Toei Sailor Moon Review

Recently I completed re-watching the Toei Sailor Moon, this making it I believe the fifth time I watched the series completely. To mark this event I wanted to review the series. Toei Sailor Moon is a series that draws more polarizing feelings from me then any series: The only series who's best matches the Sailor Moon Manga, my favorite series of all series, yet who's worst is painful to me in a way few other series can match. As such I thought I'd make three blogs to express my feelings about this series: one to go over what I don't like about the series, one to go over what I like about this series, and then finally one to express my feelings towards the series as a whole.

I'll start by saying that no other series gets as polarizing feelings from me as Toei Sailor Moon. Toei Sailor Moon at its best is genuinely on par with the best of any other series I've ever seen. On the other hand while its worst is not on par with the worst I've ever seen, it is on par with the worst I've ever seen from series I actually LIKE. Part of this is just that it's a fairly lengthy series at 200 episodes long, however that's not all of it. Pretty Cure is several times larger but I definitely don't think has this level of variance. I definitely think my favorite episode of Sailor Moon is better then my favorite episode of Pretty Cure, though I also think at the same time that Pretty Cure's worst episode is better then Sailor Moon's worst episode. 

Overall though I would say that Sailor Moon is a great series. To try to give a decent idea of how much, I would say I have seen around 100 Magical Girl series, counting franchises like PreCure or Puella Magi as 1 each. Not counting other Sailor Moon series, if I were to rank all of them, Sailor Moon would easily be in my Top 10 and probably in my Top 5. My guess is it would be somewhere in the range of #6 to #3, with maybe a little wiggle room on either end. You could say this is nostalgia, and it is obviously true Toei Sailor Moon has had a huge influence on me. That said it certainly isn't entirely nostalgia, as I also rank very highly Magical Girl series that I saw as a late to adult and don't rate very highly some series that I have nostalgia for. I am obviously not claiming to be unbiased here, only that there is a reason Sailor Moon captured my interest and has remained an interest when other series failed to do so. 

If I was to describe what makes Toei Sailor Moon in one world it would probably be versatility. The Toei Sailor Moon series is a very broad series with a lot of tones and styles. It can vary a lot from comedic to serious, wholesome to edgy, slice of life to eldritch horror, sometimes within the same episode. More then that however it actually succeeds at least a good amount at all of these. Sailor Moon can be really funny or heartbreakingly sad, elegantly beautiful or a silly cartoon. Combined with the fact that it combines so many different interests and subject matters and it's not a surprise it got such a large fandom. There's a good chance regardless of what interests you, you'll find something to enjoy in Sailor Moon, and just anecdotally I've found there's a large variance in the kind of person who is a fan of Toei Sailor Moon, because why someone likes it can be radically different from person to person. My least favorite episode is one that a lot of people really love. Meanwhile one of my closest friends couldn't stand my second favorite episode in the series. There's a large swath of the fandom that watches the series as a slice of life anime, yet I who doesn't really like slice of life still finds plenty to enjoy in the series. There are plenty of other great Magical Girls but when you compare any of them to Toei Sailor Moon, they're more... specifically good, they're more good at doing a specific thing, and even if they do it better then Toei Sailor Moon, no series does as many things as Toei Sailor Moon. 

The flipside of this is the  series' inconsistency. Sailor Moon is as you might guess from the above description, not a very consistent series. I mean this both in a general quality sort of way as well as a more specific type of series type of way. To get to the stuff you want to see in this series, you're probably going to have get through at least some stuff that you find boring or distasteful. I for instance find the jokes poking at Usagi to be pretty unpleasant and I find a decent amount of the filler, monster/victim of the week type stuff to be rather dull. I am willing to get through that stuff to get to the material I like but it's certainly not my wish. I've said before that if you could somehow make the Top 120-150 episodes, somewhere in that range, of Toei Sailor Moon its own series, it would not only easily be my favorite Magical Girl Anime, but it would be my favorite anime of all time and one of Top 5 series. 

To get into more specific thoughts I am going to go over each arc of the series briefly and my thoughts on them. The Sailor Moon Manga has 5 arcs, on average 12 chapters each. The Toei Anime in comparison has at least 17 arcs on average ~9-12 episodes each. The count isn't quite exact because you could count the finale of each series as their own arc, or you could count them as part of the last arc, or something else entirely. I don't usually count them as arcs, but I will go over them as well.

The Jadeite Arc (1-13) is a pretty good example of the series consistency problem. Of its 13 episodes I would say I enjoy 8 (1, 3, 6, 8-12), but on the other hand it has Episode 4, quite possibly the worst episode in the series, and the other 5 episodes (2, 5, 7, 13) I feel more neutral or mixed on. That's a a pretty good record and I really like the string of characters once Ami and Rei get introduced between Episodes 8 and 12, though the better episodes clustered later can make the start feel slow. The early eps with just Usagi and Luna are rather hit and miss, even if Episode 6 is a banger episode. Jadeite is a very generic Shojo villain, a misogynistic cold pretty boy, though as a starter villain works well enough. 

The Nephrite Arc (14-26) has a really good finale, though I don't know if I consider it an improvement over the Jadeite Arc. Nephrite is a more unique villain, especially near the end where he basically starts the Toei Anime's redemption theme. A lot of the eps prior to the finale I feel more neutral on then the high points of the prior arc. There are some better episodes here, but for comparison my second favorite ep this arc is the Masquerade Ball Ep, an adaption of one of my bottom two chapters of the manga, whereas my second favorite Jadeite Ep is probably the first episode which is an adaption of a chapter around the middle of my manga chapters ranking. 

The Zoisite Arc (27-34) has a similar level of consistency to the Nephrite Arc but a higher overall average and I think is a notable step up from the prior two arcs. Zoisite is a much more fun villain to me, the including of three sides trying ot get the Rainbow Crystals, allows for more momentum in the story even if marginal, and the episodes in general I think are of a higher average quality. I really like the first two episodes of the arc, which introduce Makoto and are about resolving Naru's grief at Nephrite's death respectively.  This Arc adds Makoto at the front end and Minako at the back end, and while I do love all the Senshi, I do have a preference for Makoto and Minako more then Ami and Rei, if not by a huge margin. The ending of the arc is also pretty iconic so that's nice. I'm not that big a fan of 29 (The episode of Usagi and Makoto chasing Motoki) or 32 (The Tuxedo Umino episode) but things like 27 (The first Urawa episode), and 32 (The Luna kitty chaos episode) make up for it pretty well in my mind.

The Kunzite Arc (35-44) is one of my top 3 arcs in the series, even if its consistency is not as high as the Nephrite or Zoisite Arc. This arc I think is really underappreciated. Having two competing villains in Kunzite and Dark Endymion is a fun dynamic, especially as Kunzite is my favorite of the Heavenly Kings, being somehow both super theatrical and over the top yet also kinda snarky and genre savy. This arc has Episode 44, one of my top 5 episodes in the entire series, as well as bunch of other episodes I really like. Of the ten episodes, I really enjoy about 7 of them (35, 36, 38, 40, 41, 43, 44) including one of my top 5 episodes, another honorable mention, the Lake Youma Episode, the episode the Senshi pretend to fight, the second Urawa ep, etc. Even 2 of the other 3 eps are pretty good. The only one I don't like is the Minako backstory ep that has both Usagi and Minako out of character and has a contrived plot, though even it is far from Classic's worst. 

The Season 1 Finale (45-46) are my favorite episodes of the series and some of my favorite episodes of any series, with 46 being outright my favorite episode of any show. They're also the heart and soul of not just the series but the entire genre in my opinion. So needless to say I am a fan. 

The Makaiju Arc (49-59) is a pretty massive step down. Granted almost anything would be after the amazing stretch of 12 episodes prior, but I think the Makaiju Arc is worse then any arc in Classic. There are some good parts of it usually having to do with the Inner Senshi. You've got Rei and Makoto fighting a Cardian before getting their powers back, Makoto beating up Falion despite being weak from blood loss, Rei's really good character exploration episode, the argument about who should be Snow White, etc. That said the overarching elements of the plot I think are just poor. I don't like the Alien Pair, I think they are vastly less sympathetic then the arc presents them as and they're not fun to see interact with others as their entire shtick is pining for Usagi and Mamoru and getting jealous about the other other doing so hypocritically. The Moonlight Knight thing just feels dumb and like an attempt to try and recapture the dynamic of Season 1, as well as outright lies to the viewer about him not being Mamoru, and Usagi losing her powers with her confidence before getting them back feels half-backed taking place over only 3 episodes and having a major unexplained deus ex machina with her going inside the Silver Crystal to get new powers from the ghost of Queen Serenity? 

The Rubeus/Ayakashi Arc (60-74) is my most disliked arc in the series, and a major reason R is my most disliked season. The primary reason is the breakup arc which is my least favorite thing in the entire franchise for a LOT of reasons I go into my worst episodes ranking. Even outside that though I don't like this arc very much. Rubeus and the Ayakashi Sisters aren't very interesting to me seeing a group of four sisters being catty to me each other while fighting over a guy who is emotionally manipulating them. It's unpleasant and doesn't have much depth. Of the good eps this arc there's like four of fifteen, the two parter finale is pretty good, the Koan redemption ep (70) and the big Guardians vs Ayakashi fight (68). That said while some of the other eps are more in the middle this episode has 5 of the 20 episodes I don't like including the infamous dinosaur episode, the first Makoto/Minako fight episode both of which I really don't like, the grandpa wrestling ep where Grandpa Hino is a creep, the really boring curry shopping episode, and of course the breakup episode. Chibiusa being much more bratty then her Manga counterpart also doesn't help.

