http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/MagicalGirl

Evil Empress Guide — Rule #52, "Magic Girls, no matter how frilly their dresses, high their screams, or incompetent their sidekicks, will be treated as the credible and dire threats they are, and I will direct as many, if not more resources to their destruction as I would for a more classical Hero."

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Known as mahou shoujo ("magical girl") or just majokko ("witch-girl") in Japanese, Magical Girls are empowered by various means with fantastic powers that both assist and complicate their lives, but manage to persevere despite this.

No matter how hard this may be for the Western world to believe, Magical Girls have high crossover popularity in different demographics with some minor but appropriate design modifications and make up a sizable portion of both Shōjo and bishoujo fandom.

A Super-Trope to:

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Magical Girl Warriors arguably have the widest demographic appeal, and in the West are often synonymous with the idea of a Magical Girl.

History of the Genre

It may come as a surprise to learn that the entire Magical Girl genre is descended, effectively, from the American live-action Magical Girlfriend sitcom Bewitched. While two series claim the role of "first magical girl anime"—Mitsuteru Yokoyama's Mahotsukai Sally (Sally the Witch, 1966-1968) and Fujio Akatsuka's Himitsu no Akko-chan (broadcast 1969, but its manga predates Mahotsukai Sally)—the creators of both credit Bewitched as a primary inspiration for their work. Yokoyama explicitly adapted its concept for a younger audience, while Akatsuka merely says he was "inspired" by it.

Another important early Magical Girl show was Majokko Meg-chan in 1974. This was the first show to be marketed to boys as well as girls, and featured a number of developments—it was the first Magical Girl show to...

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Originally, all Magical Girl shows were produced by Toei Animation, so "Magical Girl" wasn't so much a genre as a Series Franchise. This lasted until Ashi Production's Magical Princess Minky Momo hit the airwaves in 1982, followed by Studio Pierrot's Magical Angel Creamy Mami in 1983 (the first Magic Idol Singer show). A one-shot OVA produced in 1987 featured a Bat Family Crossover between Studio Pierrot's four '80s Magical Girl shows (Magical Angel Creamy Mami, Persia, the Magic Fairy, Magical Star Magical Emi, and Magical Idol Pastel Yumi). This was the first instance of a magical girl team.

The Magical Girl Warrior subgenre, despite being the most well-known style of Magical Girl show in the west, didn't hit until Sailor Moon in 1992 (unless you count Cutey Honey, which wasn't aimed at girls but had a lot of influence on it, or Devil Hunter Yohko, which wasn't aimed at girls either). This was essentially a combination of the earlier style shows with the Super Hero genre, particularly the Super Sentai formula. Sailor Moon was a huge hit, and, naturally, other shows were made in the same style.

The wave of shows inspired by Sailor Moon eventually subsided, but new sub-genres spawned soon in its wake. As of present, most magical girl shows can be loosely organized into three broad categories.

Of course, there are other examples that feature similar themes but diverge even further from the old-style shows. Many fans felt that shows such as Magic Knight Rayearth were still Magical Girl shows, despite all the dissimilarities from the previous generation (others disagree, and feel that Rayearth is Shoujo RPG World Fantasy instead).

IMPORTANT NOTE: A girl who can use magic is not necessarily a Magical Girl in the sense of the trope or genre. A Magical Girlfriend, for example, usually does not fit into the same structure that defines a Magical Girl series.

For an index of magical girl works, see the Magical Girl Genre Index. Also see the Index of Magical Girl Tropes and our own guide on how to Write a Magical Girl Series.

Not to be confused with John Popadiuk's Magic Girl pinball machine.

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Examples of Magical Girl works:

Anime & Manga

Deconstructions, Dramas and parodies

Asian Animation

Catch! Teenieping is a Korean example.

Flowering Heart, another Korean example.

Nana Moon, a Chinese series, has Keke being given a special badge that lets her transform into specific occupations (such as a makeup artist, for example) to help people.

Sweets Fairy, China's second Magical Girl series after Balala the Fairies.

Eastern European Animation

Fantasy Patrol; probably Russia's first example.

Comic Books

W.I.T.C.H. is an Italian animesque comic about a team of American girls with magical powers. In Icelandic, the comic was renamed to Magical Girls, since W.I.T.C.H. obviously doesn't work in all languages. Also has an animated adaptation.

Wonder Woman and the Star Riders may have been a truncated property but what was made features Wonder woman in a skirt and tights leading a group of gals with magical powers wearing sparkly outfits while protecting and using magic gems.

Zodiac Starforce is an American take on a Magical Girl team. Artist Paulina Gauncheau is a huge fan of the genre (and especially Sailor Moon), and it shows.

Magical Beatdown is a hyper violent street harassment revenge fantasy about an average video-game loving schoolgirl who transforms into a foul-mouthed and rage-fuelled Magical girl when provoked.

Strange Academy features Emily Bright, a young girl who has had magical abilities of unknown origins ever since she was a baby, and has enrolled in Doctor Strange's eponymous Wizarding School as a member of its first class.

