Sailor Moon Crystal - Anime Spoilers & Speculation [for experienced SM fans only]

[JagdPanther]

So, can we come close to a consensus that the animation is awful but the handling of the story/characters is otherwise somewhat good?

[jhpace1]

Originally Posted by JagdPanther

So, can we come close to a consensus that the animation is awful but the handling of the story/characters is otherwise somewhat good?

And that is the heart of the matter. People know Sailor Moon. They were looking forward to introducing their children, spouses, nieces and nephews to Sailor Moon Crystal. They got Kotono Mitsuishi. They got a decent musical score and a group of singers who could do the theme presented by Sailor Moon. Everything seemed to be lined up correctly. And then the production company screwed up the animation.

If this message is getting to Toei Animation, they can try to put a "stiff face" on things and just plow through all 52 episodes of SMC, stoically saying "this is it, take it or leave it". Or they can do an about-face and pour some real effort into the rest of the season's animation, as well as doing Blue-Ray corrections of the first 1-6 episodes (how long it might take to get new staff onboard, quality control, etc.). But I doubt a "saved by the fans' demands" will happen.

Yes, Sailor Moon Crystal could be a moneymaker for Toei Animation. Or it could be a money gusher, if they went all-out. It all depends on the board at Toei Animation, as well as the director, animation staff, etc. This is like taking Star Wars and ruining it, or the Star Trek reboot and ruining it.

[orion]

It prob will be a moneymaker. Just thinking about all those girly items (wand, watches, ink pen) makes me glad I don't have kids right now. Then comes the Halloween costumes, games, figures, cake decorations, stickers.....

We can always hope that they correct the BDs.

[RDNexus]

Originally Posted by jhpace1

And that is the heart of the matter. People know Sailor Moon. They were looking forward to introducing their children, spouses, nieces and nephews to Sailor Moon Crystal. They got Kotono Mitsuishi. They got a decent musical score and a group of singers who could do the theme presented by Sailor Moon. Everything seemed to be lined up correctly. And then the production company screwed up the animation.

If this message is getting to Toei Animation, they can try to put a "stiff face" on things and just plow through all 52 episodes of SMC, stoically saying "this is it, take it or leave it". Or they can do an about-face and pour some real effort into the rest of the season's animation, as well as doing Blue-Ray corrections of the first 1-6 episodes (how long it might take to get new staff onboard, quality control, etc.). But I doubt a "saved by the fans' demands" will happen.

Yes, Sailor Moon Crystal could be a moneymaker for Toei Animation. Or it could be a money gusher, if they went all-out. It all depends on the board at Toei Animation, as well as the director, animation staff, etc. This is like taking Star Wars and ruining it, or the Star Trek reboot and ruining it.

Ah... Where did you get the idea that the series would be 52 episodes? Being bi-weekly, nonetheless...
AFAIK, it's been confirmed to be only 24~26 episodes... Unless something passed under my radar...

[Stark700]

Looks like Sailor Jupiter will be next time. The Usagi x Tuxedo mask moments were pretty classic.

[Faerie]

Apart from the occasional bobblehead-blip, this was sooooooo much better. Really good episode overall.
There were a lot of changes, seriously... A LOT, compared to the corresponding manga chapter- most of them for the better. I can honestly say that I thoroughly enjoyed this episode.

The big ones that come to mind:
* Jaedite confirmed alive
* Shitennou make an introduction
* Usagi doesn't get drunk, but seemingly got infected with narcolepsy by Kogoro Mori. That didn't make any sense. Why would she just randomly fall asleep after being in an adrenaline-raising situation? What?
* Rei and Ami have a nice character building moment.

Now, if only they'd fire Kotono for someone more suitable- her performance once again stands out negatively.

And wowwww, Makoto's voice is deep. Could easily pass for Haruka D:

I still don't buy the UsagixMamoru thing any more than I did at this point in the manga, fwiw. it just moves so fast and for no good or believable reason. That kiss scene was (and remains) creepy.

[Baldurkai]

That was a much better episode than the previous, still some funny looking frames popping up, but overall seems like they put some effort into this one...

A little unsure about Makoto's voice, like some views from friends it seems a little deep, looking forwards to how they will portray her.

