Puella Magi Madoka Magica The Movie - Rebellion- Book 3

"You are without doubt, exactly who you should be!" - Homura

Time to wrap up the manga adaptation of the sequel film to acclaimed 2011 seinen Magical Girl series Puella Magi Madoka Magica.  The film concentrates on Homura, the time looping zen warrior who made a wish to protect Madoka but wasn't able to stop her making a wish to erase all Witches (the monsters Magical Girls transform into when they despair) before they were born which rewrote reality and caused Madoka to ascend to a higher plane of existence as The Law Of Cycles.  The previous book showed us that Homura was being subjected to an experiment by Kyubey and the rest of his Hive Mind known as the Incubators.  They wanted to catch Madoka in action and had placed a field round Homura's Soul Gem, so she became a sort of half-Witch, creating a labyrinth that pulled various people in that she knew in reality as well as the likes of Bebe/Charlotte, Sayaka and Madoka who don't exist in the real world anymore.  However when she realised what had happened to her and that the Incubators wanted to control Madoka and bring back the Witch system she forced herself to fully transform into a Witch and Homulily was born, which was her Witch form in the Madoka Magica PSP videogame.  Read on to find out if she can still be saved from this dire fate by her four Magical Girl compadres.  Oh and the cover to this volume is one of the most lying ones I have ever seen for reasons you'll see as we go on!

The manga is unflipped and so reads from right to left, honourifics are in use and Kyubey despite having no gender is referred to as "he".

In the distance the four girls watch Homura's Witch.  Sayaka tells them that although she looks frightening, "the one suffering the most is the Witch herself."  They are all in the Magical Girl attire ready to fight when Kyubey comes up and says "she's one of you.  You intend to fight her?"  The others are surprised he can talk, while Bebe hisses angrily at him.
Kyubey tells Madoka she can save Homura if she realises her true power.  Sayaka says not to pay attention to him, if she does exactly what Sayaka told her a few minutes ago things will be all right.  Bebe changes back into her human form of Nagisa Momoe and starts summoning familiars.  Sayka stabs herself through the chest gushing blood and summoning her own Witch form Oktavia from the blood pool.

Sayaka summons Oktavia.

Tonnes of familiars from various other Witches we saw in the seroes start doing battle against Homulily's army of them.  Oktavia who is wielding the giant version of Kyoko's spear that killed her in the series, starts to fight her way over to Homulily although she doesn't attack her she reaches out to comfort her. Kyubey demands to know who Nagisa and Sayaka are.  Sayaka says they are girls who fell into despair and became part of the Law of Cycles.  Kyubey was so focused on Madoka he fell right in their trap.

Madoka was drawn into Homura's labyrinth to save her so she and Nagisa gathered up the "memories and power she left behind".  Then if anything was to go down they'd return those memories to Madoka, it took the three of them to come for just one girl.

Nagisa: "Homura really made us work for it.  But still... it was for her, so what else could we do?  Homura's worked so hard all this time.  In the end she deserves some kind of reward for it."

As Sayaka and Nagisa fight, Mami and Madoka join in too.  The chaotic battle continues while Homulily thinks to herself that they must stop, "I have to die here!"  But Sayaka shouts that she doesn't have to deal with this all alone.  Kyoko joins the fray as well.

Sayaka and Kyoko share a moment.

Kyoko and Sayaka stand back to back and a sad Kyoko says that she had an awful dream that "took a real sick turn".  She dreamed Sayaka died.  But now she's telling her that her dream was real and them fighting together is the dream.  Sayaka says that she had thought she left the world with no regrets, but actually she did regret dying and leaving Kyoko behind (in the film they clasp hands as Sayaka admits this) which is one reason why she came back.

Nagisa bounces past saying she just wanted to eat cheese one last time.  Sayaka yells at her for spoiling the moment between her and Kyoko who grins to hide the fact she shed a tear and they go back into battle.  Sayaka and Nagisa summon more familiars against Homulily's seemingly unending amount.  Mami creates a huge teapot/cake cannon and wipes out masses of familiars with a "Tiro Finale".  And finally there a crack appears in the sky showing the Incubator's eye-bots peering down, the seal they made is now vulnerable.

We then cut to Homura trapped in her despair, weeping bloody tears, but suddenly Madoka appears to her and tells her she shouldn't go off on her own.

Madoka: "Homura-chan... you will always be Homura-chan.  And I would never abandon you!"

