My Own Review
Chapter the First: IN WHICH A QUEST BEGINS (oui, there will be retraux "in which" titles for the reviews of this continuity!)
First things first, let's discuss the opening theme, which, as usual, showcases the whole cast of the story, right?
Lala being behind a plasma screen definitely settles our leader as the resident eccentric and Ravenclaw of the show (she's from another planet at the end of the day, eh?)
Furthermore, Lala's establishing character moment in the OP crystallises her, as she is reading-researching about Earth in order to "go native!" Moreover, her eye pupils are now revealed, from up close, to be little stars... Awwww...
Elena's ECM has her doing the laundry out of all things, establishing our dark-skinned blonde as the more practical and responsible, if not Workaholic, rare kind of character to be seen in magical girl warrior franchises (I can for instance mention Makoto-Lita-Jupiter [orphan], Becca Quickfin [orphan], Applejack [orphan+numerous siblings, 3 counting her, the middle one], Nao-April from Smile! in the Pretty Cure franchise [numerous siblings, 7 counting her, the firstborn], and now Elena-Soleil is added to the list [also numerous siblings, also 7 counting her, birth order so far unknown]). Since the circumstances that force young people to take the responsibilities of an adult in advance -most frequently orphanhood and/or large sets of siblings- are so rare, this kind of character is so little seen in middle-grade media...
...and Madoka doing archery practice (without arrows) in a traditional kimono - in spite of her parents being more westernised elite, she appears to lean less on the Euro and more on the Asian side!
Then we see them switch from muggle to heroic identity:
Cure Milkyway (Lala) has electric powers (blue lightning just like Azula's) - here she is seen frying some knotraider mooks!
Soleil (Elena) has fire-light powers, and she is seen here facing...
...Selene (Madoka), who, just like Artemis, has the crescent moon for a bow she uses to fire light arrows!
Furthermore, Selene was another name for Artemis as a lunar goddess, and as for Madoka, her nationally-famous skills in archery translate to her arrow attack.
Yaaaay for classical myth references! (Bonus if she has a bisexual fraternal twin bro who is also dashing and into classical music... time will tell whether she's an only child as foil to Elena, right?)
Artemis in Fantasia 1940, using the crescent moon for a bow. See what I mean?
And this may be the finishing move they use with all their powers combined!
The Knot Raider big bad is just a flame with glowing eyes - anyway, all these overlord villains tend to look equally sinister at this point when their features are concealed...
L-R and clockwise: The baroness plant person (in leotard of power, 7-11 o'clock), the gentlemanly butler (an ikemen? Centre), the brute (1 o'clock), the perky female minion (dark-skinned blonde in puffy breeches, 3-5 o'clock), and some guy who is currently confirmed to be Kappard (6 o'clock).
- a swole brute (this type of cadres have NEVER been my cuppa tea -as long as they're male; Netflix surprised me lately with two animesque female Brutes: Scorpia and Coach Brunt! Who says a lady can't be huge all muscle? Yet the Brute in Star*Twinkle is most likely to be a guy...)
- a flower-themed plant person baroness in shocking pink, wearing a leotard of power,
- a dark-skinned perky female minion in yellow (evil counterpart to Elena-Soleil),
- and a gentleman-butler (ikemen?) in lilac or grey (evil counterpart to Madoka-Selene).
- And the fifth guy - who is too much shaded to make head or tail of him so far. - AND WHO NOW IS CONFIRMED TO BE KAPPARD
And there's also this girl in Prussian blue, who also wears Victorian male attire (top hat and waistcoat) along with a far girlier twintail hairstyle... She looks more like an aloof ally than like a dark magical girl, doesn't she? I can't wait for this character in particular to debut...!
And now, let us move on to the episode itself, shall we?
We open with our shocking pink first heroine to debut watching the night sky through the telescope she owns, from the round window of her bedroom. Though her place is not an estate like Madoka's, it definitely is a European-style châlet or mansion - she even has a customised room with stars painted on the domed ceiling!
I
do like her spontaneous, perky personality and wild interests of space,
aliens, cults, and cryptids (I seriously hope we do NOT get another book-dunce geek like Miyuki-Emily in Smile!, who knew everything about fairytales and nothing about other things taught at class, but instead Hikaru as the third book-smart pink Cure ever, after Cure Blossom-Tsubomi and Cure Heart-Mana-Maya!!!).
Star ☆ Twinkle PreCure is the sixteenth entry of the PreCure franchise, which has a space theme going for it. We start, of course, with the introduction our pink Cure, Hikaru Hoshina.
