IN WHICH THE ARIES PEN IS DARKENED ON SCREEN

Star*Twinkle Pretty Cure - Episode 10
My Own Review
IN WHICH THE ARIES PEN IS DARKENED ON SCREEN


In the tenth episode of Star ☆ Twinkle, the others return to space as the search for the Princess Star Colour Pens continue.

This is my review of Star Twinkle Ep 10 and the girls are about to learn the taste of defeat in this episode!

Wow! I was expecting some development for the upcoming power up episode and we got the three recurring generals literally beaten the girls to make them retreat out of the alien planet. 

Hoshina wants to know old man Ryo’s favourite constellation

Things kick off at the observatory, where Hikaru is supposed to be helping Ryo organise the bookshelves. She’s getting a little too lost in nostalgia, though, which leads her to ask Ryo what his favourite constellation is. His answer: Crux, which is also known as the Southern Cross (and, to pagan village societies, the Emu --Australia-- or the Rhea --Cono Sur--).
Hikaru, being the space otaku that she is, decides that she wants to go and see the Southern Cross. Fortunately, she has an alien friend with a starship of her own.

With everyone gathered, Hikaru decides it is time to go back to space

Hikaru is able to get the other girls together, and eventually persuades them that they should go look for the Southern Cross – whilst seeking the Princess Star Colour Pens, of course. Madoka mentions that her father saw them taking off before, but ultimately Hikaru persuades everyone.

What happened really? Well, for starters, after Hikaru want to see the Southern Cross constellation after hearing it was Ryotaro's favourite constellation. She dragged everyone into the spaceship despite Madoka's advice that her father is still searching for them after their previous blast-off.

Kumu: a tardigradian from the planet Tardigradia

The girls aren’t in space long before Hikaru’s Star Colour Pendant has a reaction to the Aries Pen. Fuwa sends them to the Starscape, where they arrive at a planet called Tardigradia. Hikaru is pretty shocked when she discovers the locals look nothing like she imagined.

But Hikaru insisted on going and also learn the location of the Aries Star Princess Pen which is on Planet Tardigradia. They met with a local, Kumu, who offered to take them around. But the girls have problems moving around due to the planet's heavy gravity pull. 

Along the way, the Knot Raiders' three generals arrived but this time, they were given a power boost which was granted by their Mysterious Master. It kinda of make sense since the generals were defeated 10 times already due to the Star Princesses' power. 

Planet Tardigradia has double the Earth’s gravity

Tardigradia looks quite pretty, but the gravity there is double what it is on Earth; the others quickly wear themselves out just trying to follow Kumu to the place where the Princess Star Colour Pen is supposed to be. The weather on Tardigradia is extreme, as well; one moment there is a blizzard, the next the temperature rises dramatically.

PreCures’ foes have been powered up by their lord

There is also some trouble that is not native to this world; the knotraiders show up, and they have received an increase in power from their lord. Thus, the others transform; fortunately for them, they aren’t affected by the gravity when in their PreCure forms.

This scene has spawned some very nice fanart

Unfortunately for PreCures, the KNotraiders increase in power proves to be too overwhelming for them to handle. Whilst Kappard and Tenjou keep PreCures occupied, Ayewan is free to search for the Star Colour Pen with the
Dragon Radar Hitradar.

Ayewan turns the Star Colour Pen into a Dark Pen

PreCures are powerless to stop Ayewan from claiming the Aries Star Colour Pen and turning it into a Dark Pen. Even worse, Cure Star ends up having her Taurus Princess Star Colour Pen taken from her by Kappard.

The girls tried to fight them off but their opponents were faster and stronger. As a result, Aiwan found the Aries Star Princess Pen and corrupted it. Cure Star tried to use the Taurus pen but Kappard snatched it before she could use it. (At least somebody got the initiative and interuppted an attack before it can be deployed)

BEND THE KNEE!!

YOU TOO, ROSEHEAD!

Why must it be this way? Lala questions their defeat...

PreCures were defeated

The KNotraiders’ power is something that PreCures can’t overcome, and thus they end up defeated. Before they can take the Star Colour Pens, Fuwa makes a stand – very much channeling Hugtan – and Lala calls her starship over.

Purunce hulks out to save the others

Fuwa distracted the generals long enough for Lala to call out her spaceship and everyone escaped in time. The three generals now set their eyes on Earth to claim the remaining three Star Pens in the Cures' possession. Hikaru then realised it was her fault that she got too confident and losing the Taurus Pen.

But things are about to get worse as the spaceship crash landed back on Earth where Madoka's father is nearby and he is rushing to the scene...

