Sailor Moon Crystal

This page is a stub, for more info go here Sailor Moon Crystal (美少女戦士セーラームーンCrystal), is a 2014 adaptation of the Naoko Takeuchi 1992 manga series. Sailor Moon Crystal celebrates the 20th Anniversary of the Sailor Moon franchise with the intention of a creating a "shot-for-shot" adaptation of Takeuchi's manga and storyline.

Official Description
"Usagi Tsukino is a little clumsy and a crybaby, but she's also one spirited eighth grader. One Day she meets a black cat with a crescent moon on her forehead and transforms into the pretty sailor-suited guardian and justice, Sailor Moon! As a chosen guardian of justice, Usagi apparently has a mission to protect a princess and and to find her fellow Guardians and the Legendary Silver Crystal. Meanwhile Queen Beryl of the Dark Kingdom sends her subordinates to the town where Usagi lives. They cause strange events to occur there, all in the effort to acquire the tremendously powerful Silver Crystal. Can Sailor Moon and the other Guardians successfully find the Legendary Silver Crystal and protect the princess...?"

- Official Summary

Dark Kingdom Arc
While she is hurrying to get to her school on time one day, fourteen-year-old Usagi Tsukino accidentally steps on a black cat. When she picks it up and takes off the band aids on its forehead, she notices a crescent shaped symbol on the cat's forehead. Usagi, however, thinks that it's just a bald spot and runs off to school. Later that day, Usagi takes a nap, only to be awakened by the cat from earlier that day.

To her surprise, the cat starts talking to her and introduces itself as Luna. Luna tells Usagi that she is destined to become a Sailor Soldier, and gives her a mystical brooch that enables her to transform into Sailor Moon by calling out Moon Prism Power! Make Up! After transforming, Sailor Moon hears her good friend, Naru, screaming and goes to rescue her from a Youma. After defeating the Youma, she meets Tuxedo Mask, a mysterious man who encouraged her to defeat the Youma during the fight.

The next day, Usagi wakes up to go to school thinking that what happened that night was dream, that is, until she hears Naru telling her friends about what happened the previous night. Soon, Usagi finds out that not only does she need to find the other Sailor Senshi, but she also has to find the Moon Princess and protect the supremely powerful Silver Crystal from the Dark Kingdom; a mysterious group of villains that attempt to steal life energy from humans to strengthen and revitalize their ruler Queen Metaria to dominate Earth and exact their vengeance on the people of the White Moon, who have been reborn and reincarnated as "ordinary" teenage girls on Earth.

Usagi eventually finds the other five Sailor Senshi-Sailor Mercury, Sailor Mars, Sailor Jupiter, and Sailor Venus- and finds out that Tuxedo Mask is actually Mamoru Chiba, a man that had previously made fun of her about multiple things, including her low test grades and her meatball-like hairstyle. He and Usagi later begin to fall in love with each other.

However, during a battle with Kunzite, Tuxedo Mask injures himself while trying to protect Sailor Moon from an attack, causing him to lose consciousness as well. Sailor Moon is overwhelmed with sadness when this happens and after crying out in anguish, her tiara breaks, revealing a crescent moon symbol on her forehead and instantly transforms into Princess Serenity, the Princess of the Moon Kingdom, Silver Millennium.

After regaining her memories of her past life, one of her teardrops reveals the vastly powerful, legendary Silver Crystal itself, which starts to send out immense healing energy throughout the city. After attempting to attack the newly awakened Serenity, Queen Beryl and Kunzite abduct an unconscious Tuxedo Mask.

To find answers, Luna takes the five Sailor Soldiers to the Moon, where the ruins of Silver Millennium lie. The spirit of a young woman with silver hair appears before them and thanks Luna for bringing them here. She reveals to Sailor Moon that she is/was her mother in her past life, Queen Serenity. She explains that they all lived happily on the Moon with their beloved kingdom, the very first era of Silver Millennium. However, an evil entity from the cosmos, Queen Metalia, arrived out of the blue and brainwashed the humans of Earth to plan a major assault on the Moon Kingdom.

