Anime - A Rollercoaster of Emotion

[majestic]

1 hour ago, Bartimaeus said:

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Setting? World-building? Plot? What series are we talking about again? The setting is about as generic as could possibly be, and there's precious little world-building ever done for it - 99% of the series happens within the same one square mile that the villains inexplicably and obsessively refuse to ever stop attacking even though the majority of them are evil aliens or equivalent that could attack literally anywhere on the planet. The only world-building the series ever did were basic details around each character's lives (school, the arcade, the shrine, Usagi's home, etc.) and some very broad and basic details about the Silver Millennium in the past and Neo-Tokyo in the future. The only reason any of that stuff manages to be even slightly interesting is because of the characters themselves.

 

 

 

Spoiler

 

Oh, I don't disagree. Just saying that there is one point in the first season, and yeah, that's not halfway through but more like three quarters, where there is some information coming along that I found actually interesting because it fleshed out the background of the characters and their past lives a bit and had at least some lore.

I like lore in general. Sometimes more than the actual games or stories set in them (i.e. I enjoyed The Silmarillion more than The Lord of The Rings). I have a good deal of AD&D campaign set books that I love to read every now and then. I'm kind of easy to entertain that way, so yes, even for Sailor Moon, I like the idea of this past age of heroes (rings back to similar mythological concepts in Greek mythology) that ended in misery and I enjoyed learning more about it, even if it was not very much.

Why else would I post half an essay on why Helios has the wrong name. That wasn't just to make a joke. Although I tink that really came out well, no?  

 

What I meant was that if you're someone like me and don't know the distinction you might end up thinking that the first season has some sort of interesting plot. Which it doesn't. That reminds me a bit one of the bigger disappointments when people made me believe that Dark Souls (the first one) has this great, subtly told storyline. When I finally played the game, I... was positively thrilled to find out that it's about you being the chosen one and your character has literally zero motivation to do anything beyond: Here's an enemy, go beat him, because he is in the way and has loot. The only interesting thing about being the chosen one was that you were also an undead. And that felt more like cop-out explanation why you can die and resurrect over and over again (and why "humanity" is a stat).

Granted the actual setting of Dark Souls was much more interesting than that of Sailor Moon, that's not hard.

edit:

Amazingly enough, in Crystal, where they have like 14 or so episodes for the entire first arc, they still waste all that time showing off the transformation sequences. Sigh.

edit 2:

Spoiler

Hey, Tuxedo Kamen figured out who Sailor Moon is, and uses his knowledge to creepily show up at Usagi's window while she's sleeping. That's strike two, stalker creep.

edit 3.

Silly manga fact of the day: Naoko Takeuchi originally wanted Ami to be a cyborg, but her editor shot the idea down really quickly.

Edited February 21, 2021 by majestic

[majestic]

Oh, and I watched the first two episodes of Steven Universe.

Now I want donuts and ice cream. Guess I better go and sleep that desire off.

Edited February 21, 2021 by majestic

[PK htiw klaw eriF]

Now I want donuts and ice cream, but will have to settle for fig newtons bars and baileys.

[Bartimaeus]

What I said in the spoiler was more directed at the dummies concerned with the anime needing to always stay 100% true to the manga, not you, . As if the overall plot and the 'world-building' of the series were some sacred texts that could never be touched. Also, what an utterly classic mistake by Crystal to have a character act "romantic" by being a weirdo creeper that would just get a restraining order filed against them - especially by a main character you're supposed to like.

Heeey, and you didn't immediately dislike the show like I did (probably?). Actually, it's funny that you specifically bring up the food thing, because when I initially watched the show, I also watched just the first two episodes and was like "what, are they just going to always be talking about food and eating constantly? is this a weird food cartoon? count me out, thanks". ...Ended up not watching anymore for like 6 months, and begrudgingly came back at the constant badgering of a friend - it turns out, no, no they're not.

