Magical Girl Spec-Ops Asuka

Magical Girl Spec-Ops Asuka (魔法少女特殊戦あすか, Hepburn: Mahō Shōjo Tokushusen Asuka) is a Japanese Magical Girl Manga and anime series originally written by Makoto Fukami and illustrated by Seigo Tokiya. A man named Naoya Tamura serves as the military adviser for the manga.

The Manga first began publication on June of 2015 and ended in Feburary 2021 in Monthly Big Gangan, a publication published by Square Enix , and the anime aired from January to March of 2019.

Manga
The duo of Makoto Fukami & Seigo Tokiya completed the first chapter to be submitted in February of 2015, but for reasons undisclosed at this time it was instead not published officially until the June issue. The manga ended in the February 2021 issue of Big Gangan, with 62 chapters in total, plus a few bonus chapters.

Anime
As is common for manga of most demographics an anime adaptation of the series would be produced within a few years of the manga's production. First announced after an official website was created in June of 2018, the series premiered January of 2019 and lasted for twelve episodes ending two months later in March. Makoto Fukami, the original author who has also worked on similarly graphic anime in scripts and the Novel Berserk: the Flame of the Dragon Knight was one of the Series Constructors and is credited as writing four episodes (7, 8, 10, & 12)

Anime & Manga Differences
Some differences from the anime and manga include:


 * In the manga, the tanabata festival in Wish Upon a Star isn't until after the Okinawa arc. In the anime, it's before said arc.
 * In the manga, Mia visits the Babel Brigade's temporary base to check out the death of Jerome Greenberg, the German mathematician the Babel Brigade hired. In the anime, she fights Crescent Moon Sandino, an anime-original character.
 * Kurumi doesn't torture Chisato in the manga.
 * Nozomi and Sayako don't visit the M Squad maid cafe until after the Ukraine arc in the manga.
 * Nozomi and Sayako play a bigger role in the Okinawa arc in the anime.

Reception
The manga has a 7.20 rating on MyAnimeList. Rebecca Silverman of AnimeNewsNetwork gave the first volume a positive review, stating "the dark magical girl story may not be new, but Magical Girl Special Ops Asuka shows that it's still a genre with potential." Conversely, Helen of The OASG gave the same volume a negative review, stating "With story details left unsaid and its main character and art feeling dull, the first volume of Magical Girl Spec-Ops Asuka isn't a very interesting read."

The anime has a 6.33 rating on MyAnimeList, 4/5 stars on Crunchyroll and 4.5/5 stars on Funimation. Fans of the series have said positive things about the character of Asuka and the concept of the series, while critics have noted it's animation, torture scenes and fanservice as weak points.