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Futari wa Pretty Cure (ふたりはプリキュア, Futari wa Purikyua) is a magical girl anime metaseries produced by Toei Animation and broadcast across Japan by Animax, TV Asahi and Asahi Broadcasting Corporation.

The Pretty Cure series comprises the original series and its sequel, two movies, and two spin-off TV series: Futari wa Pretty Cure Splash Star and Yes! PreCure 5.

On February 25, 2006 4Kids Entertainment announced broadcasting and distribution rights for Pretty Cure in the United States, but no reference to an U.S. English translation or dub has appeared since. As of recent, it appears that 4Kids no longer owns the rights to the series, rather Toei Animation has attempted to market it themselves in the US. The only English dub was done by Odex for broadcast in Southeast Asia.

The girl group Precure Kids was formed in 2004, members dressing like characters of the series and performing the theme songs on stage.

Pretty Cure

The original Pretty Cure series, directed by Daisuke Nishio (known for Dragon Ball Z and Grand Theft Auto Vice City ) premiered on TV Asahi February 1, 2004. The story revolves around two girls, Nagisa Misumi and Honoka Yukishiro, who fight the forces of the Dusk Zone — a dimension of evil that encroached on the Garden of Light. The Zone's power takes the form of the "Zakenna" (ザケンナー, Zakennā), creatures that infect people or items to turn them evil.

The Dusk Zone's actions necessitated the escape of two of the Garden of Light's protectors, odd talkative creatures named Mipple and Mepple. They serve as a source of information and peanut gallery for the series and are usually found within the girls' transformation devices which resemble cell phones. Mipple and Mepple do not actually work as cellphones though, just as henshin devices. For short periods they can transform into their real selves and interact more easily with each other.

The initial run of the series has Cure White and Cure Black searching for the Prism Stones, and they place them in a heart shaped device known as the Prism Hopeish. The Hopeish is protected by the Guardian, Wisdom. Once they have discovered all the Prism Stones, its power takes them to the Garden of Light and repairs most of the damage done by the Dusk Zone.

Later in the series Porun, the Prince of the Garden of Light, is added to the mix. He transforms into what looks like an electronic notebook or a sort of gaming system. He has a controller and a mouse. The Guardian places the power of the Prism Stones in Porun and when he gets agitated, he shoots out power from his mouth, granting Pretty Cure their Rainbow Bracelets. These vastly strengthen them physically and supply them with a new attack. Porun has the added ability of premonition. Often in his sleep or just randomly he pops up and tells Pretty Cure something, and they have to figure out what the premonition means. He can contact the Garden of Light and various people from the Garden of Light with the power of the Prism Stones.

Heroes

Cure Black (キュア・ブラック, Kyua Burakku) is the strong fighter of the duo. Her alter ego is the ace of her school's lacrosse team, Nagisa Misumi (美墨なぎさ, Misumi Nagisa). She is quite girly and image conscious, and she has a large collection of stuffed animals. She's weak in academics but makes up for it with pure spirit and energy. She has a large appetite and loves to eat chocolate and, according to Honoka, foods with the word "yaki" in the name. She likes shopping but has the tendency to squander her money so that she has none when she needs it most. She has a crush on Honoka's friend, Fujimura-senpai (also known as Fuji-p). She tends to get flustered when he is around. She also does not like that she tends to be more popular with the girls than the boys. She has a younger brother, Ryouta, who seems to be very fond of Honoka. Aside from Honoka, Nagisa's best friends are Shiho and Rina. Voiced by: Yoko Honna