Edited February 21, 2021 by Bartimaeus

[PK htiw klaw eriF]

I have never watched Steven Universe, but between some of the dumbest people on the internet hating it and @Bartimaeus vouching for it I'm willing to give it a shot. Since it's on Hulu I won't get ****ed by Cartoon ****work and can watch it. What is it like?

[Bartimaeus]

@KaineParker

To be fair, some of the dumbest people on the internet love it, too - like a lot of stuff like this, the fan-base can be...not great at times. However, since the show is now officially over, there's absolutely no need to ever interact with them.

Uh, how to describe it... Wow, this is the first time I've ever been asked to do that, and it's kind of difficult. I even just asked the person I watched the entire show with, and we're both kind of scratching our heads to try to figure out just how to accurately encapsulate it without saying too much but also without saying too little. The...basic premise is that it's about a boy who lives with what are effectively his three warrior-guardian aunts, whom he tries to figure out how to fit in and go on adventures with while growing up (and grow up he does indeed - faster than you'd think if you only watched the first few episodes, where he's just a goofball kid). It should be noted that Steven is half-human and half-gem, while his 'aunts' are full gem. Gems are...well, they're not human, let's just say that. (A note for @majestic if you stick with this show: you basically should never look up anything about anyone or anything, because there are some...fairly important world and character spoilers that even I would've been upset to learn.)

The show's elements at their most basic are not fundamentally that dissimilar to Sailor Moon's, except unlike Sailor Moon, it does not follow any kind of formula on an episode-by-episode basis and instead allows for a much greater variety of ways of dealing with all sorts of different problems (nothing like the ongoing minor villain-moderate villain-major villain structure here - some episodes are completely about interpersonal problems, some episodes completely about the setting and/or main plot, some episodes about absolute nonsense, and many a bit of all three...and all characters are *characters*, not just paper cutouts with some different dressing meant to fulfill a role, ). The show has a central plot that is critical to both the characters and the setting of the show (if that's important to you, particularly after watching Sailor Moon where it's more or less the opposite). Some episodes are mostly self-contained, some episodes are effectively multi-parters that run directly consecutively with each other for stretches of episodes. Like Sailor Moon, the first season is a little more laid back than the others since it's trying to setup the characters, their relationships, and the setting first and foremost, but there is still stuff going on there.

There's an extended intro video for the show that's never in any episode but which gives a pretty good but quick look at and feel for the show and its setup - the only problem is that it contains one major end-of-season 1 spoiler for an important character, which is very annoying to me especially since it's so unnecessary...but which might not mean anything to you since you presumably know nothing about the show. Here it is if you want to watch it - the spoiler is a little beyond the 2 minute mark if you do or don't care. Hopefully this doesn't instantly turn you off to the idea of the show, :

https://www.dropbox.com/s/4ic0ppg0h34nsyx/bVa9hMnmuW.mp4?dl=0

Edited February 21, 2021 by Bartimaeus

[PK htiw klaw eriF]

55 minutes ago, Bartimaeus said:

To be fair, some of the dumbest people on the internet love it, too

Ain't that the truth.

What I saw looks very sweet in the feel good or genuine sense with a madcap weird sort of feel to animation and character designs. I tend to gravitate towards very weird stuff so that's a point in favor, and otherwise I generally am agnostic in terms of tone, feel, artstyle, etc. so long as it's well made which by that video it is. I think I'll give it a shot when I have time, which will most likely be when I finish Sailor Moon.

[Bartimaeus]

I guess I would say, for a prospective viewer that's trying to give it a shot but not finding it immediately to their liking from the first handful of episodes (i.e. like was the case for me, where I really didn't initially like it and didn't think there was really a shot in hell of it working for me), is that you should try to stick with it until episode 12 and 13, "Giant Woman" and "So Many Birthdays" respectively. Two episodes VERY different in style and tone, but two of the better ones in season 1 that should give you a good feel what the show is capable of (and is when the show suddenly did a 180 for me and everything started to click). The former is (rightfully) a fan favorite, while the latter is a personal favorite of mine. Even though neither of them are about the main story, if you can't get anything out of those two, the show probably won't be for you.

