Madoka Magica - General Discussion

[zato_1one]

Originally Posted by scr

Anyway guys and girls, your speculah missed Sayaka's role in the story. Granted, everyone is fixated on Madoka, but Sayaka is nowhere in the equation (especially if the equation involves Groundhog Day Loop).

EDIT:
@Kismet-chan: you should have seen the director's other anime, Petit Cossette. Things in Madoka are tame compared to the Deranged Animation in that anime. It blended better too, despite being made many years ago.

Homura said that Madoka will lose everything if she becomes magical girl. So, Sayaka's role should also be in that equation. I think that if someone is going to die in this anime then it has a high chance that that person is Sayaka.

I agree about Cossette. If you love the animation in this anime then you should watch Cossette. It's a must-see. IMO

[Dextro]

Originally Posted by Kismet-chan

What the hell are you people going on about? Stop prattling about alternate universes and timelines and just wait for the following episodes to explain it. Sheesh...

This! I don't get how everyone is talking about time travel and loops when there's not much to go with. She had a dream, who's to say that she wasn't taken to the surreal world during her dream? We don't know, the show has said nothing about that and we have to wait a bit.

Speculating is nice and all but I think people are taking some speculation as fact and speculating from there and that has made them loose a bit of perspective.

[sirn]

No one talk about the OP, but I think it's pretty cool. Here's how I see it:

Spoiler:

Standing alone, crying in a place that is likely where her house and her family once belongs…


Madoka is overwhelmed by her concept of magical girl, of what she might need to do if she becomes one.
Kyubey, looking her from far side, getting irritated and tired of her lack of confidence.


Finally realizing who she wants to be, Madoka decided to stop crying and accept her fate that Kyubey offers.


With that determination, Madoka starts moving forward. The way is painful and sorrow, but Madoka don't cry.


Getting past the obstacle, Madoka is able to cry again. This time with a big smile on her face.

[redgrnbluylw]

Originally Posted by sirn

No one talk about the OP, but I think it's pretty cool. Here's how I see it:

Spoiler:

Standing alone, crying in a place that is likely where her house and her family once belongs…


Madoka is overwhelmed by her concept of magical girl, of what she might need to do if she becomes one.
Kyubey, looking her from far side, getting irritated and tired of her lack of confidence.


Finally realizing who she wants to be, Madoka decided to stop crying and accept her fate that Kyubey offers.


With that determination, Madoka starts moving forward. The way is painful and sorrow, but Madoka don't cry.


Getting past the obstacle, Madoka is able to cry again. This time with a big smile on her face.

I agree with this interpretation, and I think sirn's idea of Madoka's crying scene in the first few seconds of the OP was creative and interesting. But I don't think Kyuubey is irritated and tired of her lack of confidence, but he is sort of "shaking his head" at her.

[Kismet-chan]

Originally Posted by sirn

No one talk about the OP, but I think it's pretty cool. Here's how I see it:

Spoiler:

Standing alone, crying in a place that is likely where her house and her family once belongs…


Madoka is overwhelmed by her concept of magical girl, of what she might need to do if she becomes one.
Kyubey, looking her from far side, getting irritated and tired of her lack of confidence.


Finally realizing who she wants to be, Madoka decided to stop crying and accept her fate that Kyubey offers.


With that determination, Madoka starts moving forward. The way is painful and sorrow, but Madoka don't cry.


Getting past the obstacle, Madoka is able to cry again. This time with a big smile on her face.

Wow, I never thought of it like that. That's a really neat interpretation. o_o (Oh, and nice screencaps. :3)

[Random Wanderer]

Originally Posted by sirn

No one talk about the OP, but I think it's pretty cool. Here's how I see it:

Spoiler:

Standing alone, crying in a place that is likely where her house and her family once belongs…


Madoka is overwhelmed by her concept of magical girl, of what she might need to do if she becomes one.
Kyubey, looking her from far side, getting irritated and tired of her lack of confidence.


Finally realizing who she wants to be, Madoka decided to stop crying and accept her fate that Kyubey offers.


With that determination, Madoka starts moving forward. The way is painful and sorrow, but Madoka don't cry.


Getting past the obstacle, Madoka is able to cry again. This time with a big smile on her face.

Black cat sighting.

