Madoka Magica - New Season/Series Information and Speculation

[Tempester]

Shouldn't this discussion go to the General Thread? It's not much about the movies.

[Guernsey]

Originally Posted by Animexcel

Stan Lee is in everything, is Gen trying to become Stan Lee?

[Guernsey]

You know with the movies, manga, drama cds, video games and the anime, Madoka has become big and it may or may not be the Evangelion of magical girls. Evangelion is a notorious anime for a lot of reasons but nevertheless it is a successful franchise that spawned many merchandise and has fanfics dedicated to 'fixing' the anime. Do you think Madoka will become as big Evangelion, DBZ, JoJo, Naruto, etc.?

[maximilianjenus]

Ic an only hope.

[blakstealth]

Originally Posted by Animexcel

You called?

oh man lawl

[Lenneth4]

Originally Posted by Kanon

That was predictable. I'm afraid they're going to milk this series into the ground.

So you don't want more because you hate the series ?
Or you don't want Creators earn more money to be more secure with their business ?

All i can truly hope is to have gen all along , and the quality stay the same.

[Triple_R]

It's hard to blame SHAFT for trying to milk in on PMMM's success, but my worries are similar to Kanon's.

I'm particularly worried about the idea of Madoka Magica outliving its creators. Doing a darker-themed show well is actually a lot harder than people think. It can very easily turn into self-parody or just be shlocky shock-and-awe for the sake of shock-and-awe (Blood C immediately comes to mind for me, as does Another's last two episodes; just compare those two to Gen's work in PMMM and Fate/Zero).


Plus, I honestly feel that the Nanoha franchise has lost a lot of its original charm by going through so many cast enlargements and spin-offs and all sorts of new directions. And I'd hate to see the same happen to PMMM.


Ultimately, we'll have to wait to see, but I am worried about how this might all play out (most of the comic book comparisons really aren't helping, guys ).

[GDB]

Originally Posted by AuraTwilight

"Puella Magi: House of M(adoka)"

Kind of already happened. "No more witches."

[AuraTwilight]

I was waiting for someone to catch that.

[Kanon]

Originally Posted by Lenneth4

So you don't want more because you hate the series ?
Or you don't want Creators earn more money to be more secure with their business ?

All i can truly hope is to have gen all along , and the quality stay the same.

I don't want shitty sequels for the sake of racking up more money. The recent track record for sequels of anime original work don't fill me with confidence (most recent example: Eureka Seven AO).

It will be very difficult to come up with sequels or spin-offs that are as gripping and impactful as PMMM, especially now that we are all familiar with the setting. It might turn out fine if Urobuchi is still writing these works, but it sounds like he already wants to pass the torch to others.

[maximilianjenus]

Yeah, they won't be as impactful, but they can still be pretty god, the spin off materials, while some of them have some execution problems (oriko, kazumi) are pretty cool in their own and they still feel like they belong to the madoka universe.

[BaKaBaKaOtaKu]

OMG, why? I'm scared about this tbh. The third film should be enough already. What's more story to tell about Madoka. I don't want Madoka to be ruined. SOL though? I'm okay with that.

[Solace]

Originally Posted by maximilianjenus

Yeah, they won't be as impactful, but they can still be pretty god, the spin off materials, while some of them have some execution problems (oriko, kazumi) are pretty cool in their own and they still feel like they belong to the madoka universe.

I don't think it's possible to be as impactful as the original story, especially for those of us who were there for the ride. And I don't think it would be wise to try, either.

Still, like you said, even though there were execution problems, Oriko and Kazumi were pretty good. I attribute some of those issues to their rushed nature, since they were developed as Madoka was being made and it was highly possible that Madoka wouldn't be a success. The three manga certainly feel rushed at times, the pacing is awkward, and in the case of the manga adaptation of the series and Kazumi, elements had to be changed around because of the unfinished scripting of the show itself.

As proofs of concept though, they work really well. Kazumi itself could easily become a full fledged anime, especially if they took the time to flesh it out with better pacing and a few more bits of material. Oriko would make a solid OVA or movie.

I think there's a strong enough core to the series which would allow it to have a decentralized storytelling system with a centralized universe to put it in. It doesn't always have to be about the characters of Madoka the anime, and even if it were, just the potential of Homura's timelines would make for good storytelling.

I share the fear that this could be a wasted opportunity, but the show's creators have an excellent track record, plus it's officially a cash cow. I'm sure they'll try to protect that, at least initially.

