Precure Splash Star (Series 3)

Sequel Precure series like Max Heart are actually pretty rare. Most Precure anime actually start anew with an entirely new cast, setting, and set of antagonists. Splash Star had the tall ask of being the first Precure anime to do this, and it couldn't have made a worse first impression. And that's a shame! Because once you get past a rough pilot, Splash Star is far and away an improvement than its predecessors.

Before I talk about all the things Precure Splash Star does right, we need to talk about what it does wrong, which is pretty much just the pilot. It's especially worth comparing it to Futari's far superior pilot. Futari's first episode quickly and efficiently established Nagisa and Honoka's offbeat dynamic, set up the anime's lore, introduced all of the side characters and how they know each other, and even got to show off some of the anime's iconic hand-to-hand combat. In comparison, Splash Star's pilot is pretty much identical, but worse in every single way. We all know Saki and Mai look pretty similar to Nagisa and Honoka, but we never actually get to see how they or their dynamic differs from them since the episode instead fixates on repeatedly telling us about how they met five years ago. We get like one or two scenes in the school, but we don't actually get to meet many of Saki's friends like we did with Shiho and Rin. Once Flappy and Choppy appear, they lay on the exposition pretty thick rather than slowly dole it out over the next few episodes. And the big action showcase at the end of the episode is really short and lacking in any sort of kinetic choreography. As a result, Splash Star's pilot paints the show as just being a worse version of Futari. It's a failure of a first episode on pretty much every level.

Thankfully, the pilot is by far the worst episode of Splash Star. Right from Episode 2, the series begins to really establish itself. Splash Star is about Saki and Mai trying to restore magical fountains scattered around their beach town and stop the evil Dark Fall from destroying the all-important World Tree. While Saki and Mai and their two fairies Flappy and Choppy may start out seeming like clones of their Futari equivalents, but the differences become apparent fast. Where Nagisa is cynical and pretty down-on-her-luck, Saki is far more cheerful, determined, and earnest. She tries so hard and I adore her for it. Mai is a bit more similar to Honoka, but she's also more spacey and introverted, with less confidence in herself. As much as I adore NagiHono's mid-battle quips, there's something about Saki and Mai's more supportive and natural dynamic that really does it for me. The beach town location also really helps Splash Star stand on its own, as it comes with a comfy vibe, beautiful vistas, and a fantastic score that gives off some serious Chrono Cross vibes.

And there's a lot of elements that I thought were vast improvements over Futari. The villains are far more visually varied and memorable, Saki's love interest Kazuya has way more depth than the bland Fuji-P (and it helps Saki doesn't become a stuttering mess everytime he's around), Saki's sister Minori is far more lovable than the bratty and tropey Ryouta, Pollun's replacement in Moop and Foop are genuinely adorable and likable without driving me up the wall, and most of all, the way the show deals with interpersonal relationships is wonderful. The closest thing I can compare much of Splash Star to are those heart-warming moments in Nichijou. It's obvious that the cast of Splash Star cares about each other, and they're always willing to be supportive and show how much they care no matter what. While characters do get into arguments every once in a while, the arguments never feel forced, the characters never drag it out, and it's always used as an opportunity for more bonding and growth. And none of this feels cheap or ploying, it's all incredibly genuine and natural. The beach town setting helps with this, it feels like there's a strong sense of community within Splash Star's beach town that forms the beating heart for this series. 

But the real highlight is the series is absolutely Michiru and Kaoru. They're a lot like Kiriya from Futari, that one villain that tried to spy on Nagisa and Honoka by joining their high school. But to put it frankly, I just think they're a far better execution of the concept. Michiru and Kaoru are given a bit more time to learn about being human, and actually get the chance to properly become Saki and Mai's friends (though slightly reluctantly). I like how they start off unknowledgeable to the point of coming off as accidentally cruel to the other classmates, and not even knowing how to eat until a student offers them food. It all falls in line with the anime's themes on community, and Michiru and Kaoru's character arc about slowly and naturally becoming a part of the beach town is super compelling. But best of all, unlike Kiriya, they actually manage to redeem themselves without dying... well, kinda. Michiru and Kaoru get erased halfway through their series, but their disappearance lingers with Saki and Mai in a way Kiriya's death didn't, and they end up managing to return in a phenomenal final ten episodes about the two fighting fate and finding a found family with Saki and Mai. It's a truly fantastic way to cap off Splash Star, and makes for easily the best ending to a Precure season so far.

Highlights:

Softball Is The Bond Between Parents And Children (episode 15): This episode encapsulates everything that makes Splash Star great, taking a neat premise and running the bases with it. I love the idea of an Uzaina/Zakenna being used to interfere with one of the characters' life, and Saki's bizarre softball throws and screams "I'm in bad form!" are incredibly funny until you start to realize it's all a metaphor for losing your touch. The rest of this episode is super heartwarming as both Mai and Saki's mom try to help her regain her mojo in various ways, culminating in some truly beautiful sunset-lit scenes on the beach. 

