Throughout Waccha PriMagi!'s run, one question has oft been repeated: what's your PriMagi? For superstar Jennifer, the answer has ultimately boiled down to “my relationship with Ruhme.” While this does set up something of a parallel between Jennifer and Matsuri in the final episodes of the series, for most of this fourth and final cour, the question dangles over the girls' heads, with Matsuri having the hardest time coming up with an answer. For Hina, the answer has always been obvious: she wants to beat Jennifer. Miruki, too, has an easy time coming up with her response, even if she doesn't solidify it until near the end: she wants to be her cutest self always. Auru wants to make the PriMagi better for everyone, Lemon wants to have a little more confidence, Amane uses it to come to terms with herself and her feelings…but where does all of this leave our ostensible main protagonist?

Sadly the answer is “not quite fulfilling the starring role.” This has become an interesting issue with recent magical girl shows, with both Manatsu of Tropical-Rouge! Pretty Cure and Yui of Delicious Party Pretty Cure also suffering from the same thing. But where the Precure girls still take center stage in their fight against evil, Matsuri comes from a different subgenre of magical girl story – she's an idol singer, not a superheroine. And that means that there are no obvious life-or-death battles for her to punch in the face. She must claim her primary protagonist status in a different way, and Waccha PriMagi! isn't always up to giving her the chance to do so. In part this may simply be because it's juggling so many characters at this point; along with the six girls, we've also got Myamu, Auru's brother, father, and android, Matsuri's family (including her absentee father), Hughie, Touma, and Midoriko, just to name the most obvious. And when the previous episodes have spent so much time creating backstories that are arguably more compelling than Matsuri's, you have to accept that something's going to suffer as plot threads are tied off.

Of the main group, Amane and Miruki get the most satisfying storylines. In Miruki's case, she becomes able to stand up to the Spirit she formed a contract with, who wants her to go back to her natural hair and eye color and shed aspects of her carefully crafted persona. Since her special, more powerful ensemble relies on his cooperation, Miruki truly does consider doing what he wants, which essentially means that she becomes the self that someone else wants her to be. When she ultimately doesn't go through with it, what she's doing is confirming that the only person she owes anything to is herself, and if she doesn't like who she is, there's no point to anything. It's a surprisingly powerful moment from a character who has come off as dangerously self-involved, and it sends a positive message about listening to feedback but making your own final choices.

In Amane's case, the closing episodes of the series see her all but coming out. Midoriko's return allows her to truly reconcile her emotions, and while she doesn't fully say anything definitive, the implication and subtext is remarkably strong. Amane has been able to use the PriMagi as a way to explore her queerness, and her final decision is one that not only enhances the Takarazuka elements of her performances but that also allows her to explore a different, more open form of expression. While it might have been nice to see a clear on-screen confirmation of her sexuality, her role in the series remains an important piece of representation, and one that ultimately does work both to diversify the characters and to send a message that there's nothing wrong with who she is.

She also may not be the only Sailor Moon reference in the series. Part of the finale involves the girls using their power (and the Spirits') to ascend to the heavens where Jennifer/Apollon are, and viewers may notice that the background looks distinctly like the Moon Kingdom of Princess Serenity's past. This combines nicely with Acchiko's eventual realization that the way forward isn't to simply discard the past, but to work with it, and his statement about how his generation must take responsibility for their mistakes not only shows how far he's come, but also notes that the Jennifers of the world are ultimately going to be all right, because if mistakes are acknowledged, then steps can be taken to rectify the situation.

That, truly, is where Matsuri comes in. She may not be the strongest (that would be Hina physically and Myamu magically), she may not be the smartest, but she absolutely is the most emotionally resilient character in the show. Matsuri doesn't just represent one particular trait or emotion; she goes through her ups and downs, and even when things are at their worst, she keeps looking up and hoping. That's why she takes so long to definitively say, “This is my PriMagi,” because it isn't just one thing to her. It's that aspect of her that gives Myamu the strength to draw upon her reserves of power to become something of a magical girl in her own right, and it's what allows Matsuri to be the one to get through to Jennifer at the end of the day.

Waccha PriMagi! isn't a perfect series. Hughie and Touma, charming as their bromance is, fall off the plot wagon, and Auru's brother Inoru doesn't get the development he needs or that is hinted at. The same goes for Jennifer and Ruhme; we understand how important they are to each other, but that relationship is told rather than shown, which undercuts its emotional heft. But overall this is a solid magical girl idol show, one that manages to land more than it misses. It's also certainly got room for a sequel when Matsuri finally makes her decision at the very end (and we see the human forms of everyone's partners!), and if one were to materialize, it's a story that could easily continue enjoyably.