raven.wehner - 2015-01-20 21:30:39

It was completely boring and predictable so it wasn't enjoyable

abernhard - 2014-09-01 23:19:47

I actually don't have a review written proper yet because, usually, I find anime reviews on websites like this to be quite vapid, one-sided and generally ill-informed, but I feel like I should balance out the reviews here. It's not the worst Precure series, and to think so is just to completely miss the point. Good job and good fun

lindgren.kaya - 2014-01-27 15:35:25

Once upon a time when the topic of the worst Precure Season was brought up, I'd have no idea what to say. Even putting aside my lack of experience with the franchise, I had no idea what would drive me to think so negatively about a light hearted kid's show with healthy morals. Even when I went and watched past seasons that were looked upon unfavourably I still enjoyed them for what they were despite their flaws. And now we come to the present day. While I've still yet to make my way through every past season of the show, I can now confidently answer the previous question of what the worst Precure season is. And despite what people would have said before Doki aired, it isn't Suite or Smile.

Despite the fact that I enjoy the Precure franchise in general, I will freely admit that the basic plot structure of each season is somewhat predictable. But you can't really criticise the franchise for being predictable when you consider the target audience. So by that logic does that make DokiDoki bulletproof? Well, not quite. When it comes down to it the execution is what matters the most. Despite being aimed at a younger audience it hasn't stopped Precure from excelling in different areas and it doesn't stop DokiDoki from being great either. What stops DokiDoki from being great is DokiDoki itself.

With the initial character introductions the main cast comes off as likeable. However despite a good chunk of the show supposedly being devoted to character development the fruits of their labour are never really felt. While they gain a multitude of new powers and save the Earth from certain doom they're pretty much the exact same people they were 48 episodes before. Especially when it comes to Mana, Rikka and Alice who, while not particularly unlikeable, are privileged and flawless and about as far removed from relatable as you can get. Even when it comes to the characters that initially had a lot of potential they suffer greatly due to the lack of focus

With such flawed characters this leads to a lot of other problems. Monster of the week episodes which previous seasons used for character development are just mindless filler and nothing more. Whether the plot developments are hits or misses doesn't really matter because the characters will remain stagnant regardless. No matter how substantial, the moral lessons contained in each episode all feel hollow considering they rarely contribute to the character's development or the overall plot. Even putting aside the characters and plot the action scenes which take up at least half of each episode mainly consist of the characters spamming their bland magic attacks. No fisticuffs, no surprises, just repeated animation.

The animation budget seems to be significantly lower than previous seasons with a plethora of QUALITY moments. The art isn't offensively bad but the animation is very sub par by modern standards. The transformation sequences are an integral part of magical girl anime and often quite well done but the ones in Doki had me clicking the fast forward button almost every time.

On the topic of sound, the OST isn't obnoxiously bad and has some nice pieces but is often times repetitive and forgettable. The OP sequence used for the show is also somewhat forgettable but catchy enough to fulfil its purpose. And if it wasn't the boredom that made me want to see the end of an episode, it was the one of the two glorious CG ED themes by now series regular Hitomi Yoshida.

The voice acting was also of a high standard with famous VAs such as Rie Kugimiya (Except this time not a tsundere), Mayumi Tanaka (Luffy from One Piece), Minako Kotobuki (Mugi from K-ON and member of idol group Sphere) among others.

I will say that I enjoyed DokiDoki for the basic reasons I enjoy the mahou shoujo genre in general. But that's about it. While I was somewhat entertained by the beginning and the ending a large portion of the show had me wishing I was watching something else. So overall, I guess I didn't really enjoy my time with DokiDoki even though it has the sentimental value of being the first Precure Season I watched as it aired. In fact, I'd go as far as saying the show is noticeably quite boring.

If you want a good magical girl series, DokiDoki doesn't deliver. If you want a nice kid's show that teaches healthy moral lessons about eating vitamins and saying prayers, you won't get that either. If you were expecting quality entertainment, then boy have you ever come to the wrong place. DokiDoki Precure is your typical mediocre and completely forgettable kid's show from a franchise that is anything but mediocre and forgettable.

But hey, if this is the worst thing to happen to Precure than we can only hope it's all uphill from here.

Good:

- Generally likeable cast

- Good introduction

- Ending ties everything together well

Bad:

- No sense of character progression

- Bland writing

- Weak action scenes

- Packed with filler

- Overall boring and forgettable

Overall: 5/10