Homura begs forgiveness, for giving up and being a coward, she wanted so desperately to see Madoka one more time, "no matter what kind of monster I became... I knew I could take it! As long as you were by my side!"

Madoka and Homura together again.

Homura and Madoka stand together side-by-side, both holding their bows.  They fire upwards at the same time, there is a huge explosion that bursts out of the Incubator's seal and destroys all the watching eye-bots and Incubators.  Kyubey who is protected inside the barrier just comments "... you humans make no sense".

All the people Homura trapped in her labyrinth are returned sleeping to the desert round where Homura lies on a dias. Mami picks up Homura's blackened Soul Gem and places it in her hands.  Sadly Kyoko notes that Madoka, Sayaka and Bebe are gone, but Mami looks up and says "no".  Then the clouds part and light streams down onto Homura's prone form and Madoka appears in her beautiful divine form and slowly flies down to take Homura away with her.

Goddess Mandoka comes for Homura.

Sayaka and Nagisa are watching from above as she reaches Homura. Madoka says she forgot she had come to take Homura away.  Sayaka says they took the "long way around" but everything is OK now.

Madoka: "I'm sorry I kept you waiting so long.  You've worked so hard to reach this day.  Now let's go.  We'll always be together from now on".

Homura opens her eyes, lets go of her Soul Gem and as Madoka reaches for it, she suddenly grabs Madoka's wrists and with a sinister look in her eye says "finally.  I have you."

As she grips Madoka tightly her Soul Gem starts emitting a colour which is, according to Nagisa, "more terrible than any curse I've ever seen!"  Sayaka cries "what is this?  Desire? Obssession?"  Homura thinks they could never understand, "this emotion is unique to me and it is felt solely for Madoka!"  Madoka screams that Homura is going to tear her apart.

Madoka seperated from her divinity.

Suddenly normal Madoka is wrenched out of Goddess Madoka and dragged into Homura's arms, Homura then uses a barrier to keep the two Madokas seperate.

Homura: "I told you before... Madoka.  I will never let you go again!"

And the barrier expands outwards until it consumes all of time and space. Kyubey observes that "the universe is being re-written.  Does that mean a new universal principle has been born?"

Homura says he has no memory of the last time this happened.  Kyubey says that her soul should have just disappeared. Homura explains that everything she want through was done with Madoka in mind, what clouded her Soul Gem were no longer curses.  So what was it then he asks?

Homura: "This is the ultimate state of human evolution. More passionate than hope.  Far deeper than despair.  It is love"

Kyubey says she is no longer a Magical Girl, nor is she a Witch, what manner of being is she trying to become?  Laughing Homura says she fooled Madoka, completely undermined her "any being who is able to do such a thing... can only be called a devil, I suppose".  And she unfurls black wings and rather skimpy attire.

Demon Homura is born.

Kyubey says that settles it, it's far too dangerous to use human emotions, "an outcome as absurd as this is most definitely a thing beyond our control".  Homura picks him up between finger and thumb and says actually she's going to need the Incubators as long as curses still manifest themselves in the world, "I'm sure I can count on your assistance... Incubator".

We finish up with the various characters on their way to Mitakihara Junior High. Mami passes by Homura and looks a little unnerved,  Homura's familiars are lurking about though no one can see them.   Kyoko is in uniform sharing an apple with some birds and lies back with a look of contentment on her face.

Sayaka confronts Homura demanding to know if she has any idea what she has done?  Homura says she must have some idea of what happened.  Sayaka says that she "wrenched off part of the Law of Cycles".  Homura says she only stole a fraction, "nothing more than a few pages of records that describe Madoka before she stopped being Madoka". 

Sayaka challenges Homura.

It seems Sayaka and Nagisa got caught up in it too and can't return.  Sayaka asks her what gives her the right to do this.

Homura: "I have become the personification of evil.  I disrupt divine providence... and am guilty of outrages against the world".

Sayaka asks if she intends to destroy the universe?  Homura says it's a thought, that after all the magical beasts/wraiths are destroyed she'll play the role of enemy. 

But will Sayaka be able to stand against her?  Already her memories are slipping away and Sayaka says "I... used to be part of something bigger... I think... I used to be connected to a power outside this world..."

