Super Recaps: Sailor Moon Crystal Act 34 (Infinity 8: “Infinite Labyrinth” 1)

We’re back with another episode of Grey’s Moon-atomy!  The last episode ended on quite the cliffhanger with Hotaru turning into Evil Hotaru and then proceeding to rip the crystal right out of Chibi-Usa’s uniform; leaving her in a coma and the Sailor Moon absolutely distraught.  Now that Usagi has to face the consequences of letting her daughter fight bad guys while still in grade school, she must decide how she should handle the new Hotaru moving forward.  Will she stick to her guns and refuse to let someone else’s death be an acceptable sacrifice for the rest of humanity, or will she listen to the great Mr. Spock and realize the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few?  Let’s find out!!

The episode begins with Chibi-Usa in the hospital after getting attacked by the full grown Evil Hotaru and her wicked hair.  We’re not sure exactly how we got from the fight to here (did the Scouts just run away?  Did Haruka teleport herself to General Zod?), but that seems a bit inconsequential considering that Chibi-Usa is… well…

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“Gee doc.  You think we should DO something about that?”

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Super Recaps: Sailor Moon Crystal Act 33 (Infinity 7: Transformation – Super Sailor Moon)

We’re back with another episode of Sailor Moon Z!  The last episode managed to really kick the story into high gear which was good considering that several of the episodes prior to that ground everything to a screeching halt as we circled around the same plot points with no real forward momentum.  Ironically, the show that is known for going too damn fast ended up slowing things down TOO much.  Does this episode finally find a happy medium between the two, or is the concept of a properly paced episode of Crystal as likely as Uranus’s and Neptune’s actions actually making any sense?  Let’s find out!!

The episode begins where the last one left off, mainly with the non-royal family members beating the hell out of each other and the Doublemint Twin Witches bragging about it.  Fortunately, the Holy Grail has just materialized and has the power to release the Scouts from the mind control spell the witches had cast on them.  Not only that, but the Outer Senshi’s talismans (Aqua Mirror, Space Sword, and Garnet Orb) are all reacting to the Holy Grail and getting a significant power boost!  Yeah, Sailor Moon would only get in the way MY ASS!!

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“You’re Welcome!”

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Super Recaps: Sailor Moon Crystal Act 32 (Infinity 6: Three Guardians)

We’re back with another episode of Quantum Pluto!  When we had left our heroes, the latest member of Team Outer Senshi had fully awakened to their powers and is ready to help them save the world!  The last episode suffered from having no real direction and continuing to hammer home points that had already been addressed in prior episodes with no real advancement; bringing the show to a standstill as none of the subplots were ready to move forward just yet.    Hopefully now that everything is starting to be out in the open, the show can finally give us something new.  Do we get it this time, or are we still gonna have to deal with problems we saw the solution to several episodes ago?  Let’s find out!!

The episode begins with Chibi-Usa running to greet the apparently reincarnated Sailor Pluto who showed up at the end of the last episode to finish off the witch who was about to chop the young Scout’s head off.  Pluto remembers Chibi-Usa and explains that she was reborn by Neo Queen Serenity to fulfill some important mission.  It’s not clear whether or not she had lost her memories up to this point, but I think the more pertinent point is that NEO QUEEN SEREINTY CAN RAISE THE DEAD!!  They don’t explain how she was able to do it, but that seems like a pretty useful power to have at your beck and call; especially to use on a Sailor Guardian who can go to whatever time they want.  Presumably the “bring back to life” process is a form of reincarnation like it was for the other Sailor Scouts which means it takes a good fifteen years to get going (or more like twenty in Pluto’s case) so it’s not something she can use as a plan B, but it’s still pretty useful!  Wait… now I’m confused.  Can Neo Queen Serenity go back in time too without the aid of Pluto to… I guess imbue an unborn baby with Pluto’s genetic code?  How does bringing her back to life in the past affect the events in the future?  Why didn’t she send a message to her younger self letting her know to keep an eye out for the reincarnation!?

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“You probably have a lot of questions.  The answer to all of them is MAGIC.”

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Super Recaps: Sailor Moon Crystal Act 31 (Infinity 5: Setsuna Meioh – Sailor Pluto)

We’re back with another episode of The M-Files!  Unexplained and terrifying things keep happening at this school, and yet no one seems to have dropped out yet. I guess despite the numerous horrors to befall its students, it still gets them a kick ass reference!  Still, the strange stuff only got stranger last week when the formerly dead Scout (Sailor Pluto) showed up in what I can only assume is a reincarnated form; similar to what happened with the rest of the Scouts.  Does this episode manage to explore the true nature of Sailor Pluto’s return in a satisfying and compelling fashion, or is her reappearance merely a stab at fan service to keep the fans’ collective attention span from waning?  Let’s find out!!

The episode begins with Not Sailor Pluto (Setsuna Meioh), or at least Not YET Sailor Pluto, working in one of Mugen Academy’s science labs that also looks like a greenhouse.  Actually, it looks a bit more like an office than anything else, but she said in the LAST episode that she’s a student.  If that’s the case, then how did she manage to get her own office!?

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“I swear, if this is leading to ANOTHER joke about my plants…”

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Super Recaps: Sailor Moon Crystal Act 30 (Infinity 4: Haruka Tenoh, Michiru Kaioh – Sailor Uranus, Sailor Neptune)

We’re back with another episode of The Women from M.O.O.N!  Uranus and Neptune are still keeping tight lipped about what they plan to do, but hopefully now that everything is out in the open things will FINALLY progress without this massive roadblock that’s slowing the plot down to a crawl.  Can we actually move past the mystery of whether these two are bad guys, or are we gonna have to watch as all the other Scouts slowly realize this over the course of the season?  Let’s find out!!

