Puella Magi Madoka Magika [2]

[Randomanon]

@Arkanis I liked that doujin too...debated whether to post it or not on this thread but yeah, it's a good choice.

I don't know how to do ascii art myself. You'd have to google online I think on ways to make ascii art. I know there's supposedly programs but I think most of the 2ch ones are done by hand. Some cases you know it's by hand because they're original or modified so much from actual pics/art. There's very talented artists on 2ch and it's regularly visited by some people in the industry, like the seiyuu. At least the openly otaku ones (of which there are many). I went to the 2ch Madoka threads and picked out some ascii art examples so you can see what kind of things people like to post.

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Here's a Madoka puzzle a fan made, if you know Japanese.

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Answers:

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A "You Are Not Alone" poster (the Magica Quartet's official guidebook):



A creative photoshop of a Yuru Yuri screenshot:

[symbv]

^ The YuruYuri crossover photoshop is great. (Sazae-san face of Akarin is hilarious BTW).

I wonder how you captured the AA (ascii art) from the 2ch threads? Screen-dump and photoshop? AA in 2ch always impress me a lot. It is one of the enjoyable things there -- with AA who needs image threads? Only the most creative and motivated come up with cool AA and the threads are all for the better this way.

The quality of the fan-art in Madoka Cafe is so high - it is professional level stuff. They should consider publishing a book of fan illustrations. (also notice that 2 drawings of Mami were from people who came to Madoka Cafe for the third time)

BTW, breaking news. PMMM #6 cover arts are said to be out, but the source is from a Korean source so 2ch was not 100% sure..




More PMMM PSP game information:

Official website has started
http://madoka-magica-game.channel.or.jp/

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the contents of the premium "contract pack"


the regular "contract pack"


Madoka figma that comes only with the premium pack of PSP game


Screenshots of the PSP game

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We should not forget just because it is something uncomfortable.
Do we know what lessons we have learned?

[Randomanon]

@symbv, just did screenshots and copied/pasted it into a graphics program. Nothing special.

I have some more to add on the PSP.
Info with the new pics: http://www.famitsu.com/news/201108/11047800.html It is big talk on 2ch...people are really excited about it and approve of what they see. Having Magica Quartet official stamp of approval and involvement in the designs and scenarios I think is what is making it such a big deal. Again I don't really follow games so...not my area of expertise. Bigger version of the cover:

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I saw that Korean BD 6 cover on 2ch too...it's weird because for the past 5 volumes, the cover and info was always leaked first from a Japanese vendor like HMV, shortly before the official announcement. But now it's the sites that cater to buyers outside Japan that seem to be first. I've been sitting on this info for a few days uncertain whether to post it. But there's a site that is primarily to overseas buyers has the Vol 3 list of songs for BD 6 here:

http://www.cdjapan.co.jp/detailview.html?KEY=ANZX-9131

4. [Disc 2] Numquam vincar
5. [Disc 2] Quamobrem?
6. [Disc 2] Cor destructum
7. [Disc 2] Surgam identidem
8. [Disc 2] Confessio
9. [Disc 2] Sagitta luminis
10. [Disc 2] Nux Walpurgis
11. [Disc 2] Cubilulum album
12. [Disc 2] Taenia memoriae
13. [Disc 2] La Fille aux Cheveux de Lin
14. [Disc 2] Symposium magarum
15. [Disc 2] Pergo pugnare
16. [Disc 2] コネクト -ゲームインスト

I can only guess perhaps they have the info ahead of time and decided to publish it early and perhaps the Japanese vendors are waiting out of respect for the official announcements. Well there's always the possibility of it being wrong or fake somehow...I don't know. It's an interesting development.

[symbv]

The Korean price is 66400 Won which at current rate is 4693 Yen (1KRW=0.07068JPY) while the price at Amazon JP is 5390 Yen. Cheaper in Korea! Much envy because apparently there is official channel to buy official stuff at a price even lower than Japan (assuming it is identical because according to 2ch who bought cheap official anime from the west, they think the audio and visual can be much worse than the official stuff in Japan).

More screenshots of the PSP game




OMAKE

A sketch for key animation of Mami. "ERO" is the verdict from 2ch.




EDIT: Forgot to mention - love the idea of Milk Morinaga, author of yuri manga "Girlfriends", making a doujin on Madoka. "Girlfriends" is one of my most favorite manga. I am excited by how she would take on the cast of PMMM characters.



We must not forget or hide.
This is something we should think hard about.

[Electric Sachiel]

More PMMM PSP game information:

Official website has started
http://madoka-magica-game.channel.or.jp/

advertisement:



the contents of the premium "contract pack"


the regular "contract pack"


Madoka figma that comes only with the premium pack of PSP game

Oh fuck no!!! Damn looks like I'm going to buy the premium pack of this game just to get that Madoka Figma? The other extras look nice too. Anyone know what that extra dvd included in both the normal and premium versions of the game is? And when is this set coming out?

[Randomanon]

Don't know the details of what's on that BD/DVD extra (special content could be anything) and the game will be available on March 15, 2012.

Here's a write-up in English:
http://www.crunchyroll.com/anime-news/2 ... e-revealed

Edited to add: Hanokage's pic in celebrating the game. http://twitpic.com/64avhd She's such a Madoka fan, I'm sure she'll be one of the first in line to play it. This is why 2ch Madoka fans love her-- it's nice to see someone involved with a franchise so genuinely enthusiastic about it and not afraid to show it.

An online Madoka article on Nikkei (http://tinyurl.com/3d3o4hd) discussing the popularity of it with BD/DVD sales, some bio information, a mention of how it's different from other magical girl anime and a last interesting bit on the Tohoku earthquake. They think the message of Madoka's message of "Hope" at the end resonated with people affected by it.

It sounds nice but I don't know if that's true (damn facts, why must you ruin a perfectly nice sentiment....) The reason is Madoka BD/DVD pre-sale numbers were ridiculously high before that occurred. In fact, some people think the earthquake and tsunami might have repressed sales as the initial sale numbers were lower than estimated. Still within the range of margin of error though so I think that's inconclusive... I saw an uptick in sales after ep. 12 aired, but I'm not sure it wasn't more than you might expect from a positive reaction to a good ending. Japan definitely approved overall of Madoka's ending compared to the more mixed reaction from western fans. I'm unsure how much of a role the reaction of the earthquake had to do with that perception.

