Star Twinkle Pretty Cure: Ep. 1: Twincool~ Shining in Space, Cure Star is Born!

Note to Hikaru: star maps exist, look it up before making up your own random constellations!
Hikaru is a girl with a vivid imagination as wide as the sky and as bright as the stars. She is a lover
of astronomy and weird aliens and supernatural elements and uses her imagination to figure out
how space works. Obviously with this a Pretty Cure season, this has to tie to her somehow gaining
magical girl powers...and in this case, somehow she ends up summoning through an old notebook
she gained from a local observatory a strange creature that she ends up giving the name "Fuwa" (it
has a real name that hints at it's true form but as is we're calling it Fuwa) that has strange
teleportation powers and even sends her into space itself! Obviously there are those after it, both
good and evil: evil being a strange kappa alien with his own squad of Shocker Combatmen...er,
Nottraiders; and an alien girl and her "squid-alien" partner who come to the planet and mention
that the Pretty Cure have to protect Fuwa from someone who wants it to take over the universe. A
lot of stuff happens including Hikaru being thrown out into space before she does the typical "I'll
defend the fairy" bit and becomes our first Cure of the season, Cure Star...and amazingly, Lala, the
alien girl she meets, seems jealous that some random human became a Cure at this point despite
obviously making easy friends with her. Oh..and the spaceship crashes so they're stuck on Earth as
is and probably have to brace for more attacks from the invaders forthcoming.

This is another typical Cure opener; it's basically standard at this point and I don't even think we've
had any interesting variation on this formula since...at least Happiness Charge I suppose. It just
cicks off the typical stuff: the future Pink meets a fairy, finds out about the Cures, becomes one,
we get the typical bits like the face smashing and the "first jump" (this time in zero gravity so that
was a fun variation) and hints at the whole team; there is a bit of a mystery about the notebook
since it was left on Earth and somehow it's tied to Fuwa making me wonder if there's more to the
old man at the observatory but that probably will emerge as the season goes on. I also find it
bizarre that the villains have translators to speak "Earth language" yet Lala, the alien girl, needs
fairy magic; it makes the villains seem more competent than the potential heroines in that
regards. (also peculiar: the minions: it's nice we get an army but they're basically Shocker grunts or
like when some Cure seasons did this sort of thing like HeartCatch so I don't know how long or if
they're going to work as well. But hey, the opener's the opener and I wasn't expected to love it so
we'll see where this goes.

Star Twinkle Pretty Cure: Ep. 2: A Friend from Space: Cure Milky is Born!

I think whoever runs the universe about Cure creation odds really needs to fix their computers.

The transformation of Hikaru into Cure Star has been weighing a lot on Lala's mind; sure she has
her own part in defending her planet from the Notraiders as they try to conquer the unvierse
(basically just throwing her out into the universe at 13 saying "you're an adult, protect the stupid
fairy and the alien thing watching over it!) but somehow she figured "if I get close to it, I can be a
Cure too!" Obviously Hikaru still thinks she can do it in your typical "support the potential second
Cure" sort of way despite the odds (again...WHAT ODDS!? THERE'S A FAIRY RIGHT THERE AND
YOU'RE THE ONLY TWO GIRLS, IF ANYTHING YOU HAVE THE HIGHEST CHANCE OF ANYONE NOT
NAMED HIKARU IN BEING A CURE RIGHT NOW, LALA...unless her odds are way higher and it takes
into account all living beings in the universe...really, what is this?), but of course it's nicer just
seeing the two bond, with Hikaru discovering "nutritional gummy candies that are used for
sustinance in space" (I call them Willy Wonka's 3-course dinner) and Lala discovers onigiri.
Obviously Kappard is still around and he tries to get to the potential Cures and maybe shut up
Hikaru after last time, but of course Lala gets her second wnd and, of course, becomes our second
Cure, Cure Milky, who has electric abilities but...a water-based transformation? (I get it, "Milky
Way"...but it still doesn't feel like a water-based power) And oh yeah there's the whole plot
element of the "Star Princesses"...and I think one is trying to get through to Hikaru as the episode
ends.

Star Twinkle Pretty Cure: Ep. 3: The Pretty Cure Are Disbanding!? Search For The Power Of The Star
Princesses

It would be hilarious is Prunce spends the whole season as a random balloon trapped to Lala's
arm.