Cure White (キュア・ホワイト, Kyua Howaito) is the quiet and reserved one, but that does not keep her from having her own friends and following. She can be quite strict and domineering when the situation calls for it. Her alter ego is Honoka Yukishiro (雪城ほのか, Yukishiro Honoka). Honoka is very poised and intelligent and enjoys reading. Her specialty is the science club, where she is looked up to by the others. Honoka hasn't had many friends, but the few she has seem to be really close to her. It has also been noted that she's relatively popular with the boys, though she seems to have little interest in them. She lives with her grandmother and their dog, Chuutaro. Her parents are art dealers and spend most of their time overseas. They return once a year for Honoka's birthday. Despite their prolonged absences, they seem to have a good relationship with their daughter. The name Yukishiro literally translates into English as 'Snow White', aptly befitting Honoka's features. Voiced by: Yukana

Mepple (メップル, Meppuru) is the chosen protector of the Princess of Hope. Because of this, he and Mipple have a lovey-dovey relationship. He tends to be a little more agitating, constantly making fun of Nagisa as they get into arguments. He is also mildly jealous of Porun and wishes Porun would act less selfish at times. However, Mepple is just as selfish, constantly eating or whining about being hungry and noting to himself that Nagisa is easy to manipulate. He resides with Nagisa and ends his sentences with "mepo". Both Mipple and Mepple can only stay in their Garden of Light forms for a short time before growing tired, so they generally take energy-saving forms resembling cellphones. Voiced by: Tomokazu Seki

Mipple (ミップル, Mippuru) is the Princess of Hope from the Garden of Light. She, like Honoka, is generally more reserved than her male counterpart. She's always sticking up for Porun, though, once he comes on the scene, and that tends to cause problems between her and Mepple. She resides predominantly with Honoka and ends all her sentences with the word "mipo". Voiced by: Akiko Yajima

Queen (クイーン, Kuīn) is a huge CGI woman sitting on a throne. Only the Evil King is taller than her. She carries a heart-shaped item of some sort. She has stated that she is impressed with the courage of Pretty Cure and aids them when she can. Voiced by: Kaya Matsutani

Porun (ポルン, Porun) is the Prince of the Garden of Light. He is sent to Earth after it is discovered that the Evil King is back. The Queen gives a cryptic statement about his powers aiding Pretty Cure. Later, when Wisdom is in trouble, Wisdom places the power of the Rainbow Stones into Porun without his knowledge. This gives him the ability to remain in his regular form as well as the ability to communicate with various people from the Garden of Light. When communicating with members of the Garden of Light, he turns into what looks like a mini computer and everyone can hear what is said and communicate openly. He also grants Pretty Cure the power of light which gives them their Rainbow Braclets. He tends to be extremely selfish and think only of himself. He is quite childish and has a lot of energy. He can get a little annoying at times and definitely annoys Mepple. He lives predominantly with Nagisa in Pretty Cure and with Hikari in Max Heart. He tends to end his sentences with "popo". Voiced by: Haruna Ikezawa

Villains

For the first half of the series, Pretty Cure's enemies are the Dark Five:

Pisard (ピーサード, Pīsādo) is the featured villain of first five episodes. Pisard is often thought to resemble a member of KISS, but when one looks closely he more so looks that of a male Kabuki actor in "keshō" ("make up"), having long hair and a painted face. His human form resembles David Bowie. Voiced by: Hiroki Takahashi

Gekidrago (ゲキドラーゴ, Gekidorāgo) is the featured villain of episodes 6 through 11. Large and muscular, he is described in one of the episodes as having a head like a moai (the statues from Easter Island). He relies on his brawn rather than his brain. Voiced by: Kouji Ishii

Poisonee (ポイズニー, Poizunī) is featured in episodes 12 through 20. The only woman of the five. Instead of making a big show of calling on Zakenna like Pisard and Gekidorago, she snaps her fingers and is much more discreet about it. She often takes on a human appearance to gain the trust of the girls before attacking. In her true form, she resembles a vampire: She is pale, dresses in black, wears a cape and has fangs, dark-rimmed yellow and red eyes and long red hair. Voiced by: Sakiko Uran

