About “Gushing over Magical Girls” in a few words:

The anime “Gushing over Magical Girls” stands out as a unique and bold reinterpretation of the magical girl genre. At its core, it narrates the story of Hiiragi Utena, a typical middle school girl with an extraordinary love for magical girls. Her life takes an unexpected turn when she encounters a talking mascot who reveals that she harbors latent magical powers. What follows is Utena’s thrilling transformation into a magical girl, but with a catch—she becomes a villain rather than the heroine she always dreamed of being. This twist adds layers of complexity to the story, exploring themes of identity, the duality of good versus evil, and the power of self-acceptance, all while navigating the challenges and excitements of magical battles and alliances.

Meet the characters from Gushing over Magical Girls

Kiwi Araga

Kiwi is that burst of citrusy energy who zips into a scene like confetti and somehow organizes everyone’s chaos while humming a tune she made up five minutes ago. She’s endlessly optimistic and weirdly practical — like, she’ll tie a cape into a tourniquet if needed — but also collects tiny notebooks full of stickers and never uses them properly. Tends to be impulsive and heroic, except when it’s raining, then she becomes suspiciously philosophical and brings an umbrella for everyone, even the plants. Also, she claims she hates pickles but will eat the whole jar at midnight while doodling costume ideas, so trust her unless there are pickles involved.

Utena Hiiragi

Utena is part stubborn knight, part reluctant princess, with a jaw set for duels and a soft spot for old melodies that make her weirdly sentimental. She upholds honor like it’s a sacred recipe and secretly re-reads letters from people she befriended once at a festival — don’t ask how many times. Extremely disciplined in training, but somehow her desk is a pile of postcards and half-finished teacups; she insists the chaos is intentional. Occasionally will challenge a moonlit injustice or a stray pigeon, and will apologize afterwards with a perfectly folded origami swan.

Korisu Morino

Korisu is the quiet brainy one who diagrams spells like equations and probably has a spreadsheet for her feelings (maybe color-coded, maybe not). She’s low-key sarcastic, brilliant with gadgets, and will absolutely try to improve a transformation item’s ergonomics at 3 a.m., fueled by stale cereal and determination. People think she’s aloof, but she hoards tiny plushies in a drawer labelled “FOR EMERGENCIES” and cries at commercials, which is peak Korisu. Also, despite being scientifically minded, she insists on reading fortunes in tea leaves every Monday and swears they help — contradictions are her aesthetic.

Haruka Hanabishi

Haruka is the effortlessly cool leader type who skateboard-swoops into danger with a grin and a no-nonsense plan, then disappears to write melancholy haikus in the corner. Protective to the point of stubbornness, she’ll throw herself between teammates and the drama, and then awkwardly ask if anyone wants snacks like fifteen minutes later. Athletic, decisive, and somehow terrible at remembering birthdays (but will bake a celebratory cake if reminded, with a flourish). She claims she doesn’t like cutesy things but keeps a secret stash of glitter pens; don’t tell her journal.

Sayo Minakami

Sayo reads like a whisper who can rearrange fate with the flick of a teacup; calm, observant, and kind enough to knit you a sweater while she explains the universe. She’s the healer/oracle type, speaks in soft metaphors, and will offer tea and a plan — sometimes both at once, which is efficient and slightly disconcerting. Very gentle, but if you hurt someone she cares about she will become a tactician overnight and suddenly know where every enemy will be next Tuesday. Also, she organizes her herbs alphabetically and once fell asleep standing up because she was so absorbed in a book about cloud shapes.

Kaoruko Tenkawa

Kaoruko is theatrical in the best way — think dramatic capes, outrageous bows, and a laugh that fills a room and maybe the street next door — but also she has an introvert’s heart and will quietly sew you a badge without telling anyone. She loves fashion, parties, and making grand gestures, yet will get inexplicably obsessed with the lifecycle of moss for hours, which is adorable and confusing. Sweet, buoyant, and occasionally dramatic to the point of calling rain “mood lighting,” she keeps a postcard collection and a suspicious amount of glitter pens. Also terrible at math but can recite every floral pattern in the royal archives, which is somehow relevant to everything.