After returning home, Usagi runs into Mamoru, who she is shocked to discover has been brainwashed by Queen Beryl. A battle in another dimension takes place between Queen Beryl and the five Sailor Senshi. Sailor Venus manages to kill her by using the holy sword. Endymion runs off with Sailor Moon in pursuit.

Elsewhere, the four Inner Sailors are confronted by the four Knights, who they succeed in freeing from Metalia's control. Before they can embrace, Metalia kills them all. Saddened at the loss of their sweethearts, Mercury, Mars, Jupiter and Venus are told by Kunzite to keep on fighting to protect their princess. In the headquarters of Dark Kingdom, Sailor Moon uses the sword to stab Endymion in the chest and then herself.

She collapses on top of Tuxedo Mask and the others are horrified to have the tragedy repeated yet again. The complete Silver Crystal suddenly grows and envelops Sailor Moon and Tuxedo Mask in it before disappearing. Sailors' Mercury, Mars, Jupiter, and Venus all teleport after them. A hurt Luna asks Artemis to teleport her to the Moon. He does so, and Luna desperately pleads for Queen Serenity to show herself once more.

Black Moon Clan Arc
With the arrival of Chibiusa from the future, things take a strange turn for the Sailor Guardians. At the same time, the Black Moon Clan also appear. After Sailor Mars, Sailor Mercury, and Sailor Jupiter are captured by Koan, Berthier, and Petz, though at the cost of them being destroyed while Rubeus takes the captured Guardians with him, Calaveras meets her end before she can kidnap Sailor Venus, at which point Chibiusa admits she's from the future to Venus, Sailor Moon, and Tuxedo Mask, and agrees to take them back to her time, meeting the Sailor Guardian of the Time Gate, Sailor Pluto.

Upon discovering the wasteland of 30th century Crystal Tokyo as a result of the Black Moon Clan's attacks, Sailor Moon is kidnapped by Prince Demande, due to her resemblance to her future self, Neo Queen Serenity. Tuxedo Mask's future self, King Endymion, explains the history of the Black Moon Clan, Nemesis, and Chibiusa being Usagi and Mamoru's future child. When Tuxedo Mask and Chibiusa are separated in the time stream, Wiseman uses the opportunity to brainwash Chibiusa to his side, turning her into Black Lady.

Meanwhile, Usagi is able to free herself and the captured Sailor Guardians from Nemesis and return to Earth, only to then learn of Wiseman's true identity as the Death Phantom. Demande loses his sanity and attempts to merge the Silver Crystals of the past and future, which would be catastrophic, forcing Pluto to break her cardinal rule to never stop time to prevent it, which results in her losing her life for violating her duty.

This manages to break Death Phantom's hold on Black Lady, who reverts back to Chibiusa before transforming into Sailor Chibi Moon. Together, Sailor Moon and Sailor Chibi Moon destroy Death Phantom and Nemesis, before Chibiusa then has to return home to the future, only to then be sent back by her mother to receive proper training as a Sailor Guardian, giving Usagi a gift from her future self, the Heart Moon Rod.

Death Busters Arc
With Chibiusa joining them in the 20th century, the Sailor Guardians soon encounter a new threat in the form of the Death Busters, led by the eccentric Doctor Tomoe, Kaorinite, and the Witches 5 of the Bureau of Bad Behavior. During this time, they also encounter the first two of the Outer Sailor Guardians in Sailor Uranus/Haruka Tenou and Sailor Neptune/Michiru Kaiou. During a fight with the third member of the Witches 5, Telulu, she nearly defeats the Sailor Guardians in her more monstrous Daimon form before being slain by the resurrected Setsuna Meiou/Sailor Pluto. After the Outer Guardians explain their mission, already in possession and armed with the Space Sword, Deep Aqua Mirror, and Garnet Rod, and kneel before Sailor Moon as she assumes a form between Princess and Neo-Queen Serenity and pledge their loyalty to her, they ask the Inner Guardians, along with Serenity and Tuxedo Mask to stay out of their way during their mission to stop the Silence from destroying the world. In the meantime, Chibiusa befriends Hotaru Tomoe, who is revealed to have been so severely wounded in an accident that she had to be rebuilt as a cyborg to save her life, but in the process, Doctor Tomoe was possessed by Germatoid, and Hotaru had the Daimon pod of Mistress 9 implanted in her to grow over time.

