#pmmm x a hat in time

[sixxpy]

I seriously had zero motivation but. the art for the AU is finally here.

HE LONGAWAITED ART FOR THE PMMM AHIT AU IS HERE!!! I am v excited to actually do smth for the AU! I’ll most likely be creating an ao3 acct and writing for the AU there and this will be the cover ^^ the art took me almost 3 hours to do, it was mega exhausting 😭😭 but I hope you guys like and I hope you guys stick along! it’ll be a long ride but i promise itll be worth it

EDIT: JUST REALIZED THE QUALITY WAS BUTCHERED NOOOOOOOO ahdsgg I’ll find a way to fix it;((

[littlepurinsesu]

V Watches MagiReco - Episode 12 Review

*Spoilers for Magia Record Anime Episode 12*

I have been waiting for so long to see this chapter animated, and at long last!!! This week’s episode finally touches upon the secret truth of magical girls and reveals Yachiyo’s mysterious past!

There are, of course, some parts I wish were handled a little better, but overall, I wouldn’t say it was too shabby ^^ I have a lot to say about this episode, both the good and the meh, so let’s go~ (Tumblr, please don’t eat my post again I IMPORE YOU.)

(Oh, for clarification, I’m still using the name “Meru” instead of “Mel”, since that’s what her name was before the game was localised in English. Both are acceptable, but I guess I’m more used to this spelling xD)

I personally really liked how they began the episode with Kanae and Meru at Mikazuki Villa. The rain and dark lighting and overall silence of the scene was really well-done. It’s a nice way to “tease” their characters before properly introducing them and their roles in Yachiyo’s story. I really don’t have much else to say, but I just really, really liked that opening scene hehe

Speaking of openings, the anime continues to come up with creative ways to bring in the OP, and this week’s was another really interesting idea that I enjoyed a lot! I was just beginning to wonder if they were going to skip the OP this week because there was so much to cover, but I really liked what they came up with, so hats-off for the creativity and originality! ^^

Touka’s lecture really did seem even more lecture-like in the anime, with the lecture hall and screen and her pointer. She’s like a tiny, overly-enthusiastic professor trying to force a reluctant group of students to listen to her haha x) That being said, all the special effects were done very creatively in a way that is true to the PMMM style. It’s not only some impressive artwork, but it also prevents the lecture from becoming boring, since it’s literally just “info dumping” and a whole lot of exposition (most of it essentially being stuff that most of the audience already knows, too).

As for Touka herself, I’m really liking the anime’s portrayal of her. She’s extremely cute, but in a strange way that almost seems suspicious, and with just the right amount of “annoying-ness” that keeps her antagonistic role without making her so obnoxious that you can’t even bear to watch her. Each of her moves seems calculated in some way, and the way she leaps around and twirls her umbrella really does make her seem like a tiny fairy or pixie, and I love that contrast between her supposedly innocent image and the immoral deeds the Magius (and the Feathers) have been committing. A+ portrayal so far, and I hope they keep that up!

I was a bit confused at first when Touka addressed Kanae as “A” (since we know that in the game, “A” is Yachiyo, and Kanae is actually “C”), but I guess they weren’t planning on going ahead with the A-F naming of all 6 characters and this was just a one-off, so fair enough. However, I was a little annoyed that they showed the first secret in “lecture form” and then repeated it once more in “flashback form” once they got on the car thingy. I really felt that they could have skipped that first part and just focused on the flashbacks, because they’re essentially wasting time by telling one of the secrets twice in an episode that already has a lot to cover.

And this brings me to possibly my main issue with this episode: too fast. There was a lot of emotion in these flashbacks, and while the anime did bring them out decently, I just feel that they could have been even better if they had just managed the pacing a little more ideally. The tragedy and feels were definitely there, but it could have been even better. Another problem with this fast pacing is that we barely got to know Kanae and Meru before they met their respective downfalls, with the only clues to their individuality being Kanae’s guitar and Meru’s Tarot Cards. It tells us something, but it’s not enough. The result is that it becomes a lot harder for the audience to feel anything for these characters’ deaths, and Kanae and Meru ultimately become plot devices that serve to move Yachiyo and the others along on their journey. Granted, they were always kind of plot devices even in the game, but at least we got to know them a little better before their deaths, and this isn’t even counting their personal Magical Girl Stories.

But aside from these issues, the rest of the flashbacks were very well, in my opinion :) We as an audience may not have felt much for Kanae’s death because we barely knew her, but Yachiyo’s trembling hand as she tries in vain to purify her friend’s broken Soul Gem, the terrific voice acting, that tragic yet beautifully drawn shot of Kanae lying soulless (literally) on the ground... That was some impressive stuff that actually made me tear up.

