Prelude
I remembered I was watching Sailor Moon
on ABC 5 (recently known as TV5) when I was 5 years old. That was the first
anime I’ve watched. I was a Sailor Moon fan because I had a Sailor Guardian
doll. But I’m not sure who because my toys were kept in a box.
Last year, I visited Comic Alley shop at
SM City Fairview. I was surprised that they had Sailor Moon merchandise. I took
a look then suddenly a staff noticed me and asked. He informed me that the
Sailor Moon had a new version. So I got interested and soon I will watch the
series. It took me a while because of my busy schedule due to my work. Then
last month I had a chance watching its new version called Pretty Guardian
Sailor Moon Crystal. I was not used in seeing the new version, most especially
with the new Mamoru Chiba/Tuxedo Mask. But as the story continues, I started
liking it.
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| Official Poster of Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon Crystal |
Manga
In every anime released, there was a
manga. Some animes were stick to the manga’s story; but some were not due to
the manga was still ongoing. And as a result, the ending of the anime version
was different from the manga.
Sailor Moon manga was written and
illustrated by Naoko Takeuchi. This manga had 18 volumes and divided into 5
arcs: Dark Kingdom (Queen Metaria), Black Moon (Death Phantom), Death Busters
(Professor Soichi Tomoe), Dead Moon Circus (Queen Nehelenia), and Shadow
Galactica (Chaos).
I didn’t read the manga because I was
more interested in its anime adaptation.
 |
| Manga Cover of Pretty Soldier Sailor Moon |
The
Moon Battle: 90’s Original vs. 2014 Version
 |
| "Tsuki ni kawatte oshioki yo!" (In the name of the Moon, I'll punish you!) - Sailor Moon (90s version on the left, 2014 version on the right) |
The entire TV series had 200 episodes and
was one of the most successful anime during the 90’s. It had 4 titles: Sailor
Moon, Sailor Moon R, Sailor Moon S, and Sailor Moon SS. The destined sailor
soldiers namely Usagi Tsukino as Sailor Moon, Ami Mizuno as Sailor Mercury, Rei
Hino as Sailor Mars, Makoto Kino as Sailor Jupiter, Minako Aino as Sailor
Venus, Chibi-usa as Sailor Chibi Moon, Haruka Tenoh as Sailor Uranus, Michiru
Kaioh as Sailor Neptune, Setsuna Meioh as Sailor Pluto and Hotaru Tomoe as
Sailor Saturn defeated the strongest villains such as Queen Metaria and Death Phantom.
On the other hand, the 2014 version named Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon Crystal
had 26 episodes.
There was a big difference between the
original and the reboot versions of Sailor Moon in terms of market and
animation effects. The original targeted girls age 5-17 while the reboot
targeted the young girls of new generation and women who grew up during 90s who
were fans of the said anime. Crystal had less humor compared with the original,
but it’s more faithful anime adaptation from the manga. If I were to choose, I
prefer the 2014 version.
 |
| Sailor Guardians from left to right: Haruka Tenoh (Sailor Uranus), Michiru Kaioh (Sailor Neptune), Minako Aino (Sailor Venus). Rei Hino (Sailor Mars), Usagi Tsukino (Sailor Moon), Ami Mizuno (Sailor Mercury), Makoto Kino (Sailor Jupiter), Setsuna Meioh (Sailor Pluto), and Hotaru Tomoe (Sailor Saturn) |
Episode
List
Act
1 – Usagi (Sailor Moon)
Act
2 – Ami (Sailor Mercury)
Act
3 – Rei (Sailor Mars)
Act
4 – Masquerade Dance Party
Act
5 – Makoto (Sailor Jupiter)
Act
6 – Tuxedo Mask
Act
7 – Mamoru Chiba (Tuxedo Mask)
Act
8 – Minako (Sailor V)
Act
9 – Serenity (Princess)
Act
10 – Moon
Act
11 – Reunion (Endymion)
Act
12 – Enemy (Queen Metaria)
Act
13 – Final Battle (Reincarnation)
Act
14 – Conclusion and Commencement (Petite Étrangére)
Act
15 – Infiltration (Sailor Mars)
Act
16 – Abduction (Sailor Mercury)
Act
17 – Secret (Sailor Jupiter)
Act
18 – Invasion (Sailor Venus)
Act
19 – Time Warp (Sailor Pluto)
Act
20 – Crystal Tokyo (King Endymion)
Act
21 – Complication (Nemesis)
Act
22 – Hidden Agenda (Nemesis)
Act
23 – Covert Maneuvers (Wiseman)
Act
24 – Attack (Black Lady)
Act
25 – Showdown (Death Phantom)
Act
26 – Replay (Never Ending)
Original
Soundtrack
 |
| Official Cover of Sailor Moon Crystal OST |
Goose bumps and two thumbs-up! Those
were my comments after I heard the soundtrack. Momoiro Clover Z sang the
opening theme song Moon Pride and ending theme song Gekkou. The rest of the
instrumental and background theme songs were composed by the genius arranger
and keyboardist Yasuharu Takanashi.
My favorite instrumental composed by
Yasuharu-sensei was Tuxedo Mask [6th track from Sailor Moon Crystal
OST Disc 1 or 1st track of Chapter II: Tuxedo Romance]. It was
seductive yet mysterious, just like Tuxedo Mask.
