Ask John: What is Cutey Honey F?

Question:
Could you please tell me what “Cutey Honey Flash” is? Especially what it’s about? My understanding is that it is a slightly more mature version of Sailor Moon. Is this correct?

Answer:
Cutey Honey Flash was a 39 episode TV series that took over Sailormoon’s time-slot on February 15, 1997, when Sailorstars concluded. To capitalize on the Sailormoon market, Cutey Honey F was very different from the Shin Cutey Honey OAVs that many American fans may be familiar with. Cutey Honey F did away with the exploitive “fan service” of the OAVs and focused on a more shoujo oriented, magical girl concept, beginning with Honey as a high-school student, and concluding with Honey as a married adult and mother. Cutey Honey F was essentially an entirely new Cutey Honey continuity, based on the classic Cutey Honey story. In Cutey Honey F, Honey Kisaragi still went to school and spent time with her friends and boyfriend while desperately searching for her long lost father, who would occasionally, mysteriously contact her. Meanwhile, Honey had to regularly transform into various Cutey Honey forms to battle the minions of Panther Zora that attacked her and her friends. Cutey Honey F also introduced Honey’s psychotic, sometime ally, sometime deadly enemy “twin” sister Seira, who could transform into Misty Honey. Similar to Usagi’s evolutions in Sailormoon, Cutey Honey F came complete with Honey occasionally powering up and altering her costume and weapons throughout the series. Cutey Honey F also had one, short theatrical film, a side-story to the TV series.