The magical girl genre has been a staple in the anime and manga world for a long time having first gotten its start in the 60s with the premiere of Sally the Witch. Afterwards came some of the more popular ones like Sailor Moon and Cardcaptor Sakura which made the magical girl trope into a mainstream attraction.

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However, while magical girl anime was typically cute, the 2010s saw the rise of the deconstruction of these shows and they became much darker. There are many of such shows today, and they explore themes for mature audiences.

10 Princess Tutu

MAL Rating: 8:15

• Episodes: 38
• Air Date: 2002
• Genres: Drama, Fantasy, Mystery, Romance

Princess Tutu tells the story of a duck who the mysterious Drosselmeyer transformed into a beautiful ballet dancer who is capable of relieving the hearts of people from their turmoil.

Princess Tutu might not be the edgy ride that some of the other magical girl shows have turned out to be, but it is a story that doesn’t shy away from darker themes, and some things that could be disturbing. It may not have aged well, but is still an amazing watch for anyone into the magical girl genre.

9 Daybreak Illusion

MAL Rating: 6.49

• Episodes: 13
• Air Date: 2013
• Genres: Action, Drama, Fantasy

Coming hot on the heels of Madoka Magica, Daybreak Illusion is an anime original which had a manga and light novel running alongside it. It tried to cash in on the shock fans experienced from Madoka Magica and therefore, featured some of the same themes.

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The moral dilemma of choosing to wipe out humans who were possessed and her duty as a magical girl to defeat Daemonia who were troubled people is what the protagonist of the show, Akari Taiyou had to face.

8 Wonder Egg Priority

MAL Rating: 7.59

• Episodes: 12
• Air Date: 2021
• Genres: Drama, Fantasy, Suspense

Wonder Egg Priority was infamous for taking a very great premise and messing it up as the series went on. It was a beautiful anime with very relatable characters and perhaps doesn’t follow the conventional understanding of what a magical girl show is expected to be.

It does delve into a lot of dark stuff especially around the topic of suicide as the main character deals with the death of a friend who she lost to suicide. The storyline gets pretty convoluted and abstract, but it’ll still go down as one of the most beautifully animated shows out there.

7 Granbelm

MAL Rating: 6.67

• Episodes: 13
• Air Date: 2019
• Genres: Action, Fantasy, Sci-Fi

For the fan of mecha shows, Granbelm melds this with the magical girl trope and takes place in a world where magic has been sealed away and little girls pilot mecha known as Armanox.

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The show revolves around a monthly tournament called Granbelm which decides the one true mage. The show deals with some dark themes, but doesn’t go overboard with it. It treats its characters really well and develops them in a way that makes them relatable. It can be hard to initially get into it, but definitely gets better.

6 Magical Girl Spec Ops Asuka

MAL Rating: 6.33

• Episodes: 12
• Air Date: 2019
• Genres: Action, Drama, Fantasy

An anime about a girl who was part of a special magical girl group who fought in a terrible war to save humanity and won, Magical Girl Spec-Ops Asuka follows the protagonist, Asuka Ootorii who just wants to live a normal life.

But with shows like this, it never goes that way. The themes of war and PTSD are prevalent in this show and it gets really dark with scene of torture and mutilation. It gets some negativity due to how it seems scared to fully embrace its darkness, but for the average viewer, this is plenty dark.

5 Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha

MAL Rating: 7.42

• Episodes: 13
• Air Date: 2004
• Genres: Action, Comedy, Drama, Fantasy

An anime that came before Madoka Magica, Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha was one of the shows that popularized the deconstruction of the classic magical girl story. It tells the tale of Nanoha Takamachi who with the help of a magical ferret, gains the power of a magical girl tasked with collecting the dangerous 21 Jewel Seeds.

The story seems straightforward, but descends into darkness with the introduction of the main antagonist, Fate. Themes of abuse, and death makes for a very heavy watch

4 Magical Girl Raising Project

MAL Rating: 6.97

• Episodes: 12
• Air Date: 2016
• Genres: Action, Fantasy, Suspense

There’s something about pitting young, innocent girls against each other in a battle to the death that can come across as repugnant, but Magical Girl Raising Project doesn’t care about that.

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Centered around Koyuki Himekawa, who’s dream of being a magical girl is corrupted when she realizes that the system which granted them their powers has now determined there are too many of them in the area and must be weeded out through termination. There’s violence and gore aplenty in Magical Girl Raising Project and it pulls no punches whatsoever.

3 Yuki Yuna is a Hero

MAL Rating: 7.39

• Episodes: 12
• Air Date: 2014
• Genres: Drama, Fantasy

A show about sacrifice and the true cost of being a hero, Yuki Yuna is a Hero is another show deeply influenced by Madoka Magica. The Hero Club receive power to defeat evil beings.

The flip side of all this is that to carry out their duties, the magical girls find themselves having to sacrifice parts of themselves, body parts, memories, and so on. The show doesn’t get graphic, nor does it glory in the suffering of its characters, and for that reason, it does feel a lot more heartbreaking.

2 Magical Girl Site

MAL Rating: 6.52

• Episodes: 12
• Air Date: 2018
• Genres: Action, Drama, Horror, Supernatural, Suspense

Magical Girl Site tells the story of Aya Asagiri, a bullied girl who finds a website that gives her the power to become a magic girl and the ability to take revenge on her bullies.

Magical Girl Site takes all the edge that exists in the world and jams it into 12 episodes of chaos. Depending on the watcher’s disposition, it could be either extremely cringe or pretty hard to stomach as they do some sick stuff here.

1 Puella Magi Madoka Magica

MAL Rating: 8.37

• Episodes: 12
• Air Date: 2011
• Genres: Drama, Fantasy, Suspense

While not the first anime to subvert the magical girl genre, it is the most famous to do it, Puella Magi Madoka Magica is about friendship, sacrifice, and the fact that things aren’t always what they seem.

Madoka Kaname becomes a magical girl, but it costs her— a lot. The show would be a huge influence on the magic girl genre with its effects still felt in the industry today. A great watch for anyone who loves magical girls.

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