldn't fit into the main fic. author has also made art for the fic, which they link in the chapters themselves!

[kiwisandpearls]

feel like I’m the only one who isn’t really dissapointed with akuma Homura. Like I get the disappointment of her not having her own special magireco transformation, but I feel nothing they could’ve made would top her rebellion one. And like, you could argue Madokami has her own transformation so Akuma Homura should have one as well, but the difference is Madokami never really had any transformations aside from that small one at the end of the anime (which I feel wouldn’t have sufficed for her.), so compared to Akuma Homura we don’t really have any other transformations to compare it to (i think at least).

as for her head tilt animation, i think it actually looks pretty good! Like yeah the head looks a little big, but I honestly that’s just because we’ve never actually seen a character tilt their head like she has. Plus, i feel if they tried to animate it a different way, it would just look like she’s breaking her neck so it’s good in my book.

as for her MSS, i haven’t actually gotten to it yet, but I have heard it’s just a retelling of rebellion which I’m not super bummed about. Like I think it would be cool for them to go into the wraith arc or maybe show Homura’s life after she becomes she becomes Akuma Homura but for the wraith arc I don’t think it work??? If that makes sense. Because like, if this unit was Homura like right after Madoka became god (the time between madoka magica and rebellion) then I think it would’ve made sense, but it’s not, it’s an Akuma Homura unit, so them focusing more on rebellion makes sense because the story in which she was created in. As for her life right after rebellion, it would’ve nice…but I think that might end up treading into Walpurgis no Kaiten spoilers territory and I doubt the magireco staff would wanna do that until more about Walpurgis no kaiten is officially revealed.

So basically, while I understand people’s disappointment with Akuma Homura’s unit, I’m personally not lol

[purpleoffbeat]

narratively speaking, that is a fine interpretation. very poetic, and it makes sense assuming that karmic destiny is a force of the metanarrative. however i personally think that madomagi is a show that prides itself (or at least it used to) in its logical construction of its own plot devices in-universe. (the easiest example i can think of to explain what i mean, is viewing magical powers in the series as "sufficiently advanced technology" aka technology that is so ahead of our current available tech that it is basically indistinguishable from magic. "it looks like magic, but its actually highly-adcanced nanomachines" for example.)

as a deconstruction, madomagi is very clear in its intentions to break apart the illusion that "teenage girls get to fight monsters in secret" is somehow a dream come true. its painful and lonely, as mami demonstrates. its a secret, which is why madoka never tells her mom about magical girls. and to top it off, the incubators specifically designed the system so that every magical girl eventually dies or witches out. in the latter case the planned method of instilling despair is always to make her hate the wish she herself gave up her humanhood for. in other words, they try to make each magical girl's life an ironic hell through her own wish.

remember when kyouko asked madoka to help her "bring sayaka back"? shes someone with experience as a magical girl, she already lost all her family, and she wanted time and time again to make sayaka accept her selfishness (note: selfishness isnt always bad, im not insulting sayaka)... and yet it was kyouko who told madoka "in the animes and fairytales they always bring back the person from their darkest time, which means we can surely make sayaka human again!"

this obviously didnt work. because madomagi isnt about following the established tropes.

with that in mind, its incredibly unfitting that madomagi would hold up the idea of predetermined destiny as a legit force. even though the system is rigged, you could still theoretically see a girl make a contract and do great things as just her human self both. i think the idea that becoming a magical girl means giving up whatever effect you would cause on the world like you said, stands at odds with the rest of the story and how it logically follows. its not about being poetic, its more about being brutal (and thats what the incubators are).

so yeah, i think the "karmic destiny" thing doesnt make any sense, but it still made its way onto the final product. its one of the things i like the least abt the og show despite loving it. i mean, if all that karmic destiny attached to madoka is so enormous, then surely homura also has a huge amount of karmic destiny (even if not as much)? it doesnt nake any sense that her meddling with the timelines only affects madoka.

