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Home , Akiyuki Shinbo, Anime, Cutie Honey Flash, Fancy Lala, Gen Urobuchi, Junichi Sato

The origins of the magical

Note: this first chapter is an almost verbatim copy of the excellent introduction from the BESM: Role-Playing Game and Resource Book by Mark C. MacKinnon et al. I took the liberty of changing a few names according to official translations and contemporary transliterations. It focuses on the traditional magical “for girls”, and ignores very very early works like 's , which essentially created a market more oriented towards the male audience; we shall deal with such things in the next chapter. Once upon a time, an American live-action sitcom called , came to the Land of the Rising Sun...

The genre has a rather long and important history in . The magical girls of and Japanese (or ) are a rather unique group of characters. They defy easy classification, and yet contain elements from many of the best loved tales and children's stories throughout the world. Many countries have imported these stories for their children to enjoy (most notably France, Italy and Spain) but the traditional format of this particular genre of manga and anime still remains mostly unknown to much of the English-speaking world.

The very first magical girl seen on television was created about fifty years ago. Mahoutsukai Sally (or “Sally the Witch”) began airing on Japanese television in 1966, in . The first season of the show proved to be so popular that it was renewed for a second year, moving into the era of color television in 1967. Soon afterwards in 1969, Himitsu no Akko-chan (“The Secret of Akko-chan”) debuted on television and ran for a year and a half. Many magical girls have followed these two, including:

1970 Mahou no Mako-chan (“Magical Mako-chan”) 1972 Mahoutsukai Chappy (“Chappy the Witch”) 1974 Majokko Megu-chan (“Meg-chan the Witch Girl”) 1978 Majokko Tickle (“Magical Girl Tickle”) 1980 Mahou Shoujo Lalabel (“Magical Girl Lalabel”) 1982 Mahou no Princess Minky Momo (“Magical Princess Minky Momo”) 1983 Mahou no Tenshi Creamy Mami (“Creamy Mami, the Magic ”) 1984 Mahou no Yousei Persia (“Persia the Magic Fairy”) 1985 Mahou no Star Magical Emi (“Magical Emi, the Magic Star ”) 1986 Mahou no Idol Pastel Yumi (“Pastel Yumi, the Magic Idol”) 1990 Esper Mami 1990 Mahou no Angel Sweet Mint (“Magical Angel Sweet Mint”) 1992 Hana no Mahoutsukai Mary Bell (“Floral Mary Bell”) 1992 Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon (“Pretty Soldier Sailor Moon”) 1993 -chan no Ribbon (“Hime-chan's Ribbon”) 1994 Ai to Yuuki no Pig Girl: Tonde Buurin (“Super Pig”) 1995 Ai Tenshi Densetsu (“Wedding Peach” ) 1995 Nurse Angel Ririka SOS 1996 Kaitou (“Misteryous Thief Saint Tail”) 1998 Mahou no Stage (“Fancy Lala”) 1998 Card Captor Sakura

In the 60s and 70s, the general criteria set forth in the original two magical girl stories, Mahoutsukai Sally and Himitsu no Akko-chan, helped to maintain a consistency of elements to define the genre. The target audience was obviously defined to be young girls (shoujo anime), usually under the age of ten and sometimes much younger. Both characters were Princesses of the Land of Magic, but their abilities were different. Sally-chan used her powers directly, casting spell of various kinds to effect things around here. Akko-chan, however, used a magical compact to transform (“henshin”) into an alternate identity to become anyone, or any living creature, she desired. Therefore, her magic only affected herself and not anything else around her. Both girls were 10 to 12 years of age, and both stories were focused on the “coming of age” traumas that girls experience as they grow into adolescence and become young women. The girls in these stories were unique with respect to those around them – they had abilities that other people around them had not. Most of these magical girl traits apply not only to the magical girl stories, but also to other shoujo stories about idols, adventures, and romantic dramas.

