Sailor Senshi 20th Anniversary Reunion Special!!

 

As you all know, I was thrilled when I first heard about the Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon Reunion (on Keiko Kitagawa's own facebook, no less!)  and was crossing fingers I'd be able to see it in any way possible! 

Sure, I knew there was little hope of anyone translating it and SUBBING it, but I knew I just HAD to see it anyway, and just this morning I happily found a KIND soul who had uploaded the whole half-hour special up for grabs, which I wasted NO TIME snatching up!

First things first, we have to say: the girls look TERRIFIC! Honestly, it doesn’t seem all that long ago that we first saw Miyu Sawai (Sailor Moon), Keiko Kitagawa (Sailor Mars), Mew Azama (Sailor Jupiter), Rika Izumi (nee Chisaki Hama, Sailor Mercury) and Ayaka Komatsu (Sailor Venus)  as the Sailor Senshi....

The girls in 2003:

Miyu Sawai (Sailor Moon), 

Rika Izumi (nee Chisaki Hama, Sailor Mercury)

Mew Azama (Sailor Jupiter), 

Keiko Kitagawa (Sailor Mars), 

 and Ayaka Komatsu (Sailor Venus) 

 

 But here we are TWENTY years later, and those bright eyed youngsters have transformed before our eyes grown into a group of FINE young ladies!

Miyu Sawaii

Mew Azama

Keiko Kitagawa

Rika Izumi

Ayaka Komatsu

VERY cute to see them perusing the wall displaying photos and collectibles of their PGSM heritage, pointing and giggling at it all!

Speaking of giggles, LAUGHTER was surely the main thing about this special as they kept each other in stitches reminiscing about their Pretty Guardian past!

Sadly, it was over ALL TOO FAST, and we had to say goodbye to them once more!

I know we'll still be seeing a lot of both Rika and Keiko, and I know these 5 gals still have mini-reunions on their own (which I think is the sweetest thing ever), but it was really nice seeing them together, showcased like this. Thanks for the memories, is what they seem to be saying!

Posted by zdorama @ zdoramaagain.blogspot.com

Reunion of the Pretty Guardians!

The Original Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon girls got together for a Sailor Moon special to be aired this month, with Miyu Sawai (Sailor Moon) Keiko Kitagawa (Sailor Mars), Mew Azama (Sailor Jupiter), Rika Izumi (nee Chisaki Hama, Sailor Mercury) and Ayaka Komatsu (Sailor Venus) all showing up to represent the 2003 series which gave (some) of them their succesful starts in the Show Business!

Speaking of success, it hilariously looked in some of the photos that they had put Keiko and Rika (arguably the two actresses that really "made it" in the biz) strategically shown off in front row, LOLOL!!

Could be just a coincidence, but to give them their due, they certainly are the ones who have kept this particular iteration of the Super Shoujo series alive in the public conscience!

In any case,  it's nice to see everyone looking so hale and happy!

Mmm, Hope I get a chance to check out this Sailor Moon special! 

And Now For Something Completely Different: Sailor Moon, Edo Style!

The Sailor Moon Theme Song "Moonlight Densetsu" performed with  traditional Japanese Instruments makes me wonder how a Sereis set in the Edo Period would work....

Okay, now I've GOT to hear the original opening, LOL

PS: I will ALWAYS think of Pony Canyon act CoCo when I hear this song as it was them singing it on a variety show where I first learned it all those years ago....

Shinjite Iruno Miracle Romance!!!

CoCo Does the Sailor Senshi.

Well, as both a CoCo and a Sailor Moon fan, I’d be remiss if I didn’t post up this performance I got awhile ago of CoCo dressing up as and singing Sailor Moon’ s anime theme song “Moonlight Densetsu” in a musical challenge against a bunch of fat guys dressed up as the Mamas and Papas.

I’d been long familiar with this image of CoCo as the Sailor Senshi for awhile since a picture of the special was in one of our CoCo books, but didn’t think I’d ever see the actual show! But there was this video store right next to my workplace in town, and they had many old, old, videotapes (that’s the place I found so many old Music Station and Sound Arena episodes, BTW) and when I was a Wide Special with CoCo on it, I rented it right away! Little did I know it was to be that very Sailor Moon one!!!

Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon DVD

 “Sailor Moon” live action drama to be released as a Special Box Set

From Tokyohive:

"For those of you who were big fans of the “Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon” live action series, a special box set will officially be released on September 22nd!

The box set will contain all forty-nine episodes of the television drama that aired in 2003, “Special Act.“, “Act.ZERO Sailor V Tanjou“, and footage from the “Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon Kirari Super Live” held in 2004.

218 minutes of extra goodies – such as exclusive interviews with the cast and staff, a fun discussion about the series, and even a special mini drama – are also included for the ultimate “Sailor Moon” DVD set."


