|
Now in Japan
|
|
Written by maehara
|
|
Wednesday, 30 May 2007 17:00 |
 Just when the girls think it's safe to live a normal life, it's noses back to the grindstone, as the remnants of the Dark King once again appear to make their lives awkward. What does a magical girl have to do to get free from the transformation gig? Keep fighting, of course - although this time, they may have a little help on their hands...
1 - Yup, We're Pretty Cure Alright! The Legend Continues Forever!
When the Dark King was defeated by Pretty Cure, part of his essence struck the Queen, leaving her seriously wounded - enough to force her to return to her original form. Back on Earth, Nagisa and Honoka are getting used to having normal lives again - it's their final year of junior high, and with the Dark King out of the picture the future's looking bright. But all that's about to change - with the Queen no longer around, the forces of darkness see their chance to rise up again, forcing the girls to once again become Pretty Cure...
2 - The New Student is Mysterious!? The Plot Thickens!
Hikari's first act in the Garden of Rainbows is to find herself a home (easily done, with a little bit of hypnotic help), before getting down to the business of learning more about who she is and the world she's found herself in - and after a second chance meeting with Nagisa and Honoka, she decides that they're just the people to teach her. Meanwhile, Nagisa's having to deal with the Elder, the Guardian, Porun and Mepple all making themselves at home at her house. It's great that they're there to provide her and Honoka with information about what they need to do to restore the Queen, but keeping them all hidden is easier said than done...
So once again, we have a search on our hands, this time for the 12 Heartiels of the Queen (which take the form of cure little fairies - awww), along with her missing heart & soul. Fortunately, Heartiel #1 is safely captured by the end of episode 2, so the job's underway, and I have to say that Honoka and Nagisa are taking their return to active duty very well - I don't know I'd be so keen to jump back into danger, give the choice.
As for the Queen's life and heart - having seen the Max Heart movie, I'd be willing to bet they're safely encapsulated in Hikari's diminutive form. She hasn't shown us her powers yet, but Pretty Cure are about to become a threesome, ably backed up by Hikari's alter-ego. It's kinda strange seeing these episodes having been spoiled to that little detail - during the two battles here, I kept expecting her to transform and get on with it, but she's still firmly on the sidelines.
The biggest problem here, is just how much new aspects Pretty Cure can produce. The addition of Hikari will add something to the mix, sure, and there's a new set of bad guys on the way (currently gathering safely in the mansion used by last season's baddies), but the underlying idea hasn't changed any. Will another 40+ episodes of the same really turn out to be all that enjoyable? I'm a mahou shoujo junkie and enjoy the guilty pleasures of PreCure probably more than most, but there's a limit somewhere, and I'm wondering if I may be reaching it.
Time will tell. For the moment, these episodes are enjoyable enough, but also completely predictable. A few tweaks have been made to the setting here and there to try and keep the series fresh - I'm not overly convinced they'll be successful, but I'm willing to give the series the benefit of the doubt and watch for a while longer to find out. My finger are crossed... |
