Forum - View topicEP. REVIEW: Delicious Party Precure
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wolf10
 Posts: 931 |
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I think this single episode used more of Toei's animation budget than the entire first cours of Digimon Ghost Game. Which is to say, wow, that was eye-popping. This is such a strong premiere I don't even know where to start except to agree with everything in the review. Oishiina Town is, as it's name suggests, delicious.
There's really just one sour note messing with the flavor profile right now: spoiler[I really, really could have lived without making this season's fairy kingdom advisor an onee. (Relevant reading for context.) I respect any and all attempts to spin it as some kind of positive (neutral?) representation, but it's still an old, disrespectful stereotype that conflates "gay" and "transgender" and enforces rigid expectations of masculinity. Way to squander all the goodwill earned by Hugtto. (As much as I adore Anesagi from IDOLiSH7, Mari-chan has yet to wow me in the same way. There's still plenty of time.)] Mini-rant over. Sorry I'm always such a downer.
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StarFan13
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1st off I may have made a mistake watching this before lunch. 2nd had a marathon of last season just why they cut the Cure Precious Cameo in the Finale i like it when the new cure debut on there for a sneak peek before the premiere comes in. 3rd like Star Twinkle the ED did not say Precure but it says the Season's name instead. and 4th like Yes 5 they have the wristwatches as a transformation item and where they catch the fairies after finishes the battle like the season and lastly not like Kira Kira A La Mode when it comes to use different food for themes like in there instead of sweets like shortcake, pudding, ice cream etc its the main ones like rice bread and noodles. |
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Saeryen
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I LOVED Episode 1 and hooray for weekly reviews! Honestly Rebecca said so much already that I agree with so I don't have much to add. I love Yui and Rosemary already.
The only thing I kinda disagree with is the assertion that Cure Waffle wasn't a real Pretty Cure, because I will always say he is and you can't change my mind. Even if they don't call Takumi a Pretty Cure he's one too. Last edited by Saeryen on Mon Feb 07, 2022 9:16 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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darkchibi07
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It's a solid first episode though it did felt a bit grounded compared to Tropical Rouge's maniac first episode which I started to miss. First impressions for Yui is really solid, and I had to do a spit take on the fact she carried Rosemary back home over her shoulder!
I always figured the "mysterious white stranger" will be more of a Tuxedo Mask kind of support character. Though if he is considered a "Precure" with his own transformation sequence and stock attack animation, that would be quite bold. And yeah, the whole Seiji thing in Happiness Charge was really badly handled (among a lot of other things of that season) so improvement on that front would be appreciated. |
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wolf10
Posts: 931 |
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Took so long in writing this up I accidentally quote-captured you.
I try to let my views speak for themselves without my orientation coming into play, but since you asked: I am a gay man, and I do appreciate a strong makeup game. I also collect toys, and have a Cure Moonlight figure I would set up in my cubicle but I just know someone's kid is going to run off with it when I'm not in the office. Anyway, all I was trying to point out is that spoiler[Mari is constructed to fit into a very specific archetype that basically any Japanese viewer (especially parents watching along) will recognize as having very specific implications, maybe even laugh at, even if a few traits are absent on account of this being a kids' show. The feminine name, the makeup, the exposed masculine neckline, the exaggerated speech pattern (which might be lost on non-speakers, but it can get pretty grating). It's really not the same as earnest, authentic gay, trans or enby representation. I say again, there are onee characters I like in spite of the stereotype, and as a consequence I'm still cautiously optimistic for Rosemary (much ass is kicked in this episode), but I think it's important to acknowledge that there's baggage there that didn't need to be.] But honestly, it's Pretty Cure. This is the exact opposite kind of conversation I wanted to be having. I want to talk food and positivity and healing. Marvel at the sakuga. Maybe pick up a few recipes. |
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Saeryen
Posts: 1010 |
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I would rather talk positivity too. Sorry if I said anything offensive before, I hope you feel okay. And yes, let's enjoy this show! |
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wolf10
Posts: 931 |
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DuskyPredator
 Posts: 15580 Location: Brisbane, Australia |
