This show is like MLP:FiM, but better: a review

For the past few weeks, I’d been binge-watching a particular series. I was expecting it to be okay at best, but as it turned out, the series was phenomenal. To such an extent that if I’d started watching it when it was airing, I may have joined that fandom instead of this one. Or rather, I would have if it was popular here. As of now, there’s only 25 fics in total tagged for the show on AO3, which is practically nothing.

The excellent show in question is called PriPara. Like MLP, it was created to sell toys and games to little girls. Like MLP, it’s a slice-of-life comedy with a bit of adventure thrown in. And like MLP, the characters are very cute and solve problems with friendship and song. However, PriPara is an idol anime. I’m going to tell you all up front that if you’re reading this and you trust me, drop everything and start watching it online immediately. But if you want some spoiler-free elaboration, or don’t want to dive in completely blind like I did, I’ve got you covered.

To that end, I’ve boiled down the elements of PriPara which are better than MLP, and which are worse. Again, their vibes and overall quality are so similar that anything further isn’t necessary for those present on Fimfic. I’ll lead with the better aspects.

The big draw is that PriPara has more consistently emotionally resonant writing on all fronts. IE: there are far fewer dud jokes, the wholesome moments are super wholesome, and the occasional sad turns are crushing. As a direct contrast, I only cried watching MLP during the final episode. PriPara made me cry three times. That’s notable because literally no other piece of media - television or otherwise - I’ve ever consumed in my entire life has made me cry more than once.

Being an idol anime, the music is also leagues better than MLP’s. While MLP’s songs felt like made-for-tv insert songs, PriPara’s music is professional quality, the sort you’d buy as singles to listen to. There are far more genuine earworms that give you chills.

Also, and this is more of a minor but no less welcome thing, PriPara has multiple gender nonconforming characters among its main cast! One who’s either genderfluid or trans, it’s hard to tell, and another who’s confirmed nonbinary by the show staff.

All that said, you may be wondering what PriPara doesn’t do as well as MLP. The big one is that the setting is less original. And the more unique aspects are more often played for humor at the expense of coherency. For example, under normal circumstances, boys can’t enter PriPara, but they can sneak in if they disguise themselves as goats and use the goat entrance. Why is there a goat-specific entrance? Never explained!

Anyway, many of the musical numbers are repeated between episodes, with only the characters’ outfits changing, which could also be an annoyance sometimes. The show is also sub only, which people less used to anime may have trouble with. (PriPara was meant primarily to sell an arcade game that never left Japan.) On the other hand, even I had trouble catching the song lyrics and watching the choreography at the same time, so maybe the repeated songs aren’t so bad after all?

There you go, that’s PriPara. Watch it. There are 140 twenty minute episodes, plus two films canon to the main story. There’s also a sequel series, Idol Time PriPara, which I also finished. It’s still good, but not on the original’s level. You can probably skip it unless you also become super captivated by PriPara.