Just as a warning, this is a review of Smile Precure and not from the dubbed version of the same series called Glitter Force, which I haven't watched (and for what I know isn't exactly loved by the fans, in any case I recommend this one).

After having watched and loved some of the more serious Precure when it comes to tone (Heartcatch, Hugtto and Princess) I was curious and somewhat worried about how I would feel for one that goes more for the comedic aspects of the franchise, well, there was nothing to fear because this one delivered hard!

Smile Precure uses the theme of fairy tales for its story, with the elements that the series plays around being based on picture books, including the villains who are looking for a "bad end" to the world and its all up to the Precures to stop them, the series provides a lot of variety and fun situations with this idea.

Unlike other series from the franchise, Smile introduces the main cast from the start instead of giving a new addition to the group later on, with one episode after the other bringing a new character until they form the group of five that will stay until the end of the series. This is somewhat of a risky move since that means that there is no new character to keep things fresh and give some focus on for a good amount of episodes later on, but the idea paid off thanks to how lovable they are, the character interactions between them are so solid and consistently funny, all while also giving each the needed amount of spotlight to shine and develop as a character, making me so attached to the cast not only for the character who got the focus, but also for the group as a whole, they are such great friends. I will still mention that I can definitely see some people disliking Miyuki (the adorkable and really clumsy protagonist of the series) and the mascot of the series, Candy, for their way to be, but I personally liked their interactions with the rest a lot, and even then the others can make the series really enjoyable nonetheless.

The villain side of Smile is so, so goofy, yet scary at the same time due to a single character being there: Joker. While most episodes will be focused on one (or rarely more than one) of the other three baddies going to fight the Precure with the help of the monster of the week character, failing miserably and more often than not adding to the comedy Team Rocket style with their stupidness and weird strategies (special mention goes to Majorina, who creates devices that lead to really interesting episodes when the characters have to deal with whatever situation is created by them), things are very different whenever he decides to strike, be by giving upgrades to the enemies or being the one who attacks, leading to way more serious episodes that together with some of the character focused ones were the highlights of an already really consistently nice anime.

If I have to be honest, the story was far from amazing, and while I still absolutely loved the final stretch there are things that the ending could have handled better, but I personally don't think that this was an issue at all as it could have been with the other Precure I mentioned at the start, this anime was to me what a cute girls doing cute things comedy anime has to be (with the bonus of also having awesome fights!) And despite its lightheartedness, Smile delivers as hard as the other Precure entries whenever it goes for emotional episodes.

The animation of the series is solid, always looking good and shining whenever it's needed for the fights and important moments, the music of the series is nice as well, with a good amount of memorable songs that I loved to listen to, it also reminded me a good amount to Heartcatch Precure with some of its themes if that interests you. I also want to mention that I love the opening and endings of the series, they are so catchy, and the endings also feature fantastic CG dances while providing some fun interactions with the cast, with the most important Precure of the episode having extra moments in them.

In conclusion, Smile Precure is a fantastic comedy with great interactions and emotional moments for each character, pretty much every episode was a blast to watch, one of the most consistently nice series I have watched so far.

Oh, and you can play rock-paper-scissors with Cure Peace whenever she transforms, isn't that amazing? She stomped me by the way.