We’ve already gotten Petit Chara figures for the Ayakashi Sisters and now we’re getting some for the rest of the Black Moon Clan. This photo, posted to the official Sailor Moon site, clearly shows silhouettes for Esmeraude, Prince Demande, Saphir and Rubeus. The image also includes the inverse crescent moon characteristic of the Black Moon Clan.

There isn’t much in the way of detail posted but it is mentioned that this set follows the Ayakashi Sisters leaving little doubt as to what these are. These puzzles are about as difficult to solve as your average “Who’s that Pokémon?” bumper.

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Last month Viz announced the voice actors you’ll be hearing as part of Viz’s new dub of Sailor Moon R once the Black Moon Clan shows up. You can currently listen to the dub of episode 60, which features the voices of Rubeus and the Ayakashi Sisters. We will be getting a lot more of these voices tomorrow as we get the dubbed versions of episodes 61 through 68 on Hulu and Neon Alley as part of the Mini Moonlight Party. The voices of Esmeraude, Saphir and Prince Demande will not be showing up as part of the first half of the season so we won’t be hearing them until later this year.

Here’s the cast of the Black Moon Clan:

Claudia Lenz as Koan
Cindy Robinson as Berthier
Cassandra Lee Morris as Calaveras
Jessica Gee as Petz
Steve Cannon as Rubeus
Rena S. Mandel as Esmeraude
Greg Felden as Saphir
Matthew Mercer as Prince Demande

These are mostly newly cast actors with the exception of Cindy Robinson who was previously cast as Queen Beryl and is now voicing Berthier. The cast of Viz’s new dub of the original Sailor Moon anime will be reprising their roles in Sailor Moon Crystal so we will be hearing these same voice actors once the second story arc of Sailor Moon Crystal gets dubbed.

Yesterday we even received a Tweet from Rena Strober (credited as Rena S. Mandel) to let us know that she’s currently working on dubbing Esmeraude! We can’t wait to hear what she sounds like.

@SailorMoon_News I was back dubbing my favorite evil lady Esmaurald today!!! Can't wait to share her laughs!

— Rena Strober (@RenaStrober) May 6, 2015

It was previously announced that Chibiusa would be voiced by Sandy Fox and Sailor Pluto would be voiced by Veronica Taylor.

The first season of Viz’s new dub is currently available on DVD and Blu-Ray. Sailor Moon R part 1 will be released in June. Buy these sets using the links below to support the site.

Source: Anime News Network

The latest episode of Sailor Moon Crystal is now available on Crunchyroll, Hulu and Niconico. Act 15, Infiltration – Sailor Mars, gives us a better look at the mysterious Chibiusa and then pits Koan of the Black Moon Clan’s Ayakashi Sisters against Sailor Mars.

The first thing to note this week are the changes to the intro. Despite a few minor cosmetic changes the scenes specific to the first story arc, that being Queen Serenity and the Dark Kingdom, have been replaced with images of the Black Moon Clan, Chibiusa and Sailor Pluto. This is actually a very short part of the intro, as most of it is fairly generic not having anything season specific. That said if you look closely at Sailor Moon’s brooch you will see that it is still the one she had in the first story arc.

The Black Moon Clan are finally here! We get a good first look at pretty much all of the characters on their home planet of Nemesis (which Rubeus mistakenly refers to as a star, which may be a subtitle issue). We see Demande, Esmeraude, Saphir, Rubeus and Wise Man. We also get a look at the Ayakashi Sisters though this episode heavily features Koan.

Chibiusa’s gun wasn’t real! It just had a flower in it. She decides to follow Usagi around, a good instinct as she has the Silver Crystal and is Sailor Moon, so she brainwashes the Tsukino family into thinking she belongs there. This causes Luna to hit Usagi and Mamoru in order to avoid them being brainwashed. Nice to see Luna hitting Mamoru right in the face. It’s also nice to see Shingo again! He is dropped so quickly in the original anime that it’s good to see that he’s still around.