At the end of last episode, Hikaru got a strange signal on her transformation device; and somehow
no one knows what it is, though the computer that is connected to Lala makes it seem like it has
something to do with Cure duties. Obviously both she and Lala have to go after it but of course it
ends up being another moment that seems to be rather cliche Cure at this point: the first two get
into some sort of instant argument and they have to resolve their differences; in this case it's just
about Hikaru's carefree attitude and Lala's determination of just getting to the source of the
mystery. It does nearly drive them apart but there is someone that at least "tries" to get them to
work together: a girl named Elena Amamiya, who lives in town and happens to be an
upperclassman of Hikaru's (of course, most Cures seem to go to the same school these days) who
just tells them to behave like she's their mother being a big sister to siblings. This sort of only really
works since really Fuwa remembers it better than Hikaru or Lala, but it does come in handy with
the first real battle they have as another member of the Notraiders show up, this time a tengu-
themed woman named Tenjo who is after the Star Princess pens themselves. I do like the strategy
she uses with her Nottrei's but of course "teamwork" of two much stronger individual is better
than the teamwork of mooks sadly. Oh and we get our first Star Princess pen, this one for Taurus
and it seems like they're going to approach this in a combo of Maho Girls' approach with Ha-chan
and the Land of Fountains in Splash Star: they get a new item, it gives the team a new power and
they magically teleport to some place where they reactivate things one after another until they're
all back leading to...something. As annoying as it can be, at least they're tangible compared to the
whole mess with Filia. (seriously she was one of the weakest things in Splash Star)

Star Twinkle Pretty Cure: Ep. 4: Ciao! A Shining Smile: Cure Soleil is Born

So her catchphrase is Italian, her shop is Spanish and her Cure denomination is French...I'd say
make up your mind, Toei but at least they're all Romance Languages.

Amidst the whole situation in the last episode of the battle between Hikaru and Lala, we met Elena
Amamiya, the "Son" of Mihoshi Middle where she's an upperclassman of Hikaru. We get a bit
more on her here and she's basically just the modern day Cure March with hints of Sunshine and
Chocolat: she's the admiration of a good chunk of the students and is extremely athletic but has
her own priorities being a big sister and protecting her family; in fact that factor and her
athleticism makes me realize she basically is just a revamped version of Cure March under
different circumstances and slightly older. Of course she eventually has to take part in the Cure call
and of course it's her matronly nature, in this case more towards Fuwa, that makes her join with
the team...and while it's neat she is of another culture, I do find the whole copy aspect as a bit too
derivative and just hope that Elena is able to at least become her own character other than "older
Cure March". Oh and we find out a bit more about the Notraiders, who are working to basically
get the Star Princess pens before the revival of their leader; that includes this big blue bulldog and
a cyclops named Aiwarn and her...cat butler?

tar Twinkle Pretty Cure: Ep. 5: A Secret Transformation: The Lady is Cure Selene!

Don't declare yourself a rival to a superior when you matter even less to the plot than usual.

This episode...astounded me. And not in a good way. Obviously this is the introduction of our
fourth Cure by way of Madoka, who becomes Cure Selene in the typical manner. It's sort of the
same "duality" of the two popular girls becoming Cures, with Madoka being our "lady" Cure for
the season in the same manner as White, Beauty, Mermaid and a bit of Macaron on the side,
being the lady of high class who gets involved with the Cure situation due to interactions with the
main team and the fairy. The astounding part about this episode isn't the Madoka becoming a
Cure part which is typical...it's the set-up regarding Madoka and her father. Madoka's father...runs
a government organization in search...of aliens. And this isn't just something they just formed with
the arrival of Lala's entourage and the Notraiders: this has been a part of Mr. Kaguya's life from
the beginning and he casually talks to his wife and daughter at the start of the episode about "we
hunt aliens and are trying to protect the planet from them". Um...why would Japan just have such
a thing? I mean if he just said "it was formed with the strange sightings happening lately" like with
Lala or the Notraiders, I could understand that, maybe it could just be a nice way to explain away
how this could be developed due to how Earth is just being invaded by these forces greater than
this planet and this is how Japan responds. But it isn't that way: in the intro of the episode, he's
just going to work and going off to "search for aliens" in a professional manner and it's like it's no
big deal! (when, you know, there's no proof that anyone in Japan or otherwise would know or
suspect that aliens are among us prior to the season!) This isn't like other seasons where they're
from other dimensions and the beings are able to hide among humanity in some manner (think
how the fairies in Splash Star are a part of local folklore or how Suite and Maho Girls have beings
from other realms blend in with humanity extremely well), they just say bluntly "we think aliens
exist and we're form a group and pay people to protect us from them!" Obviously this is a means
to create tension between Madoka and her father as the season goes on with her fighting to
protect aliens (Fuwa) from other aliens, but it's just something so casual it just feels mind-boggling
and I just wish they would later this season explain why this even existed prior to the whole
situation with the Notraiders.

Star Twinkle Pretty Cure: Ep. 6: An Imagination of Darkness!? The Dark Pen Appears!

