Smile PreCure!

Did You Know?

• A novel was released in 2016 serving as an epilogue that takes place 10 years after the anime's events.
• The English dub was removed from Netflix on November 9, 2024, alongside Glitter Force: Doki Doki.
• As of June 14, 2018, Hasbro owns the rights to the Glitter Force brand alongside other Saban Brands entertainment assets.

Plot

The kingdom of Märchenland, home to fairy-tale characters, is attacked by the evil Pierrot, who seeks an unhappy ending. The queen seals him away but falls into a coma. Pierrot's minions from the Bad End Kingdom plan to revive him using Bad End Energy from Earth. The queen sends the fairy Candy to assemble five magical girls to collect Cure Decors, which embody the queen's power of happiness, to upgrade their abilities and revive her.

Characters

The five titular magical girls are classmates in their second year of middle school. Their secret base is the Magical Library, a pocket dimension storing fairy tales. They collect Cure Decors, kept in a jewelry box called the Decor Décor, and place them in a compact case called a Smile Pact, applying powder while shouting "Pretty Cure, Smile Charge!" to transform. Miyuki Hoshizora / Cure Happy is the main protagonist, a transfer student who loves fairy tales, is energetic and optimistic but clumsy; her theme color is pink, and she has the power of light. Akane Hino / Cure Sunny is from Osaka, speaks Kansai dialect, works at her family's okonomiyaki restaurant, and is passionate; her theme color is orange or red, and she has fire powers. Yayoi Kise / Cure Peace is a 13-year-old in the homemaking club, whose father died when she was young; she aspires to be a mangaka, is timid but loyal; her theme color is yellow, and she has lightning and electricity powers. Nao Midorikawa / Cure March is a 14-year-old soccer team captain, reliable and just, the oldest of six siblings; her theme color is green, and she has wind and super speed powers. Reika Aoki / Cure Beauty completes the team.

Media

The 48-episode series aired on TV Asahi from February 5, 2012, to January 27, 2013. The opening theme is "Let's go! Smile PreCure!" by Aya Ikeda; ending themes are "Yay! Yay! Yay!" (episodes 1-24) and "Mankai Smile!" (episodes 25-48), both by Hitomi Yoshida, all composed by Hideaki Takatori. A Blu-ray Box Set was released October 26, 2012. Saban Brands licensed the series outside Asia as Glitter Force, a Netflix exclusive of 40 episodes (skipping eight episodes and the film), dubbed by Studiopolis with changed names, terminology, and music. The opening theme is "Glitter Force" by Blush. The series is currently licensed by Hasbro. A film, Smile Precure! the Movie: Big Mismatch in a Picture Book!, released October 27, 2012, debuted at number one in the Japanese box office, earning ¥193,000,000. The heroines appear in the Pretty Cure All Stars New Stage crossover film.

Reception

The original Japanese version placed regularly in Japan's weekly top ten anime shows. Brad Stephenson of About.com praised the English adaptation as a return to fun anime, liking the animation variety and Blush's singing, and found Japanese references not a deterrent. Ella Anders of BSC Kids thought the series better than expected but disliked the localization's removal of cultural aspects. Jacob Robinson of What's On Netflix panned the Glitter Force dub as overly cheesy and cliché, recommending the Japanese version. The dub was cited in a The Mary Sue article on subs vs. dubs. Emily Ashby of Common Sense Media argued the anime doesn't dazzle but has strong female leads, though she found it silly and superficial with a mild sensory assault during transformations.