#otona precure 2023

[littlemisspinky]

dream. 🦋

ive really been loving otona precure, so refreshing to see magical girls wrestling with adult problems while still magical girl-ing :)

[precuresplashstar-2006]

[diujosfavoritos]

[muthaz-rapapa]

Otona Precure '23: The Sequel We ACTUALLY Deserve

Let's not mince words.

Otona Precure wasn't just fantastic, it puts every reboot or sequel of an established series to shame.

Because yea, it's primarily aimed at an older audience alright but the issues and the themes discussed in the story are relatable and relevant to everyone's interests, regardless of age.

That reality is much harsher than we think it is, more than we can comprehend. That the world will never be perfect like we want it to be.

But also that, because we're on this planet right now at this very moment, we can't just sit around and resign ourselves to not do anything as situations continue to worsen.

Pollution, climate change, toxic society, war.

The show did not shy away from addressing these topics but what's even more notable is it pointing out that people, humans, are the source of them all.

And I appreciate the honesty of that statement because yes, frankly, we are the problem.

People are selfish. We indulge too much in ourselves, our own egos, that we are blinded to the welfare of others. We are also lazy and discriminating and even those who say we'd like things to be better often give up too easily because searching for a solution is too hard and daunting.

Mankind is the shittiest species to walk upon this earth and no one's gonna argue on that.

But does that make everyone inherently bad though?

No, of course not.

We're flawed beings but we're also capable of learning. We're capable of understanding and compassion. There are many among us who do try our best to make this world a kinder and more beautiful place to live in.

But as the finale shows, it cannot only be these few people (like Precure) to do all the hauling and pushing. Everybody has to pitch in. Everybody has to contribute for a better world to be possible.

And that doesn't mean tackling a conflict that's a lot bigger than you can handle. That doesn't mean you have to go at it all alone.

It means that you have to change the way you are, change the way you do things to get the ball rolling. Only by changing yourself first that you can begin to change your surroundings, not the other way around.

It's only through the collective effort of everyone wanting to change for the better that we can protect what we love and create the future that we envision.

Precure is meant to inspire that will to act which is best exemplified in Nozomi. Cure Dream, the Precure of Hope.

Nozomi stands out among the many lead Cures we've had over the years in the quality of leadership she displays as the head of her own team.

She is not the brightest nor sharpest person in any group but damn, does that girl woman never give up.

Not even when she pushes herself to the brink that she falls unconscious from fatigue several times did she ever consider the thought of giving up.

And that's exactly what makes her such a strong and effective leader.

It's not because she's been put into that position so she's only functioning as one.

It's because she inspires everyone around her to become the leaders of their own lives which would then repeatedly bring about the butterfly effect in people beyond their own circle.

Additionally, we must applaud at how well the themes of adulthood and personal struggle have been explored. Look at the girls! Look at how much they've grown, how much they've progressed from the time they were still just middle schoolers dreaming of what they want to be in the future.

(GODDAMNIT, MILK BECAME THE PRIME MINISTER OF HER HOME COUNTRY, I'M STILL NOT OVER THAT AAAAAAHHHHHH!!!!!!!)

They've accomplished so much and you can't help but be incredibly proud of how far they've come on their individual journeys.

But now that they're adults, they also realize just how difficult it is to keep the optimism they had when they were kids. Things don't always go the way you want them to. Real life is stressful and exhausting and the accumulation of all those negative feelings of helplessness is enough to send anyone into depression.

As an adult, you're constantly asking yourself "is it really worth it?" because you don't want to betray the hopes you had as a child but sometimes, it's just too hard that all you want to do is give up.

...and that's okay if you need to for a while.

Take a break, go talk to someone you can trust if you feel you've really hit rock bottom.

Find a secure, safe space to cry it all out if you have to.

It's okay to not be okay all the time.

Because that's pretty much what adulthood is.

Being an adult is not about doing everything but knowing you can't do everything and telling yourself that's okay. Because you're already doing everything you can. Your best is good enough.

It's good enough for one person. Nobody's asking you to save the world or become a magical girl to fight off monsters or resolve a major crisis with a miracle answer.

You just need to do your part of the whole in the best way you can. That's all.

And I believe Bell knows that as well.