I don't suppose this thing is going to be released domestically, is it? Or even more unlikely, Subtitled in English? Because apart from something like that, isn't this almost exactly the same PGSM DVD set they released originally? The Extras and Interviews all seem like the same extras from that original set, unless they somehow got new interviews with all of the girls (including Ms. Kitagawa)...


Oh Well, it's nice to know that they're taking care of all the PGSM Fans that have yet to get this Series on DVD.

Sailor Tsuki No Koibito

So I'm watching another episode of Tsuki No Koibito, and it comes to the pivotal scene where Ren Hazuki (Kimura Takuya) meets up with cute Xiu Mei (Lin Chi-Ling) who is looking for water striders at the Hotel's waterfront. It's an emotional scene as Xiu Mei has just found a sort of peace with her life in Japan, and Hazuki is finding himself beginning to cherish her. Watching this scene struck me as somehow familiar- and why wouldn't it?

In the craziest coincidence, this Hotel Waterfront was the same place that the Sailor Senshi in PRETTY GUARDIAN SAILOR MOON met up with Usagi who'd been transformed into the cold Princess Serenity!

And the Courtyard shot where Ren finally embraces Xiu Mei...

Is the same courtyard where the Senshi ran down to confront Princess Serenity!

Ahahaha, considering Kitagawa Keiko is in both Tsuki No Koibito AND Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon, it woulda been hilarious if her Tsuki No Koibito character was at the waterfornt, too! She would be thinking "Hmm....this pond gives me the strangest sense of...deja vu!"

8/09 Edit: Hahahaha, While going through my Brother Beat episodes looking for Kuninaka Ryoko Screencaps, I came across ONE MORE appearance of this famed watering hole, this time with Tamayama Tetsuji and Mokomichi Hayami enjoying the scenery!

Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon 終わり

After a long and exciting PGSM Marathon session full of ups and downs and highs and lows, I’ve finally finished watching the series, and I have to say that without a doubt this show will remain in my heart as one of the best (and most unusual) little trips I’ve taken in my years of J-drama viewing!

Anticipation was running high as that last episode loomed closer and closer, and with the fate of Princess Serenity, Usagi Tsukino AND the ENTIRE PLANET EARTH at stake, the  there was so much going on that I wondered if they were going to be able to answer all the questions properly as well as wrap the show up in enough time!

*  *  *  WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD   *  *  *

Well, when “Final Act” Episode #49 finally came around and the show reached its inevitable conclusion, I hve to admit, I was mostly…underwhelmed. Though (to me) the story seemd to have remained intact and they answered all (or at least, most) of the questions and tried to tie everything up nicely, I have to say that the last episode DID seem a bit…rushed. I think the show REALLY could have benefited from being a longer show rather than trying to squeeze the entire epic ending into 27 minutes. Plus, it really would have given more impact if they had invested  more time and $$ into the special effects regarding the show’s huge climax and  solution, i.e: The  destruction and subsequent re-creation of no less than the Planet Earth itself! No matter, I still thought the last episode was O.K.

What really helped make the show end on a high note and made me leave the series with a warm feeling in my heart was the following PGSM SPECIAL, and though helplessly zany beyond belief, it is THIS movie that I consider the "final" chapter in the PGSM story : SAILOR MOON SPECIAL ACT: WATASHITACHI KEKKON SHIMASU!!

Usagi And Mamoru Get Hitched

The show centered around the lives of the Senshi years after the conclusion of free webpage countersepisode #49, and we find that all the girls have moved on and are living their own paths. It's only the announcement of Usagi and Mamoru's wedding (and the re-emergence of the evil idol Kuroki Mio) that brings them all together again. Though the girls have long since forsaken their powers, for this special they have been granted a "one-time" spell that will transform them in time to save the day and start the wedding!

Yeah, it may seem predictable and at times cliched, but this ending was really what I needed to really give the show the strong finish I missed in the last episode of the series. Clocking in at an Hour, this show gave enough time to properly say goodbye to the girls, and it was also nice to hear the show close with "Kirari Sailor Dream", the beloved PGSM theme song sung by SAE, since they'd chosen a different song for the #49 ending credits !

Just about the only things I can find to complain about is that they dropped the storyline between Sailor Mercury/Ami-chan and Shitennou Soldier Nephrite which was progressing very nicely in the series. Just a nod towards the relationship would have been nice, but that idea seems to have been completely dropped.

Sailor Senshi Minus Mars

The OTHER thing that bothered me, and is there ANY fan who watched this that didn't think this: How could they have a Sailor Senshi revival without Sailor Mars?! Granted, Kitagawa Keiko IS in the movie, but to have Rei laid up in a hospital while the battle is going on is unforgivable!

