Mitakihara Town

Mitakihara night panorama stitch

Mitakihara Town (見滝原町, Mitakihara-chō) is a provincial city where the story takes place. It was not until recently that development began in the town. Much modern architecture has been constructed since.

Also Mitakihara City (見滝原市, Mitakihara-shi) is mentioned in the story. The evacuation notice in Episode 11 refers to Mitakihara City. Mitakihara Town is most likely another name used for Mitakihara City. It is possible the town is a subdivision of the city, though if this were the case, it'd be more likely referred to as a ward.

Pictures of the Town

View of Mitakihara Town
Ground-level view of the city at sunset.
Buildings seen from rooftop at Madoka's school.
Mitakihara seems to have a port like to Port of Yokohama.
Comparison between the factory district skyline in Mitakihara and the factory district shown in Bakemonogatari, a previous work by Akiyuki Shinbo.
Aerial photography of the city.
The hospital that Kamijou is treated at.
The city skyline at night.
Mitakihara from a distance.

Architecture in the Anime versus Real-Life Architecture

Episode 1

Real building	Real address	Explanation	First appearance
Burj Khalifa	Dubai, United Arab Emirates	A similar-looking building appears in the OP for most episodes.	Opening sequence
The skyline	Dubai	A shot of Mitakihara's skyline, when the school bell rings.	9:08
Shanghai World Financial Center (100th floor)	Shanghai, China	The hallway in Madoka's school is very similar to the observation deck on the 100th floor of this building.	13:07
ÆON Mall Hanyu	Saitama, Japan		14:48
Weltstadthaus	Cologne, Germany.	The shopping mall Madoka and Sayaka go to after school	14:51
Helix Bridge	Singapore	The bridge in/nearby the shopping mall	14:53
Citystars Shopping Mall	Cairo, Egypt		14:54
Eiffel Tower	Paris, France	This is a part of Gertrud's Labyrinth apparition sequence. Note that several other buildings have a similar design, such as the Tokyo Tower	19:30

Episode 2

Real building	Real address	Explanation	First appearance
Russia Tower	Moscow, Russia.	The building that can be seen from the rooftop of Mitakihara school.	12:30
Pentominium	Dubai	Another building that can be seen from the rooftop of the school.	12:55
UOB Plaza	Singapore	One of the buildings featured in a background of episode 2.	16:03
Yokohama port area seen from Yokohama Landmark Tower	Naka-ku, Yokohama	Appears as Mitakihara in Episode 2 (upper) and 9 (lower).	16:32

Episode 3

Visual comparison	Real building	Real address	Explanation	First appearance
	Yoyogi National Gymnasium	Shibuya, Tokyo		9:48

Episode 4

Real building	Real address	Explanation	First appearance
Amarube Viaduct	Hyogo, Japan		9:53
The downside of Tachikawa-Kita Station of Tama Monorail and Tachikawa Takashimaya	Tachikawa, Tokyo	Just before Madoka runs into Hitomi during the night, there are several shots of places, including this one.	15:11
Granduo Tachikawa	Tachikawa, Tokyo		15:19
Gotemba Premium Outlets	Shizuoka, Japan		15:21

Episode 5

Real building	Real address	Explanation	First appearance
Iwabuchi Sluice Gate	Arakawa‐Sumida Rivers junction in Kita, Tokyo		5:23
Empire State Building	Manhattan, New York	Several shots of what is thought to be the Empire States Building without its spire. Appears when Kyouko is spying on Sayaka with her magically-enhanced goggles.	9:53
Empire State Building	Manhattan, New York		9:53
Taipei 101	Taipei, Taiwan	This is a zoom of a part of the background just before Sayaka goes to her first witch hunt.	16:18
Art Courtyard Passage	Dresden, Germany		17:43

Episode 6

Visual comparison	Real building	Real address	Explanation	First appearance
	Commerzbank Tower	Frankfurt, Germany	A shot of the city, just before we see Kyouko playing DDR, probably implying that the arcade hall is supposed to be nearby that area.	6:18

Episode 7

Real building	Real address	Explanation	First appearance
The Gunma Prefectual Government Building (tallest), Gunma Prefectual Police HQ (left) and Maebashikoen Park (nearside)	Maebashi, Japan	The screenshot is from the sequence when Kyouko brings Sayaka to her dad's church, probably implying that this area is on the way there.	7:01
		The full photo for better comparison. Courtesy of 2ch anon, who went outside to take that perfect picture.
		The full screenshot for comparison.

