PuraOre! Pride of Orange

PuraOre! Smile Princess

Company type	Multimedia project
Industry	Entertainment, Video games, Anime
Founded	2021
Founder	CyberAgent, DMM Games
Products	Anime television series, Mobile game
Parent	CyberAgent, DMM Games

is a multimedia initiative developed by CyberAgent and DMM Games that focuses on girls' ice hockey. The anime adaptation, created by CAAnimation in collaboration with C2C, was broadcast from October through December 2021. The accompanying mobile game, produced by EXNOA, was released in March 2022.

"Newcomer Set"

Plays as left wing forward. Manaka comes from a family that operates an inn and became interested in ice hockey after spotting a poster at school.

Occupies the center position. Initially considered quitting but was encouraged by teammates to stay.

Right wing forward who switched schools to escape hockey but eventually returned to playing.

Left defenseman and serves as the team’s mascot; she is Manaka’s younger sister.

Right defenseman.

Goalkeeper.

"Senior Set"

Left wing forward for the Dream Monkeys.

Center and team captain of the Dream Monkeys.

Right wing forward representing the Dream Monkeys.

Left defenseman for the Dream Monkeys.

Right defenseman of the Dream Monkeys.

Goalie for the Dream Monkeys.

"Staff"

The Dream Monkeys’ coach, who aims to increase ice hockey’s appeal by blending it with idol culture.

Assistant coach supporting Yōko Matsunaga.

Kushiro Snow White

Left wing forward for Snow White.

Center player for Snow White.

Right wing forward for Snow White.

Left defenseman for Snow White.

Right defenseman for Snow White.

Goalkeeper for Snow White.

A Canadian center playing for Snow White.

West Tokyo Ice Rabbits

Left wing forward for the Ice Rabbits. She previously attended school with Manaka and others before transferring.

Anime

In December 2020, CAAnimation revealed plans for an anime TV series produced and animated by C2C. The series was directed by Takebumi Anzai, with series composition handled by Touko Machida, character designs crafted by Kii Tanaka based on originals from Craft Egg, and music composed by MONACA alongside Yōhei Kisara. Takashi Murakami and Hiroshi Takita served as producers. Funimation acquired licensing rights outside Asia, while Medialink managed distribution across Southeast Asia, South Asia, Micronesia, and Polynesia. The show aired from October 6 to December 22, 2021 on Tokyo MX and other channels.

The seven principal voice actresses performed the opening theme "Fire Fight!" under the group name "Smile Princess," while May'n provided the ending theme "Orange." The English dubbed version was made available on December 30, 2022.

Episode list

{{Episode table |overall= |title= |titleR= |director= |directorR= |writer= |writerR= |aux2= |aux2T=Storyboarded by |aux2R= |airdate= |airdateR= |episodes=

Game

The smartphone title PuraOre! Smile Princess was created by EXNOA and launched on March 15, 2022. It became available on Android, iOS, and PC through DMM Game Player. The game’s service officially ended on November 30, 2022.

Reception

Anime News Network offered a range of opinions on the anime's premiere episode during the Fall 2021 preview season. Richard Eisenbeis expressed reservations about the combination of idol and sports themes, suggesting it might resonate more with fans of all-girl slice-of-life series. Caitlin Moore criticized the idol elements for detracting from the ice hockey storyline. Nicholas Dupree acknowledged the high production values but felt the characters were not well-developed and that the series appeared to be motivated largely by commercial interests. Rebecca Silverman pointed out a lack of sufficient ice hockey content and criticized how idol scenes were framed.

In a comprehensive review of the entire series, Christopher Farris assigned a B− rating, highlighting the engaging character development and an attractive portrayal of ice hockey. Nevertheless, he noted that the technical aspects of the sport were treated superficially due to pacing choices and a focus on slice-of-life and idol components rather than in-depth storytelling. He concluded that although it did not fully meet expectations as a definitive hockey anime, it outperformed comparable sports-themed shows.

External links

• Official website