As with previous project launch events, Lin Zhiyan not only introduced basic information about Puella Magi Madoka Magica, but also briefly introduced the voice actors for the main characters and important supporting roles.
All the main character voice actors remained the same as in the original version.
The only noteworthy mention was Aoi Yūki, known as "Aoi-chan," who was born in 1992. In 2005, she had just started junior high school.
However, despite being in junior high, she had debuted as a child actress at the age of four, appearing in numerous films and demonstrating remarkable acting skills. In 2003, she had already voiced a character in Kino's Journey while in the fifth grade.
For other animations, casting a junior high student as the protagonist might have seemed somewhat inappropriate. But since the characters in Puella Magi Madoka Magica all appeared relatively "young," having a skilled voice actor of that age was perfectly acceptable.
Of course, Lin Zhiyan hadn't initially held out much hope. Being just a junior high student, he couldn't specifically request her for the role. But she had independently auditioned without being asked, and in such cases, it was natural to retain the original voice actors.
After introducing the voice actors, the event proceeded to screen the animation's promotional video and the opening theme, "Connect."
The Promotional Video (PV) featured bright, colorful scenes that gave a warm and comforting impression. The opening animation (OP) was the original version, with no changes to the visuals. However, the original OP already had a healing and soothing style, so this didn't raise any suspicions.
The visuals didn't reveal much about the plot, but as a high-definition animation, the quality was truly outstanding compared to other animations from the same period. After watching the PV and OP, the audience was visibly impressed:
"The animation quality is insane! This is what you get with HD!"
"My TV supports high-definition, so I'll definitely be following this animation just for the visuals."
"My TV isn't the best, but I'll just buy the DVD and watch it on my computer—that'll be great too."
"The character designs are a bit unusual, but the overall art style is gorgeous. It's as refined as Kyoto Animation's Air, maybe even more so."
"The OP is catchy too! I wasn't sure if I'd watch a Magical Girl Anime, no matter how hyped it was, but this looks genuinely worth checking out."
"I'm looking forward to it!"
The "first high-definition animated TV series" was a powerful selling point.
This was similar to Kyoto Animation's Violet Evergarden in another timeline. Although it wasn't the first of its kind, when its promotional video was released, its incredibly detailed and beautiful art style, stunning visual quality, and Kyoto Animation's long-established reputation generated massive anticipation before the series even aired.
The genre didn't matter—whether it was mainstream or niche. Even if the original work itself was mediocre, it didn't stop most people from hyping it up before the anime's premiere.
Puella Magi Madoka Magica is in a similar situation now. With its visual quality far surpassing other anime of its time, it's hard not to be amazed.
Furthermore, Lin Zhiyan's statement that Puella Magi Madoka Magica wasn't for elementary school students but rather a healing anime for people aged 15 to 30 naturally heightened expectations.
Of course, this was also due to Lin Zhiyan's foundation of three super-popular, even phenomenon-level, anime: Death Note, Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion, and Gurren Lagann.
Even with a supervising director like Akiyuki Shinbo, who had a proven track record with similar works like Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha, and the buzz around being the first high-definition television anime, it would have been difficult for so many people to generate such anticipation.
And this was just at the press conference.
After the conference concluded, fans who attended spontaneously began promoting the upcoming anime online and offline.
Major animation-related media outlets also ran special features on Puella Magi Madoka Magica:
"Astonishing! The first high-definition television anime in history is about to premiere!"
"Superstar director Lin Zhiyan challenges himself anew with Puella Magi Madoka Magica!"
"Puella Magi Madoka Magica: Don't miss this must-watch anime in January!"
"A healing-genre magical girl anime targeting audiences aged 15 to 30—the most anticipated anime of January!"
"Lin Zhiyan's new anime: A star-studded production team, the industry's best animation quality—an absolute must-watch!"
Don't miss it! Don't miss it! Damn it, don't miss it!
With such massive hype, even those who had never watched Lin Zhiyan's animations before, or who hadn't particularly liked his previous three works, couldn't help but pay attention to Puella Magi Madoka Magica, the upcoming new anime.
Lin Zhiyan's female fans, young girls who already loved Magical Girl Anime, and even fans accumulated from Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha were all looking forward to this anime with unprecedented anticipation:
"I heard Akiyuki Shinbo, the supervising director of Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha, is serving as assistant director in this anime, and that it's aimed at adults, unlike other, more childish Magical Girl Anime. Nanoha fans are ecstatic."
"I'll definitely watch any Magical Girl Anime, especially since this is a new one from the Nanoha director."
"Even though many people say I'm too old to still be watching Magical Girl Anime in middle school, I have to say: Magical Girl Anime is the best! I can't wait for Puella Magi Madoka Magica."
"A Magical Girl Anime with such high-quality animation and such a comfortable art style? As a super-fan of Magical Girl Anime, I'd be a fool not to watch it."
Those who had seen the promotional PV were stunned. With countless people hyping it up and an incredibly effective marketing campaign, the animation had already climbed to the top of the January 2006 new anime anticipation rankings before its premiere, far outstripping the second-ranked show. It was as if Puella Magi Madoka Magica stood in a class of its own, with everything else falling into a lower tier.
With such immense popularity, it was safe to say the animation was already halfway to success before it even aired.
This, of course, made many in the animation industry bitter:
"A magical girl anime is actually this highly anticipated before it's even aired? Are you kidding me?"
"I just don't get it. If it were a mecha anime with this much hype, I'd understand. But it's a magical girl anime! Why are so many people looking forward to it?"
"An anime about magical girls topping the new anime anticipation rankings? The industry is doomed."
"A magical girl anime is bad enough, but it's also an original work—not adapted from a manga or game, not a sequel to a popular franchise. That's just absurd."
"How much money did they pour into the marketing? Even if it's the first high-quality animated TV series of its kind, even if Lin Zhiyan has built a massive fanbase through Death Note, Code Geass, and Gurren Lagann, a magical girl anime shouldn't be this popular, right?"
"There are so many excellent anime in other genres, yet people are hyping up the least promising one. I just don't understand modern audiences."
Sourness, envy, jealousy, and hatred.
These are human nature, and they're unavoidable.
In reality, these people hadn't experienced the early promotion of the original Puella Magi Madoka Magica from another timeline. In 2011, magical girl anime was practically on its last legs. For this series to have emerged from the crowd of new shows and claimed the top spot on the new anime anticipation charts was truly absurd.
Lin Zhiyan's situation, on the other hand, was perfectly normal.
Regardless, the popularity of Puella Magi Madoka Madoka Magica before its premiere was undeniable.
Then, after a year, came January 2006.
At midnight on January 8th, the first episode of the animation aired precisely on time.
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