Last night was Moonlight Party 6, a Sailor Moon themed streaming party put on by Viz. Their big announcement was that Sailor Moon R The Movie, the first of three Sailor Moon movies, will be dubbed by Viz and released in theatres in January. The “Make Up! Sailor Guardians” short will also be included. Watch the announcement trailer embedded below.

The trailer doesn’t include the date, which was mentioned in the streaming event, but January is mentioned in the video description and that date was confirmed by the official North American Sailor Moon Twitter account.

The film will be released in English and in Japanese with English subtitles. The main cast who are voicing the new Viz English dub of the original Sailor Moon anime and Sailor Moon Crystal will be reprising their roles in this movie. The new character of Fiore will be voiced by Ben Diskin. He previously provided the voice of Umino in the series. You can watch a clip introducing him below.

Viz will be making an HD remaster of the movie for this theatrical release. The Japanese DVD release was remastered from the original film source. While it is possible Viz does the same its more likely they had access to standard definition DVD source material which they are transferring to HD using software. Its hard to tell exactly from the trailer but it seems based on the quality of that video that this is the case. Since the video quality of the Sailor Moon movies in the Japanese and international releases has been superior to those of the TV series, we can expect better quality that what we’ve seen for the Viz releases we’ve seen to date.

Sailor Moon R The Movie tells the story of Mamoru’s friend Fiore who attacks the world along with the Kisenian flower. Though it is not explicitly mentioned Fiore is clearly from the same alien race as Ail and An. It was originally released in December of 1993 and, although the movies are hard to place in continuity, takes place near the end of Sailor Moon R. Though it was originally dubbed back in 1999 it has long since been out of print, with the rest of the Sailor Moon films.

“Make Up! Sailor Guardians” is a short video which originally played with the film in theatres. It was never released in North America though it was released on laserdisc and DVD in Japan. The basic story of this has Usagi and Chibiusa sitting in a cafe overhearing some girls talk about the various Sailor Guardians as we see clips from the first two seasons. There is some new animation but most of it is a rehash of stuff we’ve seen before. Some music included in this special was released on CD but not seen elsewhere in the series.

Perhaps the reason Sailor Moon R The Movie is so hard to place in continuity is because it itself takes place as a fictional movie within the world of the Make Up! Sailor Guardians short which is itself questionably in continuity with the series. Wouldn’t everyone find out who Sailor Moon is when they watch the film that is clearly advertised on a poster in the Dam Dam Hamburger and Coffee restaurant? Why do these girls have such a hard time remembering all of the characters when they are all clearly shown in this poster a few feet from their table? Do they not recognize Chibiusa who is clearly featured on the poster and even has Luna P with her?

I’ve always considered Sailor Moon R to be my favourite of the Sailor Moon movies and one of my all time favourite films. I’ve always dreamed of seeing this movie in theatres and am thrilled to finally have a chance. It is likely this movie will have a limited release. We will share updates about when and where you can watch the movie as they become available.

The Moonlight Party was partially meant to promote the upcoming release of Sailor Moon S part 1 on home video. It will be released in stores and online this Tuesday November 15th. Support the site by ordering your copy from Amazon using the links below.

This Friday there is yet another Moonlight Party planned. These events, hosted by Viz, are a sort of online pyjama party to celebrate all things Sailor Moon. In the past most of these have been accompanied by the release of some dubbed episodes of Sailor Moon or Sailor Moon Crystal on Hulu. This is done as advertisement for an upcoming home video release. Well now we are getting a Moonlight Party ahead of next week’s release of Sailor Moon S on home video and it doesn’t look like there is any plan to have any dubbed episodes of Sailor Moon S released online at this time. Details for the Moonlight Party have been posted to the Facebook Page for the event and the YouTube video of the event itself. Nothing in either of these mentions that we should expect any episodes. In the past when episodes were released along with a Moonlight Party this was always announced ahead of time. There will be dub clips from the new episodes, supposedly something more than what we’ve already seen, as well as trivia questions, prizes and all the usual fun we get with these Moonlight Parties.

I don’t post this to discourage you from joining in! The event should still be a lot of fun. I had speculated when this event was first announced that it could come with some free to watch dubbed episodes and it seems like, all things considered, this is unlikely to be the case. You can watch the event using the embedded video below. It will be at 6pm Pacific Time, 9pm Eastern Time.