Ah well, those points aside, this was still a very, very good way to end the series, and along with PRETTY GUARDIAN SAILOR MOON : ACT ZERO, helped give the characters in the show a proper send-off, and by it’s end, I finally realized just how much I was going to miss those girls, especially  Usagi and her heartwarming smile!

Miyuu Sawai As Usagi

The Strange Trajectory of the Sailor Moon Episodes

Funny thing about this Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon series is the way that whenever a story arc climaxes with a TERRIFIC story arc, the episodes that follow it tend to be a bit on the … mediocre side. So it seems like whenever I’m blown away by an episode and run online to declare “it’s awesome!”, suddenly I find myself watching sub-par shows and my interest starting to waver! Then just when I resign myself that the best has come and gone, the show will suddenly begin to gain traction again and build up to another incredible arc with another conclusion that blows me away all over again!

It’s almost as if the show is run by two bosses, one that wants to steer the show into more drama and action oriented, while the other wants to make sure the show stays locked in a zany “Disney” kid-friendly type of shows. It’s all fine, and I actually like the balance of the two genres when it’s done right, but when you see a story where Sailor Mercury is enslaved by the dark Empire in one episode, and the next one Usagi is happily teaching rei how to sing karaoke for an idol contest is a juxtaposition that’s too much for my brain to handle!

Noticing this, I began trying to assign rating stars to each episode I saw, and when I finally had the time to chart them all out, it was petty interesting to see the distinct pattern of the show’s highs and lows. It would seem that (at least in MY opinion, and I should repeat that louder: IN MY OPINION!!!!)  after every BIG show, the story drops back down to a manageable (re: mediocre) level until the next BIG arc.

Now, the thing that’s worrying me is that at episode #45, I am now officially into the HOME STRETCH, making my way down the big finale in episode #49, PRETTY GUARDIAN SAILOR MOON’s last show… and as you can see by the chart, the past few episodes have been ROCKIN’ MY WORLD! Of course, I’m now worrying that the inevitable “drop” will be coming soon, and I’m PRAYING that it doesn’t happen at the END of the series!!!

K, Back to more PGSM…

Notes on the Graph: It’s pretty funny that just by looking at the chart I instantly remember what story was happening at that point to either make my rating spike or drop! AHAHAHAHA!

Episode 6 is where the girls go on a group date with the Karaoke Crown guys, and Mamoru witnesses Usagi, who he’s up to that point thought of as a clueless bimbo, transform into Sailor Moon! Fun!

Episode 14 is another Ami-chan tour de force as she shows her devotion and love for Usagi as she’s being turned into a Youma. Particularly painful-looking fight scenes, too.

Episode 19-28 are, of course, the awesome Sailor Mercury /Darkury episodes, only dropping slightly in Ep.22 because of Rei Hino  turning into a Singing Idol.

Maybe you like this. Not Me!

Episodes 29-32 are the aforementioned Mio Kuroki episodes which weren’t helped by an 8 year old human girl Luna. I’ve just never been a fan of the bullying girl in calss kind os stories, never mind tokusatsu ones.

Episode 34-35 shoots back up with the introduction (at last) of Princess Serenity…

Dark Phoenix For D-Addicts

Yeah, yeah, I KNOW that just about EVERY single one of you out there is downright SICK and TIRED of hearing me babble ON and ON about this whole “Sailor Moon” Thing, but HOLY CRAP this show just keeps BLOWING ME AWAY and there just ain’t NUTHIN’ I can do about it! Cackle! Cackle! Cackle!

What follows is MORE Sailor Moon gushing, skip if you want or proceed at your own risk. You have been duly warned Aha Ha Haaaaaaaaaaaaa

Sorejya…

When they revealed Usagi “Sailor Moon” Tsukino’s transformation/possession into Princess Serenity back in episode #36, I thought it was an interesting facet of her past persona, meant to be used as a metaphor for her past life’s memories, but as the episodes went by, the mystical crystal that was so heralded in earlier times was slowly staring to take over Usagi’s total embodiment- and each time the persona reappeared, she became more and more powerful, til the transformation was a thing to be DREADED rather than celebrated…

Finally, with this, the 41st episode in the series, we see for the first time the very, very, dark and utterly DESTRUCTIVE nature of Princes Serenity’s powers as she battles a youma and ends up totally decimating the place and injuring her friends  who have been caught in the maelstrom as well! It has been rumoured that Usagi has within her the power to destroy the world, and for the first time, the truth of this fact has become terrifyingly proved to her!

Man, when I first checked out the Wiki synopsis about the series and read that the second half of the series was “darker” than the first half (not to mention the manga or anime, for that matter), I had NO IDEA just how TRUE that would be!!! “How Dark Can a show Like sailor Moon get?” I thought. Silly Me!