The battle scenes also saw a huge improvement this week! Still could be better, but they’re a lot more action-packed and exciting than the quick and easy battles we’ve been seeing so far. I also really appreciate the show of teamwork between the old Team Mikazuki, not to mention that Meru’s use of magic looked absolutely amazing!!! But I would have liked it if she spoke a bit more before Witching out, and I was especially disappointed that she didn’t get to say that line about how today was her lucky day because she got to protect Yachiyo. That line says a lot about her as a character to me, and it was a shame that they only gave her an extremely shortened/simplified (and almost unfinished) version of it here. But I guess this is only because I’ve played the game and have expectations of what I want to see and what I think should be done. Maybe someone who hasn’t played the game at all wouldn’t have an issue with this minor detail haha :)

(By the way, I totally called it and guessed that they were going to release Meru’s Doppel Uncap with the debut of her Witch form in the anime mwahaha >:D Pretty good timing, though, and I like that attention to detail!)

Kyubey is a little sh*t in any and every timeline, and I did enjoy seeing Momoko yelling at him, even though obviously he gives no effs. Another nice nod to the original anime by having Kyubey using the same line about young girls and Witches, too (or maybe he’s had to defend himself so many times that he has the perfect justification memorised to use when needed? xD).

The scene with Mifuyu and Momoko was also a really nice way to show the difference in their personalities, through just the way they respond to and take in all the tragedy and shocking information. I loved the way they animated Mifuyu’s Witch/Doppel moment, and it’s always nice to see a Doppel shown in the anime! Another thing I liked was the way Touka seems to “control” the scene as she pleases, rewinding it like an actual video and pausing on particular frames. It was too easy to forget that these are scenes shown in the Memory Museum, and little details like this remind you that these aren’t just ordinary flashbacks shown in anime and movies.

Yachiyo was as cool ever in the very few (present) scenes she got. I especially loved her confrontation with Touka and how she literally just thrusts her weapon in her face haha. And the way she just ignores Touka talking and smashes open a path and just goes in there herself on foot? BADASS. I LOVE YACHIYO.

And finally, about Team Momoko... A bit funny how Momoko was the one gearing up for the Big Talk but mostly just ended up standing there for the whole thing xD But anyway, I really, really loved Rena in this scene. It’s probably the first time we’ve seen her being so honest with her feelings by hugging Kaede and straight-up telling her how worried she was. It’s these small moments that really make me love Rena so much, no matter how harsh and prickly she can be most of the time. I really liked the scene in the game where she goes to Kaede’s place to comfort her (even if they ended up slapping each other lmao), because it really did show how much Rena cares for her friends. But this anime version was quite nice too and also does some good for Rena’s characterisation, so I’ll take it :)

As for Kaede... what happened to my sweet sunshine child? I’m not liking the dead look in her eyes and how she sounds like a zombie... almost like she’s in a trance? And also... what was with that line at the end? Did Kaede join the Wings of Magius? Is she brainwashed? Would that explain her strange behaviour and way of speech? If any of this is true, then this will probably be the biggest deviation the anime has done, and I’d be both scared and interested to see how they handle it lol.

So yeah, an interesting episode that could have been super impressive if it weren’t for some of the issues I discussed, but overall, still enjoyable and decently good :) I really think the majority of the MagiReco anime’s issues comes from the pacing. Which is understandable, because they’re pressed for time and there’s a lot to squeeze in. It’s just a bit of a shame that so many important scenes and moments don’t translate as amazingly as they could have due to time constraints :(

Next week’s episode will be the final one, right? I know nothing’s been confirmed, but I’m almost certain that there’s going to be another season/cour after this. (They wouldn’t just leave it hanging like that... right? O___O) My guess is that we’ll see Tsuruno, Felicia, and Sana join the Wings of Magius, Yachiyo split up the team, and possibly Iroha going up against the Rumour herself and declaring herself the leader. These are all really important plot points, and adding to the fact that next week will be the (season) finale, hopefully we can end it with a huge BANG! Will we see Holy Mami? Will we see Sayaka? Or will we perhaps see Kuroe, rounding up the season by going full circle and bringing us back to the hanging threads left from all the way back in Episode 1?

It’s almost surreal to think that we only have one more episode left of this season!!! Let’s hope that it’ll end in the best way possible (even if that means leaving us on a cliffhanger lololol) ٩(^ᴗ^)۶