Madoka Magica - Episode 08 Discussion / Poll

[Hmm....]

Originally Posted by Deconstructor

If you ask me, she is brave enough to reject the truth and try carving out her own. People from your viewpoint argue that there is no way to change reality and it's best to accept facts. That people will die, regardless of how hard Sayaka tries.

Even if that's true, at least Sayaka had the courage to try and change that. She had an ideal of the world, and sought to make that ideal reality. While she may be naive and even crazy, I will never call Sayaka cowardly.

You have a test tomorow(fighting a witch). You haven't studied this whole semester(never purify your soul gem). You are not a genius(no talent, skill nor experience). You don't let any of your classmate to be your tutor either, since you see them as rivals. Yet, you say you are brave enough to take the test. I believe many people will see it otherwise ^^" You didn't carve anything to make it reality. I do agree that it still better than simply not taking the test though.

[Sheba]

Originally Posted by serenade_beta

I know. Only half-joking. Mainly talking to Q-beh, not the staff that came up with the name.

To put it another way, if QB started taking advantage of guys, he would likely say something like 'Hey! Make a wish and I will grant it. As a trade, be a Superhero working for me and hunting Supervillains! That will be awesome", instead of "Hey! Make a wish and I will grant it. As a trade, be a Sorcerer working for me and hunting Abominations! That will be awesome!". Guess which one will be more appealing?

[scr]

From meta perspective, I'm pretty sure that whatever Eldritch Abomination is behind the QBs won't be revealed (fully) in this series. Sure, self-exalted Madoka might avert The End Of The World As We Know It (with Homura <3), but it will ultimately fail to harm the Bigger Bad. I mean, Kazumi Magica is on-going, Oriko Magica will soon come. This tear-stained saga of the lost and the damned still has a long way to go...

[monir]

Originally Posted by Makender

Oh Sayaka is certainly one of the more dynamic characters of the show. Coupled with that I'm no Madoka fan. Its just her completely adamant attitude toward "justice" and unwillingness to budge from that point of view to the point that she views everyone in a negative light is a dislikeable trait in her.

I agree that it is very difficult to empathize with anyone who is so very uncompromising in their approach when it comes to his/her values and ideals. It's true that Sayaka demonstrates such trait, but it is also true that she is not an ass in general. She is, afterall, friends with Madoka. She also liked Mami. Her conversation with the girl who was going to confess to Kamijo was very civil also. It is also not an easy choice to make when you know the prospect of death looms constantly by becoming a Mahou Shoujo just because it will create a miracle to save someone. For her type of people with such strong sense of values, the first impression tends to be very important. Her analogy on Homura and Kyouko is also spot on! The down part about such people are that they rarely are able to revise their first impression.

Originally Posted by Kinematics

So in other words, Madoka is to Sayaka as Sayaka was to Kamijo. The analogy fits remarkably well.

Sayaka constantly visited with Kamijo, trying to cheer him up, doing whatever she could that she thought would make him feel better, despite the fact that for all practical purposes her presence there was completely useless, if not actively detrimental. Pretty much exactly the same thing as how Madoka has been trying to support Sayaka.

Yeap! Nicely put. Kindness can hurt too as evident here and no one should have been able to understand that better than Sayaka. I don't consider Sayaka as a coward. In fact none of these girls can be considered a coward. Even Madoka is brave enough to admit about her fears and uncertainty. All these girls, however, share one common trait. They are all young, and they are naive. Like someone has said earlier in the thread, the show is pretty much redefining the general perception and the concept of being a Mahou Shoujo. Let's see who said that... uh yes:

Originally Posted by Jimmy C

It needs to be "mahou shojo" to nail the fans that they're tearing apart the MG genre.
Recall that Kaijo once put up Mai HiME as a better deconstruction of the MG genre? Part of the reason it isn't recognised as such is because it never sold itself as an MG show in the first place. In contrast, Madoka's been rubbing it in that this is an MG show.

[Freya]

Holy shit.....! Incubator!!! rofl.

Seriously though is Kyubey the devil or something? Puella Magi grow into witches? shittt man

too much mind fuck

[Kaoru Chujo]

1. Since this episode aired, 2channel has racked up over 20,000 posts. We're now on thread 395.

2. "Evil" is not easy to define. This creature may be acting quite ethically, either from the point of view of all humanity, or from its own non-human point of view. But it is certainly not acting in the interests of our heroines as individuals. It is willing to deceive them on any matter (such as Madoka's potential power?) and seems completely indifferent to their suffering.

3. One of the things that's so great about the way Katou Emiri does his voice is the slightly robotic feeling she gives, conveying a hint of alienness.