Films — Live-Action

Teen Witch is rather like the typical Coming-of-Age Story where a Magical Girl uses her powers in every day life.

Sucker Punch is very Animesque (to the degree that a lot of people mistook it for a live action Sailor Moon at first). There's a Five-Man Band of girls who can do literally anything in the fantasy sequences, and they seem to fit the Magical Girl Warrior archetypes.

Literature

Avalon: Web of Magic three girls, Emily, Adriane, and Kara, find stones/crystals - that come from a fantastical alternate dimension in need of help - that grant them magical abilities.

Daughters of the Moon a series of novels about five girls who are granted powers by the moon goddess, Selene, in order to fight off an ancient evil called the Atrox, who aims to end all hope and spread darkness across the world.

Hex Hall

Twitches twin girls, Cam and Alex, who were separated at birth find each other, and learn that their odd behaviours are in fact the sign of mystical powers that reach their full potential when they're together. They fight off an evil force known as 'The Darkness'.

The Witches of Bailiwick

Magical Girl Pretty Dynamo from Jake And The Dynamo.

Ximena/Selena of Walking on Dreams.

Live-Action TV

Music

"Magical Girl" by Cate Rox comes across as a Magical Girl Warrior song. "I'm a magical girl

In this ordinary world

Where darkness has consumed all life

And you need magic to survive

Everyday is a fight

I'm a magical girl."

Puppet Shows

Lavinia, the Cute Witch heroine of South African childrens' show Die Liewe Heksie, is a Magical Girl: her youth and cuteness contrast to the Wicked Witch qualities of the opposing GeelHeks.

Roleplay

Tabletop Games

Princess: The Hopeful is a Decon-Recon Switch of Magical Girls that's compatible with the New World of Darkness. Princesses are charged with improving the world, but doing so is going to take a lot of hard work, struggle, sacrifice, and more varied strategies than The Power of Love.

Pathfinder has the gender-neutral Magical Child archetype for the Vigilante class. The Magical Child can cast spells(like the Summoner) and comes with a familiar, that changes forms as the Child grows in levels, and eventually gets the ability to switch between them. And yes, it has a Transformation Sequence. Once that starts at thirty seconds, and can get shorter with new talents.

Video Games

Web Animation

Web Comics

Web Original

Web Videos

Mahou Profile: A History of Magical Girls is a YouTube series dedicated to the history of magical girl anime.

Western Animation

Examples of the Magical Girl trope referred to in other works:

Advertising

Anime & Manga

Comic Books

Fan Works

Films — Live-Action

Even the horror genre has nods to this trope. A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master can be seen as a darker take on the Magical girl story, since Alice's dream powers at first only serve to make everyone around her bigger targets for Freddy Krueger and they are Personality Powers received from their deaths. Nonetheless, it has the typical tropes: shy and insecure teenage girl receives magical powers one day (from Kristen, the previous Final Girl) and, over the course of the movie, overcomes her insecurities and matures into her role as the titular Dream Master, freeing the children's souls from Freddy while getting the hot guy and reconciling with her abusive father.

Literature

The German fantasy book series (also adapted as an audio drama) Bibi Blocksberg is about a 13-year-old witch living in a small German town and going to school with other regular kids. The series started in 1980, long before anime shows or manga became popular in Germany. note Though there had been numerous anime broadcast earlier in Germany — among others Heidi, Pinocchio, Captain Future, Maya the Bee and The Little Viking Wickie, they had been promoted as "animated" or "cartoon series", and the fact that they were Japanese animated series had been neglected to mention. Therefore many Germans believed that the series were Austrian, Belgian, French or American productions — as Germany dubbed these series, there was no tell-tale sound track.

The German book series Lilly The Witch is about a girl named Lilly who finds a magical book which turns her into a witch, as well as a Mentor Mascot in the form of a little green dragon named Hector, and who has many adventures all over the world. The books have been made into an animated series on CBBC, as well as an animated movie.

Live-Action TV

Music

Tabletop Games

The "Magical Child" archetype for the Vigilante class in Pathfinder can be of any age or gender, but draws heavily from the Magical girl trope. They get spellcasting ability, a Transformation Sequence to activate their Secret Identity, and an animal familiar.

Tokusatsu

Toys

Milky Way and the Galaxy Girls was an attempt by Lauren Faust to launch a toy line in this genre.

Video Games

Web Comics

Web Original

In The Impossible Man Yuki Shimizu is a Magical girl, sent by her mother who leads a mysterious village of Magical Girls and Magical Women, to work as Michael Garcia's bodyguard at his store.

In Monster Girl Encyclopedia, magical girl appear to be a class of heroine, with Fallen Maidens book features a magical girl named Mimiru Miltie. As hinted by name of the book, she got corrupted and become a witch of Subbath cult.

Web Videos

The Mother's Basement's PSA Is YOUR Daughter a Magical Girl?! serves as a "what to look for" guide to parents of magical girls.

Western Animation