Sailor Moon

I don't even remember that being explicitly stated even. I mean, there's the transformation sequence, but it could have been like, really good cross-dressing. Ahh, I really don't remember, Stars is my least favourite season, and Seiya is kinda... Meh.

Funny how he was kinda set up as a replacement love interest only for that to come to absolutely nothing... Meanwhile the director is a Usagi×Rei shipper and despite all that the final kissing scene is with Marmoru who had been notably absent almost the entire season.

Seiya fell for Usagi in the manga too in place of a missing Mamoru, though she was more subtle about it in front of Usagi. The anime didn't actually invent that arc, they just played it up a little harder.

edited 6th Jul '12 10:48:54 PM by Rebochan

Hello! Popping onto this board for the first time because I had to gush and geek out with somebody over this. Dreams do come true!

I don't even care how they do it, as long as when it's dubbed no one that ever touched the original in America is allowed within miles of the production.

...honestly, I have trouble imagining Luna speaking in anything other than her dub voice.

That is a little hard on the dub voice actors though, and all the people involved in general. A fair bit of the meddling was likely decided at the executive level, so there's a limit to how much you can even blame the script writer.

I think all the Voice Actors were fine.

I particularly liked whoever voiced Sailor Moon in seasons 1 and 2 (well, the first Voice Actor who did anyway, Tracey Moore I think, although Terri Hawkes was fine too. Linda Ballantyne was annoying though).

Luna though... Well, although her British accent is good, she kinda sounds too old. She's actually much younger than she sounds in English.

edited 7th Jul '12 5:04:22 AM by UltimatelySubjective

So someone mentioned earlier in this thread asked if this would be the Reconstruction Answer to Madoka, and it dawns on me that the timing of this series appearing not too long after Madoka came and went is probably not coincidence.

Hell, the fact that the answer such a brutal Deconstruction of the Magical Girl genre comes from the Trope Codifier for all modern Magical Girl shows is even less of a coincidence.

Gen Urobuchi threw the gauntlet, and now it's been answered in the best way possible.

So since Madoka was the Neon Genesis Evangelion of the Magical Girl genre this will be the Gurren Lagann of the genre?

If so, I cant wait for this.

Or the Gao Gai Gar.

And if this is successful, it should crossover with Toei's Pretty Cure Franchise, which is basically Sailor Moon's Spiritual Successor, to make the whole thing go full cirle.

Add Cutey Honey to the mix, the Trope Maker for Magical Girl Warrior (which Sailor Moon then combined with Sentai), and I'm sold.

@Handsome Rob: I was half-joking about the reconstruction thing. Keep in mind Madoka Magica isn't exactly gone yet; there's the Compilation Movie and subsequent continuation to think about. It would be hilarious if the continuation movie was released around the same time as the Sailor Moon remake.

And yeah, this is more Gao Gai Gar than Gurren Lagann if we're going to be making silly comparisons like this. Lagann came out before the first Rebuild movie was being released, after all.

edited 7th Jul '12 1:41:36 PM by universalperson

IIRC, heavy Executive Meddling from Toei during Super S caused Ikuhara to leave the series, and that's why that season turned out worse than S and R.

Although I like the second half of Super S, once the Quartet shows up.

A crucial difference between Evangelion and Madoka in how they approached their respective genres is that while Eva piled on the horror and angst all the way, Madoka turns around right at the end and becomes its own reconstruction. It can be said that episodes 3 to 11 are to make the audience believe things could end badly, and make episode twelve look like the heroines defy their destiny rather than fulfil it. And the end leaves it as a more conventional example of the genre. So while Eva was demanding a direct response, Madoka is more a source of pointers on how to do things.

If there's one thing to learn from Madoka, it's about the Weasel Mascot or other mentors to the warriors. They need not be as uncaring as Kyubey, but giving them an alien worldview can pull the audience into the mystery of the alternate world, make an intriguing character whose thinking follows a strange but consistent logic, and provides a source of drama between the heroes.

Hopefully, the new series will pick up some tips.

It's a shame because Super S has actually decent animation.

I liked the humour, but the monsters of the week were more like jokes. So it was really odd that they were so powerful.

And of course, practically requiring the presence of the token mini moe so she can ring a bell to summon a horse to power them up so that they can actually attack is one of the most needlessly complicated attack plans ever.

So much about Super S bothers me...

...in the manga, Chibimoon actually had her own attack. That hurt people. Sailor Moon? Same. The change in the anime to requiring Chibimoon to summon Pegasus to do anything actually made both lead characters weaker by comparison.

It is kinda impractical isn't it?

As for me, I haven't seen stars, but I don't like the look of the eternal power-up.

It just seems a little much.

Plus she loses the tiara. How can she throw her tiara if she doesn't have a tiara?

