Meet the cast of Sailor Moon at Fan Expo in Toronto September 1st to the 4th

Posted on July 21, 2016 by Adam

Toronto Sailor Moon fans will have a chance to meet stars from the original and new dubs of Sailor Moon at Fan Expo in Toronto the weekend of September 1st to the 4th. From the 90s dub of the original Sailor Moon anime the convention will feature Linda Ballantyne, Sailor Moon, Katie Griffin, Sailor Mars, Susan Roman, Sailor Jupiter, Toby Proctor, Tuxedo Mask, Jill Frappier, Luna and Ron Rubin, Artemis. This is the main group that’s advertised as “The Stars of Sailor Moon” who will have a Sailor Moon Q&A panel.

With a convention of this size there are a lot of other voice actors present, some of which are in the new dub of Sailor Moon and Sailor Moon Crystal which is being done by Viz. Voice actors from the new dub include Cherami Leigh, Sailor Venus, Veronica Taylor, Sailor Pluto, Todd Haberkorn, the voice of both Jadeite and Kenji Tsukino and Cassandra Lee Morris, Calaveras of the Ayakashi Sisters.

Fans may know Veronica Taylor best as the voice of Ash Ketchum and Ash’s Mom in Pokémon. Does this mean a Sailor Moon/Pokémon crossover will be announced at the convention? No. Of course not.

Do you plan on attending? I’ll be there this year. This will be my third time attending Fan Expo. It’s a great convention.

A Pop Up Sailor Moon Cafe will take place in Toronto on July 30th

Posted on July 17, 2016 by Adam

Good news for Toronto Sailor Moon fans who can’t get enough Sailor Moon related events. A Sailor Moon Pop Up Cafe is coming on July 30th. The event will run from 1pm to 6pm on the Saturday at the Imperial Tea Room at the Hirut Cafe at 2050 Danforth Avenue. A Sailor Moon themed menu, including Sailor Moon Parfait, Cupcakes, Cookies and Sailor Guardian drinks, will be served. There will be an art and colouring competition, karaoke and more.

Check out the Facebook event for more details. Tickets are $15 and can be purchased at the Imperial Tea Room. Will any of you be attending this event?

A Mistress 9 Pullip Doll is coming in September

Posted on July 17, 2016 by Adam

A Mistress 9 Pullip Doll has been announced on the Official Sailor Moon Site. This seem like an odd choice for a doll but after getting Human Luna it seems like we could get almost anything. This is the second villain we get as a Pullip Doll, after Black Lady. The doll will be released in September with the Bandai Premium Edition coming out in October. It will be priced at 22000 yen, about $210 US.

We previously reported on a Sailor Saturn Pullip Doll which was actually a DAL Doll, which is a younger version of the doll modeled after Pullip’s younger sister. This more adult version of Hotaru is shown as a Pullip Doll. This is similar to how Sailor Chibi Moon had a DAL Doll but her older version, Black Lady, was a Pullip Doll.

Pullip Dolls are expensive high quality collectible dolls with disproportionally large heads and eyes. Do you plan on picking this one up? With all of the main Sailor Guardians already released in the Sailor Moon line of dolls I wonder what will come out next.

Keep reading for more images of this doll.

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Canadians can now stream all 200 episodes of the original Sailor Moon anime on Tubi TV

Posted on July 16, 2016 by Adam

Canadians finally have a free legal way to watch all 200 episodes of the original Sailor Moon anime thanks to Tubi TV. Over two years ago when Sailor Moon was announced to be returning to Hulu many fans rejoiced but here in Canada, the birthplace of the English dub of Sailor Moon, this was not a good day. We don’t get Hulu up here. It’s only accessible via legally questionable proxy services and we can’t get Viz’s streaming web site Neon Alley either. All this has changed now that the entire Sailor Moon anime has been released on streaming service Tubi TV. This means that Sailor Moon Sailor Stars is officially available in Canada for the first time. Also available are the first 26 episodes of Sailor Moon Crystal but those were already available on Crunchyroll which is available in Canada. None of the dubbed episodes are available on Tubi TV, though Canadians still have the option of buying the home video release of the first two seasons which is currently all that is available in English.

