Magical Girl Raising Project

Episode 9

You know it's been a rough week for the magical girls when even Fav seems surprised by the number of casualties! Calamity Mary is the first to bite the bullet in this episode, courtesy of a well-placed throwing star from Ripple. There's not much time to celebrate the victory though, as Swim Swim makes a sudden appearance and stabs Top Speed in the back. Snow White and Hardgore Alice do their best to help civilians get away from the battle, but they're quickly sidetracked by a faceoff against Swim Swim's minions. Sister Nana's decision to opt out of the game on her own brings the surviving players down below Fav's magic number, but the game goes on with the announcement that only four girls will make the next cut. (Apparently, using those magical weapons cost the system even more magic that must now be accounted for. Tricky Fav.)

The fight against Calamity Mary makes for a decent action scene. Ripple gets the chance to give a nice little heroic speech, and the biker gang version of Top Speed's broom is an inspired piece of over-the-top visual design. There's an impressive amount of tension in the air during the fight itself, with the show's willingness to kill characters off creating a sense of urgency as Ripple and Calamity Mary trade blows. The outcome is the weak point here, as all the earlier foreshadowing robs Top Speed's secret of its potential dramatic impact. It's a simple case of Magical Girl Raising Project overplaying its hand in previous episodes; hinting at a plot twist without giving it away is hard to do, and this is what can happen when a series errs on the side of giving the audience too much information.

Sister Nana's death brings a related issue into focus. As the show continues to pile one tragedy on top of another, it starts to have a numbing effect on the viewer. Bringing a character arc to a sudden or heartbreaking end can be very effective from a dramatic standpoint, and we've seen this series use character deaths to good effect in the past. As the audience gets used to it though, those sad endings start to lose some of their punch. Once a viewer has learned to expect the worst possible outcome, it's much harder to leave a lasting impression. At some point, the show needs to find a way to make the audience let its guard down a little. As odd as it sounds, Magical Girl Raising Project might have to sneak some happy moments into the mix if it wants to keep successfully breaking our hearts.

The upside here is that this episode has created a natural reset point for the plot. With all of the characters either licking their wounds or planning their next move, there are plenty of different directions for the story to follow going forward. We've also got a good mix of characters left in play. On the antagonists' side, we've got Swim Swim and company starting to get in over their heads against stronger opponents, while Cranberry makes for a good “final boss.” Snow White and Hardgore Alice have found some decent chemistry, able to fight the good fight even if Alice's power continues to be more than a little creepy. Ripple may be the most interesting of the lot, as her obvious desire to avenge Top Speed makes her something of a wild card. How she goes about exacting that revenge could be a deciding factor in the way the rest of the story plays out.

This particular portion of Magical Girl Raising Project has suffered from a mix of tragedy fatigue and heavy-handed foreshadowing, but the series has mostly managed to stay on the rails. The next episode represents a golden opportunity to recapture that all-important feeling of unpredictability, and some smart plot developments could set up a strong final third for the season. In order to pull that off, the series may have to venture out of its comfort zone by lightening up for a minute or two.

Rating: B-

Magical Girl Raising Project is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.

Paul Jensen is a freelance writer and editor. You can follow more of his anime-related ramblings on Twitter.