Pretty Cure general thread

Apparently, one of the two directors of HuGtto! Pretty Cure is Junichi Sato! The other director is Precure regular Akifumi Zako.

edited 28th Dec '17 7:15:38 PM by DS9guy

Ojamajo Doremi and Princess Tutu. Well, that's certainly a resume that wants to get my attention.

Full Staff list for Huggto:

Producers: - Tanaka Takashi (ABC Animation) - Yazaka Fumi (ADK) - Keisuke Naito

Series Directors: - Junichi Sato - Zako Akifumi

Series Writer: - Tsubota Fumi

Music: - Hayashi Yuki

Character Design: - Kawamura Toshie

BG Design: - Nishida Nagisa

Also Fushigiboshi no★Futagohime (which is a hilariously tight stretch on anyone's Willing Suspension of Disbelief). This is going to be a very interesting series indeed.

Well the character designer explains why Cure Ange looks like a better Cure Beauty: it's literaly the same designer. That said, it's also a bit disappointing as while I like the designs a lot of them feel derivative. As already mentioned Ange looks like Beauty and her civilian form is basically Karen mixed with Minami though there are differences, Yell's civilian is a weird cross between Nozomi and Yayoi, and Cure Etoile looks pretty similar to Honey despite being designed by completely different people.

That's not to say that the designs are bad, they're just kind of unoriginal no matter how good they look.

There's also Kaleido Star. Can we see Takahiro Sakurai once again after his stunt in Doki Doki?

The Fourth Ranger will pull a Ha-chan? And her color will be White of all colors? Granted, there's Suite with Pink,Yellow,Blue/Purple and White, but still, I expected Purple. Or Red. Or both colors.

Once again, no green cure.

46. Okay, that was actually unexpected. Some nice little character moments for everyone before the big finale. I like the brief message that Ichika shouldn't have to worry about her future too much, since she's still in middle school. So Elisio was really just Noir's puppet all along. Okay, I can see that. Don't like his voice in his current form though. So in the past he had dark powers for reasons, got injured, and then fell for Lumiere and her sweets or something along those lines. Not sure I like that backstory, but I can run with it. Though it seems Lumiere was a Precure before meeting him, so that's weird. So then he went full evil because he was yandere for her. Almost a cool fight that's way too short. And then Elisio takes over? I'll admit, this was a genuine surprise, which Precure rarely ever does to me. Noir might've been a dud, but this seems like a more interesting finale about stripping away all positive and negative emotions. Hopefully Pekorin doesn't ruin it.

47. Sorry, but I don't care about Pekorin at all. She's not compelling, hasn't been built up enough for this, and never justified herself as being the big hero. And with Cure Pekorin, the Yes 5 team has officially been dethroned as the biggest group. Well this group does need quantity. Though really all I care about now if finding out what Elisio's deal is. It's sort of like Labyrinth, but not quite as bad as the most he's doing is stripping away emotions. He even tries to avoid hurting people unless they're resisting too much. But overall, not a very exciting episode, nor are the themes explored very interesting. I'm just holding out for Hugtto now.

edited 14th Jan '18 9:27:57 AM by Sterok

48. Honestly, an okay finale. Decent battle with both dogfights and a few physical moves. Whip actually kicking Elisio was the biggest shock of the episode honestly. So Elisio is some sort of cross between Moebius and Noise? He's tired of his existence and everyone turning love into hate so easily and just wants everything to end if he can't make everyone play nice. Not the worst, but something that could've used more episodes to build up. A lot of things were kind of sudden, from Elisio eating Earth to more Kia-Kiraru-exmachina to the Cures baking a new planet? Well no one felt gimped this time (aside from Noir and Lumiere, but who cares), and at least some of it is thematically appropriate, so I'll give this a pass. Let's see if this epilogue can do for this cast what it did for Mirai last season.

