DÉSENCHANTÉ

Hugtto! Pretty Cure - Episode 33
My Own Review
DÉSENCHANTÉ

Let’s start with the most important thing first: yesterday (23/09/2018) was Lulu Amour’s birthday, so happy birthday Lulu!
As for the thirty-third episode of Hugtto! PreCure, it happens to be an Emilu, or Twin Love (the pairing has an official name now!!), episode – pretty good timing if you ask me. Oh, and Henri is there as well. 

On the Criasu front, we we learned from Bishin that Ristle was the first to abandon Harry and their home, so there’s that. It’s interesting how Bishin said he abandoned them when they ended up coming to Criasu anyways. Perhaps he was the one to recruit them? Who knows… But there is certainly a story going on between the three of them that has yet to be told.

The episode starts with Twin Love – that being the name of our OTP's pop-rock band – being talked about on TV – and when their sound is criticised, Emiru doesn’t take it too well. 

There’s no time to worry about that, though, as Papple, their manager, has got them a job interviewing none other than Henri Wakamiya. The girls got an offer from Papple to interview Henri for his skating performance which Emiru has no confidence in doing the interview. (After earlier Emiru was shocked by critics commenting that her music was bad on television)

Emiru and Lulu of Twin Love, ready for their next assignment

However, Emiru isn’t really feeling it, so Hana and Saaya take over for the time being.

Hana interviews Henri

With Emiru and Lulu watching on, Hana has the chance to interview Henri. She asks him what his plans for the future are. First, the Figure Skating Junior World Cup. After that, he wants to keep winning because that is what makes him feel complete. 

Emiru vows to grow stronger

Upon hearing Henri’s answer, Emiru says that she wants Twin Love’s music to reach even more people. She swears that she will grow stronger.

The director (man in the afro) tries to make much ado about nothing

Moving on, Henri and Lulu talk to each other about people pursue strength and how they can’t seem to understand each other. 

When Lulu’s hair gets caught in her choker (something that has never happened before and will probably never happen again…) Henri helps her out. 

DIRECTOR: This will be the greatest scandal since Monica Lewinsky...

The camp (gay?) primadonna director decides to try and capture that moment on camera to create a scoop for some tabloid show. However, he is soon stopped.

Masato and Emiru confront the director

Masato and Emiru arrive, and firmly tell the director that Emiru and Lulu are just friends (nakama). There is no need to create drama where there is none. That is much ado about nothing. When the director turns the situation around on Masato (calling the kettle black, or in this case calling the rainbow cake iridescent), Henri steps in to bring the situation to a halt. The producer wanted more juicy news and tried to create a scandal between Henri and Lulu but was stopped by Emiru and Masato. Even Henri intervened and asked the producer not to pr(e)y into people's privacy. 

After that, he goes off to have some time alone.

Le petit Henri sur les glaces, dans des jours plus heureux.

Now as an adolescent, testosterone kicks in, and with that surge in height and muscle and hair in weird places, and his voice deepening... he fears losing his androgynous identity:

Some are like water, some are like the heat;

some are a melody and some are a beat...

Sooner or later, they all will be gone...

Why don't they stay young?

It's so hard to get old without a cause,

I don't want to perish like a fading horse

Youth's like diamonds in the sun,

and diamonds are forever

So many adventures given up today,

so many songs we forgot to play,

so many dreams swinging out of the blue...

Oh, let it come true!

Forever young

I want to be 

forever young

Do you really want to live forever

Forever, 

and ever?

Forever young

I want to be 

forever young

Do you really want to live forever

Forever young?

When Henri is outside alone with his thoughts, Ristle appears and asks him to join Criasu Corporation. Deep down, Henri wants time to stop, which is why Ristle approached him.

Henri felt that everyone is looking up to him which he felt the pressure and he just want to get away from everyone to be alone. He even commented that will he find peace if he is truly alone? Furthermore, he could feel that his body is changing every day and he is worried that he might become different and how people will react to him then.

