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.
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?
Good news for those who like to spend a lot of money to import movies they don’t understand! The official Sailor Moon site has announced that Sailor Moon Cosmos Parts 1 and 2 will be release on regular and limited edition DVD and Blu-ray sets on December 20th 2023! As with other Japanese Sailor Moon releases this will only include Japanese audio with no English subtitles. Japanese Blu-ray discs are region A so they will play in a North American Blu-ray player however their DVDs are Region 2 which won’t play on a North American player. You can watch the short trailer for the Blu-ray release below.
There are two version of each of the Blu-ray and DVD release and they aren’t cheap! The single disc Blu-ray or DVD, which somehow costs the same in 2023, has an MSRP of 10,000 yen, about $69 US. The four disc sets also costs the same on DVD and Blu-ray with an MSRP of 16,000 yen or $110 US. What’s the difference? The four disc set has a second DVD or Blu-ray with special features including an anime music video, likely the one we got with the soundtrack, creditless openings for the films as well as two CDs with music from the films.
There are also vendor exclusive special incentives from a number of retailers. There are acrylic figures with different characters being included with the films from different retailers. Those are even more expensive than the regular four disc set though price varies slightly between retailers.
So when do we get to see the movies here? We still don’t have any news about a release of the Sailor Moon Cosmos films outside of Japan but that doesn’t stop people from speculating! As the Sailor Moon Eternal films were released on Netflix less than a month prior to the Japanese Blu-ray release of those movies many are thinking that we will be seeing these movies either in theatres or on Netflix, before December 20th. I’m not totally convinced of this timeline as it seems odd to time a North American release with a Japanese home video release, or to do the opposite, but it seems that usually Japanese Blu-rays are released after movies are released here.
The original timeline which I speculated about back when Sailor Moon Cosmos Part 1 was released in theatres predicted that if we heard about and got a release of Sailor Moon Cosmos with a similar delay that we did for Sailor Moon Eternal then the Netflix announcement would be in September, next month, and the streaming premiere would be in November. There’s still time for this to happen!
All that said I am reluctantly looking forward to importing these movies for their absurdly high price. If a North American release isn’t out by then I will watch the Japanese version and surely follow along well enough as the story is pretty close to the manga. It’s also likely, in the event that a North American release is still not announced prior to December 20th, that someone will fansub the films. This sometimes happens as quickly as a few days after a show airs or is available on video. Perhaps these fansubbing groups will not be working hard on the days before Christmas and we can expect it a bit later.
Will you be picking either of these sets up? If so which one?
After nearly a decade Sailor Moon Crystal is now complete. Today, June 30th 2023, Sailor Moon Cosmos Part 2 was released in theatres in Japan. This marks the end of Sailor Moon Crystal which was first announced at a Sailor Moon 20th Anniversary Event on July 10th 2012. Though it was meant to air starting in 2013 it began as a streaming series on July 5th 2014. Three seasons and four movies later Sailor Moon Crystal has faithfully retold the entirety of the Sailor Moon manga’s five story arcs.
All of this of course does little to help fans outside of Japan who still don’t know how and when they’ll be able to see Sailor Moon Cosmos Parts 1 and 2! If the Sailor Moon Eternal movies are any indication we might be getting them streaming on Netflix though some fans are hoping for a theatrical release. We don’t know and might not for a few months still! A Japanese Blu-ray will surely be released soon enough which could be a chance to import the films if no release is planned before that. Such a release would not likely have subtitles, as Sailor Moon releases rarely do, but it would open up the possibility for a high quality fansub.
Sailor Moon Crystal may be wrapping up but it won’t soon be forgotten by fans who still appreciate the manga and original anime 30 years later, as well as the fantastic live action series which is 20 years old this year. While we wait to see these movies for ourselves we can only guess as to what’s next for the franchise. Hopefully the coming decade isn’t a drought like we had between the live action series and Sailor Moon Crystal!
Have you seen either of the Sailor Moon Cosmos films? What did you think?
