The whole concept of Homura's labrynth is depressing, she's trapped in her own funeral procession, and all the people attending hate her.

Being Homura is suffering.

People are misunderstanding homura's calmness in this scene. Her worst nightmare isn't any active pain or event, it's forgetting about madoka. Why would you cry about something you don't remember? You can't remember it. But to homura this is the worst thing to happen to her, she's the only one that can remember madoka and her starting to forget the face of the person she loved was likely what turned her into a witch in the first place.

This is a surprisingly accurate description of depression.

Well, this is what happens when you have to watch all your friends die for twelve years in a constant loop every month and a half without not being able to do anything. Which is why I feel deeply sorry for Homura

If you think about it, Homura never really comes back from this transformation. She still looks like a magical girl, sure, but i don't think she ever stopped being a Witch after this, since the underlying feelings that caused this transformation never went away, and her Soul Gem only gets darker after this. In fact, she still has a labyrinth after this as well, since it's explicitly shown that her labyrinth has grown so big that it encompasses the universe itself, and that's how she's able to rewrite the laws of the universe. She's basically the ultimate witch to contrast Madoka becoming the ultimate magical girl.

No screaming. No crying. No laughing maniacally. No lashing out mindlessly. There's nothing but calm acceptance that this is how it has to be. How very appropriate, since the choice to become a witch to keep Madoka safe wasn't even a choice at all; it just came naturally. But when the door closed on Madoka (oh the symbolism relating to The Window the second time through the movie), that was when I finally cried.

You know... Out of all the witches in Puella Magi Madoka Magica, Homura/Homulilly is the only one that ACTUALLY looks like a witch...

I quite enjoy this witch transformation, even though it is depressing, it's the only witch transformation that lets us see what a witch truely is. And most of all, nothing as heart wrenching as watching the true main protagonist fall to despair after trying ever so hard.

Whoever decided on the idea of the nutcracker witch though is a genius, Homulilly's design is fucking great.

The ties in her mouth symbolized how difficult it was for her to have the knowledge of innumerable timelines and still have to keep all that suffering to herself. She saying anything is itself a trigger for things to spiral out of control.

Her witch's hat is a vinil record. It represented her running in circles trying to protect Madoka. When she gave up on ever seeing her again and dying, it fell off.

If you stop for a moment, the calm music and tone of Homura's voice has a lot of meaning to it. Sayaka and Walpurgis Night are the only other witches to really do much besides laugh, and they both have nightmarish screams of agony, suddenly delving into madness and losing all hope. Homura, on the other hand, quietly accepts her becoming a witch, and doesn't even cry about it. This shows that she is already in that much pain, and used to it. She's seen Madoka die and experienced her despair so often that as a witch she is only experiencing what her life was like. This also shows a strength in her character, as most magical girls give into their despair as soon as it comes, becoming witches. Homura, on the other hand, took this despair and turned it into a determination, explaining why she did not become a witch any given point in which she experienced her own living hell. Just something that makes this sadder than it already is.

Somehow I really love the chair scene. It's such a bright contrast to the rest at that moment.

The gecko that splattered in the end is probably based on a Yokai type which are human souls manifesting as geckos. It makes things much more tragic when you realize it's a metaphor to Homura's soul being destroyed by her despair. :'(

Anybody who can watch this yet still feel no empathy for Homura officially has the emotional capacity of an incubator.

This is actually my favorite scene in the film despite how saddening it is. In the end Homura is basically going insane with sadness and I have to wonder how long she had been resetting timelines, possibly for years even. The chair scene is the most powerful to me, showing her immense frustration at how in the end she's failing to protect Madoka. She was so hell bent on defending her protector that she lost sight of what Madoka's sacrifice really meant. I kind of have to wonder what would have happened if things had ended differently.

<a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="108">1:48</a> まどか こんな所まで迎えに来てくれてありがとう ↑しんどい

I just noticed something really cool about Homulilly’s design. Before her head splits apart, we see that her witch hat resembles a record player <a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="50">0:50</a>. But then the record breaks. Now going back to Homura’s backstory, we see that she repeated the same thing over and over and over again. And what do you call something that constantly repeats? A broken record.

One of my favorite character archetypes. Are ones who appear totally emotionless. But, underneath the surface, are in more pain than you can possibly imagnie.

