Welcome back to Mooniversity, our column for all things “Sailor Moon.” Now, you may think that while we’re waiting for any word on Sailor Moon Cosmos‘s release outside Japan, that we’d be struggling to find subjects to discuss after finishing looking at all other Sailor Moon media so far, but you’d be wrong! Today, we have several topics in mind, beginning with a tribute to the creator of another manga giant, one of the few “Sailor Moon” can be considered less impactful then.
Farewell to a Fellow Legend
Yes, Akira Toriyama, the late creator of “Dragon Ball,” a series that will always be seen as the shonen/boys’ counterpart to “Sailor Moon,” because both shows played a huge role in popularizing anime in America as part of Cartoon Network’s Toonami block in the late ’90s. Both overlapped, as the “Dragon Ball” manga ran from 1984 to 1995, while “Moon” ran from 1991 to 1997, and the anime for both respectively aired from 1986 and 1992 until 1997. Although there’s been very little in the way of an official crossover between the two, “Dragon Ball Super” introduced the heroes of Universe 2, who were an affectionate parody of the magical girl genre, and there’s been plenty of crossover behind-the-scenes too.
It shouldn’t come as a surprise, given Toei produced the anime versions of both series, but countless creatives worked on both shows, including original Sailor Mercury actress Aya Hisakawa, who took over as the voice of Bulma after Hiromi Tsuru’s death in 2017 – suffice to say, it’s not lost on many that both characters are blue-haired geniuses. Like Naoko Takeuchi, Toriyama was a reclusive giant in the field, who never stopped being involved in his creation’s afterlife, and you can’t help but wonder what they thought of each other’s work. Hopefully, we won’t be tragically robbed of Takeuchi the way we have been of Toriyama, and that she will continue to bask in fans’ love and adoration for many more decades to come. To Toriyama, and Takeuchi – long may they reign.
Japanese Culture, Wars, and Culture Wars
February saw the premiere of Shōgun, FX on Hulu’s beautiful new take on James Clavell’s historical novel, which portrays Japan during the dawn of European colonialism. Naturally, for this column I started to wonder what a feudal take on “Sailor Moon” would be like, especially as the show revolves around an English anjin, and the school uniforms “Sailor Moon” is derived from were based on early 20th century British Royal Navy uniforms. I think you could get away with it, given how nebulous the term “sailor” is anyway, and it would probably be all the more better for not giving you an excuse to style all of the Guardians as samurai or ninja.
Like Shōgun, this thought exercise was a good reminder Japan is not a Galapagos, and its culture has been as shaped by other countries as much as it has impacted the world. (To wit, how do Usagi and Mamoru marry at the end? In a Christian-style wedding.) Now, while Orientalism is not a uniquely right-wing problem, there are definitely a lot of people who admire the Axis powers that fetishize Japan as some pure land untainted by what they believe are left-wing western ideas, or being warped by “wokeness,” something writer Anthony Gramuglia did a great job of unpacking in his first video a couple of months ago:
Gramuglia mentions the LGBTQ+ characters in “Sailor Moon” several times in his essay as an example of how Japan has never been a right-winger’s fantasyland. It did make me wonder how progressive “Sailor Moon” really is though: after all, the overarching narrative reveals Usagi soon becomes ruler of the whole world, in an oddly funny reversal of Japan’s thwarted imperial ambitions during World War II.
It’s low-hanging fruit, to critique a 32-year old series’ relatively narrow vision of what girl power could achieve, and I’m certainly not suggesting Takeuchi is a nationalist, as she was simply tapping into the European fairy tale trope of the heroine living happily ever after as her prince’s queen. (I also had no idea how low the age of consent in Japan was until watching the video, which goes a long way to explain Usagi and Mamoru’s age gap.) I just think it’s as important to critique “Sailor Moon” as well as to extol its virtues, because all art is flawed and complex, just as all people, whether they’re creatives from Japan or not, are simply human.
Continued belowYou Can’t Go Home Again
to how the show would've looked
The “Sailor Moon” fandom has been largely consumed with a far less abstract matter lately, namely a viral post about how the original anime‘s DVD and Blu-ray transfer was overly pink compared to how it looked on broadcast, VHS, LaserDisc, and earlier DVD releases.
There’s a lot of debate over why exactly this happened, from degrading film negatives, to an attempt to restore the more vibrant color palette of the show’s cel sheets, but I wasn’t surprised: as a Lord of the Rings and Matrix fan, I’ve seen the color grading in those films change constantly across every home release, especially when The Fellowship of the Ring‘s Extended Edition debuted on Blu-ray with an unexpected green tint.
This is not meant to excuse rereleases of projects that scrub every indication of when they were made, like reprints of comics that ignore the original color schemes, or Blu-rays that scrub out the film grain, but it’s a reminder that often the only way to experience something the way it originally was was to have been there when it debuted: everything withers and ages, and no matter how much you try, you’re always going to make a mistake or leave someone unsatisfied – just think of the controversial restoration of the Sistine Chapel. So for me, this is a fun bit of trivia, and not a real issue.
Manholes!
Since our last column, five manhole covers featuring Takeuchi’s artwork have been installed in Minato, Tokyo, where the series takes place. It’s a nice way to commemorate the series as it enters its thirties, though definitely an odd one compared to, say, a statue of Usagi near her home in the Azabu-Juban district. Regardless, there’s been a lot of thought put into each cover’s location, and having them reflect each of the original five Sailor Guardians, even though the chosen art doesn’t single them out. The news also inspired a fun Unseen Japan article on just how wealthy Usagi’s family was, because Minato is a very expensive ward; as the column concludes, it’s something of a testament to how relatable yet fantastic the whole series is.
Black Sailor Moon Fans
For Black History Month, I considered an entry spotlighting Black Sailor Moon fans, until I saw Victoria L. Johnson, host of the Sailor Moon Fan Club podcast, was running a similar daily Twitter.com thread, and was concerned it would come across as plagiarism. I highly recommend reading the thread, and also want to shout out a few more names:
– Mercedes Moné Varnado (formerly Sasha Banks), wrestler, actress
– D.J. Kirkland, cartoonist (“The Black Mage,” “Young Men in Love”)
– Princess Weekes, writer, podcaster and YouTube personality
– Jahara Jayde, cosplayer, streamer
– Isaiah Stephens, artist, whose fan art has included reimaginings of the Sailor Guardians
– Morgan Bissant, artist, who has similarly frequently reimagined the Sailor Guardians
– Derrick Malik Johnson, storyboard artist (Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur)
I was going to list Megan Thee Stallion, but despite performing as the character on stage, she’s not actually a fan, saying it’s “cute but the story [is] not that fire.” Like She-Hulk, I would kill for Megan, but unsurprisingly, I have to disagree. Anyway, I hope this was a good reminder Black history isn’t just for February, or October, when BHM is held in the UK.
Thanks for reading, and be sure to share your thoughts, including what you’d like to see be discussed next time, in the comments. Apologies for the delay, and hopefully we’ll be back soon to discuss Cosmos, or something else Sailor Moon-related. In the meantime, let’s watch the opening for the film:
