Keep your feet and knees together. Aside from that, you're on your own.

The first episode of each new Pretty Cure iteration tends to be good. Even by that metric, the first episode of Hirogaru Sky! Precure is very promising. It also confirms the franchise is exploring uncharted territory in its 20th year. First of all, its lead character is not a Japanese girl. For another thing, Sora's battle costume corresponding with her mahou shoujo form has a blue theme. Promotional materials for the series have also confirmed Hirogaru Sky! Precure will include a male Cure (a 12-year-old boy) and an "adult" Cure (she's 18), although there have technically been older Cures—and numerous Cures only a year younger—in the past.

Don't let her land on your head, Mashiro.

Taxonomy disputes as to who is entitled to be an According to Hoyle Pretty Cure are not new. Viewers who have followed Pretty Cure from the beginning will recall Shiny Luminous, Kaoru, Michiru, and Milky Rose were effectively Cures in all but name, but lacked the official moniker presumably because they were not Japanese girls. Cure Passion broke this barrier at the midpoint of Fresh Pretty Cure! in 2009. Questions as to when there would be a male Cure have dogged the franchise for years. After all, a robot, two space aliens, and a mermaid were all allowed to become Cures. They weren't even human!

Unfortunately, Sky does actually smile a lot during her transformation.

As far as the whole pink Cure thing goes, I feel as if that was only established starting from the fourth year of Pretty Cure. However, it became important enough for some fans that they will retroactively insist Shiny Luminous is a "Yellow" (because of her hair and predominantly defensive role) despite being the only member of the Max Heart trio with an unquestionably pink-themed battle costume. Assuming Cure Prism does not usurp the lead role from Cure Sky, this would be rejection of a convention that has become regarded as traditional.

"I want you to hit me as hard as you can."

It's too early yet for me to claim Hirogaru Sky! Precure will be good, but I am optimistic about its chances. At a minimum the determination and bravery Sora displayed during the first episode points the series in the right direction. My enduring convictions about Pretty Cure as a franchise are predicated on the themes established during its nascent beginnings. Namely, that the series should concentrate on youths embracing Hope and Courage. Consequently, I was baffled that Delicious Party♡Precure devoted so many of its episodes (including the show's climactic arc!) to the exchange of grievances between various adult male characters. Let's not do that again.

Relax, it's only water.

If you don't count Cure Grandma or the various "other" Cures, and ignore whatever the deal was with Cure Earth, then Cure Butterfly is the oldest mainline Pretty Cure. She's only 18, but she's out of school and has a job, drives a car, and spends every waking moment on the verge of despair. Wait, not that last part. Actually, she's super genki and sort of doesn't seem like an adult at all. Do adults like her really exist? Maybe I'm asking too much of my made-for-children magikal girl show.

I wonder if Tsubasa and Syrup will get along.

There's also a boy Cure now: Cure Wing. He's fine. He's the youngest of the group, and he's technically a tubby bird who spends most of his time quietly doing tubby bird things instead of being a loud brat or something. He's WAY better than any of the dudes from Delicious Party♡Precure. I know the natural thing to do is compare Cure Wing with Black Pepper (spoilers: Cure Wing is better), but you have to remember there were a whole mess of other male characters in Delicious Party♡Precure who were way worse than Black Pepper.

I like your luggage.

Anyway, I'm getting off track. Ageha is an old friend of Mashiro (Cure Prism) despite their four-year age difference. Until now, she has just sort of been hanging around minding the magic baby while the Cures were busy. She finally became Cure Butterfly in episode 18, but there wasn't really any build-up to this, nor any indication there was anything necessarily preventing her from becoming a Cure much earlier. The deciding factor seemed to be she just wasn't needed as a Cure until now.

Ma'am, your slip is showing.

Still, she's a welcome addition, even if the novelty of having a (barely adult) adult Cure will quickly get overshadowed by actual-adult Nozomi's return when Kibō no Chikara ~Otona Precure 23~ begins in October. I'm sort of hoping ol' Dream and Bunbee ended up as co-workers in some fresh corporate hellscape. Maybe they spend a lot of time getting plastered together while bitching about their jobs.

Enjoy this apple. Or else.

Somehow, Suki na Ko ga Megane wo Wasureta (The Girl I Like Forgot Her Glasses) is my top show this season. I say "somehow," but I know why: It's because the girl Potato-kun likes squints when she doesn't have her glasses (which is often), and it makes her look angry as fuck all the time. This is a dumb gimmick, but I love it. The juxtaposition between her appearance and her demeanor is so good. More surprisingly, outside of the trailer and first episode that made everyone (including me) assume GoHands was going to commit anime crimes all season long, the visuals have been fine. If anything, I'm sort of disappointed it looks as normal as it does. Maybe Sukimega would be a bottom-tier show during most quarters, but you go to Seasonal Anime War with the shows you have, not the shows you wish you had.

