The seventh entry in the Pretty Cure series, and the first since Futari Wa Pretty Cure Splash*Star to use a pair of Cures as the main characters.When Innocent Flower Girl Tsubomi Hanasaki and her parents move to a new town, Tsubomi has her heart set on starting with a clean slate and changing her quiet personality to become more outgoing. Fashion-loving Genki Girl Erika Kurumi immediately attaches herself to her, and no matter how hard Tsubomi tries she just can't pry her off.Meanwhile, Tsubomi is having a strange dream where she witnesses the last stand of a mysterious woman in white called Cure Moonlight against the sinister Dark Pretty Cure. With the last of her strength, Cure Moonlight implores two fairies- Chypre and Coffret- to search for her successor.It turns out that Tsubomi is a perfect candidate to take up the Pretty Cure power as Cure Blossom... perfect in every area except actual competence, giving her the title of The Weakest Pretty Cure Ever. However, driven by her desire to change and protect those around her, Tsubomi slowly begins to improve herself.Soon afterwards, Erika gets into the act as Cure Marine. Together, they fight against the Desert Apostles, who seek to turn the world into a desert by killing the Tree of Hearts. To speed the process along, the Apostles can steal the Heart Flowers of those going through a rough patch and turn them into Desertrians, berserkermonsters who are the embodiment of that person's frustrations and insecurities. Fortunately, it's nothing that a bit of punch-based therapy can't handle.Later on, BifauxnenStudent Council President Itsuki Myoudouin joins as Third Ranger Cure Sunshine to form a Power Trio. Then there's Yuri Tsukikage, the former Cure Moonlight who has yet to recover from her traumatic defeat at the hands of Dark Pretty Cure.
This anime provides examples of:
Actor Allusion: Tsubomi's mom happens to be named Mizuki. Hm...
We see Tsubomi wears a shirt with a numeral 7 on it in the first episode and at other times throughout the series; later we see Erika wearing a similar one. It's either because this is the seventh Precure series or because the first name of Tsubomi's voice actor is Nana, which means seven in Japanese. Nana Mizuki is the most famous actor in the show's credits.
Apocalypse How: Class X, Planetary Annihilation. Dune has destroyed a green forest planet to fuel his desert power. Didn't expect that in a kid's anime, huh?
Ass Kicks You: Beautifully executed by Cure Blossom in episode six. Why she calls it a "punch" is a mystery.
Blossom seems to be fond of this, actually. And in episode 30, both she and Marine do it in a Big Damn Heroes moment.
Done again with her whole body in a later episode ("Blossom Body Punch"). She seems to think that any offensive thrust not performed via legs or magic is a "punch"...
Babies Ever After: After the final battle, we skip ahead at least a few months and learn that Tsubomi's little sister Futaba has been born.
Bifauxnen: Itsuki Myoudoin had quite a few viewers — and Tsubomi — convinced that she was a very cute boy...until Episode Seven. Commence both in-universe and real life Unsettling Gender Reveal.
Breaking the Fourth Wall: Cobraja makes a whole herd of Desertrians from the kids who haven't done their homework. Once his army is defeated, he threatens the viewers who haven't done their homework before leaving.
Breather (Half-)Episode: The first half of episode 47. Between the defeat of Kumojacky and Cobraja and the battle versus Dark Pretty Cure and Prof. Sabaku, we see how hilarious Sunacky can be.
Calling the Old Man Out: Heartwarmingly Averted. Neither Yuri nor Dark Pretty Cure ever call Mr. Tsukikage/Prof. Sabaku out. To his discredit, he is an awful father.
The Cameo: Aya Ikeda and Mayu Kudou (singers for Heartcatch's Anime Theme Song and Ending Themes respectively) make an appearance in episode 36 as members of the school's light music club.
Bland Name Product: Kanae uses a "Nihon" camera, an obvious stand-in for a Nikon.
Care Bear Stare: Any attack with "forte" in it, if Cure Marine and Sasorina's reactions to getting hit by them are any indication
Catch Phrase: Tsubomi, Erika and Itsuki all have "limit phrases" used when battling against Desertrians. On the other hand, a straighter example of this would be Nanami's "A smile is the best!"
All those GRIMDARK-ness only made the theme of hope shine brighter.
Dead Partner: Yuri's fairy partner Cologne was killed while battling Dark Pretty Cure and Professor Sabaku, which is the reason why she flipped out on Itsuki for not taking better care of Potpourri.
Enemy Without: Episode 37 had each of the girls fighting their own version of one.