An update on the pic (bottom extras) of the Comiket 80 Production notes set. http://www.shaft-web.co.jp/pn.html

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First sight of official witch merchandise (more than the small nod to Charlotte we've seen with Mami). http://www.amiami.jp/shop/ProductInfo/product_id/223591

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Adding more things: So it seems that Madoka Magica is officially supporting the sales of the critical book on it "Cage Named Maturity" by promoting it on their website, on the same page as the official Nitro+ Novel: http://www.madoka-magica.com/books/04.html This may be helping with sales.

Some interesting things from Comiket 80: This is the site of one of the circles doing Madoka doujins - http://moeryou.blog37.fc2.com/ Particularly noteworthy is the "Witch Stay Night" one that's been promoted quite a bit and expected to do well. There's even a Nico vid link there halfway down the page on that doujin (don't need an account to do it) that's very professionally done and plays on the character promo commercials Madoka ran before the anime aired (http://www.madoka-magica.com/special/index.html- CM動画3 through CM動画7, also http://wiki.puella-magi.net/Pre-Broadca ... ertisement ) ...including a made-up one for Kyouko. PMMM didn't have one for Kyouko, since she was a hidden character at the time. Here's a sample of the circle's art. Unless I'm completely off on reading the red-string-of-fate reference and so on, I'm going to take a wild guess here and say they're going with the yuri approach that seems popular with Madoka doujins.

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Another set of Comiket-related images:

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Also, while mostly the interest in Comiket, there's already talk on 2ch on the big Saimoe match between Misaka and Homura, which people think is one of the key ones in the tournament. Impression seems to be that Madoka fans feel more optimistic while Index fans are more grim and determined.

[symbv]

This is why 2ch Madoka fans love her-- it's nice to see someone involved with a franchise so genuinely enthusiastic about it and not afraid to show it.

Kind of remind me of YuruYuri's author Namori, who drew so many pics for fans after the anime started, even showing up in the official anime website. Her enthusiasm for the franchise impresses and excites fans in 2ch so much.

===

As for the Production Note by Shaft, apparently it is available for advance sale in Comiket 80 but it should be available for regular sale later.

And I think it is perceivable that the upheaval and hardship borne by Japanese after the quake and tsunami are associated with the heightened popularity of the anime. I am sure the number of the fans is a lot more than the >70000 people who bought the blu-ray disc and I suspect a lot of them knew about the anime only later and quite possibly after the earthquake.

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Interview with the producers of the PSP game Yusuke Tomizawa (God Eater Series) [T] and Yoshinao Doi (Nitroplus) [D]
プロデューサー：富澤祐介（GOD EATERシリーズ）・土居由直（ニトロプラス）


富・ゲーム化で声をかけたのはこちらから、半年程前の事
土・まどかの二話が終わった後ぐらいの事
富・土居氏と飲みながら面白いと話していたが、三話を見た時点でゲーム企画を考え始めた
土・第四話が終わった後ぐらいに徳島のマチアソビで富澤氏と再会した
富・ゲームの企画を持ちかけたらそれを待っていたと言われた
土・そういう話が来るのではないかと予想していた。富澤氏はGEやなのは等のようにキャラ主体のゲームを丁寧に作っている印象があり、ゲーム化するなら是非富澤氏にと
T - About adapting into game, we raised the idea around half a year ago.
D - It was around the time after Ep.2 of Madoka.
T - When I had a drink with Mr Doi we talked about it and thought it would be interesting. After I saw Ep.3 I started to give serious thought about a game project.
D - Around the time after Ep.4 I met Mr Tomizawa at the Machi Asobi event in Tokushima
[symbv: Machi Asobi is the biggest anime event in Shikoku island, held in Tokushima city three times a year.]
T - When I brought up the game project I was told that he had been expecting it.
D - I predicted that such ideas may come along. I have the impression that Mr Tomizawa made high quality character-based games like GE or Nanoha. I thought if it was to turn into game it got to be done by Mr Tomizawa.

富・その時点ではゲームの具体的なジャンルなどは決まっていなかった
T - At that point the exact genre of the game was not decided yet.

土・シナリオは虚淵氏が全て監修している
D - The scenarios are all done under supervision by Mr Urobuchi.

富・PSPを選んだのはPSPでしか作っていないから、ではなくまどかを見ている人がプレイするゲーム機を考えて
T - The reason why we chose PSP was not because it could only be done in PSP but because we thought what game console is used by the people who watched Madoka.

富・ストーリーは、原作をベースに再構築する物になる予定。アニメの視点だけでなく、各キャラの視点やアニメで描かれなかった側面も掘り下げたい
T - We plan to have the story based on a reconstruction of the original anime. Not only from the anime's point of view, we also want to drill into the sides of the points of view of each character which were not depicted in the anime.

富・魔法少女だけでなくキュゥべえも物語に関わり、彼視点の選択肢もある
T - Not only the mahou shojo, but Kyubey is also involved in the story and there is also an option to adopt his point of view.

土・ゲームだけでも楽しめるが、アニメを見た上でプレイして貰いたい
D - It would be enjoyable to just play the game, but I would like people to watch the anime first before playing the game.

富・ダンジョンはターン毎に移動して敵と交互に行動するローグ形式の物になる。詳細はまだ公開できないが、魔法少女を切り替えて行動しつつ敵に囲まれないように戦っていく戦略性の高い戦闘が楽しめると思う
土・マミは銃で遠距離から、さやかの剣で接近戦など。必殺技はティロ・フィナーレ以外にもオリジナルの物を考えている
富・ソウルジェムやグリーフシードといったアイテムもゲームに組み込んでいる
T - In Dungeon part, it is a Roguelike game in which the characters and the enemy each take turn to move. Although I cannot disclose the details, I can say that one can enjoy the combat rich in tactics where he can switch between the mahou shoujo and maneuver them so that they are not encircled by the enemies.
D - Mami can use guns for long distance and Sayaka's sword can go for the close combat etc. We also thought about original finishing moves besides Tiro Finale.
T - Items like Soul Gems or Grief Seeds are all part of the game.

富・限定版にfigmaが付くのは自分が欲しいから
T - The reason why a figma is included in the Limited Edition is because I want it.