This fight ends with PreCures retreating, returning to Earth – where they land in front of Madoka’s father…
That brings this episode to an end.

Well, here’s something that isn’t a common sight in magical girl warrior series (and something far more frequent in dark-and-edgy adult spec-fic like Game of Thrones); the antagonists won. Fuwa’s distraction and Lala calling her starship prevented the enemy from claiming all of their Star Colour Pens, but Cure Star did lose hers.

Parts of this episode gave me some very strong Dragon Ball Z vibes – the double gravity, the Hitradar, that kind of stuff. PreCure does tend to be a little like that, but with Star ☆ Twinkle it is more prominent than ever.

This was a great episode. It’s nice to see the cadre antagonists prove to be actual threats, and even claim a victory. Often in PreCure their role is nothing more than to get defeated on a regular basis, but it seems the KNotraiders broke out of that mold. At least for this episode; that power up they got was a temporary one.

I felt this is a wake up call for Hikaru as she has to learn that being a Precure has responsibities. (Sound similar to the recently Shazam movie where Billy Batson has to learn the hard way of being a hero) Sure, she got all high handed and insisted that everyone to follow her in her quest and it got them all defeated. Precures are strong but they are not invincible. Like how Hana from last season has to overcome her lack of confidence and it got Hug-tan in a coma, Hikaru need to understand there is a time for fun and a time for action. (plus responsibility)

Furthermore, the Knot Raiders are not going to let this lying down. The three generals were given a power boost and they totally overwhelmed the girls in battle. I am kinda of intrigued that Kappard made a comment that Earth is a paradise compared what he has been through which might give him a hint of why he is so bitter and serving the Knot Raiders with no doubt.

Next time, Hikaru’s got her work cut out for her in retrieving the Star Colour Pens that the enemy claimed.

YOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!! CAN WE JUST GIVE A MAD PROPS TO THE WRITERS FOR THIS EPISODE?!?!?! HOLY SHIT! WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME WE SAW THE VILLAINS ACTUALLY OVERWHELM THE PRECURES TO INTO SUBMISSION AND FORCE THEM TO RETREAT THIS EARLY ON?!?!?! My favourite part was when Kappard actually snatched the pen out of Hikaru’s hands, making them lose one of their own. I am so glad they actually allowed the enemy to pull the same stunt as the girls had!

And goodness, I am absolutely ecstatic about this development! The Master is frustrated with the generals being continuously, overwhelmed by the Precures, so what does he do? He grants them temporary powers! Of course it would have been even better if it were to last forever since at least the girls are bound to receive their own power up next week, but perhaps it will become more of a pattern given to them before they embark on their missions.

The best part about this is how beautifully it ties together with Hikaru’s character development. Since the start of the series, Hikaru’s head has been in the clouds, failing to acknowledge the gravity of the situation with the knotraiders, along Madoka’s father and his team investigating the area after they had. The events that transpired today was a reality check, and grim reminder of how important it is for Hikaru to act responsibly as a Precure. There is a time and place for fun, and today was simply not the time for it, and in today’s fight, she paid the price for it with the Princess Taurus Pen being stolen from her.

Of course while Hikaru will certainly blame herself for foolishly abusing the access to visit other planets to do what she wanted to do (to see the Crux, the Southern Cross Constellation, which is impossible to see once you’re in space), she isn’t the reason for their loss. Even if they had not gone to space today, the consequences of their loss would likely still be the same the next time they met. However another way to look at it, is perhaps this loss and sacrifice was actually for the better. Yes they lost two pens today, but being on a foreign planet whose gravity is doubled of Earth’s, as soon as they lose their precure form, naturally they are going to be at a huge disadvantage. Had this particular fight taken place on Earth, they also may not have been as fortunate to use the rocket as a means to escape, allowed Purunce to comfortably his abilities to gather the team for a safe retreat, and they could have very well lost all of their pens.

Needless to say, while the girls may have gotten themselves out of the frying pan, they are now find themselves in the fire with Madoka’s father Fuyuki and his team being in the area where the starship crashes. There’s a good chance this means the girls won’t be able to seamlessly travel to space with it anymore, which was never really a good option to begin with since it draws too much attention to themselves. Remember, it’s against the rules for Lala and Prunce to be seen/found by Earthlings. Based on the preview, it looks like Ryotaro will probably come to their aid when he learns Lala, Fuwa and Purunce are all aliens. If anything, the observatory might become Lala’s new place to stay for the time being.

