Kaoru Matsubara

Kaoru Matsubara Biographical information Home Tokyo City (Japanese) New Townsville (English) Nickname(s) The Green Powerpuff Date of birth Around 1993 or early 1994 Weapon(s) of choice Giant Hammer Physical description Species Human Gender Female Hair color Blueish-Black Eye color Green Out of universe information First appearance Powerpuff Girls to the Rescue Last appearance The Final Battle Voiced by Kelly Metzger (English) Machiko Kawana (Japanese) Luisa Palomanes (Brazilian Portuguese) Olivia Luccioni (French) Kaoru Matsubara (松原 かおる Matsubara Kaoru, Buttercup in the English dub), primarily known by her hero name Powered Buttercup (パワード・バターカップ Pawādo Batākappu), is the third member of the Powerpuff Girls Z team. She is represented by stars. Appearance Unlike her original counterpart who had black hair styled in a bob, Kaoru has bluish-black/blackish-blue hair that is styled in a spiky bob with a full fringe, light skin, and bright, green eyes. As a thirteen-year-old girl active in sports with a healthy appetite, she's slim and fit. However, later episodes show her figure taking on pronounced curves, shown in her fitted, alter ego outfit. Her casual outfits are masculine to suit her tomboyish nature. Her primary appearance is a yellow loose collared t-shirt with a matching green zipper at the center and green linings on each side of her sleeves, green baggy shorts with orange and black strands, and green sneakers. She also wears a green and white cap with a pink line on her head and the collar of her shirt is extended. In the middle episodes, she wears a green sporty jacket with white trim and has white linings in each sleeve, a black short-sleeved v-neck undershirt with light green trim, matching green pants with black linings, and white and light green sneakers. She also wears a different green hat with a skull design. In both outfits, she keeps the white belt with a green round buckle on her waist where she can transform into Powered Buttercup. As Powered Buttercup, she wears a yellow jersey vest with green trim and white linings and the sign of P at the left side of her vest and has green lining sleeves in each side of her vest, underneath her vest is a matching green one-piece suit with black linings and straps, and a matching green short skirt with dark green side belt to cover her bottoms and black linings at the edge of her skirt and green and white shoes. She also has green hair clips on each side of her head and wears black fingerless gloves with white and green outlines. She receives a gold ring with a green gem adorned with the letter P on her right before she transforms into this form and also accessorized with the black collar with the sign of gold P on her neck. It reveals when Kaoru transforms into this form, both of her hats between her two primary outfits had quickly blown away to form the green hair clips on each side of her head. Personality Compared to her friends, Kaoru is the bluntest and laidback. Sporting an indifferent attitude, not too many things faze her, which is why she responds to situations with dry humor. Nonetheless, she can lose her temper and raged rather quickly and isn't the nicest of the trio. And despite her indifferent attitude, Kaoru is passionate about the things she loves, such as sports. She puts incredible determination in athleticism, which can be overbearing, but it's always good-natured. Hence why she's the most athletic girl at school and has plenty of admirers. Kaoru once disliked girly girls and their attributes, including Momoko and Miyako, but that changed. She came to accept their overly feminine quirks and seems to display a few of her own, but she isn't always comfortable with them. It's unknown why she had that hatred, but there's a theory that her brother teased her on anything remotely girly. Kaoru cares greatly for her family and friends. She's shown protecting them on multiple occasions, and an antagonist from a later episode confirmed they're her weakness. It's most likely why she strives to be strong. Powered Buttercup Powered Buttercup is the strongest and fastest PowerPuff Girl with an immense love of fighting to save the day. Short-tempered and determined, she's easily the most feared. Still, she has her limits, such as not hurting an enemy when they're crying and adjusting her energy to not impair but stop them. Though there are instances when she's reluctant, Buttercup continues to save the day as she cares much for the city and its citizens. She displays rationality on frequent occasions, observant