With the creation of Mahou no Princess Minky Momo (“Magical Princess Minky Momo”) in 1982, new standards were incorporated into the genre. Society had changed – women everywhere were gaining more independence in a world that had always been controlled by men. Minky Momo was the first magical girl story to incorporate a very important element into its story – for the very first time, the heroine of the story dies. Although Minky Momo was still targeted primarily for young girls, it was also created to be viewed by everyone. The story operated on a number of different levels and to this day remains of the greatest classic stories in anime history. Minky's story was designed to make children actually think about their world. Adults enjoyed the show for exactly the same reasons that stories like Walt Disney's Bambi are suggested viewing for people of all ages. The Minky Momo series also broke the gender boundaries when many boys found themselves profoundly affected by the story of a young girl whose was felt by the entire world.

The also saw the creation of some of the most memorable magical girl stories ever told. Studio created four popular shows during this period: Creamy Mami, Persia, Magical Emi, and Pastel Yumi. In addition, a whole new generation of girls was brought up with remakes of the first magical girls ever: Mahoutsukai Sally and Himitsu no Akko-chan. Although some boys also expressed an interest in the genre, it was still dominated by and targeted for young girls. One of the reasons for this was very simple – many of the girls were portrayed to be idols, or what Westerners might call “pop stars” of music, movies, and television. The idol industry was booming in Japan in the 1980s, and adapting this popularity into the magical girl genre was only natural. The 1980s also saw the birth and growth of the OVA () industry. Since many people in Japan owned VCRs, it could be profitable to create an anime series exclusively for the consumer market and video rental outlets.

By the , traditional gender roles had changed considerably. Society encouraged men to be caring and tender, and women to be more forceful and assertive. The idol and OVA industries were showing signs of drastic slowing as the audience changed and people began looking for a new “fad.” A whole new generation of girls was introduced to the continuation/remake of Mahou no Princess Minky Momo in 1991. Megumi Hayashibara, one of the most popular seiyuu (voice actress or actor) of the 80s and 90s, was cast in the leading role.

Also in 1991, debuted a new manga () story called Codename wa Sailor V. This story featured a sailor-suited, super heroine, teenage girl who tracked down and punished criminals. The following year, in February of 1992, Takeuchi began an expanded version of this story in , a monthly shoujo manga collection for young girls. This new story featured a team of five teenaged girl super heroines who fought the evil invaders of the Dark , and was called Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon (“Pretty Soldier Sailor Moon”). Only one month later, the animated version of the story aired on national television – the rest, as they say, is history. The Sailor Moon series combined the elements that had always been so popular among young girls with the (lit.: fighting squadron) elements that have always been popular throughout Japan, especially with young boys. As the dual stories continued, more and more young boys and older fans of both genders began watching the weekly exploits of the Champions of Justice. Viewers chose their favorite characters, and watched them grow as they struggled not only with the responsibilities of being defenders of Love and Justice on Earth, but also with boy troubles, school work, parents, their own friendships, and many other common problems that adolescent girls experience worldwide. Takeuchi had discovered a very simple way to vastly expand the market for young shoujo stories – incorporate elements that were popular with female and male audiences, and with a wide variety of age groups.

Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon ran for a total of five years, with two hundred television episodes, three theatrical movies, and several live-action musical plays. Additionally, it inspired various beat 'em up, JRPG, and fighting video games, as well as an endless plethora of licensed merchandise. Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon demonstrated that television could be a very successful venue for promoting not only a story, but also they toys and related products. The show proved beyond a doubt that the risk of making an expensive television anime could indeed be highly lucrative. This fact, coupled with the expanding popularity of anime overseas (especially in America) encouraged studios to gamble on higher quality productions.

By 1994, studios were beginning to air series that were originally slated to be produced as OVAs. Example of such high quality television series include , , DNA², , Ai Tenshi Densetsu Wedding Peach, and others. Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon also helped gain acceptance of stories featuring young girls in starring roles. This is not to say that the young girls in the stories have become any less feminine – as a general rule, they have not. However, the girls do show a greater level of independence and headstrong behavior than many of the earlier characters. Strong young girls can be seen in Magic Knight Rayearth, Kaitou Saint Tail, Ai Tenshi Densetsu Wedding Peach, Nurse Angel Ririka SOS, and others. These stories are some of the most emotional and dramatic stories seen in any genre.