That whole part of in the chairs summarizes on Homura's feelings throughout the series. All she wanted was for Madoka to be happy, but the latter's tendency to sacrifice herself kept that from happening. Homura smashing her smaller self reflects on her self-loathing towards having failed to make Madoka happy.

So is that how all witches are. They know what they're doing the whole time but all thier emtions cloud their judgment or what

This 2 minutes is pure torture

まどか落ちた後の変身シーンの演出は鳥肌だったなあ

Homura hates herself, just like Madoka does and it manifests in different ways in both of them. Madoka thinks she is a coward, a burden to the people she loves, a person who has no worth. That's why she clings to the idea of being a magical girl. She thinks the only way she can be worth anything is saving people. In the end she sacrifices herself. Everyone forgets her, she is alone, she will never be loved, she will take all the burden and be worthy. She literally commits suicide. It's the most selfless thing a person could do. Homura, on the other hand, saw herself as a person with no worth. (She still does) She is weak, the smallest physical activity is hard, she missed so much school, she is alone in this world. Madoka gives her that acceptance she desperately needed and craved. When she makes her wish she doesen't wish the walpurgis night to dissapear or Madoka to come back. She wishes to be the protector. She tries to save Madoka so many times that she loses sight of her goal. She loses herself. Just like in real life, doing something again and again and again makes you forget what made you do that thing in the first place. When Madoka sacrifices herself Homura knows how miserable Madoka will be. So she rebels. She is selfish. In the chair scene, she squishes herself out of frustration. Her old self is towering over her, judging her for not being able to save Madoka. AND BOTH OF THEM ARE IN THE WRONG. They needed to love themselves first. It's how i felt going through puberty. I wished there was a magical way to make me love myself, make me succsessful and worthy. I desperately wanted everyone to see me and approve of me. Life doesen't work like that. I have to work hard and i have to accept the fact that i will have bad days and good days. I have to love myself first before helping others. That's what i got out of this series. Maybe the people who made this movie had a completely different message in mind. Maybe i'm overanalyzing it. Or they totally intended this to be the message. I don't know. Humans are weird.

Whats even sadder is how she just... accepted it. No dramatic "i will fight!". She basically does something worst than suicide. Damn Homura, hopefully in the 4th movie you get some hugs girl because damn.

「あぁ、これが私の絶望。」 "Ah, kore ga watashi no zetsubou" gets me every time :(

I cried so much at this part. Music.... Her suffering, art.... It's all just so beautiful. This anime is such a masterpeace, I can't get enough of it.

I love that they stick to the color themes for the characters. Pink feels like such a pure and unbothered color, while purple feels like the depressed and edgy cousin of pink.

まどマギの世界感やっぱりいいね

I honestly like that the witches aren’t portrayed like evil monsters like normal Magical Girl animes and more like concepts, places, and strong emotions. Homura is no different, even with a picture of Madoka locked away in part of her labyrinth. Overall, really creative and a little existential or Lovecraftian

このシーンの世界観大好き

This anime is seriously the best anime I've ever EVER seen, and that is saying something because I've seen a lot. I really do not believe there will ever be anything in my life quite like this. It is so deep. The story, the art, the music, the effects-- everything. This scene, I feel, most accurately represents the depths of a person's mind. It's just so hard to explain. Usually it's very hard to accurately represent what is happening deep down in the depths and subconsciousness of someone's mind but this did it. It made me feel despair, hopelessness-- everything that Homura felt. It took me to a world I've never been-- it took me into her mind. I don't think I've ever experienced something like that before. This anime is definitely worth watching over and over.

こんな恐ろしく怖くそして美しい世界感のアニメがあったのか…

Homura's wish is: 'I want to protect Madoka instead of Madoka protecting me'. ...I don't know if people actually realize or think about the wording of wishes in this series but it is extremely important and reveals the existential horror that Homura created for herself. Homura is bound by her own wish-- we see this one time when homura is going back in time (I think it's a scene from an intro/outro?): in front of a giant gear with a roman numeral clock etched into it, Homura's tied up with threads, stretched in the position of christ, but she is slumped over in defeat. She is unable to do anything else until her wish is 'fulfilled' in her eyes. She's unable to become a witch, she's unable to die, and it's starting to look like it has mentally affected her-- it's just harder to see because of all the other trauma associated with going back in time through the same month for twelve years to watch all your friends die over and over, oh and you're all like 14. Madoka shooting Mami with her bow after she killed Kyoko and tied up Homura was what fate dictated because if Homura had died then she can't protect Madoka, wish being unfulfilled. Homura is forced into this giant hamster wheel that she herself created, and she can't get off. In short, Rebellion made total sense to me, I have no clue why everyone was confused by what Homura did. It was literally the only logical course of action to her, in her eyes. She's a bit crazy, y'know?