Something that seemed a little off to me with this episode would be UsagixMamoru moment, i mean i know they've met a few times, spoke a sentence or two to each other but the development is way too quick imo, like that development in RL would never happen.... Anime world i guess...

overall more pleased with this episode than the previous - still had to look past the weird frames.. and faces every now and then

Spoiler for Episode funny face time expample:

EP 4 - funny face ^^^ = 20:12 to about 20:18 imo

[HandofFate]

Sailor Moon has all sorts of powers and attacks. I kind of miss the moon tiara throw that the 90s series spammed everytime.

Wonder why Tuxedo Mask kept running off randomly this episode.
The Sailors don't try to hide their identity it seems with Mercury calling Sailor Moon by name when she appears.

Didn't expect Moon's tiara burning up last episode to be a thing at all.

lol @ Luna cockblocking Tuxedo Mask x Sailor Moon.

Jupiter's ponytail wagging animation as she ran off was funny to me.

[omimon]

The episode can't get anymore shoujo. What, a handsome mysterious man falls in love in you for no reason except "destiny"? Who needs to work and better yourself when a man will just come along and sweep you off your feet.

[BloodyKitty]

I'm kinda glad that the Shitennou would be around much longer. Also the art has been back to... episode 2 level, which isn't really good yet isn't that bad compared to episode 3, which was downright horrible.

Though I remember Sailor Mars was a bit more tsun tsun in the manga, like in the arcade she was the only one who voiced out that she wouldn't really buy any of the Sailor thing unless Luna explain their purposes clearly. Good relationship building with Ami though.

[Faerie]

Originally Posted by omimon

The episode can't get anymore shoujo. What, a handsome mysterious man falls in love in you for no reason except "destiny"? Who needs to work and better yourself when a man will just come along and sweep you off your feet.

And that's why Usagi never quite struck the right notes with me, given how she, the titular character represents pretty much the opposite of the whole "we don't need a guy to sweep us off our feet, we're our own people" message the series otherwise so strongly promotes.

It applies to everyone else in the cast... But the titular character is all about her man.

[JagdPanther]

Originally Posted by Faerie

* Usagi doesn't get drunk, but seemingly got infected with narcolepsy by Kogoro Mori. That didn't make any sense. Why would she just randomly fall asleep after being in an adrenaline-raising situation? What?

Playing the exhaustion angle?

[orion]

Originally Posted by Faerie

* Usagi doesn't get drunk, but seemingly got infected with narcolepsy by Kogoro Mori. That didn't make any sense. Why would she just randomly fall asleep after being in an adrenaline-raising situation? What?

Well, she was up all night reading manga. Got detention for falling asleep in class. Played games in an arcade. Then got dressed to go to a ball where she got a dance, fell off a balcony and participated in a battle. It's understandable that she bottomed out after the fight was done.

Originally Posted by Faerie

I still don't buy the UsagixMamoru thing any more than I did at this point in the manga, fwiw. it just moves so fast and for no good or believable reason. That kiss scene was (and remains) creepy.

Actually, Mamoru looked sad when he did kiss her. I wouldn't call it creepy from a 3rd person perspective especially when you had Usagi's internal monologue going on at the same time. The memories from their previous lives are spilling over into this one. I wish we got the kiss also from his perspective to see what he remembered that caused him to kiss her.

[Faerie]

Originally Posted by orion

Well, she was up all night reading manga. Got detention for falling asleep in class. Played games in an arcade. Then got dressed to go to a ball where she got a dance, fell off a balcony and participated in a battle. It's understandable that she bottomed out after the fight was done.

My point was, the original scene made much more sense. In which she got a little bit tipsy.

Actually, Mamoru looked sad when he did kiss her. I wouldn't call it creepy from a 3rd person perspective especially when you had Usagi's internal monologue going on at the same time. The memories from their previous lives are spilling over into this one. I wish we got the kiss also from his perspective to see what he remembered that caused him to kiss her.

Same with this, it was fine in the manga, with her not being passed out. Kissing a fully asleep girl you barely know is creepy, not romantic imo. Especially when you lack the buildup to it.

[JagdPanther]

Originally Posted by orion

Actually, Mamoru looked sad when he did kiss her. I wouldn't call it creepy from a 3rd person perspective especially when you had Usagi's internal monologue going on at the same time. The memories from their previous lives are spilling over into this one. I wish we got the kiss also from his perspective to see what he remembered that caused him to kiss her.