The development in this week’s episode definitely makes me a lot more hopeful of the direction this series will go. I am pleased to see the writers are set to continue changing up the formula, empowering the enemies as much as they empower the girls. Better yet, I am really glad it looks like they are addressing Hikaru’s biggest flaw early on because of how important it is for her to act responsibly in this fight against the knotraiders.

Oh, and I almost forgot, it seems they have been dropping a bit of hints about the knotraiders’ motives, or at least gave us a chance to see a bit about what goes in Kappard’s mind. I found it interesting how he brought up how he told that humans live on the cosiest climate around, and that one doesn’t understand anything about what makes a planet beautiful. It will be interesting to see if a planet’s climate factor is something that only Kappard feels strongly about, or if all the knotraiders feel the same!

MY OWN HUMBLE OPINION:
The idea of gravity on other planets, like the Tardigradians', who have obviously evolved to withstand both e*treme gravity and climate conditions
Tardigradia:
The Aries Pen
Power-Up:
Fuwa Mode:
Aries Princess: Sadly, we have been left on a wham-ending zenpen cliffhanger. So we'll have to wait a little while for the rematch. In spite of this, we got enough cadre spotlight, and a first-hand look at Ayewan's MO, to make up for that!

Ayewan's Pen-Darkening Inkwells: For the first time in forever, we've seen how she does it on screen (hence the title)! Here she's dunking the Aries pen into her darkness-filled inkwell to infuse it well...
Also, her pen locator has a canon name: it's called the Hitradar!
A Theory on Kappard's Origin (feat. Frogs and Climate Change): I am kinda of intrigued that Kappard made a comment that Earth is a paradise compared what he has been through which might give him a hint of why he is so bitter and serving the Knot Raiders with no doubt. My theory is that there is a wetland world or Swamp Planet (something like Naboo or Dagobah) populated by frog-like beings --we have already seen sapient pomeranians and tardigrades in this series-- and the star of that star system grew as the liquid on the swamp-marsh planet evaporated, so that the dominant species evolved from frogs into humanoid kappa who could thrive better on land. And Kappard is one of them. But still the star kept on growing and their world kept on drying up, turning more and more steppe-ified... and thus all the kappa, who had developed at least some rudimentary space travel, went forth on a diaspora in search for wetter pastures. Even though here on the Earth the mercury is rising and all the amphibians are endangered, we are doing our best against climate change and things could be worse when it comes to climate (for instance: Mars, a skip away from us, is half bone-dry desert, half ice caps)!
The Crushing Defeat: This is a magical girl warrior series, not something completely dark-and-edgy like Game of Thrones! The wham ending for this week came completely out of left field...

Fuyuki has seen the starship land: Courtesy of Fuyuki Kaguya, the closest thing to both Tywin and Javert this continuity has to offer, is the final nail in the coffin called the wham ending of this episode.



IN NEXT EPISODE (11):

Truth in Sorrow, Truth in Joy

Truth in Sorrow, Truth in Joy

Summary:

Jehan Prouvaire has lent Feuilly a book, and rambling discussion of Othello, of being an outsider, and of the roles of sorrow and joy in perceiving reality ensues. Basically, a book club run rampant.

Jehan looked up as Feuilly laid the thin black volume on the table. “Did you enjoy it?” he asked, examining his friend’s sober face.

Feuilly’s forehead creased. He lowered himself into a chair across from Jehan, taking a deep breath. “It… it is a sad text,” he said.

Jehan smiled softly, sympathetically. “A very sad text,” he murmured. “A foreigner working his way into society that despises his people. A woman who loves him, and is loved in return, but never fully trusted. A man who wants to wreak destruction, and a woman who—despite the fact that her loyalty lies elsewhere—is bound to him. In the end, chaos, stemming from one person’s hatred and another’s mistrust.”

“I do not think I have understood all the levels yet,” Feuilly said, running his hands along the cover. “This Shakespeare has a great deal of depth.”

“So he has.” Jehan’s smile widened a bit. “I admire him a great deal for his insights into humanity. But you did not answer my question: did you enjoy it?”

Feuilly stared at the cover for several long moments before looking up again. “Yes,” he said slowly. “It is a sad text, but I enjoyed it. There is something—something very true—”

He trailed off. “What specifically caught your attention?” queried Jehan, his head tilted with interest. “I have seen a great many true things in Othello.”