Edited February 21, 2021 by Bartimaeus

[PK htiw klaw eriF]

2 hours ago, Bartimaeus said:

I guess I would say, for a prospective viewer that's trying to give it a shot but not finding it immediately to their liking from the first handful of episodes (i.e. like was the case for me, where I really didn't initially like it and didn't think there was really a shot in hell of it working for me), is that you should try to stick with it until episode 12 and 13, "Giant Woman" and "So Many Birthdays" respectively. Two episodes VERY different in style and tone, but two of the better ones in season 1 that should give you a good feel what the show is capable of (and is when the show suddenly did a 180 for me and everything started to click). The former is (rightfully) a fan favorite, while the latter is a personal favorite of mine. Even though neither of them are about the main story, if you can't get anything out of those two, the show probably won't be for you.

Unless it's very badly made I can usually stick it out for a while. 13 episodes isn't too much.

I just finished Thus Spoke Kishibe Rohan. Pretty much everything I said earlier applies, with the big exception of muscle dudes because the antagonist of episode 4 is a muscle dude in a way that is so ****ing stupid it's funny. Out of curiosity I watched the second episode dubbed and it's not bad but not for me. Rohan sounds too different even when the voice actor nails the smug prick personality down, he just sounds more....proper while what I got from the sub was someone very blunt and strange. I may unpack my thoughts later and post some spoilers, but coming right out of it I think it's bizarre how TSKR manages to be very different from the part of JoJo (Diamond is Unbreakable) that it draws characters from. DiU is the most light hearted JoJo gets, all things considered it's probably the part you guys would like the most given it's less about "serious mode" episodes and more about some weird high school kids with strange (and very specific) powers having a very weird summer. TSKR on the other hand tends towards generally being.....gloomy? In general JoJo is gruesome so it's not surprising on that front, but I think that the types of resolution are really melancholy. I'll see if I can write more tomorrow, but it's late early and I'm tired. Currently verdict is positive though.

[majestic]

11 hours ago, Bartimaeus said:

What I said in the spoiler was more directed at the dummies concerned with the anime needing to always stay 100% true to the manga, not you, . As if the overall plot and the 'world-building' of the series were some sacred texts that could never be touched. Also, what an utterly classic mistake by Crystal to have a character act "romantic" by being a weirdo creeper that would just get a restraining order filed against them - especially by a main character you're supposed to like.

Spoiler

 

But it's Tuxedo Kamen, so it's okay. Really!

The scene where he kisses Usagi is in the classic anime as well, but there she's awake at the time. Technically she was also sh*t-faced, but it sure beats leaning over a sleeping Sailor Moon and kissing her (and Mamoru has no real reason to expect Usagi to be drunk). Luna shows up and is like "stop touching her you creep", but then is only interested in asking if he is their enemy. Just after almost dying when he tried to save Usagi's life. Yeah.

He shows up at her window to bring Sailor Moon to Makoto who is under attack (this is the episode where she turns into Sailor Jupiter). That in itself is fine, but maybe he should have just thrown stones at her window, not jump up to the window and apparently open it from the outside.

I'm also not entirely certain how I should judge the character introduction episodes of Crystal. It's impossible for me to decouple them from my love for the characters in the classic anime. Seeing Makoto being Makoto(ish) is great, but everything is happening at a pace that stretches suspension of disbelief a bit (more like a lot). Makoto meets Usagi and less than a day later she immediately spills her heart out to her.

Friendship may be Sailor Moon's real superpower, but that's a bit much. The first anime took a bit of time for Makoto to even tell the other girls the story about how she was dumped by her senpai (well not that she was spurned by him, that she tells Usagi in the classic too). Like real people would.