OK, why the heck are all the constellations Earth-based if even Lala admits that the universe is
bigger and more interesting than that?

The Cures have a mission to save the universe from whatever the Notraiders are planning
considering that they need to save the twelve Star Princesses before they wipe out the starlight of
existence. Lala seems to be the only one who understands the pressing element of this all while
Hikaru and the others don't...yet somehow they make this episode about "Lala's a square because
she needs to fix her rocket and isn't asking the others for help". I get that this is supposed to be a
team-building exercise but considering things, why aren't Hikaru and the others asking Lala "say,
we need to go into space, can we help you with your rocket so we can get back there?" Nope, they
make it like "Lala's the selfish one for not asking and now she has to learn about teamwork so that
they rocket can be fixed and they can save the Star Princesses". It does lead to them going to the
observatory and meeting with Mr. Ryo again (though it makes me long for the simplicity of the
observatory that we got in Splash Star; seriously, Mai and her family lived there!...but no, every
town has to be uber special and we can't go back to that sort of thing anymore in this franchise)
But at the same time they have to deal with another of the Notraiders who has her own plan: the
bratty Aiwarn. Aiwarn is a villain I think I'm going to like; she's a complete brat full of herself and
sees herself as a genius in having the power to corrupt the Star Princess pens and use them to
create "dark imagination" and the MotW of this season, the Notriggers. On one hand it does make
the whole "teamwork" element work for Lala to learn and of course ask for help at the end. But on
the other...what's the point of a space adventure if Aiwarn just "gives them" the pens by abducting
them herself and then attacking the Cures with them on Earth; if you need to go into space, give us
stakes as to why they have to go into space! (it makes me wonder if this is going to be another "all
the Moaimarz are on Earth and thus the Kyuranger have to spend most the season there" thing
again)
Star Twinkle Pretty Cure: Ep. 7: Exciting! The Grand Strategy To Repair The Rocket

Yeah we'll just save the universe on weekends; no need to miss out on school...then why build
rooms?

As we found out last time, Lala is more receptive in having the other Cure teammates in helping to
repair the rocket so the team can find the other Star Princess pens and save the universe...but to
get back out there, they still need a working rocket. The Cures meet the AI of Lala's ship who gives
them tasks for repair, but ends up making Hikaru the "cleaning lady" in the process, which she sort
of just takes...until she doesn't. In the end it sort of ends up being her just altering all the plans
when she decides to start drawing a new idea she has for the ship thinking that they don't just
need to fix Lala's ship but improve upon if so they can make it "their ship" instead of just hers. I
sort of worry about the whole time scape that is needed to find the pens and save the universe
but...considering this is a team-building exercise for the team, of course this ends up taking
priority for them and the team just make everything girlier before defeating Tenjo again and finally
going into space where, amazingly, another pen is calling out to them. The weird thing is that
where the Cures end up at the end isn't even "real space" but a place called the "Starscape", that
section they claim is beyond our galaxy that apparantly Saman and the Star Princesses are
located...and yet Fuwa can just send them anywhere regardless through teleportation making me
wonder...so if they have a magic baby fairy, why do they need a rocket to begin with?

Star Twinkle Pretty Cure: Ep. 8: Off to Space We Go: The Planet Kennel is Wan-derful

I can't believe there's a Cure mentor that's even more oblivious than Filia...then again are the Star
Princesses mentors or just plot devices?

The "Starscape" where the space journies for the Cures will be occurring is sort of a means to
allow for the Cures to go into space without it being "actual space", thus allowing for the season's
own interpretation of space and the aliens and planets that they can encounter and play on the
"Imagination" element; heck even space itself is rainbow colored instead of just dead and black. It
doesn't mean the Cures can't treat this like an actual space journey (we get Hikaru trying to do her
"first step on the moon" bit here), but it does give the excuse as to why space is much more
bizarre and "girllier" than most space shows. And we get that here where we get a planet literally
shaped like a bone with weird "shaggy dog aliens" and where it rains bones on top of them, which
at least show not all aliens are going to be humanoid which I think is a breath of fresh air and
something an anime can get away with compared to...say, Kyuranger or Kamen Rider Fourze.
Surprisingly the episode is more an Elena focus and it works well with her and gives her conflict
with Prunce in the process: the Cures discover the next Star Princess pen, the Libra one, has been
taken to become a sacred symbol on the planet of "shaggy dogs"; Prunce wants to take the artifact
since the need it for their quest, while Elena wants to respect their beliefs and not take something
that is sacred to them. It becomes more evident when Kappard shows up and just tries to take the
pen outright showing that as much of a monster as Kappard is, Prunce nearly did the same thing
and he isn't any better and the Cures are just as much seen as "invaders" as the Notraiders. I do
like the idea; sure they don't play on it because they have to treat the Cures as the good guys, but
the concept that both the Cures and the Notraiders are aliens trying to force their way on the
native population and cause problems they don't need is an interesting approach regarding the
creation of conflict. Of course in the end, we get the whole "the Cures help them out and Prunce
apologizes combined with the elder fixing the original sacred item so of course they'll just let them
have the Princess Pen" (it's Libra this time), but I sort of wish we got more conflict in this regard
and show that things aren't so clear cut with the Cures mission despite the obvious element they
still need to do this to save the universe.