She knows that just because today's worst was averted, it doesn't mean we're out of the doom radar yet. Because she's right. Humans still can't be trusted as proven by that after-credits scene. There are still plenty of jerks out there who don't give a damn about how much harm they're adding to the world.

But she also knows that as long as there is someone like Precure to do their part, to yell at those jerks to pick up their trash, then maybe, maybe, not all hope is lost just yet.

And so she leaves with the words "I'll be waiting for you in the future", hoping that what the Cures have taught her to believe won't betray her when that time comes.

That said, for us longtime fans of the series, Otona Precure is also a love letter.

A project of appreciation to us for the past 20 years of love and support we've given this franchise.

And I'd say we got what we wanted because before the announcement of this spin-off, I didn't think Toei would ever care to redeem Yes! 5 Precure on how badly it performed during its two seasons run.

Yet here we are and even 100 times better than the original.

They cut out all the fillers which was the primary flaw of those two seasons and focused entirely on the characters. The girls and the expansion of their story arcs. The stuff we actually want to see.

Moreover, the writers did a very great job of showing how everyone has matured. For example, Rin and Karen outgrew their bickering and even the uncalled for vitriol that Kurumi always directed at Nozomi is nowhere to be found.

Seriously! I laughed so hard when Kurumi switched the target of her criticism from Nozomi to Coco. I don't think we've ever seen her this concerned and sympathetic towards Nozomi to the point that she didn't even hesitate to yell at her superior to "cut it with your responsibilities crap and go comfort your lonely girlfriend, you idiot king!"

🤣🤣🤣🤣

Everyone is just incredibly supportive of each other and that's so heartwarming.

I also personally loved how they dealt with Komachi's episode, which introduced a sort of sub-theme of one's love for their hometown.

Komachi has always aspired to become a writer and it would've been fine to go down the route of getting her out of her slump.

But having Komachi put in effort for her community, learn about the history of her town, and becoming determined to defend it after her strengthened appreciation fit with the overarching theme and her personality so much better.

The inclusion of Splash Star into this story was awesome, too.

If I can be honest, I don't think Saki and Mai would've done as well as Otona Precure if they had 12 episodes only to themselves (including Michiru and Kaoru, btw). So by giving them a fair amount of screentime next to the Yes!5 girls, the show just felt more complete with their conclusions.

They're still chasing their respective dreams, had their relationship troubles (and Saki got engaged to her boyfriend/fiance who seems like a very good guy judging by how he's supportive of her going to Luxembourg, ugh so happy for her!) and career doubts but are still as close as ever which allowed them to pull through in the end.

Wonderful.

Finally, let's all agree that no anniversary season is complete unless proper spotlight is given to the dai-senpai Precure, FutariWa.

Maybe that's why 10th anniversary was such a dud?

They didn't get as much screentime as they did during the 15th anniversary (which included two episodes in Hugtto and sharing the main lead role with Hana/Cure Yell in the All Stars movie) but they still made a grand entrance in the penultimate ep of Otona Precure and kicked absolute ass in the finale and that's really all that matters.

So good job, Toei!

And ok, finally finally, NozoCoco officially got 💖MARRIED💖

Romance is not a vital aspect of Precure nor does it ever have to be because focusing on friendship and teamwork is still the most important aspect when it comes to this series...

But only a stupid numbskull would say Coco is unnecessary to Nozomi's happiness because he's the biggest reason she was able to become who she is today. The fact that she even tells him, right after she woke up from her coma, that she needs him to truly be happy is a proof of how irreplaceable he is to her.

She doesn't ask him to be with her because she needs a man. She wants him to marry her because he brings out the best in her. Because he is the one person who can understand her better than anyone else can and the one person whom she wants to share the rest of her life with.

Remember that Nozomi was inspired by Coco. She became Precure, became Cure Dream, because she met him. She aspired to become a teacher because of him. The butterfly effect for her began with him.

For them to overcome all these obstacles to their relationship and promise to be there for one another, through all the good and bad...it's the fulfillment of a dream they both deserve.

And the perfect ending to Yes! 5 Precure.

So congratulations to Yes!5 and Splash Star on an amazing sequel.

Congratulations to Precure for these precious 20 years you've given us.

Here's hoping to more successful years ahead.

See you in the new year!

