Magia Record: Puella Magi Madoka☆Magica Side Story (Anime)

Magia Record: Puella Magi Madoka☆Magica Side Story (マギアレコード魔法少女まどか☆マギカ外伝, lit. Magic Record: Magical Girl Madoka☆Magical Side Story^?) is the anime adaptation of the mobile game Magia Record: Puella Magi Madoka☆Magica Side Story. Directed by Gekidan INU CURRY and produced by SHAFT, the series premiered on January 4^th, 2020.

A second season titled Magia Record: Puella Magi Madoka Magica Side Story 2nd Season - The Eve of Awakening (マギアレコード魔法少女まどか☆マギカ外伝 2nd SEASON -覚醒前夜-^?) premiered on August 1^st, 2021.

A third and final season titled Magia Record: Puella Magi Madoka Magica Side Story Final Season - Dawn of a Shallow Dream (魔法少女まどか☆マギカ外伝」Final SEASON –浅き夢の暁-^?) premiered on April 3^rd, 2022.

Media[]

Magia Record: Puella Magi Madoka☆Magica Side Story (Manga)
Magia Record: Puella Magi Madoka☆Magica Side Story (Game)
Magia Record: Puella Magi Madoka☆Magica Side Story - Another Story (manga spin-off)

Plot[]

In exchange for the fulfillment of a wish, Magical Girls keep fighting, unbeknownst to the rest of the world. But Iroha Tamaki can't seem to remember her wish.

"When I became a Magical Girl, what did I wish for again?"

There is a gaping hole in her life. Something important has been lost. But she continues to fight every day, without even knowing why...

Then, a rumor begins to spread among Magical Girls.

"Magical Girls can be saved if they go to Kamihama."

Kamihama City, the city where Magical Girls and Rumors are gathering. The story of Iroha Tamaki, in search of her lost wish, begins...

Characters[]

Mikazuki Villa[]

Iroha Tamaki (環いろは, Iroha Tamaki^?)
A Magical Girl who lives in Takarazaki City. Iroha is very responsible, but being overly considerate toward everyone around her, she does not fit in at school. Iroha cannot remember the wish she made when she became a Magical Girl, so she decides to go to Kamihama City to investigate a certain rumor that could provide her with answers. Her theme color is pink and she is based on feathers.

Yachiyo Nanami (七海やちよ, Yachiyo Nanami^?)
A veteran Magical Girl in Kamihama City. Yachiyo is a college student who’s not affiliated with a team, preferring to instead work alone. She is very territorial and is strict toward Magical Girls from other areas, especially when their skills don’t measure up. Yachiyo has been documenting all of Kamihama City’s Rumors. Her theme color is blue and is based on water and stars.

Tsuruno Yui (由比鶴乃, Tsuruno Yui^?)
A fool-hardy Magical Girl whose goal is to become the most powerful ever. She respects and loves her grandfather and her birthplace, which has a long, storied history. She works at the Chinese restaurant that her family has been running since her great-grandfather's time. Her theme color is orange and has Chinese influences. In episode 13, she was fused with an Uwasa and slowly started to become Uwasa Tsuruno (ウワサの鶴乃, Uwasa Tsuruno^?).

Sana Futaba (二葉さな, Sana Futaba^?)
A pessimistic Magical Girl who lacks confidence and is invisible to normal humans. She is submissive to people who need her, and if she's fond of them, she will quietly stand by them. Her theme color is green and she is based on a knight.

Felicia Mitsuki (深月フェリシア, Felicia Mitsuki^?)
A Magical Girl who makes a living as a mercenary. She is a skilled fighter, but loses her cool when battling Witches, and is known as a troublemaker. She often acts like a spoiled child that is lazy and self-centered. Her theme color is purple.

Wings of the Magius[]

Touka Satomi (里見灯花, Touka Satomi^?)
A friend of Ui Tamaki who was at hospital with Ui and Nemu. She is the daughter, and patient of the director of the Satomi Medical Center, Touka is an astrophysics prodigy and an intelligent girl who wants to know everything about the universe. She is later revealed to have been a Magical Girl who wants to create a world without Witches. Her theme color is red ans is based on prison bars.