You fools! You short sighted fools!

edited 7th Jul '12 5:46:10 PM by HandsomeRob

Eternal Sailor Moon's lack of a tiara is used as a joke in one Stars episode where she throws a pizza at the monster while saying "Moon Tiara Action!" And then it shows her big wings knocking things over. It's one of the funniest episodes in the series in general, at least in my opinion. The humor in Sailor Moon is one of the things I like about it and I would hope that the new anime would keep at least some of the humorous aspects (there were some in the manga, even if it didn't have as much as the anime).

Of course! That's why she couldn't beat Galaxia! If only they realised!

Yeah that episode is a welcome relief in Stars. And the humour in Sailor Moon is one of the reasons I like it.

I would say "Come on, a clumsy ditzy girl who happens to be the saviour of the world? That's so clichéd!" But then I think it was a cliché even when Sailor Moon was originally pitched, so it's part of the charm and the execution is what matters.

I do hope they fix that Tokyo Is the Center of the Universe thing though. And all those Contrived Coincidence meetings that drive the plot at times. They can go.

edited 7th Jul '12 6:44:07 PM by UltimatelySubjective

Kunihiko Ikuhara seems to have put rumors of his involvement to rest via twitter.

Translated tweet.

The same thread includes tweets from various members of the original voice cast suggesting they aren't part of it - at least not yet.

Ah, you've grown very wise, Ikuhara.

The Sailor Starlights played a huge role in the manga too. I don't care what Takeuchi said in the art books, she killed off the entire main cast within a few chapters of the Stars manga and Sailor Moon spent most of the arc with the Sailor Starlights and Princess Kakyuu supporting her instead.

Still doesn't make them major characters. For the most part, they were undeveloped pawns.

I also know you loathe Kunihiko Ikuhara, but he still shaped the most acclaimed portions of the series. That "goddawful Stars anime" was after he left.

He shaped alot of good and bad portions of the series. I just think the bad got more dominant and more noticeable with each passing series. And yes, he left after "Super S", so "Stars" was given to a total hack.

Seiya fell for Usagi in the manga too in place of a missing Mamoru, though she was more subtle about it in front of Usagi. The anime didn't actually invent that arc, they just played it up a little harder.

IIRC, Seiya only hit on Usagi once. The anime blew it waaaay out of proportion.

I particularly liked whoever voiced Sailor Moon in seasons 1 and 2 (well, the first Voice Actor who did anyway, Tracey Moore I think, although Terri Hawkes was fine too. Linda Ballantyne was annoying though).

Tracey Moore was the best Usagi/Serena voice ever. And yet she only voiced her for 13 episodes! She was used the least out of any voice actor to play the character, which I think is just tragic. Terri Hawkes was fine when she wasn't overracting (which was sadly far too often), and yes, Linda Ballantyne was godawful.

Luna though... Well, although her British accent is good, she kinda sounds too old. She's actually much younger than she sounds in English

My thoughts exactly. British accent = fine. Old lady = Good God, NO.

Although I like the second half of Super S, once the Quartet shows up.

I didn't like either half because the series was just so bad in general, but I genuinely enjoyed the villains in both. The Trio with their various guises and "One, Two, Three!" Mind Rape procedure, and the Quartet with the playful, immature way they just messed with everyone (especially Zirconia) and did not give a f**k. Zirconia and Nehelania were awesome too, though Stars had to go and totally ruin the latter.

edited 8th Jul '12 7:45:27 PM by ManwiththePlan

At least we got Sailor Galaxia. Eh, destroys planets just by pointing at them and doesn't afriad of anything.

And pointlessly sends her goons on a mission to find macguffins she already knows the location of.

What a bitch.

The Big Bads, Galaxia included, are the weakest part of any Sailor Moon villain group. Except maybe Neherenia, who had class to spare before Stars, and Beryl, who was cliched as hell, but because she started many of her cliches to begin with. Grandfather Clause!

The Quirky Miniboss Squads were always more interesting. They should make some Omakes or something where the Generals, the Black Moon Family, the Death Busters, the Amazons and the Animamates interact with each other.

I actually found Wiseman/ Death Phantom to be a rather good main baddy, too, especially since he's just so friggen creepy.

Not even Chaos in the manga was that creepy.

So, how do you think they'll play this?

Will the battles be similar to how the original series did it?

Or will it draw beads from more recent Magical Girl shows (i.e. Pretty Cure) in how they do the fights?

It would be weird seeing the originator for most Magical Girl series taking beats from the newer shows.

Well, for starters, I don't think there'll be nearly as much filler, if the first season is only 13 or 26 episodes. I also doubt we'll get past the Dark Kingdom arc until we see ratings for the first season.

The baddies probably will be dispatched almost as quickly as they were in the manga.

edited 8th Jul '12 7:05:51 PM by NapoleonDeCheese