The girls receive new transformation items and communicators in this episode. These transformation pens are called the Star Power Sticks and the girls mention that they feel more powerful after transforming with them, which explains Sailor Mars’s new power Burning Mandala and Sailor Mercury’s new power Shine Aqua Illusion.

Arcades are so 1992! The Crown Arcade has been replaced with the Crown Fruit Parlor as the main hang out place of our characters. I’m not sure if this was meant to reflect the dwindling popularity of arcades when the manga was first published, the aging interests of the characters in the series or just a way to make it easier to tell the story. It’s easier to have exposition happen as the girls drink some juice rather than amongst noisy arcade games. A new character, Asanuma, is introduced at the Fruit Parlor. A scene from the manga has him commenting that he thinks that a beautiful girl like Rei is more fitting as a girlfriend to Mamoru than Usagi. Indeed, I support this manga shipping of Mamoru and Rei but unfortunately Sailor Moon Crystal chose not to include this.

The main plot develops at Rei’s school, T. A. Academy. It’s an all girl’s school. All kinds of pseudoscience surround this episode’s plot as students investigate UFOs, spontaneous combustion and fortune telling! One character that is seen in the hall of T. A. Academy looks suspiciously like Heero Yuy from the 1995 anime series Gundam Wing. I find the other characters in this scene look a bit like they could be from other anime series, but no specific ones come to mind besides a girl showing a passing resemblance to Miki from Marmalade Boy.

One student of T. A. Academy is the white haired Kotono Sarashina. She is investigating all these pseudoscientific things that in the context of this completely fictional story happen to be real. Her white hair is a bit odd to see. I suppose she’s simply meant to have very light blonde hair, but she looks a bit like a ghost or a really old person! She is just one of the many characters who isn’t given any colour in the manga, so the artists behind Sailor Moon Crystal are free to give her any hair colour they chose.

Rei is spending her time at the festival reading fortunes, which in the real world is nonsense but is a thing she can really do in the fictional world in which this story takes place. She has competition with Koan who is using her fortune telling powers to predict when people will die in the hopes that they will decide to join the Black Moon Clan with their remaining years. Not a terribly great plan.

The other plan the Black Moon Clan has in this episode involves burning people alive! Originally in the Manga Rei has a vision of a young girl being burned alive by Koan. This is not quite as terrible in Sailor Moon Crystal as the young girl is replaced by an adult man. The Black Moon Clan has a number of drones who originally pose as nuns and then run around making sounds very similar to those made by the Snow Dancers in the Sailor Moon S movie.

Once the combat starts, Koan and Sailor Mars face off. Sailor Mars gets frozen by Koan’s fire. Sailor Moon and Tuxedo Mask summon the new attack item the Cutie Moon Rod which uses Moon Princess Halation to kill Koan. A pity, really, that she has to die. Indeed, this is how it was originally written in the manga. I always came to appreciate how the anime played out with Rei befriending Koan and sacrificing herself to protect her, ultimately making her abandon her evil ways to open up a makeup business which her sisters join her in. It shows a side of Sailor Moon that is more about forgiveness and friendship and less about power.

Sailor Mars is kidnapped. That’s it. She’s gone for a bunch of episodes now. How terrible!

Next week is Act 16, Abduction – Sailor Mercury. This will be an Ami heavy episode as she faces off against Berthier. The episode will also feature puppet Tuxedo Mask!

Keep reading for more screenshots from the updated intro, this episode and the next episode preview.

Character art featuring Prince Demande, Saphir, Rubeus and Esmeraude has been posted to the Sailor Moon Official Site. Not included are the Ayakashi sisters who will also be joining the show starting with the next episode.

Prince Demande, Saphire, Rubeus and Esmeraude will first appear in Sailor Moon Crystal Act 15, Infiltration – Sailor Mars, which will be released on Saturday February 7th. They are part of the Black Moon Clan who will be the main villains for most of phase two of Sailor Moon Crystal covering the story of Chibiusa and Crystal Tokyo.