But Feuilly found that he could not speak. All the thoughts that had been so clear in his head when he’d sat on his bed talking them out alone the night before, that had fallen neatly into sentences when he had looked over some scenes again during his lunch break, were now muddled and locked behind some solid door. “I—” he started, “well, I am interested in—I mean, the character of Othello is…”

And he looked at his hands, helplessly. Parbleu, he thought, why had he ventured to discuss literature with Jehan? History, politics—they accepted him there, even though his education was so shaky. But literature was utterly foreign to him, and Jehan was so well-versed in it. He must be looking down on Feuilly for his fumblings even now—

No, he hastened to correct himself, that was doing Jehan’s kindness an injustice. But still he must get his thoughts together, must try to sound like a person with legitimate things to say…

But Jehan was looking at him with gentle curiosity. “It’s Othello himself who catches your interest, then, above all? I can see that.”

“Yes,” said Feuilly, “because—because—” Oh hell, he wasn’t getting any more articulate. The only thing he could think of to say was that Othello made him the saddest, and that was hardly an insight.

Jehan waited.

“Because he tries so hard,” Feuilly finally managed. “And like you said, he can’t trust anyone. The one person he decides to trust ruins him.”

“He can love, but he can’t trust,” Jehan put in.

“Yes,” said Feuilly. “Because—because he is an outsider.”

And then Jehan gazed at him again with those keen eyes, and Feuilly felt uncomfortably, lovingly known, and he ducked his head.

“You know,” he said, slowly, “the issue with his marriage, for example. Even though he’s so well-renowned, he can never escape who he is and the inferiority that society has attached to that. Is he even called by name very often? He is always the Moor.”

(And Feuilly thought—and knew in the silence that Jehan was thinking—of the men from other Republican groups that had come to their meetings, and met Feuilly, and yet referred to him as the worker or the fanmaker long after they should have known his name. There had been one such contact joining them just last week, and Courfeyrac had led the charge in saying Feuilly’s name as many times as possible throughout the evening, which had flustered the man—as well as Feuilly himself—but had not convinced him to rectify his behavior.)

“He’s set off, separated from the rest of humanity by the way they refer to him,” Jehan mused. “But he is more than what they deem him to be by use of the label.”

Feuilly looked at Jehan bleakly. “…or is he?” he said. “In the end, he is violent and dangerous, deceived and suspicious. In the end he is the murderer of the very woman who consecrated her soul and fortunes to his honor and his valiant parts. He fulfills worse than their suspicions.”

“But not because that is his nature,” said Jehan. “Rather, he is manipulated by one of the characters who most maligns his identity.”

“So instead of his nature creating their attitude,” Feuilly said, slowly, “their attitude pushes him into being something that he otherwise would not be.”

(And he thought of all the people that surrounded him on a daily basis—the people who called the grasping poor, because they were not given fair pay and thus had to cling to each sou, or the lazy poor, because there were not enough jobs, or the deserving poor, because they tried to survive by conforming to the standards of a society that was designed to crush them, or the criminal poor because they rioted and drank and stole when they had had enough of getting nowhere by being “deserving.” He thought of talk he’d heard of the working class being bloodthirsty and restless, and needing a firm hand to prevent them from launching another ’89, and of the finely-dressed women who clutched their purses more tightly when he passed them in the streets. But would the working class have sought blood in ’89 if they had not been so oppressed to begin with? To assume that they were dangerous and thus keep them down and treat them with suspicion was to render them more dangerous yet.)

It was heavy, so heavy, and he ran a hand over his face as Jehan murmured, “Such, alas, is the way of the world,” and waited for him.

“It makes me—” Feuilly hesitated. “When I read it, and feel for him, it feels like grief. But it is a grief which makes me want to go on reading. It is—I don’t know how to explain it, exactly.”

But Jehan nodded at once. “It is a grief which feels somehow satisfying? Right and good, although in no way lessened in sorrow because of that?”

“Yes,” said Feuilly. “Yes, exactly. It is as if I am not merely grieving a character in a play, but an actual state of injustice which…which needed my grief.”

A melancholy smile crossed Jehan’s face. “That,” he said, “is because there is truth to be found in fiction…truths that come clearer for us because they are portrayed through another lens than that of our daily life. So through Othello, you have a new perspective on a reality somewhat similar to that which he faces, and you grieve because you have come face to face with truth all over again, and that truth is painful, but it needs to be known. And you are right, I think—it also needs to be grieved. Combeferre would say that grief is an essential stage in progress.”

“Hmm.” Feuilly ran his fingertips over the cover of the book again, tracing the lettering. “So sorrow is fitting, because it reflects reality.”

“Our sorrow acknowledges the weight of the world’s pain.” Jehan was talking to the tabletop, not from timidity or distance but from a depth of contemplation. “And its meaning as well.”

“In sorrow, truth,” summed up Feuilly, and he was about to take up Othello again and scan its pages to point out to Jehan passages which had affected him most, when a large hand fell on his shoulder.

