is a series of Japanese anime films produced by Aniplex and Shaft based on the titular 2011 anime television series. The first two films, Beginnings and Eternal, were released in October 2012 and serve as a recap of the television series with redone voice acting and newly animated footage. The third film, Rebellion, is an all-new original work, and was released by Warner Bros. Pictures in October 2013.
A manga adaptation illustrated by Hanokage was released by Houbunsha between November 2013 and January 2014. The films are distributed in North America by Aniplex of America.
The third film, Rebellion, was nominated for the Japan Academy Prize for Animation of the Year and won the Best Theatrical Film Award at the 19th Animation Kobe Awards. A sequel film to Rebellion, titled Walpurgisnacht: Rising, is set to premiere in 2024.
Plot
In Puella Magi Madoka Magica, there are certain creatures that can grant a chosen girl any wish they may desire. In exchange for that wish, the girl must become a magical girl who must fight against witches, creatures born from despair caused by accidents, disease, and suicide. In the fictional city of Mitakihara, a girl named Madoka Kaname is approached by a cat-like creature named Kyubey with the offer of becoming a magical girl. Meanwhile, another magical girl named Homura Akemi seeks to do everything in her power to stop Madoka from becoming one. Madoka soon learns that the life of a magical girl is not the dreamlike fantasy she imagined and is instead filled with sadness and despair.
Beginnings
In Mitakihara city, a girl named Madoka Kaname meets a new transfer student, Homura Akemi, who coldly warns her to remain as she is lest she risk losing everything. Later that day, Madoka and her friend Sayaka Miki are shopping when they find themselves protecting a strange cat-like creature named Kyubey from Homura. They are caught in a mystical barrier and approached by strange monsters, but are rescued by Mami Tomoe. Madoka and Sayaka learn Mami is a magical girl who fights demonic beings called witches, who spread curses and despair on human beings. Kyubey offers the two girls the opportunity to also become magical girls: in return for forging a contract and having a wish granted, they gain a Soul Gem—the source of their magic—and are tasked with hunting down witches. Killing a witch leaves behind Grief Seeds, which they may use to replenish and purify their Soul Gems. Homura, a magical girl herself with the ability to seemingly appear out of nowhere, is strongly against Madoka making a contract, but Madoka, wanting to help others, almost does so after being inspired by Mami. However, Madoka reconsiders after witnessing Mami's brutal death while fighting a witch named Charlotte. Sayaka becomes a magical girl to heal the debilitating injury afflicting her childhood friend, Kyosuke Kamijo. Sayaka soon comes into conflict with another magical girl named Kyoko Sakura, whom Homura recruits to deal with a powerful witch named Walpurgisnacht, who will appear and devastate Mitakihara in two weeks.