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Puella Magi Madoka Magica: Rebellion, the culmination of the ultimate mahou shoujo story about hope & despair, was as heartwrenchingly thrilling as it was melancholically beautiful. A twisted play that blurs the line of selflessness & selfishness, common denominator being love.
My first time experiencing this film, I fell into the controversy of thinking it nullified the original Madoka Magica ending, that it goes against the series’s themes, that it was a contrived add-on that ruined Homura’s character, which couldn’t be any further from the truth.
A lot to dissect from the film that I would love to attempt sometime but atm, I would like to praise Akemi Homura, the tragic nutcracker witch who pitied & defied god in order to play the demon for the sake of love, hope for someone else. It’s all in line with the narrative.
As we know, this story doesn‘t just have hope. It’s about hope as it works in tandem with despair, both work in harmony for a paradoxical world‘s stability. As one suffers, another profits. One’s tragedy is another’s happiness. In here, one becomes the Devil for their God.
Just leave it to Gen Urobuchi, writer of Psycho Pass & Fate Zero, to write another hopeful tragedy where a balance between idealism & realism, between nightmare and dreams, is sought. In a narrative where there is nothing but darkness, a small bit of hope is exposed to be grasped
Akemi Homura, hospitalized for a long period of time for a weak heart condition, steps right out into said irredeemable world all awkward, timid, & introverted. She is socially awkward & has not been exposed to this world’s kindness. She even has a complex about her name.
Enter Madoka, who happens to be her class’s health committee representative, it’s like she came to “heal” her. Immediately, she admires Homura’s name & treats her kindly. One bit of kindness in so much darkness creates attachment. Thus the nutcracker falls in love with Marie.
Happiness in this story is said to be when one calls another’s name, to be acknowledged and loved. To be there for each other, thinking for one another. Madoka was that first friend to Homura, an irreplaceable existence. But in this context, it’s a tragedy.
Homura becomes a magical girl & spends arguably 12 years of her life across timelines to save Madoka, only for her to be erased from existence. In a world where no one but Homura remembers her, where everyone else is ignorantly happy, you lose your mind.
Homura had based her life around Madoka, her love had degenerated into obsession. Mental illness takes ahold of her, when she thinks she’s crazy for remembering things the world doesn’t, when she no longer has that irreplaceable friend by her side, she loses hope.
Homura’s soul gem becomes a grief seed. She is pushed into the brink of despair & becomes a witch. w/the witch’s illusion, she ensnares Madoka & creates a happy haven for herself. A pleasant dream. This small bit of hope that’s left.
But Urobuchi is a sadist you see. That is but an ideal, an empty reality. Mere escapism that nullifies Madoka’s noble sacrifice. And so, Homura is determined to break it and return to her world that her beloved doesn’t exist in, so long as that was what Madoka wanted.
However, in a touching heart to heart conversation, Homura learns that with or without Madoka’s memories, Madoka is just a normal girl who wanted to be with her friends & family and would never want to hurt them. Circumstances, despair, pushed her, into becoming hope.
A gear in Homura’s mind starts to shift. In a scene that’s the equivalent of mind rape, Homura learns she was the witch all along trapping everyone & in line with her character, is determined to deny salvation to protect Madoka, her precious friend. For love.
Homura becomes the witch on the burning stake. Determined to suffer and die within her toy box as long as Madoka can be protected. Homura‘s love is an obsession, she will protect Madoka no matter what it takes. Just as Madoka sacrifices for her, she will sacrifice in turn.
However, just as she is driven by love, Madoka who is the hope within despair, comes to bring her salvation. Homura acknowledges all she ever wanted was to be with Madoka, that becoming a burning witch was too much to bear. But theres a WHOLE ANOTHER LAYER TO THIS.
Homura ceases being a witch. But rather than accepting salvation, she denies it once again, because Homura receiving salvation doesn’t result in Madoka’s happiness. So long as she is tied to the Law of Cycles, so long as Kyubei exists, Madoka will cease to exist & suffer.
Homura is the embodiment of a knight. She will protect Madoka at any cost, even nullify Madoka’s sacrifice by taking the brunt of it instead. These two girls who couldn’t love themselves could not understand each other b4 things came to this point. Or perhaps it’s the other way.
Homura is fully aware that Madoka is inherently a kind person who helps others and wishes for stability, that even though she wants her happiness, she will sacrifice herself for the world if the circumstances demand it. But Homura won’t allow that.
Homura will be Madoka’s antithesis. She will become the Devil that pulls God back to Earth for God’s happiness, even if she is ruined as a result. Madoka may have eliminated witches, but the wishes of Magical Girls still exist. Thus, so does Homura’s.
When Madoka revealed her Godly powers, Homura’s wish to save God took precedent and allowed her to rewrite reality. Homura still keeps the Law of Cycles intact, although more unstable, but she will ensure Madoka’s happiness above all else & allow them to truly be together.
Homura will be the one in control now. She will act the role of the villain. She was selfish in her wish to be with Madoka. She was selfless when she was trying to create true happiness for her friends, putting them above the world.
Homura is aware that Madoka had made her own choice back in the original series. But if Madoka can sacrifice her happiness for Homura with a less desirable outcome, then in a more desirable outcome Homura will sacrifice her very salvation for a more desirable outcome.
Homura even self loathes herself and is still outright suicidal. She continues to play the demon even though she knows it’s ”wrong”, even though the universe is more at risk, even though this peace is temporary. Should that piece expire, she will continue to fight for HER hope.
Her self loathing is evident as her Clara Dolls throw tomatos at Homura’s bs, that Homura keeps acting like a villain when she isn’t truly. Homura even breaks a teacup, even though Mami loves tea, & wastes food even tho Kyoko loves food. She is intentionally being their demon.
Homura is just a fascinating character, she becomes the scapegoat willingly, just so that Madoka and her friends are happy and Madoka is by her side. It’s a very fragile peace but it’s one Homura will do anything to protect, even destroy the universe if she needs to.
The nutcracker waltzes and ballets off a cliff as a scared & battered Kyubei watches in horror. The twisted performance ends and so does this thread.