Kiriya (キリヤ, Kiriya) is introduced in episode 13. He is the youngest of the Dark Five. He comes to the Garden of Rainbows (Earth) in order to spy on Honoka and Nagisa. He infiltrates their school as a freshman and ends up becoming friends with them and developing a fondness for Honoka after she shows kindness to him. He joins the soccer team and becomes quite popular with the girls, which confuses him slightly as he does not understand human emotions. When it comes time for him to fight Pretty Cure in episode 21, he finds himself unable to do so and ends up going back to the Dark Zone where he will be made to disappear for his betrayal, but not before handing his Prism Stone over to them of his own will. He is Poisonee's younger brother and has similar dark-rimmed eyes as she does. Because of his eyes (and lack of eyebrows in his demonic form) Kiriya also somewhat resembles Gaara from Naruto. He is pale with light blue eyes (green in his human form) and dark green hair. When masquerading as a human, he has eyebrows, which, in his true form, he does not. Like his sister, he has fangs when in his true form. Voiced by: Reiko Kiuchi

Illkubo (イルクーボ, Irukūbo) is easily the most powerful of the five and the Dark King's right-hand man. He first appeared on Earth in episode 19, but did not start seriously fighting the girls until episode 22. He is defeated in episode 24 but made a brief comeback in episode 25 in which he battles Pretty Cure and takes them to the Dusk Zone. He is large, pale and bald with pointed ears and dark-rimmed eyes that resemble those of Kiriya. He wears a white robe and carries a purple prism stone. Voiced by: Issei Futamata

When the Dark Five are defeated, new enemies appear: the Three Seeds of Darkness.

Belzei Gertrude (ベルゼイ・ガートルード, Beruzei Gātorūdo) is the de facto leader of the group. He's a plotter and a sadist. He is first seen in the series impersonating a doctor. Voiced by: Tomomichi Nishimura

Regine (レギーネ, Regīne) is the lone female of the trio. She starts out as a pretty red head, but then transforms and her hair stands straight back, then bounces into curls. When in human form, she has a tendency to mumble things twice, then suddenly she'll scream out without warning, shocking everyone. Voiced by: Rika Fukami

Juna (ジュナ, Jyuna) is the tall young man of the trio. Voiced by: Yasunori Matsumoto

The Seeds of Darkness are joined by Macaw, their pet bird; and the Butler Zakenna (執事ザケンナー). They butlers serve as comic relief, as they are unintelligent and tend to fight and bicker a lot. However, unlike other Zakenna, they speak human language, only using "-zakenna" to end their sentences. The taller Zakenna is laid back and somewhat clumsy, while the shorter Zakenna is quick to anger.

Dark King (ジャアクキング, Jaaku Kingu) is the imprisoned ruler of the Dusk Zone, is the series antagonist. He is somewhat humanoid in form, and appears to come out of the ground. He is very tall and muscular with red eyes and extremely long arms. He does not appear to wear clothing. He wants to acquire the Prism Stones to prevent the "power to consume all things" from eventually destroying his own body, and to become immortal - he believes that it is the fate of all things to be consumed by the darkness. Like the Queen of the Garden of Light, the Dark King is animated by CGI. Voiced by: Kenichi Ono

Max Heart

Futari wa Pretty Cure Max Heart (ふたりはプリキュア ー マックスハート, Futari wa Purikyua Makkusu Haato) premiered on February 6, 2005. The series is a sequel to the original. A third protagonist, Hikari Kujou, is introduced. She is probably a stranger from the Garden of Light, and is also the "Life" of the Queen. Hikari takes the appearance of a young girl, and has lost the abilities and memories from being the Queen. However, she might regain these by discovering 12 fairies called "Heartiel." On the other hand, remnants of the Dusk Zone are protecting a mysterious boy suspected to be the "Life" of the Dark King. In order to revive the Queen, Cure Black and Cure White fight new enemies. Hikari transforms to Shiny Luminous and backs them up in battle.

