kyubey (mahou shoujo madoka magica) drawn by danrebo

Artist's commentary

  • Original
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    キュゥべえがなにか言いたそうにこちらを見ている…

    「近頃はね・・、みんなボクを怖がって契約してくれないんだ・・。
    　それどころか、淫獣だとか死神だとか・・。話しかけただけなのに逃げていくんだ・・。
    　みんなひどいよ・・・
    　ボクたちは宇宙の平和の為を思ってがんばってるのに。。誰かがやらなきゃいけないのに・・・。
    　だから、ね。キミだけが頼りなんだ・・。協力してくれるかい・・？」

  • Comments
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    Saladofstones
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    Heparine said:
    In the manga, he actually has a lot of facial expressions. Including a set of creepy rapefaces when his true intentions are being revealed.

    I like disinterested QB better. Its not that he's evil, its that he just don't care one way or the other. And that is refreshing for an antagonist. QB is the classic antagonist. He isn't good or evil, hes an obstacle in the way of the protagonist, but defeating the antagonist in these stories doesn't bring about good, sometimes understanding the antagonist will bring out the greatest in the protagonist. I hope Madoka goes this route with Madoka and QBs relationship

    Although, if you look at it, Homura is basically acting in the same manner of QB: She doesn't care about the consequences of her actions beyond producing the intended goal, saving Madoka. She made it clear that she would kill Sayaka and her relationship with everyone not Madoka is distant

    Although if you examine the relationship to the story Faust, I haven't read it but I know a little about it, the most correct decision isn't the one that brings about the most happiness (ala the Mami and Homura route) but the one that does the most good (the QB and Madoka, to a degree, route). I get the vibe that happiness and morality are largely opposed in the context of the story. The happy solution is to let Madoka live a normal life, the moral solution is to let her, and a large portion of mankind, die so that the universe can be saved. I'd say the latter is the morally required choice. Humans are finite and we will die, if our death secures an infinite existence for others, even if those others are selfish, then we are still required to die.

    0 Reply
    Heparine
    [hidden]

    Anelaid said:
    words

    I'm not sure what to think anymore. I'd like to believe that what we know about QB isn't all there's to it. On the other hand, my mind is already full of fuck and speculah and we've had our series of big expositions. Not sure if doing it over is the right thing I need.

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    Saladofstones
    [hidden]

    Heparine said:
    I'm not sure what to think anymore. I'd like to believe that what we know about QB isn't all there's to it. On the other hand, my mind is already full of fuck and speculah and we've had our series of big expositions. Not sure if doing it over is the right thing I need.

    This type of long analysis and big exposition is the type of thing I've learned to enjoy when I read anything after doing it so long in academic settings. To me, the merit of a story is that people can have reasoned arguments over the motivations of the characters and the meaning of the story. I like Madoka because it isn't contrived like other more enigmatic stories, like LOST, since LOST wasn't that deep, it did a lot of tricks to purposely extend itself. I love watching 24, but it is incredibly contrived.

    I enjoy such speculations and I hope they continue.

    0 Reply
    Heparine
    [hidden]

    So do I, but they need to be fueled with fresh canon once in a while. Since it looks the next episode won't air before 3/31, the good speculah is going to die off - it already did - and we'll be stuck with fart fetishists and yuri fanboys/haters - we already are

    0 Reply
    darue
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    Anelaid said:
    I thought I had some good speculation going. :V

    I would like the fandom to get beyond QB hate though, hes not nearly as bad as he is made out to be.

    But I agree with you.

    Which is the best thing about him, really.

    I find that the most absolutely shallow antagonists and the deepest ones are the most effective. With a very shallow antagonist, such as Kyuubee, the characters of the protagonists are made more compelling by the struggle against a very non-human force. I say "shallow" in the sense that Kyuubee is very mechanic is his actions, in that they are driven by the sole motivation of accomplishing his goal with (literally) no emotions attached to his actions. This is opposed to a "deep" character that is allowed to develop and change greatly in response to the events in the story. Kyuubee won't change - he's simply there to allow the main protagonists to react to him and develop themselves. In this regard, as Anelaid pointed out, it is not the classic struggle of good versus evil, but simply a recounting of events that invokes a reaction in the audience.

    In regards to Kyuubee hate, I feel like that's exactly the reaction we're supposed to have - a futile feeling that's also played with in Homura's character. As I said before, he is simply an opposing force with absolutely no emotion. He can be replaced with an (less compelling) abstract idea that the girls are fighting against with little change to the actual plot. For instance, it could've been played that it is not any sentient being fighting against the entropy, but the brutal process of the creation and destruction of Puella Magi were simply nature's way of counterbalancing Heat Death - a girl may be shown the world of Madoka simply by wanting a miracle badly enough. However, personifying this force changes the reaction. It gives the audience something to hate - something to blame for the suffering that occurs - something to fight against.

    tl;dr
    Kyuubee's a pretty cool and interesting character.

    0 Reply
    rantuyetmai
    [hidden]

    To me Kyubey is a magnificient character, but that doesn't stop him from being a bastard whom I want to hurt. The suffering the girls had to face makes it clear who is the enemy and whose side I'd take.

    Nobody is responsible to die for the universe. You might be a hero for doing it, but each life is as precious as the whole world - especially to those who love you. Kyubey is not wrong with his motive, however Madoka is all the more not wrong in wanting to live happily. I know I'd screw the world if it screws my friends and my life :)

    0 Reply
    BakaHoushi
    [hidden]

    I agree with the above poster in that QB is, in fact, a cool and interesting character. I also agree that we, however, are meant to hate him.

    The true judge of any character is the emotional response, positive or negative, that is evoked by the audience. And considering my continuing desire to go Unlimited Blade Works on QB's ass, I'd say he's particularly well-written. But all the characters make the audience feel exactly what they're supposed to feel.

    To offer a counter-example, think of any slasher-flick ever. Odds are, by the end, you often root for the killer because the people opposing him are usually written so badly, so stupidly that even though you're supposed to like them, they act too dumb to live. In Madoka, on the other hand, even when characters make mistakes, you still cheer them on (somewhat in vain, mostly) because they're that well written.

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