The episode begins right after Uranus and Neptune’s grandiose introduction to the Sailor Scouts; all of whom are slacked jawed as if they had just sat through a production of Springtime for Hitler.  Despite introducing themselves as Sailor Guardians and letting them know exactly what planet and power they represent (on top of making it completely clear EXACTLY who they are outside of the costumes) they CONTINUE to tell them to get out of their lives and that none of this concerns them.  I’m sure they’ll invite them to dinner at their apartment, and take them go karting before asking them to go away and never see them again right before THEN planning their summer vacation together.

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“Except for now, and those other times.  We’re serious!”     “TOTALLY serious!”

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Super Recaps: Sailor Moon Crystal Act 29 (Infinity 3: Two New Soldiers)

We’re back with another episode of The M Word!  Now the last episode was a cluster fuck of poorly conveyed information and confusing plot points that was just spewed out on screen, presumably in a way that was INTENDED to make sense.  That said, it did end on one HELL of a cliffhanger with Haruka planting a kiss on Usagi to her (and the audience’s) surprise!  Now that they’ve painfully force fed us the exposition LAST episode, will this one build off of the interesting ending and give us an episode that we can actually enjoy, or was it too much to hope that the series had gotten its act together after trying to retool it for season three?  Let’s find out!!

The episode begins with Usagi debriefing the Scouts about what had happened between her and the mysterious Sailor Guardian (Uranus) she was chasing down in the forest.  She didn’t get much from her considering how annoyingly vague Haruka has been so far, so all she CAN tell the others is that the mystery Scout requested that they leave her and the other mystery Scout (Neptune) alone to do whatever it is they plan to do; tactfully forgetting to mention the kiss she was given.

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“Well we don’t have much to go on.  She has blonde hair, so maybe she’s European?  Possibly… Swiss?”     “WHAT!?  NOTHING LIKE THAT HAPPENED!!”     “You say something Usagi?”     “…no.”

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Super Recaps: Sailor Moon Crystal Act 28 (Infinity 2: Ripples)

Sailor Moon Crystal and all the images you see in this recap are owned by Toei Animation and licensed by Viz Media

We’re back with another episode of New Moon!  The season three retooling of the series has indeed brought about some positive changes, but after two episodes it seems clear that there are still some flaws that need to be addressed.  Will they be addressed in this episode?  Probably not as I’m guessing at least most of the season three episodes are done already, but we can always hope right?  Anyway, let’s find out!!

The episode begins where the last one left off; with everyone staring in awe as the mystery Scouts (Uranus and Neptune) who are either flying away or jumping straight into the ocean.  Either way it’s unlikely our heroes will be getting any answers from them tonight, but that’s alright because there’s still someone ELSE here who can provide some intrigue and ambiguous exposition!

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“Well you seem rather unfazed about a monster attack that was followed by six magical girls beating the crap out of it.  Is there something you want to tell us?”

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Super Recaps: Sailor Moon Crystal Act 27 (Infinity 1: Premonition – Part 2 –)

Sailor Moon Crystal and all the images you see in this recap are owned by Toei Animation and licensed by Viz Media

We’re back with another episode of Sailor Moon Crystal: The Please Forgive Us Season!  Last week we got an episode that was about as good as we could expect from as show that has been as heavily retooled between seasons as this one was, but now it’s time to see if that was just a fluke or if we’re really gonna be getting a more than decent show now.  Can the hot streak continue, or is this show about to go bust on the second round?  Let’s find out!!

The episode begins as most evenings in the Tsukino household do; with Chibi-Usa needling her future mother and Usagi falling for it hook line and sinker.  In this case, Chibi-Usa was on the phone with Mamoru.  Take it away Usagi!

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“I’m the one who’s gonna bring you into this world!  I could very easily decide not to!”

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Super Recaps: Sailor Moon Crystal Act 27 (Infinity 1: Premonition – Part 1 –)

Sailor Moon Crystal and all the images you see in this recap are owned by Toei Animation and licensed by Viz Media

After all this time, it’s hard to believe that we’ve finally getting more Sailor Moon Crystal to voraciously consume and then talk smack about!  ADMIT IT!!  All the fans out there who say the original is better; you eat this up too whether you like it or not!  I was always pretty kind to Crystal and still have some affection for the first two seasons even if the flaws become oh so very apparent after going back to watch the original show.  Still, the hype behind this season has only grown after Toei started revealing the tweaks to the art style and also at the prospect of having HD versions of the other Scouts like Neptune, Uranus, and Pluto; all of whom are pretty much a mystery to me outside of Neptune and Uranus being a couple who were turned into cousins when the show was initially brought to western audiences.  Just like before, my first introduction to these characters and this story line will be through Crystal so despite my valiant efforts to catch up on the original series, I’m still woefully behind on that and will be watching these episodes of Crystal as a newcomer rather than a fan who can provide insightful comparisons.  Will this show manage to recapture the glory of this season the same way the original did, or will I have to sit through the bastardization of what is considered the best story arc to many fans?  Let’s find out!!

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“For you to pre-order the deluxe edition!  Reserve your copy now and get the characters you ACTUALLY want!!”

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