Since this first episode is all about introductions, we shall begin
with Hikaru Hoshina. She absolutely loves space and the paranormal, and the first we see
her doing is observing the stars with a telescope. She has a notebook in
which she draws her own constellations, and one she happens to draw
is about to suddenly come to life.
Star ☆ Twinkle PreCure is the sixteenth entry of the PreCure franchise, which has a space theme going for it. We start, of course, with the introduction our pink Cure, Hikaru Hoshina.
Our new pink character, Hikaru Hoshina
Here’s our space pixie mascot for this season
Anyway, cue her cuddling, and adopting, the softiest and most adorable little space alien ever!
Moreover, she's in for a surprise when the creature decides to take her owner out on a spin through the portal through which she came...
The creature then ‘abducts’ Hikaru.
The creature then ‘abducts’ Hikaru.
On the other side, there is a dimension that looks just like outer space, but surprisingly full of light and colour -and where people can breathe yet fly about weightlessly.
Of course Hikaru is elated.
Hikaru and the creature in ‘space’
Hikaru gets to fly through space, or something that is an
approximation of it. 
As she does so, she happens to spot a heart-shaped world that is covered in dark aura. However, she wakes from her dream shortly afterwards.
Well, I say dream – the creature is very much real, though it departs from Hikaru’s house. She chases after it, but only after saying a formal good morning to her family.
Then, Hikaru awakes in bed to find that it all may have been a dream. Downstairs for breakfast, we learn to meet the Hoshina family:
Mrs. Hoshina the Elder and the Younger (mother and daughter, or in-laws?).
Surprisingly, the family father is conspicuously absent - deceased, divorced, or is his job keeping him away (most likely astronaut - though he could also be in the military). There are also no siblings of Hikaru's to be seen.
So far, it appears that the Hoshinas are the first pink Cure family structure that mirrors my own childhood and adolescence (hitherto, only a pair of yellow Cures -here's to Kirara and Homare!- had one); but, just like my wish for Hikaru being book smart, this is only a guess until the opposite is confirmed.
Since it's a weekend day, Hikaru decides to visit the old bearded gentleman, a retired astronomer, who runs the local observatory, and show him her sketchbook and tell him about her dream of last night... Ryoutaro was amazed that Hikaru has such observations skills to make her own constellations.
Hikaru talks with the old man who gave her her notebook
Hikaru’s chase leads her to the nearby observatory, where she eagerly
tells the old man there, Ryoutaro, about the creature. We also learn that Ryoutaro was the one who gave Hikaru her notebook, and he is pleased to see
how much she has filled it out.
Hikaru’s pursuit of the creature continues, but then hunger strikes.
Hikaru found the fluffball after Hikaru was preparing to eat a doughnut and the two of them hit along well, sharing their snack!
Hikaru shares a Star Doughnut with the creature
Hikaru pulls out a Star Doughnut to eat, and the creature suddenly
appears. Hikaru happily shares her doughnut, and decides to give the
creature a name: Fuwa. Hikaru and Fuwa just spend some time together,
with Fuwa eventually drifting off.The relative peace is soon interrupted, though.
Yaaaaaay for Mihoshi being quaint/country-esque/European-style as I expected!! Honestly, ever since Ichigozaka, and Noble Academy (a boarding school Academy of Adventure) before that, we have not had many of the horizontal skylines and half-timbered walls that I adore in spite of a setting in modern-day (2000s) East Asia! I wished that
Mihoshi was a quaint, country-esque, provincial-European town with a
horizontal skyline, just like Ichigozaka (or Goldkrone in Princess Tutu) - that's the rare kind of community of adventure that very rarely pops up in magical girl warrior series - yaaay for eaves and shingles with a spire here and another there! - Let's see if this series confirms my other expectations (book-smart pink heroine, villains of the week made from people's negative emotions) or not, shall we?
Then Fuwa falls deeply asleep and has a dream...
We also get to see Aries (redhead!!), Virgo (no mermaid tailfin, but angelic wings), Capricorn, and a blue princess who might be Leo, might be Aquarius ;)
Fuwa had a dream and several ladies in colorful dresses told Fuwa that
she is the last hope and Fuwa flow away into space. Although it has
been confirmed that the ladies are the Star Princesses which Team
Star Twinkle will have to search all 12 Star Princesses to save the
universe in the future.
Fuwa makes a starship appear out of nowhere
Welcome to Earth, AKA Tellus - I can figure that you want to tell-us more about your mission, right?