“But,” said Bahorel, to whom that hand belonged, “in joy and laughter and cheer, truth as well!” He swung a chair over to the end of the table near Jehan and Feuilly.

“Come,” he continued, “my friends laden with melancholy and with heavy thoughts, we must see both sides of the world in order to have a fair picture of reality.”

Feuilly raised his eyebrows. “The ‘two sides’ of the world, as you put it, are hardly equal at present.” He moved his shoulder out from beneath Bahorel’s touch, turning to face him better. “Focus your attention on laughter, and you risk becoming blind to misery, just as so many have who see and do nothing because their eyes are fixed on their own pleasure.”

“Ah,” said Bahorel, “but what of laughter amid misery? Surely you would agree that those who are miserable need not always contemplate it?”

Feuilly’s brow contracted. “They should not be deceived by false pleasures,” he said tentatively, “things that would persuade them that their oppression is not so bad after all. But no, I do not begrudge pleasure of anyone who is suffering; that would be unkind.”

“I think,” said Jehan, “that the pleasures of those who are oppressed and suffering are not likely to be false, or cheap—to be designed to cloak hard truths. There is truth in joy, even for those in hard circumstances, and perhaps by finding joy they make joy true.”

Bahorel grinned. “It’s defiant,” he said. “Laughter defies circumstance, defies the world which seeks to crush. There are men, scores of men, in these days here in Paris, who look down on me because my parents are peasants, calling me farm boy, but I laugh at their idiocy and backwards ideas more heartily than they at my birth. Who wins?”

Feuilly hesitated, knowing his own indignation and sorrow at being looked down on, but Jehan smiled at him gently. “Both sorrow and joy, laughter and grief, exist, Feuilly,” he said. “Both are meant to be known and used; both are a means of finding truth. By sorrow we find the truth of current circumstance; by laughter we find the truth of our ability to surpass circumstance.”

“Balance,” Feuilly said. “Balance is key.”

“Yes,” said Jehan. “But balance by knowing both fully, not by limiting our experience of either.”

Feuilly looked down at the book on the table, and thought of his deep experience of vicarious sorrow while reading it, and of his keen awareness of how much of an outsider he sometimes was. But if balance was the key to truth—and since it was true, he realized, that different as he was he was accepted and equal here in this discussion—then perhaps now was the time for laughter.

He took a deep breath. “Let us, then, defy our circumstances,” he said.

Bahorel clapped him on the back and called for wine, and Jehan gave him a melancholy smile as he slipped Othello into his bag. 

TSQ-IV - Marte Hvam Hult

THE SNOW QUEEN 

AN ADVENTURE IN SEVEN STORIES

FOURTH STORY

A PRINCE AND PRINCESS 

“In this kingdom, where we’re sitting, there lives a princess who is immensely intelligent, but then she has also read all the newspapers in the world and forgotten them again, that’s how smart she is. The other day she was sitting on her throne, and they say that isn’t much fun. Then she started humming a little song, the one that goes: ‘Why shouldn’t I get married?’ ‘There’s something in that,’ she said, and then she wanted to get married, but she wanted a husband who could answer when you said something to him, not just one who stood around looking distinguished, because that’s so boring. Then she had all the ladies in waiting drummed up, and when they heard what she wanted, they were very pleased. ‘I like that,’ they said, ‘I thought about that the other day myself.’ Every word I’m saying is true. I have a sweetheart who has complete access to the castle, and she tells me everything.”

“The newspapers came out right away with a border of hearts and the princess’s signature. You could read that any young man who was attractive was welcome to come up to the castle and talk to the princess, and the one who talked well about what he knew, and spoke the best, would be the one the princess would marry!—Well, well... Believe you me, as sure as I’m sitting here, people came streaming to the castle. There was a rustling and bustling, but it was of no use, neither the first day nor the next. They could all speak well enough when they were out on the street, but when they entered the castle gates and saw the sentries in silver and lackeys in gold livery up the steps, and the big lighted rooms, they became disconcerted. And when they stood in front of the throne, where the princess sat, they couldn’t say a thing except repeat what she had just said, and she didn’t care to hear that again. It was as if people in there had eaten snuff and had fallen into a trance until they were out on the street where they could talk again. There was a row of them all the way from the gates to the castle. I myself went in to have a look. They were both hungry and thirsty, but they didn’t even get a glass of lukewarm water from the castle. Some of the smarter ones had taken some sandwiches along, but they didn’t share with their neighbours. They were thinking: ‘Let him look hungry, then the princess won’t pick him.”