Except they didn't explicitly show any of that this time, which is odd, because here is where it would fit perfectly. They give lip service to the memories angle, but they don't show a flashback (emphasis on the "flash") to enforce it.

[orion]

Originally Posted by JagdPanther

Except they didn't explicitly show any of that this time, which is odd, because here is where it would fit perfectly. They give lip service to the memories angle, but they don't show a flashback (emphasis on the "flash") to enforce it.

Well she did flashback in her monologue and he was looking sad prior to the kiss. He's not even blushing. So, it was an easy conclusion for me to leap to. After that dance and everything after it including the kiss scene camera angles, I don't think it was a scene that was meant to be creepy.

[Sakuya]

Wow, this episode was pretty good! I'm glad to have finally gotten past the first 3 episodes and this one was a refresher since there was something new to the table. That kiss scene at the end was so romantic! I'm really glad there are those moments in this adaptation, really reminds us that this is a Takeuchi Naoko show.

I really like the tiara upgrade, I bet everyone was curious whether that would make it into the show this time and it did! I also loved how they stopped her transformation mid-way to introduce it.

I don't like Mercury's transformation music and how it was doubled up and used again for Mars' in this episode. I know it's Mercury's music and it suits her character but as music that preps you up for the battle, it just doesn't have enough oomph as the ones in the 90s anime. I prefer they use Mars' music...

I love the preview, I can't believe we have to wait 3 weeks for Jupiter! And that last scene with the flowers, Flower Hurricane?! And finally, Naoko's wedding dress story is included this time. I'm so excited! Her voice caught me off guard a bit.

[kuromitsu]

Originally Posted by Faerie

My point was, the original scene made much more sense. In which she got a little bit tipsy.

I suspect that they couldn't or didn't want to show her drinking alcohol.

Originally Posted by Faerie

Kissing a fully asleep girl you barely know is creepy, not romantic imo. Especially when you lack the buildup to it.

Yep. Oh, I know that it wasn't meant to be creepy, but it was creepy just the same. Especially since Mamoru simply doesn't look like a high schooler (which is, I think, the reason why he's a college student in the first anime, he simply doesn't look and behave any younger).

[Triple_R]

Originally Posted by Faerie

Apart from the occasional bobblehead-blip, this was sooooooo much better. Really good episode overall.

Agreed. Just so you know, I commented on the episode on the other Sailor Moon thread (it's already getting a bit confusing to me to figure out which thread to use on an episode-by-episode basis ).

I still don't buy the UsagixMamoru thing any more than I did at this point in the manga, fwiw. it just moves so fast and for no good or believable reason. That kiss scene was (and remains) creepy.

It's basically a classic Disney fairytale romance, just with the adding trappings of magical girl anime. And so, it's about as believable and well-developed as most classic Disney fairytale romances are.

To be fair, I think this sort of thing works a little better in a magic-heavy show like this one than it would in, say, a hard sci-fi show. It's probably still not ideal, but I can roll with it.

Originally Posted by Faerie

And that's why Usagi never quite struck the right notes with me, given how she, the titular character represents pretty much the opposite of the whole "we don't need a guy to sweep us off our feet, we're our own people" message the series otherwise so strongly promotes.

I guess the author might be saying "Some women really want romance in their life, some don't care much about it, and it's fine for a woman to be either as long as that's what she truly wants for herself." That's probably a positive spin you could put on it anyway.

Not saying that excuses everything, of course. Usagi perhaps gets swept off her feet a bit too easily by Tuxedo Kamen.

Originally Posted by JagdPanther

Playing the exhaustion angle?

That's all I could see, but even then, I get Faerie's point. It might have been better if Sailor Moon had been hit with some sort of sleep inducing-attack by one of the four Generals. Sailor Moon fights it off long enough to overcome them, but later succumbs to it.

[JagdPanther]

Originally Posted by orion

Well she did flashback in her monologue and he was looking sad prior to the kiss. He's not even blushing. So, it was an easy conclusion for me to leap to. After that dance and everything after it including the kiss scene camera angles, I don't think it was a scene that was meant to be creepy.

Which monologue? The one when she is kissed while sleeping? Because I think that's actually a shot of the present moment. I went to check the manga before I made my previous post and was debating whether the image shown was present time or memory.