The Demande Arc (75-87) is pretty easily my favorite Arc in R. I still have problems with it usually in the form of missed potential as I think the Black Lady plotine where she turns evil due to a dumb misunderstanding and Usagi being kidnapped and rescued from being kissed by Demande are more missed potential then things I disliked, being substantially less interesting then their manga counterparts where Chibiusa turned to Black Lady as part of a frustration for not aging for 900 years and Demande forcing himself on Usagi, but her refusing to let that mean anything to her before rescuing herself. On the other hand this is the only R Arc I'd put on the same level as Classic's. The breakup arc ends right near the beginning and the villains are overall more engaging to me. Esmeraude is a fun villain from 75-81 with several really good eps like the ep they go into Chibiusa's mind, the Nurse Mina ep, and the Ami insecurity ep. Most of the eps after that this arc are pretty good but not amazing except 86, the Saphir ep which is one of the best episodes in R. 

The R Finale (88-89) is mixed. 88 is good. Of its three sections the Black Lady section is okay, and the other two are great including the final fight with Wiseman and the emotional Chibiusa returning to the future section. 89 however is a clipshow ep, and even for clipshow eps, it's pretty lazy. So you know. 

The Kaorinite Arc (90-102) is a massive step up. Immediately you can feel the difference with 90's tone and atmosphere with Rei's dark visions of the world ending in 90. This arc is primarily about introducing Haruka and Michiru, contrasting the Outer Senshi and their philosophy with the Inner Senshi and its absolutely excellent. Episodes 92 and 93 are devoted to introducing each individually and both are great. 96 and 97 are about a personal conflict Makoto and Ami are having, conflicting them with Haruka and Michiru respectively. All four are great, especially 92 and 97. Minako has her own really cool exploration ep in 100 that is also an allusion to one of Naoko's ol favorite series. 90 and 91 are a really good introduction to the season's themes an atmosphere an 102 is a fantastic climax that was on my best episodes list. Kaorinite is the most underrated villain in the series for me, I really like her design and her relationship with Professor Tomoe. The only ep this arc I don't really like that much is 101 which is the first part of the two-part finale as it feels like Usagi is out of character this ep. 

The Eudial Arc (103-111) is one of my top 3 arcs in the series. It has everything good about the Kaorinite Arc including one of the best villains in the series is Eudial, but also adds a much stronger sense forward momentum and plot as well as an even higher quality string of episodes. of the 9 episodes, 4 of them were in my top 30 episodes, of which 2 were top 10 including one in the top 5. The only ep that's even kinda meh 107 which is the Chibiusa art class episode. The first ep this arc brings back Chibiusa and has a ton of hilarious antics. The next two eps are both pretty fun too, 108 being the tea ceremony ep and 109 being the Makoto training episode, both of which have some pretty cool parts. 108 is another famously fun and funny ep with the party in English which has all the memes associated with it and is just a really fun time. This arc has 106, the Haruka/Michiru backstory, and then the super strong string of eps 109-111 which is one of the best strings of episodes in any magical girl series I've ever seen. Dramatic, Funny, Beautiful, Fast-Paced, Introspective, Shocking, it's got it all. 

The Mimete Arc (112-120) is a bit of a come down, more comparable to the Kaorinite Arc. Mimete is a more annoying villain then the either of the prior ones, things get a lot more episodic and slow paced, and the Outers' shtick starts getting a bit more repetitive. On the other hand this arc introduces Hotaru and her friendship with Chibiusa, both of which are fantastic developments for the series. Hotaru has been one of my favorite characters since childhood, and her friendship with Chibiusa is both adorable and gives Chibiusa a really good role in the series. The best episodes this arc are the ones that focus on Hotaru, 112, 113, 115, and 119. The Ikasaman ep, 118 is also pretty fun in a wacky what the hell kinda way. 

The Mistress 9 Arc (121-125) involves a few more episode Witch episodes. I like Tellu's a good amount actually mostly we get to see more Pluto and I want more Pluto. Viluy's is not that great tbh and Cyprine's is kinda in the middle. The actual climax of the season 124-125 is broadly good, though I have my problems with it. In particular I think a lot of the things they added that were from the manga were done substantially worse then the manga including the Pluto sacrifice, Hotaru giving Chibiusa's Soul back, and the fight with Pharaoh 90. On the other hand the things that were actually unique to the anime are really great. Everything between Moon and Haruka/Michiru and them angry at her for her idealism seemingly dooming the world before finally beginning to believe in her after seeing the strength of her conviction letting her create a miracle, that's all great. And the Tomoe/Hotaru stuff is also really sweet, even if it unfortunately causes a plot problem later. 

S also has two episodes at the end both of which are kinda mixed. With 126 I do appreciate the idea of the Moon vs Uranus/Neptune fight defeating them by not fighting though I think it could have been made stronger and the part where Pluto's ghost returns two episodes after she sacrificed herself to tell Chibiusa she'd see Hotaru again immediately before she sees Hotaru again... kinda dumb and time-wastey. 127 is them saying goodbye to Chibiusa again but they already played this card in Episode 88 plus they spend the entire ep focused on Chibiusa leaving and then she doesn't actually leave so it feels kinda pointless. 

The Amazon Trio Arc (128-149) is the longest arc in the anime and it really doesn't need to be. It's the least popular arc and I am inclined to agree it's broadly not very good. This is primarily a combination of the writing being made much more childish and meaner, making the Senshi especially Usagi look worse to try and make Chibiusa the protagonist of the season seem smarter by comparison. It also has the Helios romance which is substantially more troublesome then the manga, and a LOT of filler. Like this arc has 5 plot episodes in 22 total episodes. On the other hand this arc and season in general does definitely have a contingent of fans and I can kinda see it. This arc can be funny and if you're not as bothered by its weaknesses some pretty good emotional moments. 140 and 141, the Fashion Designer Ep and the Minako Two-Timing ep are both pretty funny, 132 is a pretty good about Usagi and Mamoru's relationship, 144 which is about Shingo's crush on Ami is pretty sweet, 147 has the famous Ami dancing with Makoto bit, and the two part finale is pretty good. On the other hand this arc has five of my Bottom 20 episodes (133, 139, 142, 143, and 145), 143 and 145 in particular  (The Shotacon Fish-Eye and the Ballet Ep) are both bottom 10 eps for me. Even a lot of the other eps have the overall problems of the arc such as 138 which would otherwise be a very normal Sailor Moon ep about Ami helping a car mechanic that randomly decides to add in jokes about Usagi being "fat."

The Amazoness Quartet Arc (150-160) is a pretty substantial step up from the prior arc. It does have another two bottom 10 eps for me in 154 (the second Makoto/Minako fight ep) and 157 (the ep that teaches children to try to fly on their bikes and to trust strangers who don't want people to tell on them), the latter of which is a bottom 3 for me which extra hurts as it's half the length of the prior arc. With that said, the average quality of the ep is substantially higher. 152, 156, 159, and 160 are all eps I like pretty clearly including a really good Rei ep, the Senshi/Quartet ep that is really important for the Quartet's characters and themes, a really interesting ep about a starving artist and appreciating authenticity and gratitude, and a funny ep of the Senshi trying to figure out Chibi-usa's crush. A lot of others are mostly good with one of SuperS problems like 153, the dentist ep which outside of Usagi being written as particularly childish is fun, or 151 which is a pretty good Ami exploration ep. The Quartet are pretty well deserved for being fan favorite villains.

For some reason SuperS and Stars have really long endings compared to the first 3 seasons and could well be counted as arcs themselves. The SuperS Finale (161-166) is actually really good with 166 being probably my favorite SuperS being thematically really rich and reflecting Ikuhara's style well in his final ep. There's also in general a lot of fun in the SuperS finale from the mirrors part meant to reflect the Senshi's insecurities or the Quartet's redemption. On the other hand the writing can be quite childish much like a lot of SuperS with things like characters just stating the moral or Nehelenia betraying the Quartet and loudly declaring it to them so that they know it wasn't just Zirconia. 

The Nehelenia Arc at the start of Stars (167-172) is my favorite arc in the Toei anime. Despite being one of the two "filler" arcs, it's actually the one I feel is closest to the manga as there are no monsters of the week, it's fast paced without any ep being "filler", it's got a darker more atmosphere feel and so on. Every ep is at least good and the last three episodes are all top 30 eps for me, with the penultimate being top 10 and the final being top 3. I love the overarching themes about love and isolation which are my favorite themes in fiction, I love that they played around with the Senshi putting them in different pairs then usual and seeing what happened. And the last ep means so much to me as it expresses the Anime's theme in a way that clicked with me better then anything else in the entire series. This arc really pushes back on the faults of the prior season, immediately showing that this is going to be avoid the childishness and random meanness of the last season, and while Stars has its own problems, it does stick to that. Also while again Stars does have its own problems... it's not really in this arc. This arc is the pinnacle of Toei Sailor Moon, and it's what I would want from this series.