The introcutions also differ, and again not in a good way. In Crystal Makoto doesn't save Usagi from a bunch of strangers who are trying to shake her down but instead from a car rushing towards her because Uasgi daydream-jaywalks over a red light during a conversation with Luna. Classic anime Makoto tells Usagi to take care, smiles and leaves. Crystal Makoto looks at her sternly and leaves.

In the next scene we see her at school and Umino says: "I hear she got transferred because she always got into fights at her old school." Huh. Gee, that's much more believable when you see her beat up a bunch of guys, but we also immediately know it probably isn't true, or whoever she was fighting with most likely deserved it. Makoto is strong, but not a bully. In the classic version, Usagi has no reason to believe the gossip about Makoto and decides to talk to her.

In Crystal, Makoto is accosted by one of the teachers (presumably, else it might have been a custodian, but eh, who really cares) because she's not wearing a school uniform to which she replies that she's not wearing one because they don't have one that fits her, in a somewhat belligerent tone with equally belligerent body language. Okay. So Makoto saved Usagi from a car, then told her in a snappy way to pay more attention and reacts in an aggressive manner towards being told to be in uniform.

Usagi's actual reason for going to talk to Makoto in Crystal comes across as "hey that's a nice lunchbox maybe she'll share with me". Which is exacerbated by the fact that Usagi actually asks Makoto for a piece of her lunch, while classic Makoto simply offers some to Usagi. Makoto tells her that she made it on her own (because she is all alone on her own, she adds), Usagi doesn't ask like in classic.

In the classic anime we instead get a scene where Usagi dresses down the victim of the week (well holder of a rainbow crystal shard) for leaving Makoto to fend on her own, to which he just says absurdly tall girls like her aren't her type, hurting Makoto.

Crystal has Nephrite pretending to be Motoki and tell Makoto that he loves her, then starts stealing her energy and finally launches into a tirade about how love is stupid and humans are stupid for believing in it. Makoto who apparently is too dumb to figure out that Motoki was controlled by Nephrite believes him, but luckily Sailor Moon manages to talk her out of it. Directly. Makoto then tells the girls about her being left by her senpai. I mean, not that it happens, but how.

Fur fun I just watched the first anime version of that episode. Everything about the characters is better in the classic anime.

 

 

11 hours ago, Bartimaeus said:

Heeey, and you didn't immediately dislike the show like I did (probably?). Actually, it's funny that you specifically bring up the food thing, because when I initially watched the show, I also watched just the first two episodes and was like "what, are they just going to always be talking about food and eating constantly? is this a weird food cartoon? count me out, thanks". ...Ended up not watching anymore for like 6 months, and begrudgingly came back at the constant badgering of a friend - it turns out, no, no they're not.

I said that before, but it's really easy to get me interested. The show had me with the time travel comeback gag in the pilot.

Edited February 21, 2021 by majestic

[majestic]

Hahaha. More first season Crystal (so okay for KP + Bartimaeus).
 

Spoiler

 

Okay Tuxedo Creep, that's the third strike. It's okay for you to tell Usagi to go and help her friends, but really, do you have to stand behind her and watch her transform? Man. I really want to link that Sexy Losers comic but I doubt that would be a good idea (and would most likely net me a warning). It is volume 12 of the comic, just in case you want to look it up. Don't blame me if you're traumatized though.

Anyway, given the pace this is moving at, there's no need for all that Clark Kenting. They rest of the girls just transformed directly in front of Zoisite, who is completely straight in Crystal (and therefore also probably not gay in the manga).

I'll give Crystal one thing - the budget of the show allowed them to have much more variety in the fights. Jupiter tries to palpatine Zoisite, Mars throws exploding fireballs and Mercury isn't limited to summoning bubble spray (or Aqua Mist, as it's called in Crystal). It still is a Sailor Moon fight though, if I wanted interesting fights, I'd probably watch something like Yu Yu Hakusho, right?

edit:

The episode ends with Sailor Moon flying over Toyko to spread Moon Healing Escalation around, then collapses into Tuxedo Creep's arms, who promptly brings her home. As in, his home. Light comes in, and Usagi realizes that she doesn't know where she is. She's also back to wearing her school uniform, so Mamoru probably watched her detransform too.