4. The exchange between Madoka and Homura was fantastic: how Homura fell apart emotionally, and how Madoka seemed not to hear or take seriously anything she said, and just slipped away. Chilling.

[~Yami~]

I must praised everyone especially Mentar who have predict that Sayaka will become a witch and Kyubey is the true villain

So the goal of becoming a mahou shoujo is becoming a witch....
damn you Incubator!!!

looks like I just realized that Homura has two personalities... XD
never imagine that Homura will crying in front of Madoka

and Madoka! don't be too kind.... Kyubey is only using you

[MeoTwister5]

Incidentally, not of us even thought of the possibility that Kyubey was actually a shortcut/nickname for his real name which, if we knew, would give away his intentions almost immediately.

[Archon_Wing]

Ah, so it's finally revealed witches are fallen magical girls. JUST AS PLANNED. Pretty painful to watch as we saw Sayaka go all Shion on us. Kyubee is an epic troll; should totally team up with Izaya or Beatrice or something. Lol @ him going om nom nom on himself.

Homura's breakdown... actually I didn't see it coming that fast. She just cracked at the futility apparently; that part had me pretty depressed. So she's from the future? Oh don't tell me, she's an Archer...

Meanwhile Kyoko is just facepalming at the situation; to her it should be simply. But it just isn't.

Overall, another impressive episode. No ass pulls or silly twists, just a return to actually telling a story. A rare feat these days, really. 9/10

What will you do now, Madoka?

[serenade_beta]

Originally Posted by Sheba

To put it another way, if QB started taking advantage of guys, he would likely say something like 'Hey! Make a wish and I will grant it. As a trade, be a Superhero working for me and hunting Supervillains! That will be awesome", instead of "Hey! Make a wish and I will grant it. As a trade, be a Sorcerer working for me and hunting Abominations! That will be awesome!". Guess which one will be more appealing?

I can't choose, really. To me, both are pretty good. And to be honest, I think a Sorcerer might be better. When I think of Superheros, I get images of really weird clothing...
As for that demon... Yeah, I know. He's using what's more appealing, not necessarily the correct one. That's marketing.

[BaKaBaKaOtaKu]

OHGAWD. imagine my face when those popular theories finally came true (or not yet completely)!!

-IN-KYUBEY-TOR IS EFFIN EVIL!!!: (shoot me but 5% of my brain tells me he’s still morally gray.)
-QB has multiple bodies!oh gawd, this kinda grossed me out that i wanted to puke. DX)
- fallen MGs turn to witches: (sayaka’s fall to complete doom gave me chills! it was bloody well-played!!)
-Homura came from the future: (i just need to wonder where the hell is the present homura?!)
-Homura and Madoka had this kind of relationship that i’m itching to know!! (i think they’re lovers. Kannazuki no Miko anyone?)
-Homura’s power is time manipulation
-the ED lyrics has always been a spoiler to Homura’s feelings for Madoka: ( that scene just gave her away!! she truly loves madoka!! and it was painful to watch! my heart couldn’t stand seeing homura like that. T____T but hell yeah! yuri is becoming blatant now. XD)

i feel very sorry for kyoko though. DX she cares for sayaka so much that she’s so eager to save her. DX and about kamijo and hitomi, i wouldn’t be surprised if hitomi actually told kamijo about sayaka’s feelings for him. and she’s like the one getting the two together in reality. so yeah, it might be that sayaka just misunderstood that scene. DX

anyhow,yes, things turned quite predictable but that doesn’t change the fact that they were very well-executed!! brilliantly done in every way!! i just never thought urobuchi would confirm those obvious hints he gave.I Thought he had something else in mind to trash those speculations. but yeah, that was one hella awesome episode!

first time i’m giving this show a PERFECT rate!!! XDD

EPISODE 09 PLEASE!! (will it be kyoko’s turn to die? will witch-sayaka kill her?)

[Freya]

Originally Posted by BaKaBaKaOtaKu

OHGAWD. imagine my face when those popular theories finally came true (or not yet completely)!!