note that theres a scene at a park near the beginning of the show where mami misunderstands homuras intentions and says smth akin to "so youve noticed her immense potential too, huh?" implying magical girls can sense magical potential. how mami can do this but homura cant despite gaining experience throughout the timeloops is beyond me, its a detail thats never explored. its honestly kinda stupid, just because she has amazing potential doesnt mean that she eventually makes a huge wish (which she did end up doing, but its the possibility of it that counts). a girl with enough knowledge of the magical girl system and some time to think could wish for an overpowered skill (for example, luck manipulation) despite having tiny potential. how can the writers excuse a girl with a crumb of potential gaming the system??

they cant. i love madoka magica, but this detail is too stupid. what were they thinking, "if madoka made a contract her soul gem would be huge"?!?!? literally everyone else has the same size of soul gem, what the hell. love the show to bits but magical potential is such a bullshit addition to the lore that cinemasins for better or worse would have a field day with it.

Is it established at all that the concept of karmic destiny from madoka magica is basically just a trade off for your life? I'm rewatching it & like potenial as a magical girl is determined by ur influence and connections right. So since u effectively forfeit your life when u become a magical girl, the world also loses what impact you would've had if you had lived as a person. So is that lost potential what translates into magical prowess? The people whose loss would be a bigger detriment to the world burn brighter when they sacrifice themselves?

[sageduille]

Madoka Magica Rambles

Honestly (and pardon me if this is a controversial opinion) I always found it Off when people say that the girls in Madoka Magica were “Punished for having hope/wanting their dreams to come true.” I do understand the argument and I understand the source! Since the release of Madoka Magica there have been a lot of Genuinely fucked up magical girl shows, Magical Girl Site is the first one that comes to mind. eugh. But I don’t exactly think it’s fair to blame Madoka for that, it got popular and caused a shift, yes, but if it weren’t Madoka it would have been some other show.  Anyways! From the perspective of someone who has been a fan of the show since I was probably way younger than I should have been, I was around 11 when I first watched it, and even younger when I first Heard of it (it was a damn playground rumour for christs sake!) its English dub aired on ABC3 late at night, for not Australian people it’s uhh... Basically just one of those standard tv broadcasts, was mostly targeted towards and kids and teens.  So yes! I was exposed to Madoka at a young age, and while yes maybe I was a little too young I still hold it very near and dear for what it’s done for me, I struggled a LOT through my younger years, from about 13-16 I was in a constant loop of life throwing shit at me that no kid should have had to go through, I’ll spare the specifics for obvious reasons but just know it was a shitshow. My reason for bringing this up is that Madoka Magica was a source of comfort through those times, horrible things happened to the cast, yes, but please note that they were not “Punished” they were USED! They’re little girls going through horrible things because those “wiser” than them believe that’s how it needs to be, that in order for things to continue (in the case of Madoka the whole universe) girls needed to be thrown into an endless battle where their only choices are to keep fighting or succumb and lose yourself, and inevitably a lot of them have lost themselves, or died no death anyone should be able to, forever destined to be a missing persons case. Because that is what the system demands of them. But the important thing is that despite everything, Madoka tries her best to remain soft, she doesn’t let the traumatising things she experiences harden her up, she makes mistakes, she fumbles, but she remains hopeful and gentle and soft throughout it all, contrast that to Homura, although she means well the sheer amount of trauma she went through left her cold and blunt, this isn’t to say that Homura isn’t deserving of help, or she is lesser because of this, she too is the victim of a vicious cycle that is the magical girl system.  Madoka does not tell you to never have hope, nor does it tell you that things will never get better, that you’re doomed to suffer in an endless battle filled with nothing but sadness and cruelty. It tells you that despite everything you’re going through, everything you’ll GO through, to remain hopeful, to love, to remember that people will be there for you, and maybe, if you keep fighting, you’ll be there for someone too. In the end Madoka wishes to end all witches before they’re born, because she too, knows what it’s like to suffer.