What do you think of these designs?

We previously saw a glimpse of Rubeus in one of Rei’s visions near the end of Act 14.

A trailer for the second story arc of Sailor Moon Crystal, set to begin on January 17th, has been added to the official Sailor Moon web site. This trailer features scenes with Chibiusa and Sailor Pluto. Check it out below.

This was shown at an event in Japan today where Misato Fukuen was revealed to be the voice of Chibiusa and Ai Maeda was revealed as the voice of Sailor Pluto.

Clips in this trailer cover many events from the second story arc, which though technically part of Sailor Moon Crystal’s first year and therefore first season, is being referred to by many as the second season of the series. This second story arc is also being referred as the second phase. The main thing shown is Chibiusa, who appears from the future to threaten Usagi with a gun. More clips show her with Luna P and jump ahead quite a bit to show us the Space-Time Door, Sailor Pluto, Crystal Tokyo, Nemesis and the Evil Black Crystal. Also pictured are new transformation items for the Sailor Guardians including Sailor Moon’s Star Pendant.

The note at the end of the trailer mentions the next episode showing on January 3rd though it does not seem likely that any of these clips will be appearing in act 13 which will be released on that date. Chibiusa will be appearing in act 14, An Ending and Then a Beginning – Petite Étrangère, along with the Black Moon Clan who are not shown in this trailer. The banner in the image shown from today’s event mentions January 17th when act 14 will be available. This will mark the end of the Dark Kingdom arc and the beginning of the Black Moon arc.

Keep reading for more screenshots from this trailer.

This week’s new episodes of Sailor Moon R on Hulu and Neon Alley end one arc and start another. We see the last of Ail, An, the Makaiju and the Moonlight Knight in episode 59 and we see the introduction of Chibiusa and the Black Moon Clan in episode 60. As with every week these two new episodes are in Japanese with English subtitles by Viz.

Episode 59, True Love Awakens: The Makai Tree’s Secret, wraps up the story of the Ail and An. The seemingly evil tree has trashed a building and is attacking everything. It kills An, causing her and Ail to realise how much they love each other, but is then cut short of killing Ail too when it hears Sailor Moon’s call to stop. The Makaiju communicates and tells us it’s origin story. Ail and An were part of a species of aliens born from the tree on a distant planet. They are seen coming from the same pod, which means they are not only siblings but in a way twins. What a scandalous Luke and Leia twincest affair they have! The aliens fought for the tree but it turned out it was love that nourished it! What a hilarious misunderstanding that resulted in many deaths and injuries. We then learn the true identity of the Moonlight Knight. Who knew he was actually Mamoru? But wait… how are they always seen together? The Moonlight Knight is just a spirit born from Mamoru’s desire to protect Usagi despite his blocked memories. Sailor Moon heals the tree, leaving nothing but a little sprout. An is revived and her and Ail go off to live in the lonely depths of space. This concludes the Makaiju story arc. Fans have mixed feelings on these episodes but I always thought they were fantastic.

Episode 60, Angel or Devil? the Mysterious Girl from the Sky, introduces us to Chibiusa! Usagi and Mamoru are very briefly happy in this episode as they share their first consensual kiss! The only time they actually kissed in the first season was when Mamoru took advantage of an unconscious Sailor Moon who was unable to consent. Once their past lives were revealed Tuxedo Mask was injured and wisked away to be made evil. Since Usagi didn’t kiss his dead body and didn’t get any action while his memories were blocked, this is the first kiss they actually exchange. Not content to keep them together their happiness is soon thwarted by Chibiusa who literally falls from the sky kissing Mamoru. She then pulls a gun on Usagi in a hilarious scene. Chibiusa proceeds to brainwash everyone into thinking she’s Usagi’s cousin after which Usagi gets her revenge by spanking her. So what is this girl’s secret? Surely by now most people know the full story but unlike the secret identity of Princess Serenity or The Moonlight Knight, this one isn’t terribly obvious from the beginning. The Black Moon Clan also show up this week but they aren’t interesting for another few episodes.

