Gushing Over Magical Girls Manga Returns October 17

Good news for fans who have been waiting patiently. Akihiro Ononaka’s Gushing Over Magical Girls manga is set to resume serialization with chapter 59 on October 17, moving to Takeshobo’s new Takecomi! website.

The series had been on hiatus since March 2024 while Ononaka focused on recovering their health, so its return is a welcome sign.

For the uninitiated, the story follows Hiiragi Utena, an ordinary middle school girl and devoted magical girl fan whose life turns upside down when a talking mascot casts a spell on her, and she finds herself transformed into a villain rather than a hero. It is a cheeky, genre flipping comedy that plays with the conventions of the magical girl format. J-Novel Club publishes the manga in English.

The franchise has already reached a wider audience through its anime adaptation, which helped build the following now welcoming the manga back.

My take: A creator’s health always comes first, so it is simply nice to hear Ononaka is well enough to continue. Stories that turn the magical girl formula on its head have a real charm, and I am glad this one gets to keep going.