[kohigh]

Anime Tag Game

1. Last anime you watched?

Nekopara (it's trash and I know that now but I was lured in by the pretty character designs)

2. Last anime you binge watched?

Might have been Attack On Titan but I've been slacking on anime in general lately so it's been a while

3. Recommend an anime and state your reason.

Death Parade. It's super interesting and gives a unique perspective on death and how you choose to live your life.

4. Anime you have not finished watching yet?

One Piece (and I probably never will lol)

5. An anime you do NOT recommend and state your reason.

Btooom! Went into it thinking it'd be a hunger games, battle royale type thing and instead got rape porn and pedophilia. Couldn't even make it past episode 4.

6. List your top 5 favorite anime.

1) Soul Eater

2) Death Parade

3) Black Lagoon

4) Durarara!!

5) Puella Magi Madoka Magica

7. Of your top 5 anime, list two of your favorite ships from each show.

Soul Eater - honestly don't really have any, Stein and Marie are cute I guess

Death Parade - Decim and Chiyuki

Black Lagoon - Revy and Rock

Durarara!! - the raira trio, Celty and Shinra

Puella Magi Madoka Magica - Madoka and Homura, Kyouko and Sayaka

8. Of your top 5 anime, list one ship you do not like.

Izaya and Shizuo from Durarara!! People just ship them cuz they're two attractive dudes who hate each other.

9. Of your top 5 anime, list one crack ship.

Eh, not into that.

10. Of your top 5 anime, list your favorite character from each one.

Soul Eater - Soul

Death Parade - Chiyuki

Black Lagoon - Revy

Durarara!! - Izaya

Puella Magi Madoka Magica - I love a lot of em but I'll go with Kyouko

11. List 3 of your husbando/waifu and what anime they are from.

Grimmjow from Bleach, Tohru from Miss Kobayashi's Dragon Maid, Sukuna from Jujutsu Kaisen

12. Favorite anime genre?

Urban fantasy. Shows like Noragami, Blood Blockade Battlefront, Death Note, etc.

13. Weirdest anime you've seen?

I've seen a lot of weird ones but I'll say FLCL

14. Subbed or dubbed?

Depends entirely on the show. Some dubs are really good, especially when it comes to comedy, others are garbage. No preference I guess but sub is more accessible.

15. Fanart or fanfic?

Both are good but I interact with fanart more

16. Protagonist or antagonist?

Depends but antagonists are typically more interesting

17. Funniest anime you've seen?

Nanbaka

18. Saddest anime you've seen?

Either Death Parade or Devilman: Crybaby (but Tokyo Magnitude 8.0 is also worth mentioning)

19. Anime character you dislike the most?

Sakura from Naruto. If you've seen the show you know why. Virtually no redeeming qualities in that one. Also Deku from My Hero Academia, he's just extremely basic and annoying.

20. Recommend an anime movie.

Wolf Children or any movie made by Mamoru Hosoda

I'll tag @auraphantom @unsuspectable-weirdo @redabeliz @d1ckgray5on @pandabully @musicmusnt @usernamethatisgood @only-active-at-night and anyone who wants to do it

[briandthemoon]

I saw a picture of the sander sides as magical girls from Puella Magi Madoka Magica. can I take a stab and say Virgil is Homura Akemi and rewinding time alot? ;)

@madamelookout Alas, he isn’t for this au! If I was going to do it by colours and/ or power sets, then Virgil would definitely be the Homura of the group, but for this AU, it’s more personality based, so;

- Patton is Madoka for obvious reasons, mostly just the fact she’s a sweetheart who goes through a lot and my gosh, Patton is in for a ride with this au

- Logan is Homura, since they both have a similar stoic, serious vibe, plus there’s a determination there that feels very logan.... plus past nerdy Logan is so good oh my god

- Virgil is Kyoko, they’re both snarky lil shits, and I feel like her personality fits him more with trying to warn Sayaka against making a wish for someone else because of the way it tends to backfire

- Roman is Sayaka, because I’m an absolute masochist and a bastard because honestly who else would recklessly persue a doomed romance?

