Seeing the online discussions and growing view counts, Kazuya was riding high. To celebrate, he took the animation team and Haruki out for food and drinks.
As usual, Haruki barely touched alcohol. He never quite got used to drinking with Kazuya. Meanwhile, Kazuya was finally releasing the stress he'd been carrying. He had been worrying about how the audience would react to their "subverted" magical girl story. Now, after seeing the response, he could finally relax. He had trusted the story but wasn't sure people would accept it. Tonight, he let loose.
Halfway through the night, Kazuya shared some news: several anime news channels had requested interviews after seeing the reaction to episode 3. They had already reached out earlier, after Haruki publicly announced he wanted to change the magical girl genre, but at that time, the anime hadn't aired yet. Haruki thought doing interviews then would only stir controversy and bad publicity, with people accusing him of chasing attention or faking it for hype, so he turned them down.
But after episode 3 aired, he agreed. Not because he enjoyed interviews, but for the sake of publicity. He left the decision of which shows to appear on up to Kazuya, saying he didn't want to do too many. Ultimately, he agreed to just one interview.
The next day, they appeared on Animeon's live interview show. It was the same one where they had previously discussed 5 Centimeters per Second. Viewers who had just watched episode 3 of Madoka Magica were shocked and full of questions. Most were desperate for spoilers, so the host, Asamiya, kept pressing for them on behalf of the audience. But Kazuya only dropped small hints, carefully avoiding any spoilers.
"When you decided to write a darker magical girl story," Asamiya asked, "what was going through your mind, Muzushiro-sensei?"
Haruki thought to himself, I can't tell them, the system gave this to me, that's why I wrote it this way. After the internal joke, he replied, "I wanted to change how magical girls are viewed today. This genre has basically faded away, and I wanted to try reviving it with a different approach. Magical girls are more than just transformation scenes."
Asamiya then passed on a question from a viewer. "Muzushiro-sensei, is this change you mentioned just about magical girls being able to die? Is that your subversion?"
Haruki chuckled quietly to himself before answering. "That's only the tip of the iceberg. If magical girls dying was all it took to change the genre, wouldn't that be too simple?"
In the original world where Madoka Magica first aired, the show swept up award after award. It eventually reached international audiences, but due to piracy and a weaker fan culture abroad, it didn't make the same impact. In Japan, though, it was huge.
The year 2011 was stacked. Fate/Zero, Ao no Exorcist, Anohana, Future Diary, and more, but Madoka still crushed it. It won three major animation awards, ranked sixth in all-time Blu-ray sales, and remained relevant years after airing. It wasn't just another hit. It was a genre funeral dressed in cute colors.
The magical girl, usually a symbol of love and hope, was reimagined as something tragic. Once you stepped down that path, you became something neither angel nor devil. It was a dead-end road, and at the end, nothing but despair.
When Haruki first watched the original, even he struggled to finish it. The ending, where Madoka rewrites fate but bears the burden alone, left him hollow.
Now, just a few episodes in, fans here were beginning to see that same truth. Some were skeptical, calling the "endless despair" over-the-top. But they trusted Muzushiro. If he said "wait," it was worth waiting.
Since Madoka Magica was a seasonal series, Kazuya couldn't spend all his time doing interviews. He had a production team to run. Still, he did a few more interviews, dropping just enough hints without spoiling anything.
Within a day, fans latched onto one key line from Kazuya and Haruki: Mami's death in episode 3 was only the beginning.
The real story, they said, was just starting. That made fans both more eager and more afraid of what was coming next.
On Haruki's Fend account, his fans were impatiently demanding spoilers. Industry people noticed too. For most studios, the fall season was a nightmare, working overtime just to get episodes out on time.
Once the interview was over, Haruki went back to drawing JoJo Volume, scheduled to release in 1.5 months, half a month after Part 2 started serialization.
Then came episode four, airing right on schedule.
The title alone had people curious:
"Miracles and Magic Do Exist!"
It called back to the earlier idea that magical girls could get one wish granted by Kyubey, a so-called "miracle." So despite witnessing Mami's brutal death, would Madoka and Sayaka still take the deal?
Fans were glued to their screens.
The episode opened with Sayaka's backstory. Her childhood crush, violinist Kamijou Kyousuke, was hospitalized after an accident. His promising music career was likely over.
Still, Sayaka stayed by his side.
In her inner monologue, she wondered, if she used her wish to heal Kyousuke, would he be grateful? Or... could he even fall in love with her?
And when she realized she was hoping to win his love by saving him, a wave of guilt washed over her.
"I'm such a terrible girl..."
Viewers couldn't help but sigh. This girl's too pure for this world.
Some even joked, If it were me, I'd just wish to marry him. Cut to the chase.
Then came the line that shifted the mood:
"Looking back now, I didn't understand anything back then... what it meant to wish for a miracle. Or the price that came with it."
That one sentence snapped people out of their warm, sympathetic thoughts. It felt like the show itself was leaning in to say: Don't forget, you're not watching a typical magical girl story.
Fans paying close attention sat up straight. Wait — what price? Kyubey never mentioned a price.
The scene cut to Madoka.
Still shaken by Mami's death, she couldn't bring herself to agree to Kyubey's contract. But guilt gnawed at her. She'd promised Mami they'd become magical girls together.
Now that Mami was gone, was backing out just cowardice?
On the rooftop, she cried to Sayaka.
**"I know it's selfish… but I just want to protect myself...
But when I think of dying like that, I can't even breathe."**
The music dipped low. The atmosphere grew heavy. Kyubey watched them with glowing red eyes, silent.
By now, the message was clear. This wasn't a sparkly power fantasy. Being a magical girl here was a death sentence.
You could make a wish, sure, but then your Soul Gem would start to darken. The only way to purify it was to hunt witches. Over and over again.
That was the deal. Trade a miracle for a lifetime of life-and-death battles.
Mami was strong and still died. Sayaka? Madoka? How long could they possibly last?
Later, Madoka visited Mami's now empty apartment. That's when the finality of death truly hit her. No one knew what had happened. Not her family, not her classmates. Only she, Sayaka, and Homura Akemi knew the truth.
Outside, she ran into Homura.
"This is the fate of a magical girl," Homura said.
The conversation was chilling, especially since Homura clearly had deep feelings for Madoka. But they'd only just met... hadn't they?
Why was Homura so desperate to protect her?
In the final act, a new witch's barrier appeared. A green-haired girl had fallen victim. Madoka tried to help, but was quickly overwhelmed.
Just as she was about to be killed, a cloaked figure burst in and destroyed the witch with quick, precise moves.
"Sayaka...?"
Madoka stared. It was Sayaka. She'd made the wish. She was now a magical girl.
And just as things calmed, a red-haired magical girl appeared. She didn't look friendly.
Episode four ended there.
(TL:- if you want even more content, check out p-atreon.com/Alioth23 for 60+ advanced chapters)