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REVIEW: Puella Magi Madoka Magica GN 1


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jr240483



Joined: 24 Dec 2005
Posts: 4374
Location: New York City,New York,USA
PostPosted: Tue Jun 19, 2012 12:25 am Reply with quote
Well it definitely took things from the anime series and turned it on it's head. Literately.

Probably why it's interesting and a decent manga.

Sadly I'm afraid it would probably end up being read by those who watched the anime,cause though it's a good manga,but it probably wont do well in the US,especially in the magical girl genre since both the remakes of Sailor V & Sailor Moon have been doing monstrously well.
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Polycell



Joined: 16 Jan 2012
Posts: 4623
PostPosted: Tue Jun 19, 2012 2:07 am Reply with quote
In regards to the art, I recall thinking the scene where Madoka looks in the mirror has her looking just like Sayeka. Kyubey's also far more cutesy than he is in the anime, partly because his earhands come out from behind the ears instead of inside them and partly because he rears up on his hind legs at times instead of being a pure quadruped.

EDIT: Removed spleen venting. This doesn't do a damn thing to hide it, but the least I can do is say I definitely went overboard.


Last edited by Polycell on Wed Jun 20, 2012 3:01 am; edited 1 time in total
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Zac
ANN Executive Editor


Joined: 05 Jan 2002
Posts: 7912
Location: Anime News Network Technodrome
PostPosted: Tue Jun 19, 2012 2:24 am Reply with quote
Polycell wrote:

One thing I really didn't like was the way that almost every sound effect was transliterated, with a translation provided in parentheses. That's so idiotic it makes me want to see the dolt who made the decision beaten within half an inch of his life repeatedly. It's not like the exact onomatopoeias the Japanese use are some critical component of the story


Dial back the id. This makes you sound like a sociopath.

...Not that I have any reason to believe that you aren't actually a sociopath when you say that someone making minor editorial decisions on the Madoka Magica manga should be "repeatedly beaten within half an inch of his life" because he did something you don't agree with in a comic book you like.

Is 'sociopath' even the right word for that?
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Fencedude5609



Joined: 09 Nov 2006
Posts: 5088
PostPosted: Tue Jun 19, 2012 2:30 am Reply with quote
Zac wrote:
Dial back the id. This makes you sound like a sociopath.

...Not that I have any reason to believe that you aren't actually a sociopath when you say that someone making minor editorial decisions on the Madoka Magica manga should be "repeatedly beaten within half an inch of his life" because he did something you don't agree with in a comic book you like.

Is 'sociopath' even the right word for that?


There has been a lot of this going around today, actually.
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SquadmemberRitsu



Joined: 26 Jan 2012
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PostPosted: Tue Jun 19, 2012 2:57 am Reply with quote
'Not a classic' You say? Than it's a disgrace to the franchise. But I actually do want to check it out because of how much I liked the anime. I'm not really a manga person (The only manga I own is volume one of K-On! and Death Note) but I still want to see how well it translates from anime to manga. Besides, even though I know the slow parts at the start are absolutely necessary and they need to be as long as they are, I still want to see how it fairs with less passion and more bashin'
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Polycell



Joined: 16 Jan 2012
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PostPosted: Tue Jun 19, 2012 3:07 am Reply with quote
EDIT: Removed bad-taste comments. I will say I thought the context of what Zac quotes below made it obvious I was joking, but it's still in extremely poor taste.
SquadmemberRitsu wrote:
'Not a classic' You say? Than it's a disgrace to the franchise.
It's competent, but Hanokage's inexperience really shows.


Last edited by Polycell on Wed Jun 20, 2012 3:04 am; edited 1 time in total
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terminus24



Joined: 19 Jun 2011
Posts: 304
PostPosted: Tue Jun 19, 2012 6:30 am Reply with quote
It's unfortunate that the manga isn't as good as the anime, but I'd still recommend it to any big Madoka fan.

That said, I really hope Oriko and Kazumi both come over. Both of those series are great in my opinion, Oriko has a somewhat surprising ending, and Kazumi is also very good, being a story about magical girls in another city. Although I wouldn't be surprised if they don't. Although I hope that they do, as Kazumi and Oriko are both better than the Madoka manga, IMO.
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Vaisaga



Joined: 07 Oct 2011
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PostPosted: Tue Jun 19, 2012 7:06 am Reply with quote
Quote:
On its own, the manga of Puella Magi Madoka Magica isn't going to dupe most readers into thinking that it is a story of sweetness and light.


I'm still surprised the anime managed to dupe so many people. I mean, the moment it was announced the guy from Nitro+ would be writing it I knew it was going to be all kinds of messed up.
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Polycell



Joined: 16 Jan 2012
Posts: 4623
PostPosted: Tue Jun 19, 2012 7:48 am Reply with quote
Not everybody's familiar with his name, that's how. Hell, if he put out another light-and-fluffy looking anime I'd need the inevitable "It's What's-His-Face!" brigade to tell me it'd likely be dark.