Okay these writers need to learn from Suite when it comes to Epilogue episodes because they are doing it wrong. Episode 50 of Maho Girls! was pretty bad and didn't need to exist and while episode 49 of Kirakira isn't out until next week the preview makes it look just as bad.

49. And a timeskip. Less epic than Maho Girls's but okay. We essentially get a conclusion to Ichika's arc where she resolves to bake for people all around the world to give them smiles. Appropriate I suppose. Taking the Kira Pati with her was one of the smartest things she could've done honestly. I love that Yukari is now seducing the next team. Don't like that Pekorin still has a bunch of unwarranted focus. At least they didn't forget about the Elder's body. Good to see cameos of everyone. Even Noir and Lumiere the jokes they are. Except good guy Elisio. I'm liking this trend of showing off the Cures as adults. Aoi and Yukari really impressed, and even Pekorin got a non-terrible design for once. Cure Yell brought the real hype though. Feels so good to see someone know how to actually fight physically. Very much looking forward to her.

A decent epilogue overall. Final thoughts to come later.

Final thoughts on KiraKira. After the decent, though not exceptional Maho Girls I was cautiously optimistic for this series. Precure still hasn't lost its touch. But I can't say this ever looked appealing to me conceptually. Which is fine since I'm not the target demographic, but upon realizing this was basically a reskinned Tokyo Mew Mew, my hype was definitely low. But hey, that show was enjoyable, they obviously weren't going to tackle the same things, and I'm all for having a larger main cast again. Plus going into Go Princess with a negative mindset hurt my enjoyment of that series, so maybe this could turn out good.

Ichika was pink. I'm not really sure what else to say about her. Precure has a problem where a lot of the recent leads kind of blend together, but Ichika really lacked any stand out traits beyond what's expected out of a Precure lead. She's nice, determined, a bit clumsy, doesn't know what she wants to do, yada yada. So what does she have? Well she likes to cook and wants to use that to bring happiness to everyone. And she has mom issues that come up like 3 times? Well it does tease her being a stepford smiler, which could be interesting, but it didn't get nearly enough attention to make a satisfactory arc out of that. Her main arc was realizing how much she loved baking sweets and bringing happiness to the less fortunate, which is fine, but not that compelling compared to her predecessors or even her friends. It didn't help that she was as competent as the plot demanded, so there wasn't much of a baseline expectation from episode to episode. She was one of the weaker protagonists I feel.

Himari thankfully was much more interesting. She's the shy yellow, which means instant fan favorite. I wasn't too sure of her myself at first, but the way she was able to ramble on about her passion and was scared of annoying people with that won me over. Her arc was about overcoming her insecurities so that she could properly share her passion with everyone. Maybe not the most original arc, but it was a consistent development where her progression could be felt across the series as she improved coupled with interesting episodes, so I think it worked out well for her. Unfortunately while she was a good character, she was much less impressive as a Precure. To be fair everyone suffered that somewhat given the show's nature, but she was generally less impressive in fights aside from becoming the tactician twice. Another example where the show had a good idea that wasn't used enough. Still, a solid addition to the Yellow Cures.

On the opposite side of Himari is Aoi, the rich ojou who just wants to play music. Again, not new, but the rich ones actually being forced to follow in the family's footsteps isn't exactly common in this franchise, so I have no issue with it. She got a good start having tons of energy and already working on her dream. Too bad she kind of stumbles on the way. The ojou stuff was generally fine, aside from the oddity of the butler trying to force her to become proper when her parents don't seem to care. The band on the other hand... I liked it for the most part, but the band's lack of development hurt the drama whenever it came up, as we only cared with how it related to Aoi. It made her episodes weaker than they should've been. But she still had a mostly satisfactory arc, and she was a solid Cure as the one with the most regular physical combat. She didn't impress me as much as I was hoping for, but she was good overall.