The Iron Mouse Arc (173-181) really shows why Stars in particular is so polarizing for me. Stars to me has three parts. I do love the writing on the Inner Senshi this season a lot, it's maybe my favorite season for their characterization, and for the most part I also really love the writing on the Outer Senshi. This arc really shows both those. The Inner Senshi are a lot of fun this arc and yet also really supportive of each other. I love the gag in 181 where Minako tries and fails to invite one of the Starlights to an adult movie making Usagi all shocked and Makoto innocently say she'd go with Minako instead. I also really love the villains this season. Iron Mouse is a lot of fun and Galaxia makes for a really cool final villain for the series. With that said, I don't like the Starlights. I felt pretty neutral on them as a child and my opinion has only really soured with time. They're also at their absolute worst this arc, or at least Seiya and Taiki are. Seiya repeatedly ignores Usagi's boundaries in a way that's supposed to be funny, and I find super distasteful. Meanwhile Taiki is a cartoon caricature of cold "logic" that A: doesn't belong in this series and B: only ever causes problems. The rest of the arc is great, I love the Inners this season, Mamoru basically proposes to Usagi 173 in a scene that always makes me tear up, Iron Mouse is really funny like in 178 where she is super impatient during Usagi's pre-battle speech and is mad she's not listening to her before just leaving. It's just that the Starlights are such a large part of this arc and season and I don't like them.

The Aluminum Seiren Arc (182-188) I think is a step up from the Iron Mouse Arc. Seiren and Lead Crow are both good villains, probably on par with Iron Mouse and they have a fun dynamic where Lead Crow thinks they're rivals but Aluminem Seiren is too spacy to notice, with Crow doing all her work for her. Chibi-Chibi is also a nice addition, being sweet and fun. 182, 184, and 186 (The Moon and Pluto vs Seiren and Lead Crow ep, the ep where everyone crashes at Usagi's house, and the ep they follow Chibi-Chibi around) are all fun episodes with the middle being on my top 10 list. The other 4 are mostly kinda middle of the road eps. The Starlights temper down a lot and I dislike them a lot less, however they also get even more screentime relatively speaking meaning we get less fun stuff from the Sol Senshi. Things like the ep with the Monster Movie or the Sports Ep are things I found entertaining enough as a child but now as an adult who's seen a million things like that I just feel kinda numb to them. 

The Tin Nyanko Arc (189-194) I feel pretty similarly about. I don't like Tin Nyanko as much as Alumium Seiren and she doesn't have nearly as a fun as dynamic with her as Seiren didn't but for the most part the eps are kinda middle of the road, mostly cause of how much they focus on the Starlights. I will say once again I love the Guardian Senshi this arc and how much faith they constantly show in Usagi and her ideals. Episode 194 is definitely my favorite episode of this arc and has a lot of great stuff from the Inners like Minako accidentally suspecting Tin Nyanko in disguise exactly right several times, or Rei running across the city in a cartoon dust cloud to get to Usagi when Usagi blows the danger whistle. That episode is also good thematically, as it starts showing how Usagi has tried to take all the burden on herself which obviously mirrors Toei Galaxia. 

The Stars Finale (195-200) is interesting to talk about. Because I think it has really great plot and themes but is let down by the pacing. This is 3 amazing episodes stretched into like 6 episodes. I can tell how there's a lot of great scenes in the Stars finale and there are from the contrast of the Inners and Outers pre-battle talk before going to face Galaxia, Uranus and Neptune's death mirror their hands scene from 110 an a ton of stuff from 200 which is great thematic stuff and very emotionally resonating. On the hand the Uranus and Neptune false betrayal goes on for an entire episode and almost nothing happens in 199. Episode 200 is still wonderful and top 10 episodes for me, but still.

Going into a more general overarching analysis Toei Sailor Moon is a series that I think has a lot of highs an a lot of lows. If you're someone like me you'll probably find the repetitive slice of life angle to be a bit tedious though the emotional and atmospheric richness of the good episodes to more then make up for it. You'll also probably find at least a few things that bother you about it, as it is a long series and by this point 30-35 years old, but if you don't find at least a few things in it emotionally stirring I have to imagine you have a heart of stone. 

From the way I describe it, you may be wondering if there is any consistent across the entire series outside a few specific characters. If we're talking about literally all 200 episodes then probably not, including things like the clipshow episode, the only thing consistent thing is Usagi Tsukino herself. That said if we're talking about in terms of vast majority of the episodes then there are some things I think are very distinctively the 90s anime.

Sailor Moon is an adolescent fantasy, a fantasy for the younger girls about what being older would be like, for teen girls to imagine actually being the girl they would want to be. It is a fantasy of being able to transform into an idealized feminine figure who is beautiful and strong, who has intense and world changing romances, a community of friends and companions all distinctly awesome in their own way, of one's responsibilities mattering to the cosmic extent and being able to achieve them. How one relates to this series can sometimes be a picture of how one relates to that time in their life. In my own life, my teenage years brought me a series of physical and emotional challenges that were relatively harder then any other period and I had to rise to meet them. It was a bitter pleasure and in some ways I think that is what I see reflected in Toei Sailor Moon most. I see all the challenges and emotions I had growing up, I remember both the pains and unfairness and I see the ways and emotional catharsis of having overcome them.

Toei Sailor Moon is by far the most popular Magical Girl series to ever be made and I don't think it's even really close. I see a lot of similarities in the success of Toei Sailor Moon and the success of something like Spider-Man. Spider-Man took the superhero fantasy of being a nigh-perfect masculine ideal of the superhero and asked "what if the superhero was just a normal teen?" Sailor Moon took the Magical Girl fantasy of being something like what society wants girls to be and asked "What if the Magical Girl was just a normal teen?" Both series emphasize to a large part a civilian cast, are criticized for being hard on their protagonist (Spider-Man much more so admittingly), and one of the most centers of appeal it seems to me is just the idea of "what if you were the hero?"

I hope it's clear that I really do care about this series and this franchise. I both love and hate Toei Sailor Moon depending on when in the series it is, but more then anything I care about it. It is a series that pulls a lot of emotions from me. If I have to explain why and why it does to so many people, it is the first series I was able to see myself in, see both who I was and wanted to be. The things about it that hurt, hurt because it feels like it's targeting me, and the things that are beautiful feel like it's reflecting part of my personal story. 

Similarly on a meta level Toei Sailor Moon was the first series to show me what I wanted out of fiction as I felt both the things I liked and didn't like in its vast expansive. It is a series of paradoxes that form a single complex expanse that is like the Moon that has many faces, some of which will feel warm and touching, some of which will feel cold and distant. Because ultimately even for its genre or the other versions of the same story, Toei Sailor Moon is a series about the Human Heart in all its complexities which can be joyful, painful, or peaceful, but I will always find it beautiful. 

The Best Episodes of Toei Sailor Moon

 Recently I completed re-watching the Toei Sailor Moon, this making it I believe the fifth time I watched the series completely. To mark this event I wanted to review the series. Toei Sailor Moon is a series that draws more polarizing feelings from me then any series: The only series who's best matches the Sailor Moon Manga, my favorite series of all series, yet who's worst is painful to me in a way few other series can match. As such I thought I'd make three blogs to express my feelings about this series: one to go over what I don't like about the series, one to go over what I like about this series, and then finally one to express my feelings towards the series as a whole.

After watching the series I attempted to rank the 200 episodes. It was a difficult experience, and many episodes were interchangeable, but a general picture began to develop. Of those 200 episodes, there were around 20 episodes or 10% of the series I had negative feelings towards. There were around 30 episodes I felt mixed or neutral on. There was around 120 episodes, the meat of the show, that I liked divided roughly evenly between episodes I liked moderately and episodes I liked a lot. Finally there was around 30 episodes I fully loved. 

That means that around 90 episodes, or almost half the entire series are episodes I either really liked or outright loved. Most of the time if I saw two episodes, one of them was an episode that I thoroughly enjoyed myself on. For a 200 episode series that's amazing for me. And it's not like the other was usually negative. 150 episodes I enjoyed, not even overall mixed or neutral, but I overall enjoyed. Given how I tend to feel neutral about most things, that's a pretty huge margin. 3 out of every 4 eps I enjoyed and most of the rest were ones that I could take or leave. 

I'll be honest when I go back and rewatch, it does hold up better then I think it's going to. I went into this thinking most of the time every two eps I'd probably feel positive about one and feel neutral about the other but the proportions were much more tilted in the positive direction. What I expected was more the case in R and SuperS, the seasons I liked least. 

What makes a Toei Sailor Moon ep good? Well it's a mixture of things I like from the Sailor Moon Franchise and things I like about the Toei Sailor Moon anime in particular. They're also harder to put into words then things I dislike but to do my best the things I like from a Toei Sailor Moon episode:

-Uplifting Spirit: The hardest reason to describe is also the most quintessentially Toei Sailor Moon. All versions of Sailor Moon have a good amount of darkness and angst born in part from the series 90s root as well as a sense of tragedy. And while I enjoy all this, the Toei Sailor Moon is the version that best encapsulates the opposite joy as well. In most episodes this comes through in the series being the most comedic and lighthearted version but in the series more serious eps it comes across in the series being the most optimistic about human nature and the bonds between people. The series has more focus on redemption then any other version and its best it captures the magic of believing in things like redemption and friendship. Most of my Top 30 have something uplifting in it, a positive message or a wholesomeness to it. 

-Fun Villains: More then any other Sailor Moon save maybe PGSM, Toei Sailor Moon focuses on having the villains having a lot of characterization. But while PGSM this was done more tragically and realistically, the Toei Anime does it exaggeratedly and bombastically for fun. Very often how good a stretch of the series correlates to how much you like villains of that section including all levels of Monsters of the Week, Minibosses, and Big Bads. While the Manga for instance the villains are complete monsters representing the opposite ideals of the Sailor Senshi, in the Toei Anime they are treated as having more human personalities for humor and sometimes so you will want to see them redeemed. 