nature, and quick instincts to solve problems. She is called Powered Buttercup for the determination and spirit she holds to save the day. Weapon and Abilities As Powered Buttercup, Kaoru sports a Daruma Otoshi hammer. Her weapon is mainly a close-range weapon, although she can also send energy projectiles and extend her hammer to attack at long range. Her weapon is considered the heaviest of the three and only she can carry it with ease. Her attacks include "Megaton Dunk," "Graviton Drive," "Swing Sonic," "Hurricane Lutz," "Smash Block," and "Buttercup Finish." She also has Laser eyes which are revealed in episode 49. Relationships Relatives Tokio Matsubara - Kaoru is entirely close to her father and admires him greatly as a person and wrestler. She regards him as handsome and doesn't mind his affections when they're not hurting her. She's also seemed to take his pieces of advice and apply them to her passions. She yearned to be as great of a wrestler as him and was upset when he wouldn't teach her. It seems she's gotten over that and continues to care immensely for and respect her father. Mitsuko Matsubara - Kaoru is close to her mother and seems to come to her for advice. She's comfortable enough to cry in front of her and seems to accept their personality differences. Still, she can get annoyed with her mom when she's obliviously happy about a particular concern. Dai Matsubara - Kaoru has a typical brother-sister relationship with her older brother, but they seem closer. While she does get annoyed with his teasing, she acknowledges and appreciates the things he's done. Shou Matsubara - Not much is shown about their relationship, but Kaoru seems to have a typical but good relationship with her younger brother. It's indicated he teases her often, but she always has a comeback and takes wee offense. Friends Momoko Akatsutsumi (Blossom) - Though their start was rough, oblivious to Momoko, the pair have become best friends. Kaoru often snarks and snaps at Momoko's behavior, but she's patient enough to let her do what she wants and sometimes join in. It's also revealed that they really don't like fighting with one another, but it seems fine. Their arguments don't last long and bring more acceptance to their differences. As their alter ego, their relationship isn't different. Buttercup disliked Blossom and didn't accept her as the leader, but time changed everything. They trust and respect one another and bring out the best in each other. Miyako Gotokuji (Bubbles) - Miyako is Kaoru's other best friend, and their first impression was also rough, obliviously to the blonde girl. Kaoru does get annoyed with Miyako's occasional ditziness and girly tendencies, but she accepts the girl entirely. They don't argue much, and Kaoru is attentive and softer towards her as they do have a big sister, little sister dynamic. As their alter ego, their relationship is the same. Buttercup disliked Bubbles, but grew to love her like a sister. They share an understanding of their differences and always have each other's back. Professor Utonium - Though regarded as the creator of the PowerPuff Girls Z, Professor is a father figure to Kaoru and the girls. They have a good relationship as he is caring and stern, occasionally giving her and the girls what they want, but they can get on each other's nerves. Still, Kaoru respects and cares for him. Ken Utonium - Ken has a typical sister-brother relationship with Kaoru. He may annoy her, and they tease each other, but she cares for him and is immensely protective. Poochi - Poochi and Kaoru have a close relationship. She treats him as a friend, playing and providing physical affection despite their rough start. And since he's connected to her alter ego, he's a great help when her energy's low. Gallery Click here to Kaoru Matsubara's Gallery Trivia She has a similar hairstyle to Son Goku from the Dragon Ball series. Just like her American counterpart, she doesn't have long eyelashes. This is unlike Blossom and Bubble's Japanese counterparts, who both have long eyelashes. However, they may be short as a quick clip shows her eyelashes for a moment. She is the only member of Powerpuff Girls Z without a "ko" (a suffix most common in female names) at the end of her name, likely to represent her non-feminine personality. Like Momoko and Miyako that have locations in Japan for last names, Matsubara is a city in Osaka, Japan. Despite this, Matsubara can also be a common last name. She is the only member of Powerpuff Girls Z to not have her name start with an M, like Miyako and Momoko.