A new Blu-ray set collecting all three Sailor Moon movies, possibly in a Full Screen 4:3 aspect ratio, is coming in February

Posted on December 13, 2024 by Adam

A special set including all three of the Sailor Moon films is coming to Blu-ray on February 11th for with an MSRP of $29.98. A listing on the Crunchyroll store shows us the box art featuring the Sailor Moon R Movie poster. The set will include the three films Sailor Moon R The Movie, Sailor Moon S The Movie and Sailor Moon SuperS: The Nine Sailor Guardians Unite! Miracle of the Black Dream Hole. Is this release actually 4:3 full screen?

All three films had been previously released on Blu-ray as individual releases in 2018. These were high quality releases which were a high definition transfer from film source, like the same one used for the theatrical exhibitions of the film which took place in North America in 2017. It isn’t clear at this point if this release will be those same disks packaged together or if it will be a new version. While the newer releases of the TV series on Blu-ray were from new higher quality video sources, this same thing isn’t necessary for these films as they weren’t upscaled from standard definition video like the TV series is. Both the original and new releases will include the new English dubbed version from Viz and a Japanese version with English subtitles.

Oddly enough the box art shown in the Crunchyroll store shows the aspect ratio of the films is 4:3. Could this be accurate? The Sailor Moon films were indeed animated in a “Full Screen” 4:3 open matte format however the matted widescreen 16:9 version is what was shown in theatres, on LaserDisc and on the Japanese DVD and Blu-ray releases. While the recent Blu-ray versions of the films released in North America in 2018 were indeed 16:9 widescreen, the VHS and DVD versions released in the 1990s were 4:3. This paradoxically meant that the lower quality North American versions of the film included more of the image than the Japanese releases which were meant to duplicate the Japanese theatrical experience, as you can see from the screenshots included in this post which are from the old DVDs. It would certainly be an odd choice to have these releases be full frame in 2024, as this would require getting new masters from the film source separate from those used in the Japanese release.

Sailor Moon R The Movie - Upskirt - Full Frame

Sailor Moon R The Movie - Upskirt - Widescreen

The features shown include the Make Up! Sailor Guardians and Ami’s First Love featurettes which I’ve never seen full screen before, though I believe it’s possible that the Japanese VHS releases would have been 4:3. These days the term full screen is a bit of a misnomer as most modern TVs and displays are 16:9 or some sort of widescreen resolution, unlike the many 4:3 CRT displays people had in the 1990s.

Sailor Moon R The Movie - Young Mamoru - Full Frame

Sailor Moon R The Movie - Young Mamoru - Widescreen

Do you plan on picking up this set, or did you already buy these movies years ago? I would certainly buy them again if these were indeed 4:3 versions, but I suspect this may be an error on the packaging. Since the original releases of the Sailor Moon R, S and SuperS films had special features which aren’t mentioned on this box art, that could indicate that there are new discs and might in fact be 4:3 full screen. What do you think?

Emi Shinohara, the voice of Sailor Jupiter, has died at age 61

Posted on September 11, 2024 by Adam

It is a sad day for Sailor Moon fans as we learn that Emi Shinohara, who provided the voice of Makoto Kino, Sailor Jupiter, in the original Sailor Moon anime, has died. She was undergoing treatment for an illness when she passed away.

Besides playing Sailor Jupiter Emi Shinohara also voiced two monsters in the first seasons, Kyurene in episode 6 and Jumeau in episode 18. As an experienced voice actor she also appeared in many other anime series such as B-ko in Project A-ko and Kushina Uzumaki, Naruto’s mother from Naruto.

She will be missed profoundly by Sailor Moon fans around the world.

Sailor Moon Cosmos Part 1 and 2 are now available on Netflix

Posted on August 22, 2024 by Adam

Today, August 22nd 2024, Sailor Moon Cosmos Parts 1 and 2 were released on Netflix. This marks the end of the long running Sailor Moon Crystal series being released in North America. This is the first time fans outside of Japan are able to watch the films without importing it and the premiere of the English dub, as well as dubs in many other languages.

