i have decided to repost this as its own post ^w^ here is my...
"Puella Magi: Madoka Magica" Major Arcana Concept
(and extended universe (Magia Record Side Story))
0 - The Fool ;; Iroha Tamaki
— [Card Meaning: New beginnings, Naivety/Innocence, Adventure] Iroha walked into Kamihama knowing nothing about what she was walking into. Her kind heart is both her strength and vulnerability, but inevitably is the fuel behind her magical journey.
I - The Magician ;; Ui Tamaki
— [Card Meaning: Manifestation, Resourcefulness, Power, Inspired action] Ui's ability to harvest the impurities of Magical Girls just gives magician. Her power is having the ability to become part of the cycle through her wish, and the motive behind it (to help other magical girls like her sister) inspired this unique ability.
II - The High Priestess ;; Yachiyo Nanami
— [Card Meaning: Intuition, Higher Knowledge, Mystery, Subconsious Mind, Feminine Energy] Yachiyo's grief and silence comes from her knowledge behind the truth of Magical Girls. She's seen as the older sister of the group, and embodies the feminine energy trait of being in touch with your emotions and intuition.
III - The Empress ;; Mami Tomoe
— [Card Meaning: Femininity, Abundance, Nurturing, Beauty] Mami IS femininity fr. She is literally the veteran magical girl that nurtures Madoka and Sayaka. Because this card is so heavily about a nurturing, loving, guiding figure, no one fits this card better I fear.
IV - The Emperor ;; Touka Satomi
— [Card Meaning: Authority, Establishment, Structure, Control] Touka is the brains behind the Magius, the one enforcing this system. As the Mouthpiece for the Magius, and seemingly being the ruler supreme (besides Nemu), this felt appropriate.
V - The Hierophant ;; Mitama Yakumo
— [Card Meaning: Spiritual wisdom, religious beliefs, conformity, tradition, institutions] Mitama embodies the established system of magical girls as she guides others through it without trying to change it. As a Coordinator, she represents the tradition, structure, and quiet acceptance of the Magical Girls' fate. Also conformity = her "Absolute Neutrality" she tries to hold up in the anime. It makes sense in my brain.
VI - The Lovers ;; Kyoko Sakura
— [Card Meaning: Love, harmony, relationships, values alignment, choices] Kyoko's arc of turning from someone who tried to not care for anyone to SACRIFICING HERSELF FOR SAYAKA TO BE AT PEACE IM NOT CRYING YOU ARE. Her love for Sayaka and her choice to continue pursuing connection after it hurt her so deeply was why i chose her for this card.
VII - The Chariot ;; Momoko Togame
— [Card Meaning: Control, willpower, success, action, determination] Momoko does everything to just push forward and keep everyone grounded and okay. Her discipline is what led me to choosing The Chariot for her.
VIII - Strength ;; Sayaka Miki
— [Card Meaning: Strength, courage, persuasion, influence, compassion] SAYAKA IS THE DEFINITION OF STRENGTH THROUGH COMPASSION. Her strength comes from her ability to care so deeply, and even though that's what led her to witching out, that strength (or lack of, in terms of managing her emotions) defines her character arc.
IX - The Hermit ;; Homura Akemi
— [Card Meaning: Soul-searching, introspection, being alone, inner guidance] Homura completely isolates herself because of the reality of her wish. The way she turns inward at the episode explaining the timeloop was very Hermit of her. Her loneliness is both necessary and destructive, which is why I like this card for her.
X - Wheel of Fortune ;; Nagisa Momoe
— [Card Meaning: Good luck, karma, cycles, destiny, a turning point] Nagisa is literally the personification of the cycle. Kid -> Magi -> Witch. Hope -> Despair -> Grief. No one is a better fit for this one, especially with the "destiny" aspect of this card, because all magis are destined to be witches.