[Animexcel]

I wouldn't mind if there were more Madoka stories to be told. Just yesterday, someone on facebook told me that Evangelion should've stopped after the tv series ended. I don't really care if they make more, and for everyone who has a problem with it, you have 2 simple options. Watch it, or don't.

[Triple_R]

Originally Posted by Animexcel

I wouldn't mind if there were more Madoka stories to be told. Just yesterday, someone on facebook told me that Evangelion should've stopped after the tv series ended. I don't really care if they make more, and for everyone who has a problem with it, you have 2 simple options. Watch it, or don't.

There's times and places where that rationale applies, but it really isn't that simple for those of us who are already serious Madoka fans. A serious Madoka fan can't ignore what's going to come next no more than a serious Star Trek fan can ignore one of the Star Trek movies s/he doesn't like - Like it or not, it's now part of canon.


Let me use an analogy that might capture what some of us are worried about.

Let's say that you have a great and famous painting. The painting is widely held to be a near-flawless masterpiece, and most would grade it something like 95/100. In short, it has little room for improvement and it could easily be way, way worse.

Now, let's say that the painter, Gen Picasso, who is held in pretty high esteem, came out and said the following: "My painting, the Madoka Lisa, is going to be extended upon soon. The painting you see now will only be a third of the full painting in time. Some of the new parts of the full painting may drastically change how you interpret the original painting. Also, parts of the full painting will be handled by painters other than I. My hope is for this painting to be a living work of art, based on more than my artistic vision alone."

Now, you're someone who loves the Madoka Lisa the way it is. The likelihood of it getting even better is slim. The possibility of the new add-ons hurting the original painting is very real.


If Shinbo or Gen came out and said "All future PMMM anime projects will be AU-based", I'd breath a sigh of relief. Because even in a worst-case scenario; even if those future projects aren't that good ; it wouldn't negatively impact the original anime.

But that assurance isn't there, so I can't help but feel a bit worried here.


I also don't like the sheer speed at which this is all moving. It hasn't even been two years yet since PMMM aired, and we already have three movies (one being entirely new content). And now, they're already planning for more?

The funny thing is that I'd love to see KyoAni treat Haruhi like this - That would be a dream come true for me. But then Haruhi has massive amounts of source material just waiting to be adapted, while Madoka Magica is anime original so there's no real reason to rush it.


All of the above being said, I guess there would be no harm in adapting the Kizumi and Oriko manga into anime. The Oriko manga I liked myself, and I think it would make a good, short OVA.

[Animexcel]

I see where you're coming from. I mean look at Dragonball GT for example. People HATED it, but then there are those who did like it. I could say the same for those Star Wars prequels(WTF). I understand that you can't have too much of a good thing, but you never know unless you go there.

[woxx]

I don't think making anymore spin-offs like Kazumi or Oriko(personally I didn't enjoyed them) is good idea. As much as I like Madoka Magica I don't find its universe to be really interesting. But some kind of slice of life with original characters would be awesome.

[Triple_R]

Originally Posted by Animexcel

I see where you're coming from. I mean look at Dragonball GT for example. People HATED it, but then there are those who did like it. I could say the same for those Star Wars prequels(WTF). I understand that you can't have too much of a good thing, but you never know unless you go there.

Your Star Wars comparison hits it perfectly.

I know people who's image of Darth Vader was RUINED, absolutely ruined, by the Star Wars prequels.

I myself didn't mind "Anakin Skywalker" that much, but I can see why some people would.


Could something like this happen to Madoka? Homura? Kyubey?

I hope not, but the risk is there. Well, if the third movie ends up being good and very well-received, that'll put some of my doubts to rest. But we'll have to wait and see on that.

[GDB]

Originally Posted by Triple_R

I hope not, but the risk is there.

If people are that concerned, they can just not watch it. It's not like they're being forced to, and it's not like by not watching, they diminish the original.

[totoum]

Originally Posted by GDB

If people are that concerned, they can just not watch it. It's not like they're being forced to, and it's not like by not watching, they diminish the original.

I really really try hard to pretend I've never heard of Midi-chlorians when watching the original star wars but no matter how much i want to ignore them,they're cannon even if I don't like it.They'd be cannon even if I hadn't watched the prequel.So in a way yes,those freaking Midi-chlorians are messing with my enjoyement of the original Star Wars trilogy.

Though I do recognize that's an extreme example.