How romantic.

Does nobody miss a 14 year old in Tokyo when she doesn't come home at night?

 

Edited February 21, 2021 by majestic
Should have waited for the episode to end before posting.

[PK htiw klaw eriF]

3 minutes ago, majestic said:

if I wanted interesting fights, I'd probably watch something like Yu Yu Hakusho, right?

Probably, but you lose a lot. It's pretty good when it doesn't do tournament arc stuff but tournament arcs are like two thirds of the show.

[majestic]

23 minutes ago, KaineParker said:

Probably, but you lose a lot. It's pretty good when it doesn't do tournament arc stuff but tournament arcs are like two thirds of the show.

Still sounds better than this creepy romance thing that's going on in Crystal right now. Usagi feels as if Mamoru's eyes consume her.

Right. Not just his eyes my dear Usagi, not just his eyes. *snort*

I hope that's just bad subtitling, but they do look genuine, not like a fan sub.

edit:
 

Spoiler

 

Okay, first hilarious joke in 7 episodes:

Mamoru: Why are you looking for the silver crystal too?

Usagi: Because a magic cat told me to.

She doesn't say it like that, but she clearly gets how ridiculous that must sound when she explains it, turning all red.

 

edit 2:
 

Spoiler

 

Usagi turns around after looking at Mamoru for a good while and wishing that time would stand still, saying "I must leave, Luna is waiting for me."

Hey Usagi, maybe your parents and your little brother are waiting for you too, or is it your wont to spend nights away from home in the appartments of strangers? Anyway, Mamoru gets really creepy by holding her back by her shoulders, sniffing her hair and gently saying Usako.

Yeah. Uhm.

Dear god I don't want to know how Creepasus is going to be in this version (Dream was adapted into two movies though).

It ends with a joke. Yay. Oh boy.

 

edit:

More tech upscaling. Naru is in a video rental shop where they have DVDs. Huh. So this definitely isn't '92 any more, which makes the lack of cell phones for the girls even weirder.

Edited February 21, 2021 by majestic

[PK htiw klaw eriF]

39 minutes ago, majestic said:

Still sounds better than this creepy romance thing that's going on in Crystal right now.

Yeah, but I still wouldn't want to sit through it. Within just anime there's better stuff you can spend your time on than excessively long 90's tournament arcs or Tuxedo Stalker and the long arms you are experiencing in Crystal.

[InsaneCommander]

Up to episode 17 now.

How old is Mamoru? 18? 20? And Rei? He is in college and had a date with Rei. If it was Usagi it would be inappropriate, right? She is 14.

Also, can he transform like the girls? Or did he change into the Tuxedo in the park, after falling in the water? Probably irrelevant lol

[PK htiw klaw eriF]

6 minutes ago, InsaneCommander said:

Also, can he transform like the girls?

Yes, but it only gets shown like once over two seasons.

[majestic]

1 hour ago, InsaneCommander said:

How old is Mamoru? 18? 20? And Rei? He is in college and had a date with Rei. If it was Usagi it would be inappropriate, right? She is 14.

I don't think the anime ever states just how old he really is, but he's done with high school and in college, so anime Mamoru is at least 18. He is probably a bit older.

Spoiler

Given the fact that he's working on his thesis in the final season.

Rei, Ami,

Spoiler

Makoto, Minako

and Usagi are all 14 during the first season. Or more specifically, they're all in second grade junior high, beause IIRC in the original Japanese version Usagi gave her age as "second grade junior high" which supposedly is a common way to express your age in Japan.

The passage of time is incredibly wonky in the first anime. It runs for five seasons and features multiple summers and winters, but Usagi is 16 by the end of it. This has led to a fan theory of a sort of time reset somewhere between seasons.

