15 votes

Is Madoka Magica still good 10 years later? - Beyond the Bot

11 comments

  1. wcerfgba
    Link
    Excited to see this, I've loved Madoka every time I've watched it and was just thinking about watching it again yesterday! Thanks for sharing :)

    Excited to see this, I've loved Madoka every time I've watched it and was just thinking about watching it again yesterday! Thanks for sharing :)

    4 votes
  2. [5]
    moocow1452
    Link
    The video kinda skimps on the exploration of Madoka's legacy in that a whole lot of imitations cropped up, similar to how Watchmen spawned the 90's era of grimdark comics. Making grade schoolers...

    The video kinda skimps on the exploration of Madoka's legacy in that a whole lot of imitations cropped up, similar to how Watchmen spawned the 90's era of grimdark comics. Making grade schoolers suffer made the big bucks, so logically, to make the more big bucks, more girls have to suffer, missing the whole point of the show where the girls take agency back from the systemic issues making them do suffering.

    2 votes
    1. [4]
      Akir
      Link Parent
      This may just be the fog of memory but I don't seem to remember it going that way. They only got rid of the end result of the system and not the system itself. Spoilers lay within. Homura was able...

      missing the whole point of the show where the girls take agency back from the systemic issues making them do suffering.

      This may just be the fog of memory but I don't seem to remember it going that way. They only got rid of the end result of the system and not the system itself.

      Spoilers lay within. Homura was able to spare Madoka from her fate *technically* - though she technically doesn't have much better of a fate. And while the magical girl system is altered, it's still in place and girls are still basically being forced to die under it.

      I think of this show as more like a very cynical coming-of-age story instead. These kids all start off incredibly innocent and then they learn about how cruel the world is and it is often soul-crushing. It's so easy to be crushed by the cruelty of life, and it's only thanks to our friends and family that we learn how to navigate it.

      And sure, that's what a lot of imitators tend to miss out on because they seem to be more in love with the 'edgyness' of it than of the meaning behind it. But personally speaking, I think that all of the best magical girl shows are the ones that have this element of growth to it.

      2 votes
      1. [3]
        moocow1452
        Link Parent
        When I said that the girls take back agency, I didn't mean that they fixed all the problems so much as they made the system their own without the Incubators and made it more humane and presumably...
        When I said that the girls take back agency, I didn't mean that they fixed all the problems so much as they made the system their own without the Incubators and made it more humane and presumably upfront about how the law of cycles work and what is required of a magical girl.

        At least until the movie dropped, which is kinda TBD on what actually happened and how this system proceeds in the future.

        1 vote
        1. [2]
          Akir
          Link Parent
          I'm probably just not remembering it right then, because I seem to remember a scene where Homura speaks to Kyubey in the last episode. And somewhat astonishingly, I honestly can't remember a thing...

          I'm probably just not remembering it right then, because I seem to remember a scene where Homura speaks to Kyubey in the last episode.

          And somewhat astonishingly, I honestly can't remember a thing about the movie! I know I watched it - I liked it - but I can't remember.

          1 vote
          1. moocow1452
            Link Parent
            Homera did speak to Kyubey, but the Incubators aren't running the show or are even aware of Madoka's changes. I do not do brief clarification well. The movie is a trip, but it doesn't appear to be...

            Homera did speak to Kyubey, but the Incubators aren't running the show or are even aware of Madoka's changes. I do not do brief clarification well. The movie is a trip, but it doesn't appear to be on streaming right now unfortunately. It's kinda controversial, and it leaves the setting unfinished IMO, for better or worse.

            1 vote
  3. PhantomBand
    Link
    Didn't really like it when I watched it years ago, but after really taking a moment to think about it thematically, what it stands for, and what impact it had on the anime industry, I kinda hate...

    Didn't really like it when I watched it years ago, but after really taking a moment to think about it thematically, what it stands for, and what impact it had on the anime industry, I kinda hate it. I'm a huge anime fan but this is one of those few titles that I didn't like.

    2 votes
  4. lonjil
    Link
    I really really like it, it's one of my personal 10/10s, having only watched it quite a few years after it aired. Having rewatched it recently, I think I actually appreciate it more now than I did...

    I really really like it, it's one of my personal 10/10s, having only watched it quite a few years after it aired. Having rewatched it recently, I think I actually appreciate it more now than I did before.

    1 vote
  5. [3]
    bub
    Link
    Do works of fiction tend to "get worse" as they age? Why is that the implication? Triggering title aside, thanks for the video.

    Do works of fiction tend to "get worse" as they age? Why is that the implication?
    Triggering title aside, thanks for the video.

    1 vote
    1. parsley
      Link Parent
      https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/SeinfeldIsUnfunny Context / zeitgeist can play a big role in a work of fiction. "The first to X" will not have the same effect on someone that has never...

      https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/SeinfeldIsUnfunny

      Context / zeitgeist can play a big role in a work of fiction. "The first to X" will not have the same effect on someone that has never seen X versus someone that is sick of seeing X everywhere.

      4 votes
    2. moocow1452
      Link Parent
      It happens with comedies where movies aren't really that funny once you're not living in the world they were created in. Sometimes cultural sensibilities change, or your interest change, and the...

      It happens with comedies where movies aren't really that funny once you're not living in the world they were created in. Sometimes cultural sensibilities change, or your interest change, and the veneer comes off that show you loved from 20 years ago, and it's just a toy commerical for a property that no longer exists.

      3 votes