Oh and the episode starts with Hikaru comparing meeting aliens to a JJ Abrams movie and his
aliens as good and nice. Um...I've seen Star Trek '09, both Star Wars movies and have heard about
Super 8...how is it like an Abrams movie, Hikaru? Or do you want to face Nero or Kylo Ren?

Star Twinkle Pretty Cure: Ep. 9: Ring of Friendship! Star Donuts

Um...isn't standing around doing nothing the whole point of butlers, even cat anthro ones?

There seems to be this "air of perfection" that tends to surround quite a few of the "rich Cures";
they're always expected to be "on" and thus of course they have a hard time fitting in all that they
have to and have time to be Cures at the same time. We get a bit of this with Karen back in Yes! 5,
but the closest we get to this obsession with the "air of perfection"...is surprisingly one who isn't
rich, that being Miki Aono in Fresh who wants to appear perfect but that's what makes her so
lovable in that she isn't the rich one and just wants perfection thus allowing for more fun and
interesting elements when that veneer is lifted. Madoka seems like another of those "perfect rich
girl Cures" we see so often but acting more genteel than what we've had the last couple seasons
(it's about as annoying when we get the rebellious ones ala Aoi and Emiru); however the Cure
situation and her duties with the student council and with her family has just worn her down to
the point that she's having a hard time really doing anything. Heck it isn't made any easier in that
she wants to be a commoner but hasn't even been in town...where the donuts are sold...or where
Elena lives. Thus in a typical Hikaru fashion, she sneaks Madoka away to just have a day hanging
out; it's a nice intent and I get the whole idea but I do sort of wonder considering that with all the
obligations that she has, can she figure out a way to just do this too and all of her obligations at
the same time. I mean it's an important start and obviously being a Cure gives her an "out" to do
this sort of thing, but I do wonder if this is merely just a temporary patch. Oh and somehow we get
more of Sakurako annoyingly tagging along being jealous of Madoka and captured by Aiwarn to be
the Notrigger for the episode and prove just how boring the forces are this season for the villains.
(well OK, the generals aren't bad but the mooks and the monsters are pathetic)

Star Twinkle Pretty Cure: Ep. 10: Sparkling? Welcome To Planet Coumarin!

We just had a whole season where we had a movie of Mofurun-love; thank goodness we didn't get
that again with the weird water bear.

Hikaru tends to decide what she wants to do by the seat of her pants as opposed to anything
logical: if she wants to do something, she just...does it. And in this episode she gets the idea of "I
want to go to Crux, the Southern Cross constellation" (the one used in the Southern Hemisphere
for navigation...that for some stupid reason Kyuranger made as evil in my other watch so I'm
happy that someone remembers it's a good and nice constellation!) and they all just launch
themselves into space to satiate Hikaru's desire. Unfortunately there are two issues: one being
that constellations in space is not the same as looking at a constellation on Earth...and the other is
that they are immediately thrown into the Starscape to find another Princess pen, this time on a
crystaline world that is rather unique and shows how different and weird the planets can be and
giving a nice lesson of "don't expect every world to be hospitable to all of you". It's here that
they're attacked by the Notraiders but the have a huge advantage: their "leader" has granted
them a greater power and they use it to just go on the attack. And it isn't helped that we get
Aiwarn bringing with tech that allows for her to find and corrupt the Princess pen immediately
(using an inkwell which feels appropriate), but Kappard steals the Taurus pen as well; and he
actually makes a really good point amidst all this chaos: Earth isn't necessarily the harshest of
planets and the Cures, as powerful as they are, may be just taking it way too easy compared to
what some of them have been through. I think this is going to lead to some key revelations later
but I do like that as a means of frustration amidst all the other stuff he's been through and the
power that he, Tenjou and Aiwarn have been through. So it's a big loss for the Cures...and it
doesn't end there, with the episode ending with Madoka's father discovering their ship landing
back on Earth, showing that this plot may be coming to a head...and we're not even a quarter
through the season!

Star Twinkle Pretty Cure: Ep. 11: Shine: The Power Of The Southern Cross!