Manga Mamoru is in high school (16 to 18).

So, yeah, Mamoru's increased age in the anime is a little creepy, but this is Japan, you know. Oh boy, if you're thinking too hard about this already, I'm REALLY looking forward to what you have to say about season 4.

PS: Anyone wanna guess the girl's zodiac signs? No cheating by looking it up!

edit:

Mamoru is the only one who can transform without getting naked first.

Spoiler

Well season 3 Chibi-Usa can too, but that gets dropped in season 4.

 

Edited February 21, 2021 by majestic

[Bartimaeus]

My knowledge of zodiac signs is strictly limited to what I learned about them in The Binding of Isaac years back, which is almost nothing except that they exist, so...

Spoiler

I didn't even realize the characters were getting naked to transform until freaking Haruka was the first to nonchalantly transform back in front of literally everyone.

@Mamoru:

Spoiler

If nothing else, to Mamoru's credit, he does frequently try to resist or thwart Usagi kissing him (with one notable exception that I can think of in season 2). He knows Usagi is young and immature and seems to (at least as of season 3) kind of view it all as more of a future engagement. ...As opposed to in Crystal, where he's kissing her while she's asleep within the first handful of episodes or whatever.

 

Edited February 21, 2021 by Bartimaeus

[majestic]

1 hour ago, Bartimaeus said:

My knowledge of zodiac signs is strictly limited to what I learned about them in The Binding of Isaac years back, which is almost nothing except that they exist, so...

I was hoping to get to edit that out before anyone replied to it or read it, but hey, that's done and dusted. I posted that really quickly before going off to do my cardio, and it hit me then that this is potentially confusing for others. Still, at least it's a decent showcase what happens when I skip four steps in my brain and brabble something during a burst of excitement (sort of). It's one of the things that Naoko Takeuchi actually did check and make care to incorporate in a somewhat meaningful way (except for Rei, let's just say anime Rei is much closer to what an Aries is supposed to be than Crystal/Manga Rei would be).

My train of thought was: Earlier talking about Age of Heroes -> Mythology -> Astrology being part of this + InsaneCommander talking about the age of Mamoru and the girls -> Birthdates of the girls -> Zodiac signs.

Eh.

So here's the answer, might as well finish what I started. Character name spoilers ahead.

Spoiler

 

Each Zodiac sign is assigned a planet or a "light" (usually also called a planet in astrology just because) as "sign ruler". Obviously our moon is neither a light (sun) nor a planet, but who gives a damn when trying to predict the future or how people behave by looking at planetary alignments. Classical astrology only had planets up to Saturn though, modern astrology goes up to Pluto. Leaving out Earth that's 8 planets, 2 lights (sun & moon) = 10 planets for 12 signs. Therefore, two planets get two signs each: Venus and Mercury for Taurus and Libra, Virgo and Gemini respectively.

So in order...

• Sun -> Leo -> Mamoru (even though he represents Earth, Earth is not part of Astrology except as a point of reference, Astrology is inherently geocentric)
• Mercury -> Virgo -> Ami (Ami cannot be a Gemini)
• Venus -> Libra -> Minako (Minako cannot be a Taurus)
• Moon -> Cancer -> Usagi
• Mars -> Aries (classical astrology also Scorpio) -> Rei
• Jupiter -> Saggitarius (classical astrology also Pisces) -> Makoto
• Saturn -> Capricorn (classical astrology also Aquarius) -> Hotaru
• Uranus -> Aquarius -> Haruka
• Neptune -> Pisces -> Michiru
• Pluto -> Scorpio -> Setsuna

 

Random fun fact of the day, Tsukino Usagi literally means Moon Bunny. In Japanese folklore bunnies are on the moon in the same way it is made of cheese in Western culture.

 

1 hour ago, Bartimaeus said:

Spoiler

I didn't even realize the characters were getting naked to transform until freaking Haruka was the first to nonchalantly transform back in front of literally everyone.