- Janus is Mami, because honestly the fallout with her and Kyoko feels so very Virgil and Janus like, plus there’s a showmanship about Mami that feels kinda JAnus-y

- Remus is Nagisa/ Charlotte, I was going to jokingly make him Kyubey, but then I remembered Nagisa’s wish was like, just a cheesecake, and then I was like “Remus would 100% wish for something arbitrary then realise he basically sold his soul for [insert mundane thing here]“ -- I will say, I would love an AU where Virgil could rewind time..... aaaand now I’m sat here thinking of a Life is Strange AU, goshdaRNIT-

[mikkeneko]

Got tagged by @ushauz to do Ten Favorite Characters. This post will probably take me a couple sessions to put together, so expect lateness.

As always I am stuck on the scope of the question. Ten favorite! What does that even mean. Ten I thought were the most interesting? The most enjoyable? Characters from comfort series I read a lot, or only read once but really stuck with me? Through the years? Recently? I guess I can just pick the first ten who come to mind.

1. Ista dy Chalion from the Curse of Chalion/Paladin of Souls books. People like to talk a lot about how there should be more middle-aged matron action/adventure/fantasy heroes, well, here’s one. We meet her, at the start of the books, in a very bad place -- she had a stint as a Chosen One god-avatar in her teenage years which absolutely wrecked her life, and she never recovers from it. (Although even in the midst of her Noble Tragedy, she never loses sight of the fact that her nobility does  afford her a certain amount of privilege that other women will never have.)

Over the course of the second book she is  finally able to move on and recover from it. She starts the book as a crushingly depressed/nervous wreck of a powerless widow, and ends it as a demon-eating sorceress-paladin of a bastard god, with a sexy illegitimate trophy twink on her arm to boot. (I very much doubt that she and Illvin would ever be able to marry, all things considered, but one of the important things she learned -- as a woman whose entire social life had formerly revolved around chastity and propriety -- was to stop letting that bother her.) And she does it all without ever letting you forget that she is a highborn noble lady.

2. Wei Wuxian from The Untamed. Given how much of my mental real estate he’s taking up recently, I surrendered to the inevitable and gave him a spot on the list. I outlined a lot of the reasons I like him so much in this post, but aside from all of that there’s the fact that good (or at least good-hearted) characters who use ‘dark’ powers are magnetically appealing to me.

3, 4, 5. I almost feel like Fai Fluorite (from Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicles) Anders (from Dragon Age) and Caleb Widogast (from Critical Role) should all have to share a spot on my list given that they all follow the basic formula of being the Traumatized Cat-Loving Magic Man. It’s not quite  that simple -- they all have pretty distinct stories that go in different directions -- but I sort of feel like... I spent 369,149 words explaining why I love Anders, I don’t think I can do it again but tiny.

6. Homura Akemi from Puella Magi Madoka Magica gets a spot on this list, I think, and a spot in my heart. I don’t talk much about the series because I don’t have a lot of original things to say, but I was just reminded of this show recently and how good it was and how good she  was -- my brilliant, brave, determinator of a girl with a love as vast as the ocean. And sure, maybe she was willing to burn down the world for the sake of that love, but I sort of feel like that puts her in good company on this list.

7. I’ll go ahead and put Geralt of Rivia (from The Witcher, games and Netflix) on here; I dunno if he’d still make the list 10 years down the line, but I’ve spent a lot of time in 2019-2020 mooning over how great he is, so might as well. He’s not as firmly dead center My Type as some of the others, but he certainly fits the criteria of Unfairly Attractive, Extremely Traumatized, Surprisingly Sassy, and Tragically Good-Hearted. The good-heartedness is key! He could be as pretty and traumatized and witty as he likes but if he were fundamentally an asshole, I would not care about him.

