Elsa Maria

Elsa Maria (ELSAMARIA) is a witch who battles Sayaka at the end of Episode 7. She reappears in Madoka Magica Portable and Madoka Magica Mobage. Her familiars make an appearance in The Rebellion Story and Magia Record

Witch Card

影の魔女。その性質は独善。全ての生命のために祈り続ける魔女。祈りの姿勢を崩さぬまま、その影の中へとあらゆる命を平等に引きずり込む。この魔女を倒したくば、黒色の苦痛を知らなくてはならない。

Elsa Maria Runes ELSA MARIA Type Shadow witch Nature Self-righteousness Episodes Episode 7 The witch of shadow with a self-righteous nature. She continually prays for all of creation and drags all life equally into her shadow without breaking her posture. One hoping to defeat her must know the blackest anguish.

Minions

影の魔女の手下。その役割は妄信。 影の魔女によって平等に救われてしまった命達の集合体。 彼らは同胞を求めている。

Sebastian Runes SEBASTIAN Type Shadow witch's minions Duty Blind belief Episodes Episode 7, The Rebellion Story The shadow witch's minions, whose duty is to blindly believe. They are an aggregate of the lives who have found salvation thanks to the shadow witch. They continually seek out companions.

History

Original Anime

Elsa Maria appears at the end of Episode 7 where she fights Sayaka. Madoka accompanies her and Kyoko arrives to help. Elsa Maria uses an attack where a thick tree grows out of her back to stop Sayaka growing close to her. She is swiftly defeated due to Sayaka's emotional state, she hacks at her mercilessly with blood spurting out of the witch. Her Grief Seed is shown after the fight. Sayaka rejects it and gives it to Kyoko.

The Rebellion Story

While Elsa Maria doesn't make a reappearance in The Rebellion Story, her familiars do. Nagisa rides on them during the fight against Homulilly.

Madogatari Song

The Witch's Hymn (魔女の賛美歌)

Original text	Translation
光よ　祈りよ　ビン底よ 主なる骨のこびり付き肉 殻の内には　美徳の炭塊 主なる力よ　罪　沈め給え この怒りは　悲しみは 歓声の群れの食べ残し 舐め取り給え　誰も等しく 伸びる炭影　その全てまで	O light, o prayer, o bottle-base Clinging bits of meat upon the Lordly bones Inside the shell are the coal lumps of virtue O Lordly power, submerge our sins This anger-- this sorrow-- they are The table scraps of the crowding cheers of joy Lick them up equally, one and all Those long coal shadows, to the very last drop

Observations

• She is named after Elsa Asenijeff, also known as Elsa Maria Packeny. After refusing many proposals, she was forced by her parents to marry a diplomat eleven years her senior; She felt at the mercy of her husband, a theme that influenced her literary works. She eventually divorced the diplomat and remarried an artist, though this marriage too suffered when her second husband took an 18-year-old girl named Gertrude Bock as a model and companion, whom he eventually married shortly before his death after he and Asenijeff also divorced. After this divorce, she lived in poverty as her second ex-husband refused to support her financially; she eventually became isolated from her friends and family and was admitted to a psychiatric clinic
• Her name is possibly a reference to the song Ave Maria which Kyousuke Kamijou is known to play
• She could also be a reference to Jeanne d'Arc, another magical girl (as shown in episode 12.) Jeanne said she was hearing the voices of saints, angels and God, and prayed very often
• Elsa Maria may be linked to Kakure Kirishitan (or "Hidden Christians") which were a group of practicing Christians that existed in hiding from the mid 1600's and on. Freedom of Religion was finally granted to Japanese citizens in 1871, which may have been the result of a wish. This would explain the heavily religious nature of the witch.
  • This can be an accurate theory because witches can not only live forever if never killed, which in this case would be difficult because of how she can only be defeated by a magical girl "with the blackest anguish," but they can also live on as familiars that break away and grow back into witches. Not all witches are necessarily new, they can survive for a very long time and duplicate if a part is broken off.
  • On the other hand, Elsa Maria could be a modern Japanese Christian, possibly a descendant of the Kakure Kirishitan and/or just very influenced by their history and martyrdom (like real life writer Shusaku Endo, who was Catholic). She might be from either Nagasaki (the city with the biggest historical connection with Japanese Catholicism, and one of the places where the Kakure Kirishitan came from), Akita (the prefecture where the Marian apparitions known as Our Lady of Akita took place) or the Madoka world's equivalent to Nagasaki and Akita.
• The tree growing from Elsa Maria's back may be a reference to the Biblical tale of Adam & Eve. The familiars could be a reference to the animals in The Garden of Eden
• There is possibility that Elsa Maria is praying for America to end World War II, given the Statue of Liberty-like image in her labyrinth. The dead tree look of her attacks may reference the effect of the fallout radiation from the nuclear bomb that was dropped on Japan. Her minions also are representative of the twelve zodiac, which may imply the transition after World War II from Eastern thought to the Western thought that happened after World War II