I'm sure that when all those penal colony prisoners were sent to Australia, they all had vivid
imaginations!
Hikaru is still beating herself up after the last episode's big failure regarding the random space trip;
it was a hard mission but considering the strength of the attack of three empowered generals plus
their own desperation, honestly they were going to lose eventually. She's more beating herself up
about the whole "let's go to the Southern Cross" that started it...but agan, since they were
immediately sucked into the Starscape regardless, it didn't mean anything and they were going to
go back into space for that Princess Pen anyway. It isn't helped that they're being chased by
Madoka's father who of course suspects the spaceship that crashed nearby, but they're protected
by Mr. Ryo, whom they finally reveal the whole space/alien thing regardless and he does support
the Cures regardless of all they've been through up to now, even sort of trying to give an
"imagination" lesson to Hikaru. The generals return; not empowered by Darknest but instead using
Aiwarn's experimentations to become a combined Notrigger themselves and they're quite
powerful, made worse with Cure Star having no means to fight back thanks to her losing her
power-up Princess Pen from Taurus. The generals make a good point again stating that Hikaru
really can't fathom how space really is compared to how much she keeps claiming she can push
the whole "imagination" thing over and over again and that with reality, why imagine things? But
of course we get the whole "Hikaru's imagination brought the Cures together" speech, which can
be meh but I do like that it did unite them...plus when you have the weirdness of the Starscape, it
isn't like you can't just imagine how wild space can be outside the regular realms and that it sort of
can continue to be an inspiration for Hikaru. This leads to our first power-up; I don't mind the
Southern Cross theming, but...the wands just come from out of nowhere and have zero build-up; it
isn't as strong as last season where Cure Yell turned a sword she could have used by herself into a
true team-uniting power-up. At the end, we still have to deal with Madoka's dad...but then some
ominous guy approaches them...I just wonder what he's here for. (oh and as if it isn't enough to
bother us regarding the whole Princess Pen war, now even Bakenyan, Aiwarn's butler, decides to
play wild card...and he's even with the villains in the opening, is he hiding something we don't
know?)

Star Twinkle Pretty Cure: Ep. 12: Goodbye Lala!? The Movie Director Is An Alien

Wait...wasn't the legend of the Bamboo Cutter about an alien as well?

Seriously I think Madoka's a better alien than Lala is. The end of last episode left on a weird
cliffhanger: Madoka's father was about to find out about the rocket ship and Lala being an alien
(let alone Prunce and Fuwa), but they're stopped by...a weird distraction: that director "Abrams"
that Hikaru mentioned some time ago, the one named after JJ Abrams but who feels like your
typical Spielberg homage (he looks more like Spielberg than Abrams and even his backstory is
more Spielbergian considering...really, I get being relevant but you want the guy behind
Cloverfield, Nero and Kylo Ren to be the "compassionate caring alien director?") Somehow
through some confusion, we get him directing a "movie" with the Cures as stars to satisfy
American/Japanese relations...but in truth, he's actually an alien (reminds me a lot of the true
form of Thurgane from Hurricaneger being a little guy in a giant suit) and is trying to maintain
relations between our universe and the Starscape; and if Lala screws this up, she's going home! I
do like whenever "intentionally bad movies" are made in shows like this (and this is a bizarre one),
though the whole "do it with intention" when Lala has to do a departure speech is rather cheesy
with the idea that she's doing it for real when of course it convinces Abrams to keeps Lala on Earth
and not turn her into the space authorities...well at least it shows both sides are dangerous both
on Earth and in space regarding what's going on with the whole Cure/Darknest battle. Oh and Lala
gets a last name out of it too: Hagoromo, after the goddess reinment she wears in her role here.

Star Twinkle Pretty Cure: Ep. 13: Lala's Exciting First Day At School

If you're the fastest kid in the class, why are you so slow getting to school anyway?

If there's one tradition that this franchise always seems to go by, it's that the "weird girl", whether
it be a fairy, an extra-dimensional being or even an alien in this case, tends to end up going to the
same school as the Pink eventually. And in this case, Lala of course wants to go to Hikaru's Mihoshi
Middle and even has Abrams work to get her enrolled and appear like a normal human. But the
strange thing is that Lala's own culture ends up becoming sort of problematic here: since she
comes from a planet where she's ruled by a master AI that tells her everything she needs to do
(really sounds like a less evil version of Moebius), she really doesn't know much of anything and
can't even use her own mind to do things as solving simple math equations or to figure out proper
Japanese as she should. It gets to the point she gets frustrated enough she just puts on her AI
glove and tries to act "perfect" to think that's how she's going to fit in to the class...but it makes
her off, not just to her friends but to even those who may like her as the "awkward girl from
elsewhere". It sort of is a nice lesson about "being yourself" but unfortunately it's the same typical
"new girl" lesson we usually get in this franchise.