Tubi TV can be viewed through a web browser or by downloading the Tubi TV app on a number of supported devices including iOS (iPhone and iPad), Android, Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, Xbox 360, Xbox One and Samgsung TVs. I usually watch stuff on my PS4 and PS3 so this isn’t totally convenient, but I do have the option of using some of these devices or a web browser on my laptop connected to my TV.

I had a few technical challenges trying to watch the first episode as a test of the service. After updating my Flash Player I finally got the first episode to load after a number of attempts and watching an ad for a Keira Knightley period piece where she has to choose between a life of status and money with a man she doesn’t love and slightly less status and money with a man she loves. Subtitles didn’t show up. I downloaded the app on my iPhone and things looked good but the subtitles appear close to the middle of the screen which is a bit annoying. The timing was off too as the subtitles loaded a bit earlier than the actual lines. The quality looks about equivalent to what we’ve gotten on Hulu and the home video release. Excessively post processed video of a not so great source. Perhaps this isn’t the best streaming service but it’s free and available in Canada so let’s be happy for that.

The new official Sailor Moon app and game are now available for iPhone but you probably can’t play it

Posted on July 12, 2016 by Adam

The terrible saga of this horrible app continues. The official Sailor Moon Fan Club app is out for iOS devices. This includes a game. You will almost certainly not be able to play this game if you don’t live in Japan. Sorry. Here’s what the game you can’t play looks like.

We’ve previously posted about the new Sailor Moon Fan Club app which was released for Android phones and then posted a review. So much to say there is an official app which is exclusive to Japan which included a game which only worked for Fan Club members, which you needed to pay for and needed a Japanese address to be a part of. I then figured out that you could log in to the game with a free account, which you can’t make anymore, but I happened to have. That method doesn’t work anymore. It also doesn’t work on the iOS version for iPhones. You pretty much can’t play this game if you don’t have a paid Fan Club account.

Still want instructions on how to get this game? You can download it from the Japanese iTunes store. This means creating a Japanese iTunes account. You can follow these steps to do it. I don’t reccommend you do because the app is a terrible waste of time that you can’t play, but you can do that.

Once you load the app you will be able to view the Official Sailor Moon Site. Click on the banner at the bottom of the screen which says “FC …”. You will be asked to log in. If you have an official Fan Club account you can play the game. If not you get this error message.

Sorry.

Just play Sailor Moon Drops instead. It’s not terrible like this app.

Sailor Moon Crystal Season III volume 1 Japanese Blu-Ray review

Posted on July 10, 2016 by Adam

The first of three volumes of Sailor Moon Crystal Season III is now available on Blu-Ray. Volume 1 was released on June 29th in Japan. This is a Japanese language release so there is no English audio or English subtitles. You can import it from sites like Amazon Japan for 6909 yen, about $67 US. This release features four episodes, where the first 26 episodes of the series were only released on disks containing two episodes a piece. This time we get Act 27 parts 1 and 2 as well as Acts 28 and 29. The set comes in a smaller package than the earlier releases, which should fit more conveniently on your shelf. It also includes a 24 page special booklet with interviews and art.

The episodes included are Act 27, Infinity 1 – Premonition – First Part and Second Part, Act 28, Infinity 2 – Ripples, and Act 29 – Infinity 3 – Two New Soldiers. This covers the introduction to the Death Busters, the Sailor Guardians facing off against Eudial and Mimete, meeting Hotaru, Haruka and Michiru as well as Sailor Uranus and Neptune. With the first 26 episodes, plagued by sloppy inconsistent animation, a number of minor improvements and changes were done to the animation for the Blu-Ray release. None of this is present here. If you’ve seen the streaming version you’ve seen the version which is presented on this release. It seems they put a bit more time and money into the animation the first time so there was no need for updates.

The episodes include an optional audio commentary. These four episodes all feature commentary by Kotono Mitsuishi, the voice of Sailor Moon, Junko Minagawa, the voice of Sailor Uranus, and Sayaka Ohara, the voice of Sailor Neptune.