8. Ciaphas Cain (of Warhammer 40k.) In a landscape of published fiction where heroic action characters all tend to follow very similar beats, the debonair, devious and cowardly Ciaphas Cain stands out in a way that really wormed its way into my heart. His books do tend to be a little formulaic, but sometimes that’s just what you need. And the best part about reading the entire series in one go is getting a sense of the shape of the man behind  his constant façade of self-deprecation and realizing that as much as he demurs being the brave and kind hero that his misleading reputation paints him as, he is actually pretty damn heroic on his own measures -- he cares about people, even the people under his command who he properly should be thinking of as disposable pawns, he’s way  more tolerant of (non-hostile) xenos than 99% of his countrymen, he moves time and time again to block harm and do good in a way that goes beyond his pretty flimsy excuses of ‘well I had to do it to maintain my reputation.’ 

The main reason he’s so convinced that he’s not a real hero is that he’s been raised in a (lbr, openly fascist) empire so steeped in propaganda of glory and sacrifice that is literally impossible to live up to (since the number one tenet is dying gloriously for the Emperor.) He led an entire caravan of people from the heart of bombed-out, occupied territory in a refugee march that ended up liberating the entire damn planet, he did that,  and while he would never have survived without a healthy dose of luck it was still his leadership and skill  that took full advantage of that luck. The Imperium of Man, frankly, doesn’t deserve Ciaphas Cain.

9. Raoden and Kaladin (of Elantris  and The Stormlight Archives) both share a slot as Brandon Sanderson protagonists who occupy pretty much the same narrative role: they have lost everything, been socially and physically rejected pretty much down to the dust, tossed into a role of waiting for death to come for them in a variety of cruel forms; and instead of giving in to despair they both say no.  they both say, I do not accept this for me, and I will not accept this for them either,  and they both gather fellow outcasts around them and build themselves a kingdom out of mud and scraps. Yeah, it’s a trope he uses a lot, but it’s a trope I like. (And, come to think of it, a category that Wei Wuxian and Ciaphas Cain both fall under as well. Hm.)

10.  Skywise (of Elfquest.) Honestly, at this late date I doubt I could muster an essay explaining why he is the Best Elf. All I can tell you was that this series was super duper  important to me when I was a teen, and he was my favorite character from that series. He loved to explore, he loved new knowledge and the sky and the stars, and he loved his friends and family a whole lot.

That’s that! Hmm, who to tag? @cygnahime, @cerusee, @araglas1989, @drowningbydegrees , @jaggedcliffs, @fairandfatalasfair, @fledgling-witch, @overthinkingfeathers, if you have not already done it and are interested!

[silvermoon424]

Hello Katy. I'm a huge Madoka Magica and Magia Record fan, I wanted to ask your recommendations on spin offs and extra material to know about the world building and other stories

Great question. I’m your girl! I’ve read all the spinoffs and can recommend them!

I’m going down a list on “most recommended” to “least recommended,” although I think everything on this list is worthy of reading. Oh, and everything on this list (sans The Wraith Arc) has been officially published in English; although I have offered links to read them for free I really recommend supporting the franchise by buying the manga if you can (plus, if you’re like me, you’ll like having physical copies to put on your bookshelf). 

1. The Different Story: Imo the best PMMM spinoff and one every Madoka fan must read. It has three volumes; the first volume focuses on Mami and Kyoko’s backstory as friends and allies (which is consistent throughout all of Homura’s time loops), which was originally revealed in an audio drama released with one of PMMM’s Blurays. However, the final two volumes take place in an alternate timeline where Sayaka contracted in time to save Mami from Charlotte. The series explores Mami and Kyoko’s relationship and gives them a lot of depth and characterization. It’s just a really excellent series I can’t recommend enough. Be sure to have tissues on hand.

2. Puella Magi Tart Magica: By far my favorite standalone spinoff and would have been my favorite overall if not for the Different Story. Tart Magica follows the journey of Tart, aka Jeanne d’Arc (yes, that Joan of Arc) as she and her allies fight on behalf of France during the Hundred Years’ War. Not only is this a great PMMM spinoff, it’s great historical fiction; the mangaka did a ton of research on that era and gives a lot of interesting historical background. The characters are also lovable and interesting, especially Tart herself and her closest companion, Riz. I highly, highly recommend this series and really wish more people read it.