It is very likely that many boys who experienced shoujo storytelling prior to Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon had already learned that this genre featured something that appeals to everyone – namely, that these stories focus on people and relationships. Rather than conflict or action driving the story, it is the characters and their relationships with each other that advance the plot. Again, this is especially true for magical girl series, because these stories deal with the various upheavals that everyone experiences with the onset of adolescence. Adolescence is possibly the most turbulent period in anyone's life, and thus many people identify strongly with one or more characters in these shoujo stories.

Since the shoujo stories focus on characters and relationships, they tend to portray the characters as very people, with human strengths, weaknesses, virtues, and flaws. Even though the stories are nominally written for females, the strong portrayal of the male characters makes them appealing to boys and men as well. In many ways the broad appeal of shoujo stories can be likened to Shakespeare's , which is widely considered to be the greatest love story ever told and is favored among diverse audiences. There is a great deal of nostalgia and idealism portrayed in the young shoujo stories – the idealism, the innocence, and naïveté of youth that we lose as we grow into adulthood. The young shoujo genre allows adults to experience the fleeting beauty of youth once again, and encourages us to believe in and strive for our dreams.

One of the most significant strengths of shoujo storytelling can unfortunately prove to be one of its greatest liabilities for North American audiences. Many stories involve a great deal of symbolism and thus if the audience misses the symbolic references, or misunderstands them, they may also miss or misunderstand the story as well. Common symbolic references include: the various meanings of flowers, plants and animals, seasonal symbolism, meaning of personal names, flights of white doves, clouds, angelic symbolism, Biblical symbolism and even different clothes. All of these symbols add incredible depth and meaning of the stories, but their contexts are not explicitly stated to the audience. Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon is a typical example of symbolic storytelling – there are many hidden meanings within the story, depicting the true nature of the characters and their relationship to each other. Symbolism is common in the North American culture as well, and thus the hidden references in young shoujo stories may not seem at all that “foreign” if the audience knows where to look.

The changes with which magical girls are confronted during their “coming of age”, both physically and emotionally, will account for some of the greatest adjustments in their lives. Consequently, the shoujo stories tend to develop the plot rather slowly compared to the shounen (young boy) stories. After all, growing up does not take place overnight – it might take several episodes, or even volumes, before the audience begins to see the true “heart” of the story. By the end of the story, the young girl is a different person . She will doubtless retain the fundamental charm that always defined their personality, but she has grown wiser as well.

The primary element that defines a magical girl is the fact that she has abilities that others around her have not. This is a very important distinction: without it, most girls in would be magical girls! These abilities can come from two different sources: either she has been granted these abilities by some outside or “higher” power, or the abilities are hers by birthright. If the abilities are her birthright, she will either always have them, or she will discover them as she reaches adolescence and “comes of age.” If she had been granted the abilities by an outside power, it has happened at that particular moment in the story because she was deemed to be ready for the challenge. Giving her the powers sooner would have been premature, and she would not have been capable of handling the responsibilities they represent. Giving them to her later is unfeasible – once the innocence and purity of youth is lost, it can never be regained. Such magical girl stories are highly idealistic, but they also display a level of realism. They strive to show young girls that their ideals are attainable, but that there will very likely a cost. Since Minky Momo first aired in 1982, it has become fairly common for the magical girl to die at some point in the story. She is normally brought back to life, but her rebirth is consistent with the other fundamental elements of the story.

The physical changes a young teenage girl goes through at this time in her life carries important symbolic meanings in the magical girl stories. The girl will usually be 10 to 14 years of age, and thus is very likely going through puberty. Though it may not be explicitly stated, the awakening of a young girl's sexuality is a common symbolic element in magical girl stories. She is now capable of bearing life, and it is this capacity, coupled with the various other elements that define her as a person, that make her a “magical girl.” The magical girl's transformation sequence is symbolic of this change from childhood to womanhood.

Of course, one of the most cherished children have is to be older. Parents reinforce this tendency when they say to their children: “You'll understand when you're older” or “Not now. Wait until you grow up.” When the magical girl transforms, she will normally become a slightly older version of herself (after all, she doesn't want to be an adult quite yet). This instantaneous aging can cause some problems, however. For example, if the girl's secret identity is discovered, or becomes famous, how can she live the lives of two people at once? This problem occurs during Creamy Mami, and it has a very adverse effect on the main 's school work. Her grades and health really start to suffer as she tries to be two people at once – the tomboyish schoolgirl she really is, and the Magical Angel Idol that everyone loves.