Nemu Hiiragi (柊ねむ, Nemu Hiiragi^?)
A friend of Ui who was at hospital with Ui and Touka. Nemu started writing stories just trying to seek some approval, it wasn't until she posted those same stories online that she become known as a literary genius. She is later revealed to have been a Magical Girl who tries to create a world without Witches. Her theme color is beige and is based on a scholar.

Alina Gray (アリナ・グレイ, Alina Gray^?)
A Magical Girl who is trying to create a world where no one has to become a Witch, Alina is an artistic genius obsessed with life and death who pours herself into her work due to her narcissism, dreaming of making masterpieces featuring Witches themselves. She's used herself as a subject for her art when in a creative slump due to her narcissism. Her theme color is green and is based on a prison warder.

Mifuyu Azusa (梓みふゆ, Mifuyu Azusa^?)
Seven years prior to the series' events, she fought as Yachiyo’s partner and lived with her. After noticing her magic was weakening, she joined the Wings of the Magius as one of their leaders, hoping to secure happiness for herself. Though kind and gentle, her spirit is weak, which leads her to sometimes make bad decisions. Her theme color is gray and is based on the moon.

Tsukuyo Amane (天音月夜, Tsukuyo Amane^?)
Tsukasa's twin sister, Tsukuyo hopes to liberate Magical Girls. Constant training in music, calligraphy, and dance has granted her considerable skills. Though she is admired by her peers, she doesn't have any friends she feels she can open up to. She can only be at peace when she is with her sister Tsukasa. Her theme color is red.

Tsukasa Amane (天音月咲, Tsukasa Amane^?)
Tsukuyo's twin sister, Tsukasa hopes to liberate Magical Girls. Born into a family of traditional bamboo craftsmen, she runs the household to support her father and his apprentice. Though she is cheerful and has many friends, Tsukuyo is the only one she can open up to. Her theme color is red.

Holy Quintet[]

Madoka Kaname (鹿目まどか, Madoka Kaname^?)
An ordinary 14-years-old middle schooler who is surrounded by her loved ones. She is eager to become a Magical Girl as strong as Mami. She's kind, cheerful but doesn't have a lot of confidence in her actions. After becoming a Magical Girl, she retains her original personality but has a lot more confidence and wishes to save people in need. Her theme color is pink and she's based on Cherry blossoms and ribbons. In fact, she is actually a goddess known as Ultimate Madoka (アルティメットまどか, Ultimate Madoka^?).

Sayaka Miki (美樹さやか, Sayaka Miki^?)
Madoka's best friend and classmate. She is childhood friends with Madoka. She is eager to become a Magical Girl like Mami. She's very energetic and has a lot of confidence, though she doesn't think twice before acting and comes in conflicts with others easily. Despite that, she has a strong sense of justice and acts very heroic. Her theme color is blue and she's based on music and water.

Mami Tomoe (巴マミ, Mami Tomoe^?)
A veteran Magical Girl in Mitakihara City and also a third-year student in Mitakihara Middle School. She acts like a mentor to Madoka and Sayaka. She is kind and gentle even though she feels lonely at times. She is confident of her ability to protect others. Her theme color is yellow and she's based on flowers. In episode 13, she transforms into Holy Mami (ホーリーマミ, Holy Mami^?).

Kyoko Sakura (佐倉杏子, Kyoko Sakura^?)
A Magical Girl from Kazamino City. She is introduced as an aggressive but wise and self-centered Magical Girl who cares only for herself. Throughout the series, she becomes sympathetic and helpful. She is always seen eating something. Her theme color is red and she's based on flames and fruits.

Homura Akemi (暁美ほむら, Homura Akemi^?)
A shy Magical Girl who has been a time-traveller for a while in order to save Madoka, who was a dear friend of hers in the past. She is both mentally and physically weak despite her magical abilities but always tries her best in fighting Witches and being accepted by others. Her theme color is black.

Supporting Characters[]

Kuroe (黒江, Kuroe^?)
A Magical Girl who lives in Takarazaki City. Kuroe fights alongside Iroha from time to time, but mostly they’re acquaintances who get together on a regular basis to exchange information. Kuroe is afraid of fighting in life or death battles and wishes she could be saved from being a Magical Girl. She begins to become obsessed with Kamihama City after hearing a certain rumor. Her theme color is black.