I’m reminded about how we saw the first episode of Sailor Moon Crystal released simultaneously to stream worldwide around the globe! How far we’d come back in 2014 to be able to do so when way back in 2024 we would have to wait over a year for a film that came out in theatres in Japan to be released domestically. No wait… I have that backwards. Indeed Sailor Moon Cosmos Part 1 was out in theatres in Japan on June 9th 2023, over a year ago. Surely things are a bit different with films than with a series but 2021’s Sailor Moon Eternal came out a mere five months after it first dropped in theatres in Japan. Why the delay? I don’t really know. Let’s just be happy we’ve finally gotten it.

Will any of you actually be watching these films for the first time? I watched my imported Japanese Blu-ray in the year 2023 but I am looking forward to checking out the Viz dub of the films.

Source: Netflix

Luna’s full name is officially Luna Kuroneko according to the Viz dub airing on Toonami Rewind

Posted on June 10, 2024 by Adam

Does Luna have a last name? I would never have thought so but it seems that now she does! Luna’s full name is listed as Luna Kuroneko in the broadcast credits for the first season of the original Sailor Moon anime! While the “new” dub by Viz has been out for many years and these episodes have been available to stream and on home video, they were not broadcast on TV until recently as part of the Toonami Rewind block. While the new dub isn’t the same one as aired during the 90s Toonami is able to air Sailor Moon thanks to Viz’s new dub. Those ending credits show only the English voice credits for the episode and amongst many other first season credits, many of whom aren’t actually in the first two episodes, we have Luna Kuroneko voiced by Michelle Ruff. Michelle Ruff is indeed the voice of Luna in the new Viz English dub. I saw the photo above on the Moon Sisters Facebook Page. It can also be seen on the Codename Sailor Earth Twitter page. Definitely worth checking out both pages if you like funny videos and wild ships.

What’s this name about and where is it from? Well “Kuroneko” simply means “black cat” in Japanese. Usagi refers to Luna as “Kuro neko Luna” in the opening narration starting with episode 2 and for the first half of the first season in of the original Sailor Moon anime. I believe she stops referring to her as such after Makoto shows up. I never assumed this was meant to be a name but rather a description of Luna’s colour and species. It seems like someone may have taken this literally and considers it to be Luna’s full name which, as is the standard in Japan, is stated with the family name first and the given name second. The order of names in the credits is given in the western style of given name first and family name second, as it’s done with the other names in the credits.

Luna does not otherwise have a family name which is mentioned in the manga, the original anime or Sailor Moon Crystal. She is an alien cat from another planet who as far as we can tell doesn’t have a family name. The human version of Luna who appears in the second half of the live action Sailor Moon series goes by the name Luna Tsukino as she is a part of the Tsukino family when not transformed into Sailor Luna. Human and cat Luna are the same character but cat Luna doesn’t use that full name in the series and even when Human Luna shows up in the manga, anime and Sailor Moon Crystal, she does not pretend to be part of the Tsukino family so the name simply does not apply to those series. That being said if Luna was ever brought to the vet she might be tracked in their system as having the family name Tsukino, if that’s how things are done in Japan. Somehow the idea of Luna getting prodded by a vet seems perverse and we know she doesn’t get spayed so perhaps she’s never been.

How official is this name? It’s in the credits so that’s something. It isn’t stated anywhere in the English version of the show and while it is said repeatedly in the Japanese version, that’s hardly what was likely intended with those scenes. I’d say the name is more or less as official as original dub names like Darien Shields or Amy Anderson.

This of course raises another interesting question. What is Artemis’s name? Is he Shironeko Artemis, meaning “White cat Artemis”? Does that mean Diana would take her father’s family name, Shironeko, even though she’s grey? Calling her “Haiironeko Diana” or “Grey cat Diana” would fit with the trend but not with how family names work.