“But ... When did he come? Was he among the many?”

“Just wait, just wait. We’ll get to him in a moment. It was on the third day, and a little person arrived without a horse or a wagon, quite confidently marching right up to the castle. His eyes shone. He had lovely long hair, but his clothes were poor!”

 “He had a little knapsack on his back,”...

“I didn’t pay such close attention. But I have it from my sweetheart that when he came through the castle gates and saw the sentries in silver and the lackeys in gold up the steps, he wasn’t the least bit dispirited. He nodded at them and said, ‘It must be boring standing on the steps; I’ll go inside.’ Inside the rooms were shining with lights, and Privy Councilors and Excellencies walked in bare feet bearing gold platters —there was reason enough to feel solemn. His boots were creaking terribly loudly, but he still didn’t become afraid!”

“Well, they certainly creaked! and he went dauntlessly in to present himself to the princess, who was sitting on a pearl as big as a spinning wheel. All the ladies-in-waiting with their maids and maids’ maids and all the cavaliers with their servants and servants’ servants, with their pages, were standing all around. And the closer they stood to the door, the prouder they were. The servants’ servants’ page, who always wears slippers, stood so proudly by the door that you almost couldn’t look at him.”

“That must be awful, but he actually got the princess?!”

“He is to have spoken as well as I do when I speak, according to my sweetheart. He was confident and lovely. He had not come to propose, just to hear the wisdom of the princess, and he approved of it, and she approved of him too.”

“... Oh— won’t you take ... to the castle?”

“That’s easier said than done,” said ... “How would we do that? I’ll talk to my sweetheart about it. She’ll give us advice, but I must tell ... that ... will never be allowed in there.”

“Oh yes, ...,” said .... “... here, he’ll come right out ....”

“Wait for me by those steps over the fence,” said ..., who cocked his head and  ... away.

Not until it was dark did ... come back: “...,” he said. “I bring many greetings from her, and here’s a little bread for you. She took it from the kitchen. There’s plenty there, and ...—it’s not possible for ... to enter the castle .... The sentries in silver and lackeys in gold would never allow it, but .... You’ll get up there anyway. My sweetheart knows a little back stairway that leads to the bedroom, and she knows where to take the key.”

And they went into the garden, into a big avenue, where one leaf after another fell, and when the lights in the castle started going out, one after another, the ... led ... to a back door that was standing ajar.

Then they were on the steps. There was a little lamp burning on a cupboard. In the middle of the floor stood ....

“My fiancé has spoken very well of ...— if you’ll take the lamp, I’ll lead the way. We’ll go straight there. Then we won’t meet anyone.”

“I think there’s someone coming behind us,” ..., and something roared past .... There were shadows on the walls, horses with flying manes and slender legs, hunters, and men and women riding.
“That’s only the dreams,” said .... “They come and take their Highnesses’ thoughts along hunting. That’s good because then you can see them better in bed. But be sure, if you get honour and favour, to show a thankful heart!”

Then they entered the first room. There were pink satin walls with artificial flowers. Here the dreams were flying past them, but they went so fast that one didn’t see their Highnesses. One room was more magnificent than the next. You really could be stupefied! And then they were in the bedroom. The ceiling in there looked like a big palm with fronds of glass, expensive glass, and in the middle of the floor hung two beds on a thick stalk, and they looked like lilies. One was white, and in it lay the princess. The second was red, and that’s where.... ... bent one of the red leaves to the side and saw a brown neck.—... —...—the dreams roared by on horses back to the hall again—he awoke, turned his head and—it was....

The prince ..., but he was young and handsome. And the princess peered out from the white lily bed and asked what was happening. Then ....

“You poor little thing,” said the prince and princess, and they praised ... and said they weren’t angry with them at all, but they shouldn’t do it again. However, they would get a reward.

“Do you want to ... free?” asked the princess, “or do you want permanent positions as Court ... with all the scraps in the kitchen?”

And both ... bowed and asked to have permanent ....

The prince got up from his bed and let ... sleep there, and he couldn’t do more than that. ... thought, “How good people ... are,” and then ... closed ... eyes and slept so peacefully.

The next day ... was dressed from top to toe in silk and velvet. ... was invited to stay at the castle and have a good future, but ... only asked for a little carriage with a horse and a pair of little boots. Then she would drive out in the wide world again to find ....

And ... was given both boots and a muff. ... was dressed beautifully, and when ... was ready to leave, there was a new coach of pure gold waiting by the door. The prince and princess’ coat of arms shone from it like a star. The coachman, servants, and outriders—for there were outriders too—were wearing gold crowns. The prince and princess helped ... into the coach and wished ... luck. ... Inside, the coach was lined with sugar pastries, and under the seats were fruits and peppernut cookies.

