Jubey
| Jubey | |
|---|---|
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| Japanese Name | ジュゥべぇ (Jubey) |
Jubey (ジュゥべぇ) is a character in Puella Magi Kazumi Magica: The Innocent Malice.
Described as a fairy (妖精), but very likely an Incubator, he was the Pleiades Saints's contractor. He is particularly notable for being able to clean their Soul Gems by his own, relieving the girls of the need to compete for Grief Seeds.
Personality
While he is very likely an Incubator, and should therefore be emotionless, he has displayed more emotional behavior in a few panels than his counterpart Kyubey has in the entire anime. He displays annoyance/embarrassment when violently hugged by Satomi against her breasts, and disgust when he is fed Evil Nuts instead of Grief Seeds. Furthermore, he dislikes being called Bey-chan.
Most importantly, he appears to be able to understand the concept of deception. While he behaves normally around the Pleiades, he is shown looking down on them with an evil grin, saying, "Do you think things will go well this time, Pleiades?".
It should be noted, however, that while Incubators may be emotionless (apart from mentally ill ones), the Manga version of Madoka Magica has given Kyubey a lot more facial expression.
History
This section may contain major spoilers for the Kazumi Magica manga!
Please refrain from reading if you haven't read the latest chapter yet.
Jubey has so far only appeared in Kazumi Magica.
He appeared after the Pleiades rescued Umika and Kaoru from an escaped witch. He stood on a rooftop watching their celebration, alongside Kyubey.
Jumping down, he was introduced to Kazumi, who was shocked at what seemed to be a talking cat, as Jubey, the fairy (妖精) who had turned them into Puellae Magi. He proceeded to absorb the darkness inside the girls' Soul Gems by gracefully spinning in the air, and then quite literally eat a Grief Seed given to him by Nico. When asking for more, he was fed Evil Nuts, the awkward looking Grief Seeds dropped by the pseudo-witches they faced before, which he spat out with apparent disgust, saying they weren't Grief Seeds. Umika theorized they imitated the Grief Seed's power and were created by the mysterious girl from before, but before they could draw further conclusions, a huge blast hit the group. Jubey wasn't seen since, but is implied to have survived, given the multiple bodies of his (likely) fellow Incubator, Kyubey.
Powers, Weapons & Abilities
This section may contain major spoilers for the anime!
Please refrain from reading if you haven't watched Episode 8 yet.As an Incubator, he wields the power to grant wishes through contracts and, by removing one's soul and giving it a physical form as a Soul Gem, give a Puella Magi their powers. He also disposes of Grief Seeds by eating them. It is assumed he possesses other powers displayed by his "cousin", Kyubey, such as possessing multiple bodies and being able to show memories inside other's minds.
He has, however, shown an ability of his own, unseen before: the power to clean a Puella Magi's Soul Gem on his own, without requiring the use of a Grief Seed. This could have franchise-wide implications.
Trivia
- Unlike Kyubey, who merely drops Grief Seeds onto a hatch in his back, Jubey literally eats them: the circle in his forehead can be seen clenching just as one's mouth does while eating, and munching sounds can be heard.
Speculation
- It appears that he absorbs the grief from the Soul Gems onto his skin, which is appropriately pitch black.
- In the anime, magical girls worked alone or in small groups because the Grief Seeds they needed to clean their Soul Gems were a limited resource. Magical girls could easily clash over territory and were just as likely to compete than cooperate. When the Pleiades Saints were revealed to be a seven-member magical girl team, a number of readers wondered how that could be possible in this context. It was considered unlikely that there were enough witches in Asunaro City to support seven magical girls. Chapter 4 explained that Jubey, the fairy they contracted with, can clean their Soul Gems, meaning they don't need to compete for Grief Seeds.
- What was left unexplained was is why this was done. Kyubey has never demonstrated the ability to clean Soul Gems in the anime. In fact, he actively seeked to have the girls corrupt their Soul Gems and turn into witches. One probable explanation is that from what we've seen, the Pleiades had fairly minior wishes and were therefore weaker magical girls. Being weak magical girls, they wouldn't become powerful witches, and thus they wouldn't produce a lot of energy when they transformed. It is then more efficient for Jubey to let them hunt Grief Seeds for him than to try and convert them into witches.
In purely mathematical terms, a team of weak Puellae Magi capturing a more powerful witch than themselves, using team tactics to level the field, is extremely efficient when it comes to energy output.
- What was left unexplained was is why this was done. Kyubey has never demonstrated the ability to clean Soul Gems in the anime. In fact, he actively seeked to have the girls corrupt their Soul Gems and turn into witches. One probable explanation is that from what we've seen, the Pleiades had fairly minior wishes and were therefore weaker magical girls. Being weak magical girls, they wouldn't become powerful witches, and thus they wouldn't produce a lot of energy when they transformed. It is then more efficient for Jubey to let them hunt Grief Seeds for him than to try and convert them into witches.
Gallery
Jubey standing alongside Kyubey. Together known as The Legion Of Doom.
Maybe not such a good "fairy".
Just a snack.
An "imitation" Grief Seed, a.k.a Evil Nut. Do not feed them your Incubator. Especially after midnight.
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