Star Twinkle Pretty Cure: Ep. 14: The Party Of Smiles! The Family's Sonrisa

If we're homaging bizarre Pink looks with Lala as Love and Madoka as Hana, then I say Hikaru
should have gone with Hibiki's "green hair" look.

One of the most interesting elements about Elena is the fact that she has this rather "foreign" look
to her despite the fact that she has all these elements that tie her to various countries with
romance languages (as mentioned, she has an Italian catchphrase, a shop that's in Spanish and a
Cure title that's French). We finally find out her backstory here: she's actually half-Mexican, her
mother being a Japanese interpreter and her father a Mexican...singer I suppose who got married
and have several rather rambunctious half-breed kids. There's an interesting plot about the
"second child" after Elena, the male Touma, who is rather embarassed by just how jovial and
different his family is and I really think it would have lead to a rather interesting story if done right.
However...it's Lala who ends up trying to get through to him, not his own sister. In fact when he's
turned into a MotW by Tenjou (I've noticed all three villains have different MotW creation
methods now, with Aiwarn being the more traditional one more close to the Desertians, Kappard
going the Julio route of upgraded weapons, and Tenjou...well the "upgraded mook" route is new
for this franchise), Elena tries to get through to him (despite the fact that why the heck is she
doing it while she's a Cure, wouldn't that reveal it to her own brother which would be a no-no this
early unless it mattered in the story?), it doesn't work. Oh...and Tenjou happened to bring another
Star Princess pen just so the Cures can acquire it; she doesn't even corrupt and use it like Aiwarn
does in creating her MotW! (and it's made stupider in that of course Elena acquires it...but if that's
what it takes to hurt the monster/brother before the team finisher, why not use the Libra Pen you
already own?) It's an interesting concept for an episode...but the results are just very, very
botched.

Star Twinkle Pretty Cure: Ep. 15: The Treasure Scramble! Look Out For The Space Phantom Thief

It's amazing that Prunce was able to make a stupid donut machine for space travel that makes
universe-class donuts in no time flat! How long did it take Star Donuts to devise said recipe for him
to clone it?

The dangers and intrigue in and around Starscape are varied and there are some unique ideas and
concepts that can be used through this concept that, surprisingly, this franchise has never even
done before. The big story of this episode is one I really liked and shocked in how much I liked it:
the next Star Princess Pen was found and is being auctioned off to the highest bidder on a planet
where money is the only thing that matters, actually feeling like a better and more interesting
version of Canto Bight from Star Wars including it's own characters and concepts such as a super-
rich dragon alien that can literally buy a super-popular pop idol to be opening entertainment as a
means to prove in how rich he is! This is a cool concept, and it's better that Madoka of all
character sees through him and uses a bit of trickery to win the Star Princess Pen, actually
manipulating donuts brought by Prunce for the trip as a means to create value and to win in a
battle of mental and monetary wills. I just love the episode and it's ideas of trying to find value in
things and the psychological aspects of combat in a situation like an auction as compared to the
typical battles we see in Cure series which are just about punching things really hard with short
skirts. Obviously it has to come back down to punching things in the end...so Aiwarn shows up to
create a battle; but she's not the only problem here. There are rumors of a space thief running
amuck in the area, and it turns out that the idol "Mao" (er, the Chinese version of "Meow") is
actually said space thief in disguise, the Lupin-esque Blue Cat! I'm not sure about this twist since
they seem to imply that she became the biggest idol in the Starscape all of a sudden and she's
been a thief all along...but there's no build up to it; why not have hints that maybe everywhere
Mao has been, Blue Cat follows; or that there are elements where Mao and Blue Cat appear to not
be the same being when they actually are; its a plot that really could have been built up over a
long period even before the Cures first meet her (heck why not even do what they did with the
idol Hame loves in Kyuranger, having him as a background character until he's actually relevant for
an episode in a key revelation that makes a lot of sense!) It's a rather weak reveal to of course
start pushing "a key new character" for the season...oh and she already knows they're Cures and
even Aiwarn and her have a history...but I guess that's the only thing that matters when it comes
to past history here.

Can we get back to more space auctions and less random new character reveals?

Star Twinkle Pretty Cure: Ep. 16: Aim For Victory: Madoka's Arrow!

So Sakurako compares herself to Venus...that's tied to Lucifer...SHE'S THE FINAL VILLAIN!

