In Puella Magi Madoka Magica the Movie: Rebellion, Kyoko has a friendlier personality, and fights with her fellow magical girls against surreal monsters called Nightmares.

Kyoko's past and her relationship with Mami Tomoe have been explored in the manga spin-off, Puella Magi Madoka Magica: The Different Story.

She has appeared in several Puella Magi Madoka Magica-related media, including manga, novel adaptation and video games.

[6] Kyoko is initially introduced as an aggressive and self-centered magical girl, but adopts a sympathetic outlook after clashing with Sayaka Miki.

[7] Kyoko is an experienced magical girl who first comes to the city of Mitakihara in the fourth episode of Madoka Magica, after Mami's demise.

She becomes tired of her pain, renounces her previous ideals, abandons her self-preservation, and chooses to kill herself and Oktavia in an attempt to both find peace in death and make sure that Sayaka will not die alone.

[7] Kyoko's sacrifice leaves only Homura Akemi and Madoka Kaname to face the powerful witch Walpurgisnacht in the finale of the series.

[12] In Puella Magi Madoka Magica the Movie: Rebellion, Kyoko appears as a Mitakihara middle-school student and fights with her fellow magical girls against surreal monsters known as Nightmares.

Kyoko subconsciously loses her illusion magic after the death of her family and decides to be more selfish, ending her partnership with Mami.

[14] In Puella Magi Oriko Magica Kyoko meets a young girl named Yuma Chitose, whose parents were killed by a witch, and takes her under her wing.

[15] She is described in Michiru Kazusa's diary as fighting with Yuuri Asuka in Puella Magi Kazumi Magica: The Innocent Malice.

[16] Kyoko also appears in a novel adaptation of the original series written by Hajime Ninomae, illustrated by Yūpon and published by Nitroplus.

Shinbo said that he always wanted Kyoko to resemble characters like Toru Rikiishi from Ashita no Joe and Long John Silver from Treasure Island.

[40] She originally designed Kyoko with loose hair, but Takahiro Kishida changed her hairstyle to a ponytail and added sharp teeth because of the character's love of food.

[3] Landa described Kyoko as a "veteran" magical girl and the "badass" of the group, calling the character's knowledge of fighting witches and battle style "expert".

[53][54] Kyoko-themed accessories, clothing and other products have been manufactured,[55][56] and the character appeared on a poster for a Japanese guide dog-training organization.

Kory Cerjak of The Fandom Post called Kyoko the series' "most interesting character", praising her tragic story arc and strong personality.

Cerjak wrote that her sacrifice for Sayaka and character development were "wonderful to watch", and called Lauren Landa's voice acting "fantastic".

"[61] Describing her as the "sneering, confident redheaded magical girl", Zac Bertschy of Anime News Network stated that Kyoko represents "hardened cynicism and ruthless self-preservation" that fights for herself as opposed to Sayaka who is "fully dedicated to using her powers only to protect everyone around her", and said that their clash is "crucial" to the story.

[64] Dan Barnett of UK Anime Network enjoyed Kyoko's interaction with Sayaka in Puella Magi Madoka Magica the Movie: Rebellion due to their relatively more carefree relationship, calling it "one of the truly joyous moments in the film".

In his book, Revelations: An In-Depth Look at the Themes and Symbols of Puella Magi Madoka Magica, Bryan J. McAfee called the character "profoundly lonely" and "scarred by the belief that she was responsible for the death of her own family"; stating that although she has an opportunity to flee and return with Homura to "put Sayaka down", she decides to kill herself with Sayaka because she is haunted by her past and feels regretful for her family's death.

Tomita analyzed that her selfish behavior at the time of her initial appearance was also a social mask that was inevitably suffering from past experience.

[74] Blue also said Kyoko "shows few outward signs of depression at first glance, but the previous episode made quite clear that she has totally cut herself off from humanity, burying herself in self-indulgence of her hedonistic impulses in order to escape the pain of her past."