Now Yukari, there's an interesting one. As a high schooler in a series with only 1 of them before this show she stood out immediately. And oh does she make an impression. She's probably the most layered character of the show, being harder to read as it's not always clear what she wants to do or why she does what she does. At first she's just teasing others looking for anything interesting as she coasts by on her natural talents, but once she joins the team she manages to find the challenge she's been craving for and eventually a genuine passion. It wasn't immediate, as in the beginning she only helped out when she was in the mood, but by the end she cared as much as anyone else. She's well aware of her charm and people skills, which she uses to great advantage both in the store and when dealing with villains. Not many others could pull off that gambit with Rio, and with such perfect suave. She also built up a nice relationship with Akira, and their contrast helped build a strong chemistry between the two. But while she started out great, she kind of floundered in the second half as it felt like she was rehashing her insecurities over her own faults or being possessive of Akira. And the cat episode was just weird. I'm not sure I'm fond of how she decided to study abroad to become a great patisserie (especially when this team already had 3 variants of that), but it fit with how unpredictable she was. As a Cure she was a strong fighter and by far the craftiest, foiling schemes by noticing small details and actual planning. Even with her stumbles, she makes such a strong impression that she remains my favorite of this group.

Akira was the cool older sis that wins over girls' hearts just by appearance. She's determined to help others. Maybe too much, as even someone as skilled as her can't handle constantly helping others all the time without a break for herself. Her big development came in the form of channeling that drive in a more efficient manner, becoming a medical researcher. She was a nice character, but compared to her girlfriend she came off as relatively flat, as she was much more straightforward. Not helped by so many of her episodes revolving around Miku, who was cute, but also limited what Akira could do. But she managed to hold her own overall, so while she isn't a favorite, I'll give her a pass. Plus she was a strong fighter in a show really needing one, so that helps her cool points.

Ciel was the obligatory sixth ranger and the actual cute mascot of the show. Honestly she should've been the protagonist as she had a similar passion for baking with much more experience while also being wrapped up in the plot with her brother, probably the most compelling story arc of the show. She's very good, and she knows it, but it also means failure hit her much harder, and it came up enough that it felt consistent throughout the show. And she took those traumatic experiences and used them to become a better person, most notably shown by Bibury. She was hurt a lot and wasn't always the most sensitive person, but that made her growth all the more satisfying when she got out of her funk and improved. No real complaints about her character, though near the end she kind of felt like just a more competent Ichika. I would've liked her to have more to do, but she got a movie, so maybe that helps her. Add all that with an actually cute fairy form and being strong in general, and she's got the recipe for a good character. If only she had more time.

Side characters were more miss than hit. Pekorin is a bottom-tier fairy companion, full stop. Ugly design, too carefree to get invested in, not funny enough, and just overall didn't add anything to the cast. Until the final stretch, where she got a human form and then became a Cure over more deserving candidates with no real build up. She wasn't charming or interesting to watch. After Haa-chan and Mofurun, she's a big disappointment. The Elder wasn't fun to watch either, though at least he occasionally provided an exposition dump. The human characters were generally just okay, with the most standout ones being Mizushima and the fangirls of the damned. Lumiere was trash, showing hints of depth occasionally, but nothing that was followed up on, which is a shame considering how much influence she has on the backstory.

The villains were weirdly a highlight. Sort of. The fairy thieves sucked, but their redemption moment was surprisingly genuine, and Gummy got much better development than he deserved. Kudos there. Julio was effective at driving up the stakes and bringing emotional pain to the Cures, but he came too early to be effective enough. But he had a solid backstory, retained his personality upon turning good, and just generally was great to see grow. Bibury wasn't a great villain, but she also had a good redemption arc and remained a good ally of the Cures, providing some much needed snark and cynicism to a very positive group. I wish those two got the chance to become Cures.