Support the site by buying these episodes of Amazon Instant or getting the DVD or Blu-Ray released through the links below.

New art has been added to the Sailor Moon official site showing Sailor Chibi Moon. At this weekend’s Animate Girl’s Festival in Japan the cast of Sailor Moon revealed art for the second season of Sailor Moon Crystal which will feature the Black Moon Clan and Sailor Chibi Moon. Though the art shows the transformed Sailor Guardian Sailor Chibi Moon in reality Chibiusa will appear at the beginning of the season, only transforming into Sailor Chibi Moon towards the end of the Black Moon arc. This is in contrast to the anime where Chibiusa did not transform until Sailor Moon S. On January 17th we’ll wrap up the Dark Kingdom arc and kick off the Black Moon clan arc with Act 14, An Ending and Then a Beginning – Petite Etrangère.

A photo was added to the Sailor Moon Central Facebook page outlining the upcoming episode schedule. The schedule is in French but titles correspond to the Japanese titles from the manga. Until now all episodes, including next week’s, correspond to original Manga chapters. Some acts listed here do not correspond to original manga chapters however they share titles with the chapters listed for the manga rerelease from 2003 in Japan and 2011 in North America. By going along with the manga rerelease chapter names this means that the first two story arcs will span 26 episodes rather than the original 23 acts that the original manga spanned. This means we will not be seeing Sailor Uranus and Neptune as part of the 26 episodes which are set to be released as part of Sailor Moon Crystal’s first year run. No episodes beyond 26 have yet been announced.

The anime referred to the second season as “Sailor Moon R” but no specific subtitle for this arc has been listed.

On Sunday, September 7th, the new Sailor Moon musical Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon Petite Étrangère (French for Small Stranger) was broadcast streaming on Niconico. Though the sign up pages are confusing a ticket to watch the live stream can be purchased even from North America. The stream which was previously broadcast live can still be viewed on the Niconico site. Consider viewing it this way to support the musical if you intend on downloading a copy later. For those waiting for a version with English subtitles the gang over at Miss Dream are currently translating it. I watched the stream of the musical on Sunday and although I don’t really understand Japanese I found it easy enough to follow as the story of the Black Moon Clan, Chibiusa, Sailor Pluto and Crystal Tokyo has been told before a few times. My review may include spoilers for events that are mostly known to Sailor Moon fans. It may include mistakes since I may have misinterpreted some events.

The musical begins with Chibiusa already in the present though the opening scene, which is itself a flashback, shows us the future events in Crystal Tokyo as the Black Moon Clan attack. Neo Queen Serenity, seen in this future, is played by Satomi Okubo, the actress who plays Usagi. At the end of the musical she appears to be played by another actress, likely because the short notice wardrobe change would be tough. Usagi and Chibiusa’s relationship is pretty hostile, as is expected, and Mamoru is trying hard to get along with both, much to Usagi’s frustration.

The Sailor Team is in a rock band of sort named Usagi Band, though Usagi is not present during their performance. There is a new actress, Momoyo Koyama, who plays Sailor Mercury. The rest of the cast is returning. Sailor Mercury, Mars and Jupiter aren’t in the musical a ton as they stay behind while Sailor Moon, Venus and Chibiusa go to the future.

The Black Moon Clan are not all represented. The four Ayakashi sisters are not in this musical, who’s cast is entirely comprised of women, though Rubeus, Saphire and Prince Demande, all men, do appear along with Esmeraude, the only woman in the Black Moon Clan. My Japanese is not great though it seemed to be insinuated that some, perhaps all, of the Black Moon Clan are actually Droids. If this is the case this is a considerable departure from the Manga.