XI - Justice ;; Mifuyu Azusa
— [Card Meaning: Justice, fairness, truth, cause and effect, law] Mifuyu is SO concerned with the cause and effect of her actions. She tries so hard to do the "right thing" and be on the right side of history throughout the whole series. AND THEN when she realizes the errors of the Magius she takes justice into her own hands and heals the witches who fell to the doppel system she helped facilitate cause that's the right thing AUGHHHHHHHHH IM SORRY I LOVE MIFUYU SO MUCH
XII - The Hanged Man ;; Nemu Hiiragi
— [Card Meaning: Pause, surrender, letting go, new perspectives] Nemu's days are numbered and she knows it, which is why I made her the Hanged Man. She surrenders to the fact that the Magius won't save everyone, but also lets go of control, knowing that they should at least try (cause they're doomed either way).
XIII - Death ;; Oktavia von Seckendorff (Sayaka's Witch)
— [Card Meaning: Endings, change, transformation, transition] This was def the most scarring witch BECAUSE it was one of our main girls, so I thought that Oktavia would be the best choice for the card. I knew it had to be a witch, because they mark the end of the magical girl's life. So really any witch could work, but i think the most iconic were Oktavia and Charlotte but Nagisa's already in here partially because of her witch form so. yuh.
XIV - Temperance ;; Felicia Mitsuki
— [Card Meaning: Balance, moderation, patience, purpose] Felicia's arc is centered around her learning the balance between her anger and her connection to the magical girls around her. So. Yay temperance for Felicia. (can you tell im getting tired)
XV - The Devil ;; Homura Akemi (Devil Homura)
— [Card Meaning: Shadow self, attachment, addiction, restriction] bsfr. it's devil homura. ofc she's gonna be the devil. but if you're wanting like a real reason... it's because her attachment to madoka and addiction to the chip on her shoulder of "saving madoka" lead her to be the devil.
XVI - The Tower ;; Walpurgisnacht
— [Card Meaning: Sudden change, upheaval, chaos, revelation, awakening] Walpurgi is literally the chaos, end-of-the-world situation in this world. Since the Tower represents a large challenge (usually a painful one), I thought that instead of a magical girl, the depiction of Walpurgi would be the best fit for this card.
XVII - The Star ;; Tsuruno Yui
— [Card Meaning: Hope, faith, purpose, renewal, spirituality] Tsuruno is literally the light of the Mikazuki Villa girls. Her hope to be a light for others is why she IS the star. But also, this need to be the light is also what tears her apart inside. The rebalance of her self-worth through being "the best" is what highlights her character.
XVIII - The Moon ;; Alina Gray
— [Card Meaning: Illusion, fear, anxiety, subconscious, intuition] okay her power is literally creating illusions. but also, Alina embodies distortion and illusion. She views the world through her own chaotic, artistic lens and transforms suffering and instability into something she finds beauty in.
XIX - The Sun ;; Sana Futaba
— [Card Meaning: Positivity, warmth, success, vitality] AWWW OKAY GUYSSS SHE IS THE SUN Sana's development as a character goes from her not wanting to be seen to accepting the light and warmth into her life. The warmth and visibility that she receives at Mikazuki Villa is why I chose her for the Sun. She learns to finally step out of the shadows and embrace warmth 🥹
XX - Judgement ;; Madoka Kaname
— [Card Meaning: Judgement, rebirth, inner calling, absolution] Madoka feels an inner calling to help people. That's literally what she does. She creates the ultimate judgment through her wish, giving the meaning of magical girls a new life, because she didn't want others to suffer like her friends did.
XXI - The World ;; Madoka Kaname (God Madoka)
— [Card Meaning: Completion, integration, accomplishment, travel] part 2 of do i need to explain? madoka literally became the cycle. she became the entirety of the magical girl concept. she INTEGRATED herself into it. also common madokami w she is the world forever.
thank you so much for reading!!! keep in mind this is just my interpretation and i wanted to highlight as many charas as possible but yeah yeah!!! doing this was really fun heheh ^w^