-Mythic Iconicness. The Toei Sailor Moon Anime is the most influential Magical Girl series of all time, no competition and part of it is the cosmic mythological scope. The Sailor Senshi are classic 90s girl power. I can enjoy the eps that are more taking the piss out of them comedically, but my favorites tend to be the ones that present them as super cool with super dramatic conflict, or have that sense of being something iconic and influential. For instance I really like the R ep where the Sailor Senshi fight Jakoku, the Shinigami Droid, and part of it is that seeing Sailor Moon defeat Death is such a cool mythic imagery. 

-Depth: Something common to all the versions of Sailor Moon but Sailor Moon is the kinda series where it draws essays and essays of words just thinking about me. I think in part this is because the creators of Sailor Moon consistently seem to want to draw inspiration from tons and tons of sources. Takeuchi wanted to do with the manga, Sato, Ikuhara, and Igarashi all wanted to with the anime, and every subsequent version also seemed to want to. Everything in Sailor Moon is an ocean of references and atmosphere drawing on other inspirations. My favorite episodes of Sailor Moon are all things I want to yammer on and on about because there's so much thoughts they draw out from me. 

Honorable Mentions:

Episode 1: So this episode can get overlooked when talking about the best episodes of the series but this episode is really really important and slightly awes me every time just for how iconic it is. This episode is Legendary, it is the most seen and referenced episode of any Magical Series without exception. It is the birth of the Modern Magical Girl. It is the blueprint for how every Magical Girl series after it would be made. The aesthetic style, the shift from a glossy relaxing vibe to suddenly dark and foreboding, the mixture of childishness with hints of raciness and adult seriousness... this episode is so iconically perfect I can't not put it on here. Usagi's transformation literally and metaphorically is the major character arc of the series and seeing it start here along is always captivating. Somehing else to note is that it's actually rather similar to the Manga with one notable change I don't like (I don't like how it doesn't have Usagi rush into battle despite being scared for Naru) and 1 I do like (the way she saves Luna from some children outside of randomly stepping on her.)

Episode 12: This is the Cruise Ep with Thetis. This ep is to me the platonic ideal of the Sailor Moon filler eps, maybe not the absolute best depending on what you count, but everything a Sailor Moon filler ep should be. Thetis is my favorite monster of the week, having a cool underplayed but evocative design, an actual motivation, her own fun minions, and a place in the worldbuilding. The Senshi all have fun interactions with each other including scenes of just Ami and Rei which is rarer. There's fun situational comedy, fun physical comedy. There's also tension in that Jadeite knows this is a desperate gamble to keep Beryl from killing him, and Thetis is far more vicious then normal doing things like immediately charging Sailor Moon through a window after her pre-battle speech.

Episode 24: Nephrite's Death. The ep that really begins the anime's differentiation from the manga and its unique identity more interested in redemption as a theme. This ep has a weird shift in reputation where back in the day I remember it being basically universally praised and only recently have I seen people be more critical to it and while I can see where they're coming from, seeing Nephrite's slow realization that he does care about this innocent girl that loves him, that he's willing to risk everything for her remains compelling to me. Nephrite's death and Naru's pained reaction is when the series begins to develop in its emotional gravitas, and it also has an underratedly cool fight scene between Nephrite and the plant Youma of Zoisite.

Episode 25: The first ep of Zoisite's Arc and Makoto's introduction. While the ending of Nephrite's arc is great, the Zoisite Arc is more consistent and this ep does a great job of starting, mostly from the introduction of Makoto. Makoto is maybe the one Senshi I like even more in the anime then in the manga, she's constantly doing cool stuff and this ep is a great showcase where she actually gets the better of Zoisite in a physical fight before becoming a Senshi and then picks up and lifts one of the Seven Great Youma to help Sailor Moon again before even transforming for the first time. Yet despite being the girl who saves Usagi from bullying she is emotionally vulnerable due to her self-consciousness, all of which compounds to make such a sympathetic character. Starting Zoisite's arc, introducing the Seven Great Youma an the Moon Stick, Makoto's first ep, this has so much important things happening and so much energy.

Episode 38: This is the skiing ep where the girls are invited by Yuuchiro to his fancy lodge in the mountains and enter a princess skiing contest. Kunzite has always been my favorite of the Heavenly Kings and this ep is a great example why. He's so theatrical and vaguely genre-savvy like when he tells the youma that the girls will coincidentally be here because they're ALWAYS here. But the main reason I like this ep is that it is the epilogue to the Brief Toei subplot of Mamoru dating Rei. Going into why I like it is somewhat personal but Usagi and Rei talk about having shared feelings for the same man and this sort of wholesome downright loving bond between the two girls refusing to fight or be jealous over a man but to support each other was new to me at the time and it helped shape some ideals I have about love. 

Episode 70: The Koan Redemption Episode: I am not broadly a fan of R's middle arc with the Ayakashi Sisters and Rubeus but it does have one fantastic ep here. This ep is a very emotional ep for people because it's about escaping the bonds of being emotionally abused and used to find a better life and is the first time the redemption theme of the anime was used well. Koan is manipulated by Rubeus and when she fails breaks her heart and demands she sacrifice herself to kill the Senshi. Wakana Yamazaki's voice acting for Koan's despair is heart-wrenching and the catharsis of her redemption is arguably more emotional then any other redemption in the series. 

Episode 75: An episode I never see enough love for. This is the ep where they go into Chibiusa's mind and fight the Grim Reaper Droid. This ep remembers Chibiusa's trauma from seeing her home bombed and destroyed and represents it in the figure of Death. Jakoku is an imposing and creepy Droid and his invincibility in Chibiusa's mind is a compelling depiction of Chibiusa's fear that Death is unstoppable. And the climax where Sailor Moon is holding Chibiusa asking her to trust Sailor Moon, and Chibiusa's belief in Sailor Moon to defeat Death itself, it's a vibe the Toei Anime doesn't usually go for that works really well. It's beautiful, it's metal, it's Sailor Moon being the mythic messianic figure she is meant to be. It's the moment Chibiusa begins to believe Sailor Moon can save them. 

Episode 78: The Nurse Venus ep. After Season 1 I don't think Minako has a bad focus ep, she's such a fun personality and this episode has her trying to take care of the other Senshi while they are sick from a sickness Droid and cartoonishly messing it up. There's not much else to say other then it's really funny and Minako is so fun and compelling in it even as she causes a real mess for the others in just how genuine she is. 

Episode 86: The Death of Saphir. This is the ep where Saphir finds out Wiseman's plot and leaves to avoid being killed before willingly returning to try and warn his brother. This is the ep that has a lot of great moments for the villains and former villains of R. We see the result of the Ayakashi's redemption as they help Saphir when he is wounded, Petz and Saphir sharing feelings even as she know he is doomed by his love, we see Saphir go to his death to warn Demande, and we see Demande finally begin to realize the Wiseman is not to be trusted, bristling with a cold anger as he holds the dead body of his brother. This ep even has some cool eldritch horror type stuff as Wiseman invokes Death Phantom seeking to bring about his coming into the universe to bring it to nothingness. 

Episode 88: The Climax of R. It's a good finale broadly. The Black Lady stuff in the Toei version is pretty meh to me, but the other two thirds of the ep I really enjoy. One part is the battle with Death Phantom and I think the reveal that the Silver Crystal was absorbed into Chibiusa's body and was released via her tears was actually a really great addition that works really well with what was established in the first arc and one of my favorite scenes in R, possibly my absolute favorite, is Chibiusa's goodbye to the senshi and the heartwarming reconciliation between her and Usagi followed by her finally being able to return to her mother. Maternal love type stuff in general kinda hits me hard.

Episode 92: This is the ep that basically introduces the character of Haruka Tenoh and has Usagi and Minako follow her around crushing on her all episode. If you're also a queer girl from this time period you probably have a lot of fondness for this ep. It was a great introduction to Haruka's character, and the scene of Haruka calling Usagi "Kitten" is burned into my mind for particular reasons. The Outers particularly in S are one of the single most popular parts of the series and it's super easy to see why. 

Episode 97: This is the ep where Ami is afraid that the she's only valued for studied and gets into swimming contests with Michiru, holding herself back because she's afraid of competition. This episode is one of the best character studies of the Guardian Senshi in the Toei Anime. Ami was the most popular Senshi when it was coming up and this episode really showcases why, as she is extremely easy to find yourself in within this ep, particularly if you're the sort likely to be watching, and she's very easy to root for. The episode can be heartwrenching as Usagi tells Ami how she's more then just her mind, that she's a wonderful person and the next minute can be really funny with one of the goofiest monsters of the week in the series. 

Episode 102: This is the second part of the Usagi's birthday two parter that ends the Kaorinite arc. While I don't like the first half that much, this episode is fantastic. It has the extremely memorable gag of after Usagi being kidnapped Minako using her disguise power to pretend to be Sailor Moon and it has the the first time Usagi talks with HaruMichi about the clash of their ideals, Usagi's idealism vs their cynicism.  it has the reveal of another layer of Haruka's character as she helps defeat Kaorinite with a really cool sequence of using the winds of her World Shaking attack to reflect the attack and for that matter it has one of the coolest Kaorinite sections ever, Kaorinite being maybe the most underrated villain in the entire series for me. This episode is awesome.