In addition to such obvious complications, there is one that is even more serious, and quite unexpected. Young girls often have a crush on an older boy. “Crushes” might be a quaint term, but they can be very serious. The magical girl is normally very thrilled at her transformation – that is, until the boy she loves falls in love with her secret identity instead of her. This often creates an impossible competition between the girl's two identities for the boy's attention. It is also a very biting commentary on our human tendency to never look beneath the surface. How many times do people find out that the person they thought was so wonderful is really not a very “nice” person, or that the person they thought was very annoying really has a pure heart? No other genre of anime storytelling shows people that there is no “Mr. Right” more often than the magical girl genre.

The young shoujo stories are a celebration of life and love, especially the magical girl tales. A magical girl will always be pure, sweet and innocent – aside from her purity, she is usually a normal girl. She is an extension of all the positive energy in the universe, a girl who represent the physical embodiment of all life and love. She is also a “channel” for this energy and thus will normally have some type of “accessories” to help her channel this energy (compacts, , crystals, etc.). These items are rarely the actual source of energy, however. She thinks with her heart, because her heart is true; her mind might be deceived, but never her heart. In this “purity of ” that allows her to act as for the powers of life and love.

Since a magical girl thinks with her heart and not her head, she is prone to make decisions that are not very practical, or that are the product of her idealistic emotions. For this reason more than any other, she is often accompanied by a magical or mascot. The first series to really feature magical pets as true companions to the young girl was Minky Momo in 1982, but they have now become a standard element for magical girl stories. The mascot not only act as her companion, but also as her confidant, friend and conscience. This last point is very important, because the magical pet is almost always male. Although Sailor Moon's cat guardian, Luna, is female, the original magical pet from Naoko Takeuchi's Codename wa Sailor V is a male cat, Artemis. The magical girl might make choices that are morally correct, but very impractical or unrealistic. Her mascot acts as her conscience to tell her when she is doing something that she should not, or to offer alternatives to her chosen course of action. This often results in arguments, with the young girl defending her position with phrases such as “I know I shouldn't do this, but I can't help myself, and I'm gonna do it anyway!” The girl does eventually learn to take advice, though, and to tamper her emotional judgements. By the same token, the magical pet often learns that the girl's emotional actions are the correct path to follow, despite the difficulties. These types of interactions may parallel married life, or interactions between close friends. Communication and understanding are the keys to any successful relationship and the magical girl stories teach this lesson very well.

In some stories, the magical girl is granted her abilities for a limited time. She must follow a number of rules concerning their use or face the harsh consequences. In Creamy Mami, for example, Yuu is granted her magic for one year. If anyone discovers her secret, she will remain as Creamy Mami for the rest of her life. In Hime-chan no Ribbon, Hime-chan is asked to use a magical ribbon for one year by Princess Erika of the Magic World, which will prove that the ribbon that Erika created is an useful magical item, and that she is capable of being a wise ruler. The ribbon allows Hime-chan to transform into anyone else for a short period of time. If she exceeds the time limit, however, she will remain transformed forever.

Even more dramatic are the stories in which the magical girl actively seeks to remain a “normal” girl, without any magical abilities. In some stories, the girl heroine of the series may actually be allowed to remain a normal girl by choice. For example, in Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon, Usagi's dying is to just be a normal girl; the wish is granted to her by the Illusionary Silver Crystal. In Wedding Peach, Momoko and the others ask the Goddess Aphrodite to erase their memories and the memories of the boys they love, so that they can live normal lives together. Of course, these desires represent one of the main points of these stories too. There is nothing wrong with being “average” or “normal”, and it is much better to be yourself, and to be true to your heart than to try to be something extraordinary. The magical girl stories reinforce the idea that if you are true to yourself, you already are something extraordinary... even if you do not realize it.

