Pretty Cure
Japanese magical girl anime metaseries
title: "Pretty Cure" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["pretty-cure", "bandai-brands", "magical-girl-anime-and-manga", "mass-media-franchises-introduced-in-2004", "teen-superhero-television-series", "children's-manga", "japan-exclusive-video-games", "video-games-featuring-female-protagonists"] description: "Japanese magical girl anime metaseries" topic_path: "arts/music" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pretty_Cure" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0
::summary Japanese magical girl anime metaseries ::
::data[format=table title="Infobox media franchise"]
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| image | File:PrettyCureC20thLogo.png |
| caption | The twentieth anniversary logo for the Pretty Cure franchise |
| title | Pretty Cure |
| creator | Izumi Todo |
| Toei Animation | |
| origin | Pretty Cure |
| films | Pretty Cure All Stars, Pretty Cure films |
| tv | See below |
| plays | Precure Kids |
| musicals | See below |
| vgs | See below |
| toys | S.H. Figuarts, dolls, bracelets |
| :: |
| image = File:PrettyCureC20thLogo.png | caption = The twentieth anniversary logo for the Pretty Cure franchise | title = Pretty Cure | creator = Izumi Todo Toei Animation | origin = Pretty Cure | films = Pretty Cure All Stars, Pretty Cure films | tv = See below | plays = Precure Kids | musicals = See below | games = | rpgs = | vgs = See below | books = | novels = | comics = | magazines = | strips = | radio = | soundtracks = | music = | toys = S.H. Figuarts, dolls, bracelets | otherlabel1 = | otherdata1 = | otherlabel2 = | otherdata2 = | otherlabel3 = | otherdata3 = The Pretty Cure series is a Japanese magical girl anime franchise created by Izumi Todo and produced by Toei Animation. Each series revolves around a group of magical girls known as Pretty Cures who battle against evil forces. Starting in February 2004 with Pretty Cure, the franchise has seen many anime series, spanning over 1000 episodes to date, as well as spawning movies, manga, toys, and video games. Its most recent iteration, You and Idol Precure, began airing in February 2025 as part of TV Asahi's Sunday morning children's television block. As of December 2022, three series have received English adaptations.
Overview
Each series focuses on a group of teenage girls who are granted special items that allow them to transform into legendary warriors known as the Pretty Cure. With the assistance of creatures known as fairies, the Pretty Cure use their magical powers and enhanced strength to fight against evil forces who create monsters to bring misery to the Earth. As the series progresses and stronger enemies appear, the Cures gain new magical items, new abilities, and sometimes new allies to help them in their fight against evil.
Main series
There are currently twenty-two anime television series in the franchise, two of which are direct sequels to their previous series. To date, three of the series have received English adaptations. Pretty Cure was dubbed into English by Ocean Productions and aired in Canada under the name Pretty Cure. Smile PreCure! and DokiDoki! PreCure were adapted by Saban Brands and released on Netflix under the names Glitter Force and Glitter Force Doki Doki, respectively. The series, Kirakira Pretty Cure a la Mode, Healin' Good Pretty Cure and Tropical-Rouge! Pretty Cure, began streaming in Crunchyroll on their respective territories. Each series has received a manga adaptation illustrated by Futago Kamikita, which is published in Kodansha's Nakayoshi shoujo magazine alongside the anime. Starting with Fresh PreCure!, each ending movie featured a dance choreography by each series' Pretty Cure members.
As of 2020, Toei Animation Inc. owns the international rights to the franchise while both the dubs of Smile and DokiDoki alongside the Glitter Force brand is currently owned by Hasbro.