[curestardust]

Futari wa Precure Splash Star (2006) Kibou no Chikara ~Otona Precure '23~ (2023)

[mahou-furbies]

The main heroines from my mahou 2023.

Characters under cut:

Cure Bloom (Futari wa Precure Splash Star)

Cure Dream (Yes! Precure 5)

Cure Dream (Yes! Precure 5 GoGo)

Cure Dream (Otona Precure)

Cure Happy (Smile Precure!)

Cure Miracle (Mahou Tsukai Precure!)

Cure Sky (Hirogaru Sky Precure!)

Mew Ichigo (Tokyo Mew Mew New)

Yucie (Petite Princess Yucie)

Saint Tail

Star Scarlet (Stellar Witch Lips)

Will (W.i.t.c.h. reboot)

Leviathan (Zettai Bouei Leviathan)

Tsubame (Magical Girl Tsubame: I Will (Not) Save The World!)

Anarchy-chan (Magical Destroyers)

Kosane (Null Magical Girl)

Mabayu (Magia Record Scene 0)

[precuredaily]

Once again the calendar has reached the lovely day of April 4 (three weeks ago)! That means it is (was) the birthday of my favorite Precure, Yukishiro Honoka! 20 years after her series she would be about 34 years old today, if she were real.

It's no great secret that the formula for the original series was taking two girls from opposite walks of life and teaming them up, to represent the strength of friendship. Honoka's charm was her intelligence and pursuit of science, while remaining kind and fairly humble despite her wealthy background. Without Nagisa's influence she probably wouldn't be taking many risks, and without Honoka's influence, Nagisa would probably be dead. Well, neither of them would be Precure so probably not, but both would definitely be worse off.

I haven't actually watched Otona Precure yet, but it is my understanding that Black and White appear at the very end of the last episode, looking the same as ever. I'm not clear if they have any dialog. The Kamikta Twins (the most consistently quality part of this fandom) released a piece of artwork that included aged up designs for Nagisa and Honoka. I have to assume they're official and Toei-sanctioned.

Last year, I said I hoped for an Otona-style sequel to FWPC. The middling to negative reception of the series has me second guessing that. But the art is nice.

As always, enjoy the gallery and congratulations to Honoka, and of course thanks to everyone involved in creating and bringing her to life: Character designer Iganami Akira, series director Nishio Daisuke, series composition/head writer Kawasaki Ryo, voice actress Yukana, and more.

Art credits (in order):

Kamikita Twins https://twitter.com/kamikitafutago/status/1729634086849855800

Camille☆ https://www.pixiv.net/en/artworks/117523421

Rakugaki Shitagari-ya https://www.pixiv.net/en/artworks/117523771

Uzukun https://www.pixiv.net/en/artworks/117530711

Mishima https://www.pixiv.net/en/artworks/117532584

Xiao Mo https://www.pixiv.net/en/artworks/117532942

Myarikuru https://www.pixiv.net/en/artworks/117532942

Yumikosky https://www.pixiv.net/en/artworks/117543640

Luna Rune https://www.pixiv.net/en/artworks/117547004

🌈 honagino 🌈 https://www.pixiv.net/en/artworks/117543627

Touka https://www.pixiv.net/en/artworks/117551553

kobo https://www.pixiv.net/en/artworks/117551713

paretto https://www.pixiv.net/en/artworks/117552049

doragodorago https://www.pixiv.net/en/artworks/117553638

GiulliaGT Art https://www.pixiv.net/en/artworks/117557408

Naaga https://www.pixiv.net/en/artworks/117620871

Nanakusa Gaiyu https://www.pixiv.net/en/artworks/117641037

Toyarinomu https://www.pixiv.net/en/artworks/117532148

Matsu-chan https://www.pixiv.net/en/artworks/117586520

Funari https://twitter.com/Funakounasoul/status/1775661044196610501

Mece Pokeee https://twitter.com/mece_pokeee/status/1775724041355325674

Funari https://twitter.com/Funakounasoul/status/1775754583672844323

lilac❁୭* https://www.pixiv.net/en/artworks/117549533

BLOODOCTOPUS https://twitter.com/kihari561208/status/1775921798179385603

Bonus comics:

Kato Kyoka https://www.pixiv.net/en/artworks/117525210

TL: p1 N: Happy birthday Honoka! H: Thank you Nagisa! N: Isn't it nice, you're older than me. It's not fair… H: Come on, that's not really something to be jealous of, is it? H: But when I think about it

p2 H: If I'd been born 3 days earlier, I'd be a grade higher than you. N: That's true… it's really close… N: *stare* N: Thank goodness we're in the same grade! Thank you! *squeeze* H: Eh, um, y…. y-y-y-y-you're welcome…?