Obviously of the many things that Madoka has to be "perfect" at for the sake of her family, one is
the practice of Japanese-style archery and bowmanship. She won a competition in it the previous
year and this year is likely to win again, but of course there's a new rival around this time around
that's going to be pushing her to her limits. You can sort of see where this is going because said
rival "has no friends because friends get in the way of victory"...and of course with the whole
situation with her being a Cure, Madoka is the exact opposite even if Hikaru and the others won't
shut up with their cheering in a competition where you're supposed to be quiet for the sake of
competitor concentration! This ends up beng the means to introduce the "Cure jewelry trinket" for
the season to inspire Madoka to win...which she ultimately does because the plot demands it. Oh
and Aiwarn does turn the competitor into a Nottrigger but not much happens; though I do like
Selene "powering up" when defending her rival; I sort of wish it lead to something more powerful
but considering how the gimmick this season is useless other than just random aesthetic
changes...

Star Twinkle Pretty Cure: Ep. 17: Enemy? Ally? The Treasure Blue Cat Is Searching For

That's the last time I trust a Cerberus that ribbits.

Who's side is Blue Cat really on? Considering the problems that the Cures had last time on Planet
Zenny when trying to get a Star Princess Pen, dealing with her again is probably the last thing on
their minds. But when they find another Star Princess Pen on Zenny in the hands of the same
dragon idiot who tried to take another one away, once again they have to deal with Blue Cat and
her potentially morally gray elements. For the most part the Cures are stuck being allied with Blue
Cat (even poor Prunce who hates doing it due to how she tricked everyone for all this time being
Mao) and somehow she's able to use their abilities to her own advantage; obviously she has to be
a step ahead but at the same time seems to know that if the Cures just transform, it will make
things a mess. Ultimately the Cures do transform...which is surprising since there is no incentive
associated with the villain when they do (that rarely happens in this franchise though it does on
occasion...then again Kappard does show up later so we still get a fight out of it) but it's mostly not
just due to trying to protect the pen but also the treasure Blue Cat is stealing; it's one part the
whole "noble thief" bit where she's doing all this and helping out others in a Robin Hood way...but
also she's specifically after treasures from planet Rainbow, a planet we heard about in the first
Zenny episode as having been destroyed and yet she is trying to recollect pieces of it's former
existence. That at least adds a new fold to her character, giving her more a feel like those soldiers
who try to steal back treasures from villains to give them back to the world they originally belong
to; it does make one wonder why Blue Cat is so interested in the destroyed planet of
Rainbow...but that's probably for a later time. At least the rich jerk is taken down a peg...though I
doubt we'll ever have Cures as "hired protection" for someone like him. (besides, the Cures tend
to be hired protection anyway; seriously this jerk can't have them as his own hired protection yet
they can be hired protection for random baby fairies and the like...heck this team's already the
hired protection for Fuwa!)

Star Twinkle Pretty Cure: Ep. 18: Publish That New Story: Mom's Manga Journey!

For a moment with the way she went down the stairs, I thought Hikaru's mom was Sonic the
Hedgehog.

One thing I've learned from my years of following Japanese pop culture is that getting a manga
published and popular is a hard deal to do and practically impossible with the issues of the
mangaka, the editor, the staff and everything else that goes on. This episode tries to simplify it by
revealing Hikaru's mom as a mangaka who is on a deadline to get a new story out there that can
possibly be published in a monthly manga magazine. It's an interesting concept I suppose, but it's
sort of ruined by a few things. Firstly: it becomes a "hey, lets have the Cures help out" situation
with them as assistants for the episode; usually a mangaka either has no assistants or at least the
factor that they won't be around other than being cute this time so it really feels like it's just sort
of tries but only does it because "yay, we get to do somethng fun today!" On the other, the plot is
just very stupid in that Terumi is being pushed by her editor to make a bare-bones basic manga
that can be popular in a shoujo mag with no twists like, say, there are aliens involved; and she
does what they tell her to but then she's rejected...but then after a crisis for the episode where
Hikaru helps her regain the joys of making manga...and an attack by Tenjou...she makes her alien
manga. Oh and the editor apologizes and just tells her "do what you like and we'll do it your way".
I know that editors are hard problems with the manga industry (they can give good advice but
they can also give crap advice regarding popularity), but it's so stupid that the whole thing hinged
on Terumi's editor just having a sudden magical 180 when she does what she wanted to do to
begin with regarding her idea when he was the one who said otherewise at the start; really if they
wanted a victim to be "purified" for the MotW attack, it should have been him instead of giving
Terumi the crisis that is resolved by basically doing what she likes.

In more important plot elements, Blue Cat is doing some work on the ruined planet of
Rainbow...but what we'll have to find out next time. (but it does involve a Star Princess Pen)

Star Twinkle Pretty Cure: Ep. 19: To The Planet Of Rainbows: Blue Cat's Secret!