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Sure, Mari fits into the archetype, but an archetype or trope is not necessarily bad in itself. Usually the worst parts are the implications, which would be the characters of similar archetypes that are more predatory, and used with greater cynicism. See Case File n221 Kabukicho, which was pretty shocking for a few characters. But then you have Kanamori/Venus from Heaven's Design Team, who is a pretty clear trans woman, and yet the show was never cynical of her identity as a woman who is often preoccupied with beauty. For at least at this point, Rosemary is pretty androgynous, or even feminine, regardless of their build itself being more masculine. I know that you said that something like this is not as good as a 'real' enby character, but I would say that at least some part of positive breaking the gender binary is preferable to none, and even some preference over a character that just has a big question mark put on them as a joke. |
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wolf10
Posts: 931 |
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The stereotype in question was created to de-legitimize gay men as men by turning them into "women." Many gay men take pride in still being men, even as they put on makeup and engage in other activities considered "un-masculine," even doing drag. But the onee stereotype was created to take all of that and exaggerate it into an obsession with beauty, even a desire towards womanhood, all so insecure straight men don't feel threatened. It's a kind of audiovisial harassment aimed at gay men, where the real harm is done simply by checking enough of the boxes to reinforce existing associations. I don't feel like repeating myself anymore, or restating anything else from the blog post I Googled, (because this is honestly kind of exhausting) but I would suggest doing more research of your own if you want to know more and have an informed opinion. As of this week, Rosemary is still toeing a line he didn't need to just by being here, but is doing fine on his own merits as a character. (Hopefully my reasons for the pronoun are clear.) I could really do with less of the "look at how accepting we are of the funny queer," but at least it's not the focal point of the episode... Oh, wait, it kind of is, but hopefully Toei have gotten it out of their system. (It's never addressed directly, but Miyano from Sasaki and Miyano having a strong negative association linking "liking men" to "not being a man" is almost certainly because of the onee stereotype. tl;dr: backhanded "positive" representation can still be harmful.) |
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StarFan13
Posts: 357 |
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Princess_Irene
ANN Associate Editor
 Posts: 2659 Location: The castle beyond the Goblin City |
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Stereotype, as opposed to archetype or trope. There's enough nuance between the three that it can make a difference which is used. |
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Saeryen
Posts: 1010 |
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Once again Rebecca basically said everything I think about this episode. Still loving this and I've thought since it was announced it would probably be my anime of the season, and I'm even more confident that it will be!
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livin_large
Posts: 107 |
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Is Mary really any different from other similar flamboyantly effeminate guys the franchisee has done before like Shut from Go Princess or Francois from Mahou Tsukai, or Henri from Hugtto? I guess he's a bit more goofy, but I find him entertaining. I liked the face he made when Yui showed up and learned it was the watch that tracked him down and him holding his own in battle was a nice touch.
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Rogural
Posts: 47 |
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I really liked the concern Mari had shown for Yui, and hesitancy in getting her involved in the fight, not something that tends to happen with the fairies being sent out to find Precure and seek their assistance. Also hoping that Mari can regain his powers, since having someone else inside the fight with the girls would be pretty refreshing. Either way, really enjoying this season so far. Excited to see the rest of the girls introduced properly over the next coming weeks. Monster designs are also pretty fantastic.
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wolf10
Posts: 931 |
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Haven't seen any of those, but by the almighty power of Youtube, and keeping in mind this is all the opinion of just one person... Only Francois even comes close, but the outfit and name are two conscious attempts to distance from the stereotype. I would put down "gay fashion designer" as a much lesser evil. Shut is... just kind of hot actually.  Subculture-appropriate male garb (with boots I kind of want now), and the combination of feminine speech pattern with a decidedly masculine vocal performance creates a nice tinge of androgyny while maintaining an appropriate threat-level for a recurring enemy. Queer villainy is a completely different conversation that I refuse to have here.
Henri (aka spoiler[Cure Infini]) is exactly as fantastic and progressive (and non-stereotype) as I had hoped, so that's still a franchise win in my books. No notes. So what the hell is DPP playing at? I'm guessing/hoping Mari is some kind of benevolent-but-misguided attempt to redeem the stereotype. The hyper-competent onee is a newer iteration that shaves off the in-universe comedic incompetence while still having them perform for the audience's approval (i.e. Anesagi from IDOLiSH7). It should be safe to like him on his own merits, but I'll still be on edge over past burns by characters like Sylvando from Dragon Quest XI ("Sylvia" in the original Japanese), who had one decent subplot about his overbearing father, but also another (in XI S) where spoiler[he went around turning men gay, and by the end they were all talking like him and shrieking "onee-sama" all the time]. Yikes. This was in 2019. |
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