And this one I didn't have time to translate:

Links to previous birthday posts: 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023

[silvermoon424]

2023 was a good year for us magical girl fans. We had Tokyo Mew Mew New S2, Hirogaru Sky Precure, Otona Precure, PMMM: Walpurgisnacht Rising trailer, AND Sailor Moon Cosmos! Now, this year is gonna be even better because we have the PMMM movie coming this winter, Mahou Tsukai Precure 2, Wonderful Precure, AND Magical Girl Raising Project S2!!!

Magical girl fans CANNOT stop winning

[pochqmqri]

It is now May and we still haven't heard anything about the adult Mahou Tsukai Pretty Cure! sequel that is supposed to air sometime this year. Nothing official or direct has been said about it since the initial announcement over a year ago, but despite that, there have been some bits of information we can piece together about it.

To start off, let's look at the initial announcement back in March 2023. To celebrate the Pretty Cure franchise's 20th anniversary, Toei Animation announced that they would be producing two sequel PreCure anime for adult audiences.

The first one was Kibou no Chikara ~Otona PreCure '23~/Power of Hope ~PreCure Full Bloom~, which was a sequel to the first five PreCure seasons, but primarily Yes! Pretty Cure 5 and Yes! Pretty Cure 5 GoGo! It aired on NHK-E in Fall 2023 for 12 episodes, and was streamed internationally on Crunchyroll.

The second one was tentatively titled "Mahou Tsukai Pretty Cure! 2," obviously a sequel to the 13th season of the same name. It was said to air sometime in 2024 on the late night ANiMAZiNG!!!! block. And that's all we ever heard about it since.

ANiMAZiNG!!!!

Let's look at what ANiMAZiNG!!!! actually is. It's an anime programming block from 2:00-2:30AM on Sundays created by the Asahi Broadcasting Corporation with TV Asahi; these networks are the ones responsible for airing PreCure in Japan every Sunday at 8:30AM, so it's familiar territory. ANiMAZiNG!!!! started in October 2020.

Notable anime that aired on this block include: Shikimori's Not Just a Cutie, The Maid I Hired Recently Is Mysterious, The Great Jahy Will Not Be Defeated!, SK8 the Infinity, Iwa-Kakeru! Sport Climbing Girls, I Shall Survive Using Potions!, and Saving 80,000 Gold in Another World for My Retirement.

A 2:00AM slot for PreCure is quite interesting, as even OtonaPre aired on NHK-E as late as Saturday 6:30PM. Despite this, the anime that airs on this block usually isn't too "adult," i.e violent or sexual, so I don't expect MahoPre2 to be anything of the sort. Similarly, the recent Tokyo Mew Mew New aired around midnight, and it wasn't out of the ordinary in terms of content.

With the exception of the Jahy anime, the anime that airs on this block usually does for just one cour, i.e. it has about 11-12 episodes and takes up one seasonal anime slot. We can assume that MahoPre will also have 12 episodes, not just because of this, but also because that was the same amount OtonaPre had. Relatedly, since MahoPre2 is airing on a different network than OtonaPre did, I also think that MahoPre2, when it gets an official title, is probably not going to be under the "Otona" label. OtonaPre aired on NHK-E, the "E" standing for education, and thus was heavily tied in to topics such as climate change and SDGs, of which I don't see MahoPre2 focusing on as much given it will air on a different network that doesn't have such an educational slant (see the other anime that usually airs on ANiMAZiNG!!!!).