Shine In The Night Sky! Friends In Starlight (episode 21): The midseason arc of Splash Star is all fantastic, but I wanted to highlight each episode individually. Friends In Starlight is both yet another visually stunning episode, boasts a strong darkly comedic premise, and leaves a big impact on the plot. Michiru and Kaoru repeatedly getting interrupted every time they try to kill Saki and Mai is great, especially as each interruption leaves them increasingly unsure about actually going through with it. And the final few minutes are fantastic, from Michiru and Kaoru realizing Saki and Mai are fighting for them to Mai picking up on their real identity.

A Big Surprise! Michiru And Kaoru's Shocking Confession (episode 22): What a tense episode. Saki and Mai's face off with Michiru and Kaoru felt increasingly inevitable as it went on, and what we got of it in this episode definitely lived up to all that buildup. I like that Michiru and Kaoru brought actually hand-to-hand back into Precure, and Saki's speech that nearly got them to turn was so well-executed.

Finally Showdown! Menace Akudaikan (episode 23): This one needs no introduction. Considered one of the most heartbreaking Precure episodes in general, Menace Akudaikan has Michiru and Kaoru finally redeem themselves and change sides... only to have to sacrifice themselves to save Saki and Mai. This is Uranus/Neptune levels of devastating.

Moop And Foop Make Their Entry! Wait, Who? (episode 24): While Kiriya's death was pretty sad, it didn't leave much of an impact on the leads outside of Honoka occasionally remembering him. That is not the case in Splash Star. The entire first half of this episode is Saki and Mai mourning Michiru and Kaoru, made worse by the fact that no one else remembers they even exist. It's heartbreaking. Oh yeah, and Moop and Foop debut.

The Power Of Miracle! Pretty Cure's Big Transformation (episode 30): Ms Shitataare was easily one of my favorite of the side villains, not just super hammy and super fun, but as this episode shows, perfectly willing to betray the other villains if she doesn't get her way. And it says a lot that Ms Shitataare's hilarious betrayal was the highlight of this episode considering it also had Choppy and Flappy getting captured, Gohyan getting to fight for the first time, and biggest of all, Saki and Mai getting entirely new Precure forms. Correct me if I'm wrong but isn't this the only time that happens in the whole franchise? That's huge.

Now's The Final Round! Fight, Nagichuu Softball Club (episode 35): Why are the sports episodes so good?! Two seasons worth of Nagisa's predictable lacrosse wins conditioned me into thinking Saki's team would triumphantly win at the last second... but it didn't happen. Saki lost. The whole softball game was so tense, so well-animated, so perfectly-executed that seeing Saki lose felt a massive punch in the gut. But I also think this episode was necessary, and packed a good message for the kids watching the show. I criticized Max Heart for feeling artificially positive, but this kind of realistic hopefulness is exactly what I want from Precure. Also, I can not express how happy I am that Kintoleski is so far the first and only villain to not interrupt an important sports match, huge respect for the guy.

Culture Festival Arc (episode 36-37): Splash Star had been building up to the culture festival for a while now, and these two episodes were not a let-down, resolving the arcs and subplots of a whole bunch of characters, particularly Mai and Kenta/Miyasako. But there's also a pretty top-notch action scene in the forest, an absolutely hysterical horror house subplot, and quite possibly the cutest SakiMai scene in the whole show. 

Welcome Back! Michiru And Kaoru! (episode 42): Michiru and Kaoru finally return, and they make a hell of a triumphant return in this episode, but while that's all fantastic, I need to talk about Princess Filia for a bit. Remember when Max Heart promised that we'd get to see Nagisa and Honoka living with Wisdom and the Elder only for them to move out only a few episodes after for no reason? Well, once again, Splash Star actually gives me what I wanted by having Princess Filia spend time in Saki and Mai's world... albeit in the body of the cat Korone. So cool so see the high entity actually do stuff this time, and Korone's deep male voice gives me Sakamoto vibes in the best way possible.

A Sudden Twist?! Who Is The Mastermind?! (episode 47): Futari's Dark King was certainly menacing, but it's not like he was all that interesting of an antagonist. As cool as his design is, Akudaikan isn't much different, which is why the twist that Goyan was his real creator is so great. The manipulative Goyan was always the more interesting villain, you spend more time with him and it's never quite clear what he's thinking at any given moment. So the big twist about him works because it's surprising, makes sense, and in my opinion, makes the finale better than if it was just a standard fight against Akudaikan.

