Anime Review: 'Sailor Moon S: The Movie'

original Japanese theatrical poster (source)

Today I'll be going over the second theatrical film based on the classic 90s anime Sailor Moon. This is Sailor Moon S: The Movie. The "S" in the title implies that it takes place at some unspecified point in the Sailor Moon S arc, which is the third season/series in the overall canon.

Why am I reviewing this during the Christmas season? Simple: it takes place during Christmas break, in much the same manner that Die Hard takes place on Christmas Eve, therefore making it a Christmas movie, technically. For this review, I will be utilizing screenshots that I took myself from the Blu-ray disc, because I finally have that capacity now (yay for me!).

SUMMARY

In the opening scene, a mysterious figure known as Princess Snow Kaguya approaches Earth on a comet. She intends to freeze the planet and add it to her ice collection. This is another case of an attempted alien invasion it would seem.

While this is going on, an astronomer sees the comet through his telescope. A piece breaks off said comet and lands nearby. The man drives out to the location and finds out the item is some kind of crystal, which he takes home with him.

Yep, this thing totally won't cause any issues whatsoever...

Fast forward to a bit later where we see Usagi Tsukino and her friends enjoying themselves during winter break. Luna, Usagi's black alien cat that can talk, says that she needs to go home since she feels under the weather. As she crosses the street, she almost gets run over by a car but is saved at the last second by the astronomer from earlier. He takes Luna to his abode and nurses her back to health. It is there that we learn his name is Kakeru.

Kakeru

A woman named Himeko visits Kakeru later. He tells her that he believes there is a goddess living on the moon, Princess Kaguya (sound familiar?), while Himeko dismisses the notion as fairytale nonsense. During their conversation, the crystal from earlier glows nearby, causing Kakeru to have a negative reaction. The crystal is clearly having some sort of effect on him.

Once she is healthy enough, Luna leaves his house, and she soon realizes that she has a crush on him. The only problem: she is a cat, and he is a human.

A while later, Princess Snow Kaguya, realizing that she can't freeze the planet without all her crystals in possession, sends out her snow minions to find the last crystal. They start freezing people in downtown Tokyo. In response, Usagi and company transform into the Sailor Guardians (or Senshi) to put a stop to the mayhem.

Before I continue, I need to show you this scene when Tuxedo Mask shows up. It's hilarious and possibly the best scene in the entire movie. It is also appropriate for the season, so enjoy:

Luna goes back to Kakeru, who is becoming sick due to the crystal, and kisses him while he sleeps. As Luna leaves, Usagi meets up with her, and it is here that she confesses her feelings for Kakeru and her wish to be human. Princess Kaguya then shows up at Kakeru's house and takes the crystal from him.

Meanwhile, the other girls are elsewhere, figuring out what the deal is with Princess Kaguya. Artemis, the other alien cat who is white, tells them of a story he heard long ago where a malevolent being was pushed back from Earth by something known as "Silver Crystal Power." Perhaps they must use that again.

Eventually, Sailor Moon and the rest of the Guardians head out to Princess Kaguya's fortress to duke it out with her and her snow minions with no success. As this is occurring, Luna meets up with Kakeru again who has started going out into the snow to meet up with Himeko before she goes to space.

After transforming into Super Sailor Moon via the Holy Grail and still being unable to stop Kaguya, Sailor Moon realizes that the only way to defeat her is to use "Silver Crystal Power." The other Sailor Guardians encircle her and unleash the force that finally destroys the villainess, preventing the Earth from becoming an ice planet.

I'm a-firing muh laser!!!

Sailor Moon grants Luna a chance to be human for one night, and when Kakeru wakes up, he meets whom he thinks is Kaguya. Luna in her humanoid form tells him to be there for the one he loves, that being Himeko.

human!Luna

After everything is back to normal, Kakeru meets up with Himeko at the airport, and it's implied that they become a couple. Speaking of, Artemis meets up with Luna a few minutes later and tells her that he's had feelings for her the whole time. So in the end, Kakeru is coupled with another human, and Luna is coupled with another cat. Merry Christmas!

DISCUSSION

Whether one likes this movie or not is influenced by one's familiarity with the Sailor Moon franchise. While this is certainly watchable with no prior knowledge, knowing the characters and the basic premise will make the viewing experience so much better. This movie is actually based on a side story from the manga. The other two movies in the 90s canon, R Movie and Super S Movie, are original stories.

Being a theatrical film, the art and animation are miles ahead from the TV version due to the larger budget. The Blu-ray release, courtesy of Viz Media, really does it justice with the bright colors and crisp lines. This looks like it was released yesterday, and I love looking at it.

Princess Snow Kaguya, I gotta say, is a really cool villainess. Inspired by the Japanese legend, she definitely feels menacing as she attempts to basically turn the Earth into Europa. She is what Elsa from Frozen should have been. Now that I think of it, someone should really do a Death Battle animation with Elsa and Kaguya...

The side plot with Luna having an unrequited crush on a human feels very reminiscent of The Little Mermaid with a non-human female falling for a human male. Luna is even granted the ability to be human temporarily! I would not at all be surprised if the manga-ka, Naoko Takeuchi, was inspired by that tale.

The next best scene in the movie, other than the silly Santa Claus bit, has to be the climax when the Sailor Guardians use the "Silver Crystal Power" ability to defeat Princess Snow Kaguya. It's pretty epic as well as aesthetically pleasing. It really stands out as one of the best final moves in the whole franchise.

Overall, this is a movie that is worth watching during the Christmas season. While not directly referencing anything religious, it does have the positive messages of love and good defeating evil, which is what Jesus did by being born on Earth as a human to free us from our sins. Merry Christmas, and I hope to see you next time!

Quality Rating: 8/10

Content Rating: Official: TV-14; Personal: PG-12