Episode 111: The final episode of the Eudial Arc, this ep has a lot to it. This is the episode that first has Usagi turn into Super Sailor Moon and reveals herself as the Messiah, a scene that has a really beautiful symbolism to it. This episode's contrast with the ep right before it if you watch them together is hilarious but also meaningful, going from the incredibly deep and heavy episode 110 to the silly antics of the Inners with Moon playing leapfrog to get across a sticky ground using them is really funny and yet also speaks to the difference in their worldview. As a child I also really admired Sailor Moon in these eps, her dedication that even after getting blasted by Eudial's flamebuster she still pushes herself to beat Eudial to the Holy Grail and fulfills the double meaning of her name Usagi by winning with a leap. 

Episode 115: This ep is about Hotaru and showcases the paradox. Hotaru is the bearer of Mistress 9, the powerful alien who will bring about the end of the world as well as Sailor Saturn, the messiah of silence who's awakening the Outers are terrified of. However Hotaru herself is just a lonely and timid girl, modest and this episode shows incredibly physically frail, hospitalized for regular seizures. I LOVE Hotaru and have since I was her age. I suffered from similar seizures as her and I found it incredibly powerful to see a girl like her depicted, frail externally but with an inner strength no one knew about. 

Episode 125: The S Finale, I this would be in most Moonies top ten episodes, and I get it. This episode shows the depth of Usagi's conviction as she averts the end of the world with the awakening of Saturn but even that isn't enough as Hotaru plans to sacrifice herself, desperately pounding the ground with a desire to save everyone, willing a miracle into existence from the unity of the Sailor Senshi's hearts. It's great symbolism, Hotaru's defeat of Mistress 9 is one of my favorite moments in S, her relationship with Professor Tomoe is wonderful. I think most people would question this ep not be in my top 10 more then why I like it. It very well could be in my Top 10 at some points, but I do have some faults with it, particularly and I hate to be THAT kind of fan, but in comparison to the manga version. I miss the wonderful Chibiusa/Hotaru conversation as Hotaru returns her (Chibiusa is unconscious int his version), the fight with Mistress 9 is heavily abridged and the fight with Pharaoh 90 happens entirely off screen. I don't know if this is unfair, and I do still love this ep but wouldn't put it top 10 at the moment, though I have in prior rankings. 

Episode 141: This is the S ep where Minako two-timers Hawk's Eye and Tiger's Eye and this is another ep like the Nurse Mina where it's really just Minako is super funny and fun to watch. I love how she actually breaks out of her dream mirror stealing board and gets angry at THEM for lying to her even as she was two-timing them before making them run away with her attack. She's also so deliciously over the top when she says stuff like "Being this beautiful is a curse." SuperS has a LOT of filler eps, but this is probably my favorite. 

Episode 166: The Climax of SuperS and Ikuhara's last ep, this ep is so atmospheric and artsy and I really love that vibe. We get Nehelenia's backstory and the explanation for the Dead Moon Circus' philosophy of eternal stillness and youth with Nehelenia's terror at growing old. More then that we have easily my favorite scene of SuperS, Usagi awakening Chibiusa. While it doesn't make literal sense, the symbolic sense is so beautiful to me. All the Arc long the question has been why grow older? The Quartet want to remain children forever to have no responsibility, Nehelenia wants to stay young to retain her beauty. But as Usagi pleads with Chibiusa to open her eyes and save them, she says she wants them to grow older together. The true reason to age and grow is to develop with people to grow in connection which is especially heartwarming for me when put in the context of a Mother and Daughter relationship like this. 

Episode 170: You could include every single episode of the 6 episode Nehelenia Arc at the start of Stars up here. That Nehelenia Arc is my favorite arc in the entire Toei Anime, and I really enjoy every episode in it. Sailor Moon as a franchise has a tendency to stick characters in usual interactions, but this arc mixes up the interactions with things like Ami and Haruka having to work together and they make for a really fun pair being so opponent in temperament, aided by Haruka being at one her most over the top points ("if you're not attacking, you're defending) compared to Ami's patient strategy. The way Ami figures out Nehelenia isn't really there is genuinely really cool (she notices Nehelenia's hair isn't blowing in the wind) and we get the first of the Rei/Michiru interaction this ep which is even better. 

Episode 173: This is the first episode of the Iron Mouse Arc where Mamoru leaves to go to college. So the Inners have some pretty funny interactions this ep when they're trying to cheer Usagi up and they're all jumping up and Usagi is embarrassed about. It also has Iron Mouse and Stars while a polarizing season has some really fun villains. But there are the two big reasons I love this episode. First of all you have Luna actually being supportive and acknowledging Usagi's growth which if you haven't experienced the last 172 episodes of Toei Luna being the worst and constantly tearing at Usagi's self-confidence you can't appreciate how big that is. And after that we get the airport scene where Mamoru basically proposes to Usagi, and as a huge fan of this pairing since I was four years old it always moves me to my tears. 

Top 10:

10: Episode 184: Episode 184 is the ep where there's a criminal on the loose and a procession of events leads to everyone in the extended cast being in Usagi's house at one time. This episode I think is probably the funniest episode in the entire series and as Toei Sailor Moon is a lot more of a comedy then other versions of Sailor Moon, that's actually quite an achievement. The thing about its comedy though is that it's comedy that is joking around with the tropes of Sailor Moon which is the kind of comedy that you only get if you've watched 183 episodes before this but if you HAVE makes it hilarious.

There's so many great scenes in this ep and everyone in the cast gets to have funny memorable parts like when Usagi is trying to do her pre-battle speech but is carefully slinking around to not knock things over with her oversized Eternal Wings or when Aluminum Seiren is distraught at Uranus and Neptunes' arrival not because they are more enemies but because they're standing on the table, making fun of how they in S would just appear somewhere elevated for theatrics, or how the Inners wonder if Haruka hates men which she denies and Michiru clarifies in a conspiratorial whisper that Haruka just hates popular men, and the Senshi all nod like "that makes sense" making Haruka mad. I could literally just keep listing off jokes here from the surface level goofy like the Senshi yelling in terror over a cockroach to jokes that would take an hour to fully unwrap  like the aforementioned standing on the table bit and the Outers subsequent embarrassment. Even the Starlights who I'm normally not a fan of are pretty goo this episode. Seiya keeps trying to tell Usagi that she's Sailor Star Fighter, yet Usagi keeps thinking Seiya is trying to proposition her instead, which is amusing. This episode is a real treat for sticking with a series for so long. 

9: Episode 109: I said 184 is probably the funniest ep because 109 exists and if 109 is not as funny as 184, it's VERY close and 109 has other advantages besides. Episode 109 is the episode where Minako wants to prove she has a Pure Heart Crystal since she's the only one who hasn't had heart crystal stolen, this leads to Minako having her heart crystal removed but actually derailing the usual plot by stealing her own heart crystal and running off with it leading to a chase in which the Outers and Inners discover each others identities. Minako is the joy she always is this episode, incredibly funny yet also sympathetic and compelling in her insane drive to the show that she is a pure hearted, and it leads to hilariously twisting the usual tropes. Like there's this one gag where she leaves Haruka and Michiru and it does their usual elegant exit music only for her to quickly come back and give them a crane game toy she won to show how selfless she is, and then it plays the elegant exit music while panning onto the toy. 

This episode is really funny and it also has a bunch of other great things about it. First of all if it's your first time watching it's surprising, because it seems like a normal episodic one where it's Minako's turn to get her heart crystal stolen but Minako in every version of Sailor Moon mucks up the formula every arc with her antics and it leads to actual plot progression. Eudial is great this ep and it has the legend Doorknober herself, a daimon with the fearsome ability to open and close any door. Doorknober is one of the best Monsters of the Week in the series for how funny she is being forced to fight by Eudial to her dismay despite not having any combat abilities, probably my second favorite MotW after Thetis. And the funny here also has some real heart behind it. Usagi absolutely doesn't want Minako to be targeted at any one point violently starts shaking begging her to stop and her exaggerations and the suddenness mames it funny, yet the hyperbole also shows just how much she wants to save Minako is. And Minako's drive to show that she's a good person, while funny, is also pretty compelling because Minako is probably the Senshi would most worry about that. 

8: Episode 171: Like I said, all six episodes of the Nehelenia Arc at the start of Stars are up there for me. This episode is the penultimate episode of that arc and it has three sections all of which I really love. First you have the Rei/Michiru section. Like I said this arc does a great job giving unique character interactions. Rei and Michiru have a little interaction in the manga but despite being the two psychic Senshi they are rarely seen interacting. Despite that it works super well, as while they are both psychic the two are vastly different level of confidence in their psychic abilities and have completely opposite dispositions in general, Rei being fiery and blustery, while Michiru cool and composed, and the layers Michiru uses to build Rei up this ep in order to fight Nehelenia is great fun.

Then we have the Minako/Setsuna section and I can't imagine a more opposite pair of Senshi save maybe Ami/Haruka from the prior ep. Setsuna here is doing the Outers shtick of sacrifice for the greater good, being a lawful good trying to sacrifice herself so that Mina can go rescue the princess. But Mina has two sides to her: the goofy antics girl she pretends to be and the badass idealistic team leader on the inside and she shows them both off in a display that manages to save both of them, amusing and cool at the same time. 

And then of course you have the heartwrenching section where Makoto defends Usagi's prone hypnotized body from Nehelenia herself, first judo flipping her like a badass. Makoto defending Usagi's merit as a person and being heartbroken at the thought that Nehelenia might never have had someone like Usagi is a great character for Makoto showing her ability to empathize and means alot to me as someone who relates to Usagi a lot and the scene of her taking attack after attack from Nehelenia, shielding Usagi with her own body... nothing express Makoto's relationship to her princess. It is simpler then any other pair of Senshis' interactions, Usagi shows Makoto unconditional love, so Makoto now has unconditional devotion to her princess to the end. And it ends with Makoto's rose earring falling and waking Usagi as it reminds her of Mamoru's roses which... such a clever trick, both been in the show since Season 1. 