At this point in time, the Winter 2024 anime season has long since concluded, and the Spring 2024 season is currently ongoing. So, we know what anime has aired/is airing on ANiMAZiNG!!!! this year so far, but we also have information on a few anime that will air later in the year too, so let's paint a schedule:

The Strongest Tank's Labyrinth Raids — Jan 7 - Mar 24 (Winter 2024)

Tonari no Yokai-san — Apr 7 - TBA (Spring 2024)

??? (Summer 2024)

The Healer Who was Banished From His Party is Actually the Strongest — Starts Oct (Fall 2024)

All of the seasonal slots for ANiMAZiNG!!! this year, except for Summer, have been filled up, and none of them include MahoPre2. On the official site, the poster for the upcoming Summer season is just a blank "Coming Soon." I find it surprising in the case of the Fall slot, because I was expecting MahoPre2 to air there, as OtonaPre also aired in the Fall last year. Based on this information and lack thereof so far, one can assume that MahoPre2 will be airing in the Summer, but doesn't that seem a little strange?

The Summer anime season usually starts in July, and that's two months away now, so why have we gotten basically no official information on the anime yet, not even a proper title or a few visuals? Despite the fact that OtonaPre aired in October last year, we got a peek at the first visual about a week after the initial announcement in March, followed by a moderately paced reel of information throughout the year. Looking at the other non-PreCure anime on ANiMAZiNG!!!!, Strongest Tank was officially announced back in October 2023 (three months prior to airing), Yokai-san was officially announced back in November 2023 (five months prior to airing), [insert overtly long isekai title] was announced earlier this year in January (9 months prior to airing), so MahoPre2 definitely stands out in its lack of information at this late of a stage. Even so, I can't think of any other anime that would be taking the Summer slot at this point in time. There's also the possibility that Yokai-san runs for a second cour, but usually anime that airs on ANiMAZiNG!!! only run for one season, and Yokai-san's original manga concluded with 4 volumes and one side story, which is generally enough content to fit one cour.

So, what can we expect in the coming weeks/months? The first thing is, like most PreCure anime, a logo/title drop in the Japanese trademark office. Just a day before the initial announcement of OtonaPre, the logo was recorded in the office, so it's likely that whenever the MahoPre2 title drops, an official reveal will follow shortly.

What Rie Takahashi said

Another bit of information comes from Rie Takahashi, the voice actress for MahoPre's Mirai /Cure Miracle, on her radio show with fellow voice actress and friend, Reina Ueda (who coincidentally voices Mayu/Cure Lillian in the current Wonderful Pretty Cure!). For the episode uploaded on February 19 earlier this year, she talks a bit about MahoPre2, how it's airing sometime in 2024, and that they're excited for it, that this year is going to be a great one, no new information really, but it's probably the most recent information we've gotten from an official source, albeit a reconfirmation of what we already know.

Somewhat relatedly, the Kamikita twins, who draw the seasonal PreCure manga adaptations every year, posted a tweet earlier this year in January asking if there was anymore news on MahoPre2, which seems to indicate that, even to them at that point, they weren't briefed on anything behind the scenes.

Speculation: The "Wonderful PreCure!" movie

For the sections labeled speculation, I ask that you please do not take anything I write here as pure fact.

While browsing the Japanese side of Twitter, I came across a few opinions of PreCure fans on why Toei is being hush on MahoPre2. One idea is linked to the WonPre movie coming out later in September. In the film's initial trailer, there's a line said towards the end:

さらに素敵なお友達の出番です!っていいました？！ "Sara ni sutekina otomodachi no deban desu! tte iimashita?!" "Did you just say, 'It's time for even more wonderful friends'?!"

What's the significance of the Japanese characters I highlighted in bold? In the context of PreCure, they are the catchphrases of Sora from last year's HiroPre, and Mirai from MahoPre. The 出番, deban, comes from Sora's catchphrase, ヒーローの出番です!, Hero no deban desu!, or officially translated as "It's hero time!" The っていいました？！, tte iimashita?!, or "Did you just say [x]?!" is a quoting particle frequently used by Mirai. Tumblr only allows one video upload per post, so I'll have to link to a separate post I made with the video comparison.

With this in mind, a fair amount of fans believe that the WonPre film will be another crossover one, like the HealPre and TroPre ones were, only this time, that team will be crossing over with the HiroPre and MahoPre teams. It's likely that MahoPre is added in to promote the upcoming sequel, which could be airing around the time the film hits theaters. For that reason, it's probable that Toei wants to combine the marketing for both MahoPre2 and the WonPre film, neither of which has started yet.

Speculation: MahoPre2 Delayed?

