>>4740
You've changed my mind about Homura being a munchkin. You're right, she doesn't qualify.

I disagree that the story says humans can't be utilitarians. One reason I like the show is that I think it does something smarter than that.

When Kyubey explains to Madoka his utilitarian "deal" with humanity and how he thinks about it, she can't accept or even fully comprehend it. In every timeline before the final she is idealistic to the end and sincerely wants a true happy ending for everyone. This is demonstrated by her witch form, which twists this desire into an attempt to create a heaven on Earth inside her barrier. In the final timeline things come together to change Madoka's thinking. Realizing that an ideal happy ending for everyone is impossible, she accepts a trade-off that costs her her human existence and does not save other magical girls from a life of fighting. She doesn't wish the Incubators never found Earth, presumably because she doesn't want to save magical girls by depriving humans of civilization. The wish Madoka makes to fix things is not an actually perfect wish, but the best compromise she is able to find. Thus, she herself arrives at a sort of utilitarian thinking.