Rebellion is a masterpiece. I have no other words for it, I have no synonyms, I have no exaggerated paragraphs to write, it's a masterpiece through and through. Art, music, pacing, story, acting, symbolism, emotional power - it's a masterpiece. What else am I supposed to say ? It might just be a peak for this whole century and we wouldn't yet know.

最高のシーンのひとつ。斎藤千和さん、声優辞めないでくれて良かった！

THIS SCENE OH MY GOD- Why am I torturing myself.

My God this movie is loaded with despair. This scene. ..you can feel the pain in the music, the visuals, the words, the voice, and the awesome effect on the voice. It's all so perfect.

If anyone watched the concept trailer and is watching this. In the end of the scene at <a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="118">1:58</a> there is a lizard. In the trailer it states how there was a lizard girl who split God into half. This is especially symbolic in the bible. Lizards are symbolic of a familiar spirit. A lizard may represent to regenerate what is lost. To move on to face fears and through realities. And at <a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="130">2:10</a> the lizard literally couldnt mantain it's form anymore. (Because this is another form of despair) BUT in the concept trailer, it shows how Homura is still called a lizard girl. Because by spliting God (Madoka) she found her form and purpose again. There is also a possibility that Homura being a lizard is her leaving pieces of herself in different timelines. Like how a lizard drops it's tail and losses it's mass. I thought that the way the writers managed to tie this in was really interesting. And his was something the fandom missed out.

ほむらが拳を叩きつけるシーン、辛くて見てらんない…

This is the best scene in the movie IMO, Homura is finally dealing with the feeling that she tried to fight against for so long and she greets It with so much grace

this is some trippy shit

Puella Magi Madoka Magica is genius. It gives me an escape. I'm truly falling into madness.

No matter how much I was this, I always cry. It's just too depressing.

輝きと後悔だけしかもう思い出せないって悲しすぎる......

まどかのためだけに頑張ってたのにそれを分かってもらえないし、報われないのつらいなぁ、、、 ほむらが頑張ってた記憶は今のまどかにはないし、、

I love how madoka scence is so psychological and epic at the same time It's scary that all the nonsense have meaning inside it just like a dream

Oh shit. I've returned to this scene almost a decade later and it still crashes me emotionally. Because it's animated and directed like that, it's incredibly powerful.

Homura's pov shows us what witches see as they turn. It's shown that all magical girls watch their biggest mistakes happen over and over again. They're in hell. In the vision, Homura wakes up with Madoka in heaven. The time she and Madoka spent was pure bliss for this worthless girl. She sees Madoka standing on her chair. Madoka takes a position like Christ or like a bird (angel) that's about to take off. Homura tries saving her, she does everything, she even sheds her weakness like a gecko, but it's over. Madoka is dead. Four (the number of death in Japan) past Homuras look down on her. She's a complete failure. She affirms her worthlessness and her suicidal ideation. She smashes herself into a fine paste. At the epilogue she throws herself the same way as she sees Madoka did.

I wear contacts, and all I ever have to do when my eyes are getting dry is watch a clip from this show. Works every time.

as much as i hate to see homura suffering, this is definitely one of my favourite parts. it really says a lot about her character.

This is probably one of the most depressing fate a character have ever received. All Homura ever wanted was protect Madoka, she worked so hard to do so. She tried again, and again, and again, and again, and even more, just for that to result in Madoka having full potential of becoming the strongest Magical Girl in the world. Homura tried, and tried just for Madoka to give in to the world and sacrifice herself. Homura is trapped in her labyrinth, full of greed, hatred, depression, misery, selflessness, and suffering. She wanted to be with Madoka one last time. Instead she is trapped inside the fantasy for a moment, with Madoka one last time; just for Madoka to disappear. This results in Homura flinging herself off a building, and at the end of that clip you can see a door tied shut with the ribbon Madoka gave Homura.

