Tag: Sailor Venus

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

~ Matt Vetrano ~ 2 Comments

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)

~ Matt Vetrano ~ 3 Comments

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 –)

~ Matt Vetrano ~ 2 Comments

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 –)

~ Matt Vetrano ~ 2 Comments

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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Super Recaps: Sailor Moon Crystal (Episode 26) Season one Finale!!

~ Matt Vetrano ~ 10 Comments

Just over a year since its premiere, Sailor Moon Crystal’s first season is coming to a close.  There’s been much discussion around this show and its obvious flaws since its release, which is to be expected for a remake of a franchise that meant so much to a lot of people.   Now that we’re at the end of this series (at least until season two comes out), does it go out with a bang and a strong closing for the Black Moon Clan story arc, or are we going to get yet another disappointing ending such as the one we got to the Silver Millennium story arc, which many would see as fitting for a series that has been plagued with so many glaring issues?  Let’s find out!!

The episode begins with Sailor Moon and her entourage falling through an endless abyss of some sort towards the disembodied skull of Wiseman or Death Phantom or Nemesis, or whatever the hell it is.  The point is that Sailor Moon has nice big target to aim her magic wand at and she does just that.

“Feel the power of love and friendship!”     “I COULDN’T BE IN MORE PAIN!!!!”
“Feel the power of love and friendship!”     “I COULDN’T BE IN MORE PAIN!!!!”

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Super Recaps: Sailor Moon Crystal (Episode 25)

~ Matt Vetrano ~ 3 Comments

Welcome back to the show you all hate and will sorely miss when the season is over!  ADMIT IT!!  YOU ALL LOVE THIS SHOW!!  Anyway, we left the last episode on quite the cliffhanger with mere inches separating our heroes from total annihilation.  The show has been on quite a roll recently (that or I’ve acclimated to its sub-par standards) and with only two episodes left, I can only hope they pull out all the stops.  I mean, we’re STARTING the episode with the possible extinction of all of existence!!  I mean, it’s not like the dude’s going to SUCCEED, but it’s going to be interesting to see how they can pull themselves out of this mess!  Let’s get started!!

The episode begins with Prince Demande mere moments from destroying the universe by touching the two Legendary Silver Crystals together.  Naturally, everyone is freaking the fuck out and hoping they can develop super speed right now so they can stop him!

“NOOO!!!!!!!  I was gonna have a dream palace built on the graves of my former allies!!”
“NOOO!!!!!!!  I was gonna have a dream palace built on the graves of my former allies!!”

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Super Recaps: Sailor Moon Crystal (Episode 24)

~ Matt Vetrano ~ 3 Comments

Welcome back to another episode of the most critically panned revival of a beloved nineties anime until the new Dragon Ball show gets released!  What?  Am I the only one expecting that?  Anyway, the last episode of Sailor Moon Crystal was pretty shaky but ended up going out on a high note and leaving us with a lot of expectations of where this episode will go.  With Chibi-Usa going full villain last time around, will we get the epic punch up between mother and daughter that we’ve all been waiting for, or will we be let down again by one of the most uneven anime in history!?  Let’s find out!!

The episode begins with everyone gathering in the middle of the wasteland to discover that this new adversary is none other than an all grown up Chibi-Usa (calling herself Black Lady) with a massive chip on her shoulder.

“Does this mean I can tap that?”
“Does this mean I can tap that?”

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Super Recaps: Sailor Moon Crystal (Episode 23)

~ Matt Vetrano ~ 3 Comments

After another three week hiatus (will we ever escape the consequences Pope Gregory XIII’s evil invention!?) Sailor Moon Crystal has returned with a lot to live up to.  The last episode was a great mix of compelling story beats and bombastic action that gave me hope that this story arc would manage to NOT descend into utter chaos like the previous one did.  With Chibi-Usa’s recent turn to the darkside, the show definitely has a lot to work with in terms of both storytelling and epic confrontations, but this series has also been known to drop the ball when it had plenty to work with.  Will this episode continue steering this storyline into the right direction, or was the last episode the last gasp of quality before everything descends into mediocrity and outright awfulness yet again?  Let’s find out!!

The episode begins with Usagi finding out that Mamoru and Chibi-Usa have wandered into the time dimension wasteland thingy and haven’t returned since.  There’s currently a storm blowing through there (because of reasons) and Usagi is told that even under good conditions that searching through the never ending miasma of time and space is a suicidal endeavor.  Usagi calmly considers the pros and cons of her situation and then decides to search through the never ending miasma of time and space.

“Screw the rules, I have main character powers!”    “But this is completely insane!!”     “Insane is my middle name!”
“Screw the rules, I have main character powers!”    “But this is completely insane!!”     “Insane is my middle name!”

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Super Recaps: Sailor Moon Crystal (Episode 22)

~ Matt Vetrano ~ 5 Comments

Sailor Moon Crystal, as predictably as the tides, had started going downhill in the second half of its story arc.  With lots of great set up and interesting characters to fight the Scouts, it looked like things had started to turn around for the show after the disappointing ending to the Silver Millennium story line, but once the Scouts were taken away and we got to the future (where there’s pretty much no one to care about), it started to look grim once again for this series.  Still, the show had Chibi-Usa who has been a consistent bright spot so far, and the way the last episode ended gave us some hope that things were at least going to escalate in an interesting and meaningful way as we approach the end of this story.  Will this episode make good on the promises of the the last episode, or were we just getting set up once again for disappointment?  Let’s find out!!

The episode begins with Chibi-Usa being tempted to join Wise Man and feel the POWER of the Dark Side!

“With our combined strength, we can end this destructive conflict, and bring order to the multiverse.  Also, I have some candy if you want it.”     “CANDY!!!!!”
“With our combined strength, we can end this destructive conflict, and bring order to the multiverse.  Also, I have some candy if you want it.”     “CANDY!!!!!”

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Super Recaps: Sailor Moon Crystal (Episode 21)

~ Matt Vetrano ~ 6 Comments

We’re back with another episode of everyone’s favorite show about time traveling []!  Now the show has been headed towards a train wreck situation for a couple of episodes now like the last story arc did once it hit the midway point.  Still, the potential for this story has been evident since the beginning and there’s more than enough places they could go to make this a satisfying chapter in the anime.  Will this episode begin to turn things around, or am I just an optimistic fool trying to ignore the fact that this show is about to crash and burn in spectacular fashion yet again?  Let’s find out!!

The episode begins where the last episode left off with Prince Demande finally showing himself before our heroes.

“KNEEL BEFORE YOUR FIERY GOD!!!”     “You’re just using a strobe light you dingus.”
“KNEEL BEFORE YOUR FIERY GOD!!!”     “You’re just using a strobe light you dingus.”

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