7: Episode 200: The Final episode of the anime. I do have some critiques of the Stars Finale in general, namely that it's around 6 episodes when it has the content for like 3, that said it's not really a problem with this episode specifically, this episode is pretty well paced and the content is phenomenal. Much of the plot of Stars is about having the trust in people to be able to share your burdens with them. It's what the Outers and the Starlights both don't understand, both think they have to deal with their burdens by themselves. It's what Galaxia tried to do with Chaos, seal it within her to save the galaxy, and it's Usagi's plot this season as she tries to be strong the way she thinks people want/need her to be. Having the final episode be a redemption episode focused around that theme was a really good way to end the season, and as a series finale it has a very beautiful underlying message. The conflict ends with Usagi returning Chaos to the hearts of every person asking Galaxia to trust in people to do the right thing. It's a theme that I really enjoy, it reminds me of the Magic Knight Rayearth ending where the Pillar System is removed so that the world is determined by everyone's' wills together rather then just the Will of just the Pillar as well as the ending of the 2017 Wonder Woman film where Diana expresses that she can't just kill evil because good vs evil is a battle within the human heart and only love can save the world. Both of these are things I also love for similar reasons.

Beyond that there's a lot else great about this episode. Usagi's strongest form being her angel form completely lacking in weapons and armor and the way Galaxia's will breaking is expressed by her sword shattering, the expression of violence and force being overcome by love and compassion is really beautiful. The ending sequence is one that very effectively tugs the ol heartstrings. There's plenty of other times this episode makes me emotional. Off hand when all the Senshi return alive to Usagi and when she finally sees Mamochan again and he tells her it's all over. I also absolutely LOVE the two callbacks to prior episodes this episode makes. There's one to Episode 46 where Usagi says she believes in the world her friends died to protect but this time Usagi also adds to the end that she still believes in that spark of goodness in Galaxia's heart, representing the growth of Usagi's love and trust over the series going from to loving her friends, to the world, and now in the final extent even to her enemies. And the last line of the episode is Usagi reiterating her opening narration from episode 1 but slightly altered that gives me chills every time. In episode 1 she says "I'm Usagi Tsukino. I'm 14 years old and Second Year Middle School. I'm clumsy and a bit of a crybaby. That's about it." whereas in episode 200 she says "I'm Usagi Tsukino. I'm 16 years old and First Year High School. I'm clumsy and a bit of a crybaby..." before conspiratorially saying "But secretly... I'm the Sailor Suited Soldier of Love and Justice, Sailor Moon" Ah I love it so much, it's so evocative of what I love about this franchise, the way a person can have an inner world, an inner strength, an inner heroism you'd never see. 

6: Episode 106: The Haruka/Michiru backstory. I've made it no secret I don't really like filler, and that the Manga is my favorite series. Yet this episode that's technically "filler", is an episode who's details I always imagine are from the Manga because of how right they feel. Sailor Moon is a series aimed at young girls, yet for anyone who's actually seen it, it's difficult to dismiss it as wholly childish because it has episodes like this, who's artistry and maturity are self-evident. 

This episode paints a picture of two young women given a terrifying duty in ominous dreams. They act opposite showing their opposite persona: the airy and ever elusive Haruka running from it, represented by her ever running and driving trying to leave the painful world behind it, an the perfect young lady, the artist and musician Michiru who lets it consume her, expressing her pain in her beautiful art. Both on top of the world, both secretly hurting inside, they are so opposite yet bound together in a secret understanding no one else can understand. This episode focuses on the two themes that mean more to me then any other: Love and Loneliness. 

The progression of the Outers this episode is an amazing beautiful dance evoking as it is meant to the play of the wind whipping up the waves. Michiru wants Haruka to fight as a Senshi by her side but is unwilling, unable to admit how much she needs her and though Haruka knows the truth she runs in fear of being crushed and bound by destiny. Yet it is paradoxically only in that moment when Michiru is in danger that they paradoxically reach their limits, Michiru begging Haruka not to take up this painful duty, not to trap herself because she doesn't want Haruka to bear this pain that Haruka accepts it fully unwilling, unable to run from Michiru needing her. This episode is absolutely beautiful and an expression of the love between the Outers and the nature of love and loneliness, when it feels like only one person in the world understands you, shares in your world. 

5: Episode 44: Kunzite's final episode and the Moon Kingdom backstory episode. This episode has very special meaning for me in particular. This was the first Sailor Moon episode I ever saw at age four, and it blew my little mind. It's a strange episode to start on because it spoils the entire first season, yet it was just what I needed to instantly fall in love with the series. Until this point the content I had seen were very safe, edgeless. Sailor Moon was different. Talking about what this episode meant to me then and what it means to me now are different but harder to separate fully. This episode shows the conflict between the Sailor Senshi, these cool magical superheroes that were girls like me, battling an evil knight fighting for the scary Dark Kingdom. I love the girls and they immediately had such an impression on me with how cool they seemed and I loved Kunzite for some of the reasons I do now, the way he is so over the top and a dramatic dark warrior of the Dark Kingdom. 

This episode shows the beautiful utopian Moon Kingdom, enchanting and otherworldly, and its princess who fell in love with the Prince of the Earth. I can say honestly that seeing them together stirred the first romantic feelings I had ever felt, the way she presses into him, how she trusts herself entirely to him while he holds her tight made me want to trust all of myself to someone. The tragedy of the Moon Kingdom while I've seen similar things now was something that blew my mind as a child in how deep it felt, how intense it felt, how real it felt. This wasn't a safe world where everyone who was good got along, where no one ever suffered any permanent damage. The Moon Kingdom was a beautiful world and it was destroyed and the Queen gave her life to save the princess. I couldn't phrase it well then but it impacted me greatly, the weight of the tragedy and the meaning in the Queen giving her life for her daughter, expressing how beautiful one's life is, how many people before you gave everything they had to give you life. And then Sailor Moon had to fight the champion of that kingdom that destroyed it. Kunzite felt like an unstoppable monster the way he tears through the Senshi but Sailor Moon stood against him and knocked back his attack, defeating him. 

This episode changed my world, it shaped what I understood Sailor Moon to be and what I wanted out of the stories I consumed. And to be honest it is a niche that I've never seen another series perfectly fill. I love Pretty Cure but Pretty Cure and a lot of magical girl series made in Sailor Moon's wake are... safe in a way. They have magical worlds that are "destroyed" but get restored at the end without any major consequence. I love Puella Magi but a lot of these Dark Magical Girl series act like you're better of not becoming a Magical Girl despite monsters and the darkness they represent killing loads of people. Sailor Moon taught me as a young child a truth about the world. That the world has a lot of darkness in it, real horrific things. That it killed people that came before you, good and strong people. But that you can and you have to stand up against it, that you have a power inside you strong enough to fight it. It told me, a nervous young girl that I could fight against the darkness that I was afraid of, and even win. That to me is core to what I love about this franchise. 

4: Episode 110: I've actually seen recently a bit of a surge of people who don't like this episode, primarily for people who don't like Haruka and Michiru in it. I kinda get it, but that's crazy to me. This is the famous episode where Haruka and Michiru die against Eudial revealing that they had two of the Talismans the whole time. Haruka and Michiru are heartbreaking this episode and this episode has many of their most famous lines. Haruka saying these hands are dirty and Michiru saying she'd always love Haruka's hand for instance. The part that always kills me is at the start when Michiru is listening to the ocean and Haruka says playfully "no fair going to a world I can't follow...." followed at the end when Michiru is dead and Haruka before shooting herself with Eudial's heart crystal removal gun repeats "no fair Michiru, going to a world I can't follow..." referring I think Haruka thinking of Michiru going off to Heaven where she will never go. That part always makes me cry and be like "That's not fair Ikuhara!!!" It just breaks my heart so much Haruka's loneliness at having the one person in the world who understood her, someone whom they saw the hidden beauty in,  disappeared from the world.

The usual complaint is that they forcibly take brooch so she can't transform. However I feel like this is misunderstood. Haruka and Michiru hate their duty, suffer being Sailor Senshi. In their minds, this cruel act is the ultimate mercy, taking the burden from Usagi's shoulders. But of course Usagi goes there to try and help them because powers or no, she is driven by love. This in my mind is why Haruka sees Usagi as the messiah the next ep, because Usagi takes on the burden that crushes them willingly. This is the difference I think between laboring out of obligation, out of duty, and laboring out of love. Fundamentally this episode shows that the Outers for their cold philosophy of sacrifice are not hypocrites, and would just as easily give up their own lives to save the world. 

This episode also demonstrates the sheer versatility of Sailor Moon as a franchise. It has some classic Ikuhara humor mostly to do with Eudial with this being my favorite of her roles. It has stuff like sending a threatening message on the answering machine to the Outers only to get cut off for time and starting the next message angry at it, or the way she has this giant piano there she pretends to play dramatically only for it to be revealed to be a recording. On the other hand it also has what I think is the darkest scene in the entire franchise, Haruka shooting herself. It's a science-fantasy gun that shoots out one's heart crystal. However contextually, it kills people. This is genuinely Haruka killing herself to follow Michiru into the afterlife by shooting herself. This episode can continue both extremes because it is the most complex characters in the Toei Anime at their best, expressing the cold world of sacrifice and loneliness.