When the Outer Guardians soon come looking for Hotaru to prevent the awakening of Sailor Saturn again, Sailor Chibi Moon tries to protect her, but causes Mistress 9 to awaken, transforming Hotaru into an older version of herself, and captures both Chibiusa's soul and the Silver Crystal of the future. Hotaru's spirit is able to fight back and protect both items, but is weakened by when she detects the death of her father after Germatoid is slain by Super Sailor Moon and the Outer Guardians. Mistress 9 then attempts to claim Chibiusa's soul and those of the Inner Guardians as she attempts to free her true Daimon form from that of Hotaru's older body, but with her strength waning, Hotaru uses what is left to return the souls of the Inner Guardians to their bodies, along with both her soul and Silver Crystal to an unconscious Chibiusa being tended to by Mamoru in his apartment. With no strength left, Hotaru is forced to let her body be destroyed as Mistress 9's true Daimon form finally bursts free from it. However, as Mistress 9 is absorbed by Pharaoh 90 as he emerges and brings forth the Silence, Sailor Saturn is awoken by the Space Sword, Deep Aqua Mirror, and Garnet Rod. Using her Silence Glaive, Saturn weakens Pharaoh 90 enough that he is forced to retreat back to the Tau System with Mistress 9, and Saturn pursues them, having Pluto seal the gates to ensure they can never return to Earth, even if it means Saturn remains imprisoned with them. After Saturn's heroic sacrifice to stop Pharaoh 90 and Mistress 9, Super Sailor Moon transforms into Neo-Queen Serenity and uses her power to restore the world from the destruction wrought by the Death Busters and Sailor Saturn. In the process, the other Sailor Guardians are given new strength and evolve into Super Sailor Guardians, and Hotaru/Sailor Saturn is reborn as a baby. Pluto, Uranus, and Neptune take Hotaru to raise themselves since her father is dead, being given a new mission to care for Hotaru until Sailor Saturn's powers are needed once more, and depart from Super Sailor Moon, Tuxedo Mask, Super Sailor Chibi Moon, and the Inner Guardians' presence for the time being.

Some time later, as the girls prepare for their new semester in high school, they get ready to see a rare eclipse taking place over Tokyo. However, as Usagi and Chibiusa prepare to watch the eclipse, they hear the sound of a bell, and turn to notice a flurry of pink flower petals and white feathers appear...

Sailor Moon Eternal
This two-part movie serves as the Sailor Moon Crystal version of the original anime's Sailor Moon Super S season regarding Queen Nehelenia and the Dark Moon Circus. Unlike the original anime, there are many differences regarding the origins of the Amazon Trio and Amazon Quartet.

Part 1
As the Sailor Guardians prepare for their new semester, they are surprised by the arrival of a new circus in town known as the "Dead Moon Circus" following the solar eclipse. Later, the Guardians find themselves unable to transform into their Sailor Guardian forms since the circus appeared. During when they are attacked by Besubesu and Parapara, Usagi and Chibiusa are granted the power to transform again thanks to Pegasus, but Mamoru has fallen terribly ill. Seizing the moment, Parapara not only de-transforms Usagi and Chibiusa from Super Sailor Guardian form, but also swaps their ages. Though the girls later revert the spell and return to normal, and to their Super Sailor Guardian states, the Amazon Quartet transform their circus animals into the Amazon Trio, sending Hawk's Eye, Fish Eye, and Tiger's Eye to take out the other Inner Guardians. They nearly succeed before the girls are able to find the power to once more transform into their Super Sailor Guardian forms, destroying the Amazon Trio. After Minako is able to transform into Super Sailor Venus again when investigating the circus and being saved by Artemis when he assumes his human form, all four Inner Guardians are then captured by the Amazon Quartet, who prepare to destroy them.