富・限定版の「ほむほむハンカチ」は劇中でお尻にハンカチを敷いたシーンで使った物と同じデザイン。是非お尻に敷いてほむらの気持ちになって欲しい
土・ほむほむというのはユーザー間での愛称の一つだが、富澤氏の熱意で初めて公式にほむほむとついた商品が実現した
T - The "HomuHomu Handkerchief" in the Limited Edition has the identical design as the one used in the anime scene where Homura folded out a handkerchief and sat on it. I really hope that people can share the feeling of Homura sitting on a handkerchief.
D - HomuHomu is one of the nicknames used between fans. Because of the enthusiasm of Mr Tomizawa, we managed to produce one official merchandise with the name of HomuHomu.
[symbv: Reminder of what that scene is like in Ep.10 http://i.imgur.com/gP049.jpg ]


富・より良い物にするべく開発スタッフ一丸となって取り組んで行く
土・企画当初からゲーム化に関わりたいと思いつつなかなか実現できなかったが、強力なスタッフの元でバンダイナムコゲームスとタッグが組めるとあって非常に喜ばしい。是非キュゥべえと契約して魔法少女になり限定版を買って欲しい
T - As we all wanted to make it a really good product all the staff are united and worked together to create this game.
D - At the beginning of the project I thought a lot about how the game adaptation should work out but nothing came to fruition. I was so glad that I could team up with the strong staff of Bandai Namco Games. I hope people will contract with Kyubey and become a Mahou Shoujo and buy the Limited Edition.


====

The dreaded doujin by Takotsubo on Madoka is out. Homura traveled back time but instead found the most horrible things happened to Madoka - even teacher Wako sexually brutalized her and it was the least painful thing she had to endure - but Madoka kept rejecting Kyubei's exhortation to become a mahou shoujo (and kill those bastards).... Anyway, I am sure it is one doujin I am not going to read. Check excerpts of the doujin here if you really want (and you have been warned):　
http://blog.livedoor.jp/geek/archives/51282193.html



What are people afraid of
to look back and to learn?

[Randomanon]

Thanks, symbv. I added the PSP translation to the wiki - http://wiki.puella-magi.net/Puella_Magi_Madoka_Magica_Portable with a new table format that's annoying to implement but makes it look much better. I'll probably go back at some point and do that for the other translations.

There's so many doujins it's hard to keep track. The Takotsubo one you linked is unusual in having Madoka's teacher being abusive. I'm somewhat keeping a track a little because I'm contemplating digging into doujin numbers at some point and seeing what I come up with for PMMM. I've done this before and it's one of the most unfun thing you can imagine. It doesn't help that Madoka in sheer numbers is going to far exceed anything I've look at in the past.

I know I mentioned that official merchandise could stand to be creative...but I think the unofficial merchandise could be a little too creative in the wrong ways. Cute girl packaging can't justify marketing two packages of ramen for 893 yen (that's $11.63 USD). http://www.movic.jp/index.php?ctrl=sheet&code=16076 Paying 535 yen ($6.84) for three tea bags isn't any better. http://www.movic.jp/index.php?ctrl=sheet&code=15833

Have some Kyubeys:

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This is one cosplayer that I think with this look and expression, should have dressed up as Junko. Either that or it gives off the feel of Akira Kogami of "Lucky Channel."

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Some Emiri Kato pictured with her character Kyubey. I bet she gets the best interview questions.

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[symbv]

Some interesting things from Comiket 80: This is the site of one of the circles doing Madoka doujins - http://moeryou.blog37.fc2.com/ Particularly noteworthy is the "Witch Stay Night" one that's been promoted quite a bit and expected to do well. There's even a Nico vid link there halfway down the page on that doujin (don't need an account to do it) that's very professionally done and plays on the character promo commercials Madoka ran before the anime aired

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This is a doujin circle from Taiwan!! International booths in Comiket, the Mecca of doujin, are hard to get so any who managed to participate must have really high quality stuff on offer. I talked to a few doujin artists in HK when I went to Ani-Com HK last month. They have applied for a booth for 3 years in a row but still could not get in and they already made really high level stuff (I bought some stuff from them as they are really good -- check below). But Taiwan doujin is so much stronger.

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Laminated posters, plastic bag, book case and illustration books

Another set of Comiket-related images:

Let me put the images in the right order (the first and second were swapped). With translation as the parody of the episode titles is quite interesting.

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West-1 Hall Temporary storage area
Chidamari Staff [symbv: as many of you know, it is a parody of Hidamari Sketch, another anime with character design by Ume Aoki. Sun-drenched/hidamari becomes Blood-drenched/chidamari)
Ep.1 Seems we met in the event hall last time too....
Ep.2 The quick sale event is so much fun...
Ep.3 I am no longer afraid of deadline any more


Reserve Desks
Chidamari Staff
Ep.4 Laying out (the desks and chairs) and removing (the desks and chairs) - there are both.
Ep.5 There is no way there should be overnight camping groups.
Ep.6 This kind of Metropolitan Ordinance is absolutely weird



Reserve Chairs
Chidamari Staff
Ep.7 Are you able to face the real "male girls" ?
Ep.8 Ag*s is really stupid [symbv: seems to be a reference to Agnes Chan, a celebrity and former idol, who voiced strong support to the "child porn law" from Governor Ishihara)
Ep.9 I cannot allow, such a preparatory meeting



Broken Desks
Ep.10 I no longer rely on cell phone
Ep.11 One word from Komeyan who stayed till the end [symbv: Komeyan is the nickname for Yoshihiro Yonezawa who is the co-founder of Comiket. He died of cancer in 2006 though.]
Ep.12 To me, the best Comiket



Broken Chairs
Chidamari Staff
Original Drama CD
Vol.1 Memories of Comiket Special 5ike
Vol.2 Sunny Day Doujin Live
Vol.3 Akiba Story



I came here as I have a request for you.
I would you to stick red gum tape to mark out any broken desk or chair.

I know I mentioned that official merchandise could stand to be creative...but I think the unofficial merchandise could be a little too creative in the wrong ways. Cute girl packaging can't justify marketing two packages of ramen for 893 yen (that's $11.63 USD). http://www.movic.jp/index.php?ctrl=sheet&code=16076 Paying 535 yen ($6.84) for three tea bags isn't any better. http://www.movic.jp/index.php?ctrl=sheet&code=15833

Not sure if it is official or unofficial? They both can be official stuff.
Both are appropriate as we know Kyouko ate "Shaft brand" ramen in the anime, and of course we all know Mami loved drinking tea.... Official food merchandise is also quite common (I bought a Angel Beat mapo-tofu pack only because I want the Angel packaging :p )

2ch is pretty sure it is a product by 射太興業 (ShaFuto Kougyo). Reminder of what 射太興業 is :

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Have some Kyubeys:

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The guy who brought this to Comiket to sleep over the night before its first day is a well known figure in Comiket because he ALWAYS brought his Fate (of Nanoha) dakimakura with him to Comiket. Check it out:

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Some Emiri Kato pictured with her character Kyubey. I bet she gets the best interview questions.