::data[format=table]
| No. | Title | Generation | Run | Episodes | Series director | Ref(s) | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | Total | 23 | 21 | 2004–present | 1,067 | 21 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pretty Cure | 1st | 2004–2005 | 49 | Daisuke Nishio | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Pretty Cure Max Heart | 2005–2006 | 47 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| PreCure Splash Star | 2nd | 2006–2007 | 49 | Toshiaki Komura | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Yes! PreCure 5 | 3rd | 2007–2008 | 49 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Yes! PreCure 5 GoGo! | 2008–2009 | 48 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Fresh PreCure! | 4th | 2009–2010 | 50 | Junji Shimizu, Akifumi Zako | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Heart Catch PreCure | 5th | 2010–2011 | 49 | Tatsuya Nagamine | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Suite PreCure | 6th | 2011–2012 | 48 | Munehisa Sakai | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Smile PreCure! | 7th | 2012–2013 | 48 | Takashi Otsuka | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| DokiDoki! PreCure | 8th | 2013–2014 | 49 | Go Koga | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Happiness Charge PreCure! | 9th | 2014–2015 | 49 | Tatsuya Nagamine | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Go! Princess PreCure | 10th | 2015–2016 | 50 | Yuta Tanaka | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Witchy PreCure! | 11th | 2016–2017 | 50 | Masato Mitsuka | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| KiraKira PreCure a la Mode | 12th | 2017–2018 | 49 | Kohei Kureta, Yukio Kaizawa | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| HUG! Pretty Cure | 13th | 2018–2019 | 49 | Junichi Sato, Akifumi Zako | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Star Twinkle PreCure | 14th | 2019–2020 | 49 | Hiroaki Miyamoto | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Healin' Good Pretty Cure | 15th | 2020–2021 | 45 | Yoko Ikeda | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Tropical-Rouge! Pretty Cure | 16th | 2021–2022 | 46 | Yutaka Tsuchida | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Delicious Party Pretty Cure | 17th | 2022–2023 | 45 | Toshinori Fukasawa | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Soaring Sky! PreCure | 18th | 2023–2024 | 50 | Koji Ogawa | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Wonderful Precure! | 19th | 2024–2025 | 50 | Masanori Sato | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| You and Idol Precure | 20th | 2025-2026 | 49 | Chiaki Kon | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Star Detective Precure! | 21st | 2026-2027 | TBA | Koji Kawasaki | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| :: |
Films
Main article: List of Pretty Cure films
Beginning with Pretty Cure Max Heart, each television series has received a theatrical animated film based on the series, with Max Heart receiving two films. Starting in March 2009, crossover films featuring characters from multiple series have been released annually, with 12 crossover films released to date. The eleventh crossover film, Hug! Precure♡Pretty Cure: All Stars Memories, has been awarded the Guinness World Records title for "Most Magical Warriors in an Anime Film", with a total number of 55 Cures with speaking roles.
Adaptations
Video games
Several video games have been produced by Bandai Namco Entertainment (formerly Bandai) for video game systems and educational consoles, as well as Data Carddass arcade machines.
;Console video games
- Pretty Cure: Unbelievable! The Dream Park is a Labryinth (2004, Game Boy Advance)
- Pretty Cure Max Heart: Really? Really!? A Fight is Okay, Isn't It? (2005, Game Boy Advance)
- Pretty Cure Max Heart: Absolutely! Pretty Cure on DS - The Great Battle Where Power Gathers (2005, Nintendo DS)
- PreCure Splash Star: In Top Condition for the PanPaka Game! (2006, Nintendo DS)
- Yes! PreCure 5 (2007, Nintendo DS)
- Yes! PreCure 5 GoGo!: All Assembled! Dream Festival (2008, Nintendo DS)
- Fresh PreCure! Play Collection (2009, Nintendo DS)
- Heart Catch PreCure Fashion Collection (2010, Nintendo DS)
- Let's Play With Voices! Heart Catch PreCure (2010, Nintendo DS)
- Suite PreCure: Melody Collection (2011, Nintendo DS)
- Smile PreCure! Let's Go! Märchen World (2012, Nintendo 3DS)
- PreCure All Stars: All Together☆Let's Dance! (2013, Wii)
- DokiDoki! PreCure: Impersonator Life! (2013, Nintendo 3DS)
- Happiness Charge PreCure! Sparking Collection (2014, Nintendo 3DS)
- Go! Princess PreCure: The Sugar Kingdom and the 6 Princesses (2015, Nintendo 3DS)
- PreCure Connecting Puzzlun (2017-2020, iOS, Android)
- Nari Kids Park: HUG! Pretty Cure (2018, Nintendo Switch)
;Arcade game
- PreCure All Stars Data Carddass series (2007–2017)
;Educational titles
- Pretty Cure (2004, Sega Pico)
- Pretty Cure: Max Heart (2005, Beena)
- PreCure Splash Star (2006, Beena)
- Yes! Precure 5 Go Go: Love Love Hiragana Lesson (2008, Beena)
- Let's change: Fresh PreCure! (2009, Beena)
- Let's do some stylish change: Heart Catch PreCure (2010, Beena)
- Suite PreCure: Happy Stylish Harmony (2011, Beena)
Live-action drama
Main article: Koe Girl!
