Kara Dennison
December 6, 2023 
Precure, Toei’s lovely and explosive magical girl franchise, is in the midst of its 20th anniversary celebrations. That means stage shows, movies, exhibitions, and celebratory anime. At the moment, Power of Hope ~Precure Full Bloom~ is revisiting the series’s second and third teams as grownups. As a new threat looms, they must balance their previous youthful power with adult anxieties. It’s a clever, and beautiful, way of reaching out to new fans.
And with 2016’s Witchy Precure due for a sequel of its own, we’re pondering what other installments have potential for a follow-up. There are lots of magical girl eventualities to explore… like these!
Heartcatch Made Magical Girls Generational
For many, Heartcatch Precure was their gateway to this magical girl megalith. Its slightly darker tone, combined with the iconic character designs of Yoshihiko Umakoshi, made it a stand-out in the franchise. It also revealed that there have been at least there Cures prior to the current team in this universe. And one of them was our lead Cure’s grandmother!
With Cure Flower, her predecessor Cure Rose, and the Joan of Arc-esque Cure Angé hidden by the mists of time, there’s lots to explore here. Rather than a sequel, Heartcatch might benefit from a prequel. It could even be the basis for an exploration of Cure prehistory, peeking into series like Go! Princess Precure and Tropical-Rouge along the way.
Happiness Charge Took Cures Global
If Heartcatch makes us think of Cure history, 2014’s Happiness Charge! Precure encourages us to look at the world around us. This 10th anniversary series posited that every nation has at least one Cure of its own. And we meet lots of them along the way!
While a follow-up to this series could absolutely delve back into the lives of Cures Lovely, Princess, Honey, and Fortune, we’re thinking broader. There are already lots of established Cures and teams, including America’s Bomber Girls, India’s Wonderful Net, and Hawaii’s Alo~ha team. Exploring the wider world of Cures, in a world where every country has their own magical girls, would be a fun twist on the formula.
Remembering the Originals
More than anything, though, we’d love to see Precure revisit its roots. Nagisa and Honoka kicked off everything we love about the show in the original Pretty Cure, and it’s always fun to see them in the team-up movies. But with Honoka’s grandmother making a sneaky appearance in Precure Full Bloom last week, we can’t help but wonder what these two are up to.
Seeing two teams support each other, both literally and emotionally, is a fantastic conceit. Could we assume that Cure Black and Cure White, retired from their magical girl days, now offer a listening ear for new teams as they’re established? A laid-back series along those lines could be fun… and a treat for long-time fans.
Want more high-octane action? Check out the DOGSRED manga!