 

That was odd, yes. I'd chalk that up to fanservice, but the scene wasn't very really fanservice-y. Maybe it was both an attempt at fanservice and a way to showcase that the transformations aren't really lasting as long as they do on screen. Althoug that is constantly hinted at anyway, because whenever an episode doesn't need the padding in runtime, the transformations are either cut short or skipped completely. 

It's magic!

1 hour ago, Bartimaeus said:

Spoiler

If nothing else, to Mamoru's credit, he does frequently try to resist or thwart Usagi kissing him (with one notable exception that I can think of in season 2). He knows Usagi is young and immature and seems to (at least as of season 3) kind of view it all as more of a future engagement. ...As opposed to in Crystal, where he's kissing her while she's asleep within the first handful of episodes or whatever.

 

 

Spoiler

 

To be honest for the entire run of SuperS I was wondering why the hell he puts up with Usagi in the first place. She's constantly embarrassing him in public and in front of his friends, takes a turn for the worse in terms of maturity and acts like a complete child in a way that makes Chibi-Usa seem mature.

The worst part is when Fish-Eye asks Mamoru what he sees in Usagi that makes him love her so much and he can't come up with an answer that doesn't sound like he's trying really hard to convince himself that it gets better somewhat soon. Even the writers knew that this was ridiculous (I'm guessing Yoji Enokido was venting his frustration in the episode).

 

 

Edited February 21, 2021 by majestic

[PK htiw klaw eriF]

Watched an episode of Sailor Moon S, the one where Motoki's sister gets her heart stolen. The Professor remarks he hasn't kissed in years and starts laughing so hard he breaks a vial. Straight upgrade from Queen Beryl and Death Phantom tbh.

[Bartimaeus]

@majestic Gosh, I hope the new English dubs makes some at least light attempts to make season 4 a little better, . Also, is the only reason you know any of this astrology stuff purely because of Sailor Moon?

@KaineParker He really is.

Edited February 22, 2021 by Bartimaeus

[PK htiw klaw eriF]

43 minutes ago, Bartimaeus said:

He really is.

Absolutely.

Spoiler

With Queen Beryl I kept waiting for some compelling backstory or for her to start doing anything but sitting in her throne yelling at subordinates. That never really came, we find out their ruler (whose name I've forgot) was just evil energy or some **** and she turns into a flower before dying. Wiseman was even worse, he rubs his ball for most of his screen time until it's revealed he is the mastermind and actually Death Phantom before getting blasted with love energy. Both are boring and only memorable for being unmemorable if that makes sense.

The Professor is just more fun. At this point I know nothing about him and he is just a shadowy background figure, but he's already made a better impression on me. The first two seasons would have been much better if they just showed their main antagonists doing weird and crazy **** instead of sitting around rubbing crystal balls.

From what Majestic has been saying, the villain of Super S is a pedophilic pegasus and some rapey "eye" characters so that'll be fun.

 

[InsaneCommander]

Saw his transformation,
 

Spoiler

 

it happened at the same time Sailor Moon changed. That would be too obvious if it was always like this, somebody would eventually see it. So I guess it is not necessarily at the same time.

And it seemed like he didn’t know what was going on, so maybe he doesn’t remember his time as Tuxedo Mask?

 

This thread has lots of posts, if anyone else wants to start watching SM they'll probably not read everything, but I'll hide spoilers just in case.

 

2 hours ago, majestic said:

Mamoru is the only one who can transform without getting naked first. 

 

That was odd, yes. I'd chalk that up to fanservice, but the scene wasn't very really fanservice-y. Maybe it was both an attempt at fanservice and a way to showcase that the transformations aren't really lasting as long as they do on screen. Althoug that is constantly hinted at anyway, because whenever an episode doesn't need the padding in runtime, the transformations are either cut short or skipped completely. 

It's magic!

So it is much faster, but they get naked? They probably just don't mention it to each other and pretend nothing unusual happens. 

