Pretty Cure general thread

@Chariot

It is though. Because they literally could've picked any other type of trait that wasn't related to those cures already. Literally having a renamed attack is one thing ( Precure isn't afraid to do that. Let me be fair here) But another cure who just HAPPENS to have a bunch of younger siblings to take care of and is sporty and also happens to be their senior? The only other cure I know who has that much going for them is Nao. My point isn't that they can't use these tropes, but when you're as long as a series of Precure it's best to try and diversify your character's backstories. Maybe they should've just limited it to one or two of these things.

The problem with Elena as mentioned before is that she has nothing to make her stand out of the crowd (so far). Does this make her a terrible character? No. I can't really say that in the beginning. It would be completely unfair. I'm just hoping she doesn't get sidelined for just those character background things. I want her to progress away from those previous notions I have. And hopefully she will.

Edited by Ducolamia on Feb 26th 2019 at 10:15:50 AM

Except Elena seem to be less sporty and more good at everything like Mana and Yukari before her. And sure that might not be good for you but I don't think that takes away from her individuality at all or means the show is playing it safe with her.

I'm not quite sold on her either. Will have to give her a few episodes to bed in.

Edited by Deadbeatloser22 on Feb 27th 2019 at 7:50:52 PM

I looooooove Elena. She's like Nao but executed a bit better. She's at least better than Saaya.

So we're going to see Selene this week. I think she's the most interesting cure I like so far. Want to see what the do with her. Thoughts?

New ep.

Madoka and her father are basically child friendly versions of Tsubasa and her dad. At least, I hope its more child friendly.

I will say I'm pretty pleased with her intro. Probably the most interesting next to Lala. I was worried she'd end up more cliche'd compared to her previous incarnations, but man, she's actually striking a chord with me rather well.

5. Talk about a quick turnaround in quality. Madoka immediately has a lot to chew on. She's grown up to be a big-shot politician, and thus she's here to better her knowledge of the people instead of just be a normal girl. So the government is trying to do something about the alien menace. That's new. Though Papa Kaguya seems rather xenophobic. I'm seeing lots of good stories coming both from Madoka trying to deal with living up to her father's expectations while undermining them in secret and with increased efforts to keep their actions and the alien trio hidden from them.

Both Hikaru and Lala have conflicts set up with their families, and Elena's family is a big focus for her as well. Wonder if this will become a theme. Selene again has a great transformation and distinct fighting style. My main critique is that while I like that Madoka didn't go full gaga over Fuwa, centering her decision based on her kind of felt unearned. She didn't get that attached to the fluffball. But still, she's up there with Lala as one of the winners of the season.

Edited by Sterok on Mar 3rd 2019 at 10:59:44 AM

I mean, all those long gazes at Fuwa over the past couple of episodes could very easily be interpreted as 'oh my god that's adorable I really want to cuddle it but I can't'. Madoka is a very repressed girl.

Also I think its precisely the fact that she just met Fuwa, didnt get all that attached and still felt the need to protect the fluffball that showed she cared and deserved to be a Pretty Cure.

I mean Madoka seems to have a lot of pressure on her. That's a given, but I still feel that her build up could've been delayed a bit. Sure it's not bad and she's by far the most interesting character, but her reason for becoming a precure is kind of...weak? I mean she just met the thing on the same day. Some decent set-up for her father mind you, but I feel that could've been executed a bit better.

It's odd I say that considering what we've seen over the past few years, but maybe it's because Hugtto spoiled me. It wasn't just "protect baby fairy thing" it was all personal problems each character dealt with (Saaya not believing she could become a cure, Homare not being able to make a jump. Hana's fear, etc.) I feel these are better set-ups despite the payoff. With Madoka and Milky, it's seem they have more going for them than Elena and Hikaru have so far. Here it feels a bit more forced. More in the case of Madoka and Elena.