There are two aliens aboard, though it seems the more human one of the pair struggles with spacesickness.
PRUNCE: That's not how you should make a first impression on earthlings!
LALA: Wüüürgh... (Vomit discretion shot)
Lala
Prunce
Hikaru could not restrain her excitement upon seeing real aliens. Cue her fangirling over Lala and Prunce (who has to be Lala's interpreter so far, since she can only speak her mother tongue)!
Lala's sidekick, Prunce introduced themselves since Lala was unable to
communicate in Japanese (and also gave away Fuwa's overly long full name - Spegasus Pulalan Moffpit Princewink!! An overly long name like royalty - I wonder...). However they were interrupted by the Knot
Raiders with their general...
And who is their general, their lieutenant leader, the first cadre we get to see now?
The Great Kappard! (The sobriquet obviously implies an inferiority complex!)
But an ikemen/sissy villain kappa? Now that's even more than humanising for these froglike freshwater humanoids, who are commonly described as either literally bloodthirsty or as childish pranksters ;)
Kappard
Lala and Prunce knew that the Knot Raiders are after Fuwa and took her into the spaceship to escape. Hikaru followed them, as a stowaway, and they soon arrive at the outer atmosphere (ionosphere).
Hikaru stows away on board Lala's shuttle - and this is what it's like on the inside - also round, just like Hikaru's own room, with seats arranged in axial symmetry.
Hikaru manages to board the shuttle as well
But before Hikaru could enjoy the view,
the Knot Raiders fired at their spaceship and sucked Fuwa out the airlock into space.
The shuttle escapes into space, but Kappard continues following them
and attacks. The ship gets damaged, with Fuwa being pulled out into
the vacuum of space. Despite being told not to, Hikaru follows after
Fuwa.
...out the bloody airlock!
Now Mana-Maya Aida, AKA Cure Heart, may have oodles of haters, but I sympathise with her because she proves (just like with Entrapta, for ex.), that a female can be both book-smart and impulsive/perky at the same time! These two traits do not have to be exclusive (and it's such a shame that most extroverted nerds/bookworms on screen are guys, isn't it?)
So, I hope that looking before she leaps does not mean Hikaru is a lousy student...
(Still, that does NOT explain how Batman is able to breathe in space...)
Fortunately, Fuwa prevents this from becoming the shortest ever season of PreCure,
as her power allows Hikaru to survive in space. Kappard is still
determined to capture Fuwa, but Hikaru’s desire to protect her awakens a
new power.
An ink bottle pendant and a pen, which are the latest transformation trinkets
The star twinkling brightly above, Cure Star
Kappard and his Notray soldiers
Cure Star goes on the offensive
Kappard attacked her but Cure Star used her special attack-Pretty
Cure Star Punch (Love her doing the Popeye rotation screw before
punching her attack) and Kappard retreated.
PreCure Star Punch
Cure Star is able to drive Kappard off with her PreCure Star Punch,
but he will definitely be back. 
After the fight is over, everyone
returns to the starship for a heartfelt moment.
After the battle, Hikaru went to befriend Lala and Fuwa granted Lala the ability to speak and understand Japanese, so that she would not need an interpreter.
Fuwa makes it so Lala and Hikaru can understand each other
Fuwa also hid inside the Twinkle Book like a second home.
The shuttle has drifted too close to the gravitational field of our Earth, catching fire and about to explode or crash land!
Just as Hikaru wonders what kind of creature Fuwa is, the starts plummeting back to Earth.
This first episode ends with two characters in particular noticing the streak of firelight falling, mistaking it for a shooting star.
Just as Hikaru wonders what kind of creature Fuwa is, the starts plummeting back to Earth.
This first episode ends with two characters in particular noticing the streak of firelight falling, mistaking it for a shooting star.
On Earth, in the quaint provincial town of Mihoshi, two girls as different as night is from day have also seen the battle in the sky and the streak left by the shuttle, which they take for a shooting star:
...and Madoka, from a gothic window of her estate bedchamber, being idle for the evening (here, her dress looks rather more Euro than Asian, as does the window frame - in stark contrast to the OP).
The starship crashes on a wooded mountainside on the town's outskirts. And with that, we end the episode. With a shipwreck, no less.
As a cliffhanger.
Next episode, we'll see how a castaway Lala has to suit herself to this unexpected development on her mission and find a niche upon Earth... Lala also wishes to become a Precure for her own reasons...