Now people start to forget she also voiced the very moe Hachikuji in Bakemonogatari. Another peak of career for the fabulous Kato Emiri !!


One should not hide a past just because she does not like it
Many others may want to learn from it too

[Randomanon]

So holy crap, the word is that all the Madoka items sold out in 45mins at the Aniplex booth at Comiket 80. It was reported on 2ch and at first people couldn't believe it or thought it was trolling, but now it seems they've accepted it.
http://twitter.com/#!/twi39
アニプレックスブース、本日はもうこれからお並び頂いても商品を買えません。申し訳ございませんm(_ _)m

If this is true, I just cannot believe they weren't more prepared for the number of buyers they were going to get. I feel bad for all the people who slept in line overnight for this. I'm thinking it must be a temporary restocking problem...but then again I do remember Ume Aoki's doujin that sold out in an hour on the second sale of it.

OK yeah, here's the deal:


Yaraon reported it also but I'm not sure if their sold out time is right or not...people on 2ch were saying it was sold out even around 10am.
http://yaraon.blog109.fc2.com/blog-entry-3343.html

This is the beautiful figma that comes with the limited edition PSP package. http://twitpic.com/64mme0



That Taiwan circle gets around as I've seen some of their doujin pics everywhere on both Japanese and western fan sites.

Oh it's not the food itself that's an issue, I've seen lots of them, but that price for the art quality that isn't I don't think official is too much. There was a QB ramen that sold a while back with much more reasonable pricing.

Oh, so that's the same guy? He looks different than from his photos I've seen. I'm not surprised for some reason he decided to cosplay as Kyubey.

[symbv]

So holy crap, the word is that all the Madoka items sold out in 45mins at the Aniplex booth at Comiket 80. It was reported on 2ch and at first people couldn't believe it or thought it was trolling, but now it seems they've accepted it.
http://twitter.com/#!/twi39
アニプレックスブース、本日はもうこれからお並び頂いても商品を買えません。申し訳ございませんm(_ _)m

*snip*

Yaraon reported it also but I'm not sure if their sold out time is right or not...people on 2ch were saying it was sold out even around 10am.
http://yaraon.blog109.fc2.com/blog-entry-3343.html

The yaraon site did not seem to mention about 10am sold-out time... All the mentions about sold-out time seem to match the 11:15am (or around 11am) mentioned in yaraon. The tweet at http://twitter.com/#!/twi39 was posted at around that time. The times of the posts in the yaraon site was around 11:30 (including the picture taken above).

Oh it's not the food itself that's an issue, I've seen lots of them, but that price for the art quality that isn't I don't think official is too much. There was a QB ramen that sold a while back with much more reasonable pricing.

Perhaps official merchandise commands a higher price?

Oh, so that's the same guy? He looks different than from his photos I've seen. I'm not surprised for some reason he decided to cosplay as Kyubey.

Same guy? You mean the one who wore a Kyubey kigurumi and went out to befriend kids in the park? Most probably not the same person. The guy popped up in every Comiket and always brought with him a dakimakura of Fate, but apparently he did not really dress himself in Kyubey kigurumi in this Comiket although he has a big Kyubey head with him.

====

The most popular Kyubey merchandise:





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Circular card advertisement for the PMMM PSP game handed out in Comiket




====

To be published this winter -- Key Animation collection of PMMM
Not sure if it has any resemblance to the production notes being sold in Comiket.



Not to be flushed away like you don't want to face it...
Not to be stashed away like you don't want to see it...

[Randomanon]

@symbv
Yaraon is selective about what it decides to post. They're going off the official notice of the twitter and the pic. But in the thread before that, people on 2ch were claiming Madoka was sold out before 11am.

See examples here:

SPOILER: Show

That's why I'm not sure if it actually sold out before that or if people were anticipating it or told it while waiting in line etc. or if the official time counts when the last purchase was made etc.

I meant I didn't know the QB head belonged to the (in)famous Fate dakimakura guy and couldn't tell it was him by the sleeping photo. He looked different in it than other photos I've seen him in. Now I have a couple where he's cosplaying.

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Another bit of news: The BD 6 cover from the Korean site is confirmed as legit by Madoka Magica's official site - http://www.madoka-magica.com/bddvd/06.html Nothing yet re: the OST3 song names, though.

Here's a gallery of Madoka-related images from Comiket. Some were posted earlier but some are new. You can see there's some pages from the Production Notes and the extras. Some things from the Aniplex booth. A little cosplay including a Mami one that was on TV. Other random and various things, both official and doujin. http://imgur.com/a/02GoB#39Z2w
Edited to change: The Ume Aoki sketches are actually PMMM sketches from the Production Notes.

Reminder on what was advertised from the Aniplex booth.

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The Nitro+ Novel set

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Not Madoka-specific, this is to a gallery of various Comiket cosplay photos. http://www.news-gate.jp/2011/0812/16/photo01.html

[symbv]

@symbv
Yaraon is selective about what it decides to post. They're going off the official notice of the twitter and the pic. But in the thread before that, people on 2ch were claiming Madoka was sold out before 11am.

See examples here:

SPOILER: Show

That's why I'm not sure if it actually sold out before that or if people were anticipating it or told it while waiting in line etc. or if the official time counts when the last purchase was made etc.

That seems to be matching. My understanding is they stopped the line from growing at around 10:45 (thus sold out from customer's point of view) and around 30 min later all people got their stuff and thus sold out from the organizer's point of view. Both the pic and the twitter message said there is no use lining up any more and fresh supply will be available tomorrow and the day after tomorrow. So 2ch wonder who may camp out for the night for tomorrow's supply.

=====
Kazuo Koike, writer of "Lone Wolf and Cub" and "Crying Freeman", is a titan in manga business and a hero for many otaku of my generation. Even he tweeted enthusiastically about PMMM, even comparing it with Evangelion !!!






There were a few before the ones above but I did not bother making all the screencaps. Anyway, I have put the text here with the translation below. He gave some unique insight from a manga writer's point of view:

「まどかマギカ」を12話分入手した。後でじっくりと観よう。よくわからないところがあった。暁美ほむらとキュゥべえの関係など。暁美ほむらが何度も時空を超えて鹿目まどかを救いにくるキャラクターだとは思わなかったなあ。(小池一夫) http://bit.ly/hT6XW0
koikekazuo 2011/08/07 22:02:55
I obtained all 12 episodes of Madoka Magica. I plan to watch it carefully later. There are places that I do not understand well. Like the relationship between Homura Akemi and Kyubey. I did not expect Homura Akemi to be a character who traveled in time so many times to save Madoka Kaname.