3: Episode 172: The final episode of the Nehelenia Arc at the start of Stars, this episode is hard to fully talk about without fully going into a difficult time in my life but I will do my best. Sailor Moon was already my favorite series when I saw this episode but this was the episode that made Sailor Moon herself my favorite character. Over the course of this arc we've seen constantly the Senshi are able to succeed in ways Nehelenia can't understand because the Senshi love each other whereas Nehelenia doesn't understand love. This episode takes it to two further extent. First with the conflict between Sailor Saturn and Nehelenia where Saturn prepares to sacrifice herself to use the Silence to kill Nehelenia, an action so alien to Nehelenia that she thinks Saturn hates Nehelenia hates her so much she'd kill them both to be rid of her, the Silence actually terrifying Nehelenia until Chibi-Moon stops Saturn. Then there is the Usagi interaction where despite Nehelenia do everything she can to torture Usagi, when Usagi hears Nehelenia's backstory, she is unable to stop Usagi from loving her. This culminates in Usagi offering to sacrifice herself to save Nehelenia, an action that shatters Nehelenia's worldview and allows Usagi to save them both. 

As a child my favorite characters weren't complex. I liked characters who were like me and were cool. I thought it was so cool seeing Saturn, frail otherworldly Hotaru, threatening the scary evil queen. But I was surprised that Saturn's silence was stopped. And then when Usagi saves her, even as a kid even if I couldn't explain it eloquently, I understood what the series was being telling me, that there's something greater then defeating your enemy and saving everyone else, but saving everyone. That the greatest victory was found in love. I had such admiration for Usagi. Every character I had ever seen followed some kind of logic in how they acted: they acted cruel when they were enemies or had cruel things happened to them, they acted nicely when they were friends or had good things happen to them. But Usagi's love wasn't logical like that. It didn't matter how Nehelenia was her enemy or how she tortured Usagi, she still cared about Nehelenia. She didn't cause conflict, she dissolved conflict. That's what a hero was. That was the kind of love I wanted to have. 

As I've grown I've come to see this episode in more context, but my love for it has only grown. Without going into too much details, there was a time in my life when I was very hard on myself, when I felt very lonely. The message of unconditional love resonated strongly with me and this episode in particular when Usagi says that if she was trapped alone like Nehelenia would act out like her, helped me start to show myself more compassion.

2: Episode 45: I don't think I need to tell you which ep this is but it's the ep that the Guardian Senshi die in battle against the DD Girls, the ep that traumatized a generation of children, and maybe the single most popular episode in the Sailor Moon Fandom. Beryl is getting close to fully awakening Metaria, who's presence is causing dangerous planetary effects and sunspots to begin to consume the Sun. The Guardian Senshi launch an invasion on the entrance to the Dark Kingdom and fall in battle one at a time. 

This episode was a huge shock to everyone when it came down. The Magical Girl was an emblem of society's ideal for femininity, an expression of our hope for the next generation of young women. Seeing the Sailor Senshi, the cool superhero magical girls die, even if it was obvious they'd be resurrected, was something I don't think people were ready for. What makes it far more impactful was how the Senshi die. Each Sailor Senshi dies in a Heroic Sacrifice that matches her nature, Sailor Jupiter is first when they manipulate her soft heart by showing Motoki, her crush as an illusion, and then dies protecting the others, using her lightning in close range to kill two of the DD Girls. She is the Guardian of Protection and there was no way any of the others could ever die so long as she was there because she'd always protect them. Sailor Mercury the intellectual who is always trying to teach her friends, strategically sacrifices herself by standing alone, rational yet loving, cool-y outwitting them to get in close before crushing their illusion gem, sacrificing herself to open her friends eyes to truth. Sailor Venus dies pushing Sailor Moon out of the way of a sneak attack by the enemy, before firing her laser into one's head at close range. Sailor V was the decoy for Sailor Moon, always silently protecting her, I have no doubt tricksy Mina could have evaded them forever, but she was always secretly protecting Usagi, willing to throw herself into her place in a stray moment. Sailor Mars puts on a brave face despite knowing she's going to her death, because her hysterical weeping princess needs something to believe in. So she puts on her strong face, confidently facing death with a strong heart, saving Usagi and destroying the last two enemies. I can go into each much more, but each Senshi's death is an expression of her in a way so much more evocative then most of these types of scenes. 

We see Usagi break down more and more as her friends die one by one, and I am with there, this episode destroys me emotionally. But it does that by showing just why each of the Senshi is amazing and wonderful. Each of the Guardian Senshi is an expression of her own form of heroism, a type of personality shown in its noblest. For a sensitive young girl like Usagi, the Guardians are each a kind of older sister, an ideal of strength and heroism aspire to. I love the Senshi, and this episode is the heart of why. They taught me in four beautiful pictures what love and heroism looks like. They taught me strength the same way they did Usagi. This episode trusts its viewers, young girls. It asked us if we were willing to engage with the idea of war and death, of the type of friendship and love where you'd give everything for the people you love. I am an adult now, who deals with this world that can sometimes seem dark and scary but the spirits of the Guardian Senshi linger in the strength I learned from this ep, just as the end of the episode shows their spirits driving Usagi on, past the existential despair at their death she would have thought was invincible. 

1: Episode 46: The final ep of Season 1. Like a fish swimming in the ocean, this episode is not valued enough in my opinion because it is taken for granted and we live in a world post its existence. This episode is a tier beyond every ep mentioned prior. It is not just my favorite episode in this series, it's not just my favorite episode in an anime, but my favorite episode of any television show that I've ever seen. That's not to say it is the most perfect episode, a few episodes have less flaws, there are a couple emotional beats that don't work for me, such as the infamous ending where time is reset with the Senshi not remembering anything that happened. I get what they were referencing in the Magical Girl Tradition. I still don't really like it. That said the quality of a work is not seen in its lack of flaws in my opinion, but the proportionality of its goodness compared to its flaws, and this episode has the biggest strengths of the series. 

This episode can be divided into two segments. The first segments involves Sailor Moon's confrontation with Dark Endymion and Queen Beryl. This is the culmination of one of the most famous plotlines in the genre and is such a beautiful representative of what the genre represents, to the point of becoming a trope in the genre. Sailor Moon tries to use her magic to purify Dark Endymion but can't and is attacked him as she pleads. In desperation she tries to attack him back, but this too fails and only makes him angrier. This is so important to understanding her for the rest of the series, that she has tried the way of force, and found it incapable. So as Beryl commands Dark Endymion to kill and he raises her blade, Usagi gambles it on a plea, showing Endymion the locket representing their love, restoring him to his senses, his love for her defeating Beryl. There's so much wrapped up in this. It's the feminine desire for a redemptive love that can save a good soul in darkness seamlessly integrated with a fantasy superhero story, it's the magical girl ideals of belief in people and in miracles, and about the triumph of love as a form of conflict resolution over force and violence. This scene is so influential because it tapped into something deep in the psyche of its viewers, speaking of an impossible inevitability, something beautiful about believing that love can overcome violence and malevolence. And this is the lesser of the two parts for me. 

The dying Beryl merges with Metaria, emerging as a towering monster, that causes the Sun and sky to be engulfed in darkness, that drains the energy of the world so all lights go out, shrouding Earth and Heaven in darkness. People chide Usagi for being a coward and crybaby, yet here facing that darkness that drives the greatest minds mad with terror, she walks out with determination. Super-Beryl and Sailor Moon begin their battle, Sailor Moon's heart pushing through her magic against the impossible threat put before her. Beryl asks mockingly what she still believes in. Love? Friendship? The Bonds between People? But Sailor Moon says she isn't fighting for abstract ideals like those but for this world that her friends died to protect, calling to my mind the moment in Act 59 where Sailor Moon admits she never really fought for love and justice but her friends, the embodied good. To give her the push in power she needs the spirits of her friends appear, holding onto the wand, her burden, helping her and giving her the final burst of power she needs. I've seen a LOT of Magical Girl series, but if anything is the heart of the genre, the central point, it's this moment. I can trace everything prior back to Sally's intro proclaiming "with mysterious powers she fills the city with dreams and laughter" as leading up to this moment, and I can show how almost every Magical Girl ending regardless of tone from PreCure to Puella Magi has reiterated on this theme and expanded from this ending. 

It is an expression of the way someone, especially a young woman, can be more then herself but the bearer of the dreams, the ideals, the very spirits of her community. How her loving heart can bring people together accomplishing the impossible, creating miracles. It is an expression of the most beautiful thing in the entire world to me, the miraculous way love surpasses death and evil. And for me personally, it was the first time seeing outside me those nameless feelings inside me I didn't know how to express, guiding me to know what things I would search for artistically. 

The things I love about Toei Sailor Moon are pretty well represented in these ten episodes. I would divide the things I love about Toei Sailor Moon into two categories: things I love about Sailor Moon as a franchise that also apply to the Toei anime, and things I love about the Toei Anime specifically. In the former case Sailor Moon as a general property has a special place in the heart for way it shaped me growing up, I love the characters, with every Senshi being genuinely strong enough to star in their own series. I love the artistry and depth in everything, the way everything seems to have more layers, the way the best episodes invite you to talk and think about them over and over. I love the girl power element, the way it created a universe for young girls to be the hero based on characteristically feminine traits as sources of power. For things I love about the Toei anime in particular, I think it is both iconic yet versatile. Toei Sailor Moon encompasses a wide variety of tones from grandiose serious to goofy, fom atmospheres ranging from very dark to very light, from genres ranging from slice to life to eldritch horror, Despite this it remains the most iconic Magical Girl series that somehow retains a clear identity and sense of self throughout. It also has perhaps the most indepth relations between the Senshi as well as the best overall villains in the entire franchise, though PGSM can give it a run for its money. I associate it so strongly with my adolescence when I first sat down and purposefully watched the entire thing from front to back. Those were days when I began to discover the world was so much deeper then I thought, when I began to construct my own identity and preferences as I searched for the transcendental beauty I longed for. They were the days when I found who I was, who I wanted to be, and the path I wanted to walk and Toei Sailor Moon helped guide that path. 