Part 2
Meanwhile, in their country home, the Outer Sailor Guardians, Haruka, Michiru, Setsuna, and the young Hotaru, are starting to grow wary of things becoming uneasy and even sinister since the eclipse. When Hotaru reawakens her power as Sailor Saturn, she is able to grant the Outer Guardians the power to transform into their Super Sailor Guardian forms again. Sensing that Princess Serenity and Prince Endymion are in trouble, the Outer Guardians immediately head to the Dead Moon Circus, arriving just in time to transform and rescue the Inner Guardians from the Amazon Quartet, much to the Quartet's fury at the Outer Guardians saving the day. Though the Quartet retaliate, they are forced to retreat after the Outer Guardians destroy the circus tent.

However, after all the Sailor Guardians regroup with Tuxedo Mask, Sailor Moon, and Sailor Chibi Moon, Zirconia arrives and casts a spell on Mamoru and Usagi, but they are saved once more by Helios, regressing them to younger ages to protect them. Later, they are restored to their rightful ages as Helios shows them the condition of Elysion from the effects of Queen Nehelenia, before being forced to send them back to Earth when Nehelenia tries to attack them. At the same time, Super Sailor Saturn and Chibi Moon head into the circus again to confront the Amazon Quartet. Sensing that they are corrupted by a spell placed on them by Nehelenia, Saturn tries to get the Quartet to see reason, offering her hand in friendship. Though Junjun is about to accept, Zirconia arrives and, furious at thinking the Quartet betrayed her, punishes them by trapping them back in the crystal spheres she had awoken them from, before trapping Saturn and Chibi Moon in another dimension through mirror shards. Nehelenia also is able to cause much more damage to the other Sailor Guardians as well in the meantime.

The main reasons for Nehelenia's actions were due to how, when Princess Serenity was born to Queen Serenity, Nehelenia invited herself to the celebration, but the Moon Queen and the younger Inner Guardians were not pleased by her presence and threatening the baby princess. Though Serenity banished Nehelenia back into her mirror using the Crescent Moon Wand and Imperium Silver Crystal, Nehelenia cursed the baby princess so she would never ascend to the throne after Queen Serenity, possibly setting the stage for when the Dark Kingdom launched their siege of the Moon Kingdom.

Nevertheless, the Sailor Guardians fight back, as does Tuxedo Mask, and Zirconia is soon defeated, while Saturn and Chibi Moon escape their imprisonment, taking the crystal orbs the Amazon Quartet were imprisoned in with them. Soon, everyone arrives in Elysion to face Nehelenia, and Super Sailor Moon is able to ascend and become Eternal Sailor Moon, causing the other Guardians to assume their princess forms, before then passing on their power to Eternal Sailor Moon, becoming Eternal Sailor Guardians themselves, and with the combined power of all the Sailor Guardians supporting her, and Tuxedo Mask as he awakens the Golden Crystal within himself as the Prince of the Earth, Eternal Sailor Moon destroys Nehelenia and her mirror, so the Dark Moon will never threaten Earth again.

Afterwards, Eternal Sailor Moon and Tuxedo Mask, with the Silver and Golden Crystals becoming ornaments on their respective scepters, transform into Neo Queen Serenity and King Endymion, while most of the Sailor Guardians reassume their princess forms, save Chibi Moon and Saturn. Saturn presents the Amazon Quartet's crystals to Neo Queen Serenity and asks if she can help them. Neo Queen Serenity does, and awakens the Amazon Quartet once more, only this time, they assume their true forms as the Asteroid Sailor Guardians, who reveal that they were turned into the Amazon Quartet by Nehelenia when she awoke them prematurely and brainwashed them into living a nightmare as her servants. Now free, they are destined to serve Chibi Moon as her Guardians, but only after she finishes her training, then they will properly awaken to support and guide her. Saturn promises to look after Chibi Moon in the meantime, and the Quartet return to their slumber before taking their leave. Helios also returns to Elysion now that it can be restored, and things are looking up for the Guardians and their future.

2012
At a July 6, 2012 press conference celebrating the 20th anniversary of the series, Naoko Takeuchi, Kodansha and idol group Momoiro Clover Z announced that a new anime adaptation of Sailor Moon was in production and scheduled to premiere in Summer 2013 for a simultaneous worldwide release, with Momoiro Clover Z performing both the opening and ending themes.

