Sailor Moon
From Free net encyclopedia
- This page is about the full Sailor Moon media franchise. For more information on the character entitled "Sailor Moon", see Usagi Tsukino. For more detailed information about the English language release of Sailor Moon see Sailor Moon (English version).
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Template:Nihongo is the title of the famous series originally authored as a manga by Naoko Takeuchi that resulted in multiple other types of media, including anime, musical theatre, video games and live action tokusatsu.
The story of the metaseries revolves around the reincarnated defenders of a destroyed kingdom that spanned the solar system, and the evil forces they battle.
Sailor Moon is generally credited with popularizing the concept of a sentai (team) of magical girls rather than anime in which one girl works alone. It is also credited with the reemergence of the popularity of mahou shoujo, or Magical Girl anime.
Although many concepts in the manga, anime, musicals and tokusatsu overlap, there are many notable divergences. Fans caution viewers not to always use information from either source to explain the other.
Contents |
Story
Fourteen-year-old junior high student Usagi Tsukino discovers that she is the reincarnation of Princess Serenity, the princess of an ancient Kingdom. She is granted powers to defend the Solar System against an evil force. This evil force originally destroyed her kingdom, the Moon Kingdom. (Note: In the original Japanese versions the name of the kingdom on the moon is Silver Millennium. In the English dub, Silver Millennium refers to the time period, not the name of the place.) She fights using the identity of Sailormoon ("Sailor Moon" is used in the English dub, while both "Sailormoon" and "Sailor Moon" appear in the Japanese manga and anime-related sources). As the series progresses, Sailormoon is reunited with other reincarnated soldiers—the princess's guardian soldiers. She is also reunited with her lover, Prince Endymion of Earth, who serves equally as romantic interest and primary protector.
Manga
Sailor Moon falls into the shōjo genre of manga. Its main series was serialized in Kodansha's Nakayoshi in Japan. The side-stories were serialized in Kodansha's Run Run.
The manga's creator, Naoko Takeuchi, devised the idea when she wanted to create a cute series about girls in outer space. Her editor, Fumio Osano (whom Takeuchi calls "Osa-P"), asked her to put them in Sailor Suits. This resulted in Codename wa Sailor V, which is considered (canon-wise) a prequel to Sailor Moon. When that manga was slated to become an anime, Takeuchi decided to merge in plot elements from the popular sentai genre, most notably the concept of a team of five heroes, consequently remaking the manga into Bishōjo Senshi Sailor Moon, with a new central character. Thus Usagi and her friends were born. After the completion of the first series, she was surprised when she was asked to continue the metaseries; this gave birth to the other four manga arcs.
Naoko Takeuchi amalgamated many seemingly separate themes in the creation of Sailor Moon. Combining her love of space with Greek myth, Roman myth, Japanese elemental themes, and Meiji period sailor fuku school uniforms, she managed to fuse together the popular magical girl and sentai genres, creating a completely new and original idea.
The manga initially spanned 18 volumes. The manga has since been re-released as the 12 Volume "Renewal" manga. It still consists of the same arcs, but the Renewal Manga has been rewritten and redrawn for a new feel. There are 5 major arcs in the Manga. The arcs are the following:
- Sailormoon
Introduces Sailor Moon, and the Senshi from the Inner Solar System, as well as the major plot arc for the series. Corresponds to the first anime series as well as the live-action television series.
- Black Moon
Introduces Chibiusa, Crystal Tokyo, Sailor Pluto and the future of the characters (possible). The original ending point of the series before Kodansha requested that Takeuchi add another arc to the story line. Corresponds to the second arc of the second anime series.
- Infinity
Introduces Sailor Uranus, Neptune and Saturn. Corresponds to the third anime series.
- Dream
Introduces the concept of Sailor Crystals. Corresponds to the fourth anime series.
- Stars
Explores the origins of the Sailor Soldiers and introduces a great many new senshi from distant parts of the galaxy. Corresponds to the fifth and final anime series.
- Sidestories and Specials
Kaguya Hime no Koibito
In the original manga, this special appeared in Volume 11. It coincides with the S Movie.
Casablanca Memories
In the original manga, this special appeared in Volume 11 alongside "Kaguya Hime no Koibito."
Chibi-Usa Picture Diaries
There are 4 of these short stories about Chibi-Usa's adventures. They also reveal her true age (902). In the original manga, these specials appeared in Volumes 5, 10, 15, and 17.