MY OWN HUMBLE OPINION:
Kappard - It's a pretty bold move NOT to have a freak of the week, but a cadre summoning a first wave of mooks, in the première episode. Needless to say I am positively surprised by this refreshing subversion!
Lala - getting spacesick - HILARIOUS. And also relatable for Yours Truly
Zodiac princesses - We first get to see them in Fuwa's flashback dream. ALL 12 OF THEM!!
Well, my first impression of Star ☆ Twinkle is an extremely positive one. I will admit I was a little unsure about Hikaru’s voice at first, but it had grown on me by the time this episode ended.
Lala is great, too – she’s so cute. I like her a lot.
As for the mascot characters, they’re doing their job. I’m sure I’ll form a proper opinion of them after a few more episodes, but at least they aren’t the worst mascots I’ve seen within this franchise.
Cure Star’s debut was brilliant. We didn’t get a monster of the week, but I would certainly be OK with a PreCure fighting off Notray soldiers (mooks) each week. Kappard also immediately got himself involved in the battle, which was also nice to see. Not many PreCures have the honour of fighting in space, and yet it is the first thing Cure Star does here.
I thought the transformation sequence was good, too. We have had vocal transformation themes before (Go! Princess, for example), though I do believe this is the first time the one transforming sings. I liked it.
So Star ☆ Twinkle is off to a great start. I am very much looking forward to seeing Cure Milkyway’s debut in the next episode.
Star Twinkle starts off with Hikaru Hoshina drawing constellations in her sketchbook and summoned the adorable alien she named Fuwa (otherwise known as: Spegasus Pulalan Moffpit Princewink!!).
The little fluffy one ends up being responsible for warping Lala and
Prunce to Earth after having detected they were in danger. Apparently
they were previously traveling altogether and were somehow separated.
The enemy pursuing them are the Notraiders/Knot Raiders, who are looking to take over
the universe through with the help of Fuwa’s powers.
Well
this première was certainly a wacky one, but in a way, I actually found
it to be quite endearing. It certainly made itself clear how this is a
series that won’t be taking itself too seriously, especially when you
have a heroine like Hikaru who just accepts the craziest things or
situation as it is, and just goes with the flow without stopping to
think about the potential consequences. I guess you could say this girl
is fearless to a certain degree, or maybe we should just say she’s
incredibly naive. I haven’t quite developed an opinion on her yet, but I
do like her spontaneous, perky personality and wild interests of space,
aliens, cults, and cryptids (I seriously hope we do NOT get another book-dunce geek like Miyuki-Emily in Smile!, who knew everything about fairytales and nothing about other things taught at class, but instead Hikaru as the third book-smart pink Cure ever, after Cure Blossom-Tsubomi and Cure Heart-Mana-Maya!!!). I thought it was hilarious how she readily
accepted ‘summoning’ Fuwa as she did, and discovering it wasn’t a dream
and nonchalantly chilling with it, oh and boarding an alien starship without
knowing where they were going to go!
Lala and Prunce were also introduced,
and I liked that they retained Lala’s alien language, using Prunce as
the interpreter between them until Fuwa did something to enable the girls
to understand each other. I thought their introduction was hilarious,
with the way Lala was nauseated from the rough ride of the hot pursuit
and Puruns just grabbing Fuwa and rushing back on board with the
intention of leaving Hikaru behind. I am looking forward to learning
more about these two next week.
Although the plot of the series hasn’t quite been explained beyond
the fact the Notraiders/Knot Raiders are invading planets in attempt to take over the
universe, I am definitely curious about how the the girls defeating the
villains will be approached. What I found particularly interesting in
the fight between Cure Star and Kappard was how it didn’t involve a
“cleansing” process we have been so used to seeing, but rather her final
attack (Star Punch) was more of a direct hit to force the enemy to
retreat. If this is the direction the series is going to go, I’m
definitely excited to see what’s in store for the future, because it
will certainly help switch up the formula that has been in use for a
while now.
As
for the art-style, I don’t know about you but I am absolutely obsessed
with it. There is something so fresh about it, that I can almost taste
it. Maybe because everything is so fluffy and it reminds me of sweets
and candy. I am also a huge fan of the Hikaru’s and Lala’s character and battle costume designs, alongside what we have seen from the villains, they
are all popping off. I especially love Lala’s teal palette! However I
think it was because of how much I love the art direction of this series
that I found myself surprisingly underwhelmed by Hikaru’s Cure Star
Transformation sequence. Though I like the sparkle effects and adore her
outfit design (especially since it matches her bubbly character so well),
it still left more to be desired. To be quite frank, I found it to be
quite plain in comparison to others we have seen in the past.