I find it interesting that Homura's presence in the OP is limited to just a few quick glimpses as the screen flashes by to show us something else. The theory has been presented that Homura is actually that cat. I would find that an interesting turn of events.

[wingman32x]

Originally Posted by sirn

No one talk about the OP, but I think it's pretty cool. Here's how I see it:

Spoiler:

Standing alone, crying in a place that is likely where her house and her family once belongs…


Madoka is overwhelmed by her concept of magical girl, of what she might need to do if she becomes one.
Kyubey, looking her from far side, getting irritated and tired of her lack of confidence.


Finally realizing who she wants to be, Madoka decided to stop crying and accept her fate that Kyubey offers.


With that determination, Madoka starts moving forward. The way is painful and sorrow, but Madoka don't cry.


Getting past the obstacle, Madoka is able to cry again. This time with a big smile on her face.

Very interesting analysis. First time I've seen someone break down an OP like that. I agree with what you said. Much of the OP seems to deal with Madoka's inner "Normal Girl VS. Magical Girl" struggle.

[Hooves]

Originally Posted by sirn

No one talk about the OP, but I think it's pretty cool. Here's how I see it:

Spoiler:

Standing alone, crying in a place that is likely where her house and her family once belongs…


Madoka is overwhelmed by her concept of magical girl, of what she might need to do if she becomes one.
Kyubey, looking her from far side, getting irritated and tired of her lack of confidence.


Finally realizing who she wants to be, Madoka decided to stop crying and accept her fate that Kyubey offers.


With that determination, Madoka starts moving forward. The way is painful and sorrow, but Madoka don't cry.


Getting past the obstacle, Madoka is able to cry again. This time with a big smile on her face.

I like your interpretation on the OP, been awhile since I saw someone trying to decipher an anime based on its OP

Spoiler for Silly Speculation:

From the last scene you posted, I have the feeling the anti-hero/obstacle will be Homura Akemi (the transfer student). Based on her words to Madoka she wants to try everything in her power to prevent her from becoming a magical girl since it might interrupt her plans if she interferes, or that she will just be an annoyance. But she isn't exactly cold-hearted atleast, she dint just go and attack Madoka while she was carrying Kyubey so either it was a personal thing between those two, or that Kyubey is "evil" in Homura's terms because of the fact that he wants to make contracts with girls to become magical girls, and that might eventually change their lives, Homura wants them to just stay who they are (well atleast judging from what she heard from Madoka and said after) so she wants to annihilate Kyubey before he makes anymore contracts.

Another hint from the first episode was why Homura Akemi was always trying to get near Madoka before their discussion. She probably felt that Madoka had something about her that identified her as a "possible magical girl" so she had a talk with Madoka and gave her a warning of "just staying the way you are." So all we have to wait for is when Madoka will eventually befriend Homura because of that dream she had. That space thing or whatever that place is called where those cotton balls with mustaches came and attack our group of girls could become even more dangerous (like in the first scene where Homura was struggling against something) Madoka might want to help Homura and make sure that doesn't come true. Madoka might even have more dreams like her previous one that will influence her decision possibly?

[Calca]

I don't remember doing shrooms before watching this but afterwards I'm not quite sure anymore.

[Arabesque]

Originally Posted by sirn

No one talk about the OP, but I think it's pretty cool. Here's how I see it:

Spoiler:

Standing alone, crying in a place that is likely where her house and her family once belongs…


Madoka is overwhelmed by her concept of magical girl, of what she might need to do if she becomes one.
Kyubey, looking her from far side, getting irritated and tired of her lack of confidence.


Finally realizing who she wants to be, Madoka decided to stop crying and accept her fate that Kyubey offers.


With that determination, Madoka starts moving forward. The way is painful and sorrow, but Madoka don't cry.


Getting past the obstacle, Madoka is able to cry again. This time with a big smile on her face.

Well, I didn't talk about the opening much because:

-It's way too cool for me to talk about!

-I understand that openings contain many hints and nods to future events/parallels/symbolisms and the like, but in my time as an Anime fan, I noticed that taking them too literally isn't such a good idea (this might be a different case here, as the writer here is nearly in full control of the story though)

It is a pretty great analysis on the whole opening. Kudos for being so preceptive.

Originally Posted by wingman32x

Very interesting analysis. First time I've seen someone break down an OP like that.