Please allow me to introduce myself:
I'm a man of wealth and taste...
I've been around for a long, long time;
stole many a man's soul and faith.

Clutching his throat and noticing how it protrudes, and that his voice is deepening, he is shocked by the fact that the sharply-dressed stranger seems to have guessed his thoughts... Henri felt that everyone is looking up to him which he felt the pressure and he just want to get away from everyone to be alone. He even commented that will he find peace if he is truly alone? Furthermore, he could feel that his body is changing every day and he is worried that he might become different and how people will react to him then. This is why Ristle came to recruit him in the first place. He can sense that deep within Henri’s good heart, there’s a part of him that wants to stop time. The changes of puberty, such as his voice getting lower, or growing taller, due to the prejudice of society, it is increasingly becoming more difficult for him to confidently be who he wants to be.

Sooner or later, they all will be gone...

Why don't they stay young?

It's so hard to get old without a cause,

I don't want to perish like a fading horse

Youth's like diamonds in the sun,

and diamonds are forever

So many adventures given up today,

so many songs we forgot to play,

so many dreams swinging out of the blue...

Oh, let it come true!

Forever young

I want to be 

forever young

Do you really want to live forever

Forever, 

and ever?

Forever young

I want to be 

forever young

Do you really want to live forever

Forever young?

Right here, right now,

I put the offer out;

I don't want to chase you down,

I know you see it...

You run with me,

and I can cut you free,

out of the treachery

and walls you keep in...

Ristle asks Henri to join Criasu. 

My card - Have anxiety, will travel

 Ristle hands over a business card, the typical "my card" but infused with dark powewer, and tells Henri to think about it.

Ristle told Bishin that he will handle the Precures although that earlier comment from Bishin claimed that Ristle was the first one to betray Harry and joined Crisis which suggested Ristle has issues with Harry which I hope we will know more in future episodes.

Emiru witnessed the whole thing, and naturally tells Henri to completely ignore what Criasu are saying.

Emiru has someone she wants to be with; someone she wants to sing for

Emiru thanks Henri for accepting her brother, continuing on about the weight of expectations. However, she has someone she wants to be with. Henri also taught Emiru that she should hold herself in esteem. 

Queen Henriette became a role model for Emiru.

Emiru’s chat with Henri ended up resolving her own problems rather than his.

When Lulu tells Emiru she loves (daisuki) her, she feels invincible

Lulu and Masato arrive, and the gynoid rushes straight towards Emiru and embraces her. 

Emiru was not herself and Lulu felt helpless that she couldn't do anything to help her. But she knows that sometimes people just need that one special person to rely onto when they are down and Lulu is that special person for Emiru. 

She can see that Emiru has cheered up, and that is because Emiru had remembered something she had forgotten. When Lulu says that she loves (daisuki) Emiru, the little strawberry-blonde feels invincible.

The next day, Twin Love and the other PreCures, cum Harry and Hugtan, head for the ice-skating ballet where Henri stars.

Masato also offers Henri his encouragement

Moving on, Henri has a performance (of what appears to be Apollo Musagète on ice, given the costume). Before he goes out, Masato grabs his hand and tells him that he can do it. With those words of encouragement, Henri steps out and performs his ice skating routine.

During his performance, his right leg starts to hurt, and the director attempts to sabotage the show to create drama.

Twin Love provide the music for Henri’s routine

The music gets cut off, but fortunately Emiru and Lulu have their guitars to hand. They play a song, whilst Henri continues his routine.

The exciting finale of the ice-skating routine; the entire audience cheers for Henri as Apollo.

The audience’s reaction after Henri blows a kiss – there also seems to be a lot of lilies present

Also, notice Masato's smile in particular -he is the only one who blushes, and his heart is glowing hotter than the others'!

Thanks to Twin Love, Henri is able to complete his routine. The very moment he finishes, Criasu attacks. 

