Puella Magi Suzune Magica is a 3-volume dark fantasy/psychological thriller manga, with the original story written by Magica Quartet and illustrated by GAN. Magica Quartet is a collaborative group consisting of director Akiyuki Shinbou, writer Gen Urobuchi, original character designer Ume Aoki, and producer Atsuhiro Iwakami. Unlike most manga, the first volume was released as a single volume before the series was picked up and serialised, with sequential chapters released as part of the Japanese seinen manga magazine Manga Time Kirara Forward. The manga is the fifth spin-off in the Puella Magi franchise, however; unlike the previous four spin-offs, Puella Magi Suzune Magica is the first to contain no cameos from the characters of the original Madoka Magica series.
“Suzune Amano lives an extraordinarily normal life as a middle school student by day and… a magical-girl assassin by night?! When a group of four magical girls begin investigating the serial murders in their city, they soon find themselves as Suzune’s next target! But what motivates Suzune to hunt both witches and magical girls alike?”
The blurring of tonal lines that is a staple of the Puella Magi series is ever present in Puella Magi Suzune Magica. The foundation of the cutesy yet moralistic magical girl genre mostly associated with shōjo anime and manga amalgamated with contradictory levels of violence and death, along with the psychological toll of the ongoing battle between good and evil, imbues a palpable level of overwrought tension present throughout the narrative. This inner struggle faced by the characters at every turn—which leads them to question their very actions, purpose, and even their inner selves—can feel incredibly self-reflective at times. This stark contrast between light and dark themes is undoubtedly a driving force of the manga, delivering an atypically dark yet enthralling story.
Additionally, another key aspect of Puella Magi Suzune Magica lies in the incredible character development displayed throughout. Although the majority of the characters show a significant level of evolution throughout, each going through their own personal turmoil, the standout has to be the titular Suzune. Her seemingly stoic demeanor as she assassinates her fellow magical girl comrades at random is slowly peeled away to expose the complex reasoning behind her actions and the raw emotion that is eating away at her.
Furthermore, the artwork in Puella Magi Suzune Magica is both vivid and expressive, effortlessly displaying the essence of its dark story-line whilst still retaining a sugary-sweet, slice-of-life aesthetic perfectly. Fight scenes are incredibly weighty yet retain an intrepid fluency to them, imbuing scenes with fast movement and grand scale. Moreover, the design of each character is distinctly unique, accentuating the distinctive personalities of each girl, as well as portraying their emotional state through tortured expressions of pain and anguish.
A dark yet captivating descent into despair, Puella Magi Suzune Magica is the perfect mixture of light and dark, yet isn’t scared to delve into the grey area that lies between hero and villain. Offering a gripping narrative, phenomenal artwork, and well-developed characters, these aspects certainly accentuate the impactful nature of this calamitous tale of murder and mayhem.
*Affiliate Link
Puella Magi Suzune Magica is published by Yen Press and is available to pre-order on Amazon here*
More Manga Reviews
Born in 1946, Hideshi Hino stands out as a prominent Japanese horror artist, dedicating the majority of his life to conjuring various nightmares for his audience. Regrettably, in the Western… I believe we are all aware of the stereotypes of certain genres in horror, specifically slasher movies. The near formulaic structure of their story is a carbon copy of the… Geungsi is an action thriller graphic novel series, written and illustrated by Singaporean artist Sean Lam. The story currently consists of two main volumes (check out our review of Volume… Whenever Mako Higari comes in contact with something she perceives as dirty, she gets a massive nosebleed. Brought on by severe childhood trauma from her mother’s distrust of men and… Higurashi: When They Cry – GOU is a 2-volume psychological horror manga, written by Ryukishi07/7th Expansion and illustrated by Tomato Akase. Ryukishi07 is a Japanese author, artist, and representative of… This past year, I have come to grow a deep appreciation of digitally distributed manga. Certainly the appeal of owning a physical book will never be beat, but the digital…
Occult Detective Club: Graveyard of Death Dolls (1986) Manga Review- A Chilling Blend of Humor and Horror
Final Girl Manga Review – A Slasher Parody
Geungsi Vol. 2: Brotherhood Manga Review – Singaporean Vampire Hunters
Drip Drip (2022) Manga Review – Eruptive Erotic Sanguination
Higurashi: When They Cry – GOU: Volume 2 (2023) Manga Review
Manga Review: My Dearest Self With Malice Aforethought Vol. 1 – A Deliciously Dark Psychological Head Trip
Hey there, I’m Jim and I’m located in London, UK. I am a Writer and Managing Director here at Grimoire of Horror. A lifelong love of horror and writing has led me down this rabbit hole, allowing me to meet many amazing people and experience some truly original artwork. I specialise in world cinema, manga/graphic novels, and video games but will sometime traverse into the unknown in search of adventure.