As with earlier releases a 24 page special booklet is included. The contents are somewhat like what we’ve seen before. There are episode summaries, interviews and character designs. Osabu’s page is not present in this booklet. There are a total of five interviews included. These are with Kotono Mitsuishi, the voice of Sailor Moon, Hisaka Kanemoto, the voice of Sailor Mercury, Rina Sato, the voice of Sailor Mars, Ami Koshimizu, the voice of Sailor Jupiter, and Shizuka Ito, the voice of Sailor Venus.

All in all this set is a more worthwhile purchase than the previous sets were. The cost is about the same and there are twice as many episodes. Without any changes in animation though, there isn’t much to get from collecting these when the streaming version is subtitled and free, though not quite at Blu-Ray quailty. Further now that we know that English Blu-Ray sets are coming with entire story arcs costing close to what a single Japanese disc does, it seems a little pointless for an English speaking North American fan to buy these Japanese only releases. All said we haven’t seen the English release yet. It seems unlikely that it will be plagued with terrible video quality like all North American releases of the original series have been, but that’s still a possibility. We may find that this is the better quality set to have when all is said and done. The French DVD and Blu-Ray came out last week and seems to be of exceptional quality though, so it seems likely the English release will be the same.

The next set will be released on July 27th and can be pre-ordered from sites like Amazon Japan. It is similarly priced at 6909 yen. It will include four episodes, Acts 30 to 33, bringing us to Sailor Moon’s transformation into Super Sailor Moon and the first flashback look at Sailor Saturn.

Keep reading for more photos of the packaging and all pages of the included special booklet.

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Check out the Sailor Guardians, Helios and the villains from the Sailor Moon Amour Eternal musical

Posted on July 9, 2016 by Adam

We’ve gotten a few updates about the upcoming Sailor Moon musical, Amour Eternal, recently. The latest is an image of Helios, Nehelenia, Zirconia and the Amazon Trio which was posted to the official Sailor Moon site. We’ve also gotten a look at the Sailor Guardians, old and new, in their uniforms in some images and a commercial which is included below:

We had previously learned who all of these actors were going to be but this is the first time we see them in costume. What do you think?

There has also been a cast change, which was mentioned in our last update, where Hikari Kuroki who was originally cast as Sailor Mercury was replaced by Yume Takeuchi. This was said to have simply been because of “cast circumstances” without specifics. I’ve learned some details about what may have prompted this. She posted on Twitter that she was leaving because of complaints. Some believe she may have been removed from her role for having posed as a gravure model in the past, which means that she did modeling in clothing such as revealing swimsuits. I also saw comments suggesting she had changed her name since then. I do not know the exact nature of all of her previous works so I can not comment on the specifics, but it seems unfortunate for something like this and the public shaming that ensued to have caused problems with her career. Many other actors who have been affiliated with various incarnations of Sailor Moon have done this type of work so it’s hard to say if this is the actual reason for her leaving and we will likely not be getting anything in the way of official confirmation if this is the case. Some details about this come from an article from Yahoo Japan. You can read a translation of this and her tweet on the Ai No Message Tumblr page.

This musical, which covers the Dream arc of the manga, will be playing in Japan in October and November of this year.

Additional images can be found at 25news.jp.

Sailor Moon Crystal Official Soundtracks II, a two CD set featuring music from the Infinity arc, will be released July 27th

Posted on July 8, 2016 by Adam

A second Sailor Moon Crystal soundtrack will be released in Japan on July 27th. This 2 CD soundtrack is called “Sailor Moon Crystal Official Soundtracks II”. Why the plural in soundtracks? I don’t know. A sound track refers to the track on a film which includes the music as opposed to dialogue and sound effects. What we call a soundtrack was once referred to as the music from the sound track of a movie. In that sense we really are just referring to the one track but we also talk about tracks on a CD which is a totally different thing. None of these things are actual tracks. There’s no 8 track or record or even a film real medium to Sailor Moon Crystal. A track is just a concept we use to refer to something which exists as computer files on hard drives and CDs. We don’t really mean the sound track of a movie when we say Soundtrack anymore. Anyway I’m ranting. I’ll give them a pass for being really Japanese.