The Exams Battles
There are 3 Exam Battle stories originally contained in Volume 13. The only one of these to make it into the Anime was the one about Ami, which became Ami-chan no Hatsukoi (Ami's first love).
Parallel Sailor Moon
This short 19-page black and white manga originally appeared in the Sailor Moon Materials Collection Artbook. It follows the adventures of Tsukino Kousagi, the second daughter of Usagi in this alternate reality. The series is meant as a humorous take on the Sailor Moon series, not to be taken seriously.
Anime adaptations
With 200 episodes originally airing in Japan from March 1992 to February 1997, Sailor Moon was the longest magical girl anime series to date. Currently it has been surpassed only by the "Ojamajo Doremi" metaseries with 214 episodes. Although many other shows have followed the same formula as Sailor Moon, most are generally considered to be relatively uninspiring and none have ever been the marketing giant that this anime has become. As it has been adapted into versions for many countries, Sailor Moon is arguably one of the most famous anime properties in the world.
The anime's first two series contain stories that vaguely revolve around the backdrop of Silver Millennium (the ancient kingdom on the moon) and the superficially-related kingdom in the future, Crystal Tokyo. The third series is quite dark in comparison, while the fourth is sometimes considered overly light and silly. The metaseries enjoyed renewed interest in its final fifth series, although its reuse of many plot devices (Not to mention a refusal to adapt some of the darker points of the corresponding manga arc's story) bothered some fans.
The Japanese Bishōjo Senshi Sērā Mūn (Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon) anime metaseries is composed of five separate series. A complete episode listing, translation, and edited English language name is given as an external link at the bottom of this article. The five Sailor Moon anime series are listed below with their English language names first:
- Sailor Moon
- Bishōjo Senshi Sērā Mūn (Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon)
- Japanese version: 46 episodes, from #1-ja through #46-ja.
- English version: 40 episodes, from #1-en through #40-en.
- Usually referred to by fans as the "Classic" series, to avoid confusion with the entire metaseries. In this part, we are introduced to Usagi, her friends and family, and how she becomes Sailor Moon. We are also introduced to the other senshi, and Usagi's future husband and ally, Mamoru, a.k.a Tuxedo Kamen (Mask in the English dub).
- Sailor Moon R
- Bishōjo Senshi Sērā Mūn R (Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon R)
- Japanese version: 43 episodes, from #47-ja through #89-ja.
- English version: 42 episodes, from #41-en through #82-en.
- Sailor Moon R is actually two story arcs. According to the Memorial Song Box booklet, "R" can stand for "Romance," "Return," etc.
- The first arc of R was developed by the shows animators as filler and was not part of the manga. This comprised episodes 47-59.
- The second arc of R constains episodes 60-89. It corresponds to the Black Moon arc of the manga.
- To avoid confusion, it should be reminded that the 1995 English-language adaptation only used the first 72 episodes (i.e. not all of SM: R) and shrunk them down into 65, while the remaining 17 episodes of SMR were only adapted into English in 1997. This 24-episode condensation/omission from the Japanese to English versions, as well as the editing, have created a strong fanbase among Americans that have little respect for the dub.
- Sailor Moon S
- Bishōjo Senshi Sērā Mūn S (Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon S)
- Japanese version: 38 episodes, from #90-ja through #127-ja.
- English version: 38 episodes, from #90-en through #127-en.
- Episodes #83-en through #89-en do not exist. At the start of S, the English version's episode numbers were adjusted to match those of the original Japanese version.
- The "S" stands for "Super".
- Sailor Moon SuperS
- Bishōjo Senshi Sērā Mūn SuperS (Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon SuperS)
- Japanese version: 39 episodes, from #128-ja through #166-ja.
- English version: 39 episodes, from #128-en through #166-en.
- The second "S" after the "Super", contrary to popular belief, does make it plural as you can tell in the way that it is pronounced (Template:IPA, "Supah-sue").
- Sailor Moon Sailor Stars
- Bishōjo Senshi Sērā Mūn Sailor Stars (Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon Sailor Stars)
- Japanese version: 34 episodes, from #167-ja through #200-ja.
- This series was never shown in English, however the common translation for the series name is Sailor Moon Stars. An English version of Sailor Moon Stars is not going to be produced, so Anglophones who wish to view it must find it through other overseas sources.
