WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Episode 2 of Tropical-Rouge! Precure, "Manatsu and Laura! What's More Important?" now streaming on Crunchyroll.
Being a Pretty Cure is never easy, and having to save the world can often eat into one's free time and other obligations, as Manatsu learns firsthand in Episode 2 of Tropical-Rouge! Precure, "Manatsu and Laura! What's More Important?" Manatsu dreams of living a simple, fulfilling middle-school life, making friends and joining a club (preferably a cosmetics club, if it exists). But, while having realistic goals is great, they might not be all that realistic anymore. That is to say, Mantasu might have to put her hopes and dreams aside for the greater good a little more often than she'd like.
With Manatsu changing schools near the start of the school year, she's in a prime position to accomplish both of her goals at once and even gets off to a promising start with her classmate, Sango Suzumura. Briefly seen in the last episode, Manatsu finally gets a chance to chat with the stylish young girl and finds out that the beauty shop she was in, Pretty Holic, was actually her mother's store, and the two visit it after school.
But where one friendship starts, another falters -- in this case, Manatsu's relationship with Laura. Laura is able to "live" with Manatsu thanks to the Mermaid Aqua Pot, a magical item that Laura stays in on dry land that also happens to be able to fit in Manatsu's pocket. However, after being left alone in Manatsu's room for hours on end, Laura understandably gets a little bored and makes her way to the bathtub for a soak.
Less than impressed with Manatsu's behavior, even after she takes Laura to an abandoned -- but well-maintained -- pool at the aquarium, Laura urges Manatsu to take her duties as a Pretty Cure more seriously, and helps Manatsu to understand exactly what being a Pretty Cure is about. The two bond over talking about their hopes and dreams, and reaffirm their friendship, while also revealing Laura's softer side.
This is good because the next day puts that friendship to the test. After convincing Manatsu to take her to school in the Mermaid Aqua Pot so they can search for other Pretty Cures, Laura finds herself at odds with Manatsu, who puts her school life above the search. Manatsu decides to go to the Club Exhibition to see her options, putting herself and her goals first -- only not to notice when Laura falls out of her pocket and into a nearby waterway.
Laura tries to take advantage of the situation to search but is quickly spotted by one of the middle schoolers. Fortunately, Manatsu realizes that she's missing and rescues her, explaining that Laura needs to stay hidden. Laura snaps that Manatsu isn't taking the situation seriously enough, causing Manatsu to lash out, feeling like her wants and dreams are being belittled.
The two go their separate ways, but as Manatsu goes back to the exhibition, she finds herself unable to focus on the performances, thinking about what was said. As Laura ends up finding herself yet again at the mercy of Chiron-ge's Yarane-da, Manatsu's ring begins to glow, and she makes up her mind. Yes, she wants to make friends and join a club -- but she also already has a friend, one who's in danger. And so, she decides that she's willing to sacrifice her hopes for a normal middle school life whenever her power as a Pretty Cure is needed -- she's still going to pursue those ideals, but first and foremost, she also has to make sure that the world is a place where she can work towards her goals, and that'll never happen if the Witch of Delays wins.
And so, while her aspirations hit the backburner, Manatsu is more than willing to work as a Pretty Cure, and heartily exclaims that she'll even do her best to enjoy it. While the fight is suitably short, having already overcome the episode's true conflict, it bodes well for the series' future that it's willing to properly establish the characters, their motivations and relationships, making sure each Cure is a person as much as they're a hero.