Want to see some dubbed episodes of Sailor Moon S? Well then you really should order Sailor Moon S part 1 on DVD or Blu-Ray using the links below. The set comes out next Tuesday, November 15th and will contain the first half of Sailor Moon S.

Viz held an official Sailor Moon panel earlier today at New York Comic Con. This panel mostly presented news that we already new about Viz’s work on Sailor Moon Crystal and the original Sailor Moon anime. Sailor Moon S part 1 will be released on video November 15th. You can preorder it using the Amazon links below. They announced that there would be a Moonlight Party on November 11th. Nothing specific about episodes was announced however every previous Moonlight Party has coincided with the release of dubbed episodes of the original Sailor Moon anime or Sailor Moon Crystal on Hulu. With Sailor Moon S coming out only a few days after this Moonlight Party it seems only logical that this may include the release of a few dubbed episodes of Sailor Moon S to get fans excited about the upcoming video release. These events often include trivia contests and voice actors, though again no specifics have been announced.

It’s important to note that Hulu has changed their service, restricting content to paid users. Viz’s complete Sailor Moon library is now available to stream for free on Yahoo! View. We might expect to see any new dubbed episodes of Sailor Moon S on that service as well. Sailor Moon episodes remain free to watch on Viz’s streaming service Neon Alley. This really applies to Americans. Canadians won’t be able to view any of these services and we’re not bitter about it at all!

Keep in mind that this is all speculation on my part. We may be getting the lamest Moonlight Party to date and not having any episodes released! This would be completely uncharacteristic of other releases which is why I’m choosing to jump to the conclusions I am. Viz did state that this Moonlight Party would be “a little different” so this might mean “a little terrible” so take what I’m saying with a grain of salt. I’m not one to post unfounded rumours which is why I’m presenting you with all of the information and allowing you to draw your own conclusions. We will almost certain receive more specifics about this event prior to November 11th. One way or another I’ll shared those specifics on the site as we learn them.

Source: Moonsisters.org, Miss Dream, Viz’s Sailor Moon Twitter account link 1 & link 2

Image Source: Miss Dream Subs

As we previously mentioned, the English dubbed version of Sailor Moon Crystal will start being released this Friday, with a new episode being released every Friday after this. These can be streamed online on Hulu and Neon Alley. To mark this event Viz will be holding Moonlight Party 5, at 6pm Pacific Time, 9pm Eastern Time, this Friday. This event will stream on YouTube. The episodes themselves are not part of the stream, which does not suffer from the same region specific problems that Hulu does. As always there will be contests where you can win prizes. You can watch the event in the embedded video below.

To learn more about Moonlight Party 5 check out the Facebook Page for the event.

Viz Media will be holding yet another Moonlight Party this coming Friday, May 8th 2015 starting at 6pm Pacific Time, 9pm Eastern Time. This Mini Moonlight Party will feature only two episodes, Sailor Moon R episodes 61 and 67, but will accompany the streaming release of the rest of Sailor Moon R part one on Hulu and Neon Alley. Though specific episode numbers are not given this should be the addition of episodes 61 through 68 of Sailor Moon R. Episodes 47 though 60 are already on Hulu though they are expected to be removed on June 7th, prior to Sailor Moon R part 1 being released on DVD and Blu-Ray.

Sailor Moon R episode 61, Usagi Devastated: Mamoru Declares a Break-Up, has Usagi heartbroken as Mamoru tells her it’s over. This breakup will last for a good part of the season! Sailor Moon R episode 67, The Beach, the Island and a Vacation: The Guardians’ Break, is the only episode never to be released on home video. It was not dubbed as part of DiC’s original English dub and was omitted from ADVision’s “uncut” DVD release of Sailor Moon R. It has Chibiusa befriending a plesiosaur because she didn’t want to eat fish.

This is a promotion for Sailor Moon R part 1 which will be released on DVD and Blu-Ray on July 14th. Support the site by pre-ordering this set on Amazon using the link below. You can already purchase season 1 parts 1 and 2 which have already been released.

Read more at Viz’s press release or Facebook Event for the Mini Moonlight Party.