A live-action series, Koe Girl!, aired in Japan between April and June 2018, celebrating the franchise's 15th anniversary. The series follows a group of aspiring voice actresses and stars Haruka Fukuhara, who voiced Himari Arisugawa/Cure Custard in KiraKira PreCure a la Mode.
Reception
The combination of transmedia text products, including anime series, films, live performances, theme stores, and toys, has been analyzed as a "system of consumption, knowledge and action [that] creates a lifestyle-text, a set of fictional media works that are synonymous with the lifestyle practices they promote."
The Pretty Cure films are the seventh highest-grossing anime film franchise. Bandai Namco's net income from Pretty Cure video game sales was () from April 2008 to March 2012, () from April 2012 to March 2013, () from April 2013 to March 2014, and () from April 2014 to December 2020, adding up to () net sales revenue for Bandai Namco.
Merchandise
Pretty Cure has had numerous licensed merchandise sold in Japan. By 2010, it became Japan's fifth highest-grossing franchise annually.
::data[format=table title="''Pretty Cure'' licensed merchandise sales in Japan"]
| Year | Japan licensed merchandise sales | Note | Ref | 2005–2013 | + (+) | 2014–2020 | + (+) | 2005–2020 | + (+) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | title=在日本，地位最高的动漫是哆啦a梦么？ | url=http://www.taojinjubao.com/zhihu/267465.html | website=Taojinjubao | publisher=Character Databank (CharaBiz) | date=2018-01-06 | access-date=2018-09-14 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180909185415/http://www.taojinjubao.com/zhihu/267465.html | ||
| 2005 | |||||||||
| 2006 | Bandai toys only | ||||||||
| 2007 | |||||||||
| 2008 | title=Japan's Character Products Market in 2008 | url=http://www.licensing.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/japan-character-product.doc | access-date=September 7, 2018 | publisher=Character Databank (CharaBiz) | website=Licensing Industry Merchandiser's Association | year=2010 | archive-date=September 8, 2018 | ||
| 2009 | |||||||||
| 2010 | |||||||||
| 2011 | Bandai Namco toys only | ||||||||
| 2012 | |||||||||
| 2013 | |||||||||
| 2014 | |||||||||
| 2015 | |||||||||
| 2016 | |||||||||
| 2017 | |||||||||
| 2018 | |||||||||
| 2019 | |||||||||
| 2020 | Bandai Namco toys only | ||||||||
| :: |
References
References
- "I understand that you are watching the series very carefully. First of all, as you may know, for series sponsored by toy makers like Precure, the rough storyline is fairly pre-determined. That is because the toy sales strategy is prioritized.".
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- Hasbro. "Glitter Force – a legendary superhero squad".
- (2012-10-24). "Dokidoki! Precure Trademark Filed in Japan". [[Anime News Network]].
- (2013-02-06). "Dokidoki! Precure Revealed as New Precure With Logo - News". [[Anime News Network]].
- (30 October 2014). "'Go! Princess Precure' Trademark Filed".
- (30 October 2014). "Next PreCure Series will be "Go! Princess PreCure"?".
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