Diable was just trash. Grave was just a dick, but he at least did his job as a filler villain to take up time, so I'll give him a pass. Noir started off a good big bad, having a slightly menacing presence even when not physically around and corrupting people with words, not just dark magic. But his backstory took too long to come, and when it did arrive it just made him whiny and not terrifying. Also, where did he get his powers? Maybe the biggest disappointment of the season. Thankfully Elisio was there to provide some competence. He was the obligatory competent villain each season needed, and for the most part he was pretty effective in driving the Cures to their limits. And his cosplay was a fun gimmick. His betrayal kind of came out of nowhere, but it did have a decent explanation. Really should've had more time to explore what his deal was, but what we got was interesting at least.

The theme for this season was bringing people together and how everyone is happier sharing in all the joy or something. Usually through sweets, the primary motif. Also animals for some reason. I don't think the animals really integrated all that well, but they weren't annoying, so whatever. The theme, at least from what I read of it, felt like a step back after the last four seasons at least tried going for something deeper. But hey, maybe something simpler will make the execution better? Well maybe, but while individual episode morals could be good, I can't say the same for the overall show. It felt too simple beyond the token can't get rid of darkness bit that even Precure has recognized plenty of in recent years. Not helped by the sweets. It's fine to have them tie the show together, but I think it has the opposite problem of Smile. Smile underused its fairy tail motifs so much that I don't know why it was there. KiraKira used sweets so much that baking cavities becoming the solution to everything was boring by the mid-point. It's part of why I like Aoi. She at least got away from the constant barrage. There was just too much mixing sweets in with the theme that it became muddled.

The biggest criticism of the season is probably the lame fights. And while I don't want to say there must be x amount of punches thrown every episode, yeah they were pretty bad. It was rare to get anything well-animated, and 90% of the time it came down to sugar spam. At least everyone had their own fighting style in theory. Whip was agile, Custard tactical, Gelato physical, Macaron tricky, Chocolat skilled, and Parfait powerful. Didn't always come across that way, but it was there. There wasn't even good stock footage to make up for that. The transformations were fine, but the attacks lacked oomph, and the super attacks were more cute to watch than anything else.

Chalk KiraKira up as another disappointment for me. While I generally liked the characters, most of them only shined in their own episodes without enough group building. The story was there, but not particularly impressive aside from the villains getting redeemed. The heavy focus on slice of life made it feel like Yes 5 or Smile, but the former had much stronger writing while the latter could fall back onto its humor. Overall it failed to stand out in any meaningful way while also stumbling a lot where it needed. As a weekly season it was perfectly fine, but as an overall show it didn't come together to make that perfect cake. But at least none of its faults were particularly egregious (maybe aside from Pekorin), so I think at the very least this will go down as a harmless season. Not a horrible watch, but not one I'd recommend to a Precure newcomer. Now it's time to look forward to Hugtto, and despite this franchises's flawed track record first impressions do seem positive on that front.

It's time for a new group hug with Huggtto! Precure. Important haircut within the first minute huh. I liked her original look better. Op is just okay. Hana gets hit on the face in the first 5 minutes, and she doesn't even get a fairy out of it. Typical pink really, but more on the good side at least. She'll have time to stand out, and she's just overall really likable so far. Plus her catchphrase is cute. I definitely like her desire to become a mature lady more than Haruka's princess dream. Saaya hasn't left much of an impression aside from being really interested in Hana, but Homare has a nice attitude at least. Villains seem like discount Nightmare, which isn't a bad group to follow up on, so I'm interested. Big bad certainly has style. Harry is useless so far. Not sure how I feel about having another season revolve around a baby. Hugtan is at least cuter than Chiffon and Ai, but still can't match Haa-chan. At least she looks like an actual baby and isn't annoying yet. So the villains get their monsters from negative emotions this time. I found it interesting that Saaya was both conscious and helping people, but Homare just straight up disappeared. It's probably nothing. Odd that the bad guy was calling for Precure even before there was one as far as we know. Decent transformation. Oh physical combat, how I have missed thee. Ed is just okay.

I'm feeling pretty good about this season. We've already got a likable protagonist, a little intro to the other two, and some brief intrigue. A solid foundation to start on.