There are three Sailor Moon movies, and these have independent stories that are separate from the series. The movies fall in the general timeline of each of the three middle series (R, S, and SuperS).
There are a few specials as well: Sailor Moon SuperS Special, and Sailor Moon SuperS Plus: Ami-chan no Hatsukoi (Ami's First Love), both of which take place around the SuperS series. Additionally, there are several Sailor Moon soundtracks available.
It has also been argued that Takeuchi was offended by some of the changes made to the final series. The most infamous of these is the identity of the three supporting characters, the "Starlights", from women disguised as men in the manga to men who change into women in the anime.
This change is also largely cited as the cause for the last series being withheld from the English-speaking Western market. Ironically, it has aired in Germany, France, Italy, Portugal, and Latin America (with the Starlights being made out to be Girls or having female companions in some markets).
Musical stage show adaptations
- Main article: Sailor Moon Musicals
The musicals, usually referred to collectively as Seramyu, are a series of live theatre productions that have played over 800 performances in some 26 musicals since 1993. The producers generally follow and expand upon plot concepts presented in the anime and manga, however there are several original plot lines.
The series generally runs twice a year, in the winter and in the summer. In the summer the only venue for the musicals is the Sunshine Theatre in the Ikebukuro area of Tokyo; however in the winter it does also tour to the larger cities in Japan.
The latest incarnation of the series, Template:Nihongo, was staged in January 2005. After the January 2005 show, the series went on a "short hiatus", according to the current producer, BMO. There have been no signs, however, that the show will continue.
Televised "live action" drama adaptation
Main Article: Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon
| Act 14 January 10, 2004 - 4.0%* |
| (*Near death of a main character) |
| Act 15 January 17, 2004 - 3.2% |
| Act 16 January 24, 2004 - 3.2% |
| Act 17 January 31, 2004 - 4.7%* |
| (*Introduction of a new character) |
| Act 18 February 07, 2004 - 3.8% |
A live action version of Sailor Moon was broadcast from October 4, 2003 through to September 25, 2004. The series lasted a total of 49 episodes, and the broadcast originated from of the Tokyo Broadcasting System. Another 28 television stations in Japan retransmitted the series, though some of them were weeks behind the TBS schedule because they started airing the series late.
The series is known officially as Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon (usually abbreviated by fans to simply PGSM), and it is the first series in the franchise to have an official English title.
The show more closely followed the original manga than the animated metaseries in its first few episodes, but proceeded to follow a significantly different storyline than those of the manga and anime later in the show.
There were also several radio programs called "DJ Moon" based on the show that originated from Chubu-Nippon Broadcasting radio and were broadcast on other radio networks in Japan. The shows were a combination of a radio drama and promotional tool for the TV series, often foreshadowing upcoming events. These shows were later sold on CD.
The live action broadcast's ratings were not as high as those of the original show. The show had a high start, but then the ratings slid. They picked up in January of 2004 and then again at the end of the series. There were peaks and valleys in the ratings depending on the plot elements.
In addition to the broadcast television show, there was also a stage musical performance by characters on the show. Some footage from the filming of the stage show was used in the television broadcast. There was also an instructional video released.
Additionally, there were two direct-to-video releases after the show ended its television broadcast: The "Special Act", set several years after the series ended, and "Act Zero", which showed the origins of Sailor V and Tuxedo Kamen.
Video games
The Sailor Moon console and arcade video games were originally released only in Japan. They have been unreleased in North America and most other Non-Japanese countries (with the exception of Bishoujo Senshi Sailor moon, the first game developed by the studio Angel and released in France in 1996), and have not been translated into English and other languages, with the exception of Sailor Moon: Another Story, which has been translated via emulation by a fan group. The games are hard to find outside of Japan, although the ROMs can be downloaded from various websites.
Bandai produced a small handful of the games, while most were handled by a Japanese game company called Angel. Early games were that of a side-scrolling fighter, whereas later games were typically unique puzzle games, and even later titles chose to go a versus fighting game style. Another Story was the only game to stand out, being a role-playing game. Panic in Nakayoshi World was also released, an overhead Adventures of Lolo-style puzzle game featuring characters from various Nakayoshi-printed manga. Sailor Moon and Chibi Moon are playable characters.
The games mainly saw release on the Super Famicom, with the first side-scroller being ported to the Sega Mega Drive. A separate arcade side-scrolling fighter was also released.