Unsurprisingly, the afro-wearing primadonna director's disappointment (he was angry that his attempt to sabotage Henri during his performance backfired on him) is the negative emotion of the week. (The only thing we didn't see is Ristle's summoning) 

As Ristle targets the campy (queer or straight?) primadonna director, the entire audience cheers for Henri as Apollo.

The campy (but still of uncertain sexuality) primadonna director grabs Henri and makes a run for it

The primadonna director theender grabs Henri, and retreats. Naturally, Twin Love and the others transform and give pursuit as PreCures. 

Elsewhere, en tête-à-tête, Ristle attempts to persuade Henri to join Criasu one more time, but he refuses.

Ristle approached Henri and offered a post in Crisis. He even commented that Henri has the same desires as them - for time to stop forever. Henri of course declined the offer during the girls' battle.

PreCures finish off the monster and rescue Henri. They go back and the interview with him concludes with him almost revealing every PreCure’s true identities.

Lulu and Emiru promise to be together forever

After all that, everyone goes back home. On the way, Emiru says that she now knows she needs to believe in and love (suki) her future. She and Lulu swear to be together, forever.

I would love to say the episode ends on that happy note, with that sunset oath, but there is one final thing.

How many times has "I'm all right" been but a façade?

Does anyone else know that, in his heart of hearts, that smile is actually forced?

Criasu’s offer is still on Henri’s mind

It seems that Henri’s leg is still giving him trouble, and earlier he mentioned how he was growing taller and his voice getting deeper, losing the boyishness that is part of his image and penchant for cross-dressing (on top of what could be an impending career-ending injury). Criasu’s offer seems to be something that has stuck with him – though it seems that Masato is stopping Henri from going down that road for now.

As for George, we found him brooding over his usual read, while pondering if a new cadre is about to sign into Criasu...

It seems that Henri’s leg is still giving him trouble, and earlier he mentioned how he was growing taller and his voice getting deeper, losing the boyishness that is part of his image and penchant for cross-dressing (on top of what could be an impending career-ending injury). 

Criasu’s offer seems to be something that has stuck with him – though it seems that Masato is stopping Henri from going down that road for now.

Ristle reported back to George of the outcome though George is hoping for Henri to join them since he has the same desires and true enough, Henri felt something strange after receiving Ristle's card and has the temptations to join Crisis but was interrupted by Masato. Only time will tell...

No matter the detachment that is growing in between them - the scenario is brilliantly symbolised by the darkness that swallows up the blond, with his back turned to his significant other, framed in turn in a ray of light.

Well, obviously I am going to write about Emilu, or Twin Love, here, but before I get to that lets give some kudos to Henri and Masato. Their respective first appearances may have not been very positive, but they’ve definitely grown beyond that by now.
There was definitely something between Henri and Masato before, and this episode just presents further evidence for that.
Perhaps I’m reading too much into this, but maybe Henri has gender dysphoria – his regret about his voice deepening and his tendency to wear dresses could be considered evidence of that. Or perhaps it is just as simple as Henri liking to wear dresses – I am no expert when it comes to this thing. Just thought I’d put a theory out there.

Criasu’s attempted recruitment of Henri also gives us a very interesting thing. I don’t exactly know what has happened with Henri’s leg, but it seems like it may be a catalyst for Henri turning to the dark side.
Masato seems to be keeping him grounded for now, but we’ll see how long that lasts for.
If Bishin and Masato are both successful in what they want to do, we could potentially see PreCures going up against both Harry and Henri. That would certainly be an interesting twist, though I feel that may be more likely for one than the other.

But, enough about all that. The real stars of this episode were EmiRuru, and once again they had excellent scenes together. Ruru rushing to Emiru to hug her was just so good, and their promise to be together forever… ah, Hugtto! is making a very strong case to become my favourite season of the franchise. I mean, Cure Amour has already supplanted Cure Moonlight as my favourite Cure.
Every time we get an Emilu and/or Henrisato episode, I just have to state how good it is – and sure enough, this one is no exception.

Okay, this episode was a weird one for me, and let me explain to you why.

