Super cute! Love is a good degree of semi-realistic, and marks the start of Precure forms actually looking like true alter egos/disguises. You'll notice this set of girls wearing unique uniforms each, which is because they all go to different schools--they're mainly friends outside of class, forming a dance troupe together. Love's uniform is almost realistic, except the colour and the very short skirt. Speaking of, the girls in this season, especially as Precure, do NOT look fourteen. It's not distracting really--just the art style--but they do look like they should be older teens or even adults. Cure Peach is one of my all-time fave Precure leaders. Her costume establishes the dance troupe, idol-meets-magical-girl look of the Fresh team, and is just super pleasant to look at. The hot pink accents, awesome boots, phone purse and team emblem brooch all create a 10/10 look. It's cutesy but also clean and uncluttered. She's not obviously just Love, but the upgraded pigtails evoke her true identity. It's so sweet that she keeps her hairties with the neat dangling beads, which themselves get magically upgraded. I love the big Sailor Moon esque hearts. I'm also a fan of the general colour palette, with the whitish blonde evoking the yellows of a peach. Really, the fruit theme in this season is extremely minor, just applying to their names, but I don't mind that. I always found it sweet as just an inconsequential motif.
Miki is neat. She gets a lot of fanbase flack for having confidence, which I think is silly and sometimes downright misogynistic. She's the diva of the group, but also the most level-headed, able to slap Cure Peach out of an emotional crisis when needs be. Cure Berry is another perfect design, exhibiting how this team's uniform can be customised to show character. Looking at Cure Berry, you can tell she's more serious and also more confident, like a runway model. I especially love her huge ribbon trails, the shade of her blueberry swirl ponytail, and the black stockings. Black is underutilised as a Precure colour accent, I feel, so it's always nice to see. I also like that Berry's headband sort of resembles an idol headpiece.
Inori is the kind, softer-spoken girl of the group with a love for animals. Her uniform ties into her personal colour palette and, aside from the animefied skirt, it makes sense as the uniform for her religious school. Inori has a pleasant design, sort of like she could be the best friend minor character in another anime, but as Cure Pine I feel a little underwhelmed...maybe because the other three Fresh designs are so flawless. Pine just looks a touch awkward with her strange shoes, her very low waistline, and the fact she doesn't look much different from Inori. The spikier hair is a nice touch, though, possibly connected to her pineapple theme? Because otherwise you would NOT know. The artbook, iirc, suggests she was meant to be a bit chubbier, and I wish this had gone through.
I lovee Setsuna. My childhood crush...especially in her original (not pictured!) form as the villainess Eas. Setsuna marks the start of what is now a Precure trope: about halfway through a season, a villain girl or another introduced character will join the team as a new Precure. This story beat helps with the pacing of such a hefty show as Precure, that's for sure. Even now, Cure Passion is my favourite redeemed villain. A lot of redeemed characters now have a brainwashing plot which means they don't really have to take accountability, but Cure Passion has a real arc, and a surprisingly heavy one. She was born into an otherwordly cult, fought the Precure for her robot god, and tried to go undercover but ended up developing genuine affection for Love. She then literally died in Cure Peach's arms. Thankfully, the power of Precure resurrects her as Cure Passion. Yay! Setsuna's design has the subtle awkwardness of someone not used to dressing herself and retains touches of her dark style. Not a ton to say, but I like it. Cure Passion is just stunning. The contrast! The angelic theming, linking to her death and rebirth!! The black accents, the Digimon ass wings on her head, the flowing soft pink hair...no notes. Again, according to the art book I have, her design is intended to mirror Cure Peach's, which is genius. Earlier concepts even have it as a near-direct palette swap. As cool an idea as that is, I'd say her final design is the best. It's got just enough links to Peach while being it's own thing. < 3