Really? There always seems to be somebody who dissects OP in this manner for anime :X

[wingman32x]

Originally Posted by Arabesque

Really? There always seems to be somebody who dissects OP in this manner for anime :X

Spring 2010 was the season in which I actively started posting on these forums(and any anime forum, for that matter). Up until then it's been all manga for me. So I'm still relatively new in anime discussions. As a result, some things (VA talk, Specific Producers/Animators etc) are still kind of alien to me.


So yeah, in my limited time discussing anime, I haven't seen a frame by frame breakdown of an OP. Of course, I might have missed a few due to how quick discussions can flow here.

[Hooves]

Originally Posted by Arabesque

It is a pretty great analysis on the whole opening. Kudos for being so preceptive.
Really? There always seems to be somebody who dissects OP in this manner for anime :X

I don't see much of that then, or I'm at the wrong place at the time when someone talks about the opening like that. So may that's how its new to me to see an analysis like that.

[Dextro]

Originally Posted by wingman32x

Spring 2010 was the season in which I actively started posting on these forums(and any anime forum, for that matter). Up until then it's been all manga for me. So I'm still relatively new in anime discussions. As a result, some things (VA talk, Specific Producers/Animators etc) are still kind of alien to me.


So yeah, in my limited time discussing anime, I haven't seen a frame by frame breakdown of an OP. Of course, I might have missed a few due to how quick discussions can flow here.

Don't worry about it, I've been lurking and posting in this discussions for 3 years or so and I still find all those subjects going over my head mostly but you get used to it

[Arabesque]

*sigh*

Originally Posted by wingman32x

Spring 2010 was the season in which I actively started posting on these forums(and any anime forum, for that matter). Up until then it's been all manga for me. So I'm still relatively new in anime discussions. As a result, some things (VA talk, Specific Producers/Animators etc) are still kind of alien to me.


So yeah, in my limited time discussing anime, I haven't seen a frame by frame breakdown of an OP. Of course, I might have missed a few due to how quick discussions can flow here.

I hope you didn't misunderstand what I was saying here? I meant to say that there are always people who take their time to look for clues/hints in the openings and endings (hell, I've done some of that in the past as well) and not to suggest that it's something you should've known. It wasn't a serious comment to begin with anyway (I even had a smilie at the end of it) just an observation

Originally Posted by Hooves

I don't see much of that then, or I'm at the wrong place at the time when someone talks about the opening like that. So may that's how its new to me to see an analysis like that.

Mostly, I see these sort of things on every forum/a blogs, not exclusively here.

I don't know, did my comment really sound that offensive?

Edit:

For something more on topic, I noticed that there was something brought up about not having any time travel involved here? I guess it make sense to just say her dream was a premonition that overlapped with a dream Homura was having, but then why didn't Sayaka get a dream as well? She did end up being offered the contract in the end as well.

[Fotbollsgraes]

Ok, I´ve figured it out! Someone stole the hidden magic in SZS´s OP that was lying dormant and gave it to the girls in Hidamari Sketch and now the SZS OP has come to get it back!

Awesome insert song, great first episode. I haven´t been this excited about an anime after the first episode in a long time.

[FatPianoBoy]

Why is 90% of this thread about epileptic trees?

[totoum]

Originally Posted by wingman32x

So yeah, in my limited time discussing anime, I haven't seen a frame by frame breakdown of an OP. Of course, I might have missed a few due to how quick discussions can flow here.

If you want to see how far things can go,I suggest you go look at the Eden of the East thread where after the 1st episode aired there was all kinds of analasis of the OP,and it only grew as time went by

[Saturn Beaver]

Originally Posted by FatPianoBoy

Why is 90% of this thread about epileptic trees?

Because it's fun, and we have nothing to go on until the next episode anyway. After all, with all the mysterious information, also taking into account the staff behind this, and the fact that this is an anime-original adaptation where none other than the staffs know how the story is going to be, speculating about these can be fun and engaging. This is pretty much to be expected when a mysterious anime original anime is airing (like Eden of the East and Sora no Woto) and every info available, even OP, will be carefully combed for clues and hints.

[FatPianoBoy]

It just doesn't seem like there's enough to go on to even make speculation interesting at this point. You could theorize just about anything and it'd fit.

[Endscape]

Discussing epilectic trees is undoubtedly fun, but at this stage we know less than nothing. We should give it a while before we get into heavy speculation.