10 Sailor Moon Scenes That Didn’t Age Well at All

Sailor Moon broke new floor when it first aired, serving to to deliver anime to a world viewers, redefining the magical woman style, and empowering younger women worldwide. Its simple affect on anime and popular culture is obvious, however over time, sure character dynamics, course, and messaging don’t maintain up with trendy sensibilities.

What as soon as handed with out remark now attracts a good quantity of confusion and even criticism concerning a number of the selections made within the collection. None of those points erase Sailor Moon’s legacy, however they do open up conversations about facets which have change into awkward, uncomfortable, or not match or serve the collection as they as soon as did.

10

The Age Hole Between Usagi and Mamoru

The Age Hole Was Completely Uncomfortable

One of the vital mentioned facets of Sailor Moon is the age distinction between Usagi Tsukino and Mamoru Chiba. Usagi is a 14-year-old center college woman, whereas within the manga, Mamoru is a highschool pupil, which some folks contemplate crossing a line. The anime, nonetheless, takes this a step additional by making him a college pupil.

The anime depicts their pairing as candy, romantic, and fated, however in the present day, it raises severe considerations. As a result of Mamoru is older, he has extra maturity and life expertise that Usagi hasn’t but gained or totally understands at her age. This makes their dynamic really feel unbalanced, particularly contemplating how infantile Usagi nonetheless appears within the early episodes of the anime.

This challenge is rarely totally addressed within the anime, nor was there a purpose to widen their age hole much more. Sailor Moon presents their relationship as unquestionably healthful and excellent, even when Usagi is proven to be immature and Mamoru typically dismisses her emotions. Trying again at their relationship raises troubling questions in regards to the energy dynamics concerned.

9

Fats-Shaming and Consuming Issues

Sailor Moon Had Some Damaging Messages

Sailor Moon typically performs Usagi’s love of meals for laughs, however at occasions, the humor can take a flip into uncomfortable territory. Different characters mock her urge for food, weight, and physique picture in ways in which really feel merciless and pointless. Jokes like this had been as soon as typical in anime and sitcoms, however the punchlines haven’t aged properly over time.

There are a number of episodes that additionally contact on weight-reduction plan, however not in a wholesome or considerate method. One early episode takes place at a weight-loss heart that secretly drains vitality from women determined to drop pounds. Though the thought had potential, its execution contains tone-deaf jokes, dangerous messages, and reinforces societal pressures about physique picture.

8

Moonlight Knight in Sailor Moon R

An Pointless Addition to the Sequence

Moonlight Knight in Sailor Moon R was meant to fill the void left by Mamoru’s reminiscence loss, however its execution as an alternative left followers puzzled. Moonlight Knight wore desert-themed clothes and spoke in oddly formal riddles, making his character appear much less like a significant extension of Mamoru’s position and extra like a story placeholder.

His presence brought on confusion with out a lot payoff, particularly when it’s revealed that he’s a unconscious projection reflecting Mamoru’s want to guard Sailor Moon. Whereas it’s meant to represent the ability of their love, the twist isn’t very satisfying and doesn’t justify the quantity of display screen time spent on the thriller.

Trying again, the entire arc feels unnecessarily difficult and too lengthy. Though the present has at all times embraced fantasy components, Moonlight Knight merely lacks the emotional depth or character improvement to make the idea work. As an anime-only addition, Moonlight Knight turned a clumsy filler in Sailor Moon that failed so as to add significant depth or progress to Mamoru’s character.

7

Sailor Uranus and Neptune Portrayed as Cousins

The English Dub Stripped the Sequence of Their Relationship

Within the authentic Japanese Sailor Moon, Haruka Tenoh and Michiru Kaiou, or Sailor Uranus and Sailor Neptune, respectively, are portrayed as a loving romantic couple. Their relationship was one of many earliest examples of LGBTQ+ illustration in mainstream anime and was groundbreaking for its time. Nevertheless, the English dub erased it by recasting them as cousins.

The pressured rewrite created an immensely complicated and uncomfortable dynamic between the pair. Their intimate and supportive bond turned awkward and contradicted typical cousin habits. Scenes that had been meant to indicate their romance turned nonsensical and utterly undermined the depth of their connection, stripping away necessary emotional components from their story.

This censorship in Sailor Moon wasn’t an remoted incident and mirrored the cultural discomfort with queer themes within the ‘90s. As a substitute of fostering understanding or acceptance, the strategy erased necessary illustration and despatched a message that non-heteronormative relationships had been inappropriate. This was a missed alternative to problem norms and promote inclusivity in media.