Even the Girls Want Her: Girls think Itsuki is pretty. Many of them continue thinking this way even long after they find out she's a girl.
Excited Episode Title!: 90% of the episodes use this some of them are extreme in the spoiler department, even if said development is in the last 5 seconds of the episode.
Hair Decorations: Tsubomi has her yellow flower-shaped scrunchies, and her little sister has a bow that looks like Chypre's.
Sayaka in episode 3 is into soccer, and looks a lot like Rin from Yes! Pretty Cure 5. Lampshaded in episode 21 when Potpourri is scouting for the third Pretty Cure, and tells her there have been soccer-playing Cures before.
Prior to the show's premiere, some people thought Tsubomi and Erika resembled Fine and Rein, mainly because of the theme colors.
Hiroto from episode 15 looks like a young Kenshin, though the crossed scar is on the opposite cheek.
Way too many people compare Erika's older sister Momoka to Miki, right down to her being a fashion model.
Evil Eye/Eyepatch of Power/Eyes of Gold: Dark Pretty Cure's right eye. Most of the time she fights with it closed, but her power increases dramatically whenever she opens it. As of Ep. 42, both of her eyes are gold, yet her brief appearance there seems to suggest that all three tropes still apply.
Face of a Thug: Ban-kun from Episode 18. He's got a Death Glare that scares off even the baddest of delinquents but he's actually a pretty nice guy.
Faceless Masses: In the opening, some formless, keyhole-shaped people chase Erika and Tsubomi. Itsuki, Kanae, Nanami and a background student are the only ones with definite shapes, but the last two become formless in the next shot.
Floral Theme Naming: Tsubomi means "flower bud", and Erika is probably named after the flower erica. Additionally, Itsuki's name means "flowering tree", foreshadowing the fact that she eventually became Cure Sunshine, and Yuri (Cure Moonlight)'s name means "lily".
Additionally, we have the mothers: Tsubomi's mom Mizuki (the "ki" part probably meaning "tree"), Erika's mom Sakura, Itsuki's mom Tsubaki ("camellia"), and Yuri's mom Haruna (the "haru" part meaning "spring"). And finally, Granny Kaoruko's name is formed with the kanji for "fragrance" and "child".
Flower Motifs: Pretty much what the entire series is based around.
Funny Background Event: Not really "background", as there was nobody in the foreground when it happened, but at one point during the first episode, a background student was shown arriving at school after getting late.
The Glasses Gotta Go: One of the first things that Erika does to Tsubomi as part of her "makeover". Though Tsubomi still wears them from time to time afterwards.
Good Eyes, Evil Eyes: Tsubomi, Erika and Itsuki are all doe-eyed to signal their status as heroines. On the other hand, Yuri's eyes start out narrow, but become larger once she regains her ability to transform into Cure Moonlight and starts bonding with the other Cures.
Go Out with a Smile: A Pretty Cure's Finishing Move causes those who get hit by it to enter a state of complete bliss; if the target is a Desertrian or one of the Desert Apostles, this is accompanied by fading away and returning to human form. Also, pretty much everyone who dies in this series goes through this.
Graceful Loser: Both Kumojacky and Cobraja in episode 46.
Hot Blooded: Kumojaki and Erika. Also subverted with Kenji, who appeared to be this because of his fluffy hair, but turned out to be a rather nice guy.
Hot Mom: The more perverted fans had a field day with Tsubomi's mom Mizuki and Kenji's mom Keiko...
How Do I Shot Web?: Cure Blossom's first battle. Marine and Sunshine do not have this problem, but this can be explained away as a matter of self-confidence.
Image Song: And yes, Toei didn't let the singing talent of threeoftheir leads go unused. The Cures actually get three songs each instead of the normal one or two.
Legacy Character: Other Pretty Cure series had hinted at this, but Heartcatch is the first to actually show it, with Tsubomi's grandmother being a former Precure. The very last shot of the series hints that Futaba has become a Cure herself in a few years.
Let's Get Dangerous: Tsubomi's "I've had enough!" Also, Kumojacky and Cobraja begin taking their battles with the Pretty Cures much, much more seriously after Sasorina is purified, seeking to avenge her death.
Love at First Sight: According to Episode 9, Tsubomi's parents met that way.
Luke, I Am Your Father: First, Kaoruko mentions never having to deal with anyone like Professor Sabaku during her tenure. Then, she mentions Yuri's father disappeared some years ago while looking for the Heart Tree. Then we find out that Dark Pretty Cure and Cure Moonlight are apparently two halves of the same whole. Sure enough, he is revealed as Yuri's father in episode 47 after his Cool Mask is sliced in two.