Two movies set in the Max Heart continuity have been released in Japan. The first, Futari wa Pretty Cure Max Heart:The Movie (映画 ふたりはプリキュア ー マックスハート, Eiga Futari wa Purikyua Makkusu Haato) premiered April 16, 2005. In the movie, the creatures Round, Square, Marquis, Oval, Heart, Pear and Triliant who reside in the Garden of Hope (希望の園 Kibou no Sono) have called in Pretty Cure to save their world from a witch from the Dark Zone who wants to take the Garden of Hope's Diamond Line, which consists of several pieces of jewelry worn by the Queen of Hope on her birthday. These jewels, if fallen in the wrong hands, will cause the Garden of Hope to become unbalanced, thereby causing everything else to become destroyed and enabling the restoration of the Dark King.

The second movie, Futari wa Pretty Cure Max Heart: Friends of the Snow-Laden Sky (映画 ふたりはプリキュア ー マックスハート, Eiga Futari wa Purikyua Makkusu Haato 2: Yukizora no Tomodachi) premiered December 10, 2005. In this movie, Sage accidentally drops the egg containing a houou to the Garden of Rainbows. Hikari retrieves the creature and names it Hinata (warm). Sage eventually finds Hinata and travels up into the Garden of Clouds with Pretty Cure and Hikari. Sage explains that this rare houou is important in contributing heat and warmth to all the worlds. They need a blessing from the queen in the Garden of Light to ensure its healthy life. However, Frozen and Freezen, both against warmth, inhibits Hinata's success by freezing her.

New heroes

The Max Heart sequel introduces new characters to the series. Including:

Hikari Kujo (九条ひかり, Kūjō Hikari) has no fighting strength, but she can enhance the power of Cure Black and Cure White when she transforms into Shiny Luminous (シャイニ・ルミナス, Shaini Ruminasu). She is considered to be the "Life" of the Queen, a part of her spirit that appeared when the Queen as a whole broke up into three parts: the Heartiels, the embodiment of her will; Hikari, who represent the Queen's life; and the Queen Chairect, her heart. She has lost all of her abilities and memories from being Queen and is living as a passive human girl. She makes friends with Nagisa and Honoka. Voiced by: Rie Tanaka

Rurun (ルルン) is the Princess of Light who can connect the future. She thinks of Porun as her older brother and always annoyed him. Rurun can give the Heartiel Broache to Luminous. She ends her sentences with "-ruru". Voiced by: Asuka Tanii

The Heartiels

• Seekun (Seek) is the first of the Heartiels discovered. She's the queen's sense of adventure and discovery. She asks a lot of questions and seems relatively naive about the world. Voiced by: Ai Nagano
• Pation (Passion) can sometimes be seen flying with a pigeon in some episodes. Voiced by: Kokoro Kikuchi
• Harmonin (Harmony) first appeared in episode 9, but met Pretty Cure in episode 10. She is mostly seen with a little treasure box with her.
• Pyuan (Pure) Voiced by: Rika Komatsu
• Interijen (Intelligence) is the only Heartiel who has been entrusted with the Book of Wisdom. In episode 22, she helped Pretty Cure find a solution to oppose the power of Valdes with the help of the Book of Wisdom. Voiced by: Mayuko Kobayashi
• Wishun (Wish) Voiced by: Yukiko Hanioka
• Horpun (Hope) Voiced by: Yusuke Numata
• Braven (Bravery) Voiced by: Mari Atachi
• Prosen (Prosperity) Voiced by: Masato Amata
• Hapinen (Happiness) Voiced by: Sawa Ishige
• Loveran (Love) Voiced by: Oma Ichimura
• Eternalun (Eternal) Voiced by: Fumie Mizusawa

New villains

The Four Guardians are the protectors of The boy in the mansion (館の少年, Yakata no Shonen), the "Life" of the Evil King.

