Okay. Shigure x Hagumu
ShiguHagu.
Alright, let’s talk about the founders of the Neo-Magius! Most people would say they’re one of the least problematic Magia Record ships. (With the exception of the few anti’s who are aware of them.) I, too, considered them unproblematic at one point, but do I still feel that way? Find out for yourself as I plead my case.
Completely unrelated, but it was surprisingly difficult to find an image that’s just the two of them.
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Shigure and Hagumu’s most glaring issue as a pair is that neither of them knows when to say “enough is enough.” Hagumu, despite being the older of the two, especially struggles with this. Shigure has a few moments where she stands up for herself, like in ‘Dependence Blue’ when she tells Himena she hates her. However, this is still something she struggles with, as shown when Himena challenges her. (Shigure shuts down completely and cries.)
I know you may be thinking, “but why is it a problem if neither of them knows where to draw a line in the sand? They treat each other very well, and neither violates the others boundaries.” While you are correct, it’s a pressing issue in ShiguHagu’s case because both of them encourage each other’s worst instincts. Whenever Hagumu struggles with her self-esteem, instead of confiding in somebody like Maria, she confides in Shigure, who plugs the idea into her head that the only solution for her struggles is magical girl supremacy.
Hagumu does this same thing when Shigure says she doesn’t want to work under Himena because she feels like they’ll be taken advantage of.
This entire conversation is probably the crux of the toxicity in their relationship. Hagumu has extremely low self esteem, so she finds solace in the concept of magical girl supremacy; Shigure, who’s first friend was Hagumu, similarly suffers from low self esteem. Hagumu is older, Shigure see’s her as a big sister, she loves her, which makes Shigure think that anything Hagumu says is “God’s word” essentially. If Hagumu had the self-esteem to tell Shigure to abandon magical girl supremacy and tried to help her find confidence, this ship theoretically be unproblematic, because I have no doubt Shigure would comply. That’s what makes them problematic though - Hagumu won’t abandon magical girl supremacy, because it’s beneficial to her. And, since Shigure and Hagumu have similar struggles, Shigure thinks what’s beneficial to Hagumu is beneficial to her. In essence, ShiguHagu’s dynamic can be summarized by a single idiom:
“The lost leading the lost.”
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I hope you enjoyed this analysis of why ShiguHagu is problematic! After writing it, I feel the need to add that this account was not created for the sake of telling people they “can’t” ship anything. I created it since a lot of ships in the Magia Record fandom get slammed for being “problematic,” and in reality, they’re not problematic at all. Meanwhile, actual problematic ships are often given the pass because they have an acceptable age gap. I’d like to make this app less of an echo chamber, and I hope you’ll all join me for the ride!~
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As always, thank you for reading it if you made it to the end, and thank you to Anon for requesting!