Speaking of the transformation, I wasn’t
particularly a fan of the little tune that was added to it. I am sure
this wasn’t a problem for others, but I’d be lying if I said I didn’t
cringe when it started… perhaps it will grow on me in due time.
Regardless, it’s not for certain whether or not this is something we
will be seeing on a regular basis from here on out. In fact I wonder if
it was just a one time thing, because unless they mash everyone’s song
together, when it comes down to the group’s transformation, that’s when
it can get quite tricky, unless the songs have been crafted specifically
to compliment each other to enable a seamless transition between them.
Anyhow, whichever way they choose to go with this, in reality it’s an
incredibly minor problem that can be quickly resolved with getting used
to timing when to slap the mute button, should it become an annoyance to
me.
Another thing I am definitely going to
have to get accustomed to, or at least learn to bear with it if I am to
have any hope of watching this series is dealing with Fuwa’s high pitch
squeals. Goodness, the pitch is really sharp. Maybe it
wouldn’t be so bad if I weren’t using headphones, but nonetheless, it
really irritates my ears. I almost wonder if I am ever going to get used
to it, as my hearing is very sensitive to a certain pitches…
Overall I thought this was a super fun
episode and I enjoyed a lot. It’s bubbly, weird, crazy, but also
charming! I am looking forward to meeting the rest of the characters,
and learning more about what kind of story we are in store. I just hope
the characters will be properly fleshed out, and better set of villains
who will actually play their part properly. But with the ambitions to
take over the universe, I don’t think that should be too much of a
concern!
Lastly, before I wrap things up, I do
just want to quickly mention the 12 Precures featured in the Opening
Sequence. We saw some of them briefly when they deployed Fuwa as their
final hope. For those who are curious, I have included the list of who
is what below! Additionally, it’s quite fun to see The fun part how
their Precure power are based off their horoscopes!
The precure designs were all based off the 12 horoscopes.
*Note: They may not be in chronicle order because it was tricky to capture the screenshots to inspect them carefully!
*Note: They may not be in chronicle order because it was tricky to capture the screenshots to inspect them carefully!
- Green: Cancer
- Teal: Gemini – Lala
- Light Blue: Leo
- White: Virgo
- Yellow: Libra
- Orange: Scorpio
- Lilac-Lavender: Sagittarius
- Magenta: Capricorn
- Cobalt Blue: Aquarius
- Red: Aries
- Pastel Pink: Pisces
- Rose Pink: Taurus – Hikaru
Star Princesses
- Gotta Catch 'Em All: The girls have to collect the Star Color Pens to free the princesses trapped inside of them.
- Sealed Good in a Can: Each princess is sealed within a Star Color Pen.
- Western Zodiac: There are twelve of them, one for each zodiac symbol.
Who is the Prussian Blue Girl? So far, nice hat and waistcoat, and aloof manner. I cannot wait to know this character in more detail...
After the dramatic ending of Hugtto, we had some funny moments for this debut episode! I still have to get used to Hikaru's high pitched voice but her actions and positive attitude was fun to watch since she gets excited over the mysterious and probably anything out of the ordinary! That is probably why she didn't run away from Lala when she first landed and just went all curious like a cat!
Her debut battle was all right and we finally get a Space Themed Precure seroes which many people have suggested before in the past. Although we yet to know more of the Knot Raiders but we are getting a treasure hunt storyline (Gotta Catch them All plot vouchers) with the Star Princesses.
Lala was all right since we have yet to see her personality although based on her profile, she is pretty mature for her age which I guess will clash with Hikaru's wacky sense in the future. Fuwa was cute and pretty powerful in creating portals to other dimensions. She behaves like a pet, unlike Hug-tan who is a human baby. Prunce was okay...
Pen and inkwell as transformation trinkets: That's something we don't get to see every day - transformation trinkets for magical girl warriors tend to be more or less girly-cosmetic things. In Ai Tenshi Densetsu, Hinagiku-Angel Daisy, the Tomboy and Brawn of the titular ensemble, had a wristwatch, which is the closest I have seen to this kind of subversion.
NEXT EPISODE (2):
Our fearless leader from another world, now a castaway among strangers, faces her most redoubtable opponent:
FILLED RICE BALLS!
Is that a look of disgust or fear in her eyes?
Lala also wishes to become a Precure for her own reasons.
But will she able to overcome what appears to be more than a pet peeve ere she wins her Cure spurs as Cure Milkyway?
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