In addition, two side-scrolling adventure games were produced for the Game Boy (Sailormoon and Sailormoon R), and a side-scrolling game was also produced for the Game Gear (Sailormoon S).
A final versus fighting game saw release for the Sega Saturn and Sony Playstation.
A US game was released for the PC. A minigame compilation titled The 3D Adventures of Sailor Moon. Aside from the theme, the games did little to tie in to the series.
English adaptations
English-dubbed anime
Main Article: Sailor Moon (English version)
After a bidding war between Saban Entertainment and DiC Entertainment, DiC acquired the rights to the first 72 episodes of Sailor Moon, consisting of the entire first series and two-thirds of Sailor Moon R. Through the omission of 6 episodes and the merging of two others, the total episode count was reduced to 65, the minimum number of episodes required for strip syndication on US television. The remaining episodes were each cut by several minutes to make room for more commercials, to censor plot points or visuals deemed inappropriate for children, and to allow the insertion of "educational" segments called "Sailor Says" at the end of each episode. The remaining 17 episodes of Sailor Moon R were adapted later, and were treated in much the same way.
The English adaptations of Sailor Moon S and Sailor Moon Supers (the third and fourth series) stayed comparatively closer to the original Japanese versions, and no episodes were skipped or merged.
Changes Made
Many changes were made to the basic storyline of the series, primarily so that the contents would conform to the much tighter regulations placed on American television series aimed at younger children. Many fans who were familiar with the original Japanese version strongly disliked it for this reason.
One of the most drastic (and maligned) alterations involved Queen Beryl's henchman, Zoicite ("Zoycite" in the English adaptation), who was presented as a woman to cover the originally-male character's homosexual relationship with another of Beryl's henchmen, Kunzite ("Malachite" in the English adaptation).
"Saban Moon"
On the other hand, had production company Saban acquired the series, it could have been far worse. Saban wanted to just acquire the rights to the name of the show and transform it into a live action series that would have no resemblance to the anime, as evident through an infamous video file that was distributed on the Internet. (See External links) Other fans, while acknowledging the dubbed version's flaws, willfully accept it due to the fact that the show was their first exposure to anime.
English-language manga
The manga was translated into English in 1997 by manga publisher Mixx (now renamed TOKYOPOP). The manga was initially syndicated in MixxZine but was later pulled out of that magazine and moved into a secondary magazine called "SMILE." The decision was controversial for numerous reasons: first due to the fact that Mixx waited until after MixxZine's first year of publication had ended (around mid-1998) and its readers had renewed their subscriptions, to announce that it was pulling Sailor Moon from the magazine and moving it to a new magazine. Second was Mixx's controversial decision to leap forward from the midway point of the original "Dark Kingdom" storyline to the start of the Sailor Moon SuperS story when Sailor Moon began publication in the pages of "SMILE."
Rumors for the motives behind these actions ranged from pure greed to that of Mixx dealing with a growing backlash amongst retailers over MixxZine. Many retailers, eager for a monthly Sailor Moon series to sell, reacted negatively to not only to the magazine anthology style format of MixxZine but also towards Mixx decision to include the ultra-violent Parasyte in the anthology, and that Mixx's decision was a way to respond to its critics' complaints. A year later, after toying with the notion of releasing the unpublished Sailor Moon stories in trade paperback format, Mixx opted to publish them instead in the standard US comic book format.
The U.S. Sailor Moon monthly comic ran for 35 issues, and aside from finishing up the Dark Kingdom storyline, it featured the manga versions of Sailor Moon R and Super. Unlike MixxZine, the regular comic series was launched with no hype and promotion. As a result the early issues quickly became collectors items, selling for $20-40 on the online auction site Ebay and the secondary market.
For the most part, the Mixx names match the English names for the main characters while at the same time using the Japanese names for those characters who were from seasons not yet dubbed in English. The only exception was Sailor Moon, who in the Tokyopop version was referred to by the nickname "Bunny." The manga is flipped to read left to right. As Sailor Moon was Mixx's first title, the quality of its translation in the beginning is extremely poor, though it improves somewhat towards the end of its publication run.
The US manga was released as three series: "Sailor Moon", which collects the first three arcs (the Dark Kingdom, Black Moon, and Infinity arcs), Sailor Moon SuperS, which collects the SuperS arc, and Sailor Moon Stars, which collects the Sailor Stars arc. While they feature all of the content from the original manga collections, the volumes also contain the occasional new sketch and "thank you" commentary from series creator Naoko Takeuchi.