最後まで観ると実によく出来てる。まあでも最初はとっつきにくい。じっくり見てからまた感想を述べる。(小池一夫) http://bit.ly/hT6XW0
koikekazuo 2011/08/07 22:03:08
After I watched it till the end I found it to be really well done. Well, it was a bit hard to follow at the beginning. Once I watch it carefully I will write my opinions.


「鉄腕アトム」から始まったロボット漫画が、「鉄人28号」、「マジンガーZ」、「ガンダム」、「エヴァンゲリオン」という流れになって大ヒットを続けて来た。続く。(小池一夫) http://bit.ly/hT6XW0
koikekazuo 2011/08/09 19:44:19
Robot manga, starting from "Tetsuwan Atom" and followed by "Tetsujin No.28", "Mazinger Z", "Evangelion", had many big hits over time. To be continued.


この流れが「イノセンス」の方へ行くのかなあと思っていたンだけど、「まどかマギカ」の方に人気の流れが集中しつつある。ロボット漫画ではないが、主人公たちに共通したものを感じる。続く。(小池一夫) http://bit.ly/hT6XW0
koikekazuo 2011/08/09 21:33:05
It seems to me that this flow has gone to the way of "Innocence", while the current of popularity now converges on Madoka Magica. It is not a robot manga, but I feel that there are shared aspects for the protagonists. To be continued.


魔法少女の漫画というのは、ほとンどがメタモルフォーゼ(変身)願望やら、魔法を使って悪い奴らを懲らしめるとか、それが王道であったのだが、「まどかマギカ」は僕の想像を遥かに超えるものであった。続く。(小池一夫) http://bit.ly/hT6XW0
koikekazuo 2011/08/09 21:33:48
A Mahou Shoujo manga almost always has things like a wish for metamorphosis (transformation) and using magic to punish and stop the bad guys. That was the orthodox way. Madoka Magica went way beyond my expectation. To be continued.


制作会社も監督以下スタッフも一流だから、何かあるだろうという期待感はあった。その期待感が裏切られることはなかった。ぐいぐい引き込まれていった。今日はここまで。(小池一夫) http://bit.ly/hT6XW0
koikekazuo 2011/08/09 22:08:37
The animation studio as well as all the staff from director down are all top class, so I had anticipation of something was going to happen. And it did not disappoint me at all. I was pulled more and more into its world. Let me pause here for today.


「まどかマギカ」の考察その2。日本には1950年頃からロボットマンガキャラクターの潮流がある。「エヴァンゲリオン」の後に来るのが攻殻機動隊、イノセンスだと思っていたが、マニアックな方向へ流れていった。(小池一夫) http://bit.ly/hT6XW0
koikekazuo 2011/08/10 22:08:35
Thought about Madoka Magica part 2. In Japan since the 1950s the main trend was robot manga characters. After Evangelion it was Ghost in the Shell and Innocence, I think it started to go to a mania kind of direction.



王道に近い形で「エヴァンゲリオン」の後を継いでいくのが「まどかマギカ」のような気がしてならない。もちろンロボットキャラクターではないが、魔法少女という基本パターンを拒否するアンチヒロインだとすると、明らかに読者が被ってくる。(小池一夫) http://bit.ly/hT6XW0
koikekazuo 2011/08/10 22:08:57
I cannot help noticing that Madoka Magica is a successor to Evangleion in an almost orthodox manner. Of course there is no robot character. However, if we consider that it is about some antiheroes rejecting the fundamental pattern of mahou shoujo, it clearly gave the viewers such feeling.


世界中を巻き込む大ヒットの予感が強い。(小池一夫) http://bit.ly/hT6XW0
koikekazuo 2011/08/10 22:09:03
I have a strong premonition feeling that it will be a big hit that draws in the whole world.


「まどかマギカ」の考察3。マンガとアニメは根本的に違う。マンガには音と動きがない。連載するにしても一回20ページ(週刊少年漫画)が限度。三十分近いアニメのボリュームには敵わない。(小池一夫) http://bit.ly/hT6XW0
koikekazuo 2011/08/11 21:31:34
Thought about Madoka Magica part 3. Manga and Anime are fundamentally different. Manga has no sound or motion. Even in serialization the limit is 20 pages in each episode (in shonen manga magazine). In terms of volume of contents it cannot beat the almost 30 minutes [in one episode] of anime.


主人公の世界観をラスト近くになって堂々と出していけるのは羨ましい限り。マンガの場合は最初にキャラクターを創り、そのキャラクターが活躍する場を作り、設定を作ってわかりやすくしてから連載を続けていく。(小池一夫) http://bit.ly/hT6XW0
koikekazuo 2011/08/11 21:31:57
I am extremely envious of how the world view of the protagonist could come out so grandly only near the end. In case of manga, we have to create the characters at the beginning and then create the situation where those characters get active, and we have to create the settings (settei) and make it easy to understand before we can continue with the serialization.


「まどかマギカ」の漫画もあるが、それはコミカライズされたものであってやはりアニメの「まどかマギカ」を超えてはいかないだろう。(小池一夫) http://bit.ly/hT6XW0
koikekazuo 2011/08/11 21:32:15
Although there is also a manga for Madoka Magica, as that one is a manga adaptation, I think most probably it will not surpass the anime Madoka Magica.


世界へ羽ばたけ「まどかマギカ」！(小池一夫) http://bit.ly/hT6XW0
koikekazuo 2011/08/11 21:32:21
"Madoka Magica", spread your wings and fly to the world!


The haters in 2ch could only gave sour grape remarks like "we have yet to see how it will fare down the road in future...", "I would have expected at least some messages of tough love from this guy...", or just surrendering words like "if even he said so, I guess this should be it then". On the other hand, the fans in 2ch are being very modest. Many expressed anxiety and uneasiness of their favorite anime being praised so unreservedly by such a big name and veteran from the manga world. The most adorable reaction from one fan is this:

I LOVE IT !!!

=====

You know I have never be so excited in my life to find the cast of one of my top favorite anime actually work in my top favorite magazine!!!

And to think that I was actually there as well....

=====

I have a feeling that very soon the view count of this thread will pass the 100,000 mark. Congratualations!!!

[Randomanon]

Cool, I'd seen a few but not most of those Kazuo Koike twitters. Iwakami did say he considered either magical girl or robot/mecha anime in his panel at Otakon. Personally, I think he made the right choice since I think Madoka made more of an impression as a magical girl anime than it would have as robot/mecha.

Some more images from Comiket (well last two not 100% certain they're from there but I think so), some from the Production Notes.