Homura says she should accept it "and perhaps even be happy about it.  After all, you've managed to get your life as a human back".  She'll eventually forget what happened, even the unease will vanish. Sayaka defiantly says that there is something she will never forget, "that you... are the devil!"  Homura laughs saying they should at least pretend to be friends, "if we fight among ourselves... she'll start to dislike you." And with that thinly veiled threat made she walks off, still laughing.

Still it's nice to be alive again.

Then Hitomi and Kyosuke appear and wish Sayaka a good morning.  She looks and smiles sadly at them.  Kyosuke asks her if she is all right, and Sayaka somewhat tearfully says how happy she is to be able to say good morning to them again.  Hitomi and Kyosuke look at each other baffled.  Then Hitomi laughs saying she says the strangests things.  Sayaka laughs too saying "I'm just a weirdo! That's me!"

A short while later Homura is in class with Sayaka and Kyoko when the teacher introduces a new transfer student - Madoka Kaname.  She introduces herself and says she's been living in the US this past three years but they moved back last week.  She hopes they can all be friends.

At breaktime she is surrounded by students asking her questions.  Homura then shoos them away, introduces herself and takes her on a tour of the school.   She asks Madoka how it feels to be back home and Madoka says "kind of nostalgic, you know?"  But she also feels like something's changed.  Not the place but her role in it.

Madoka: "I used to be... something very different... I had a different role... but I don't know why..."

The lights of the cosmos start to swirl around her as she says this until Homura grabs her in an embrace and the lights fade. 

Madoka starts to remember...

Homura asks her if she thinks of the world as something precious and does she put the good of the world above personal desires?  Madoka says she does think of the world as precious and that it's bad to break the rules for selfish reasons.  Homura tells her that one day they may become enemies and takes the ribbons Madoka gave to her out of her hair and starts tying up Madoka's hair with them.

Homura: "I don't mind. Even if that happens... all I wish for is a world where you can be happy".

She stands back, tears in her eyes and tells Madoka the ribbons look so much better on her.  Later we see Homura dancing round in a field with a traumatised Kyubey looking like he lost a fight with a road sweeper.  We see a spread that shows us Mami and Nagisa together, Kyoko and Sayaka together and Madoka at home unpacking boxes with her family. And we end with Homura looking out over Mitakihara City with the words that began this story, "no, not yet!"

Not yet indeed.

So I think you can see why this movie split fandom right down the middle now.  Personally I think the film is a work of art and Homura's behaviour fitted in very well with what has previously been established about the character.  If you remember back to Sayaka and Homura's discussion about the Mitakihara Labyrinth, Sayaka says to her that the labyrinth is all about control and keeping the status quo.  And that's Homura in a nutshell, she's a control freak who was compelled to repeat the same six weeks for over a decade until she got things exactly right.  And she still failed in the end, Madoka made her wish, saved Homura rather than Homura saving her and was then removed from Homura's life.  I don't think Homura could trust Madoka a second time, especially as she still sees herself as her protector and that Madoka will always be at risk as long as the Incubators know about her. This wasn't helped by Madoka telling her she would never leave everybody even though that was Homura's memory rewritten Madoka speaking not the real divine Madoka.  So she took action, we already know she was a hugely powerful Magical Girl and a combination of that and the mad science Kyubey subjected her to gave her the ability to split Madoka in two and carve off much of her divinity into herself.  As for why she now thinks of herself as evil, well she was pretty emotionally broken by everything that happened to her both during the series and the film. There are various theories mostly related to the fact she is perhaps still part-Witch and the whole universe is now encased in her barrier, which has merit as she is still being tormented by familiars even in her new world. Personally I think it all got too much for her and she just finally snapped.  She knows she did a bad thing, so her self loathing has compelled her to take on the identity of Evil, manifesting familiars to keep punishing herself.  And yet she accomplished something no one else ever managed.  She beat the Incubators, with the very strong implication that'll she'll keep them around as her slave race to keep the Magical Girl system going while there are still Wraiths/Magical Beasts to be fought.  And again, she has brought Sayaka and Nagisa back to life, so Kyoko and Mami get to keep the people who make them happy in the real world now. And Madoka is part of her family again.  In a way the only person it isn't a happy ending for is Homura really.  She has control of the situation to be sure, but she's maybe irrevocably alienated herself from those who were once her friends and the girl she loved enough to become the bad guy to protect her.  I hope there will be more Puella Magi Madoka Magica in the future, I'm curious about Homura's new world order and if the girls will end up in conflict with her.  But as it is, the film is a rich, stunningly animated character study of one very messed up person and I love it.