In a shocking turn of events the voice of Sailor Cosmos from Sailor Moon Cosmos Part 2 is Keiko Kitagawa, a popular model and actress who is best known to Sailor Moon fans for portraying Rei Hino, Sailor Mars, in the live action Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon series! This comes as a surprise as many fans likely expected Sailor Cosmos to be voiced by Kotono Mitsuishi who voices Sailor Moon in Sailor Moon Crystal as well as Chibi Chibi. Keiko Kitagawa will also be voicing Guardian Cosmos who is a separate character who protects the Galaxy Cauldron where star seeds are born. Check out some footage of Sailor Cosmos as voiced by Keiko Kitagawa below.
Now it is time to speculate wildly about the true identity of Sailor Cosmos! The Le Mouvement Final musical cast Satomi Okubo as Sailor Cosmos because she’d previously played Sailor Moon which supports the idea that Sailor Cosmos is a future version of Sailor Moon. Since Kotono Mitsuishi voiced Sailor Moon back in the original 90s anime as well there wasn’t another Sailor Moon voice actor to fall back on, unless we consider Kae Araki, the voice of Chibiusa, who filled in for Kotono Mitsuishi when she was off sick at the end of the first season and start of Sailor Moon R. Instead by casting Keiko Kitagawa perhaps this means that Sailor Cosmos in this version is actually a future incarnation of Sailor Mars! Looks like that rivalry finally got settled and Rei got Usagi’s power!
A preview of Sailor Moon Cosmos Part 2 was shown to fans earlier today. Keiko Kitagawa met with Kotono Mitsuishi at a press event to discuss the film. They had previously worked together on Rikokatsu. While some fans were upset that Kotono Mitsuishi didn’t get the role she was quite supportive of Keiko Kitagawa and her performance. Naoko Takeuchi herself was also said to be at the recording of Sailor Cosmos’s lines! Kotono Mitsuishi is Sailor Moon royalty! She’s the star of this movie, the titular character and has been the face of the press of all things Sailor Moon Crystal for the past decade. There’s no need to be upset that she didn’t get to play a third voice in this movie which she’s already all over!
Yet another Sailor Moon Crystal book is coming in soon! The book will be released on July 4th which is shortly after the June 30th release of Sailor Moon Cosmos Part 2. It will cover both films and will include an overview of the films’ story, character bios, interviews with cast and crew, artwork and merchandise related to the film. The book will be sold at stores and online retailers, though I have not yet seen it listed anywhere.
MSRP for the book is 3300 yen which is about $24 US. Not too expensive, but books are expensive to ship from Japan. Will you be picking this one up?
The second full trailer for Sailor Moon Cosmos has been released on the Sailor Moon official site. These are all characters that we’ve seen in the last trailer but it’s nice to get a new and better look at some of them. Sailor Galaxia features prominently in this one as well as Sailor Chibi Chibi. You can watch the trailer on YouTube or embedded below.
One shot near the end of the trailer showing everyone supporting Sailor Moon is quite similar to a scene from the original Sailor Moon anime during the fight against Queen Beryl in the first season. Intentional homage? I suspect it is. I don’t believe this particular scene is based on a specific page in the manga. Given what’s going on with everyone in the scene this is based on I suspect this may parallel what’s happening and who’s including.
Sailor Moon Cosmos Part 1 will be released in theatres in Japan on June 9th with Part 2 following on Usagi’s birthday, June 30th. No specifics about a North American release are currently known.
Keep reading for more screenshots from this trailer!
There were a couple of big updates yesterday as the official Sailor Moon site was updated with a new Sailor Moon Cosmos poster and trailer. The poster includes Sailor Galaxia, Princess Kakyuu, the Sailor Starlights and even a quick look at Sailor Cosmos in the gem on the bottom right of the poster. The trailer includes a lot of scenes from later in the story. You can watch it on YouTube or embedded below.