It's just like Sayaka said in the dub, "She looks horrible, but she's the one who's suffering here." It's terrible for our smol Homu-chan to go through this. 😭😭😭😭😭

This scene is one of the heaviest thing I've ever seen portrayed in the media so far. Why not many people are talking about this movie? It's the most beautiful portrayal of insanity despair ever made in fiction.

I love that in her witch form she has a witch hat (at least at first) she's the ultimate witch. The witch of all witches. Her labyrinth is so expansive it swallow the universe and rewrites the world. The one true witch

I found it interesting how when she's first seen as a witch, she has her mouth covered. She would have had to have worn that willingly, as she chose to shut her mouth when explaining to her friends the imminent threat, as it had always made things worse when she talked about the future. Another thing is after getting her top part cut off, there only remains the lower jaw, her mouth posed to speak, but unable to describe her own despair. Before the lilies bloomed over where her eyes would be, she didn't have any, as she could no longer look ahead to the future; afterwards, the lilies bloomed and she could only think and look towards her death. Lastly, she has ears after she stomps on the recording hat, where she could hear her despair as she used to listen to her friends endless death before, but now that she is chained and pulled by the bloody cycle she lived, she can only listen and further despair.

This was the most emotional moment in the movie and the whole series for me, seeing all the pain and sacrifices she went through and she still accepted her fate just to protect the wish of her best friendeven if she cannot see her again as she promised.

In the end, nothing changed. She just prolonged the inevitable. She still wound up having to say goodbye to her best friend, leaving behind only memories for her to live with. Now, it's all she'll ever have.

it's not the type of despair you fight against, nor the one where you scream and lash out as you adamantly try to go against it. It's the despair that engulfs you as you realize you can't do anything, that there's nothing you ca can do to stop it, and you give up... You've already lost all hope. You can't even cry, you're beyond crying. All you can do is watch as everything falls apart... by itsJazz

WHY DID MADOKA T-POSE HELEP

This scene make me cry...every single time...THE DESPAIR LEVEL IS TOO DAMN HIGH!!!

And i already thought that watching the original series showed enough of how horrifyingly depressing is the existence of witches, rebellion decided to add salt to the wound by doing it with my second favorite girl

So the first time I saw this, my eyes were kind of glued to my screen and I was glued to my own couch...I didn't even cry, I was just feeling exactly like Homura, horrified and confused and hurt. So much sympathy/empathy it's amazing. Oh...and this scene was audiovisually stunning. Truly, being a witch is nothing to prefer over death. The End of Evangelion reference/homage (oh you know the one) didn't help me either. It basically added more nostalgia to the pain and anguish I was already feeling...which the same scene its referencing also gave me its fair share of when I originally watched that other audiovisually brilliant and horrifying anime film masterpiece. :P All in all, this movie was just amazing in every single way.

To me it’s quite like how depression might feel like. Being trapped in negative thoughts and emotions and isolated from everything else.

"Kore ga...watashi no.... Zetsubo"

I keep rewatching this scene...what is the name of the soundtrack when Homura was turning into a witch?

<a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="35">0:35</a> until that point I had forgotten what magical girls really are, children. Homura is in the end nothing but a selfish little kid yelling at forces beyond her control... A kid that lost her only friend... a child that on the inside is always screaming "please, take me instead, its not fair, it should have been me"...

"So this is a witch"; this scene first made me realize being a witch is like succumbing to depression: most people who have never experienced that wouldn't understand your train of thoughts...except it's much worse with you having more destructive power, more resentment, much more pain, & being permanently transformed into such being the only way to release these emotions of despair & hatred from inside is to exert your power, the only remaining thing you have, & vent it on others. This is why I could never really bring myself to hate Homura coz by the end of these all her head's prolly been messed up beyond comprehension to the point she had to turn into the devil herself

It’s so hopelessly hopeful. Like being at peace in a beautiful toxicity of despair and loss of control. It’s also so so pretty. It’s interesting to wonder what other witches would be like if they were at the same level of madoka’s or homura’s witches.

madoka madoka coming to this place this kind of place just to meet me for my sake thank you i can't even say good bye to you for the last time i'm sorry ;-; ugh, i can't handle all these feels ;-;

The people who are hating on Homura for what she did clearly does not understand what pain and suffering can do to someone.