Sailor Moon's translation into English in North America is truly a landmark event. Many other countries have already discovered the beauty and wonder of the magical girls and since then, Canada and the United States have been able to partake in the magic, too. How has it changed them?

One genre to rule them all

Half a century of magical girls later, I think I can safely say we've come a long way. This genre has contributed extensively to the expansion of the anime and manga market in the world, and it continues to turn people from all over the planet into dedicated anime fans. Fans of all genders. What made it so appealing to the male demographic? What was the secret ingredient?

One of the first obvious attempts at drawing the boys into magical girls was Go Nagai's manga Cutie Honey, later adapted into an anime. In my opinion, males are easy to market to, just give them sex and violence, and as you can see from many of his works, Nagai is simply a master of them. This creator gave the genre an older (16+) magical girl, that is in fact a robot, wearing revealing and frequently damaged costumes, who is willing and able to fight to the death for what she believes in. He also introduced dark stories, lesbianism (though not in a positive way in this case), a merciless organization, and a sexy, beautiful, yet legitimately intimidating adult woman as the main antagonist. In the following year's Majokko Meg-chan you can see the titular teasing the viewers, dueling a fellow witch, enjoying the attention of a bunch of boys, being spied on by a pervert... and that's just the opening I'm talking about! Beyond the opening, and compared to previous shoujo series, in Meg-chan you will find a less hyper-feminine heroine, a properly evil as well as a rival, the discussion of mature themes like domestic abuse, extramarital relationships, drug abuse, parental abandonment, and most serious and severe consequences for losing fights, which cannot be undone by the convenient application of magic. Meg-chan is the first attempt to appeal to both genders as well as creating a more serious story, and by being as early as 1974, it means these things are about as old as the magical girl genre itself.

Many of Nagai's elements also returned - in a less extreme form, of course - in Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon, and contributed to that series's popularity. Magical girls with proper erotic content, designed for the pleasure of , can be found in works such as or the adaptation of the Magical Canan. But it would be a mistake to assume titles aimed at the shoujo demographic are lacking in the sex department: I too was surprised to see in a sex scene with nudity in the old, legendary, non-magical girl romance manga Glass no Kamen (“”). As for magical girls, Shoujo Kakumei Utena (“”), for example, has no shortage of sex and fanservice for everybody. The surprise in finding so much sexual content in shoujo anime and manga stops the moment you realize the intended target audience are girls who want to grow up, which means that, just like their male counterparts, they might want to do grown-up things. Utena also happens to be a classic, combining Buddhist and Jungian philosophy, playing with surrealism and European conventions, discussing gender roles, lesbianism and incest, and the American DVD release says it's from Sailor Moon's director. Transformation sequences are a staple of the magical girl genre and, of course, opportunities for fanservice as well, as the magical girl changes clothes by magical means, giving the camera license to zoom on her body according to the anime staff's whims - a body that very frequently changes and grows into a somewhat older- looking, more beautiful girl, thus the transformation sequence can appeal to both boys and girls.

Speaking of lesbianism, another way of attracting more male viewers is . For example you can have the protagonist attracted not to the school's , but to another pretty girl, most likely a schoolmate, a friend and a fellow magical girl. deserves a mention here, not only because it's a shounen magical girl story, but because the anime adaptation is a pioneer in the yuri genre. Just make sure you don't miss the post-credits scene. Earlier yuri works weren't as kind to the , ending-wise. Yuri or no yuri, the more numerous the beautiful girls in your anime, the more likely it is that a male viewer finds a character suiting his very specific tastes to dote on, based on looks and personality. Sailor Moon was able to do this by introducing the concept of a team of magical girls, borrowing from the male audience oriented sentai series; it also had some characters, for good measure. The fantasy of a young woman being very successful in the things both men and women love, like (described as “having the strengths of both sexes” in the very manga!), appeals to both genders.