I should have known something was up the moment Bakenyan did nothing but serve tea all the
time.

The Planet Rainbow; it's been built up for a few episodes as a planet with a massive tragedy that
Blue Cat has been trying to reclaim the treasures of; and also trying to get a Star Princess Pen for
her own purpose in association with. We find out why this time around and it's a rather
devastating discovery: Rainbow is her homeworld; she's actually presumably some sort of "anthro
cat alien" (though all we've seen is her tail up to now) and the planet was "destroyed" due to an
early experiment by Aiwarn regarding the Dark Pen that ended up petrifying everyone on the
world; thus my presumption is Blue Cat is trying to get a Star Princess Pen because it will save her
people. Further, she sort of was going undercover finding out a lot about the Star Princess Pens
and holding back Aiwarn from using the Dark Pens...because she was also Bakenyan all along!
This...was a twist that I think works well: we get some warning regarding him being a bit more
cautionary and showing that he had another side to himself and it's only here, where we don't see
any other means to fight with all of Rainbow petrified, that Bakenyan is exposed...due to her
stupidity of trying to take Fuwa hostage forgetting that she knows the scent of the perfume Blue
Cat uses whenever she undertakes a disguise! (having smelled it both when she was Mao and the
dragon alien); plus who else but a cat alien would go undercover as a cat alien without Aiwarn
realizing it due to how bratty she is? I sort of wish this twist came way later than it did since it feels
like something that would have worked better if Bakenyan did more until now, but with the small
hints and with how it was done the last few episodes with Blue Cat, it works well enough. Also
interesting: Aiwarn sort of also seems to prove that the petrification process is merely petrification
and isn't truly about turning them into dead stone, since she experiments and succeeds in turning
one of the trapped Rainbownians into a Notrigger for our MotW; it was a risk and while it gets a
bit preachy with the whole " they have imaginations" nonsense, it proves to Blue Cat that her
people are still alive but she doesn't trust that the power of the Cures alone with the pens is going
to be enough to save them. So...she steals them, taking all the Cures have collected up to
now...but the question now: how the heck is Blue Cat even going to save her people if she
probably has no idea what to do with the Star Princess Pens? (seriously all they're good for is
accessorizing minor moves that aren't even finishers and reawakening princesses; they're rather
useless otherwise!)
Star Twinkle Pretty Cure: Ep. 20: Light Up The Galaxy: Cure Cosmo Is Born!

What the heck does triangles have to do with space?

Blue Cat is an alien on a mission, and in a way she really has no choice in the matter and is just sort
of face it all on her own whether she wants to or not. We get a bit of her background and of the
planet Rainbow and it's rather dark: the cat aliens she's a part of are actually from another world
and when they came to Rainbow, it was a deserted planet only really maintained by the "Rainbow
Ore" that the planet had which allowed for the purification of water and thus allowed for the
sustinance of life until that little incident with Aiwarn and the Dark Pen petrified everyone and
returned the planet to the arid wasteland that it was prior to their arrival. Somehow hearing about
the Star Color Pens and the power of the Star Princesses, she took up multiple disguises to both
investigate (Mao) and infiltrate (Bakenyan) the enemy while at the same time stealing back
Rainbow's ore which is being used as mere valuables by other alien races (Blue Cat) without
realizing that this is their means of survival once the planet is unpetrified once again. It's a strong
and good origin for her and gives us sympathy to her situation; while at the same time showing
that she really isn't against the Cures since she didn't take their Pendants away and thus allowed
for them to keep fighting despite how she isn't necessarily on the best of terms with the
Notraiders herself. The one who feels the most betrayed is Aiwarn: she seemed to care about
Bakenyan; and finding out that her butler was a spy all along "triggered" her to become a
Notrigger herself in order to eliminate Blue Cat and get back at her in a rather tragic fashion. That
is the interesting part of the episode...the not interesting part are the ones where the obvious
happens: the surprise of "you're a cat alien all along, Blue Cat!" (despite...her name...and all the
cat elements...and the mere fact that she states she's from this world and all the petrified beings
are cat aliens...) and the whole faked conflict of whether or not Blue Cat and the Cures can really
work together and what she needs to fight back regardless. Regardless of the cheesy side of
things, of course Blue Cat becomes a Cure at the end, becoming "Cure Cosmo" and thus becoming
their fifth member...and again, what's the surprise when there have been five stars on the TF pens
from day one? (it's one of the annoying things about this franchise, the whole "how were we
supposed to know another Cure was going to be created" nonsense when it's obvious from day
one...it's really something I think Fresh is the only season that mastered that element...maybe
Suite)