SPOILER: Show

Someone from 4chan put together the Nico vids sketches to the second drama CD "Sunny Day Life" audio and with English subs...it's pretty entertaining. The sketches are only the first 16 minutes. I think the original Nico artist will likely put up a vid for the last section for it in a week or so. DL here - http://www.mediafire.com/?w73kpqyhi0yb5c3 Here's a sample with the panty thief:

SPOILER: Show

Also, 100K views, not bad considering this is...the third Madoka thread, right?

[symbv]

Randomanon, perhaps you could add the Kazuo Koike tweets to PMMM wiki as well (to prove how popular it has become) ?

The Nico vid is really cool stuff -- the sketches are on model and the deformation made great effect.

Some more images from Comiket.

SPOILER: Show

The three pics above should be from the PMMM novel. I have some more pics from the novel here:

SPOILER: Show

Also, 100K views, not bad considering this is...the third Madoka thread, right?

I happened to be around when it happened and so I saved a screendump for the occasion. Cheers!



BTW, it is the second Madoka thread and some of the views were inherited from the first thread. The old thread still got good number of views though -- >8000 so far...

[Randomanon]

Sure, I'll do that but it'll have to be after I'm done with work today. The twitter code entry on the wiki requires focus, unlike the simpler things I usually copy/paste there, so I need some peace and quiet to concentrate on it. It's been reallly busy for a Friday and my multi-tasking abilities are at the limit.

So images are being sorted out what from Comiket are in the Production Notes (http://wiki.puella-magi.net/Puella_Magi_Production_Notes) vs. the Aniplex Karuta set (http://wiki.puella-magi.net/Merchandise#Karuta_Set) vs. the Novel (http://wiki.puella-magi.net/Mahou_Shoujo_Madoka%E2%98%86Magica_NitroPlus_Novel) and the Cage Named Maturity book on Madoka (http://wiki.puella-magi.net/Literature_on_Madoka) Wiki's only dealing with the official items, not the doujins.

On screen:

More NitroPlus Novel pics:



I posted some info on this game previously "Grief Syndrome". Here's youtube vids with the game play.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xqblxdzpAho
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W8DXBKpY9Mg

Sample screen:

SPOILER: Show

Adding a new gallery of 21 Comiket Madoka pics. Cosplayers, Aniplex official items, Production Notes etc. http://imgur.com/a/yMqsM#d7Gmf

[symbv]

On screen:

Seems to be morning TV show reporting the first day of Comiket with particular focus on how quick PMMM stuff got sold out.

According to one reporrt in 2ch, the following is the queue for Aniplex just after 10am when Comiket opened its door. Wow!!



Two shots of PMMM cosplay that is particularly interesting to me. In the first on the cardboard it said "Futari wa PretiKyubey" - so funny. In the second the besuited Kyubey is like the one I saw in Ani-Com HK, only this one dressed even smart (and stood in intense heat outdoor!)

SPOILER: Show

Yuuki Aoi is really great at drawing stuff !! The following is a tweet from Nitroplus.




まどマギPSPゲーム化の応援色紙をまどか役の悠木碧さんが描いてくれた！絵が超うまい。ニトロブースに飾ってあるのでぜひご覧を！
Aug 13, 2011 at 09:20 AM JST
Name:でじたろう@ニトロプラス Location:浅草橋 Web: http://www.nitroplus.co.jp/

Yuuki Aoi-san, who voiced Madoka, drew us a colored picture to root for the PSP game adaptation of MadoMagi. The drawing is super good. We put it on the Nitro booth [in Comiket]. Please come and take a look!

[Randomanon]

Aoi Yuuki's so great. There's other sketches from other seiyuu from this great Comiket 80 vid http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nH57g5OKjPA
Just posting a few:
Ai Nonaka (Kyouko) of Kyoko and Sayaka

SPOILER: Show

Emiri Kato of her character

SPOILER: Show

Kyubey

Eri Kitamura (Sayaka) also did Kyubey...but a little different interpretation

SPOILER: Show

Here for the summary:

SPOILER: Show

More Madoka on TV

SPOILER: Show

Bonus: Cosplay

SPOILER: Show

Adding some Ume Aoki:

SPOILER: Show

Check out this PSP ad: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_JJ1JLv3UCs So this is what it looks like at the Nitro+ booth with Aoi Yuki's art

SPOILER: Show

Lots of people are waiting patiently in line overnight for another shot at Aniplex goods. I really hope this time they have enough in stock for everyone who's waited that long. This is what it looks like waiting in line.

SPOILER: Show

Some more Madoka-related Comiket pics, mostly of doujins.

SPOILER: Show

Also, congrats to Ume Aoki on getting a fourth season to Hidamari Sketch.

If you're looking for that doujinshi game "Grief Syndrome," (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xqblxdzpAho) it's here - http://archive.easymodo.net/a/thread/53314193

[symbv]

Aoi Yuuki's so great. There's other sketches from other seiyuu from this great Comiket 80 vid http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nH57g5OKjPA

I wan this "Tiro Finale Book" (this is the name of the illustration book)
They should publish the book not just at the Comiket but as a general publication, as the list of the illustrators is so strong -- not just the seiyuu but almost every major figure involved in PMMM is there, from the Magica Quartet (Ume Aoki, Shinbo, Urobuchi, Inu-Curry) onwards, and there are more.

Some in 2ch gave description to each figure named in the list of this "Madoka-ya" group:


魔法少女まどかマギカ関係者 (involved in PMMM)