It was very apparent to me that something felt totally off, and it didn’t take my long to figure out exactly what it was. How should I describe it? It felt empty when I consciously knew it was supposed to be full of feelings. The only time it evoked a response out of me, was whenever Henry’s scenes came up. Everything else fell flat. That’s when I realized, “Ah, I am lacking the attachments to the characters, specifically to Lulu and Emiru.” And it’s rather ironic how it turned out this way, because this was actually something my friend and I were discussing about last night.

As many of you already know, it has gotten to the point where I absolutely cannot stand neither Emiru’s or Lulu’s characters. The presence of their characters have thrown the entire group dynamic out of whack, and the only purpose they seem to serve besides that(since we hardly see them actually interact with the other trio as friends) is forcefully promoting their music on a weekly basis. Maybe if they were written better and we didn’t have to hear the songs so often, I would like them, but unfortunately that is not the case. So whenever their scenes came up, the absence of feeling for Emiru’s struggle were apparent. On the other hand, what they got going on with Henri, had me hooked. That’s why watching the episode was a weird experience, because there would be moments when it feels empty, and others when it feels full. 

But even when I was completely engrossed what was going on with Henri, I still had mixed emotions. Why is that? Well it is because AFTER ALL THIS TIME, now they decided to make Henry’s character matter. It infuriates me because I hate that it took them this long to get around to it, and how they neglected to show us this inner conflict Henri has been facing over the course of the show. Do you know how amazing that could have been?! And what are they going to use him for? Criasu’s card up their sleeves!!!! ARG! Henri has always been the only character I did not want to see go dark. Unfortunately it looks like that’s exactly what we are in store for.

Of course as much as I hate the fact Henri is probably going to be exploited and lured to the dark side, I am also super excited for it because Henri has a lot more going on than meets the eye. He doesn’t or at least hasn’t exactly opened up about his struggles. (Emiru doesn’t count because she didn’t get it, at all). He is a character a character who is on track to potentially having more depth than the entire cast (aside from Hana and to some extent, Harry) combined… which is pretty sad when you think about it.

This is why Ristle came to recruit him in the first place. He can sense that deep within Henri’s good heart, there’s a part of him that wants to stop time. The changes of puberty, such as his voice getting lower, or growing taller, due to the prejudice of society, it is increasingly becoming more difficult for him to confidently be who he wants to be. Furthermore, he mused how he thought a precure would be recruited by the other precures first, only for Criasu to approach him instead. And frankly, I don’t think he was kidding about that. There is no doubt in my mind, he wants to be a part of their inner circle, and it is a shame he hasn’t been ever been properly included. (But again, this is probably the worst precure circle we have seen to date, I actually find it extremely reminiscent of the shallow, nonexistent bonds of friendships between the characters of the so-called heroes in YGO ARC-V)

And let me reiterate: I have always felt Henri has always been the ideal candidate to be a Precure, the first male one in canon. I don’t want him to be a precure for the sake of it, I want him to be a precure to go along with what his character represents. Also, why not? I never liked the ideology of how only ‘certain genders’ can play certain roles. Why not both? Let the boys and girls be whoever they want! All this time, Henri has been proudly wearing feminine clothing, is a shining example of that. Screw the status quo of heteronormative society! We have all been wired to be so bloody judgemental of each other, that it’s such a struggle to embrace our individuality! I mean for goodness sakes, stop judging them for it, LET THEM OWN IT!!!

AND HENRY SAID IT BEST: “I look forward to a world and time where we are all free to live as we wish” PREACCCHHHHHHHHHHHHH~!!!!!!

Yet despite all of that, I still can’t hold my breath for Henry becoming a precure, especially when it’s this late in the game. It frustrates me how they might be electing to skip out on this opportunity altogether. At this point, the only possible way— which would be crazy, and honestly I wouldn’t even know how to react to it myself if it were to happen… if they were to make Henri be the on to inherit the White Crystal that Harry currently has in his possession. It could be they have been foreshadowing this possible development the entire time by constantly having Henri have his shining moments in while he is dressed in white. It would certainly serve as a good contrast to how Criasu wants to turn him into their “dark” Prince.