The reason why the album cover of the
soundtrack was a stained glass of Prince Endymion and Princess Serenity was some
of his instrumentals sounded ethereal, thus gave me goose bumps such as Legend
of the Moon, Hitotoki no Heian (Moments of Peace), and Tsuki no Inori wo (A
Prayer To The Moon).
Sailor
Guardians: Celestial Transformation
Sailor Guardians' Transformation from Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon Crystal
Princess Serenity of the Moon Kingdom
was reincarnated as Usagi Tsukino in the present time and became Sailor Moon by
using a brooch and saying “Moon Prism Power Make-up!” out loud.
The past princesses of each planet
protected the Moon Princess were reincarnated in the present time as ordinary
school girls and destined to be sailor guardians. They used transformation
items in order to help Sailor Moon defeating the evil.
While I was watching the first half of
the series (Acts 1-13), I was impressed with the special effects used during
the transformation of Usagi, Ami, Rei, Makoto, and Minako into Sailor
Guardians. That’s why I suddenly liked the reboot version of Pretty Guardian
Sailor Moon Crystal.
Tuxedo
Mask: The Past and the Present
 |
| Tuxedo Mask [90s version on left, 2014 version on right] |
Tuxedo Mask was Mamoru Chiba’s
alter-ego. Mamo-chan, as Usagi named him, was the present reincarnation of
Endymion. He was a high school student from Moto-Azabu Private High School.
He wore black tuxedo and white mask with
black hat as he searched for the Legendary Silver Crystal to regain his
memories while assisting Sailor Moon and other Sailor Guardians during battles.
He was usually brainwashed by the antagonists. Unlike the 90s anime, he didn’t
use red roses as his only offensive attack to interrupt the evil from striking
towards the Sailor Guardians.
The 2014 version of Mamoru Chiba was
physically different from his 90s version. I was not used in seeing the new
Mamoru Chiba/Tuxedo Mask. But as the story continues, I realized that he’s more
handsome, more charming, and more manly than the 90’s Mamoru Chiba/Tuxedo Mask.
Usagi
and Mamoru: The Destined Romance
 |
| Usagi Tsukino noticed Mamoru Chiba as Tuxedo Mask [from Act 6] |
The past romance of the strong and
charming Prince of Earth named Endymion, and the enchanting princess of Moon
Kingdom named Serenity existed in present thru dreams of Usagi Tsukino and
Mamoru Chiba. Their first encounter was when Usagi threw her exam at her back
and Mamoru read the result that she threw at him. Then they met a lot of times
as Sailor Moon and Tuxedo Mask.
Mamoru’s alter-ego, Tuxedo Mask knew
that Usagi was Sailor Moon while searching the Legendary Silver Crystal to
regain his lost memories. After Usagi knew Mamoru was Tuxedo Mask, she called
him ‘Mamo-chan’ as Mamoru named her ‘Usako’. They remembered the past that they
were Princess Serenity and Prince Endymion when they fought Queen Metalia thru
the Legendary Silver Crystal that was formed because of Usagi’s pure tear.
I’m a person who doesn’t believe in fate
when it comes to love. But because of anime romance, just like Usagi and Mamoru’s,
it changed my belief that soon my ‘Tuxedo Kamen’ will arrive in my life.
Sequitur
 |
| Princess Serenity and her Legendary Silver Crystal |
The story of Sailor Moon proved that
deep friendship and destined love exist. It’s a reminder that we should believe
in ourselves that we’ll surpass the life challenges. But most importantly, we
should take care and love our Mother Earth.
Wrapping up my blog review, I give
Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon Crystal a rating of 4 out of 5 stars because of its
more faithfulness to the manga and impressive animation effects. I didn’t give
a perfect score because I’m still hoping for its second season wherein Sailors
Neptune, Uranus, Pluto, and Saturn will be introduced. I will be forever a fan
of Sailor Moon and I will definitely introduce it to my niece and my future
daughter soon.
Information sources:
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sailor_Moon
- http://sailormoon.wikia.com/wiki/Pretty_Guardian_Sailor_Moon_Crystal
Photo sources:
- http://animesecrets.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/sailor-moon-crystal-poster.jpg
- http://mangastyle.net/covers/manga01.jpg
- http://i1210.photobucket.com/albums/cc403/GWOtakuTZ/Sailor%20Moon%202014%20Remaster/SailorMoon1_Pose_zpsd91da6b2.jpg
- http://files.umwblogs.org/blogs.dir/7524/files/2014/09/usagi2.png
- http://th08.deviantart.net/fs71/PRE/i/2014/219/6/e/sailor_moon_crystal_wallpaper_ii_by_xuweisen-d7u3e42.jpg
- http://www.sailormooncollectibles.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/sailormoon-crystal-soundtrack-cd2014.jpg
- https://tysontrepidations.files.wordpress.com/2011/08/tuxedo-mask.jpg;
- http://vignette4.wikia.nocookie.net/sailormoon/images/4/43/Tuxedo_Mask_crystal.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20140705144558
- http://36.media.tumblr.com/ca93124b8d2b1fdf2d4e04b38cb0560f/tumblr_nmaihcY79V1qjkedbo6_1280.png
- http://static.tumblr.com/82c27a893c8115746bc1ba1c6b8959ea/ulfhwxf/lmbnjd9ut/tumblr_static_43v0d5vtx82s0gccs4s84w04w.jpg
Video source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dqlfjf-Kmac
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