Iroha and Yachiyo continue chasing after Rumours in the fourth volume of Fujino Fuji’s Magia Record manga adaptation. They pick up new allies, but also meet some new enemies.
Front cover of the fourth volume of Magia Record: Puella Magi Madoka Magica Side Story, featuring Felicia Mitsuki and Kyouko Sakura
The girls’ prayers open a door to the unknown.
After accepting refreshing water samples from a sidewalk stall, three thirsty magical girls from three different cities find they have fallen victim to the same fate! The Rumour of the Misery Water promises to doom its victims to despair – and will surely do so unless Iroha and her new comrades, Kyouko and Felicia, can find it first! As the literal countdown ticks away, the girls’ progress is interrupted by a group of hooded magical girls… who want to protect the Rumour?!
Iroha is still searching for any information about her sister, which naturally means getting caught up in any Rumour she comes across. You’d think she’d be more wary of stuff like that…
I guess things do kind of work out in some manner this time around, with Iroha allying up with mercenary magical girl Felicia. Being a mercenary, she’ll work with anybody for the right price. Unfortunately, there are quite a few bidders seeking out the magical girls’ talents. It is something that Yachiyo is aware of, but Iroha does tend to be a much nicer person. Almost to a fault.
I guess one of the most noteworthy things about Felicia is that we get what feels like a rare appearance of a Witch. Something so integral to Puella Magi Madoka Magica, but almost just a side thought in this spin-off.
Talking of Puella Magi Madoka Magica, another familiar face from that series gets to join on in the fun for this volume. She was present in the previous volume, but she gets to see some action this time around. It’s nice to see her again – actually, a couple more familiar faces also crop up towards the end of this volume, too.
The biggest development from this volume, though, would have to be the appearance of a new antagonistic group: the Wings of Magius. Seems they have quite the plans for magical girls in Kamihama City, which involves protecting Rumours. Naturally, that puts them at odds with Iroha and Yachiyo.
A fairly decent volume of Magia Record here. Some nice action, and the story has developed to the point of giving us something a little more tangible than Rumours as an antagonistic force. Still not my favourite Puella Magi Madoka Magica spinoff, but it is serviceable.
Rory Muses 