A quick rundown of the show as it opens up on a slightly futuristic modern-day Japan where middle schoolers Madoka and Sayaka meet a transfer student named Homura who seems very distant. They learn that Homura is really a magical girl with the mission of hunting down creepy monsters classified as witches, and she got this way from making a contract with the catlike creature Kyubey. Any girl wanting to be a magical one pledges themselves to exterminating witches in exchange for having any wish granted. A rival magical girl named Maki becomes friends with Madoka and Sayaka who she takes on some of her witch hunts, although Mami is soon slain by one. This motivates Sayaka to make a deal with Kyubey to become a magical girl herself so she can restore a boy she likes to health, although she loses her nerve when Kyubey reveals that all magical girls give up their souls in trade for having their wishes granted. If a magical girl doesn't kill witches and absorb their leftover spirit in a Grief Seed, then they can eventually turn into witches themselves. Homura knew this all along as she's from a different timeline and used her wish to save Madoka from ever becoming a magical girl in the first place, a mission she has failed on several attempts which she can reset herself in a new reality taking the place of the Homura in that timeline just after she comes out of a coma on each restart. Sayaka and another magical girl Kyoko are both killed in this crusade, and Homura has to fight an upcoming city-destroying witch labeled Walpurgisnacht from wrecking the whole town all on her own. Madoka forms a contract with Kyubey and wishes to become an all-powerful deity who wipes out witches from all points in human history. The universe is now rewritten with Madoka being the god of this new universe, with her former magical girl friends now fighting wraiths instead of witches.
The TV anime was repackaged in a pair of compilation films, along with an original sequel movie, plus several manga, video games, and a spinoff anime series titled Magica Record. Similar to the Fate franchise, Madoka Magica has become its own successful property among the annals of anime fans. Despite being largely inactive for the last decade, Madoka Magica shook the foundations of magical girl anime and brought about massive change throughout the genre. The mahou shoujo theme became much more mature, sometimes taking on a more military and realistic perspective and how teenagers battling horrific monsters can screw with their psyche. Madoka Magica also got the ball rolling on the whole time loop cliche in ways that Groundhog Day never even dreamed of. A good portion of modern isekai involves characters going back to a start point while living a new life in another world.
The plot for this show is fascinating. Basically, magical girls are hunting down former magical girls who've fallen into darkness and become witches, making the entire process a sinister cycle. The reason Kyubey is offering all this is because he's part of an alien race called the Incubators that use the specific energy given off by young human females during times of great emotions while connected to what they refer to as magic. The Incubators use this energy to bring syntropy into the universe to stop it from eventually dying from entropy which is a hand-wavy explanation as to where the magic actually comes from. The whole setup is one big ouroboros meant to generate good enough moody vibes to stabilize the universe, even if the wishes they grant ends up completely altering the fabric of their own reality. The Incubators pretty much treat magical girls like livestock intended to prevent the universe from burning out.
The theme of love becomes the major motivator for all the characters to eventually sell their souls to become magical girls. Sayaka did it because of her love for a boy, Kyoko does if for her family, Mami does it to overcome her loneliness, and Homura for her sapphic love for Madoka. Each wish was meant to be selfless, but the intention became selfish that can only conclude in despair. Madoka herself initially became a magical girl out of kindness because she wanted to save a dying cat, but because of Homura's time tripping Madoka's intentions are altered to care for her friends, family, and the people that she loves. The reason Madoka has the potential in ever timeline to become the most powerful magical girl and/or witch is her genuine empathy for everyone. The Incubators never took into account Madoka's compacity for love which greatly exceeded their concept of human emotions, so much so that it completely overwrote the reality of the entire universe. Love can be inverted as it can't exist without its opposite, jealousy. Jealousy takes hold of ration and reason which can lead to corruption. The talents of Magical Quartet knew this when they were developing this original concept.
Madoka Magica left a mark on fantasy anime that is still burning to this day and will have an impact for years to come. The field of animation was the perfect place to premiere this idea mixing in cute anime girls with dark surrealistic imagery that turn into Lovecraftian nightmares. For something that was originally intended to be a single TV season has branched out into one of the most enduring anime titles that is unlikely to be forgotten.
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