Hirogaru Sky Precure: Ep. 12-24 Thoughts
Jan. 31st, 2026 10:54 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
gildedstageI surprised myself by getting halfway through Hirogaru Sky Precure before Star Detective starts airing, even though my original goal was to finish by July… My motivation to watch things went down again though, so I might slow down. It’s been an enjoyable season so far.
I did like how the spaced out debut times allowed Cure Sky and Cure Prism more time to develop, but it seems like Cure Butterfly’s delayed debut stunted her character. It doesn’t feel like she changed in any major way, even during her transformation episode, but maybe it was intentional since she’s meant to be an adult Cure.
I still like her character though. I love her combination of older sister meddling (pretending to snore outrageously loud so Sora and Mashiro would leave and talk to each other) and also being a mess herself (invited the kids for an outing and then had to be pressured by them to finish her assignments). Her bond with Mashiro, her 4 year younger childhood friend, has interested me from the beginning because of the role reversal of her learning from Mashiro. So it was really cute how she wanted Mashiro to be honest with Sora and cry, when Mashiro didn’t want to cry as a child because she knew it would make Ageha cry.
Her Cure form and attacks are beautiful too. Funnily enough, part of the appeal of this season to me was that there’s a blonde gal who is a pink non-leader Cure, but I ended up liking her brown hair so much that I missed it.
I think the only complaint I heard going into this season was that the villains feel underdeveloped and I have to agree with that now. The new guy seemed interesting at first since he pretends to defend the downtrodden, but really steps on them himself. Unfortunately, he ended up being another villain who is played for laughs until he suddenly and jarringly isn’t, so that’s some wasted potential. At least he brings out the scathingly protective side of Ageha.
I think my favorite episodes I’ve watched recently are the “first shoes” episode where they terrorize that poor grandma by jumping her in Cure form to the airport and the Tsubasa-Ageha duo episode. There’s something really funny about Tsubasa explicitly comparing her to his parents. Also, more girlfailure Ageha where she’s working herself to exhaustion to care for them, but neglecting herself. It’s so cute how Tsubasa naively and earnestly wants her to rely on him too, like Princess Ellee does, despite the age difference making that fundamentally difficult. I think it’s his most noble trait.
The cast is strong enough that even the more lighthearted episodes are enjoyable to me. Some character moments that stuck out to me was Mashiro buying food to smooth over Sora’s entrance into the Azure Guard and being too humble to be called a hero or ask for something from the King. Also, Tsubasa trying to look cool and avoid his doting parents.
The Skyland arc was as fun as I thought it was going to be. I thought she would be the ancient Cure at first, but I still love everything about Captain Shalala. Her elegant design, her husky voice, and her bond with Sora. I love how she has a familial fondness for Sora (telling her she’s grown and letting Sora hug and cling to her even in front of royalty), but also pushes her to be independent (gently redirecting her to depend on her friends and forge her own path instead of only following her). Also, those scenes where she lets Sora carry her… She’s really the exemplar hero who doesn’t carried away by her own idea of righteousness or pride.
I was already spoiled for who the mid-season Cure is, but the execution is still interesting so far. It’s sweet how they still want her to come back and be family again after she’s completed her destiny.
I did like how the spaced out debut times allowed Cure Sky and Cure Prism more time to develop, but it seems like Cure Butterfly’s delayed debut stunted her character. It doesn’t feel like she changed in any major way, even during her transformation episode, but maybe it was intentional since she’s meant to be an adult Cure.
I still like her character though. I love her combination of older sister meddling (pretending to snore outrageously loud so Sora and Mashiro would leave and talk to each other) and also being a mess herself (invited the kids for an outing and then had to be pressured by them to finish her assignments). Her bond with Mashiro, her 4 year younger childhood friend, has interested me from the beginning because of the role reversal of her learning from Mashiro. So it was really cute how she wanted Mashiro to be honest with Sora and cry, when Mashiro didn’t want to cry as a child because she knew it would make Ageha cry.
Her Cure form and attacks are beautiful too. Funnily enough, part of the appeal of this season to me was that there’s a blonde gal who is a pink non-leader Cure, but I ended up liking her brown hair so much that I missed it.
I think the only complaint I heard going into this season was that the villains feel underdeveloped and I have to agree with that now. The new guy seemed interesting at first since he pretends to defend the downtrodden, but really steps on them himself. Unfortunately, he ended up being another villain who is played for laughs until he suddenly and jarringly isn’t, so that’s some wasted potential. At least he brings out the scathingly protective side of Ageha.
I think my favorite episodes I’ve watched recently are the “first shoes” episode where they terrorize that poor grandma by jumping her in Cure form to the airport and the Tsubasa-Ageha duo episode. There’s something really funny about Tsubasa explicitly comparing her to his parents. Also, more girlfailure Ageha where she’s working herself to exhaustion to care for them, but neglecting herself. It’s so cute how Tsubasa naively and earnestly wants her to rely on him too, like Princess Ellee does, despite the age difference making that fundamentally difficult. I think it’s his most noble trait.
The cast is strong enough that even the more lighthearted episodes are enjoyable to me. Some character moments that stuck out to me was Mashiro buying food to smooth over Sora’s entrance into the Azure Guard and being too humble to be called a hero or ask for something from the King. Also, Tsubasa trying to look cool and avoid his doting parents.
The Skyland arc was as fun as I thought it was going to be. I thought she would be the ancient Cure at first, but I still love everything about Captain Shalala. Her elegant design, her husky voice, and her bond with Sora. I love how she has a familial fondness for Sora (telling her she’s grown and letting Sora hug and cling to her even in front of royalty), but also pushes her to be independent (gently redirecting her to depend on her friends and forge her own path instead of only following her). Also, those scenes where she lets Sora carry her… She’s really the exemplar hero who doesn’t carried away by her own idea of righteousness or pride.
I was already spoiled for who the mid-season Cure is, but the execution is still interesting so far. It’s sweet how they still want her to come back and be family again after she’s completed her destiny.