Episode 8

Real building	Real address	Explanation	First appearance
Burj Al Arab	Dubai, UAE	This is a zoom from the frame shown during credits. Anime image is flipped, and the reference in general is controversed.	2:58
Emirates Towers	Sheikh Zayed Road, Dubai, United Arab Emirates		2:58
A typical bus stop	Curitiba, Brazil		3:08
Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building	Shinjuku, Tokyo	Appears in a shot of the city just before Hitomi confesses to Kamijou	8:16
Princess Tower	Dubai		8:16
Akibadaisho Entrance	Hachioji, Tokyo		8:48
Matsugaya Station of Tama Monorail	Hachioji, Tokyo	This is one frame from a series of shots of Sayaka's neighborhood. The other shots may reference "something" too, but no source has been found so far.	8:50
Kazakaeshihodo Bridge	Hachioji, Tokyo		8:57

Episode 9

Visual comparison	Real building	Real address	Explanation	First appearance
	Ogikubo Planets	Ogikubo, Tokyo	The building nearby the Ogikubo Station (North Exit)	12:20

Episode 10

Visual comparison	Real building	Real address	Explanation	First appearance
	Arc de Triomphe	Paris, France	Izabel's barrier has various references to Paris monuments, amongst which is possibly a distorted version of the Arc de Triomphe.	4:14

Episode 11

Visual comparison	Real building	Real address	Explanation	First appearance
	The greater Tokyo area seen from Tokyo Tower	Tokyo, Japan		7:07-7:13

Episode 12

Real building	Real address	Explanation	First appearance
Sogakudo Concert Hall	Taito, Tokyo.	Kamijou played his violin in it.	13:30
Sapporo Concert Hall	Sapporo, Japan		15:30
1 Dubai Tower	Jumeirah Garden City, Dubai.	A proposed complex of three skyscrapers. In March 2009, the project was cancelled. It appears during the scene with Homura having a conversation with Junko while watching over the city across the river.	18:17

Movies

The Beginning Story

Real building	Real address	Explanation	First appearance
Yamashita Park Stone Stage	Kanagawa, Japan		0:19:09
The National Art Center, Tokyo	Minato, Tokyo	The National Art Center, Tokyo (国立新美術館 Kokuritsu Shinbijutsukan) is a museum in Roppongi, Minato, Tokyo, Japan. A joint project of the Agency for Cultural Affairs and the National Museums Independent Administrative Institution, it stands on a site formerly occupied by a research facility of the University of Tokyo.	0:23:57
The Milan Cathedral	Milan, Italy	Milan Cathedral (Italian: Duomo di Milano; Lombard: Domm de Milan) is the cathedral church of Milan, Italy. Dedicated to Santa Maria Nascente (Saint Mary Nascent), it is the seat of the Archbishop of Milan, currently Cardinal Angelo Scola. The Gothic cathedral took nearly six centuries to complete. It is the fifth largest cathedral in the world and the largest in the Italian state territory.	0:24:00
London Eye and Charing Cross Railway Station	Lambeth, London		0:27:40
Waterloo Station	Lambeth, London		0:27:44

The Rebellion Story

Visual comparison	Real building	Real address	Explanation	First appearance
	Kejonuma Leisure Land Ferris Wheel	Miyagi Prefecture, Japan	Kejonuma Leisure Land was an amusement park originally opened in 1979. It closed down in 2000 and now remains abandoned.	Movie 3 Opening
	Berlin Central Station	Berlin, Germany	Work started on a new Berlin Central Station after the fall of the Berlin Wall, as a symbol of a reunified Germany. The station itself vaguely resembles a mushroom.	0:01:39

Mitakihara City as seen in Madoka Magica Portable

An aerial view of Mitakihara City as seen in the Madoka Magica Portable game. It may or may not be an approximation of what the city looks like in the anime.

Mitakihara City as seen in Madoka Magica Online

Mitakihara City as seen in Magia Record

Hospital lobby
Hospital room

Trivia

Originally the town was called Misakihara but was changed on the final script.

City Mascot: Mi-ta kun

Mi-ta kun is the mascot of Mitakihara city.[1]

It makes its first appearance in Puella Magi Madoka Magica the Movie: The Rebellion Story.

The name is Mi-ta kun.
A mascot of Mitakihara-city.
Its actual motif is not an octopus thing but a kind of plant.
The city paid 30,000,000 yen to the super famous designer for this design order, but almost all of citizens are totally indifferent to it.
You can find him every bus stop in Mitakihara.

External links

Mitakihara Town at official website's glossary
Legwork Archives (Japanese, some links have more comparisons than the ones shown here)
Anime Tourism
Foursquare City Guide
Google Map

Mitakihara Town

Contents

Pictures of the Town