Have you been watching Sailor Moon on Toonami Rewind? I’m Canadian so I don’t get Cartoon Network. Sailor Moon airing on Toonami is not a part of my own history of watching Sailor Moon so I have no nostalgia for it. The show played on Global and YTV throughout the week and also on US stations UPN 38 and WPix in the early hours of the morning back in 1995, years before the show reached a broad audience in the US through Toonami.

Sailor Moon Cosmos Part 1 and 2 are coming to Netflix August 22nd

Posted on June 6, 2024 by Adam

At long last, over a year after their release in theatres in Japan, the Sailor Moon Cosmos films will be coming to Netflix on August 22nd! The poster, which was posted to Twitter, refers to the movie as “Sailor Moon Cosmos The Movie”. No mention of a Part 1 or 2, so I wonder if this will be released as a single film or not. Sailor Moon Eternal, which was previously released on Netflix, is listed as two “episodes” with Part 1 and Part 2 being separate.

This will conclude the English release of Sailor Moon Crystal with the fifth and final story arc covering Sailor Moon and the Sailor Starlights’ fight against Sailor Galaxia and her minions. This version of the films should have a dub and subs in English and many other languages. I watched the films long ago when the Japanese Blu-ray release came out though I will gladly watch it again in English. I wonder how many people have really been holding out for the film to come out on Netflix?

Fans may also be wondering if a home video release is planned. It’s been over three years since Sailor Moon Eternal was released on Netflix and we still haven’t gotten a DVD or Blu-ray release of those films. The poster mentions that Sailor Moon Cosmos is “Only on Netflix” so a home video release seems unlikely in the short term. Since the Japanese releases don’t have subs I’d certainly want to get a domestic release of Sailor Moon Eternal and Sailor Moon Cosmos. Watching them on Netflix is all well and good but I don’t think I can count on them being around forever.

Have you seen Sailor Moon Cosmos yet? Will you be watching it on Netflix when it finally drops?

Sailor Moon Sailor Stars: Complete Fifth Season is now available on Blu-ray

Posted on May 28, 2024 by Adam

Once again the entire original Sailor Moon anime is available on home video. The fifth and final season has been released on Blu-ray in a single set which includes all 34 episode with Japanese and English audio as well as subtitles. You can buy the set in stores or online on sites like Amazon. These episodes were previously released in two parts back in 2019. The newer releases, which include all of a season’s episodes in a single set, have generally had better video quality than the originals. That said as the seasons went on the quality of the original releases was quite a bit better so one might not notice as big a difference in quality with Sailor Stars as they did with the first couple of seasons.

Sailor Stars was the elusive fifth season which was not dubbed back in the 90s. The new dub by Viz let fans hear this show in English for the first time a few years ago. It follows the Stars arc of the manga which was recently adapted as the Sailor Moon Cosmos films which have still not received a domestic release. This is the story of the Sailor Starlights, who disguise themselves as the idol group The Three Lights, while they fight Sailor Galaxia and her minions.

Do you plan on picking up this set?

A new Sailor Moon Art Book “Sailormoon Raisonné” is coming April 12th!

Posted on March 21, 2024 by Adam

A new Art Book titled “Sailormoon Raisonné Art Works 1991~2023″ will be released in less than a month on April 12th! Yesterday Sailor Moon editor Fumio Osano teased that some announcements would be made today, and this seems to be the big one! What does the French word for “reasoned” have to do with Sailor Moon? I really have no idea but it is certainly following in the tradition of using random non Japanese or English words in the last decade’s Sailor Moon musical titles. This one doesn’t seem to be overtly incorrectly spelled but the phrase doesn’t really make sense. What is “Sailormoon Reasoned?”

Update: It seems the term “raisonné” in this context refers to a “Catalogue raisonné” which is a catalogue listing all known works by an artist. This suggests that this work would reference everything that Naoko Takeuchi did related to Sailor Moon during the years 1991 to 2023. I’ve been speaking French for 45 years and this term is new to me!

