Tag: Toei

Super Recaps: Sailor Moon Episode 22 (Romance Under the Moon: Usagi’s First Kiss)

~ Matt Vetrano ~ 1 Comment

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

Episode directed by Yuji Endo

We’re back with another episode of Great Moon-spectations!  After eleven episodes straight of filler, we get to another episode that’s part of the manga and was also remade in Sailor Moon Crystal!  Will this one manage to be the better of the two, or did Crystal manage to improve on whatever shortcomings this episode might have?  Let’s find out!!

The episode begins with Usagi; late as always and running her ass to school before the bell rings.  On her way there, she runs into Naru who’s recalling the events of episode nineteen where Masato Sanjoin (Nephrite’s secret identity) started stringing her along because he thought she was Sailor Moon.  Naru already had a crush on the guy, but her last interaction with him left things a bit awkward to say the least.

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“On the one hand, he tried to murder me.  On the other hand, he has AMAZING hair…”

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

~ Matt Vetrano ~ 2 Comments

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)

~ 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 Episode 21 (Protect the Children’s Dreams: Friendship Through Anime)

~ Matt Vetrano ~ 2 Comments

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

Episode directed by Kunihiko Ikuhara

We’re back with another episode of Where in the World is Sailor V!  The enigmatic vigilante looming of this series really hasn’t had an appearance outside of video games and merchandising, yet she’s still a very important part of the Sailor Moon universe once the series really gets going.  Until then though, I guess we’ll have to live with filler episodes that use her likeness instead of… you know; ACTUALLY showing her.  Still, this episode is all about an animation studio, so maybe it’ll be a fun look at the anime production world with a lot of in-jokes and lampshade hanging!  Let’s find out!!

The episode begins with the news that Sailor V is getting adapted into an anime movie to the chagrin of Usagi who I guess is jealous that SHE’S not getting one.  I would be curious how that actually came about.  Did the animation have to contact Sailor V to get a licensing contract written up?  Then again, I guess she doesn’t have much legal recourse considering she’s supposed to have a secret identity.

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“Coming to a theater near you!  Along with forty knockoffs because no one has to pay to use her likeness!  CHA-CHING!!”     “These trailers just keep getting more and more depressing.”

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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 Episode 20 (The Summer, the Beach, Youth and Ghosts)

~ Matt Vetrano ~ 5 Comments

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

Episode directed by Kazuhisa Takenouchi

We’re back with another episode of The Moon Princess Bride!  When we last left our heroes, they had just managed to foil Nephrite’s plot for like the seventh or eighth time, and that was after having defeated Jadeite at least ten times!  Clearly they’re owed a vacation at this point, and that’s exactly what they do here!  A change in scenery can be a nice change of pace for a show that finds itself in a routine, but it can also end up a mess when trying to write characters outside of what the creators are usually comfortable having them do.  Will this be a trip to remember or a nightmare worse than what the Griswold’s endured?  Let’s find out!!

The episode begins by making good on their promise of new scenery and the potential for beach-related shenanigans as the three Sailor Scouts (plus Luna) have traveled to the coast in order to enjoy their summer vacation.  That is if they can get Luna to shut up about this being a “training camp” which shouldn’t be too hard.  Have you seen how small she is?  Besides, why would she take them to a beach for a training montage!?  I know that worked for Rocky but it’s not 1982 anymore!  Besides, Usagi is already checked out as her mind is racing with the possibilities this weekend holds.

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Honestly?  I’m just surprised he’s still wearing pants.

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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 Episode 19 (Usagi’s Joy: A Love Letter from Tuxedo Mask)

~ Matt Vetrano ~ 5 Comments

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

Episode directed by Takao Yoshizawa

We’re back with another episode of Everybody Loves Nephrite!  He certainly seems to have a way with people, though I’m guessing at least forty percent of his charm comes from being a monster spawned from the depths of hell.  Everyone loves a bad boy!  That is except Queen Beryl who’s getting just a tad tired of his failures and is itching to dish out some punishments!  Will he be able to finally take out the Scouts before Beryl has him sleeping with the fishes?  Let’s find out!!

The episode begins with Nephrite in his personal command center where he’s desperately searching for a way to defeat those pesky Scouts before Queen Beryl ends up Jadeite-ing his ass.  The stars come to his aid once again (I imagine that he’s accruing quite a debt with them by now like Dr. Facilier in The Princess and the Frog) and show him that the one weakness is the same weakness that all heroes have; their heart!  The key to defeating the Scouts (and Sailor Moon in particular) is to go after Tuxedo Mask!  Sadly, he can’t jump on his new project just yet because he’s being requested to return to the head offices of Hell Corp for a performance review.  Needless to say that Queen Beryl has had it up to here with the lack of dead Sailor Scouts, but doesn’t seem to have any ideas other than to blame the underlings.  To be fair though, they can be QUITE sassy with her.

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“YOU FOOL!  How hard is it to kill a couple of teenagers!?”     “Harder than waving your hands in front of a crystal ball.”     “What was that?”     “Nothing.”     “WHAT WAS THAT!?”     “…I’m sor-“     *ZAP*

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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 Episode 18 (Shingo’s Love: The Grieving Doll)

~ Matt Vetrano ~ 2 Comments

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

Episode directed by Harume Kosaka

We’re back once again with another episode of Serenity’s Angels!  With Nephrite’s plans failing over and over again (just like Jadeite’s) he’s in a precarious position as his chickens must eventually come home to roost.  This episode seems to be heading in that direction, and we’re not that far off from Sailor Jupiter joining the cast, so maybe desperate Nephrite will be a bit more interesting than smug Nephrite.  Even though his plots haven’t resonated as well for me as Jadeite’s have, it really doesn’t seem like it would take all that much to get the formula right.  Can they pull it off this time, or is this doomed to be another example of them ALMOST but not quite getting it?  Let’s find out!!

The episode begins in a place we haven’t seen for some time; the head office of Hell Corp.  Nephrite is FINALLY being dragged back before the Mistress of Dark Kingdom to answer for his failings with Zoisite in attendance just to pour some salt in the wound.  Not only is this scene great because we finally get to see Queen Beryl again, but also because we get to see Zoisite prove himself to be a mischievous little jerk as he intentionally tries to goad Nephrite into either working with him or sinking his own promising career; both of which seem to help him towards… whatever end goal he’s going for.

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“Don’t you think it would be PERFECT if we were to work together?  I mean, he’s CLEARLY been struggling to take out those Sailor Hussies!”     “I’m inclined to agree with Zoisite.”     “HELL NO!  I’m not working with this jackass!”     “…what did you just say to me?”     “And MY work here is done!  LATERS!”

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