Circulas (サーキュラス, Sākyurasu) appears to be the "leader" of the group whenever Valdes isn't around. He often bickers with Uraganos. Voiced by: Hitoshi Bifu

Uraganos (ウラガノス, Uraganosu) is large and dim-witted. He is clumsy and tends to destroy things by accident due to his size and strength. Voiced by: Wataru Takagi

Biblis (ビブリス, Biburisu) is the more serious of the group. She often scolds Uraganos and Circulas when they argue and is more intimidating. Voiced by: Ai Kobayashi

Valdes (ヴァルデス, Varudesu) is the strongest of the four Guardians. He can repel the Marble Screw, Luminous Heartiel Action and Extreme Luminario attacks. Moreover, His true form is the spirit of the Dark King. Voiced by: Kenichi Ono

Special powers and items

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Attacks

The girls exhibit a number of special attacks throughout the series. Including:

• Black Thunder! White Thunder! PRECURE no utsukushiki tamashii ga! Jyaaku na kokoro o uchikudaku! Pretty Cure Marble Screw! This attack unleashes black and white lightning that spins together to hit the enemy. It gets stronger depending on how hard White and Black hold each other's hand. It is predominantly used on inanimate objects. Translates to "Black Thunder! White Thunder! Our beautiful PreCure souls, shall crush your evil heart! Pretty Cure Marble Screw!"

• Black Pulsar! White Pulsar! Yami no jubaku ni torawareshi mono-tachi yo! Ima sono kusari o tachikiran! Pretty Cure Rainbow Therapy! Pretty much the same as above, only it is used on humans and animals and heals them of their evil influence. Translates to "Black Pulsar! White Pulsar! One that is cursed by the dark power, we shall now break the chains that bind you."

• Kibou no chikara yo, hikari no ishi yo! Mirai e mukatte tsukisusume! Pretty Cure Rainbow Storm! Used when Pretty Cure are wearing the Pretty Cure Rainbow Bracelets. Once again the duo holds hands, but this time they first put their palms out, then their palms seem to be yanked back, and they punch toward the bad guys. Then a powerful rainbow of energy is unleashed from their fists. It actually pushes them both back. Translates to "Power of hope, will of light. Face toward the future and press onward."

For the sequel, the girls possess new attacks:

• Black Thunder! White Thunder! Pretty Cure Marble Screw Max! A stronger version of Marble Screw.

• Hikari no ishi yo, watashi ni yuuki o, kibou to chikara o! Luminous! Heartiel Action Shiny Luminous' technique, using the Heartiels to freeze an enemy with the Heart Baton. This attack also restores Pretty Cure's power. Translates to, "Wills of Light, give me courage! Be my hope and be my strength! Luminous Heartiel Action!"

• Minagiru yuuki! Afureru kibou! Hikari kagayaku, kizuna totomo ni! Extreme Luminario! A stronger attack than Marble Screw Max, performed by Cure White and Cure Black after having been charged with extra energy from Shiny Luminous. Translates to, "Abundant courage! Overflowing hope! Together with the embrace of sparkling light! Extreme Luminario!"

• Black Thunder! White Thunder! Pretty Cure Marble Screw Max! Sparkle! The same Marble Screw (Max) attack, this time using the power of the Sparkle Bracelets. This attack is a little reminiscent of the Pretty Cure Rainbow Storm attack in the first series due to the rainbow energy formed after Pretty Cure says "Sparkle!"

Artifacts

• Cellphones: This is how Mepple and Mipple appear on Earth. They look like cellphones, but act more like a tamagotchi or digital pet. They need regular upkeep using various cards that feed them (Omp), make them go to sleep (Nelp), teach them manners (Scalp), and the nurse card (Palp). The card is slid in the same slot as the Queen card that is used for Henshin devices. In Max Heart, Mepple and Mipple "awaken". They appear slightly different and rather than flipping open, the phones open like a razor blade. The card is inserted into the top of the phone and then the case part is spun.

