Madlax: Difference between revisions

''"No, this is reality."'' }}

''[[Madlax]]'' is the second installment of [[Bee Train]]'s [[Girls with Guns]] trilogy, following ''[[Noir (anime)|Noir]]'' and followed by ''[[El Cazador de la Bruja]]''. As arguably the most striking innovation in action-adventure anime since ''Noir'', ''Madlax'' incorporates many supernatural aspects and concepts associated with psychological thrillers and surrealism, [[Viewers Are Geniuses|which the audience must often interpret without further explanation]]. The title is a [[Portmantitle|portmanteau]] of English words "mad" and "relaxed", playing on the prominent theme of [[Order Versus Chaos|batshit insanity vs. outright catatonia]] in the story. (It isn't supposed to sound like [[Mad Max]].)

The story revolves around two young women who seemingly have little in common and do not know of the other's existence, at first. The eponymous Madlax is a [[Extraordinarily Empowered Girl|legend]] amongst the mercenaries and assassins of the fictional [[During the War|civil war-torn]] country of Gazth-Sonika. "[[Only One Name|Madlax]]" is a code name and a substitute for her real one, [[Easy Amnesia|forgotten]] along with the rest of her past before 1999, when the war started. The other protagonist is Margaret Burton, the sole heir of a wealthy aristocratic family in the peaceful European country of Nafrece. Twelve years before the story begins, an airliner her mother and she were on crashed over Gazth-Sonika, and its passengers, as well as Margaret's father who leadled the rescuers, have been missing ever since. Margaret managed to travel back to Nafrece on her own, though how she made it remains a mystery considering that she too has lost her memories prior to her return; the only thing she recalls it theis one word: "Madlax". With this thread linking the two girls, they both independently start investigating the powerful crime syndicate Enfant and its [[Diabolical Mastermind]] who, for some reason, shows interest in both of them.

Although originally dismissed as yet another ''Noir'' [[Dueling Shows|Rip Offrip-off]] by many a viewer, ''Madlax'' was universally praised for its complex yet comprehensible plot (which successfully blends [[Mind Screw|Mind Screwing]]ing mysteries, over-the-top [[Heroic Bloodshed]] action, and heavy doses of existentialistic symbolism in later episodes), an ingenious soundtrack on par with ''Noir''{{'}}s, and memorable characters. Never the lessNevertheless, the initial resentment and the three years between the two series' air dates left ''Madlax'' forever in its predecessor's shadow, much to the discontent of a small number of extremely dedicated fans. The show was licensed by [[ADV Films]] in America and Europe.

* [[All There in the Manual]]: Creator comments on the DVD inletsinserts contain a great deal of background information about the characters, partly explaining the big [[Mind Screw]] this series is.

* [[Fantasy Counterpart Culture|Alternate History Counterpart Culture]]: Gazth-Sonika is somewhere in the vague vicinity of Pakistan but is Southeast-Asian in culture; Nafrece shows some English influence but is mostly France; parallels with the Viet NamVietnam war are obvious (and clearly intentional).

* [[Anyone Can Die]]: Less than a half of the main characters survive the series' duration.

* [[Badass AdorableNormal]]: MadlaxLimelda, oha somundane, veryalbeit sweet and cute for a mass-murdererelite, andsoldier able {{spoiler|Margeretto incombat the finalsupernatural episodesMadlax.}}

* [[Battle Royale With Cheese]]: {{spoiler|Vanessa, Carrossea, and Elenore are implied to have been resurrected at the end but, in a subversion, don't actually assist in the battle with Monday or show up again at all.}}.

* [[Cartwright Curse]]: Every single person who is or attempts to be romantically involved with Madlax dies {{spoiler|with the sole exception of Limelda}}. Most of them of them die in the time period between her agreeing to go on a date with them, and the time the date was supposed to happen.

* [[Colonel Badass]]: Col. Richard Burton, Margaret's dad: {{spoiler|not only was he able to enter the Sanctuary without possessing the Gift, but he also confronted the [[Big Bad]] Monday, mutilating and ''stripping him of most of his powers'', a feat only surpassed by Madlax who actually killed him... didDid we mention that "Madlax" originally was ''his'' callsign? Too bad he wasn't immune to the Words of Awakening}}.

* [[Dissonant Serenity]]: Madlax.

* [[Disturbed Doves]]: E.g. inIn episode 12, when Madlax shoots at Limelda.

* [[Gainax Ending]]: {{spoiler|It's hard to distinguish a [[Downer Ending]] from [[Earn Your Happy Ending]] when there are [[SchrodingersSchrödinger's Cat|vague implications both ways about the eventual fate]] of three supporting characters.}}

* [[SchrodingersSchrödinger's Cat]]: {{spoiler|Vanessa, Elenore, Carrossea.}}

** Also, the [https://web.archive.org/web/20160311140253/http://www.beetrainfan.org/wiki/index.php?title=Red_shoesred_shoes red shoes].

[[Category:Military and Warfare Anime Andand Manga]]