By starting in 1991, the year in which Sailor Moon first appeared in the pages of Nakayoshi and that Codename: Sailor V appeared in Run Run, we will be covering the entire history of the manga. This “ultimate” colour illustration collection gathers a whopping 745 illustrations in its 200 pages.

The front cover features Sailor Moon, Mars, Venus, Mercury and Jupiter while the back shows Sailor Uranus, Neptune, Pluto, Chibi Moon and Saturn. A “B5″ sized file folder featuring one of these images will be available for those ordering it through the Fan Club or purchasing it at the Sailor Moon Store in Japan. B5 size is roughly but not exactly 7×10″. With an MSRP of 5980 yen, the book will cost about $40 US though expect to pay a bit for shipping or a mint for shipping if you’re still ordering from Amazon Japan, something I have stopped down due to exponential increases in their shipping costs.

This announcement has lead some to wonder if this is the same art book which was announced by Kodansha at New York Comiccon back in October of 2012. At the time the new art book was said to be released in seven countries including the United States. This announcement was made by Kodansha in Japan and doesn’t mention an international release, but such an announcement may still be coming. It’s also possible that after so much time this is a totally different project which might not actually come out here. I’m trying to figure out how long I want to wait before pre-ordering this.

Will you be getting it?

Source: Sailor Moon Official Site

Sailor Moon Sailor Stars, The Complete Fifth season, is coming to Blu-ray May 28th

Posted on March 12, 2024 by Adam

It looks like won’t need to wait much longer for the next season set of the original Sailor Moon anime. Last week in a since deleted Tweet Viz announced that Sailor Moon Sailor Stars The Complete Fifth Season would be coming to Blu-ray on May 28th. Why was the Tweet deleted? Who knows! Is May 28th still the official release date? Probably. The set is not listed with any online retailers yet, but should be showing up soon. Along with the announcement we also get our first look at the cover art for this release which features Eternal Sailor Moon.

With the release of the fifth and final season this will complete the rerelease of the series on Blu-ray. While the first few sets included significantly improved video quality the difference becomes less noticeable for the later series which already looked quite good in the sets released a few years ago.

The set will include English audio as well as the original Japanese audio with English subtitles. Will you be picking it up?

The original Sailor Moon anime first aired 32 years ago today

Posted on March 7, 2024 by Adam

March 7th 1992, 32 years ago, the original Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon anime first aired in Japan. This first episode, The Crybaby: Usagi’s Beautiful Transformation, introduces us to Usagi Tsukino who gets a magical broach from a talking cat and transforms into Sailor Moon! It was three years until that show would be released dubbed into English but throughout the next few years Sailor Moon took the world by storm.

What are your first memories of this show? I didn’t watch it until 1995 when it started airing in English in Canada and the US and became almost instantly hooked on it.

Will you be doing anything special to celebrate this occasion?

A new Nogizaka46 x Sailor Moon musical is coming in April of this year

Posted on February 5, 2024 by Adam

It’s been over five years since the first Nogizaka46 x Sailor Moon musical premiered in Japan and to celebrate a new presentation of the musical is being planned. Since Nogizaka46 is a band with many members, 46 of them to be precise, they can keep doing this for quite a while. The group is also cycling through members since you can’t be old and still be in an idol group in Japan, so there will likely be newer members of the group performing in this version of the musical.

We don’t currently have a ton of details aside from the show starting in April. After the original Nogizaka46 x Sailor Moon musical in the summer of 2018 there was a 2019 version which was more or less the same actual show with different actors. I watched the 2018 music on Blu-ray and watched the streaming version of the 2019 version and don’t recall noticing any differences.
It seems likely we will be getting essentially the same musical this time around.

Are you interesting in checking out this musical again? Will you be in Japan to see it? Ticket sales will first be made available to members of the official Sailor Moon and Nogizaka46 fan clubs.

Sailor Moon News

Bringing you the latest news about the new anime series Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon Crystal and all things Sailor Moon.

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