As we speak’s followers acknowledge and have fun Haruka and Michiru’s true relationship, embracing its significance and rejecting the mistaken portrayal of any familial ties. The unique English dub now serves as a reminder of how a lot media illustration for LGBTQ+ has come and the way necessary it’s to guard and protect various identities with out diluting them for the sake of consolation.

6

Chibiusa’s Electra Complicated

Chibiusa and Usagi’s Rivalry Raises Eyebrows

Chibiusa’s odd rivalry with Usagi and her intense obsession with Mamoru have been seen by many followers as an Electra complicated, the feminine equal of the Oedipus complicated, or an unconscious romantic attraction to a father determine. Though it largely performed off harmless jealousy and was used for comedic impact, it made many followers really feel awkward and uncomfortable.

As the longer term daughter of Usagi and Mamoru, Chibiusa’s jealousy and possessiveness felt much less charming and extra unsettling, particularly since Mamoru does nothing to discourage her. Throughout the Black Moon arc, when Chibiusa turns into Black Girl, she tips Usagi into believing that Tuxedo Masks belongs to her, even going so far as hypnotizing him to kiss her.

5

Kunzite and Zoisite’s Relationship Was Altered

The Dub Turned Zoisite From Male To Feminine

Within the authentic model of Sailor Moon, Zoisite and Kunzite are portrayed as a romantic couple, providing an early and significant depiction of same-sex relationships in anime. Nevertheless, the English dub modified their relationship by altering Zoisite’s gender to feminine, erasing the homosexual relationship completely and changing it with a heteronormative model.

What was meant to be a honest and fantastically tragic romance turned one thing that was stripped of its authenticity and emotional affect within the dub. Trying again, it now serves as one other instance of how censorship can distort and erase significant tales that need to be seen and appreciated as they had been initially meant.

4

The First English Dub

Too Many Issues Had been Altered or Eliminated

Sailor Moon efficiently launched many Western viewers to the collection however made important modifications that altered its tone and characters. Names had been Americanized, dialogue was closely censored, and full storylines had been edited or lower completely, as seen within the closing season. This was performed to make the collection extra “kid-friendly,” but it surely truly stripped away a lot of the collection’ depth and complexity.

Relationships had been altered with queer illustration erased, and scenes involving violence or mature themes had been additionally toned down or eliminated. Whereas it turned extra accessible to a wider viewers on the time, it additionally took away the unique’s intent and the chance to expertise a distinct tradition.

3

Sailor Mars Persona within the Anime vs Manga

Within the Anime, Sailor Mars Loses Some Complexity

Sailor Mars has two very distinct personas when evaluating her within the anime and the manga. The manga depicts her as assured, fierce, impartial, and deeply non secular, embracing her priestess background with seriousness. The anime, nonetheless, emphasizes her fiery mood and sass, typically making her a supply of comedic reduction or battle throughout the group.

This alteration impacts how her character is seen by audiences. Whereas the manga’s Sailor Mars appears extra complicated and grounded, the anime’s model reduces her to a hot-headed, argumentative woman. The anime even goes as far as to make Rei and Usagi rivals, even over love. In an anime-only addition, Rei dated Mamoru for a short time.

Sailor Mars and Sailor Moon’s relationship is best portrayed in Sailor Moon Crystal, which exhibits their bond extra precisely to the manga’s authentic imaginative and prescient. On this model, the 2 share a really shut reference to solely occasional friction.

2

The Anime Drags Usagi’s Development

Usagi Stays a Crybaby for Far Too Lengthy

Usagi’s development within the anime is noticeably slower and extra uneven in comparison with the manga. Whereas her journey from a carefree and clumsy teenager to a assured chief is central to the storyline, the present typically shifts again to immature antics and self-doubt. The anime emphasizes episodic humor and filler, which stretches out her improvement.

Usagi’s moments of bravery and perception are sometimes adopted by scenes that undermine her character, making her development really feel inconsistent and even irritating for viewers who care about her development. Though Usagi’s appeal stays intact, the drawn-out portrayal misses a stronger alternative to inform a extra targeted coming-of-age story that better reflects the manga’s vision.

1

Expendable Villain Deaths and Lack of Redemption Arcs

Sailor Moon Had A lot Extra Potential

Sailor Moon treats its villains as disposable obstacles relatively than totally developed characters. Many antagonists meet sudden, violent ends with out significant development or redemption. Whereas redemption is not a should for the story, the anime additionally sacrifices complexity for fast resolutions, lacking probabilities to discover deeper themes.

This sample is most noticeable within the early seasons, the place villains appear to vanish as rapidly as they arrive. As a substitute of exploring themes of forgiveness, development, and even the character of excellent and evil, the present opted for one-dimensional conflicts, making many confrontations really feel overly repetitive.