However, what it is looking to be the actual trigger that will push Henri over to the dark side, will likely be his career-ending injury. I don’t know how bad it is, but it could potentially end up being something that either screws up his momentum to the Junior World Cup, or put an end to his skating career.
Damn it, he needs to throw away that business card, don’t hold onto it man! BURN IT! Needless to say, although it is a shame Henri has been neglected until now, I am happy to see that he will actually be getting his own arc of a sorts. I know I should be cautiously optimistic about it, but I am still excited for it.

Also, can we take a moment to appreciate how freaking PRECIOUS the Henry’s scene with Hugtan was? Oh my god it made my heart melt! And we can’t forget how awesome it was to see Henry rejecting the (first) temptation of joining the dark side.

PROTECT THIS BOY’S SMILE!

In other news, we learned from Bishin that Ristle was the first to abandon Harry and their home, so there’s that. It’s interesting how Bishin said he abandoned them when the others ended up coming to Criasu anyways. Perhaps he was the one to recruit them? Who knows… But there is certainly a story going on between the three of them that has yet to be told.

Right now Hugtto’s biggest problem seems to be juggling wayyyyy too many ideas all at once, so they aren’t actually able to focus on one issue for a period of time without leaving other matters unfinished or wounding up forgotten altogether.

PS: Poor Homare, Harry wasn’t even watching her. Hugtan has his complete and undivided attention.

The theme for this episode is pretty mature although I felt Toei took shortcuts in the visual department; especially with Henri and Emiru's conversation, which should have more expressions rather than two people standing each person at one corner of the screen talking which seriously no one talk that far and able to listen too either. For Emiru it's getting her groove back and Lulu is her support tower which I am pretty sure they are like a pair of surrogate sisters who really love and care each other.

Henri is more complicated as he has a lot of issues about himself. People looked up to him like some angel and he doesn't like being labelled as perfect. He also realised he is changing everyday and wished that time will stop so that people will have less expectations of him. Which make him a perfect candidate for Crisis since they only desire for time to stay forever and nothing to change. (Basically it means they don't want to grow up; IE Peter Pan syndrome).

MY OWN HUMBLE OPINION:
YAY!! Emilu is further canonised - and that on Lulu's birthday week - when the duet has an official name, that will also do for the pairing: TWIN LOVE!! And Papple and Henri -- and Henrisato --  this was definitely worth a musical review, I thought...
I was also reminded of the satirical barbs at the tabloid mass media in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, where similar scenarios (a reporter walking in on Hermione as she is cheering on Harry) lead to the Daily Prophet coverage of the Tournament, publishing front pages about Harry and Hermione as romantic lovers - and thus, to their irate reactions.
Oh, and Henrisato is canon... though, with that surge of testosterone and Henri's fear of biological masculinity, it seems inevitable that he would rather accept the Cryasse/Criasu offer to stop time for evermore. Luckily, there is the Aisaki heir to always have his back (wasn't it pleasant to see him defrost?).
Henri being lured to the dark side -
Besides, Henri and Ristle today reminded me A LOT of Othello and Iago. Not only does it look like the older Cryasse vice-leader is preying on our Enjolras Targaryen On Ice, but also
Will Henri join Cryasse?
Will he become the sissy villain du jour (for the Cryasse cast was and is, without counting Gelos's late butlers, bereft of a feminine male cadre)?
Will the new dark Henri change his name? And will he be more of a sissy villain or a perky m-to-f minion (with hints of Peter Pan)?
Speaking of Ristle, it appears that he was the first member of Harry's Species to abandon their home and join Cryasse, as Bishin has explained. It’s interesting how Bishin said he abandoned them when the others ended up coming to Criasu anyways. Perhaps he was the one to recruit them? Who knows… - My headcanon is that, as the eldest, he was the guardian to everyone else, with a desire to protect them and make their lives easier.