The Magical Girl and the Evil Lieutenant Used to Be Archenemies

The Magical Girl and the Evil Lieutenant Used to Be Archenemies (Japanese: かつて魔法少女と悪は敵対していた。, Hepburn: Katsute Mahō Shōjo to Aku wa Tekitai Shiteita) is a Japanese four-panel manga series written and illustrated by Cocoa Fujiwara. It follows the lieutenant of an evil organization who falls in love with the magical girl sent to defeat it. The manga was serialized in Square Enix's Monthly Gangan Joker magazine from September 2013 to March 2015, with its chapters collected into three tankōbon volumes. An anime television series adaptation produced by Bones aired from July to September 2024.

The Magical Girl and the Evil Lieutenant Used to Be Archenemies
First tankōbon volume cover
かつて魔法少女と悪は敵対していた。 (Katsute Mahō Shōjo to Aku wa Tekitai Shiteita)
Genre	Romantic fantasy[1]
Manga
Written by	Cocoa Fujiwara
Published by	Square Enix
English publisher	NA: Yen Press
Imprint	Gangan Comics Joker
Magazine	Monthly Gangan Joker
Original run	September 21, 2013 – March 20, 2015
Volumes	3
Anime television series
Directed by	Akiyo Ohashi
Written by	Yuniko Ayana
Music by	Mayuko
Studio	Bones
Licensed by	Crunchyroll
Original network	AT-X, Tokyo MX, BS11
Original run	July 9, 2024 – September 24, 2024
Episodes	12

Characters

Mira (ミラ)

Voiced by: Yūki Ono^[2]

Byakuya Mimori (深森 白夜, Mimori Byakuya)

Voiced by: Mai Nakahara^[2]

Cat Familiar (御使い（猫）, Mitsukai (Neko))

Voiced by: Shin-ichiro Miki^[3]

Hibana Kagari (篝 火花, Kagari Hibana)

Voiced by: Mariya Ise^[3]

Bird Familiar (御使い（鳥）, Mitsukai (Tori))

Voiced by: Hikaru Midorikawa^[3]

Fomalhaut (フォーマルハウト, Fōmaruhauto)

Voiced by: Kenichi Suzumura^[4]

Bellatrix (ベラトリックス, Beratorikkusu)

Voiced by: Ayako Kawasumi^[4]

Alcyone (アルキオネ, Arukione)

Voiced by: Hiro Shimono^[4]

Spica (スピカ, Supika)

Voiced by: Nao Tōyama^[4]

Sadalsudh (サダルスウド, Sadarusuudo)

Voiced by: Takumi Yamazaki^[4]

Betelgeuse (ベテルギウス, Beterugiusu)

Voiced by: Takaya Hashi^[4]

Media

Manga

Written and illustrated by Cocoa Fujiwara, The Magical Girl and the Evil Lieutenant Used to Be Archenemies began serialization in Square Enix's Monthly Gangan Joker magazine on September 21, 2013.^[5] The series was left unfinished following Fujiwara's death on March 31, 2015, with the chapter published on March 20 serving as the finale.^[6][7] The third and final tankōbon volume was released posthumously on March 22, 2016, after consulting with her family.^[8]

In February 2024, Yen Press announced that it licensed the series for English publication,^[9] and they released the series as an omnibus volume on August 27, 2024.^[10]

Volumes

No.	Original release date	Original ISBN	English release date	English ISBN
1	July 22, 2014[11]	978-4-7575-4360-7	August 27, 2024[10]	978-1-9753-9410-3
2	December 22, 2014[12]	978-4-7575-4509-0	August 27, 2024[10]	978-1-9753-9410-3
3	March 22, 2016[13]	978-4-7575-4916-6	August 27, 2024[10]	978-1-9753-9410-3

Anime

An anime television series adaptation was announced by Avex Pictures during its Anime NYC panel in November 2023.^[7] It was produced by Bones and directed by Akiyo Ohashi, with scripts written by Yuniko Ayana, character designs handled by Haruko Iizuka, and music composed by Mayuko.^[14][1] Several voice actors reprised their roles from the drama CD adaptation released in 2015.^[3][15] The series aired from July 9 to September 24, 2024, on AT-X and other networks.^[4] The opening theme song is "Mikansei Rendezvous" (未完成ランデヴー; lit. 'Incomplete Rendezvous') performed by Lezel, while the ending theme song is "Itsumo Futari ga Īi ne" (いつも二人がいいね; lit. 'It's Nice That the Two of Them Are Always Together') performed by Yūki Ono and Mai Nakahara.^[16] Crunchyroll streamed the series.^[17]

Episodes

No.	Title [18][19]	Directed by [18]	Storyboarded by [18]	Original release date [18]
1	"Won't Kill For Love" Transliteration: "Kuroshi Awanai" (Japanese: 殺し愛（あ）わない)	Takayuki Yamamoto	Akiyo Ohashi	July 9, 2024 (2024-07-09)
2	"The (Taking Down of The) Magical Girl Belongs To (No One But) Me" Transliteration: "Mahō Shōjo (o Taosu Shimei, Sore) wa (Hoka Demonai) Watashi no Mono da" (Japanese: 魔法少女（を倒す使命、それ）は（他でもない）私のものだ)	Takayuki Yamamoto	Akiyo Ohashi	July 16, 2024 (2024-07-16)
3	"Now Back to the Drawing Board" Transliteration: "Soshite Furidashi e" (Japanese: そしてふりだしへ)	Kenta Kushitani	Kenta Kushitani	July 23, 2024 (2024-07-23)
4	"A Habit of Chasing What Moves" Transliteration: "Ugoku Mono o Oshūsei ga Arimasu" (Japanese: 動くものを追う習性があります)	Hiroo Nagano	Hitoyuki Matsui	July 30, 2024 (2024-07-30)
5	"We're Enemies" Transliteration: "Wareware wa Tekitai Shiteiru" (Japanese: 我々は敵対している)	Hitomi Ezoe	Akiyo Ohashi	August 6, 2024 (2024-08-06)
6	"What's Magical Girls Are" Transliteration: "Mahō Shōjo to Wa" (Japanese: 魔法少女とは)	Masayuki Otsuki	Takayuki Yamamoto	August 13, 2024 (2024-08-13)
7	"They're Friends...?" Transliteration: "Yūjin…?" (Japanese: 友人…？)	Hiroo Nagano	Hiroo Nagano	August 20, 2024 (2024-08-20)
8	"Before Christmas" Transliteration: "Kurisumasu no Mae ni" (Japanese: クリスマスの前に)	Masayuki Otsuki	Takuya Igarashi	August 27, 2024 (2024-08-27)
9	"On Christmas Night" Transliteration: "Kurisumasu no Yoru ni" (Japanese: クリスマスの夜に)	Kenta Kushitani	Takuya Igarashi	September 3, 2024 (2024-09-03)
10	"A Day with Mr. Familiar" Transliteration: "Gotsukai-san to no Ichi Nichi" (Japanese: 御使いさんとの一日)	Hitomi Ezoe	Hitomi Ezoe	September 10, 2024 (2024-09-10)
11	"53-Year Old Building" Transliteration: "Chiku Gojūsan-nen desu" (Japanese: 築五十三年です)	Masayuki Otsuki	Takuya Igarashi	September 17, 2024 (2024-09-17)
12	"Side B / Side M"	Akiyo Ohashi	Akiyo Ohashi	September 24, 2024 (2024-09-24)

Reception

The series was ranked nineteenth alongside Asobiai in the 2015 edition of Takarajimasha's Kono Manga ga Sugoi! list of best manga for male readers.^[20]