Kyubey (キュゥべえ, Kyubey^?)
A white cat-like creature that has come from a distant corner of the universe. Kyubey is responsible for making contract with teenage girls and transforming them into Magical Girls. It's later revealed that Kyubey actually creates Magical Girls to expand the universe's life and is not allowed to enter the Automatic Purification System (自動浄化システム, Automatic Purification System^?).

Small Kyubey (小さいキュゥべえ, Small Kyubey^?)
Smaller than Kyubey, this mysterious Kyubey only exists in Kamihama City. Unlike Kyubey, Small Kyubey cannot speak and is always found around Iroha or Mikazuki Villa members, helping them in spotting and defeating Witches or Rumors. Later, it is revealed that Small Kyubey is actually Ui Tamaki who ended up in Kyubey's past body after collecting too much negative energy.

Ui Tamaki (環うい, Ui Tamaki^?)
Iroha's younger sister. Iroha remembered Ui once she touched the Small Kyubey and is desparate to learn more about her. She was hospitalized for a long time alongside Touka and Nemu, her best friends. Later, it is revealed that she is actually Small Kyubey and became that due to an accident when she became a Magical Girl.

Rena Minami (水波レナ, Rena Minami^?)
A socially awkward Magical Girl who’s bad at expressing herself. She hides her lack of confidence by putting up a determined front, which makes it easy for her to be misunderstood by people she doesn’t know well yet. Contrary to her unsociable attitude, she likes sweets and has a childish taste when it comes to food. She is a female idol groupie. Her theme color is blue and is based on a mermaid.

Kaede Akino (秋野かえで, Kaede Akino^?)
A cowardly Magical Girl who’s prone to worrying. Still, she’s kind, cares about her friends, and will face any dilemma for the sake of her team. She loves plants, animals, insects, and nature, and works hard on her vegetable garden at home. One of her favorite hobbies is playing UFO catcher games, even though she’s not good at them. Her theme color is red and is based on a sorcerer.

Momoko Togame (十咎ももこ, Momoko Togame^?)
A benevolent Magical Girl who saves inexperienced Magical Girls when they’re in a pinch. As the middle child with two brothers, she grew up very assertive and outspoken, almost boyish. Despite that, she likes stuffed animals and other cute things. As a direct result of those preferences, she is also a fan of female idols.

Mitama Yakumo (八雲みたま, Mitama Yakumo^?)
A Magical Girl who operates as a Coordinator in the outskirts of Kamihama City. Unable to fight for herself, she accepts Grief Seeds in exchange for items and providing magical adjustments. Though she usually has a sunny disposition and a friendly smile, very few Magical Girls know her true nature. Her theme color is blue.

Locations[]

Kamihama City (神浜市, Kamihama City^?): The city the series takes place in. It has nine wards.
Takarazaki City (宝崎市, Takarazaki City^?): The home place of Iroha and Kuroe.
Mikazuki Villa (みかづき荘, Mikazuki Villa^?): Yachiyo's house and later her team's base located in Shinsei Ward.
Kamihama City University Affiliated School (神浜市立大附属学校^?): The school most of the main characters attend located in Shinsei Ward.
Mizuna Girls' Academy (水名女学園, Mizuna Girls' Academy^?): Another school many characters attend located in Mizuna Ward.
Labyrinth (結界, Labyrinth^?): Otherworlds Witches, Familiars or Rumors can find themselves in.

Trivia[]

Much like the original series, all episode titles for the series are speaking lines taken from the respective episodes.
There are several instances were background music from the original series appears in Magia Record. Mostly during Holy Quintet's members screentime.
According to a tweet by Gekidan INU CURRY, the reason why flashbacks are shown in 4:3 format while the present is shown in 16:9 is in order to mimic the change of technology and to better illustrate the flashbacks as being in the past.^[1]
In an interview with Gekidan INU CURRY, it is revealed that Akiyuki Shinbou isn't the director of the anime to express that Magia Record anime isn't a continuation of the original anime, but a side story.^[2]
Even though the series as a whole covers the first arc only with several changes, some characters from arc 2 make cameo appearances in several episodes.
A majority of designs are revised for the adaption for unexplained reasons. Such instances include Nemu's ankle being chained to a ball as a prisoner, which is absent in the anime.
Whereas in the first season the opening is sung by TrySail and the ending by ClariS, the second season has TrySail singing the ending theme and ClariS the opening.