Watch the event on the Viz Media YouTube page using the embedded video below.

This coming Friday will be Moonlight Party 2, featuring new Viz dubbed episodes starring Sailor Jupiter and Venus. Once that starts, Friday at 7pm Pacific Time or 10pm Eastern Time, you will be able to view it by following this link. This will include a behind the scenes celebration with Viz as episodes 24 through 36 of the new dubbed episodes are available through Hulu and Neon Alley. Like with the first Moonlight Party in September there will be interaction with fans, contests and a chance to meet some of the voice actors.

This event will also include watching episodes 24, 25, 33, 34 and 35. The episodes themselves will not be streamed on the YouTube link. Viewers will need to view these directly on the Hulu or Neon Alley sites, which are not available in Canada and other areas. Episode 24, Naru’s Tears: Nephrite Dies for Love, is as the title suggests the tragic death of Nephrite. Episode 25, Jupiter, the Powerful Girl in Love, is the introduction of Sailor Jupiter. We then skip over the other six Rainbow Crystals to episodes 33 through 35 which cover a short story arc which includes the introduction of Sailor Venus in Enter Venus, the Last Sailor Guardian, the revelation of the Moon Princess in The Shining Silver Crystal: The Moon Princess Appears and the aftermath of that in Returning Memories: Usagi and Mamoru’s Past.

Building up to this event Viz has released a couple of new clips from the upcoming second half of season 1 featuring the voices of Sailor Jupiter and Sailor Venus who did not appears in previously released episodes.

Here are a couple of clips of Sailor Jupiter from her first episode, Jupiter, the Powerful Girl in Love. In the first clip Makoto and Usagi talk over lunch for the first time and in the second we see her learning that she is Sailor Jupiter and her first transformation. Sailor Jupiter is voiced by Amanda Celine Miller.

Shortly before this clip was released Amanda Celine Miller joked on twitter that the inspiration for her Sailor Jupiter voice came from Harvey Firestein.

Two clips of Minako were also released. The first features Minako trying to cheer up Usagi while doing her hair in episode 36, Usagi’s Confusion: Is Tuxedo Mask Evil?. The second clip shows the Princess Seminar from episode 37, Let’s Become a Princess: Usagi’s Bizarre Training, which is really not a Sailor Venus centric clip but in it she does her Crescent Beam attack. Sailor Venus is voiced by Cherami Leigh.

In that second clip we hear a grunt by the new voice of Artemis, Johnny Yong Bosch, whose voice will be heard for the first time during the new episode we’ll see tomorrow.

This event is publicity for the DVD and Blu-Ray set of season 1 part 2 which will be released in February 2015. Season 1 part 1 was released last week. The dubbed season 1 part 1 is also available on Amazon Instant along with the first season and a half of subbed episodes.

Read the whole press release about the event below:

VIZ MEDIA HOSTS SAILOR MOON MOONLIGHT PARTY 2 TO CELEBRATE NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE OF LATEST DUBBED EPISODES

November 21st Virtual Live Stream Soiree Coincides With
Neon Alley Episode Premieres And Will Include Live Commentary, Real Time Q&A And Trivia Contests For SAILOR MOON Prizes

San Francisco, CA, November 18, 2014 – VIZ Media, LLC (VIZ Media), the largest distributor and licensor of manga and anime in North America, continues to celebrate the triumphant return of the classic SAILOR MOON anime series and marks the premiere of the latest high definition Episodes 24-36 – featuring the brand new English dub cast – available to stream on Neon Alley and Hulu starting on Friday, November 21st beginning at 7:00pm (PST). The release time and date for the remaining English episodes of this epic first season will be announced during the event. These latest exclusive dubbed episodes will be available for a limited time only during the Holiday season!

Fans can join in on the festivities with VIZ Media and Neon Alley by attending Moonlight Party 2: A Celebration of SAILOR MOON Reborn! Building on the success and positive fan feedback following the first Moonlight Party held in September, the free virtual party will take place once again as a unique live stream event on VIZ Media’s YouTube channel at: http://bit.ly/SMMnLtP2 beginning at 7:00pm (PST) on Friday, November 21st.