The symbolism of this is intense. It just elevates this scene to a whole new level of sadness. I really love how how this scene portrays Homura's despair and how she has just given up. Fuck what a good scene.

damn i love all the symbolism, metaphors and references of graphics that they applied in this anime. IM SHOOK

It's like depression but animated.

<a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="21">0:21</a> Are You T-Posing Madoka?

I think the ribbons on her witch form show how Homura was never able to tell Madoka how she really feels about her, forever tied up in her own regret. She has to stay silent for eternity, which I think also goes with how she's not screaming or crying. She's solemnly accepted her fate.

今まで倒して来た魔女もこういう内面があると思うと改めてしんどい作品だわ【褒め言葉】

I reenacted this scene earlier today for an English project! I got laughed at by my classmates but my teacher said it was good :)

<a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="26">0:26</a>-<a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="27">0:27</a> I found it highly symbolic, how Homurra was willing to become, not only a magical girl, but the strong brave girl she was deep down just to save Madoka. And yet, <a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="37">0:37</a> also represents how Homurra still feels small and helpless despite all her efforts to save her dearest friend.

A very well accurate depiction of anxiety and depression... It first reminds you of the scene you regret the most then reminds you how you think you destroyed the point of view of the people about you and lastly you hate that past self of yours from doing the reminded scene, or in homura's case failing something that shouldnt be... Sometimes in addition you feel like punishing yourself for doing it or just be deeply sad for a long time for doing it. It's an endless pain that will haunt you forever unless resolved in the right way that will relieve it which is very hard

And mind you, she was trapped in her own emblem, not spreading outwards. She kept the curse to herself.

Homura doesn’t need therapy or a hug, she needs every single kind of mental help.

I know this is a serious moment but Madoka going "well the simulation's over!" and T-Posing into the floor makes me giggle every time.

Is this... the transformation into a witch? How very intimate. I know other magical girls have turned into witches before but this feels a bit more inside their own mind.

Me when I see all the flowers turns into spider lilies: nO NONONO NOT THAT FLOWER I CANT ACCEPT THIS ENDING PLS

このシーンめちゃくちゃ泣いた

<a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="26">0:26</a> her reaching with the black swirls being left behind is in her transformation sequence earlier in the movie. Super interesting.

i really like how when she transforms into a witch there's this record on her head. i'm pretty sure it's meant to refer to all her timelines as a record on repeat. then when it's all over and she turns inti a witch, it falls off. the record stops playing on repeat because it's all done and she's yet another sacrifice to kyubey. herself (her emotions, the li'l homuras) bringing her to her death and she surrenders, hence the cuffs.

This scene is one of my favorites in the series, it's so depressing yet fascinating to me. The part that especially stands out to me is the one where Homura and Madoka sit together and Madoka falls off her chair into nothing as Homura fails to rescue her, leaving Homura alone with four elongated figures of herself looming over her. The stillness and surreality of the scene makes it even more emotional. If I ever need to make myself cry for whatever reason, I think of that scene.

Homura did a great job on describing what it feels like to fall into despair and transform into a witch. Detailed, compared to what sayaka did

Homura is the Nutcracker witch. The Nutcracker is a ballet. Madoka’s normal magical girl outfit looks like a ballerina uniform.

There's so much symbolism just in this 2 minute clip. It's amazing.

これ程魔女化が美しいと思ったのは、初めてだよ。

Not so very fun fact: Homulily is called a nutcracker witch as a reference to the play "the nutcracker" where when the nutcrackers mouth breaks due to overuse or something it can't fulfill it's purpose deeming it useless. This can also be a reference to Homuras powers being overused until they break and become useless (due to Madoka becoming a goddess). It can also reference Homura herself. Her only purpose was to save Madoka and after the last timeline she couldn’t do that as Madoka had become a concept. So, left with no purpose, Homura deems herself useless.

I love her new witches design… referencing back to the game as her witch in there and how she looked, but also creating a whole new witch out of what would have been her witch form because in this universe she was the first witch

Homura is in such a sorry state that she even thanks Madoka for "coming all the way to a place like this"

Fuck.. my heart aches for Homura-chan..

Homura: Madoka? Madoka: T-POSE FOR DOMINANCE

If you think about it Homura was already on borrowed time anyway. All the time loops that she endured up to that point merely accelerated the inevitable. The fact that in Homura's mind she was doomed to bring about the end of humanity was just the final nail in the coffin.