蒼樹うめ　　漫画家,イラストレーター、まどか☆マギカキャラクター原案
Ume Aoki - mangaka, illustrator // PMMM orginal character design
芦野芳晴　　アニメーターアニメ監督、1～3話絵コンテ
Yoshiharu Ashino - anime director // PMMM ep.1-3 storyboard
阿部厳一朗　　シャフト所属主力アニメーター、OP（まどかの走りシーン）,3話,10話原画
Genichiro Abe - main animator in Shaft // OP (the running scene of Madoka), ep.3,10 original animation
阿部望　　アニメーター、まどか☆マギカアクションディレクター、1話,2話,3話,8話,9話,10話,11話,12話原画
Nozomi Abe - animator // PMMM action director, ep.1-3,8-12 original animation
板村智幸　　アニメ演出家、オープニングアニメーション絵コンテ,演出
Tomoyuki Sakamura - animation directing // PMMM OP animation,storyboard,direction
伊藤良明　　シャフト所属主力アニメーター、10話作画監督、1話,11話作画監督協力、3話作画監督補佐、10話,12話原画
Yoshiaki Itoh - main animator in Shaft // PMMM ep.10 animation director, ep.1,11 assist animation director, ep.3 assistant animation director, ep.10,12 key animation
今村亮　　シャフト所属アニメーター、OPアニメーションレイアウト、OP,10話原画
Ryo Imamura - main animator in Shaft // OP animation layout, OP,ep.10 key animation
岩崎安利　　アニメーター、9話作画監督
Yasutoshi Iwasaki - animator // PMMM ep.9 animation director
梅津泰臣　　アニメーター、10話原画
Yasuomi Umetsu - animator // PMMM ep.10 key animation [also known for being character design and animation director of Megazone Pt.2 and director of A Kite and Mezzo Forte]
虚淵玄　　シナリオライター、まどか☆マギカシリーズ構成・脚本
Gen Urobuch - scenario writer // PMMM series composition and screenplay
江畑諒真　　アニメーター、1話作画監督
Ryoma Ebata - animator // PMMM ep.1 animation director
小俣真一　　アニメ演出家、5話,8話絵コンテ、4話演出
Shinichi Omata - animation directing // PMMM ep.5,8 storyboard, ep.4 direction
加藤英美里　　声優、キュゥべえ役
Emiri Katoh - seiyuu // PMMM voice-acting Kyubey
神谷智大　　アニメーター、まどか☆マギカアクションディレクター、3話作画監督、8話,9話,10話,11話,12話原画
Tomohiro Kamitani - animator // PMMM action director, ep.3 animation director, ep.8-12 key animation
喜多村英梨　　声優、美樹さやか役
Eiri Kitamura - seiyuu // PMMM voice-acting Sayaka Miki
岸田隆宏　　アニメーター、まどか☆マギカキャラクターデザイン、1話作画監督協力、10話,12話原画
Takahiro Kishida - animator // PMMM character design, ep.1 assist animation director, ep.10,12 key animation
沓名健一　　アニメーター、OP,3話,10話原画
Kenichi Kutsuna - animator // PMMM OP,ep.3,10 key animation
劇団イヌカレー　　アニメーション作家ユニット、まどか☆マギカプロダクションデザイン・異空間設計
Gekidan Inu-Curry - animation creation unit // PMMM production design, bewitched space design
斎藤千和　　声優、暁美ほむら役
Chiwa Saitoh - seiyuu // PMMM voice-acting Homura Akemi
笹木信作　　アニメ演出家,日本アニメーター・演出協会理事、4話,6話,10話,12話絵コンテ
Shinsaku Sasaki - animation directing, board director of Japanese Animation Creators Association // PMMM ep.4,6,10,12 storyboard
潮月一也　　シャフト所属アニメーター、3話,9話,10話作画監督、11話作画監督協力
Kazuya Shiotsuki - animator in Shaft // PMMM ep.3,9,10 animation director, ep.11 assistant animation director
新房昭之　　アニメ演出家,アニメ監督、まどか☆マギカ監督
Akiyuki Shinbo - animation directing, director // PMMM director
杉山延寛　　シャフト所属アニメーター、1話原画
Nobuhiro Sugiyama - animator in Shaft // PMMM ep.1 key animation
鈴木博文　　アニメーター、エンディングアニメーション担当
Hirofumi Suzuki - animator // PMMM ED animation
高野晃久　　アニメーター、3話作画監督補佐
Akihisa Takano - animator // PMMM ep.3 assistant animation director
高橋美香　　アニメーター、まどか☆マギカ総作画監督、2話,12話作画監督、1話作画監督協力、1話原画
Mika Takahashi - animator // PMMM shief animation director, ep.2,12 animation director, ep.1 assistant animation director & key animation
高橋裕一　　アニメーター、12話原画
Yuichi Takahashi - animator // PMMM ep.12 key animation
滝山真哲　　アニメーター、OP,5話,12話原画
Masaaki Takiyama - animator // PMMM OP,ep.5,12 key animation
谷口淳一郎　　アニメーターまどか☆マギカ総作画監督、12話作画監督
Junichiro Taniguchi - animator // PMMM chief animation director, ep.12 animation director
天杉貴志　　漫画家、スピンオフ作品『魔法少女かずみ☆マギカ』作画
Takashi Tensugi - mangaka // PMMM spinoff "Puella Magi Kazumi Magica" illustration
中村直人　　アニメーター、オープニングアニメーション 作画監督、7話作画監督協力
Naoto Nakamura - animator // PMMM OP animation director, ep.7 assistant animation director
野中藍　　声優、佐倉杏子役
Ai Nonaka - seiyuu // PMMM voice-acting Kyouko Sakura
ハノカゲ　　漫画家、コミカライズ作品『魔法少女まどかマギカ』作画
Hanokage - mangaka // PMMM manga adaptation "Puella Magi Madoka Magica" illustration
平松正樹　　脚本家,ゲームシナリオライター、スピンオフ作品『魔法少女かずみ☆マギカ』原作
Masaki Hiramatsu - screenplay writer, game scenario writer // author of PMMM spinoff "Puella Magi Kazumi Magica"
牧孝雄　　アニメーター、レイアウト設計(メインスタッフ)、1話,6話作画監督協力、1話,2話,9話,12話原画
Takao Maki - animator // PMMM main staff of layout design, ep.1,5 assistant animation director, ep.1,2,9,12 key animation
松本元気　　シャフト所属アニメーター、9話作画監督、OP,3話,9話,10話原画、4話第二原画
Genki Matsumoto - animator in Shaft // PMMM ep.9 animation director, OP,ep.3,9,10 key animation, ep.4 second key animation
水橋かおり　　声優、巴マミ,鹿目タツヤ役
Kaori Mizubashi - seiyuu // PMMM voice-acting Mami Tomoe & Tatsuya Kaname
宮本幸裕　　アニメ演出家、まどか☆マギカシリーズディレクター、1話,12話演出
Yukihiro Miyamoto - animation directing // PMMM series director, ep.1,12 direction
ムラ黒江　　漫画家、スピンオフ作品『魔法少女おりこ☆マギカ』作画
Kuroe Mura - mangaka // PMMM spinoff "Puella Magi Oriko Magica" illustration
村山公輔　　アニメーター、2話原画
Kousuke Murayama - animator // PMMM ep.2 key animation
悠木碧　　声優、鹿目まどか役
Aoi Yuuki - seiyuu // PMMM voice-acting Madoka Kaname
りょーちも　　アニメーター、12話原画
Ryouchimo - animator // PMMM ep.12 key animation