-IN-KYUBEY-TOR IS EFFIN EVIL!!!: (shoot me but 5% of my brain tells me he’s still morally gray.)
-QB has multiple bodies!oh gawd, this kinda grossed me out that i wanted to puke. DX)
- fallen MGs turn to witches: (sayaka’s fall to complete doom gave me chills! it was bloody well-played!!)
-Homura came from the future: (i just need to wonder where the hell is the present homura?!)
-Homura and Madoka had this kind of relationship that i’m itching to know!! (i think they’re lovers. Kannazuki no Miko anyone?)
-Homura’s power is time manipulation
-the ED lyrics has always been a spoiler to Homura’s feelings for Madoka: ( that scene just gave her away!! she truly loves madoka!! and it was painful to watch! my heart couldn’t stand seeing homura like that. T____T but hell yeah! yuri is becoming blatant now. XD)

i feel very sorry for kyoko though. DX she cares for sayaka so much that she’s so eager to save her. DX and about kamijo and hitomi, i wouldn’t be surprised if hitomi actually told kamijo about sayaka’s feelings for him. and she’s like the one getting the two together in reality. so yeah, it might be that sayaka just misunderstood that scene. DX

anyhow,yes, things turned quite predictable but that doesn’t change the fact that they were very well-executed!! brilliantly done in every way!! i just never thought urobuchi would confirm those obvious hints he gave.I Thought he had something else in mind to trash those speculations. but yeah, that was one hella awesome episode!

first time i’m giving this show a PERFECT rate!!! XDD

EPISODE 09 PLEASE!! (will it be kyoko’s turn to die? will witch-sayaka kill her?)

Where is present day Homura?? She's not born yet...lol. :P

[kk2extreme]

QB is the best villian this year or may be this decade.

Is there reason that why he is not turning boys into Maho Shounen

[monir]

Originally Posted by Archon_Wing

What will you do now, Madoka?

The least she can do is to turn into the first Mahou Shoujo of the known kind and validate the title of this show Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magica. And from there on, force every show that ever wants to use the concept of MS will have to use the whole name Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magica. Because if the Madoka Magica part is omitted, we should automatically assume that such series is going to be about witches.

[Sheba]

Originally Posted by kk2extreme

QB is the best villian this year or may be this decade.

Is there reason that why he is not turning boys into Maho Shounen

Just tell me that I would be a metal hero like Space Sheriff Gavan and I would have jumped at the call.

[Hagoshod]

So if Homura knows what Quebey's plan is

and her entire premise is to undermine the plan

Why the **** doesn't she just openly talk about it? Doesn't being all secretive herself only, you know, help him?

[in response to someone saying "Madoka will think she's creepy."]

As compared her constantly showing up and going "Don't listen to him, Madoka... JUST BECAUSE!" That's uhhh pretty odd in itself.

And even without considering that, it would at least plant the idea in Madoka's head not to trust Quebey.

So basically you're saying she refuses to blow open an apparently apocalyptic plan solely to preserve her own pwecious self-image. That's not what she would do if she actually cared about Madoka's well-being. That just means she only cares about herself.

Does anyone else see this? Am I taking crazy pills? The show better try REALLY hard to explain this in a way that's better than "Homura's character was written that way solely so it could be held off as a PLOT TWIST." And if it doesn't, never before will a show have gone from successfully and cleverly handling everything that made My HiME one of the dumbest things ever to repeating every single mistake My HiME made in such a short span of time.

I'll just leave these here.

[Archon_Wing]

As I've posted before, this just becomes a propaganda battle. Her word vs his, and there's just a deadlock. And when one side promises easy solutions and grand prizes, while all Homura has to offer is despair, she's just at a huge disadvantage.

Also, apparently she's tried before and failed.

[Malkuth]

10/10, best episode yet, Homura finally breaking down, Sayaka turning into a witch (probably), QB disappearing into shadows, eating his dead body, etc.

[SARCASM] By the way, excellent work on the allegory of QB as the Devil, the instrument of God, to test Man, bringing out the weakness in him, so the Allmighty will have an easier job to condemn the weak (Mami, Sayaka, Kyoko, Homura), and award the boring (Madoka) [/SARCASM]

BGM also did wonders ... again

PS: Sponge QB, and Rambo Homura were real treats

[MeoTwister5]

On second thought, isn't anyone even slightly perturbed at the fact that while Madoka asked Homura calmly why she "killed" Inkyubeytor, after their emotional discussion Madoka seems to have forgotten the dead body beside her, the wish she was about to give it, and walked away to find Sayaka?

[yakuri-moe]

Originally Posted by kk2extreme

QB is the best villian this year or may be this decade.

Is there reason that why he is not turning boys into Maho Shounen

While not the most subtle or original regarding personal agenda, I give him props for being the first one (in a while, at least) to adopt such a cute form and go specifically for lolis.

Well you know I very well wanna know the same, where are all my angsty shotas? D:

Originally Posted by MeoTwister5

On second thought, isn't anyone even slightly perturbed at the fact that while Madoka asked Homura calmly why she "killed" Inkyubeytor, after their emotional discussion Madoka seems to have forgotten the dead body beside her, the wish she was about to give it, and walked away to find Sayaka?

I thought the same, WTF girl! there's a mutilated cute animal next to you!