Known as the magical girl anime that took the genre and completely flipped it on its head, Puella Magi Madoka Magica is truly a wild ride from start to finish. Though it takes a bit to get started, the innocent buildup only serves to subvert the expectations it sets up early on even more.
While the whole series is applauded as a near-masterpiece by fans, it certainly doesn't mean that all episodes are created equal. Today, we'll be taking a look at all twelve episodes of the show, according to how they rank- at least, according to IMDb, that is.
12 As If I Met Her In A Dream... (7.4)
The first episode of the series is used to set up what will be completely flipped on its head in the future, so it makes sense that this would rank the lowest of all the episodes. It seems exactly like a cliché magical girl anime, which is exactly what the show wants you to believe.
We learn the basics about most of the main characters here, too. Madoka is unsure of herself yet highly empathetic, Sayaka is your typical headstrong best friend, Homura is the mysterious transfer student and Mami seems like a superhero.
11 That Would Be Truly Wonderful (7.6)
The second episode ranks just slightly higher than the first on the list, and again, it makes sense that it isn't too high as it's just another set-up episode compared to all that's to come after. Mami takes Madoka and Sayaka along on a few magical girl missions, to give them an idea of what it's really like to fight witches.
There really isn't much to say about this episode, other than it paints Mami in even more of a perfect superhero light. It's another good example of the show setting up expectations just so it can subvert them later.
10 There's No Way I'll Ever Regret It (7.9)
Next we have the fifth episode. Madoka expresses concern at Sayaka becoming a magical girl, especially after witnessing the fate of Mami and having received multiple cryptic warnings from Homura. After Sayaka insists that everything's fine, Madoka instead decides to ask Homura to keep an eye on her.
She sticks close to her friend's side after this, and the two try to hunt down a familiar but are stopped by an unfamiliar girl calling herself Kyoko. The new entrant quickly picks a fight with Sayaka. It's made clear that she simply stepped in to stop Madoka from becoming a magical girl.
9 Miracles And Magic Are Real (8.2)
The fourth episode in the series ranks next on the list. After witnessing the death of her mentor, Madoka admits that she's too afraid to become a magical girl. Later, Sayaka and Kyosuke are seen conversing in the hospital. Kyosuke admits that the doctors told him to give up hope for a cure to his condition. She decides to make a contract to heal Kyosuke's injuries just after this.
Madoka is desperately trying to save her friend Hitomi, who's under the influence of a witch and trying to attempt mass suicide with a large group of others in an abandoned warehouse. Sayaka shows up just in the nick of time to save everyone.
8 This Just Can't Be Right (8.2)
Next up, we have episode six. After her fight with Kyoko and being knocked out by Homura, it's made fairly clear to Sayaka that she doesn't possess anywhere near the strength her mentor had. Because of this, Madoka pleads for her to make up with Kyoko so they can work together and avoid another fight.
In a moment of panic, Madoka takes Sayaka's soul gem and throws it off the bridge before we can transform. Here we learn a very dark truth about magical girls: their souls no longer inhabit their bodies, but rather, their soul gems.
7 I'm Not Afraid Of Anything Anymore (8.5)
Sayaka enters a labyrinth alone to hold a witch there, as Madoka retrieves Mami to come help. Homura tries to stop them, to no avail. Mami binds her using her magic so she can't interfere.
This turns out to be a fatal mistake, as Mami ends up distracted after showing her weak side to Madoka and ends up brutally losing her life. As Sayaka didn't know that Homura couldn't move until after that, she ends up resenting Homura because of this, which causes big problems later on.
6 Can You Face Your True Feelings? (8.5)
Episode seven comes next. We learn why she acts the way she does, and she even uses this story to try to sympathize with Sayaka, who is beginning to lose mental stability. She rejects this though, yet again, and later goes into a maniacal state, completely disregarding her own safety while fighting a witch.
Sayaka is also confronted by Hitomi this episode, who exclaims that she is in love with Kyosuke, for whom Sayaka made her wish. She gives Sayaka time to act on her own feelings, but after learning of her new non-human state, she felt as if she couldn't be with him.
5 I'd Never Allow That To Happen (8.7)
Next up is episode nine. Kyoko retrieves Sayaka's body after her soul gem shatters and Homura helps her escape from the witch created from it. Kyubey explains the truth of his race, and of magical girls, to Madoka in an effort to help her understand why he works the way he does.
Kyoko decides to bring Madoka with her back to the witch to try to talk some sense into 'Sayaka's human side', which is long gone at this point. The episode ends with Kyoko sacrificing herself to stop Sayaka's witch from hurting anyone else, and so 'neither of them would be alone anymore'.
4 I Was Stupid, So Stupid (8.9)
Episode eight is up next. Sayaka rejects several grief seeds this episode that would have prevented the tragic fate waiting for her near its end. She's already so deeply in her own despair that it doesn't matter- she no longer wants to save herself or accept help. Homura tries to kill Sayaka, but Kyoko steps in and helps her escape before this can happen.
The two meet up again at the end of the episode, but it's already too late for Sayaka. Kyoko is forced to watch her despair and turn into a witch- and we finally find out the true fate of all magical girls.
3 The Only Thing I Have Left To Guide Me (9.0)
Everyone in Mitakihara City is hiding out, thinking that the damage the witch is causing is simply a bad storm. Kyubey reveals to Homura that the reason Madoka has so much potential is that Homura keeps going back in time to try to save her- and that her only option is to admit that all her efforts had been fruitless.
Right as she's about to do so and give up hope, Madoka steps in to comfort her, filled with resolve and ready to make her contract.
2 My Very Best Friend (9.0)
The second-highest episode is actually the finale. Madoka is able to use her wish to erase witches from existence before they're born, but in order to do so, she must sacrifice her physical form and essentially become a god.
Homura is sent to a world where Mami and Kyoko are fighting 'wraiths'. Now, magical girls are simply purified and disappear at the end, instead of becoming witches. It's an incredibly impactful, bittersweet ending.
1 I Won't Rely On Anyone Anymore (9.5)
This episode is completely devoted to giving us Homura's backstory, and we learn that she was as shy and meek as current-day Madoka when she first met her. Homura witnesses Madoka fight Walpurgisnacht on her own, and she dies during this fight. Homura wishes to 'redo her meeting with Madoka, and protect her this time'.
The rest of the episode takes us through several of these loops, each of which is more tragic than the last. It ends with Homura's transformation into the cold girl she is now.