As of October 2005, all of the Sailor Moon manga trade paperbacks are out of print as a result of an ongoing licensing dispute between Takeuchi and TOEI Studio. TOKYOPOP has expressed interest in re-releasing the Sailor Moon manga with a more accurate translation and uniform format, but as of this date are unable to do so until current disputes between Takeuchi and TOEI are resolved.
English-language reference
Possibly due to the large number of variances in the localizations, the original Japanese names are more commonly used in the U.S. The poor quality of the early dub and the somewhat bad first impressions of Tokyopop (at the time Mixx) left on fans at first may also have contributed to a general disdain for the American names.
Characters
Major protagonists
The names shown after the Japanese names are those used in the North American translations. See the individual articles and the article on the Sailor Soldiers for more detail. The North American versions rarely, if ever, used last names for the characters.
- Usagi Tsukino / Serena Tsukino - The main character of the series, Usagi is a carefree schoolgirl with a heart of gold. She transforms into Sailor Moon. Her nickname in the English manga is Bunny, to keep the rabbit puns intact. A later dubbed episode of Sailor Moon has Serena give her last name as "Tsukino."
- Mamoru Chiba / Darien Shields - Usagi's boyfriend and destined true love reincarnate. He transforms into Tuxedo Mask. His last name, 'Shields', is only referenced in the Tokyopop manga.
- Ami Mizuno / Amy Mizuno/Anderson - The genius best friend of Usagi. She transforms into Sailor Mercury. The DIC-produced English dub had Amy give her name as "Anderson" (although this is in dispute), while in the later CWI-produced series, "Mizuno" appeared again.
- Rei Hino / Raye Hino - A miko (a priestess) who attends a Catholic private school, although she is Shinto. She transforms into Sailor Mars. The English dub used the name "Hino" in one episode.
- Makoto Kino / Lita - The very tall tomboy who lives alone because her parents died in an airplane crash. She transforms into Sailor Jupiter.
- Minako Aino / Mina - She acted on her own as Sailor V before joining the other Sailor Soldiers. She transforms into Sailor Venus.
Notes on antagonists
In the North American dub, all of the different groups of antagonists are lumped together under the generic term "Negaverse", without really differentiating between them. This changes somewhat by the S and SuperS series, where the antagonists are seen in their proper (if renamed) groups.
Trivia
Much of the action in Sailormoon is set in the real life suburb of Azabu Juuban, where Naoko Takeuchi resides. Many of the buildings exist or have existed in real life, for example Crown Game Center (now a convenience store), the park where the senshi meet, Hikawa Jinja Shrine where Rei is a miko, and Rei, Usagi and ChibiUsa's schools. Mamoru studies at nearby "KO University" which is a pun on the name of the actual Keio University, alumni of which include the current Japanese prime minister Junichiro Koizumi.
The elements of the inner senshi (minus Moon) reflect the elements of the Ssu Ling. Jupiter, Venus, Mars, and Mercury's elements being Wood (in the later series), Metal, Fire, and Water respectively.
External links and references
Online
- Template:Ja icon Sailormoon Channel: The Official Website
- Template:Ja icon Sailor Stars website : TV Toei website (using web archive).
- The Manga of Naoko Takeuchi: Translations of the original Sailormoon manga, with new translations of the shinzoubon (New Volumes).
- Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon Hitoshi Doi Episode guide, seiyuu information, and basic Anime information
- The Oracle - Largest Sailor Moon resource site on the internet.
- Eternal-Moon - Contains Illustrated Episode Guides for the Anime series and Live Action series, also has Image galleries of both series.
- The Sailor Senshi Page - Has information and current news on the series.
- Sailor Moon Uncensored- Changes from the Anime to the dub.
- A Sailor Moon Romance: Large Sailor Moon fan fiction archive with free message board.
- Shingetsu - PGSM information page with guide to the episodes and guide.
- Genvid- Information, news, and forums. Publishers of Warriors of Legend.
- In Defense of Super S: Information about the fourth series.
- Sailor Moon à la Saban: Debunked: An interview with the president of Toon Makers, who contracted with Saban to produce their pilot
- DIES GAUDII: Contains articles on etymologies of Sailor Moon words and fact checking on plot points.
- Castle in the Sky: Contains info of Sailor Moon and also summaries of Sailor Moon.de:Sailor Moon
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