As expected Wise Man gets his hands on Chibiusa and transforms her into Black Lady. We get a nice inappropriate father/daughter kiss between Tuxedo Mask and Black Lady. Sailor Pluto dies sacrificing herself and this shock causes Black Lady to become young again and transform into Sailor Chibi Moon. In the manga this is what happens though in the anime Chibiusa leaves at the end of Sailor Moon R without having transformed, returning only partway through Sailor Moon S.

Back in the present time Chibiusa has a tearful farewell with her friends after which the curtain lowers and the musical is done. Once the performers have all bowed to the audience another small bit follows as Chibiusa, still dressed as Sailor Chibi Moon, gives a letter to Usagi, still dressed as Sailor Moon, explaining that Chibiusa will be returning to complete her training. This letter comes from Usagi’s future self, Neo Queen Serenity. We will likely see Chibiusa continue to be involved in future musicals.

Overall I found the musical quite enjoyable. The performances and singing were good. My favourite performance, as with the first musical, was Yuga Yamato as Tuxedo Mask and King Endymion. Check it out if you have a chance, though I would certainly suggest watching last year’s musical, La Reconquista, first.

Keep reading for more screenshots from the musical.

Today, August 21st 2014, marks the first performance of the new Sailor Moon musical, Petite Étrangère, in Japan. This new musical covers the second story arc, covering the first appearance of Chibiusa, fighting with the Black Moon Clan and traveling to the future city of Crystal Tokyo to meet Sailor Pluto, Neo Queen Serenity and King Endymion. The musical will be running from August 21st to the 31st in Tokyo and then from September 7th to the 9th in Osaka. With the premiere we have gotten some new information about merchandise for the musical and the first international airing of a Sailor Moon musical. Fans must all be wanting to see the musical for themselves but unless they’re in Japan this isn’t possible yet. Fansubbing group Miss Dream has mentioned that they will be subtitling the webcast version during the weekend of September 6th. Indeed Niconico will have a live webcast of the musical on September 7th.

News on the Sailor Moon official site has announced that the DVD of the musical will be released on January 28th 2015. Those who pre-order the upcoming DVD will get some bonuses including 5 cards and an exclusive DVD jacket for the first Sailor Moon Musical, La Reconquista, with art made by Naoko Takeuchi, the creator of the Sailor Moon manga. This is not new art but a mix of existing images. The cards contain images of the new manga cover and the DVD jacket is a reuse of the original cover of the 4th volume of the Sailor Moon Manga. The Sailor Moon Petite Étrangère DVD will cost 7800 yen (about $75 US) and yes, we once again only have a DVD and not a Blu-Ray release of the musical. I was very disappointed with the video quality of the Sailor Moon La Reconquista DVD release and there doesn’t seem to be any indication that your $75 plus shipping costs will be getting you anything better this time around. There are no real specifics on special features at this time, though comparable features to the La Reconquista DVD should be expected.

It was also announced today that the Sailor Moon Petite Étrangère musical will be playing in Shanghai China in Janaury of 2015. This is the first time any of the Sailor Moon musicals has played outside of Japan.

And here’s a cool little Easter Egg that may or may not have been intentional. Tuxedo Mask wearing a Canadian Tuxedo as noted by @el_Ramses on Twitter!

Keep reading for more images from the musical or find more on the Moon Sticks and SOS Sailor Moon‘s Facebook pages. I’ll have more thoughts on the actual musical once I get a chance to actually see it!

A new Sailor Moon musical has been announced on the Sailor Moon official site. Not many details have been given but we do know that this musical will follow the Black Moon story arc of the Sailor Moon manga or the Sailor Moon R season of the anime which takes place in 30th century Crystal Tokyo following the battle with the Black Moon Clan. Though Chibiusa is not mentioned by name it stands to reason that this musical will feature her introduction as well as her transformation into Black Lady. No details about the cast have been revealed but the announcement mentions that this will be announced on the site in the near future.

This will be the second modern Sailor Moon musical following Sailor Moon La Reconquista which played last September.

Note: This article previously mentioned the musical would take place in September. As of now the only information we have about the date is that it will be this summer.