And then watch it give Barney diabetes.
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Fencedude5609



Joined: 09 Nov 2006
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PostPosted: Tue Jun 19, 2012 9:04 am Reply with quote
SquadmemberRitsu wrote:
'Not a classic' You say? Than it's a disgrace to the franchise. But I actually do want to check it out because of how much I liked the anime. I'm not really a manga person (The only manga I own is volume one of K-On! and Death Note) but I still want to see how well it translates from anime to manga. Besides, even though I know the slow parts at the start are absolutely necessary and they need to be as long as they are, I still want to see how it fairs with less passion and more bashin'


The manga isn't as good as the anime, and is no substitute for the anime, but its well worth reading for the slightly different interpretation of a few events.

Also, Homura's spoiler[final hairstyle] is better in the manga.

Its also quite obvious that Hanokage ships KyouSaya.
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Mad_Scientist
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PostPosted: Tue Jun 19, 2012 11:26 am Reply with quote
Vaisaga wrote:
Quote:
On its own, the manga of Puella Magi Madoka Magica isn't going to dupe most readers into thinking that it is a story of sweetness and light.


I'm still surprised the anime managed to dupe so many people. I mean, the moment it was announced the guy from Nitro+ would be writing it I knew it was going to be all kinds of messed up.


Polycell wrote:
Not everybody's familiar with his name, that's how. Hell, if he put out another light-and-fluffy looking anime I'd need the inevitable "It's What's-His-Face!" brigade to tell me it'd likely be dark.


Gen Urobuchi is his name, and yah, especially in the US, a lot of people weren't particularly familiar with his work before Madoka Magica. With the popularity of that and Fate Zero though, I suspect people will pay attention to him a lot more now.
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Zac
ANN Executive Editor


Joined: 05 Jan 2002
Posts: 7912
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PostPosted: Tue Jun 19, 2012 2:05 pm Reply with quote
Polycell wrote:
To be fair, they were also going on and on about how people shouldn't be allowed to have things they don't like. I just want to take out some no-name translator or perhaps an editor. Nobody'll ever notice they're gone!


Yep, well, the people who actually do edit this stuff tend to check the talkback threads for their reviews and I have no interest in having them read about how someone wants them dead for minor editorial choices. If I see anything like this from you again, it's ban time. Not cool.
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Ryu Shoji



Joined: 15 Jul 2009
Posts: 671
Location: Cambridge, United Kingdom
PostPosted: Tue Jun 19, 2012 4:27 pm Reply with quote
I enjoyed it, but I do agree that it didn't hide the dark side very well. For example, Homura's reactions were too obvious in the manga (the scene where spoiler[she discovers Sayaka became a Magical Girl] is a blinding example for me), whereas in the anime she was pretty much deadpan early on.

Also, one thing the manga adaptation lacked (due to it being manga) was the impact the witch scenes had in the anime. They looked out of place, very creepy, unnerving and unnatural in the anime...but in the manga, they don't look that that out of the ordinary. I also agree with your criticism of "the event" in chapter 3; I felt that it would have been better if it was spread over multiple pages, instead of being crammed into one or two.
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Shaterri



Joined: 03 Jan 2008
Posts: 173
PostPosted: Tue Jun 19, 2012 5:44 pm Reply with quote
I thought the manga was okay, but my one great disappointment in the adaptation (alongside a small host of minor ones) was in the representation of the witches' labyrinths. For me this was a high point of the anime, a jaw-dropping blend of Terry Gilliam and Dave McKean; it's the sort of thing that should have been comparatively easy to translate from its dynamic medium into a static one. A collage/fumetti approach seems so natural, but there are plenty of ways the stark shift could be conveyed effectively in art. But somehow, the manga feels like it flubs this - the labyrinths come off as just a slightly darker version of the real world, as opposed to the anime where it's instantly obvious that you're in a place where the normal rules don't apply. It's the one aspect I was most looking forward to seeing how the manga would approach, and so it's by far my sorest disappointment.
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Vaisaga



Joined: 07 Oct 2011
Posts: 13224
PostPosted: Tue Jun 19, 2012 6:01 pm Reply with quote
Mad_Scientist wrote:
Gen Urobuchi is his name, and yah, especially in the US, a lot of people weren't particularly familiar with his work before Madoka Magica. With the popularity of that and Fate Zero though, I suspect people will pay attention to him a lot more now.


It's true that I didn't know his name before Fate/Zero came around, but I had seen Demonbane and Phantom so the association with Nitro+ is what tipped me off.

So the dark twist certainly didn't affect me like it apparently did others. Not only was I expecting it, but, well, I thought it was poorly executed. spoiler["Let's make the seasoned veteran suddenly turn into a n00b and stand there like a moron before her head gets chomped!] She could have at least dodged or defended or something.

The visuals didn't impact me either since all of SHAFT's stuff is like that.

Funny how everyone else is saying how innovative the show is while I just find it pretty typical ^^" Guess it comes with being an old coot who's seen it all.
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