Now that the intro episodes are done, I will say that it's pretty okay. Not as good as last season but definitely not bad. We're off to a solid start.

My ranking in terms of introductions are

1. Cure Selene 2. Cure Milky 3. Cure Elena 4. Cure Star

Edited by Ducolamia on Mar 3rd 2019 at 1:06:54 PM

So it is confirmed that Selene's parents are basically... Orange-kun and Hikaru Shidou

Both already had experiences in a certain Robot Wars.

Edited by ChrisX on Mar 4th 2019 at 7:56:05 PM

Madoka's introduction was good but I agree that a two parter would have done wonders. They could have set up a lot more.

Madoka wanted to report the aliens because of her dad, but what did she think about them? Did she think they were evil? She could have gotten a one to one talk with Lala where she realizes she isn't different of the other girls. And learning about the princesses and the war before becoming a Cure would have given more dimension to her struggle.

There's also why when she is torn between her family and her friends she never thinks of asking her dad to help Lala and crew. If she suggested there could be good aliens and dad went on a rant of how any alien on Earth will end strapped to a surgery table and any humans harboring them will rot in prison, that would justify her going against him but she doesn't even try.

I think you nailed it for me, Madoka's reasoning for being a cure doesn't feel natural to me because it feels a bit forced. It's like the writers wanted her to become a cure and wanted her to defy her father, but in the end they crammed it. Like, Madoka's father from what we see is not a bad person. So it feels like even less of a reason to trust this alien she just met and lie to him. Interesting set up and yeah, Fuwa is cute and clearly not a threat but it's not like she knows the girls personally. She doesn't have to cover for them.

Which does make it more interesting that she did and I do look forward to seeing where you it could go. Maybe she does turn on them later on? A possible set up for her arc.

If it happens to be the latter option I'll be more inclined to let it slide but if not I find it a bit messy.

There's a reason I complained about centering her choice around Fuwa, someone she hasn't had the chance to get attached to yet. She needed a stronger motivation. Hikaru asked her what she wanted (which was a fairly good scene for Hikaru actually), but I don't feel like we got a proper answer. I mean we did, but it feels slapped together in a rush. But she's on stronger grounds fundamentally than Hikaru and Elena, so I can let it slide for now.

As an aside, does the government want to dissect or deport the alien menace? I want to know what they'd actually do if they caught Lala.

I really do wonder if Precure's writers could match the ALF writers in sheer cruelty.

6. Lala, make friends. Lala, accept other people. Lala, get help when you need it. That about sums this up. I still feel for her, as she's still anxious not just about the mission but also being on a strange planet so far from home with no sign of when she'll be able to return. Would put anyone on the edge. At least she's getting better at containing herself. Meanwhile, monster of the week makes its grand debut. Though they'll still be less common. Ayewan herself seems alright. Not a bad fight, and props to Selene for trying a silent back attack and being able to spam her arrows. Really hope we get back to space soon though.

Hugtto Precure - Futari wa Precure - All Star Memories

Hugtto's big solo film... is yet another crossover. Because that's what this season really needed. The All Stars movies have been more miss than hit as of late, but the one in the show was actually pretty good if you ignore how it hurt the actual story. So how does this one land? First off, I kind of hate the premise of this movie. You go through all the trouble of not only bringing back every single main Cure (RIP Echo), but all the seiyuus as well, setting up the biggest magical girl crossover of all time, allowing all these varying personalities and experiences to bounce off each other before culminating in an epic fight, and you turn them all into babies? That's how you decide to celebrate the big 15th anniversary? Really?

