Sailor Moon S: The Movie

Genre: fantasy (could be considered comedy, female themed) Length: 60 minutes (theatrical film) Audience Age: 3+ (If you view the dubbed version)

Opinion: The film shows the full potential of the possible stories that can be written for this series.

This is a review of the subtitled VHS version.

One of the first notable animes to get imported to the United States.

I know many huge anime fans do not consider Sailor Moon to be anime despite it being from Japan, but I think that maybe a tad unfair.

If it was not for Cartoon Network's Toonami line up bringing back shows I watched when I was five or six I would not have become a major league anime fan, but I was originally turned off by this two hour afternoon cartoon block when they would always remove one of my favorite shows like Voltron or Robotech to fit Sailor Moon into line up. I did not have any intentions of watching Sailor Moon, but when you do not have a job during the summer, you watch anything on TV.

It took some time, but I soon realized that Sailor Moon may have been the best show on the Toonami line up until they picked up Mobile Suit Gundam Wing. Not my favorite show, but I guess Robotech may have lost a little to much in the translation, so I recognize that the series in the states was only slightly superior to 80s American toy based cartoons like G.I. Joe and Transformers. What makes Sailor Moon one of the best shows offered to kids are the somewhat serious plots, it has enough totally off the wall characters so the show would not grow stale too quickly, and the best aspect being that the series is full of almost all of the best anime clichés* (examples of anime clichés: giant heads when characters are angered and the giant sweat drop when characters are nervous).

Perhaps the fact that you could not obtain loyal to the original Japanese translations is why it not considered to be anime. From viewing some of the original Japanese episodes with subtitles by the show's fans, I do know that the show may have been aimed at a much more mature audience before Time Warner and Disney owned DiC (the original distributor for U.S. TV) got a hold of it. Personally, I think that those who do not consider Sailor Moon to be anime are just bitter that their favorite shows have not crossed over to the American audience (anyone offended by this comment can e-mail me about it at bitemeotakus@animeflow.cubs).

If you have not seen any of the Sailor Moon episodes on American TV to allow you to pass judgment I advice that you do not. It maybe an expensive recommendation, but I advice you go out and buy one of the subtitled videos to determine if the series is or is not an anime.

NOTE: Rarely do I recommend spending the extra $5 to $10 to buy a subtitled version of an anime, but I do feel that this is the best way to view Sailor Moon. Otherwise, I will always recommend saving money until companies like A.D.V. Films, Pioneer, and Central Park Media pay me to do otherwise.

It is Winter in Tokyo and the weather is not the only thing cold. Luna, Usagi's (alter-ego Sailor Moon) talking cat and advisor/pet, is acting cold towards Artemis, Minako's (alter-ego Sailor Venus) talking cat and advisor/pet, and it also seems like she has a cold. In her ill state, she decides to find her way home by herself after an argument with the other cat. While she tries to make it home, she is nearly hit by a car, but is rescued by an astronomer. Her hero takes her to his home to help her recover, and Luna gets pretty attached to him making her ponder what love truly is.

We also find out three things about her savior:
*Yes we do find out his name, but when I am also trying to remember the names of the 10 heroines, I cannot remember everything.*

1. He has a piece of a strange comet.
2. He believes in a moon princess.
3. He is suffering from some strange illness.
   Is he suffering from Luna's cold, or is his illness related to the other unique items about him? Also, could this be connected to the new ice demonesses who are attacking Tokyo?