As Sunday arrived, so did the new episode of Madoka Magica.
After Episode 6's devastating twist, the tone of the series had shifted into something far darker than anyone expected. Fans thought Episode 4 had been the peak of its darkness, then Episode 5 proved them wrong, and Episode 6 pushed it even further. Now no one knew how much farther the story could go.
Episode 6 had also changed everything for the series' momentum. Buzz returned in full force. Many who had dropped the show earlier picked it back up after hearing the noise around it. Ratings surged. View counts skyrocketed.
Meanwhile, Into the Abyss fought for dominance on the charts. At one point, it even pulled ahead by about eight thousand views—though with rankings updating hourly, that margin was never safe. For the first time all week, Madoka Magica's top spot looked genuinely threatened. The battlefield of seasonal rankings had turned brutal. The gap between the two narrowed to less than ten thousand views, with both titles pushing themselves to the very edge of popularity and overshadowing every other series that season.
People began to worry about Mizushiro himself. Everyone understood the idea of adding new elements to a story or bending a genre's rules, but Madoka Magica wasn't just bending conventions, it was tearing them down. What had begun as a magical girl show filled with hope and innocence was now unrecognizable, transformed into something haunting and tragic. The very essence of the genre was being rewritten before their eyes. And yet, every shocking turn brought in new viewers, spreading the show's reputation far beyond its original reach.
By the time Episode 7 approached, anticipation reached a fever pitch.
At 8:00 p.m., fans across every major platform tuned in. The episode wasted no time.
Sayaka appeared first, her face pale with exhaustion. She walked home in silence, dropped her Soul Gem onto the table, and didn't even glance at it. That small glowing stone, her very existence, was treated with chilling carelessness. It was a clear sign of how far her mind had begun to slip.
Not long after, Sayaka confronted Kyubey. She demanded answers about what it truly meant to become a magical girl. Kyubey, unbothered as always, explained with cold precision.
The Soul Gem houses a magical girl's soul to protect her.
The body, now just an empty shell, is powered and healed through magic.
Pain can be minimized or eliminated entirely.
Physical damage is irrelevant, as long as the Soul Gem is intact.
But none of that mattered to Sayaka. Her focus was on a single question:
"Am I... still human?"
And even more painfully:
"With this kind of body... how can I ever face Kamijo again?"
Viewers immediately felt Sayaka's emotion. She became a magical girl out of love, wishing for Kamijo's hand to heal, hoping he might notice her, appreciate her... maybe even love her back.
Now? She wasn't even sure if she had the right to feel love at all.
The tension lifted slightly when an unexpected figure appeared: Kyoko Sakura, the red-haired magical girl who'd once fought Sayaka. Carrying a bag of apples and acting like nothing was wrong, Kyoko was... oddly comforting.
Many viewers, who initially disliked Kyoko for her selfishness, began to see her in a new light. She wasn't cruel, just another girl who had been tricked by Kyubey.
As the two walked through the dim city streets, Kyoko offered Sayaka advice. Her tone was still blunt, but her words were earnest. She even tossed Sayaka an apple in a rare show of kindness, but Sayaka coldly threw it away.
Angered, Kyoko grabbed Sayaka by the collar but ultimately said nothing more. She quietly picked up the apple and began eating.
Then Kyoko shared her story.
She had wished for her father, a struggling priest, to attract followers. It worked. But when he discovered that her magical wish had warped reality, his pride shattered. He murdered his entire family and took his own life. Only Kyoko survived.
"Because I made that wish selfishly... everyone ended up miserable," she confessed.
"That's when I decided I'd never use magic for anyone else again. From now on, I live only for myself."
Her voice softened, her words striking deeper than any spell:
"Miracles come at a price. If you wish for hope... the same amount of despair will follow."
Kyoko looked Sayaka in the eye.
"So start over. Live for yourself."
Viewers immediately understood the pain behind Kyoko's words, how someone who once cared so much ended up shutting others out.
Kyoko no longer seemed arrogant; she felt real, a tough girl carrying deep wounds, trying to warn Sayaka before she made the same mistakes.
Sayaka looked up, uncertain.
"Why do you even care?"
"Because you and I... we both screwed up in the same way," Kyoko replied with a smirk, still holding the half-eaten apple.
The music swelled. Fans online were already shipping the two, red and blue, fire and ice, hardened heart and fading hope.
But Sayaka wasn't ready to accept her help.
"I misunderstood you before. I'm sorry for that," Sayaka said. "But... I don't regret making that wish for someone else. To make sure that feeling isn't a lie, I'll never regret it."
"Not ever."
Her voice was calm but unwavering.
"Where did that apple come from? Did you even pay for it? Then I can't eat it."
She turned and walked away.
Kyoko, frustrated, called after her:
"You idiot! Magical girls don't get to have stuff like love anymore!"
Sayaka just looked back, eyes clear.
"Then fight me, like last time. If I get in your way... just take me down."
"I won't lose. I won't hate. And I won't regret."
It was a powerful moment. But the viewers could feel it, this strength came at a heavy cost.
Sayaka's philosophy was noble... but exhausting.
And yet, red-haired Kyoko and blue-haired Sayaka, opposites in every way, both looked equally broken and brave. Just ten minutes of screen time, and fan perception of these two characters shifted completely.
Online, fans praised Mizushiro's screenwriting for reaching new heights.
But then, just as the tension seemed to settle, the story twisted the knife.
Hitomi, the green-haired mutual friend of Sayaka and Madoka, reappeared and casually dropped a bombshell:
"I like Kamijo-kun too. But since you two are childhood friends, I'll give you a day to confess. If nothing happens, well, don't blame me."
That single line shattered Sayaka's fragile defenses.
It wasn't the Soul Gem, or the constant danger, or even the despair of being a magical girl. It was this, the threat of losing Kamijo, that truly broke her.
How could she confess? She wasn't even human anymore.
Sayaka later opened up to Madoka:
"I almost regretted it today... if I hadn't saved Mami back then..."
"Kamijo's going to be taken away. But what can I do? I'm already dead... I'm a zombie."
"With this body, I can't say 'hold me'... I can't say 'kiss me.'"
And yet, even at rock bottom, Sayaka threw herself into battle again.
As the haunting track "Fate" began to play, the animation shifted into stylized silhouettes. Sayaka stood alone inside a Witch's barrier, her form barely outlined.
She charged recklessly into battle, letting herself be pierced again and again by the Witch's attacks, her magic regenerating her body each time. She wasn't fighting for justice now. She was fighting to feel something. Anything.
This wasn't a hero's fight. This was a girl desperately lashing out, trying to drown heartbreak in battle.
"Pain? It's nothing," Sayaka whispered. "I can turn it off... just like that."
And then, the episode ended.
The dark ending theme rolled in, but most viewers just sat in stunned silence.
Sayaka had become a tragic mirror: a magical girl who endured death, betrayal, and despair, but couldn't bear to lose the person she loved.
In the first half of the episode, she was a noble figure: still fighting witches despite her pain.
But in the second half, she became something far more heartbreaking, a strong girl with a shattered heart. Mami's death, the fight with Kyoko, the truth of magical girls… none of that broke her.
But Kamijo being with someone else?
That did.
"How can Mizushiro do this to her?"
"This is too cruel..."
"Sayaka's arc is peak tragedy."
(TL:- if you want even more content, check out p-atreon.com/Alioth23 for 60+ advanced chapters)