Imagine for second that you are 11 years old again and your fantasy world is the free African savannah, open and free, full of love, and the only thing you can possibly think about is about what fun adventures are around the corner. Then out of nowhere, society calls and tells you its time to take your first step towards adulthood. You wake up, and the dream is gone, but you remember the dream, but its time to get dressed and go to school and be part of society. In a very metaphorical sense, this is the narrative introduction to Persia's character.Persia takes her fantasy with her and goes on a new journey, this time to understand what this mystical and obscure idea known as Love means. Through the comedic framing we the audience are pulled into this world view without rules into Persia's worldview to take that first step with her into a new chapter of life. Mahou no Yousei Persia is a coming of age story, setting it apart from (at least as ive seen, i have not seen every magical girl pre Persia, though I have sampled many) the Magical girls that came before. Where Minky Momo considered what dreams meant and Majokko Meg wondered if there was good in humanity, Perisa looks inwards to find meaning in something inherently opaque to common understanding. I found this analysis of Persia to be very well constructed, even as it twists through the episodic comedy of Persia's episode count, and at the end, Persia learns to let go and accept whats outside her control. This journey is most directly explored at the series mid point and concluded at the end, but between episode 22 and 45, Persia constantly grapples with different forms of Love, deepening the thematic message the Show writers wanted to convey, and I found this to be a wonderful use of the show's runtime, whether thats a Yoyoko's love for her parents, Goutou's love for a nostalgic memory, locked in a single sepia photo, Kishin's love of photography, or Kenji's love for a girl who disappeared from his life never to return.

Persia herself is an almost addictive character, with Tominaga Miina's incredible voice performance. Her antics are constantly fun and when the tone calls for it, emotionally gripping. Shes simple and earnest and wild, but grows more empathetic as the show progresses. The show uses its comedy brilliantly; I laughed a lot, but the show writers use the aesthetic of the episode to set the tone with expertise. I especially love a scene in episode 20 where Persia transformed as Fairy walks through an empty city street in the rain, her child form reflecting in the building window, all soaked in somber blues, yet complimenting both Fairy and Persia in their moment of solitude.

I do think the OP/ED change was a clear negative, especially given how important the first OP is to Persia's core character arc with Kenji. In universe, the first OP was written by Kenji as a ballad to his previously mentioned lost love. It just doesnt add anything for me, and the song and visuals are distinctly worse.

Mahou no Yousei Persia is a well crafted introspective series that pulls you into persia's worldview with a brilliant and convincing audio visual aesthetic, and im so glad I watched this show.