Merchandise Driven: Probably the most egregious example in the franchise. The Heart Pot is a piggy bank, the Heartcatch Mirage is a jewelry box, the Shiny Tambourine lights up when spun a few times, and the Tacts have a dial that the Cures have to spin frantically to complete their spells, turning otherwise cool-looking Finishing Moves into complete Narm.
Mid-Season Upgrade: More like three fourths through, but Super Silhouette.
Subverted from episode 42 onwards, as they're both gold.
Infinity Silhouette, the ultimate union form of all 4 Cures, has one red eye and one blue eye.
Missing Mom: Nanami (who also happens to be the star of the Mother's Day episode)'s mother has passed away.
Mundane Utility: Erika tries to use the powers of the Marine Tact to clean her room and give herself a massage in episode 39. Coffret is not amused.
Never Mess with Granny: Kaoruko Hanasaki, Tsubomi's grandmother, not only won a prominent karate tournament when younger, but was also a former Pretty Cure. Cure Flower makes a triumphant reappearance in episode 44.
Noblewoman's Laugh: The drama club in episode 16 is doing a play where an extra is playing The Ojou and tries this laugh but gets yelled at that its not grand enough.
Nobody Poops: Subverted with Chypre and Coffret, who poop out the Heart Seeds much like Pao-chan. The Brain Bleach is right there. This is probably why the sequence was cleaned up in later episodes.
And then there's episode 28 where they take out an army of Monsters Of The Week...let that sink in for a few seconds.
Not so Above It All: Itsuki loves cute things, but she can't say so because she wants to be a great martial artist like her brother once was. To compensate, Tsubomi offers to have her join the fashion club.
Punched Across the Room: Well, Kumojacky punches Cure Marine across the space platform and through several stone pillars in episode 46. That's some Saint Seiya-level battle there.
Puni Plush: Compared to previous seasons, at least. A lot of fans will be reminded of Ojamajo DoremiandCasshern Sins, both of which had the same character designer.
Real Is Brown: Like in Yes! Pretty Cure 5, most of Tsubomi and Erika's classmates have brownish hair, the only exceptions being Sayaka Uejima and episode 15's Hiroto, both having very bright red hair.
Real Men Wear Pink: Ban-kun is a very scary looking guy with a bad reputation... who also loves drawing weepy shojo manga of Cure Blossom and Cure Marine.
"The Reason You Suck" Speech: In episode 46, Cure Marine delivers one to Kumojacky while Cure Sunshine delivers one to Cobraja.
Retired Badass: Kaoruko Hanasaki, AKA Cure Flower, who has fought and defeated Dune in the past. Kumojacky and Cobraja never knew what hit 'em when they temporarily forced her out of retirement in episode 44.
Coupe, her fairy partner also qualifies.
The Reveal: Why do the Desert Apostles run with their tails between their legs whenever they're in danger of being purified? It's because they're made from Heart Flowers themselves, making them functionally humanoid Desertians and subject to the same conditions.
Episode 47 also counts, with regards to Professor Sabaku's identity.
The red/magenta heart seeds are essentially Magical Girl Trans-Am.
Floral Power Fortissimo is basically a very girly Giga Drill Breaker - projectiles are thrown to hold the enemy in place, complete with a colorful background (just like the galaxy background), then the girls charge at the enemy as the finishing blow, piercing through its "heart". Then, it floats for a second, while the girls strike a pose, at which point it explodes in a mushroom cloud.
Shout Out: "Heartcatch Precure!: The Movie" was set in Paris and Mount Saint Michael in France, obiviously.
Skirt over Slacks: The biking shorts variation, but this time they are really short.
Shy Blue-Haired Girl: Averted with Erika; to make up for that, we have Tsubomi, who is a Shy Red Haired Girl.
Sixth Ranger: Cure Sunshine, whose appearance, powers, and identity — Itsuki — were revealed through leaked merchandising scans. Cure Moonlight became a Fourth Ranger in Episode 33. And then Cure Flower appears as the Zeroth Ranger in episode 44.
Spell My Name with an S: Coffret is pretty easy to figure out, but Chypre had to be vindicated by a trading card after dozens of spellings. Cobraja/Cobrager/Kobraj and Kumojaki/Kumojacky continue to be debated by fans.
Spirit Advisor: The power of the Heart Tree managed to revive Cologne's spirit and he gave Yuri a pep talk to convince her to take up the mantle of Cure Moonlight again.