As animation evolves, so does the depiction of fighting in magical girl series. 2004 in particular saw the rise of two magical girl franchises. One is Toei's Futari wa , first title of their post-Sailor Moon, yearly cash cow franchise, Pretty Cure (also known as Precure). The other is Arcs's Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha. Pretty Cure is certainly a series targeting primarily little girls, but Toei wants to appeal to the whole family. Nanoha is a seinen. Both series give us amazing fight choreographies. Pretty Cure fight mostly with punches and kicks while magical girls in Nanoha have weaponry with moving parts, intelligence, alternate forms, and a substantial destructive potential. After over a decade of Precure, a fairly formulaic franchise, fans cannot agree over which series is best, though they majority usually recommends Futari wa Pretty Cure, the first, or Heartcatch Precure, which is a series with great development for secondary characters and victims of the week, beautiful character and again very good fighting action. Nanoha is known, among other things, for the emphasis on befriending your opponent after defeating her in a fight, and a certain villainess hated by generations upon generations of viewers for the cruel way she treats Fate Testarossa, one of the most notable and beloved “dark” magical girls since Sailor .

Those two series have contributed greatly to the image of magical girls as warriors. Before those, Magic Knight Rayearth did. A trio of girls is transported to a where they become knights who wield weapons, wear armor, cast magic, and pilot armor gods which are a fantasy equivalent of . It is also a shoujo manga and anime. In another shoujo, Melody Pichi Pichi Pitch, the mermaid heroines use songs, more than physical trauma, to vanquish their foes. The anime adaptation cuts some of the least family friendly content off the manga, it's more sugary, the villains are less threatening... This didn't stop many male fans from loving it. There is a long-standing culture of appreciating cuteness (kawaiisa) in Japan, and is an economic force that moves billions and billions of yen in the direction of manga, anime and Blu discs, action figures and all manner of other merchandise - including music CDs. Senki Zesshou has an ensemble cast of voice actresses, including professional singers, who portray ancient relic-toting heroines using songs to power blades, guns, and fists. It has many elements commonly found in fighting shounen anime, such as bloody fights, abundant property destruction, a very manly parental figure, the occasional training sequence, and a manga being published in a shounen magazine.

So, when I'm watching a magical girl anime, is it meant for a primarily female audience or a primarily male one? Some times it's obvious, for example the amount of panty shots can be telling, but other times it can be confusing. Confusing to the point that the manga of Mahoutsukai Tai! (or “Magic User's Club”), by , was first on a shoujo magazine, then on a shounen one. Cutie Honey was a shounen and was a shoujo. I myself can hardly believe that , with its fairy tale setting, ballet dancing, cute protagonist, and heartwarming content, had a manga published on a shounen magazine. The situation is confusing to the point where we should probably stop caring too much about such classifications and demographics, and focus on what is really important: magical girls can appeal to you whether the series is shoujo, shounen or seinen, because the magical girl genre is universally appealing.

When it comes to being universally appealing, among the recent series, Puella Magi Madoka ☆ Magica takes the cake. It's a TV series and a trilogy of movies (the first two being a recap of the series), with plenty of publications, a novelization, and some videogame adaptations. The sale of related goods grossed approximately 333 million U.S. Dollars before the release of movie, and the series received widespread critical acclaim. What was the secret to this success? First of all, it all started with an ensemble staff. Nanoha director , producer Atsuhiro Iwakami, - and nihilism-loving writer , baroque composer-musician-producer , and mistress of moe Ume Aoki as the original character designer, all joined studio in the creation of Madoka, while the animation troupe animation troupe Gekidan INU Curry, who specialize in surrealism and Eastern European techniques of animation, designed the magical girls' enemies and their otherworldly realms. The result was forcing lovable middle schoolers through a grim, bloody, tragic of well trodden and literature, such as , Freudian-Jungian works and other German classics, Paradise Lost, The Little Mermaid, The Nutcracker; there were some Buddhist and Christian influences to boot, as well as science , with the ultimate fate of the universe at stake, and alternate time-lines allowing for infinite stories with infinitely different relationships. While that mosaic of sources might sound intimidating, in actuality, Iwakami and Shinbo wanted their series to be accessible to “the general anime ” - and succeeded - so you can also enjoy Madoka for the beautiful art direction, elaborate fight choreographies, gorgeous , and the emotional torture of the heroines - after all, it was the Western fans that managed to decode the , the mysterious alphabet of the Magic World, not exactly what the creators think when they speak of average anime fans. In the previous generation, the “gateway drug” to the magical girl genre was Sailor Moon. Now it's Madoka.

