This week we had a Blu-ray re-release of this anime series (which is one of my favorites by the way). With the number rising with streaming, it's taking its slight toll on physical media (DVD and Blu-ray), and the major studios are no longer taking time and effort to create exciting new product for themselves. However, there still is a market needed for this stuff. So Blu-ray's are still coming out and DVD's, but are they cool and exciting. The short answer is, not anymore. Is this one exciting? Well, let's find out.
Unless you're in the minority or a major anime fan, you have not heard of this series maybe. With the success of the magical girl anime like Sailor Moon, more shows were made of that type. However, they were mostly for kids like Pretty Cure (Glitter Force in one case, no time for that story). This mini series tells the tale of Madoka and her friend Sayaka. One day, they met a strange creature named Kyubey. She offers them any wish, but in exchange, they must become magical girls and fight off witches (which are evil spirits rather than what you saw on The Wizard of Oz). While I'm making this as spoiler free as possible, I will say the anime makes some turns that changes the genre of anime forever. Fans already know what I mean.
Aniplex has always had a controversy over their blu-rays being overpriced, and this one is no exception, so you really are hoping that the discs are good. Well, the bottom line is, they are. You get all 13 episodes in a beautiful package. It's not as big as the Sailor Moon sets by Viz, but let's remember, it's not a 100+ anime like Sailor Moon either. You pull the cases out on the left instead of the right for some unknown reason. One case has the first two discs, the other has the 3rd. They did not reuse the art from the original Blu-ray releases except they sneak their way in on a little miniature handbook with the episode guide in the back. The art used on the cases were not what I would have chosen (reversible by the way, there's stuff on the inside). The discs themselves are taken exactly from the original releases, so nothing new has been added nor has anything been taken away.
The discs themselves are not too bad. Considering this is a newer show, no need to talk about the video and audio quality. Actually, Madoka has some of the best audio quality you can get. When these discs first came out, they were ridiculed for the dub. They said it was a terrible dub as most of the cast were newcomers to the profession. They ended up being some of the best talents of the industry. If the anime were to be dubbed today with the same cast as the announcement, everyone would be on their feet cheering and applauding and not wanting to wait. The dub is excellent by the way, I don't see the problem. Maybe it was the way they were pronouncing some names perhaps? Of course they were all much better in the movies that came out later. The bonus features are pretty typical to say the least for most anime blu-ray and DVD's. You have your textless titles and trailers. There's also a music video for Magia, the ending them used the most in this anime. I have not looked at that feature yet, but knowing the song, it should be great.
If you are a fan of the series and you collect these things, you have everything that was on the previous releases. It's a great shelf space saver for those who have not bought them on Blu-ray yet. And if you are new to the series, I recommend looking at the episodes on streaming first (Crunchyroll, Netflix, and Hulu), and then decide from there if it is worth the money. Some of you may not even handle the series after around 4 episodes. Again, I can't say why, but you'll just have to watch. So, are you ready to make the contract with Kyubey and own this blu-ray?????????
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