2013
Following the announcement of a new series in 2012, in April 2013, it was announced that the new anime would be delayed. Months later, on August 4, 2013, the new anime would be streamed during the winter of 2014. On January 9, 2014, it was announced that Sailor Moon would instead premiere during July 2014.

2014
On March 13, 2014, the official website for the new anime was updated to reveal a countdown, that began on March 14, regarding a special announcement that would be revealed on March 21st, 2014. That same day, an image displaying the key visual art, synopsis and staff for Sailor Moon Crystal were announced on Toei's website. The official artwork also revealed the name for the anime, Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon Crystal (美少女戦士セーラームーンCrystal). The series is animated by Toei Animation and directed by Munehisa Sakai.

At the 20th Anniversary Project Special Stage on April 27, 2014, the Japanese cast and premiere date were announced. Sailor Moon Crystal would premiere on July 5, 2014 with the first episodes premiering on the first and third Saturdays of each month.

While Kotono Mitsuishi reprised her role as protagonist Sailor Moon, from the previous series, a new cast of voice actresses were chosen for the four Sailor Guardians. Hisako Kanemoto was cast as Sailor Mercury, Rina Satō would voice Sailor Mars, the voice of Sailor Jupiter would be provided by Ami Koshimizu, and Sailor Venus would be voiced by Shizuka Itō.

On April 30, it was announced that Sailor Moon Crystal would run for 26 episodes, streaming via Niconico, on the first and third Saturday of each month for a whole year from July 5 onwards. Crunchyroll would also stream the series on their website on July 5, 2014 at 6:00am ET (10:00 UTC). The first trailer for Sailor Moon Crystal was published on YouTube on June 5, along with an announcement of the voice talent slated to play Tuxedo Mask and Luna (Kenji Nojima and Ryo Hirohashi respectively.) A starter book for Sailor Moon Crystal was released during the Summer of 2014. The book included interviews with the new Japanese cast and information for the fans.

2015
On September 28, 2015, the day in which the final episode of the Black Moon arc was aired on Japanese television, it was announced that production for the third season of Sailor Moon Crystal was given the green light. The third season of Sailor Moon Crystal is known as the Death Busters arc, which is based on the Infinity arc of the manga. Chiaki Kon replaced Sakai as the series director.

2016
The newly appointed staff and cast for the third season were announced in a live webcast on January 27, 2016. The first episode of the Death Busters Arc was previewed at a special event held at Animate Ikebukuro store in Tokyo on March 6, 2016. The third season began its regular airing on April 4, 2016.

2021
On January 25, 2017, a fourth season of Sailor Moon Crystal was announced on the Sailor Moon 25th anniversary website, later confirmed to be a theatrical film project divided into two parts called Sailor Moon Eternal, with Kon returning as main director.

English Distribution
July 2014, Viz Media gained the license for Sailor Moon Crystal anime for simulcast streaming. Viz aimed to release the franchise digitally with English subtitles beginning in Summer 2014, followed by a new English voice dub starting in late 2014. June 2014, Viz was only exercising its video streaming rights in the United States, plans for streaming the series to viewers in Canada not yet announced at time.

July 2015, Viz Media officially announced that the English localization for Sailor Moon Crystal would debut at the 2015. The dub for Crystal would use the same cast used in the new localization of the original Sailor Moon series. On November 2015, the English dub of the first two episodes and were made available to watch on Hulu.

Japanese Release
The first two seasons of Sailor Moon Crystal were released in Japan in thirteen box sets. Each volume contained two episodes. A Blu-ray was released first. A regular DVD and Blu-ray were released a month later on the exact date of the next limited edition Blu-ray. The first limited edition Blu-ray was released on October 15, 2014.

North American Release
The first season of Sailor Moon Crystal was released on standard DVD and Blu-Ray August 16, 2016 with a limed edition set released at the same time for both formats. The standard and limited edition DVD and Blu-Ray of second season of the series was released in early on February 28, 2017. The third season of Sailor Moon Crystal is pending a December 5, 2017 release.

Trivia

 * The premiere episode, "Usagi - Sailor Moon" was viewed one million times in two days, with a total of 250,000 comments globally.