Trivia

• The Guidebook indicates that Elsa Maria's labyrinth design is a Church, with the words "I wish you, although not seen from me, to be happy." （まだ見ないあなたが幸せであるように）. It indicates when the Witch dies, the stained glass collapses and drops into the air. There's a 'baaaaaaahn' sound like from a pipe organ

Gallery

Official Art

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  TL of Upper right corner: "A girl has become a mahou shoujo to save the world. However, Nothing has changed at all. Even a little. For sure, there is lack of salvation. I must help. I must help. Equally, All impartially."

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  Art of Elsa Maria from the Puella Magi Production Note

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  Storyboards of Sayaka fighting Elsa Maria

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  Art from the Puella Magi Madoka Magica Official Guidebook "You Are Not Alone"

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  Art featuring Elsa Maria and Sebastian from the Key Animation Note volume 6

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  Memoria card from Magia Record

Screenshots

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  The labyrinth begins to appear in Episode 7

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  Runes circling the left and right sides of the screen reveal Elsa Maria's name

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  The same scene on BD version

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  Combined images of Elsa Maria's labyrinth

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  Sebastian

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  Elsa Maria's tree attack

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  Sayaka kills Elsa Maria

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  A shawl floats down as the labyrinth crumbles

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  Elsa Maria's labyrinth, outside view on BD version

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  Elsa Maria's Grief Seed

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The Rebellion Story

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  Sebastian in The Rebellion Story

Manga

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  Elsa Maria in the manga

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  Elsa Maria's labyrinth

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  Elsa Maria's grief seed

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  Elsa Maria in The Different Story

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  Sebastian

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  Sebastian in the Rebellion Manga

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  Elsa Maria's cameo

Madoka Magica Portable

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  Elsa Maria's introduction from Madoka Magica Portable

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  Elsa Maria's name in Runes

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  New familiars that resemble hands

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  They make shapes when idle

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  Elsa Maria's barrier

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  Elsa Maria's boss room

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  The entrance to Elsa Maria's boss room. This part was never seen in the anime

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  Elsa Maria's witch kiss from the loading screen

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  Elsa Maria's Grief Seed

Madoka Magica Mobage

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  Elsa Maria in Madoka Magica Mobage

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  Sebastian

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Madoka Magica Plus

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  Art of Elsa Maria from Madoka Magica Plus

SLOT Puella Magi Madoka Magica

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  Elsa Maria from SLOT Puella Magi Madoka Magica

The Battle Pentagram

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  Elsa Maria's introduction from The Battle Pentagram

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  Elsa Maria's name in Runes

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  The hand shaped Sebastian

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  A white recolour of Elsa Maria's labyrinth

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  In this recoloured labyrinth, the red spire resembles art from the Puella Magi Production Note while also having a moon instead of a sun at the centre

Merchandise

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  Movic Witch Collection 2

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  Ichiban Kuji G prize art glass

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  Ichiban Kuji H prize clear file

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  Grief Seed phone strap

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  Grief Seed pin

External links

• Elsa Maria card at official website (Japanese)
• Sebastian's card at official website (Japanese)
• Elsa Maria pixiv fanart