Magical Warfare is a Japanese light novel series written by Hisashi Suzuki and illustrated by Lunalia. Twelve volumes have been published by Media Factory since November 25, 2011 under their MF Bunko J label. A manga adaptation by You Ibuki started serialization in the manga magazineMonthly Comic Gene on April 15, 2013 and Kadokawa made the English digital volumes available on BookWalker on October 29, 2015. A 12-episode anime television series adaptation by Madhouse originally aired between January 9 and March 27, 2014.
Plot
Takeshi Nanase is an ordinary high school student who has a somewhat dark and troubled past. On his way to kendo practice, he comes across a girl named Mui Aiba in a school uniform he never saw before. After being nursed back to health by Takeshi, instead of thanking him, she accidentally turns him into a magician. Takeshi learns that the current world is actually split into two - the world that he's living in, and the world of magicians. He also learns that Mui is a magician enrolled in the Subaru Magic Academy, where many magicians can learn to control their powers and live in peace with regular humans. Instead of returning to the real world, Takeshi and his new magician friends Kurumi Isoshima and Kazumi Ida decide to enroll into the academy as well. These three friends are fighting for different reasons, either to escape their turbulent past or to catch up to the future. They possess different abilities which they must learn to harness in order to fend off the Ghost Trailers, a group of magicians who are resorting to using violence to assert their superiority over humans. Takeshi and his friends must strive to become stronger and must face the Ghost Trailers' leader in order to prevent the Second Great Magic War from taking place.
Characters
Main characters
;Takeshi Nanase ;Mui Aiba ;Kurumi Isoshima ;Kazumi Ida
Subaru Magic Academy
;Momoka Shijō ;Makoto Hitōji ;Nanami Hyōdō ;Pops ;Violet North
The first light novel was published on November 25, 2011 by Media Factory under their MF Bunko J imprint. Twelve volumes have been published as of September 25, 2015.
Manga
A manga adaptation by You Ibuki started serialization in the manga magazine Monthly Comic Gene on April 15, 2013. Media Factory published 6 tankōbon volumes between September 27, 2013 and August 27, 2015.
Anime
It was one of five MF Bunko J light novel anime adaptations announced at Media Factory's Summer School Festival event on July 28, 2013. A 12-episode anime television series adaptation by Madhouse aired from January 9, 2014 to March 27, 2014. The opening song is "Senkō no Prisoner" performed by Yuuka Nanri and ending theme song is "Born To Be" by Nano. On January 3, 2014, Crunchyroll announced that it has obtained the streaming rights for USA, Canada, UK, Ireland, South Africa, Australia, and New Zealand. Sentai Filmworks has licensed the anime for digital and home video release in North America. Kadokawa Entertainment also released the series on Blu-ray on April 18, 2014. Aniplex Japan later released the series alongside World Conquest Zvezda Plot on March 19, 2014.
Episode list
Reception
The anime series has been met with overwhelmingly negative reviews. Nicoletta Browne of THEM Anime Reviews found several problems with the show, among them being the bland characters, poorly constructed plot, and the cliffhanger ending. She concludes that "the laziness and incompetence on display throughout are just depressing to witness." Suzuki admitted that it was a mistake to have his light novel adapted into an anime.