Gen'ei wo Kakeru Taiyou (“Day Break Illusion - Il Sole Penetra le Illusioni”) and Yuuki Yuuna wa Yuusha de Aru are, like Madoka before them, stories where the heroines question the motives of those that give them magical powers and make them fight. I can't stress enough that this is an element that defines those three series and is not typically found in other works, in which, even when she is created against her will, the magical girl, quickly enough, accepts her mission. This can be confusing to those anime fans whose first magical girl series was Madoka, and who are often distrustful of the mascots, the cute critters who employ and recruit magical girls. Said fans are likely to suspect that a mascot might hail from a species with a bizarre, alien outlook, and might be unable to comprehend human emotions or business transparency.

Thus far, few magical girl anime series appear to have followed Puella Magi Madoka ☆ Magica's footsteps into a darker territory, where anything is vulnerable to corruption, and the road to Hell is paved with good intentions. Nothing is sacred in Madoka, not even the Power of Love. But many of the elements you can find in Madoka are far from unique. Throughout this half-century, the protagonists of this genre of anime have been bleeding, killing, dying, falling to despair, hurting the people they love, failing to redeem corrupted characters, becoming cosmic goddesses, declining offers to become magical girls, arguing with their mascots, using magic for disagreeable or selfish purposes, interacted with characters suffering from incurable diseases and disabilities, etc. It could even be said that the earliest series had some of the least perfect main characters, for example the magical idol singers are easily tempted into exploiting their powers to further their own careers, at least initially. Even the most flowery and optimistic series tend have their share of relatively darker episodes: is a franchise for little girls with extremely few characters being malicious, and yet it has an outstanding ability for making the viewers cry, by showing them the best and the that life has to offer, without manipulating you into feeling sad or making the drama the star of the anime... sometimes you may cry of joy as well.

Where does the drama in magical girl shows come from? With adolescence being the most turbulent time of one's life, it's only natural that all the purity and innocence the previous chapter spoke of are threatened, friends and lovers quarrel, and ideals and aspirations clash against reality. Countless antagonists in magical girl stories have seen all sorts of beautiful things and concepts stepped upon, and therefore stopped believing in them. So did their victims. Sometimes this happens to the protagonists as well. They remind us that we cherish beauty, hope and love because they are . The magical girl protects all the good in the world at the best of her ability, with the darkest series we've seen fundamentally choosing to give the opposition a better chance than usual. She achieves this with the appropriate combination of violence and mercy, action and words, and reason and empathy. A magical girl often destroys her foe only after trying everything in her power to achieve an understanding, even when such a monumental effort seems futile, because her prime directive is to befriend others. It is when, in her final moment, a villainess deliberately refuses the magical girl's saving hand, that you know she truly was beyond redemption.

What stands in the way of a magical girl? All this time we've seen magical girls wrestling things like growing up, trials, dilemmas, temptations, misunderstandings, love confessions, betrayals, negative emotions and the expendable of the week created out of them, their own limits and powers, poor misguided fools, megalomaniac dimension-conquering , loyal henchmen, corrupted and brainwashed hostages, supernatural creatures of folklore and horror, incomprehensible eldritch abominations, math problems, returning ancient evils, upcoming apocalypses, their own artificial evil clones, disasters natural- or magical- or human-made, death, non-evil yet mischievous forces of nature, and other magical girls. It's a very flexible, constantly evolving genre you can use to tell all manner of stories; regardless of what the plot may be, relationships and origins and motivations are everything. Even irredeemably evil queens who want nothing but to destroy humanity need a backstory, possibly involving revenge – if the ultimate evil itself is not particularly developed as a character, its servants could be, each with his or her own reason to fight for it and an unique, individual relationship with their boss, be it debt, blackmail, some twisted perversion of the idea of love and so on.

