WARNING!! If you haven't seen these series yet, and you do not wish to spoil it for yourself, don't read the review until you've seen it! This is a spoiler nest!

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Pretear Episodes

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Episode 01: The Wind of Fate

Details

The Synopsis

Himeno Awayuki's father has just married a rich lady by the name of Natsue Hojo. The city they move to was once called "Hojo City," but after the marriage was changed to "Awayuki City." Himeno spreads fertilizer in the huge garden in the back yard of the now Awayuki mansion, and is called to breakfast by one of the family servants. She gets there in a hurry and arrives huffing and puffing at the double-door entrance to the dining room. Inside, her stepsisters Mayune Awayuki and Mawata Awayuki sit sipping tea quietly, while her father waves a happy good-morning next to her new stepmother, Natsue Awayuki. Himeno remembers how life used to be simply her and her father, barely scraping through. Himeno used to cook while she scolded her washed-up romance novelist of a father for drinking himself silly. Her new stepsisters seem cold and distant, and her new stepmother a split between sweet roses with her father and strict governess with Himeno.
When Himeno sits on her chair to join them for breakfast, it suddenly collapses beneath her and she curses out loud as she lands on the floor. When she gets up she is scolded by Natsue for her underclassed usage of language. Mayune explains to Natsue that it wasn't Himeno's fault since she didn't have a good upbringing after all. Himeno realizes that the chair's leg had been cut earlier, and that the culprit was Mayune. She silently boils in fury as she puts on her best mask of polite stepdaughter for Natsue's sake. Mawata gets up and announces that she is finished and is leaving. Mayune follows soon afterward with Natsue and Himeno's father suddenly caught up in their own world of romance. Himeno is left alone until the servant comes by with a new chair and a reminder of the time. Himeno realizes that she has to leave or be late to school, only to find Mayune laughing behind her as the car drives away. Himeno becomes somewhat sad and remembers her mother before she passed away. Suddenly she is filled with energy and a refusal to get depressed, and starts her march to school on foot.
Meanwhile, Hayate and a group of what are known as "Leafe knights" worry over the newly broken seal that once held captive the Princess of Disaster. Red snow, which eat away at Leafe, the basis for all life, is falling into Earth. The knights resolve to enter the world, and together with knights of sound, wind, lightning, ice, earth, fire and other elements, begin their quest for the pretear with the power to stop the Princess of Disaster. Hayate, Leafe Knight of the Wind, is walking around the Awayuki gardens when Himeno crashes into him in her haste to get to school. Himeno is caught by surprise by his handsome face, and becomes extremely annoyed when Himeno sits on him in her hesitation. Himeno scolds him for not being a gentleman to a weak lady, and Hayate argues that that should be his line. Himeno punches at Hayate and Hayate blocks the punch. At the contact, there is a flash of light and a feeling of "static shock" that throws the both of them apart. Himeno's watch suddenly goes off and she realizes that she is late. She pushes past Hayate and races to school. Hayate tries to deny what had just happened, and returns to the rest of the group of Leafe knights.
The Leafe knights are in the middle of eating when Hayate arrives. The knights had agreed that they would need the pretear's powers to fight the demon larvae minions of the Princess of Disaster, since their own powers would not effective enough for success. The younger three members of the Leafe knights wonder at what the pretear will be like. Sasame, Leafe Knight of Sound, reads Hayate's strained expression and realizes that he has found the pretear.
Himeno, back at her new school, has a hard time making new friends. She overhears some of her classmates saying that Himeno's father had married into a the rich Hojo family, and that Himeno was beneath them and her father a money-grabber. Himeno, in silent fury, breaks a desk in her grip and, flashing a strained smile at the shocked prep girls, heads home. On her way out the school gates, she spots Mawata and waves. Mawata ignores her and a few watching girls remark that Himeno can never be Mawata's sister, and that Mawata is way out of Himeno's league.
Himeno makes a lonely way home and wonders at how she can live in such a beautiful house that held no love in it. She wanders into the Awayuki gardens and is surprised by the arrival of the Leafe knights. She blushes at the sight of Sasame, who had caught her in an embarrassing position, and punches Hayate with an excellent right hook when Hayate arrives. The knights watch in surprise as Himeno shouts "pervert" at a stuttering Hayate. When things calm down a bit, the knights proceed to explain their situation to Himeno. Himeno was chosen to be the pretear, and they would need her help. At first, Himeno thinks this is just another joke to ruin her day, and criticizes them for saying that they need her, a nobody. Hayate, fed up, tells Himeno that they don't need her and that he had known from the start they would be wasting their time with her. Suddenly, a demon larvae evolves before their eyes and begins to eat away the Leafe of the Awayuki gardens. Himeno, shocked, watches as the knights leap into battle. They don't do very well, and Hayate calls Himeno useless and tells her to run if she's just going to stand there. Himeno takes off, and in the middle of her escape, realizes that she doesn't want to run and she wants to help. She returns to find that the knights are in a bad situation, and Hayate falls somewhere near her feet. Himeno tells Hayate that she wants to fight, and demands that he tell her what she should do. Hayate holds out his hand and tells her to take it. When she does, Himeno changes into the Wind Pretear.

The Review

I love this series so far. The humor is excellent - especially when Himeno and Hayate first met. So far my favorite characters are Sasame, based on the way he was drawn, and Shinn, for being such a cute addition to the mix. The knights almost seem like a band of brothers...and all male too, now that I think about it >.>.
The drawings are very nice, but still some awkwardness with transitions. The only complaint about the story is the corny ring of "Princess of Disaster" x.x.

Screenshots