3. Puella Magi Oriko Magica: Probably the best known PMMM spinoff because it was released alongside the original anime. Oriko Magica takes place in one of Homura’s alternate timelines, specifically one noted to be very irregular. The titular Oriko is a magical girl who can see the future and is trying to prevent some unclear calamity alongside her partner Kirika. The main girls from PMMM are also important characters, especially Mami and Kyoko (who actually adopts Yuma, a young girl orphaned by a Witch attack). It soon becomes clear that Oriko is willing to stoop to very dangerous methods to prevent the disaster she foresaw. 

Oriko Magica also has two spinoffs (yes, there are spinoffs of a spinoff). The first is a collection of side stories that take place in an alternate timeline. The second is Sadness Prayer, which greatly fleshes out and adds depth to the original Oriko Magica. Basically, it recounts everything leading up to the events of the main Oriko Magica as well as showing scenes from Oriko and Kirika’s perspective. The original Oriko Magica is only 7 chapters/2 volumes long whereas Sadness Prayer is 24 chapters/4 volumes long, so you can tell how much is added to the story. I absolutely love Sadness Prayer and highly recommend it. The original Oriko Magica is pretty good too, and you should read it, if nothing else than so you can enjoy Sadness Prayer.

4. The Wraith Arc: The Wraith Arc is an interquel that takes place between the events of PMMM and the Rebellion Story. It’s actually an adaptation of the first draft of Rebellion, before it was reworked into the Rebellion we all know. Imo that shows, because it feels somewhat unpolished and rushed compared to the other spinoffs. Nonetheless, I think it’s worth reading. It follows Homura, Mami, and Kyoko in Madoka’s new world as they fight against Wraiths. However, Homura inadvertently sets off a chain of events that lead to disaster.

5. Puella Magi Suzune Magica: This spinoff follows Suzune Amano, a magical girl who is a serial killer of other magical girls (not a spoiler btw, we find this out in the first few pages). Four other magical girls in the city she just moved to soon become her targets, but they’re not going down without a fight. As the story goes on, we find out Suzune’s motivations. We also follow Matsuri Hinata, one of Suzune’s targets who is trying to befriend her. This spinoff is pretty good and has a great concept, although unfortunately the ending feels rushed and could have probably benefited from another volume. I still think it’s worth a read.

6. Puella Magi Kazumi Magica: A girl wakes up in a suitcase with no memory of who she is. She is soon discovered by Umika Misaki and Kaoru Maki, who reveal that she is their friend Kazumi and that they are all magical girls. The trio soon meet up with their four other magical girl companions and together they form the Pleiades Saints. However, as soon as they’re reunited, a chain of events is set off that puts them all in danger. All the while, Kazumi is trying to regain her lost memories and find out the secrets her friends are hiding from her. Honestly, that’s the best I could do to come up with a summary because over the course of five volumes the events become kind of disjointed and less coherent, haha. I think Kazumi Magica is worth reading, but imo it’s the worst spinoff and lacks the polish the others have. Despite going on for five volumes, it still feels like there wasn’t enough time for the mangaka to flesh out all the different plot elements. 

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That’s all 6 of the main spinoffs! There’s one I’m leaving out, Homura’s Revenge, which I haven’t read or been able to find scans of. There’s also an assortment of parody/4koma manga, but those are mostly untranslated (except for Homura Tamura, which also doesn’t have scans but has been officially published in English). 

As for other world-building, I highly recommend reading through the Wiki’s pages on the various routes in the Madoka Magica Portable game. It’s a game for the PSP that was unfortunately never released in English (although it looks like someone is currently working on a translation), which is really a shame because it has top-notch world-building and characterization. The PSP game is actually where the designs of Candeloro (Mami’s Witch), Ophelia (Kyoko’s Witch), and Homulilly (Homura’s Witch) originate from, which were later used for the Doppels in Magia Record.