So I had dropped Mahou Shoujo after 4 or 5 episodes since I decided it just wasn't for me, but I'm willing to try out this new season.

Episode 1 left a better impression on me than Mahou Shoujo's, maybe because the protagonist is a bit older. She's definitely likeable though (I'm just afraid her "FURE FURE" is gonna get annoying pretty fast). Homare left a pretty good impression too, and I don't dislike Saaya I guess. And there's a baby… I hate babies, but Hugtan's mildly tolerable so far. >.> The opening is catchy enough, but the ending has very stupid lyrics which I'm not fond of. The villain was certainly better than MS's early villains. And damn if that's not the coolest stamp ever.

So for now I'm fine… I think I might enjoy this if I can just bear all the… pinkness. >.<

2. Wow, quite the ego Hana has. She wants the glory, and she wants it all for herself. All to be seen as grownup eh. She's awesome. Is the fairies carrying their own house going to be a trend from now on? Human Harry already. Older than what I would've thought. At least he's providing some exposition now. Seems like the villains want to stop time or something? But the real star is of course Saaya. She sure blushes a lot in Hana's vicinity. I detect a ship rising. She's another super awesome blue, but she feels a lot more down to earth and relatable than Minami ever was. Plus she's good with computers (aka can use Google), so that's a plus in my book. Need a bit more time for her to grow on me, but she's off to a good start. Saaya walking in on Hana taking care of a baby by herself really should've led to a bigger misunderstanding. Not too big on Ange's costume, but the transformation was great. Good fight too, especially with Yell already smacking monsters with pipes. Great second episode. Hope they can keep up the momentum at least till they get to Homare.

Where did you find the episode subbed? PM me the link if you can.

@ Sterok

Man, these later series are really upping up the Yuri subtext. I mean last season Cure Chocolat and Cure Macron were piratically all but confirmed to be a couple. Cure Magical and Cure Miracle were confirmed in the manga to have later become a couple as well. So, it looks like they are getting more and more blatant about the same-sex couples.

They're certainly getting... more obvious with the pairings. I suppose it's too much to confirm any explicit relationships, but progress is progress.

Considering the time stop, future theme, and possible premonition, I almost want to think time travel is going to play a part in this season.

...and for next season, it's Psychic Precure!

I know this is almost certainly going to be Jossed, but one can hope.

@Sterok

I wonder if there is going to be a Kid from the Future subplot.

On sort of related news Precure inspires a live-action show about voice actresses. Stars Haruka Fukuhara (Cure Custard).

3. Even with better writing and direction, this show is still going to be dragged down by the fact that the Cures have yet another baby to take care of. It was okay in Fresh, but probably one of its weaker parts. Completely unneeded in DokiDoki. Maho Girls pulled it off by making the baby not annoying and getting her out of the baby phase rapidly. So far Hugtan has been okay, but hopefully she follows Haa-chan's path more than anything else. Looks like Cure Google has found her calling in life. Lulu is cute and has internal google. Wouldn't mind her joining the team. Homare is already the coolest. If Hugtan is known by civilians, it's going to be a lot harder to age her up suddenly. Really should've been a lot more questions as to why Hana is taking care of a baby. I do like that the monsters and Precure seem to be much more public this time. And then there's that last shot by Homare. By itself it seems to imply that she's involved with the Precure already, an idea I've flirted with since episode 1. But knowing her backstory, it's probably going to a lot more mundane. Well, still looking forward to her debut.

We find out what happened to Harry's home. Its literally the horrible future from Pokemon Mystery Dungeon Explorers of Darkness, Time, and Sky. Pretty dark shit by Precure standards.

edited 18th Feb '18 4:21:34 PM by Demongodofchaos2

Will they fight against Primal Dialga at the end?

So, Harry seems to flashback to the same scene Hana dreamed about last episode. A scene which looks a lot more like Earth than a fairy world. And when there is a fairy world, we usually get some brief glance at it before it was invaded. Just something to chew on for now.