The Final Battle! The Stolen Land Of Greenery! (episode 48): Ah yes, the infamous Dragon Ball Z episode. No seriously, the action in this episode is straight-up a DBZ fight. There's flying, laser beams, Super Saiyan transformations, teleportation, giant balls of death and destruction, screaming, nonstop punching, and it's fucking awesome! As a whole, Splash Star's action has been a lot weaker than in Futari, but they really saved the best for last. This whole episode goes ridiculously hard. 

But that's just the first half. Because the second half not only has Michiru and Kaoru finally turn into Cures, but it also has Goyan flat-out destroy the goddamn Earth. THIS IS KIRBY LEVELS OF MOOD WHIPLASH! WHAT IS THIS SHOW?! 

Reach To The Top! The Eternal Starry Sky Of Friends (episode 49): What a perfect ending. The final battle may not have had the same WTF-ery of Episode 48, but it was just as fast, well-choreographed, bombastic, and over-indulgent in the best way possible. The Spiral Heart Splash Star was the best title drop I've seen since Bocchi The Rock (which isn't that long ago, but trust me that's a compliment). And the epilogue was fantastic too, giving everyone the happy ending they truly deserve and letting Michiru and Kaoru live. Oh, and the fairies actually properly leave this time!

Overall, Splash Star really won me over in the end. While it made a pretty bad first impression with its pilot episode, it quickly managed to improve on the things Futari did well while also carving out its own identity. The characters and their relationships to each other felt far more natural and developed, the villains were far more entertaining and interesting, the plot escalated at a perfect pace, I loved the distinct beach town setting, Michiru and Kaoru's subplot was so freaking good, and the entire final arc was absolutely top-notch. 

5/5 Stars

Precure Max Heart (Series 2)

Almost every Precure season stands on its own, with a new cast, new mascots, new costumes, and a new setting. Max Heart is the rare exception of being one of two Precure seasons to be a direct sequel to another season, in this case Futari. Does Max Heart justify the concept Precure sequel seasons? Hard no! 

Precure Max Heart is about the resurrection of the Queen (aka last season's Big Good) and the Dark King (aka last season's Big Bad). After being wounded by the Dark King last season, the Queen gets split apart into her heart, her life, and 12 fairies called Heartiels. Thus, this season's main storyline is pretty much a race between Nagisa and Honoka to bring back the Queen before the villains, a team called the Shitennou, do the same for the Dark King. The twist is that the Queen and Dark King's life have both found themselves in kids named Hikari and Hikaru (later revealed to be siblings). Hikari ends up joining Nagisa and Honoka as the third Precure, while Hikaru has no idea what the hell is going on and spends the whole season goofing off with the Butler Zakenna. As far as plot goes, it's alright? It's a solid conceit for a sequel and the core "gotta catch em all" structure of the plot should give the season a good amount of momentum, but it doesn't work in execution. The Heartiels just appear most of the time, rarely do the leads ever have to do anything to get them, so it leaves Max Heart just feeling like a 47-episode-long waiting game. And most of the potentially intriguing elements are either revealed super early (Hikari's identity), blatantly obvious (Hikaru's identity), or completely wasted (Elder and Wisdom rooming with Nagisa). To put it simply, this storyline couldn't have supported a full season of anime, and it definitely doesn't help that I didn't find Hikaru or the Shitennou all that interesting.

Hikari, aka Shiny Luminous, was always going to be fighting a losing battle from her concept. The beating heart of Futari wa Precure was the relationship between Nagisa and Honoka, which leaves Hikari as a bit of a third wheel. But it definitely doesn't help that Hikari is literally a blank slate by the start of the series, having just awakened as the Queen's life. Hikari's sole personality trait is being nice. She takes everything super seriously and spends much of her scenes seeming detached from the rest of the cast. Unlike characters such as Mepple, Wisdom, and Akane, Hikari lacks the wit or energy to bounce off of Nagisa and Honoka. I also hate what she adds to the fight scenes, since her transformation into Shiny Luminous pretty much always marks the end of the fight. It leaves Nagisa and Honoka feeling kinda useless for most of Max Heart, since battles are won not by their own skill or determination, but by Hikari deus-ex-machina-ing whenever she finds it most convenient. Hikari's "fish out of water" status could at least lead to some fun comedic moments, but aside from a few episodes, this rarely ever happens. 

Another issue I have with Max Heart is just how many fairy characters we have here. Season 1 had Mepple, Mipple, and eventually Pollun, along with Wisdom and the Elder. Season 2 adds in not just the irritating Lollun but 12 different Heartiels each with their own personalities. I love cute characters and some of these Heartiels are legitimately fun (Pation and Intelligen in particular), but there are points where the whole screen is flooded with cutesy high-pitched fairies and I just couldn't take it anymore. But as bland as I found Hikari, the Shitennou fare even worse. You can tell the writers learned practically nothing from the Seeds Of Darkness, because this is yet another set of dull, identical-looking villains with zero personality or depth. When my favorite antagonist of the season was the oblivious little kid who spent most of it wrecking the evil base, you know you're doing something wrong.

