There are a lot of magical girl anime out there and some amazing protagonists that get shimmering transformations and attack sequences. However in this post I want to look at some of the supporting characters who may or may not also be magical girls but are certainly not granted main-character plot immunity. These are memorable characters who really help elevate the story and potentially the actual protagonist to heights they may not have reached had this character not been around.
I did limit myself to one supporting character per show so while I could potentially just have found five awesome supporting characters from Sailor Moon, I have limited myself to just the one.
Who are my top 5 amazing supporting characters from magical girl anime?
With all that said though, I would absolutely love to hear your favourite supporting characters from magical girl anime so be sure to leave a comment below.
Number 5: Tama
Tama is the LRIG owned by main character Ruuko in Selector Infected Wixoss. Unlike other LRIG’s, Tama seems pretty innocent and actually fairly harmless however her infant like demeaner changes dramatically when put into a fight. Throughout the various Wixoss stories, Tama has continued to appear and her story actually ends up overtaking that of most of the protagonists and magical girls. There’s a supporting character that knew she was destined for stardom.
Number 4: Eru and Iru
While not a single character per se it would be hard to split the angel and devil pair from Shugo Chara. The two characters are born from Utau and assist the singer in her performances providing either healing or enslavement as required. But when left to their own devices, the two have a bit of a love-hate relationship and when you throw in that the devil is manipulative and playful while the angel is directionally challenged and a little on the slow side and you have two show stealing supporting characters.
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Number 3: Tomoyo
Whether you are watching the original series or Clear Card, it would be impossible to list great supporting characters in magical girl series without touching on Tomoyo from Card Captor Sakura. The camera wielding best friend to the protagonist is there through thick and thin and always has just the outfit for the occasion.
While not totally pure and innocent as she regularly pushes Sakura out of her comfort zone for her own entertainment, her loyalty is without question and ultimately a lot of the plot of the original series probably couldn’t have happened without Tomoyo’s convenient assistance. Truly a show stealing friend.
Number 2: Junko Kaname
While most anime parents will fall into the category of nominee for worst parent ever, occasionally we get these brilliant parents who seem actually aware of their children, provide largely decent guidance, and just have a genuinely good relationship with their kids.
Madoka Magica provided not only a great mother but a great supporting character in the form of Junko Kaname, the over-worked mother who still has time to offer love advice, help pick out hair ribbons, and ultimately realises her daughter is in over her head but takes the time to listen. While so many magical girls either don’t have mothers or their mothers remain oblivious to their plight, Madoka provided a very different kind of family dynamic and was a much stronger anime because of it.
Number 1: Molly/Naru
While Sailor Moon Crystal didn’t do Molly any favours, the original Sailor Moon series saw Molly playing victim of the week more often than not. On first watch it is hard to take the character seriously as she seems to exist just to fuel our protagonist’s shopping addiction and obsession with falling in love. However she’s got a lot more going for her and really she’s pretty awesome.
Throughout the first season she has her own heart-breaking romance where she is anything but a damsel in distress and those events help to make her a little more mature and insightful even if she is still mostly running around like a ditz. In times of crisis, expect Molly to show up with just the right words of encouragement to get our hero into her tiara and out onto the battlefield.
And that is my list of 5 Amazing Supporting Characters in a Magical Girl Series but feel free to add your own choices into the comments below.
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Join the discussion in the comments.
Karandi James
I’ve only seen 2, 3, and 4, but those are great picks! CCS might have the best supporting cast of any magical girl series that I’ve seen, but Tomoyo would also be my choice (and in my top 5 overall) too.
Others that came to mind for me, at least right now:
Arf, from Lyrical Nanoha
Uzura, from Princess Tutu
Juri Arisugawa, from Revolutionary Girl Utena
Hikaru’s parents, from Wish Upon the Pleiades (only showed up in one episode, but it was one of my favorites in the series)
Nice choices. I never really got into Utena though.