Candy Lipstick

Sailor Moon Crystal: Episode 8 Review
by Mikari

Episode 8 was harder to find online than the other 7 that have aired so far. I hope I can find the upcoming episode more easily and get good screen shots. The episode starts interestingly, with Sailor V claiming to be princess Serenity. We all know Usagi is Serenity, but it's still believable within the story. This was not in the original version where Sailor Venus only pretended to be Sailor Moon once in the later episodes with the disguise pen, though by then the girls all knew about the Moon Kingdom and their past.

Sailor Moon's tiara changes shape as she almost recalls something about her past and Tuxedo Mask runs off frustrated that he couldn't protect Usagi. I was kind of amused by the drama of Mamoru dating Rei for a while before recovering his memories, though it was one sided. With how long Usagi and Mamoru spent as "rivals" in the original series, I've come to expect more of a conflict. The Sailor V acting as Serenity makes for a good plot twist though, better than the short, but still hilarious, disguise pen scene in the original. I wish the other girls had more of a role. Usagi and Mamoru have taken over and though they are interesting, I want to see the other girls get some episode spotlights too.

Beryl was apparently watching the Sailors' confrontation with Zoycite. It's unclear if she can only see while Zoycite is there or all the time. If she can see anything at any time in her crystal ball, then why not spy on the girls and attack them when they let their guard down at school? Plot hole? I'm not going to over think it.

Two details that have caught my attention thus far are the fact that they show a de-transformation sequence, which they showed briefly in the original but it was because Sailor Moon was forced out of her magical state. This sequence shows Minako willingly going into civilian mode. The other detail that caught my eye was the color of Artemis eyes that are green instead of blue like in the first series. I heard Luna had blue eyes in some versions, though she has brown on both anime.

The girls going to the command center is something they didn't do in the original. Central Control, as Luna called the voice in the arcade machine, turned out to be Artemis inside the cabinet, nothing as grand as in the new series. Minako mentioning she hasn't been there in a while makes me think of the role the location played in the Sailor V series. I'm hoping that Crystal will do well enough to make them want to animate V next. Minako's character stands out more in this version and she's totally cool being the only one of the good guys (aside from Artemis) with a clear picture about what's really going on. Venus is among my top Sailors and right now she's becoming my second favorite, though Mars is still holding on to the number one spot, at least for now...

Usagi seeing Mamoru and musing about how Minako knows where the Silver Crystal is but won't tell them reminds me of Naru wanting to get the crystal for Nephlite and giving him a valuable but non-magical gem, which he later returns. This was a turning point in their bittersweet relationship that doesn't look like it will be mentioned in this remake.

Mamoru's watch definitely replaced the locket from the original. He's letting Usagi hang on to it while he kept her handkerchief. I'm still loving Luna's protectiveness of Usagi and seeing her and Artemis on the screen at the same time is an overload of kitty cuteness. They were already super cute and the cuteness has been amplified by the shiny new animation. Even Beryl looks pretty instead of creepy.

Apparently the bad guys do know who Minako is, because Kunzite did a time freeze just to threaten to kill all Tokyo if she didn't go to Tokyo Tower alone. How do they manage to get through a day of school or a night of sleep with their identities in the open? As much fun as I'm having with the new version, I must admit that the original handled identities better, even if it meant somewhat oblivious lacks of observation. None the less I am amused.

The other girls follow V to the tower and it looks like Jupiter can fly by creating a bubble around herself similarly to how Kunzite floats. Moon is saved by Tuxedo from falling, only to apparently float soon after. Or maybe it was just a slow motion jump, but she has floated before. Perhaps it's because I'm older now and watching this anime with the intention of reviewing it, so I pick up on all these little details, but I should point out that it doesn't ruin the episode.

Moon kisses Tuxedo and runs off to protect her friends. Tuxedo jumps in front of her as Kunzite attacks and the episode ends in a cliffhanger. One peculiar detail is that Venus mentions Kunzite's true self, she's very well informed, which makes sense, since the Sailor Moon is supposed to take place after Sailor V. The secret identity thing is totally out the window at this point as Moon even openly calls V Minako.

This review turned out longer because I took notes of my thoughts as they occurred to me, rather than watching the episode, then going through the screen shots recalling the most important things I wanted to say. I mg hit continue to write like this, though the length of the review will ultimately depend on how much the episode inspires me to say. As for the previews for episode 9, it looks like they're going to recover their memories. This looks like it'll be quite different from the original version where they were deep in enemy territory when they discovered the truth, though Mamoru getting injured and Moon getting upset is a consistent theme.