But hey, at least there's the school-related slice of life stuff, right? Eh, kinda. It is true that the school is easily the best part of Max Heart. Nagisa, Honoka, and their classmates are still super fun to watch, the show continues from last season and puts the cast in new leadership positions as graduation looms, and there is a fair share of neat storylines. Max Heart is probably at its strongest whenever Nagisa is dealing with being lacrosse captain, and trying to figure out if lacrosse is what she wants to do with her life. However, just like with the main storyline, there are also plenty of episodes that don't really have a plot, instead boiling down to the characters going to a location and having fun there until the villains show up. And whenever there is some sort of conflict, expect it to be ripped straight out of the previous show, like the lacrosse championships, Honoka's birthday, and most egregiously the return of Fuji-P. However, while the majority of Max Heart was a massive slog, it actually manages to end on a solid note. Around the late 30s, the episodic storylines start to improve a bit, the animation gets a bump, and plotlines start to resolve on (mostly) satisfying notes as graduation loomed. It was definitely an improvement, but still way too little too late.

Highlights:

An Aspiring Upperclassman Is A Close Friend?! (Episode 15): This episode was one of the few times it felt like Max Heart actually lived up to its fullest potential, at least as far as slice of life is concerned. Hikari's fish-out-of-water status is actually explored as she starts making friends and gets roped into a basketball game, the fairies are kept off to the side, the plot gets less priority over actually entertaining character interactions, there's a pretty well animated basketball scene, and NagiHono fangirls Nao and Miu are genuinely really fun additions to the cast who actually play off of all the main characters incredibly well. Wait... this is their only appearance? Unbelievable!

Infinite Darkness, Eternal Light (Episode 45): I never grew to care about Hikari, but the characters did, so when she disappears and everyone but Nagisa and Honoka forget about her, it still hit surprisingly hard. Infinite Darkness, Eternal Light has such a crushing and hopeless atmosphere to it, especially as it builds up to the return of the Dark King.

Open The Door! The Story Begins From Here (Episode 47): How the hell is this finale so good when the rest of the show is so mediocre?! Nagisa and Honoka's relationship is giving front-billing here, every scene with the two of them is phenomenal. I love the opening where we see their childhood, that scene where they talk about what they want to do after the battle is over, obviously the graduation scene too, it's those emotional touches that really elevate this finale. Because this is also an action-packed episode, with some of the best action and plot twists in the whole series. I mean, we get Queen physically fighting the Dark King with the Earth as their battlefield, how can you even top that?! Hikari's storyline ends on a very satisfying and emotional note as well, and while I'm not as fond of Mepple and Mipple not saying goodbye this time, I think it works so that we don't just get a repeat of last season's ending. I may not have liked Max Heart all that much, but I'm much happier with where it left the cast.

Overall, Precure Max Heart is a disappointing followup to Futari wa Precure and a pretty poor show on its own merits as well. Despite an intriguing premise, Max Heart refuses to do anything actually interesting with it and instead goes for a passive plot where the cast rarely faces any engaging conflicts or difficult decisions. The bland or unlikable new characters bloat out the cast, and the stuff that Max Heart does do right are usually ripped right out of the first show. There's a fair share of solid episodes, the returning cast from Futari is still as likable as ever, and the final stretch is solid, but otherwise, this was a massive step down.

1/5 Stars

The Hype Aversion Issue

I was in the middle of writing a rant about science-fiction. See, I've been struggling to get into a lot of hard (or relatively hard in the case of anything Star Wars related) sci-fi shows such as Battlestar Galactica, The Expanse, and worst of all, Andor, so I wanted to try and parse through why they weren't doing anything for me. My conclusion was these shows because they seemed to prioritize realism or being gritty over telling good stories, but pretty far into the rant, I started to wonder... what even was my evidence here? That Battlestar Galactica was a direct response to the Star Trek Voyager's Year Of Hell, a divisive storyline that even I couldn't defend? That Andor was made by a guy who doesn't usually write sci-fi? That's just not grounds for an argument and I knew it.

Even if they weren't for me, it's not like all hard sci-fi specifically exists to stick it to Star Trek. And even if it did (looking at you BSG), it's not like the people working on them weren't also trying to make the best products they could. The Expanse is based on a book based on a TTRPG, Andor was just Gilroy giving his own unique take on a fairly malleable universe, and even BSG was less of a "screw Star Trek" project and more of a "let's do what Star Trek couldn't" project. Even with my personal bias towards formalist art, I definitely can't say that these shows would be better if they were more colorful and light-hearted. So why was I getting so mad? Why was I willing to write a whole rant on stuff that wasn't even true? But then I realized something. My rant wasn't based on those shows, it was based on what I've heard about those shows...