Up to Episode #35 and no signs of Stopping

Moving along with my continued addiction with PGSM, I have to say that this shoujo manga tokusatsu* drama is really turning into one of the most rewarding  shows I’ve ever seen! Maybe it’s simply because of how long the series went on, but I really feel like I’ve gotten to know the characters deeply, and I find that I love and care about them and am simply beside myself with what’s gonna happen next!

This comes as bit of a surprise, because there was a brief time there (right after the awesome Darcury arc) where the series seemed to have “plateaued”; the storyline seemed to turn into a one dimensional high-school type drama, and I suddenly felt like I was watching mediocre cliched episodes. This would be the time they introduced Mio as Usagi’s weaselly adversary, but I think it has more to do with (as I mentioned before) Luna turning into an 8 year old girl than anything else. I REALLY had a problem with that! Funny, I never blinked when the Sailor Senshis were talking to Luna as a stuffed cat, but MAN, once they turned her into that little kid in a superhero costume battling alongside them, that was the first time I actually felt like I was watching a show for children.

It was during this time that I mentioned to Car that I was starting to lose interest in the show, and though she never said anything, you could feel her breathing a sigh of relief as if to say, “Thank God He’s finally getting over this embarrassing Sailor Moon obsession!”… but no sooner had I said that when the show suddenly shifted into high gear and got awesome ALL OVER AGAIN!

A large part of what makes this second run so engaging is the fleshing out of the Shitennou, the Dark Kingdom Generals, who, with their colored wigs and garish soldier outfits, seem to be male counterparts (of sorts) to the Sailor Senshi themselves. Whereas in the first half them acted more in the shadows, but the time of episode 20 they were regularly coming”above ground” to battle the girls firsthand, and as the storyline gets more complex, they are interacting more and more with each other, even to the point of shaky but necessary alliances between certain members.

Another point is the fact that Aino Minako’s character of Sailor V /Sailor Venus is almost non-existent in the first half of the series and when she finally makes her (official) appearance in episode 18 with the group, we don’t know quite what to make of her. It is only in these latest episodes that I find how much I like her character, probably because they’re finally devoting enough time to show where her heart lays. Or Lies. Whatever, I love her now!

I’ve read in several Sailor Moon sites that the PRETTY GUARDIAN SAILOR MOON Live-Action series is more CHARACTER driven than the original manga and anime series, and while not having either read the manga or seen the anime series, I can see where that could be true! They’ve done SUCH a great job of selling me on these people, and with the terrific acting of everyone (ESPECIALLY Miyu Sawaii…though I think I mentioned that already), the end product is nothing short of AWESOME!

Ah, I’m starting to approach the quandary I come across with most of the dramas I fall in love with- I want to hurry up and finish watching it because I’m dying to know what happens, but at the same time, I’m trying to watch them as SLOWLY as possible to prolong my time with them! Just the thought of no more episodes to watch SERIOUSLY bums me out!

Thank GOD Hotaru No Hikari 2 has started…I’m REALLY gonna need something to “latch onto” when this is all over!

* Yametekudasai states emphatically for the record: “Tokusatsu? I just can’t see that this SAILOR MOON thing has ANYTHING to do with REAL Tokusatsu heroes (like Ultraman, Kamen Rider, etc), and therefore cannot label it as such.” Or word to that effect.

Sailor Mars Rocks!

Short but sweet clip of Rei Hino/Sailor Mars kicking the butt of a decidedly funky-looking Youma (demon).

The Monster emerges from a glowing Flower bed in an overly-dramatic fashion with the intent to wreak havoc, but after Kitagawa Keiko shows up and BBQ's his head, he opts instead for a hasty departure!

Nobody Mess with the Senshi of Flame and Passion! I Pity Da Fool!

PGSM "Darkury" Storyline

Just finished watching the storyline in Sailor Moon where Sailor Mercury gets captured by the Dark Empire and is transformed into the evil (and admittedly pretty sexy) DARKURY. This story arc (spread between chapters 20-28) is DEFINITELY my favorite of the series so far, and that’s no small feat, considering how much I’ve loved each episode up until this point!

So many things happen in this one! Storylines get concluded, mysteries get answered and everything gets set up for the next volume in the series…and of course there’s the actual Darkury story itself, and I have to say that it was Hama Chisaki’s acting that really did it for me- (in fact, I’ve noticed that just about all of my “favorite” episodes seem to center around her) playing the double role of both protagonist AND antagonist and making them both believable and sympathetic, she REALLY sold the character and I found myself just LOVING her more and more!

That I loved this arc is even MORE impressive when you consider that this storyline ALSO featured two of the only things I’ve HATED in the series so far, namely turning Luna into a 8(?) year old girl, as well as featuring a silly episode where Rei becomes an idol singer. An Idol Singer?!

Fortunately, everything gelled by the time of the arc’s conclusion and the ending was very, very satisfying!