“Farewell, farewell,” shouted the prince and princess,...—that’s how the first miles went. ... as long as he could see the coach, which shone like clear sunshine.

FIFTH STORY

THE LITTLE ROBBER GIRL 

They drove through the dark forest, but the coach shone like a flame, and it blinded the robbers so they couldn’t stand it.

“It’s gold! It’s gold!” they yelled, rushed forward, seized the horses, killed the little outriders, the driver, and servants, ...

SEVENTH STORY

... WHAT HAPPENED LATER

There were green buds on the trees, and riding out of the trees came a magnificent horse that ... recognized, for it had pulled the gold coach, and on this horse was a young girl with a shining red cap on her head and pistols in front. It was the little robber girl, who was bored with being at home and wanted to travel first north and then to other quarters if she wasn’t satisfied.

...

But ... and asked about the prince and princess. 

“They’re travelling abroad,” said the robber girl. 

ugly duckling poem

---but what did he see reflected
in the clear waters of the lake?
he saw himself beneath him,
but he was no longer
an awkward, nasty lead-gray duckling...
he was a swan at heart!
(original poem based on maria tatar's translation)

The Snow Queen – Fourth Story: POOK PRESS (translator?)

The Snow Queen

A Hans Christian Andersen Tale

Pook Press Edition (of Harrap & Co Harry Clarke-illustrated from 1931-2) - Translated by ?????

---

– Fourth Story –

The Prince and the Princess

In the country in which we now are there lives a princess who is quite wonderfully clever—but then she has read all the newspapers in the world, and has forgotten them again, she is so clever. Lately she was sitting on the throne—and that’s not so very amusing, they say—and she began to hum a song, and it was just this,
Why shouldn’t I be married?

 The Snow Queen by Edmund Dulac

Wait—there’s something in that!’ said she. And at once she felt she wanted to get married, but she wished for a husband who could answer when he was spoken to, not one who only stood and looked handsome, for that was wearisome. So she called all her maids of honour together, and when they heard what she wanted they were delighted. ‘I like that, now,’ said they; ‘I thought the very same thing myself the other day.’ You may be sure that every word I am telling you is true, I have a sweetheart who goes about freely in the castle, and she told me everything.

Newspapers were published directly, with a border of hearts and the Princess’s initials. One could read in them that every young man who was good-looking might come to the castle and speak to the Princess, and the one who spoke in a way that showed he was quite at home there, and who spoke best, him would the Princess choose for her husband. Yes, believe me. It’s as true as I sit here. People came streaming in; there was a great crowding and running to and fro, but no one succeeded either on the first or second day.

The Snow Queen by Helen Stratton

They could all speak well enough when they were out in the streets, but when they entered the palace gates, and saw the guards in silver, and at the top of the staircase the lackeys in gold, and the great lighted halls, they became confused. And when they stood in front of the throne where the Princess sat they could do nothing but repeat the last thing she said, and, of course, she did not care to hear her own words again. It was just as if the people in there had taken some sleeping powder and had fallen asleep till they got into the street again, for not till then were they able to speak. There stood a whole row of them, from the town gate to the palace. They were hungry and thirsty, but in the palace they did not receive so much as a glass of lukewarm water. A few of the wisest had brought bread and butter with them, but they would not share with their neighbours, for they thought, ‘Let him look hungry, and the Princess won’t have him!’

When did he come? Was he among the crowd?

We’re just coming to him. It was on the third day that there came along a little person, without horse or carriage, walking quite merrily up to the castle. His eyes sparkled, he had fine long hair, but his clothes were shabby.

The Snow Queen by W. Heath Robinson

He had a little knapsack on his back. 

When he came in at the palace gate and saw the Life Guards in silver, and at the top of the staircase the lackeys in gold, he was not in the least abashed. He nodded, and said to them, ‘It must be tiresome standing on the stairs—I’d rather go in.’ The halls were ablaze with lights; privy councillors and excellencies walked about with bare feet, and carried golden vessels. It was enough to make anyone solemn! And his boots creaked dreadfully, but he was not at all frightened.

Yes, certainly they creaked. And he went boldly in to the Princess herself, who sat on a pearl as big as a spinning-wheel ; and all the maids of honour, with their maids and maids’ maids, and all the cavaliers, with their gentlemen followers and their gentlemen’s gentlemen, who themselves had a page apiece, were standing round; and the nearer they stood to the door, the prouder they looked. The gentlemen’s gentlemen’s pages, who always go in slippers, could hardly be looked at, so proudly did they stand in the doorway!