• Prism Hopish: A heart shaped pink device that holds all of the Prism Stones. Mipple accused Mepple of dropping the Prism Hopeish into Lake Hyoutan. The Guardian, Wisdom, appears standing over top of it with his hand constantly above his head.

• Pretty Cure Diary: These are notebooks both of them have. They can write anything inside, but only they can read them. Once Honoka and Nagisa were arguing and they accidentally switched Notebooks and were able to read how the other felt. They're used predominantly like diaries or journals.

• Prism Love Checker: A love checker game that tests the compatibility of two people.

• Porun: Porun rarely takes his game/electronic notebook look, but when he does he is capable of talking with people at the Garden of Light and he unleashes the Pretty Cure Rainbow Braclets from his mouth. Porun is a selfish Prince who can see the future. In Max Heart, Porun "awakens" and becomes a compact.

• Pretty Cure Rainbow Bracelets: These are fired from Porun in a rainbow blast. They actually hit Cure Black and Cure White's arm with considerable force. They are pink devices that sit on their wrists with a heart shape in the center filled with rainbow energy. This gives them enhanced strength and the power to do Pretty Cure Rainbow Storm.

• Heart Baton: This is Shiny Luminous' "weapon", although it is only used to freeze an enemy or to boost power for Black, White, and herself to perform the Extreme Luminario attack.

• Queen Chairect: The "home" for the Heartiels to resurrect the Queen. Hikari first saw this device as a shining item in episode 11. When the Heartiels enter this device, they become a coloured ball. When Pretty Cure wants one of the Heartiels to come out of the Queen Chairect and help them, Seekun will turn the knob around to let out one of the Heartiels.

• Miracle Commune: Rurun usually in this form.

• Heartiel Broache: Rurun turns into a brooch and can use the power of the Heartiels to create a barrier around Luminous.

• Pretty Cure Sparkle Bracelets: Similar to the Rainbow Bracelets, they are Black and White's offensive weapon in Max Heart. This gives them the power to do Pretty Cure Marble Screw Max Sparkle. According to Interijen, they are the "power of hope granted to Pretty Cure by the power to create all things."

Locations

• Garden of Rainbows (虹の園, Niji no Sono) is what Mepple calls the Earth.
• Garden of Light (光の園, Hikari no Sono) is where Mepple, Mipple, Porun and Rurun come from. The Garden of Light is protected by the power of the Prism stones. It in daylight all the time and flowers bloom all year long.
• Dusk Zone (ドツクゾン, Dotsukuzon) is a world of Darkness. The Evil King and his cohorts come from this world.
• Verone Academy is Nagisa and Honoka's school.
• Kappa Mountain and Lake Hyoutan is the place where Mepple dropped the Prism Hopeish into. The outline of the lake looks like a figure eight. In Max Heart, Pretty Cure went to the same place to find a piece of shining earth that "contained great power of hope which was surrounded by six pillars" in Lake Hyoutan.
• Tako Cafe is a mobile mart created by Akane-san. Hikari works here and Nagisa and Honoka are frequent visitors.

Reception

The series has proven popular enough with Japanese viewers to warrant two spin-off series. In a TV Asahi opinion poll, Pretty Cure appeared in the 45th position, above other series of the magical girl genre like Cutey Honey, Card Captor Sakura, and Magical Angel Creamy Mami. The quintessential magical girl series Sailor Moon appears in the Top 20.

References

1. "4Kids Licenses Pretty Cure". Anime News Network. 2006-02-24. Retrieved 2007-01-01.
2. "TV Asahi Top 100 Anime". Anime News Network. 2005-09-23. Retrieved 2007-01-01.
3. "TV Asahi Top 100 Anime Part 2". Anime News Network. 2005-09-23. Retrieved 2007-01-01.

External links

• Pretty Cure at Toei Animation Template:Ja icon

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• Pretty Cure: Max Heart at Toei Animation Template:Ja icon

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• PrettyCure.org Pretty Cure and Pretty Cure: Max Heart Information

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