The idea of MahoPre2 being delayed isn't really based on any evidence, but pure speculation. Some fans believe that internal politics at Toei have made them shelve the sequel for the time being. Sailor Moon fans are familiar with how Sailor Moon Eternal and Sailor Moon Cosmos were mishandled and delayed multiple times.

Ojamajo Doremi, PreCure's older sister franchise, is currently celebrating its 25th anniversary with a potential animation plan adapting the sequel light novels with the girls grown up. Funnily enough, that's similar to the concept of MahoPre2, so maybe Toei somewhere down the line turned MahoPre2 into Doremi1620? Hahaha...

Another common theory is that MahoPre2 will actually air in early 2025. That sounds a bit weird, doesn't it? They explicitly said 2024, even Rie Takahashi said so, right? Technically, that wouldn't be a lie, if Toei was looking at Fiscal Year 2024, which in Japan, lasts from April 2024 to March 2025 for governments and corporations. That would give MahoPre2 time to air in the Winter 2025 season, and thus the promotion hasn't started yet because it's still too early.

So, with that all said, there are at least two time periods I believe MahoPre2 could air in, the Summer 2024 season, or the Winter 2025 season. As of now, we can only wait for more information, but I do not have reason to believe that Toei cancelled this project.

[nozoditz]

[ID: The "that's not your girl, that's (very different thing that fits the same description)" meme. The caption is "If your favourite Fall 2023 anime had a main character working at an ad agency who was dealing with the end of a toxic relationship and working through guilt over their feelings about it," showing screencaps from episode 4 where Mai from Otona Precure/Power of Hope: Precure Full Bloom deals with these issues. "That's not" is followed by the English logo for that series. "That's" is followed by the English logo for Atarashii Joushi wa Do Tennen/My New Boss is Goofy.]

[mgtitlecards]

"Kibou no Chikara: Otona Precure '23" - October 7, 2023

[precuresplashstar-2006]

[thesilliestofgals]

What's Precure /gen?

According to the wikipedia, Pretty Cure, also known as Precure (pronounced Purikyua), is a "Japanese magical girl anime franchise created by Izumi Todo and Bandai and produced by Asahi Broadcasting Corporation, Asatsu-DK, Toei Animation and Bandai. Each series revolves around a group of magical girls known as Pretty Cures who battle against evil forces." The magical girls of this franchise, like many other magical girls, have a magical (usually animal who can turn into a human) mentor to help guide them.

The franchise first kicked off in February 2004 with Futari Wa Pretty Cure, and got so popular that it spawned a sequel series, Futari wa Pretty Cure Max Heart in February 2005. Popularity continued to grow for the franchise, and eighteen series later, we are now in the year 2023 with Hirogaru Sky! Precure. There is also going to be an adult Precure spinoff series, Kibou no Chikara ~Otona Pretty Cure '23~, which will consist of the Yes! Precure 5 GoGo! and Futari wa Pretty Cure Splash Star team members as adults, which will begin releasing on October 7th of this year.

Each series of Precure will usually have a movie about half-way through, though sometimes a series movie will instead be a crossover movies. These crossover movies, called Pretty Cure All Stars, began in March 2009. In fact, on September 15th, Pretty Cure All Stars F will release in Japanese theaters.

You can find some of the Precure series on CrunchyRoll, but you can find a majority of them by looking hard enough (if you catch my drift, wink wink.)

Pretty Cure is a really good franchise (of course, some of the series have their moments), and have had some pretty big stars voice some characters, such as Sailor Moon's VA voicing Hummy on Suite Precure. I recommend it!

[magicalgirlagency]

I also thought about what would happen if Toei Animation ran out of ideas for new Precure seasons. Then I remember it’s not like Doraemon, ONE PIECE or even Detective Conan where you fill out hundreds of episodes with filler stories between arcs. You get new characters each season where the overall story and settings change. There’s a lot of different aesthetics and themes to explore.

Toei can't "run out of ideas", that's just lazy. I mean, if it were something external, like, a strike/union happening with the animators, I'd understand; but I haven't heard of anything of the sort (unfortunately), so I think such an option is just laziness on Toei's end.

Plus, I'm still skeptical about this Otona PreCure project; like, do you REALLY need to remind me that there's a season where 2/6 of the heroines got involved with power imbalance/age gap relationships? Retcon that fuck shit first, then we can talk.

I sincerely don't want to have to "cancel" PreCure in the year of 2023.