Father Sakura

Banjou Sakura is a character from the Puella Magi Madoka Magica franchise.

Banjou is Kyouko Sakura's father.

In the AWA fics, Banjou is among the people who was given a second chance in life at ZeroTopia. He later moves to Normal Earth and became a resident at the Uzumaki Villa.

Appearance
Banjou is a tall elderly tall man with purple hair and goatee while his eyes are closed, the man is currently wearing a black priest robe over a white high-collared shirt, black trousers and black leather shoes.

Characterization
Kyouko's father was a priest who was responsible for the overseeing of a large cathedral. As a result of preaching new ideas and deviating from church doctrine he was excommunicated from the order, he was also alienated from his congregation as a result of preaching heresy (?).

According to Kyouko, her father was an extremely kind and sensitive man. So sensitive that he was in constant worry due to the state of the world's affairs. In her own words: "He was too honest. Too kind. Every morning reading the paper, the worries of the world brought him to tears". As a result of this he started preaching new ideas born more from his convoluted (idealistic) emotions rather than continue to preach the acceptable doctrine, which got him and his family to become destitute and hungry. Driven by hunger and pity, Kyouko made her wish to help his father find new followers by making anyone who listened to him to believe his words. But Kyouko's father soon learned the truth behind the miracle that he experienced, that his preaching was only accepted as a result of magic and not by real devotion to his radical ideas. The fact that his followers' hearts and minds were manipulated by magic shattered his mind and worldview. Once Kyouko's father is confronted with the awful truth, probably driven by madness, he decides to kill his wife and Kyouko's little sister, after murdering his family in cold blood he commits suicide. It is unknown how or why Kyouko survived or if her father tried to take her life. It is assumed that she most likely survived as a result of her being a magical girl who cannot die unless her Soul Gem is destroyed.

Because of Kyouko's wish her father had the mental ability to influence and manipulate the mind of others to believe him. Perhaps he even had the ability to persuade others to follow his orders without forcing them. It is not known what is the extension of his powers. The only clue that exists is that whoever listened to Kyouko's father they would listen and believe him (no matter how absurd his statement or lofty his ideals). It is not know what is the duration of the spell (if there is any), its effects on the individual, or if there is any mental damage in the person (and if there is, if it is permanent on the target).

In the AWA fics, Banjou is remorseful of his action but does not seek forgiveness from his family. Banjou can only watch his family and help then from a far.

Trivia

 * Kyouko's father could be an Anglican priest since he is married with children, also his clergy outfit is similar to their style. Another evidence is that his cathedral shares some architectural similarities to the Canterbury Cathedral.


 * In the AWA fics, Banjou's name is derived from his voice actor, Banjou Ginga.