thank you for adding appropriate tag :)

You might as well just give Madoka Magica its own "Soul-Crushingly Depressing" pool at this point.

But in a series filled with such moments, this has to be one of the hardest hitting of all.

You really get an understanding for how helpless these two feel, having the shadow of death and despair loom over them metaphorically and literally in the form of an evil white creature that watches their every move

The notion that Madoka has no words to consult her best friend and can only cry along with her is...this scene could be re-watched dozens of time and will always be hard to watch. ; ;

All of the above. And then some. I especially like the effect of the shattering glass, indicating Sayaka's imminent loss of self.