That must be terrible! And yet he won the Princess?

They say he spoke well. He was merry and agreeable; he had not come to woo the Princess, but only to hear her wisdom; and he thought well of her, and she thought well of him again.

Oh, won't ... take ... to the palace too?

“Yes, that’s easily said,” replied ...  “But how are we to manage it? ... but this I must tell you—such a ... will never get leave to go right inside!” 

... "... he’ll come out at once and fetch ..."

The Snow Queen by Harry Clarke

“Wait for me over there at the stile,” said ...; ...

t was already late in the evening when ... came back.

“... And here's a little loaf for ... . She took it from the kitchen. There’s bread enough there, ... can’t possibly get into the palace, for ... and the guards in silver and the lackeys in gold would not allow it. But ...; ... shall get in somehow. My sweetheart knows a little back staircase that leads up to the bedroom, and she knows where she can get the key.”

And they went into the garden, into the great avenue, where the leaves were falling one after the other; and when the lights in the palace were put out one after the other, ... led ... to a back door, which stood ajar.

Now they were on the stairs. A little lamp was burning upon a cupboard, ...

The Snow Queen by Arthur Rackham

“I feel as if someone were coming after us,” ... fancied something rushed by ... . It seemed like a shadow on the wall; horses with flowing manes and thin legs, hunters, and gentlemen and ladies on horseback.

“They are only dreams,” ... “They are coming to carry the nobles’ thoughts out hunting. That’s all the better, for ... may look the more closely at them in bed. But I hope, when ... are taken into favour and are honoured, that ... will show a grateful heart.”

The Snow Queen by Anne Anderson

They came now into the first room; the walls were hung with rose-coloured satin embroidered with flowers; and here again the dreams came flitting by them, but they swept by so quickly that ... could not see the high-born lords and ladies. Each room was more splendid than the last; one was almost bewildered! And then they came to the bedchamber. Here the ceiling was like a great palm-tree with leaves of glass, of costly glass, and in the middle of the floor were two beds, each hung like a lily on a stalk of gold. One of them was white, and in that lay the Princess; the other was red, and in that it was that ... . bent one of the red leaves aside, and ... saw a brown neck. The dreams rushed on horseback through the room again—he awoke, turned his head, and— ...

The Prince was ... only in the neck; but he was young and handsome, and the Princess peeped out, blinking, from the white lily bed, and asked what was the matter.

 The Snow Queen by Rie Cramer

And they praised ..., and said that they were not angry with them at all, but they were not to do it again. However, they should be rewarded.
“Will you fly away free?” asked the Princess. ...
...

And the Prince got up out of bed, and let ... sleep in it, and he could not do more than that. ... and thought, “How good men ... are!” and then ...

Next day ... was clothed from top to toe in silk and velvet. ... was invited to stay in the castle and enjoy ...self, but ... only begged them to give ... a little carriage, and a horse, and a pair of little boots; and then again ... would drive out into the wide world ...

 The Snow Queen by Edna F. Hart

And they gave ... both boots and a muff, and ... was prettily dressed; and when ... was ready to start a new coach of pure gold was there for ... before the door. Shining like a star on it was the coat of arms of the Prince and Princess. Coachman, footmen, and the postilions—for there were postilions too—all had golden crowns on their heads. The Prince and the Princess themselves helped ... into the carriage, and wished ... good luck. ... The coach was stocked with sugar-cakes, and under the seat there were ginger-nuts and fruit.

“Farewell! Farewell!” cried the Prince and Princess; ... as long as ... could see the coach, which glittered like the bright sunshine.

The Snow Queen by W. Heath Robinson

– Fifth Story –

The Little Robber Girl

They drove on through a dark forest, but the coach gleamed like a torch, that dazzled the robbers’ eyes, and that they could not bear.
“It is gold! It is gold!” cried they, and rushed forward and seized the horses, killed the little postilions, the coachman, and the footmen, and then ....

The Snow Queen by Edmund Dulac

– Seventh Story –

Of the Snow Queen’s Castle and What

Happened There at last

... and saw the forest all decked with green buds, and out of it, on a splendid horse, which ...  knew, for it had drawn ... golden coach, a young girl came riding, with a bright red cap on her head and pistols in her belt. It was the little robber girl, who had grown tired of staying at home, and wished first to go north and, if she didn’t like that, then somewhere else.
...
But ..., and asked after the Prince and Princess.
“They’ve gone to foreign countries,” said the robber girl.