You can pre-order the CD from online retailers such as Amazon Japan and CD Japan for as little as 3000 yen, about $30. This is more than the singles we’ve seen before because this is a full 2 CD set with background music from the entire season. Also included are TV sized versions of all of the opening and ending themes heard in the Infinity arc. A track listing is on the Sailor Moon official site. Here’s an English track listing I got through Google Translate with some help from a translation by Miss Dream!

Disc 1

1. Super Sailor Moon’s Theme
2. In Love With the New Moon (TV size) by Etsuko Yakushimaru
3. Sea Serenade
4. Mysterious Encounter
5. Haruka and Michiru
6. Professor – Pharaoh 90
7. Kaolinite
8. Anxious Dream
9. Hotaru
10. Mysterous Guardians
11. Ripples on the Heart?
12. Man or woman, is that so important?
13. Eternal Eternity (TV size)
14. Uranus and Neptune Make-Up!
15. Sailor Uranus
16. Sailor Neptune
17. Possessed Soul
18. Daimon
19. Moon Cosmic Power Make-Up!
20. Planet Power Make-Up!
21. Arrival of the Sailor Guardians
22. Magnificent Counterattack
23. Moon Spiral Heart Attack!
24. Chibiusa and Hotaru -Flute version-
25. Chibiusa and Hotaru
26. Chibiusa Make-Up!
27. Maiden’s Advise (TV size)
28. Mimi Hanyu
29. Witches’ Song

Disc 2

1. The Three Guardians of the Outer Solar System
2. The Three Guardians’ Mission
3. In Love With the New Moon (TV size) by Mitsuko Horie
4. Mistress 9
5. The Witches’ Awakening
6. A Ruthless Challenger
7. A Fierce Battle with the Witches
8. Sorrowful
9. Bonds of the Sailor Gaurdians
10. The Holy Grail’s Glow
11. Crisis Make-Up!
12. Rainbow Moon Heart Ache!
13. Only Eternity Brings the Two Together (TV size)
14. Shadow of Fear
15. Planet Eating Demon
16. She Who Brings Destruction
17. Hotaru’s Feelings
18. A Sorrowful Decision
19. Infinite Battle
20. Disappearing Planet
21. Silence Glaive
22. Light of Rebirth
23. In Love With the New Moon (TV size) / Momoiro Clover

Meet Linda Ballantyne and Toby Proctor, the voices of Sailor Moon and Tuxedo Mask, at Montreal Comiccon this weekend, July 8th to the 10th

Posted on July 7, 2016 by Adam

This weekend is Montreal Comiccon at the Palais Des Congrès in downtown Montreal. Two voice actors from the original English dub of Sailor Moon will be in attendance. Fans can meet Linda Ballantyne, the voice of Sailor Moon for the S and SuperS seasons, and Toby Proctor, the second voice of Sailor Moon for most of the first season and Sailor Moon R. Despite attending many conventions together the two never actually appeared together in any episodes.

I couldn’t find any specifics about panels these two might be giving in the schedule but they will be around for photo ops and autographs throughout the weekend. They will be signing autographs Friday at 2:30pm and 6pm, Saturday at 11am, 1:30pm and 5pm and Sunday at 2:15 pm. Photo ops will include both actors and will be Friday at 6:15pm and Saturday at 12:45pm.

I won’t at this convention but if you are planning on attending you should also visit my good friend Dave who will be there to showcase his web comic Ménage à Trois along with the comic’s artist and cowriter Gisèle Lagacé.

Watch Russian figure skater Evgenia Medvedeva perform a Sailor Moon inspired routine

Posted on July 7, 2016 by Adam

Russian World Champion figure skater Evgenia Medvedeva is a huge Sailor Moon fan. She shows us this by performing a Sailor Moon inspired skating routing in costume to the music of Moonlight Densetsu, the opening theme of the original Sailor Moon anime. Naoko Takeuchi, the creator of Sailor Moon, was so impressed by this routine that she met with Evgenia Medvedeva after a recent performance and gave her a signed Sailor Moon sketch. Watch a video which features some clips of that performance below.

To see just how much of an anime fan Evgenia really is check out her Instagram and Twitter feeds. It’s nice to see younger fans who weren’t around when the original Sailor Moon anime was out who are still getting into this great series.

Source: Crunchyroll News and Sankei Sports

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