But the bad guys can see it.

Luckily for them, at least so far, most of the time they are fighting agains women.

Spoiler

And Mamoru kissed Usagi. Is he still dating Rei?

 

[majestic]

1 hour ago, Bartimaeus said:

@majestic Gosh, I hope the new English dubs makes some at least light attempts to make season 4 a little better, . Also, is the only reason you know any of this astrology stuff purely because of Sailor Moon?

No, it's not, but it also wouldn't be very surprising if it really were. I know a bit or two about what I like to call voodoo (no offense meant to the actual religion). It makes ridiculing people who really believe in Astrology easier. if that sounds like a petty reason then that's because it is.

A bit might be an understatement. I know enough Astrology to be able to interpret a radix chart. Not entirely by heart due to a lack of actually doing it. It's the same as every other way that is used to scam people out of their money. It's generic enough to make some things hit, and the rest is cold reading or people willingly giving you all sorts of information, because let's face it, if you actually got to an astrologer you're most likely already a believer.

See, for instance, if I look at my natal chart, I'd see I have Mercury in the third house, and my third house ruler is the Sun (beause the house cusp is in Leo). Mercury also has a sextile with Saturn. One of the many ways to interpret this is to read it as someone who has an easy time learning and acquiring knowledge (which would entirely be true). The sextile with Saturn also means that it is easy for me to pick up new things and my thinking is goverend mostly by logic, not feelings (i.e. Saturn being a planet that stands for endings and new beginnings, destruction and creation - you can probably already see how that relates to Sailor Moon... ).

So far for the fun part that's correct, however, once we come down to the Leo and the Sun thing it all really falls apart, because that is interpreted as someone who is born to be outgoing, communicative and a natural teacher, and someone who loves to talk about himself. It tells me I have an easy time to communicate with others and can easily insert myself into conversations, where I can shine with great eloquence to a point where I become the center of attention! Yay, isn't it great to be me then?

I like talking about myself all right, can't deny that, but everything else I'm supposed to glean from this is flat out wrong. In real life, it takes an immense amount of effort for me to even attempt to join in a random conversation because I actively need to push myself to overcome my anxiety (both of talking to and meeting new people). I worked on that and it has gotten a bit better, but even something as simple as calling someone I don't know is still terrifying. The very thought makes my skin crawl, my blood pressure goes through the roof and my heart rate spikes. There were times when I was home alone and would have liked to order a pizza but couldn't because nobody else is around that would do the calling for me (well luckily online ordering fixed that, mostly), and when I do talk something eloquent is the last thing that comes out of my mouth.

Spoiler

When you get to the fourth season and see how Usagi prods Ami into talking to the composer she met online, that's me. Well, or that was me. Like I said, it got better, but I wasn't born with that. No way.

I could go into even more detail, but it's getting really late (could already call it early) and I need to get a little bit of sleep at least. The TL;DR from here is, it's hit and miss, and you just leave out whatever you think or know doesn't fit your client.

Edited February 22, 2021 by majestic

[majestic]

47 minutes ago, KaineParker said:

Spoiler

From what Majestic has been saying, the villain of Super S is a pedophilic pegasus and some rapey "eye" characters so that'll be fun.

 

 

Spoiler

What gave you that impression? Creepasus is Chibi-Usa's friend and he always helps her. He is a nice pedophile, not the villain. The villain in SuperS is an Elizabeth Bathory type that read too much Peter Pan who really wants Pegasus' horn (who in reality is a 12 year old boy).

Also, what do you mean you weren't happy with Queen Beryl's background. Isn't it enough that she wanted a slice of Mamo-chan and simply opted to burn everything down when he didn't want her?

Well Queen Beryl actually does something in Crystal that's not sitting in on her throne. She comes and attacks the Sailor Senshi at some point, but leaves after Sailor Moon uses her Moon Stick for the first time. It's not really much more interesting.

 

Edited February 22, 2021 by majestic