To me this trailer feels like it could be the trailer for Sailor Moon Cosmos Part 2, the second of the two films. Sailor Moon Cosmos Part 1 will be released on June 9th with Part 2 planned for June 30th, Usagi’s birthday. I would have expected a trailer like this showing many scenes which are likely in the second film, to be released only after the first part hits theatres. There is no specific distinction in the trailer which makes it apply more to one part or another as it simply refers to the films as Sailor Moon Cosmos.
In this trailer we once again see the Sailor Starlights but also get a good look at Sailor Galaxia, Princess Kakyuu and Chibi Chibi. Chibiusa and Mamoru also feature briefly, which is how they will also be appearing in the films.
What do you think of the trailer? Who were you most excited to see in it?
Keep reading for more screenshots from the trailer.
We’ve got more cast details and our first look at Princess Kakyuu, Sailor Galaxia and Chibi Chibi from the upcoming Sailor Moon Cosmos films. The movies will start Nana Mizuki as Princess Kakyuu, Megumi Hayashibara as Sailor Galaxy and Kotono Mitsuishi as Chibi Chibi.
Nana Mizuki, the voice of Sailor Kakyuu, is a voice actor known for such roles as Hinata Hyuga in Naruto, Tsubomi Hanasaki in Heartcatch Precure! and Ann Takamaki in Persona 5.
Megumi Hayashibara, the voice of Sailor Galaxia, is a well known veteran voice actor. Some of her more memorable roles include Rei Ayanami and Pen Pen in Evangelion, Pidgeotto and Pidgeot in Pokémon, Ai Amano in Video Girl Ai, Lina Inverse in Slayers, Faye Valentine in Cowboy Bebop and Ai Haibara in Detective Conan.
Fans will surely recognize Kotono Mitsuishi, the voice of Chibi Chibi, as providing the voice of Sailor Moon in both the original Sailor Moon anime and Sailor Moon Crystal. By providing the voice for Chibi Chibi this continues the tradition from the original Sailor Moon anime of having Kotono Mitsuishi provide the voices of both Sailor Moon and Chibi Chibi. As Sailor Moon Cosmos will more closely follow the story of the manga than the original anime this will make sense considering Chibi Chibi’s true identity.
What do you think of the designs for these characters? Are you excited for this new cast?
A new trailer for the Sailor Moon Cosmos films has been released and this one includes the Sailor Starlights! We also have photos and names of the voice actors who will be portraying them and release dates for both parts of the films in June. In the trailer we see Seiya, Yaten and Taiki also known as the idol group The Three Lights as well as their Sailor Guardian counterparts The Sailor Starlights! You can watch the trailer on YouTube or embedded below.
We already knew that the Sailor Moon Cosmos films cover the Stars arc of the Sailor Moon manga in which the Sailor Starlights feature heavily so seeing them isn’t a surprise but it is nice to finally see them. They sure do look great! We have a few clips of Seiya and Usagi on a rooftop, many clips of the Three Lights as their civilian identities and a bit of transformation sequences and attacks for the Sailor Starlights. There’s also a bit of music, something that is likely to be an important part of the film as the Three Lights are an idol group who perform many songs. Manga is not a medium which lends itself to music but the original Sailor Moon anime had a lot of Three Lights songs, and these films surely will as well!
Seiya Kou, Sailor Star Fighter, will be voiced by Marina Inoue who has been an anime voice actor for nearly twenty years. She is known for having provided the voices of Armin Arlert from Attack on Titan, Momo Yaoyorozu from My Hero Academia and Cure March from Smile PreCure!
Taiki Kou, Sailor Star Maker, will be voiced by Saori Hayami, a voice actor and singer who’s been working for about 15 years. Her voice acting credits include Leona from Dragon Quest: The Adventure of Dai and Himawari Uzumaki from Boruto: Naruto Next Generations.
Yaten Kou, Sailor Star Healer, will be voiced by Ayane Sakura, who’s been doing voice acting for about 12 years. Her roles include Ochaco Uraraka from My Hero Academia and Yae Miko from Genshin Impact.
Sailor Moon Cosmos Part 1 will be in theatres in Japan on June 9th followed by Part 2 on June 30th. There has not yet been a date announced for an international release.