Now I get that having all the seiyuus doesn't mean you can go all out on this. Too many characters to deal with, very limited time, and the voice acting budget is still limited. And the target audience is young girls, not cynical grown-ups, so they're more likely to enjoy this kind of shenanigans. Except the target audience excuse doesn't work this time, which I'll get to later. Either way, making all the past heroines babies and damseling them yet again (the All Stars movies pull this way too often) is just lame. They can't do anything cool or have much funny background interactions in this state. There's a bit of that if you really look hard, but there's just so little of it that the massive crossover feels pointless. And they don't even do anything interesting with it like get all the babies to fight or something. Could've used the gimmick more effectively at least. Even the end fight was pretty lame from this view. No real crossover action, just everyone pulling off their signature moves and phrases, but now in CG. This all makes for nice marketing that I'm sure paid off in the box office, but the weekly show pulled off better fanservice, and that's kind of sad.

Nagisa and Honoka got some decent treatment at least. The luster of the OG and current teams working together is lost when it's the third time in like 4 months (if you saw this in theaters), but they were actually used enough with a few decent moments to justify them being in this. Mostly Nagisa as is custom, but I got used to that long ago. It's the cliche demonstrating how strong their friendship is we've seen all the time, transcending even memories, but it still works overall. The Hugtto team minus Hana on the other hand, eh. This should be their movie, and they get a decent amount of screen-time, but they still feel cheated. Ruru manages well at least, stealing the scene whenever she gets a bit of focus. That's the robot for you. Emiru is at least consistently amusing, and her being a terrible baby was kind of funny. Homare and Saaya got their own moments, especially when Saaya's geek self came out, but it was still more undercooked than I liked. Robbed from their movie just like the show.

So with all those complaints, do I like this movie? Actually, yes. This comes down to three reasons. First, they really nail the theme of memories. The villain is a cursed camera that was lost and this unable to form any memories or experiences of its own. And while the how of that is unexplained and kind of lame in its own right (if random cameras can nearly destroy the world how is everyone still alive?) it fits in with the theme of how important our memories are and how much we should treasure them. Miden isn't the best villain even among All Stars (certainly not the coolest fighter), but it's set up well in both dialogue and with the various sounds it makes. One of those tragic villains that works even if you have to jump through a lot of mental hoops. Most surprisingly, they break the fourth wall to ask the audience to cheer for the Cures to get better, and in the moment it actually works. The whole theme is based around memories, and we've already seen Cures recover earlier because of their shared memories. So them being helped by 15 years of audience memory and adoration of the Cures is both thematically appropriate and ties back to the whole anniversary this is supposed to celebrate. However, this does mean they're targeting older fans at this point, which leads into some of the criticisms I mentioned earlier.

Second, very solid direction all throughout. An all CG movie may be worrying to some, but it gives some nice visual variety and looks pretty consistently from what I could tell. Well, the Precure team has a lot of experience with CG at this point. Lots of pretty shots in the villain's lair, and while the fights aren't the best, they're still decent overall. More importantly, they strike a tone early on and stick to it. This may be an action movie based on a celebration, but the cheers and jokes are rather subdued most of the time for a more somber or melancholic experience. Not depressing, but even with cute babies running around there's a sense of tension and worry the whole time. This may not be the worst threat they've faced, but they do take this seriously the whole time. And there is emotional payoff when the villain's backstory and motivations are slowly unraveled, and it's not cheap drama, but actual sadness and sympathy for what happened. Still lame because it's a lonely camera, but it's sold as well as it can be.

Finally, the main heroine herself, Hana Nono. Cure Yell. She was indisputably the center of both the show and the earlier Hugtto movie. And so maybe she's got so much of that pink bias going on that I dislike so much. But she's always been such a sound and well-written character, so I can't get angry at her. She's trying to keep it all together even with minimal support. Tying back into the main show, she learns that taking care of babies requires a lot of patience, even if it's totally understandable to want to yell at them. But beyond that, one of her biggest strengths, and possibly weaknesses, has been her endless sympathy and attempt to reach out to her villains. It was a major aspect of the first movie, it served as the crux for her rivalry with George, and it makes her both flawed and a true hero here. We get the full thought process of her trying to understand Miden and reaching out to it so that it won't be trapped in the same cycle of despair as before. The whole scene is sold very well, and while it certainly causes problems, in the end she wins with what she knows best, her compassion.