Carcinization.

Hirogaru Sky! Precure is only sort of average as far as Pretty Cure seasons go, but it's such a step up from Delicious Party♡Precure that it seems wonderful in comparison. God, they really fucked that one up. Anyway, Hirogaru Sky! has made notable changes to the existing Pretty Cure formula. It has a "blue" lead instead of a "pink" one, it has an adult Cure, and it has the franchise's first male Cure. Nevertheless, despite these departures, the series as a whole seems really...normal.

Not even bothering to make a magic umbrella.

Maou Gakuin no Futekigousha: Shijou Saikyou no Maou no Shiso, Tensei shite Shison-tachi no Gakkou e Kayou II (The Misfit of Demon King Academy: History’s Strongest Demon King Reincarnates and Goes to School with His Descendants Season 2) re-started after a mid-season interruption that forced a delay for the remaining episodes of the cours. It's a lot of magic bullshit, none of which seems as interesting to me as the first season's Misha and Sasha content, but I haven't gotten tired of the constant ass pulls yet.

Dia still sucks, though.

Genjitsu no Yohane: SUNSHINE in the MIRROR (YOHANE THE PARHELION -SUNSHINE in the MIRROR-) needs more music. And where the Hell is SAINT SNOW? C'mon. I mostly like what it's doing anyway. It's had a few twists that are sort of interesting. I'm not sure I'm entirely on board with what the series has planned for what I presume will be a big finish, but I'm willing to give it the benefit of the doubt. The Yohane focus has rehabilitated my opinion of Love Live! Sunshine!! to some degree, but I still think Nijigasaki and Superstar are superior installments overall.

I am here to drink boxed apple juice and kick ass, and I am all out of boxed apple juice.

This is not a "Cure Majesty sucks" post, although I have encountered opinions along those lines. Rather, I simply don't find Cure Majesty very compelling. It honestly feels as if Cure Majesty as a concept lacked sufficient planning or development. Now, it appears the production team behind Hirogaru Sky! Precure (Soaring Sky! Pretty Cure) wanted to add variety to who became Cures. To that end, the Pretty Cure franchise received its first boy Cure, its first (sort of) non-pink lead Cure, and its first (sort of) adult Cure. Adding Cure Majesty gave it its first (again, only sort of) toddler Cure.

You, of all people, should not be surprised.

The problem here is that Cure Majesty's toddler form really is a toddler. She's not a mentally mature girl slumming around in baby form; she literally is a baby who is still learning how to talk. When Cure Majesty appears in the show, it's only to fight. She's entirely divorced from the character we know as Ellee. Consequently, viewers have no more reason to invest in Cure Majesty than, say, Star Platinum from JoJo's Bizarre Adventure.

They grow up so fast.

I like Hirogaru Sky! Precure, but I think it stumbled here. I suppose the introduction of Cure Majesty is not as bad as the mess involving Cure Muse from Suite Precure♪, but it's not great either. I feel as if there's nothing to lose now by having the magic baby grow up faster. Granted, Delicious Party♡Precure did that without much success, but Delicious Party had a whole lot of other problems dragging it down. Hirogaru Sky! doesn't have that issue.

I like that Kaiser Rin has catsup and mustard hair.

It took 44 episodes, but Hirogaru Sky! Precure finally gave its end-game antagonist a proper introduction. At this stage, so close to the conclusion of the series, I think it's likely I'll ultimately remember Hirogaru Sky! Precure as being eager to introduce new things while never deeply investing in them. Perhaps there were corporate instructions to avoid rocking the boat too much, but ultimately none of the changes that were introduced seemed particularly impactful on the series itself, let alone the franchise as a whole. Similarly, "not being impactful" is also an issue with everything about the show, not just its minor departures from convention.

I'm legit bummed Hirogaru Sky! did not keep the final boss looking like this.

Bringing the final antagonist out this late, for example, doesn't exactly suggest much investment in the story. Considering that she seems fairly unremarkable (barring any crazy twists that could theoretically drop in the coming weeks), I'm not too impressed with Hirogaru as a whole. I still enjoyed it, and it certainly wasn't awful in any way. I think I simply had higher hopes for it.

You look like a Love Live! refugee.

At least we're finally getting some mileage out of the Cure Majesty thing instead of only keeping her around as the magic baby's Stand. Personally, I'm hoping Cure Noble is a fuckup, and that the Undergu Empress is justified in holding whatever grudge she's been hanging onto for the past 300 years. I have to assume, at a minimum, Cure Nobel must have killed her dad. If that's the case, I can see how that might make Kaiser Rin-tan upset, even if he did have it coming.