外部参加者(五十音順) (not involved in PMMM)
吾妻ひでお　　漫画家、代表作『不条理日記』『ななこSOS』『失踪日記』など
Hideo Azuma - mangaka // main works include "Fujōri Nikki,", "Nanako SOS", "disappearance diaries" http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hideo_Azuma
石浜真史　　アニメーター、『R.O.D』『SPEED GRAPHER』『N・H・Kにようこそ!』キャラクターデザインなど
Masashi Ishihama - animator // character designs of works like "R.O.D." "Speed Grapher" and "Welcome to N.H.K."
尾石達也　　アニメーター,アニメ演出家、新房シャフト作品のＯＰディレクター,絵コンテ,演出,原画など多数担当
Tatsuya Oishi -- animator, animation directing // responsible for OP directing, storyboarding, episode directing, key animation of many Shinbo Shaft works
おみおみ　　漫画家、『夏期限定 トロピカルパフェ事件』作画
Omiomi - mangaka // known for illustrating the detective novel "Summer Only - The incident of Tropical Parfait"
小松田大全　　アニメーター、『ヱヴァンゲリヲン新劇場版:破』副監督など
Daizen Komatsuda - animator // vice director of "Evangelion NME 2.22"
椎名高志　　漫画家、代表作『GS美神 極楽大作戦!!』『絶対可憐チルドレン』など
Takashi Shiina - mangaka // main works include "Ghost Sweeper Mikami" and "Zettai Karen Children" etc
龍輪直征　　シャフト所属アニメーター,アニメ演出家、『さよなら絶望先生シリーズ』『まりあ†ほりっく』『それでも町は廻っている』副監督など
Naoyuki Tatsuwa - animator in Shaft, animation directing // vice-director of "Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei" series, "MariaHolic" and "Soredemo Machi wa mawatteiru" etc
辻真先　　アニメ・特撮脚本家,推理冒険作家,漫画原作者、日本の名作アニメ多数脚本担当
Masaki Tsuji - screenply writer for anime and tokusatsu, author of mysteries and adventure tales, original author of manga // responsible for the screenplay of many famous anime. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Masaki_Tsuji
氷川竜介　　フリーライター,アニメーション研究家、著書『世紀末アニメ熱論』『アニメ新世紀王道秘伝書』など
Ryusuke Hikawa - Free writer, animation studies expert // works include "seiki-matsu anime netsuron" "anime shin-seiki oudo hidensho" etc http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ry%C5%ABsuke_Hikawa
藤津亮太　　アニメ評論家、著書『アニメ「評論家」宣言』『チャンネルはいつもアニメ―ゼロ年代アニメ時評』など
Ryota Fujitsu - anime critic // works include "anime hyoronka sengen" "channel wa itsumo anime - zero nendai jihyou" etc
メロンパン158円の助　　アニメーター(?)、同人アニメーション『幻想万華鏡』作画
Melon-Pan 158-en no suke - animator (?) // illustration (sakuga) of doujin animation "gensou mangekyou"
守岡英行　　アニメーター、『D.Gray-man』『さよなら絶望先生シリーズ』『まりあ†ほりっく』キャラクターデザイン,総作画監督など
Hideyuki Morioka - animator // character design and chief animation director of "D.Gray-man" "Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei" series, "MariaHolic" etc
山村洋貴　　アニメーター、『それでも町は廻っている』『かってに改蔵』キャラクターデザイン,総作画監督など
Hiroki Yamamura - animator // character design and chief animation director of "Soredemo Machi wa mawatteiru" "Katte ni Kaizo" etc

Perhaps something good for wiki archive....

Just posting a few:

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Ai Nonaka (Kyouko) of Kyoko and Sayaka [spoiler]

Emiri Kato of her character

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Kyubey

Eri Kitamura (Sayaka) also did Kyubey...but a little different interpretation

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Here for the summary:

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More Madoka on TV

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Bonus: Cosplay

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Adding some Ume Aoki:

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[/spoiler]

Ume Aoki one is very very good, but 2ch is impressed by how good some seiyuu could draw -- particularly how Kitamura Eri drew an anthropomorphized Kyubey which looks scary and how Katoh Emiri drew Kyubey much better than the one she drew earlier.

On the other hand, some seiyuu did not draw but perform calligraphy. Anyway, here are a few more samples of some other seiyuu's:

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Yuuki Aoi (Madoka)'s drawing has already got very good reputation:



Mizubashi Kaori (Mami) got this idea of Zen calligraphy paint perhaps because of the theme she picked 円環の理 (the law of the round circle) which is also a dialogue she spoke herself in the anime



Saitoh Chiwa (Homura) also provided calligraphy instead. Not sure how well she draws.

And those from the illustrators of the three manga:

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Hanokage - mangaka // PMMM manga adaptation "Puella Magi Madoka Magica" illustration



Kuroe Mura - mangaka // PMMM spinoff "Puella Magi Oriko Magica" illustration



Takashi Tensugi - mangaka // PMMM spinoff "Puella Magi Kazumi Magica" illustration
He put his favorite scene of "Mami got Mami'ed" there and urged a 2nd season...

Bonus: Cosplay

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The three chaps are (left to right)
きただにひろし(42)　影山ヒロノブ(50)　遠藤正明(43)
Hiroshi Kitadani, Hironobu Kageyama, Masaaki Endo

They all sing anime or tokusatsu songs and the three guys formed "Manga Trio" several years ago to perform in live event. Wonder if it is from one of their live events when the photo was taken....

Yes, Ume Aoki is riding on a high tide of popularity and it is never a better time to announce a 4th season of Hidamari Sketch !! Here is the announcement poster. This will officially make the longest series and the most number of seasons among Shaft's works beating "Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei".

[Randomanon]

Thanks, symbv. The wiki doesn't generally have doujin info posted (and a good thing too as there's hundreds of them already) but I think this is a suitable exception. I'm thinking three column table. I'll do that and catch up on the twitters msgs tomorrow.
Front and back cover of the Tiro Finale book:




A few pics of what it looked like in the morning in Madoka storage area:

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A few pics of the line/crowds in the early morning, from a Madoka fan.

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Several pics of NitroPlus Novel extras, when you put together the calendar. It has quite a few illustrations that come with it plus the Kyubey metal bookmark, although as you can see, this fan bought several sets of books to collect all the different illustrations.

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In those images you also see that book Cage Named Maturity and a poster advertising it...here is a better image of that advertisement:

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Other Comiket stuff here like doujin collections and so on:

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Also that Madoka doujin game I mentioned, "Grief Syndrome" has received high compliments from both Japanese and western fans. It is possible to play it without knowing Japanese. http://archive.easymodo.net/a/thread/53314193