The magical girl genre is often confused with the genre. “Superheroes for girls” is a very common shorthand explanation of the genre among Westerners, that makes them think this genre contains the wrong elements. Surely, it is likely that the main character possesses abilities ordinary humans do not possess, wears a distinctive costume, may work on a team of other extraordinary people, and tries to do the right thing. But is heavily influenced by real life current events, corporations, celebrities and politics, and is a part of American culture. Typically, magical girls don't beat up random bank robbers they've never met, because the expendable antagonists they've never before met tend to be superhuman threats, and villains use magic. They don't work for individual (earthling) nations or corporations, but usually try to save the world in its entirety, not just parts of it – incidentally this also leads them to save their town, school, family, friends and love interests as well. They hardly ever deal with things like bad PR among non-magical girls, for being a magical girl does not automatically imply being a celebrity, nor infamy. They don't live in caves, they're almost always social animals. They do not exist in a mash-up of multiple European and Asian mythologies (fairy tales aren't mythologies). Crossovers between different series are the exception (i.e. movies between series of the franchise of Precure), not the norm. Characters are not trapped in an unchanging, ever-rebooting status-quo, their relationships broaden and deepen, or break, as they grow up physically, mentally, morally and socially, and they affect the people they directly interact with. And they don't shake hands with the Prime Minister. I'd argue that the obsession with the latest headlines, politics, and “realistic” storytelling, the omnipresent resurrection of the dead, and the ever-changing writers rebooting the universes are the greatest differences between superhero fiction and magical girls. Compare how in Precure, any property destruction by the bad guys tends to be nullified immediately after they've been vanquished, with its lighthearted analogue, the “four color” comic books, where I would try to insure my car against being used as a thrown weapon by superheroes. In the case of darker series, compare how Cutie Honey and Bruce Wayne react to the death of their parents. Instead of thinking how magic influences society and science and culture and mass media and corporations and armed forces and governments and the average person, ask yourself: how the do the main characters and villains influence those individuals who actually get to play a role in the story, and vice versa? Shoujo: 1979 Hana no Ko Lunlun (“Lulu, The Flower Angel”) 1982 Tokimeki Tonight 1994 Magic Knight Rayearth 1997 Shoujo Kakumei Utena (“Revolutionary Girl Utena”) 1999 Kaitou Jeanne (“Phantom Thief Jeanne”) 1999 Mahoutsukai Tai! (“Magic User's Club”) 1999 Ojamajo Doremi (“Magical DoReMi”) 2000 Shin Shirayuki-hime Densetsu Prétear (“Prétear - The New Legend of White”) 2002 Full Moon wo Sagashite (“Full Moon”) 2002 Mermaid Melody Pichi Pichi Pitch 2002 Petite Princess Yucie 2002 Mew Mew 2004 Futari wa Pretty Cure (“Pretty Cure”) 2005 Fushigiboshi no Futagohime 2005 2007 Shugo Chara! 2009 Anyamaru Tantei Kiruminzuu (“Animal Detectives Kiruminzoo”)

Shounen and seinen: 1973 Cutie Honey 1990 Mamono Hunter Yohko (“”) 1995 Mahou Shoujo Pretty Sammy (“Magical Girl Pretty Sammy”) 1996 1999 Ojamajo Doremi (“Magical DoReMi”) 2002 Rikujou Bouetai -chan (Ground Defense Force Mao-chan”) 2002 Princess Tutu 2004 Kannazuki no Miko (“Destiny of the Shrine Maiden”) 2004 Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha (“Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha”) 2004 Mahou Shoujo Tai Arusu (“Tweeny Witches”) 2004 Mai-HiME (“My-HiME”) 2004 Uta Kata 2005 Mai-Otome (“My-Otome”) 2007 2011 Puella Magi Madoka ☆ Magica 2012 Senki Zesshou Symphogear (“Symphogear”) 2013 Fate/kaleid liner Prisma ☆ Illya 2013 Gen'ei wo Kakeru Taiyou (“Day Break Illusion - Il Sole Penetra le Illusioni”) 2013 2014 Yuuki Yuuna wa Yuusha de Aru (“Yuki Yuna is a ”)

Parodies, that also happen to be either shounen or seinen: 2001 Puni Puni Poemy 2002 Dai Mahou Touge (“Magical Witch Punie-chan”) 2002 -chan Magicarte (“Nurse Witch Komugi”) 2005 Majokko Tsukune-chan 2007

Western magical girls

Who cares lol