The second movie for each Precure season is often a good summary of what did and didn't work for the season. This is one case where that holds true. It's a well made movie with a strong thematic core. But it's bogged down by additional elements that don't add enough and just end up bringing the whole experience down. Should've kept it to just a Hugtto/Futari wa crossover. They had one scene that justified the massive crossover, but on the whole it wasn't worth it. As an anniversary movie, it's eh. But as a Hugtto/Futari wa movie, and especially a Cure Yell movie, I'd say it's pretty good.

Well, the Maho Girls has a good six movie run, but I guess it's time to say goodbye. I'll miss those witches. Until they decide to pull yet another massive crossover. Not sure what the best way to do it is, but if they do it again hopefully they can strike a more balanced celebration than what this ended up being.

Thanks for the reviews! I've seen parts of the movie so far (trying to get a hold of the subbed version) and I really like what I'm seeing so far. I will admit that Cure Yell and the OG duo are the best parts of the film. I understand that with over 50 cures at this point, they wouldn't be able to get everybody to have their moment (the battle relay is a nice shot though). However, I do think the whole "baby" thing was eh. It did lead to a strong character moment with Hana and Yell, but that's about it.

As for this week's episode....it's weird. The fact they decided to bring back the MOTW now is kind of...half-assed? Okay, each general has their own fighting style to be fair, but I feel the tension with the dark pen was completely wasted here. Lala literally purifies it the moment she got her hand on it. What are they going to show off now? Unless they come up with a good excuse, every dark pen episode (I assume we'll see more of them) kind of loses that tension for me. What's stopping the cures from just taking it like Lala did? I hope they do come up with something though.

As for Lala herself, I don't get why she's learning this lesson now of all things. Yeah, she shouldn't be panicking, but having the weight on your shoulders of knowing that the stars are literally going to die (after all earth has the sun-A HUGE STAR) is still a pretty big thing. And add onto the fact that Lala's spaceship has some technical issues, I doubt that some middle school girls can help that much. (Though looking at the next episode they do get some materials somehow.)

7. This episode should've been combined with the last one. Not much of interest came in the main plot. Though how did they get the materials for repair? I do like how the AI already wrote Hikaru off as a lost cause. That one will go far. Can't say I care for the redesign. It's Lala's ship no how much she embraces communism. Blue fits better. Prunce is now Kaouru Jr apparently. The take-off scene was actually pretty good, though you'd think Elena and Madoka would be a bit more spooked about going so far away from home. Though Elena seemed to take it the least well, so maybe her anxieties will be looked at more next episode.

While I do like slice of life moments I do think this should've been combined with the other episodes. The main problem with it is that nothing really happens. It's a prep episode but then they kind of shove in Tengou in the end. If they are going to get rid of the MOTW format they could at least take the risk of not having a fight one episode. It really ruined the mood for me.

That being said another reviewer mentioned this but the writer for this episode apparently only does slice of life for the most part. Which is why we have the slow pace. But the problem is that it really makes for uninteresting fights. I don't think this particular writer works well for Precure. So I hope they don't hammer us with more episodes like these. Too much filler would really bog down this series.

Yeah, there was a nice enough slice of life but there didn't really feel like enough plot for a full episode.

I know the show doesn't care at all about accuracy but a bone-shaped planet is just hilarious.

About your comment on the bone-shaped planet: ...yet you wonder why I had rated this show as Science in Genre Only (the softest level possible for Mohs Scale Of Science Fiction Hardness).

Honestly though, you don't need a telescope to see how far the writers will take said inaccuracies. So far, they've only been accurate only once regarding space flight as far as I'm aware.

The now on the ship feels bit tacked on, but what do I know.

I am starting to wonder if something will happen with the AI.

I guess we are starting with on-and-off space adventures. I guess that is fine.

I think you meant BOW.