Spoiler Opening: The second opening, ending, and eyecatches all feature Cure Moonlight very prominently, indicating her return in episode 33.
Storming The Castle Planet: Episode 45 kicks of an entire arc of it. Man, those Snackies can fly.
Suicidal Cosmic Temper Tantrum: Dune. "My hatred will never disappear!" is his response after he is only barely scratched with Heartcatch Mirage. And then he turns gigantic and starts pummeling the Earth. If he wore black, he would probably outdo Kuja.
Tempting Fate: Erika's "Don't worry, if powerful enemies appear, we will smack 'em down!". Naturally enough, the very next scene has the Pretty Cures tasting a sample of Dune's real power. And then Dune reveals just what kind of Cosmic Horror he is...he probably wouldn't be very out of place in Halo.
Theme Naming: Along with the floral example above, all of the Desert Messengers have desert-themed names: Sasorina (a play on the Japanese word for scorpion, "sasori"), Cobraja (bonus points for "ja" being a Japanese homonym for "snake"), Kumojaki (a play on the Japanese word for spider, "kumo" and his Verbal Tic), Sabaku (from the Japanese words for "desert" and "evil") and Dune (a rare English example, referring to a sand dune).
This Means War!: Desertrians destroy flowers. Cure Blossom proceeds to lay a massive smackdown on it.
Threshold Guardians: Kaoruko and that hot guy...er, Coupe-sama acted as proctors for the Pretty Cures' test to receive the Heartcatch Mirage.
Trailers Always Spoil: The preview for episode 23 has a shot of Cure Sunshine's identity, while the preview and title of Episode 44 clearly indicate Cure Flower's reappearance.
Transformation Sequence: This time the modesty is kept by long, flowy dresses made of light rather than the usual sparkly bodies.
Transformation Trinket: The Kokoro and Shiny Perfumes, the Heart Pot and the Heartcatch Mirage.
Trauma Conga Line: Yuri. Before the series even begins, she loses her beloved fairy partner after he pulls a Heroic Sacrifice to save her life and suffers a crippling loss to Dark Pretty Cure. Then comes the final arc, where she is hit by a machine-gun volley of traumatic revelations and events: Sabaku is her Disappeared Dad; Dark Pretty Cure is her genetic younger sister created by her Brainwashed father specifically to kill Yuri; Dark Pretty Cure (her younger sister) dies at Yuri's hands; her father leaves Yuri to comfort the Evil Knockoff in her dying moments; and her father is murdered in front of Yuri by the Big Bad. And she still manages to hold it together enough to Save The World with nothing more than grit and The Power of Friendship. You would think that the series would give Yuri come kind of compensation or reward for all the losses she's suffered, but no.
Verbal Tic: Coffret and Chypre end their sentences with "~desu".
Potpourri slurs this into "deshu," presumably on account of being a newborn.
Kumojaki speaks with a Tosa-dialect, which results in his use of "-jaki" and "-ze yo" to punctuate his statements.
Victim of the Week: A departure from previous continuities. Someone with an emotional problem is vulnerable to having their Heart Flower stolen, so expect to see a lot of these.
Villainous Breakdown: Cobraja in episode 46, after he realizes what kind of despicable (read:unbeautiful) monster he is. But he refuses to stop as he reckons it's too late to go back.
Villains Out Shopping: In Episode 18, the girls are helping a friend write a manga, so they go to a bookstore for supplies. At one point, Kumojacky's distinctive long red hair and White Mage longcoat cross the foreground holding some presumably extremely manly manga.
Vitriolic Best Buds: Episode 39 reveals that this is the basic dynamic between Erika and Coffret. Coffret might not have known it yet, though.
Who Would Want to Watch Us?: In Episode 18, Tsubomi and Erika discover that one of their classmates has been drawing doujinshi of Blossom and Marine. However it's much lighter on Flanderization than most instances of this trope, and the girls even volunteer to help him ink it.
The Worf Effect: Subverted. The girls (especially Cure Sunshine) were shown to be able to hold their own against the Desert Apostles in the past, but once Cure Moonlight showed up, they were easily beaten up. Admittedly, the Apostles were stronger thanks to the Dark Bracelets, and by the end of the episode, the three of them were nearly able to cleanse them, but only after Cure Moonlight softened them up quite a bit.
You Gotta Have Blue Hair: All of the heroines have hair colors that match their Pretty Cure color theme. Erika's case is literal, since she actually does have blue hair.
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