Fans are invited participate in the event and stream SAILOR MOON Episodes 24, 25, 33, 34 and 35 (showcasing Jupiter, Venus, and Princess Serenity) via Neon Alley/Hulu and also take part in a real-time Q&A with VIZ Media staff that will run throughout the evening. Viewers can submit questions throughout the event via YouTube, in the comments sections of the actual live stream (as available), or on the official VIZ Media Facebook page, and via Twitter using the special hashtag, #MoonlightParty,

Fans also can interact with members of the VIZ Media SAILOR MOON team, which will be present during the live stream to answer questions and offer lively commentary and little known information about the series and these new episodes. A SAILOR MOON trivia contest also will take place and fans and aspiring Sailor Guardians are invited to submit their answers via Facebook and Twitter to win special prizes. SAILOR MOON fans nationwide are also encouraged to share pictures from their own Moonlight Parties by using the hashtag #MoonlightParty on their favorite social media platforms.

Neon Alley is VIZ Media’s consolidated online destination for FREE streaming anime content in the U.S. with over 3,200 subtitled and English dubbed episodes and movies from more than 36 series!

In the latest SAILOR MOON episodes, Sailor Moon, Sailor Mercury and Sailor Mars continue their quest for the Legendary Silver Crystal as two new powerful allies join the fight. Sailor Jupiter is the tall and tough Guardian of Thunder, and Sailor Venus is the Guardian of Love and the most experienced member. Sailor Moon herself gets an impressive new power and learns more about the mysterious Tuxedo Mask. Could their distant pasts be intertwined, and does that have anything to do with the Moon Princess they seek? The final ordeal with Queen Beryl looms on the horizon, and it will take everything the Sailor Guardians have to be victorious!

“Thousands of fans joined us for our very first SAILOR MOON Moonlight Party, and the enthusiasm and love that was expressed for this iconic series inspired us to hold another event to mark the dub premiere of the concluding half of Season 1,” says Charlene Ingram, Senior Manager, Animation Marketing. “Not only will viewers catch the dub debut of Sailor Jupiter voiced by Amanda Miller, and Sailor Venus, voiced by Cherami Leigh, we’ll be sharing plenty of commentary and trivia, as well awarding lots of SAILOR MOON prizes. We look forward to everyone joining us and hope this event might inspire fans to hold some Sailor Guardian soirees of their own!”

The smash hit SAILOR MOON anime series is inspired by the bestselling manga (graphic novel) series created by Naoko Takeuchi (published in North America by Kodansha). In the series, Usagi Tsukino is a clumsy but kindhearted teenage girl who transforms into the powerful guardian of love and justice, Sailor Moon. Meeting allies along the way who share similar fates, Usagi and her team of planetary Sailor Guardians fight to protect the universe from forces of evil and total annihilation!

VIZ Media’s SAILOR MOON Season 1 Set 1 Limited Edition Blu-ray/DVD Combo Pack as well as the Standard Edition DVD set are both now available for purchase. The SAILOR MOON Season 1 Set 2 Blu-ray/DVD Combo Pack and Standard Edition DVD sets are now available for preorder from leading anime and video retailers.

Fans can also catch the brand new SAILOR MOON reboot – SAILOR MOON CRYSTAL – with new episodes (subtitled) available to stream each week on Hulu and Neon Alley.

For more information on SAILOR MOON, or other award-winning anime titles from VIZ Media, please visit www.VIZ.com.

About VIZ Media, LLC

Headquartered in San Francisco, California, VIZ Media distributes, markets and licenses the best anime and manga titles direct from Japan. Owned by three of Japan’s largest manga and animation companies, Shueisha Inc., Shogakukan Inc., and Shogakukan-Shueisha Productions, Co., Ltd., VIZ Media has the most extensive library of anime and manga for English speaking audiences in North America, the United Kingdom, Ireland and South Africa. With its popular digital manga anthology WEEKLY SHONEN JUMP and blockbuster properties like NARUTO, BLEACH and ONE PIECE, VIZ Media offers cutting-edge action, romance and family friendly properties for anime, manga, science fiction and fantasy fans of all ages. VIZ Media properties are available as graphic novels, DVDs, animated television series, feature films, downloadable and streaming video and a variety of consumer products. Learn more about VIZ Media, anime and manga at www.VIZ.com.