SSSUSSPICIONSS ABOUT DARKNESSST CONFIRMED

Star*Twinkle Pretty Cure - Episode 46
Series Finale First Part
My Own Review

SSSUSSPICIONSS ABOUT DARKNESSST CONFIRMED

Here we are at the start of the final act of Star☆ Twinkle. Episode forty-six is the beginning of the end, and it has quite a bombshell to drop. Tsar Bomba-sized, actually. It is a rare case of Toei actually not spoiling a surprise (I think), though I had it spoiled for me on Twitter anyway…
Well, whatever, let’s just dive in.

The conversation at the Star Palace is interrupted by some unwelcome visitors

In this episode,  the others meet with the Star Princesses at the Star Palace, who are prepared to start a ritual that will bring peace to the universe. However, the arrival of the cadre KNotraiders puts a stop to that, and they are accompanied by Darknest.

The armour twists their imaginations

One of the first things I want to highlight in this episode is the soundtrack. The electric guitars come out as the KNotraiders lead an assault on the Star Palace, and I am all about that kind of thing. HARD ROCK HALLELUJAH!! (headbanging)
PreCures’ enemies aren’t exactly fighting of their own will, as Darknest is twisting their imagination so they are beyond control. It results in Cure Star, Cure Milkyway, and allies having a rough time holding their own.

The Cures react to Darknest’s reveal

There’s some use of repeated animation as the 'raiders attempt to destroy the barrier protecting the Star Palace, which perhaps could have been used for something a little more visually interesting. The use of a siege/storming in the climax with the sheroes as the defenders of the beleaguered place was also amped up (the Bastille was stormed to Ça ira and La Marseillaise, and ever since every good storming needs a soundtrack to encourage the attacking side!!)
On the subject of interesting, Darknest sheds the armour in this episode. And what liessss beneath the cobra cowl issss both ssssomething exxpected and a ssssurprissse...

Darknest’s true appearance

Darknest reveals herself to be the thirteenth Star Princess: the Ophiuchus Princess. Back towards the beginning of this season, I did wonder if Ophiuchus would be incorporated in some way. I guess the whole snake motif should have really given that one away…

Tsundere Ayewan

The Ophiuchus Princess reveals her ultimate goal, which leads to the KNotraiders attempting to turn against her. She possesses incredible power, though, so that doesn’t happen – not without some interference from PreCures, at least.

The Ophiuchus Princess takes advantage of the exhausted PreCures

PreCures may be able to live up to their proclamation of protecting the KNotraiders, but that just gives the Ophiuchus Princess the opportunity she needs to move closer to her goal. Unfortunately, our old friends and their new allies are left with little choice but to take a tactical retreat.

Though the thirteenth Ssssstar Princessssss hasssss already taken Fuwa for ssssinissster purpossssesss...

This episode was really good. I approve of Darknest’s reveal. I presume the PreCure ensemble will manage to redeem her next time, but I hope they do so through the medium of a good old brawl.
Soundtrack was superb in this episode, as I’ve already stated, and it was a joy to see Ayewan lend her aid to Cure Cosmos. I mean, the cyclopette and the catgirl have been playing catch-me-if-you-can throughout their character arcs and this point with snap-out-of-it-ness and the brainwashed-and-crazy factor from one of them ... kind of made me think of when Valjean freed Javert from the revolutionaries - cue existential crisis on a bridge meters above the Seine - cue plunge. Only that Ayewan fortunately didn't even stride towards the deep end of the pool.

I’m expecting good things from the next episode, as we get to the final battle.

MY OWN HUMBLE OPINION...
So... our sssserpentine sssussspicionsss about Darknessssst and the thirtheenth sssssign of the wessssstern zzzzzodiac were confirmed... even though we didn't expect Darknest's real self to be female under that cobra cowl. An imposing physique and a deep contralto were all it took for us to draw a foregone conclusion... and this was a pleasant surprise indeeeeeeed!!
That also makes the youkai she is inspired by, or rather that she inspired among humans, in the KnotRaider youkai lineup the orochi --kappa, tengu, ao oni, cyclops, and neko are all usual suspects,but the orochi is a hydra-like Lovecraftian abomination (check out my mukashibanashi on orochi for more info and agree that it's scary) that fortunately has eight weak heads for strong drink. So what are the Cures going to do to defeat Darknest... get her wasted?

As I’ve already stated, it was a joy to see Ayewan lend her aid to Cure Cosmos. I mean, the cyclopette and the catgirl have been playing catch-me-if-you-can throughout their character arcs and this point with snap-out-of-it-ness and the brainwashed-and-crazy factor from one of them ... kind of made me think of when Valjean freed Javert from the revolutionaries - cue existential crisis on a bridge meters above the Seine - cue plunge. Only that Ayewan fortunately didn't even stride towards the deep end of the pool.

We also got some background about Purunce being not the only one of his species... and all the others being sent by the Star Princesses to a safe haven, while only he stayed behind to stand guard...

DARKNEST'S REAL AGENDA/BACKSTORY: Having worked with the other Princesses to create this universe (which makes all 13 of them physical goddesses!), she viewed their creation as a failed project because it was filled with too much imagination - which is obviously inevitable if life is allowed to develop. Thus, she resolved to just destroy it all! She had even begun the process in recruiting the cadres and, in some of their cases like Garuogre and Kappard -and maybe Ayewan- taking up GENOCIDE in order to traumatise and subsequently recruit the sole survivors of those worlds! Let's face the facts: the Ophiuchus Princess has a body count of trillions, or even more. And those victims aren't coming back, all because this snaky lady didn't like how her art project turned out. Tempting to draw parallels with the totalitarian dictators of the last century, right?

Now I listen to Parcast podcasts about fictional villains and real-life con tricksters. Alistair Murden's velvet voice and RP British accent are perfect for bedtime storytime tucked under the covers. He seems to have a background in psychology, and gives some great analyses of psychopaths like the Joker or Alex de Large or Norman Bates or the cast of No Country for Old Men. I can't wait for Alistair to dissect Iago, because his motives and intentions always slip like fish between our fingers and he (Iago, NOT Alistair) says at the end of the play that he'll nevermore breathe word about his agenda. But now back to Darknest's motive-hunting. Now Alistair Murden says that males are more likely to be psychopaths and/or violent by nature, and females to be ditto by nurture - he does very few episodes about women; but still, being a physical goddess who manifested herself ex nihilo from the primordial chaos of the Star*Twinkle universe, Darknest has little to no nurture, parental figures, education... and, with all the power that divinity entails added to her inherent perfectionism and obsession with control, a cosmic-horror entity intent on wiping out life because of its sheer entropy and freedom has carte blanche to do whatever she pleases.
Only a ragtag band of sheroes stand between her intentions and their coming to fruition.