The Worst Episodes of Toei Sailor Moon

Recently I completed re-watching the Toei Sailor Moon, this making it I believe the fifth time I watched the series completely. To mark this event I wanted to review the series. Toei Sailor Moon is a series that draws more polarizing feelings from me then any series: The only series who's best matches the Sailor Moon Manga, my favorite series of all series, yet who's worst is painful to me in a way few other series can match. As such I thought I'd make three blogs to express my feelings about this series: one to go over what I don't like about the series, one to go over what I like about this series, and then finally one to express my feelings towards the series as a whole.

After watching the series I attempted to rank the 200 episodes. It was a difficult experience, and many episodes were interchangeable, but a general picture began to develop. Of those 200 episodes, there were around 20 episodes or 10% of the series I had negative feelings towards. There were around 30 episodes I felt mixed or neutral on. There was around 120 episodes, the meat of the show, that I liked divided roughly evenly between episodes I liked moderately and episodes I liked a lot. Finally there was around 30 episodes I fully loved. 

There's about 50 episodes that I feel mixed or outright negative on. That is one quarter of the show, one in every four episode, though they tend to be clustered in R and SuperS, the second and fourth seasons respectively. The flaws of these episodes tended to be one or more of three specific problems:

1: The Episode was just kinda dull. I'm not really a fan of slice of life as a genre, and Toei Sailor Moon adds a substantial slice of life element. Beyond that it's a 200 episode weekly slice of life monster of the week type series where about half the episodes have no particular plot relevance and was made by Toei Animation 30 years ago. It was always going to be the case some of the episodes were going to miss on a base entertainment level. I'm honestly impressed it wasn't more. 

2: The episode was mean-spirited. Toei Sailor Moon is a strange beast to compare to other versions of Sailor Moon as it has a reputation as the fluffiest, most comedic, light-hearted and optimistic series. However while it is the most comedic, its comedy is very 90s which sometimes means being mean to characters for comedy. Most often this happens to Usagi, which is to me a very strange quirk of Toei Sailor Moon, the amount it pokes fun at its protagonist.

3: The episode has a bad moral. The only quality of fiction I consider objectively bad, some episodes express morals that are at best, quite dated, which is particularly troublesome given that this is a series aimed at children.

All 20 of these episodes are ranked at the bottom from some combination of these traits. I am first going to give the Dishonorable Mentions unranked with a very brief explanation, before giving the bottom 10. 

Dishonorable Mentions:

Episode 16: This is the episode where they make Wedding Dresses. I saw a podcast that was confused why anyone would put this in bottom 10. For me it's a combination of it's a kind of mean-spirited ep (the girls make fun of the fiancé of the victim of the week cause he's not conventionally attractive), I don't like the characterization of the girls here, and it's a spider monster and spiders really ick me. 

Episode 29: The ep where Usagi and Makoto go after Motoki that introduces Reika. I don't like how Usagi is treated as inept and Makoto eventually hits her for being inept at cooking. Also while she doesn't go through with it I don't like the characterization of Makoto trying to convince Reika to go so she can get Motoki. 

Episode 42: The ep with the Sailor V backstory. The backstory doesn't make a lot of sense and involves Minako not telling her British friends she's alive because she was Alan and Katarina were already together. It set the vibe for Minako for another half season that I don't think works well with her and also for how much the fandom like to caricature Manga Usagi as a cold hearted murderer and Toei Usagi as a constantly crying wuss, Toei Usagi is the one who was like "you took my friend's love interest so I will kill you" which doesn't fit with anything we know about Usagi.

Episode 63: The Grandpa Hino Wrestling Ep. Grandpa Hino in Toei is a problem, he is very often hitting on schoolgirls to the point its become a problem, but the ep wants us to feel sympathetic towards him as he gets beat up. Also it's just kind of dull. 

Episode 66: The Curry Ep. I have seen this series I think five times all the way through and I truly honestly can't tell you what happens in this ep. It's very unmemorable.

Episode 101: The Usagi's Birthday Part 1 Ep. This ep paints Usagi in the WORST light, having her slap Mamoru and run away crying for forgetting her birthday only to reveal she forgot she never actually told him her birthday making her out as stupid and petty. The ending was good though. 

Episode 122: The Viluy Episode. So this is weird because it's actually kinda similar to the Manga. However in the Manga this happens earlier in the arc when you don't know very much about the villains. Here it's near the end of the Season so Ami investigating Mugen is like... well we know all this already. Plus the dialogue is so painfully on the nose. "there's no place for emotions in science" "please you have to believe in love." 

Episode 133: The First Ep with Diana. So I LOVE Diana to pieces, but Toei Luna is maybe my most disliked character in this entire series and this ep really shows why. Toei Luna is basically Usagi in the Usagi's Birthday ep but for the entire series. She's jealous of Artemis looking at a human nun, and then when she finds a talking grey cat with a moon symbol she think he got with some other cat. Like it's so dumb, obviously Diana is their daughter and Luna is so unlikeable this ep especially after the S movie where she fell in love with a human herself and her having feeling for Rhett Butler back in Season 1.

Episode 139: The Ep with Miharu, the little Samurai Girl. So Miharu herself is great and I like how this ep parodies Samurai Tropes. That's what keeps it out of bottom 10 because Miharu's mom and this moral it teaches deserves to be near the bottom of the Bottom 10. No Usagi, not all parents love their children and I hope that children in a bad home state didn't internalize this ep's message. 

Episode 142: So this is the ep Diana runs across this mean older woman Mayako who is acting out cause of a sad backstory. This ep kinda shows one of the problems of Toei Sailor Moon's philosophy and the shows that took inspiration from it. It wants to redeem everyone but having a sympathetic backstory is not the same thing as being sympathetic. Being mean to people for 20 years cause you love left you is not a reasonable reaction and you'd usually have to make amends in some way. Also Usagi in almost every ep of SuperS either gets insulted as "fat" or is unreasonably jealous or both. In this one she gets jealous that Mamoru shared his umbrella with an old woman. K. At least Diana is cute in it

Episode 178: The Luna x Yaten Ep. Because seriously, Luna is the worst, falling in love with yet another human just to prove that she is hypocritical and petty. Also kind of a dull ep. 

Bottom 10:

10: Episode 67: The infamous Chibiusa finds a dinosaur episode. If you polled a bunch of casual Sailor Moon fans I think that this episode would be the most highly ranked for worst episode in the series. It's such a meme it's almost fun to get to just because of how famously bad it is, except it's not fun to watch the way some bad media. It's just boring and slow. A Volcano erupts and the Senshi have to fight it with their powers and that sounds cool except all they do is make holes in the ground with their attacks so a small portion of lava flows into it. There's such a forced connection between Chibiusa and the baby plesiosaur with Chibiusa being like "oh you miss your mommy too?" Outside of the fact that random dinosaur shows up, this is exactly the kinda of plot often given to young children in media especially at the time this came out, that bores everyone. Granted I obviously don't think this is the worst ep in the series and honestly it might be Bottom 10 solely for reputation because it doesn't really displease me but I do kinda feel it should be on here.

9: Episode 89: The Clipshow Ep. I think if you polled a bunch of HARDCORE Sailor Moon fans, this ep would be the most rated for worst and once again I think I might be putting it here for reputation. Because what am I supposed to say? It's a clipshow ep. It's like talking about a soup spoon that comes with a meal that doesn't even have soup. Even compared to other Clipshow episodes there's basically no new footage, like a couple of shots from the literal next ep. The idea of the Senshi arguing who should be the Main Character is funny for like 10 seconds but all they do is go one by one and be like "I'm Sailor X, and my good qualities are that I am Y and Z" with really basic examples of the Senshi's good qualities. It also inadvertently expresses a problem I have with the Toei Anime where the Guardians are made out to be pseudo main characters but don't have a broader story arc going through it like Usagi does cause they weren't designed for that. 

8: Episode 154: Hey remember when R didn't give Makoto and Minako their own ep but instead gave them one ep? Let's do that again. SuperS is infamous for how much filler it has, how boring it can get, and yet while Ami and Rei both get an ep to get their new attack, Makoto and Minako do so in the same ep. And not in a fun clever way talking about their friendship or contrasting their personalities. The two have an unpleasant fight for an ep over petty nonsense that paints Minako especially out really badly, and then has Artemis just randomly say "BTW you should have new attacks." This ep is baffling creatively speaking and is just not fun. The joke is that all the children like Makoto's attempts to take care of them and don't like Minako's. That's MAYBE funny once and the ep keeps doing it. 

7: Episode 143: The Fisheye is a Shotacon ep. So this ep has... several things that happen in it. I will say Fish Eye's comical inability to throw knives was funny as was Moon and Chibi-Moon's double kick failing. With that said this ep is incompetent in a way that is unique for the season. Depending on how much this effects you, how bad it will varies but I've never seen anyone see this ep and not be unaffected. First of all we find out that Fish Eye is a Shotacon, attracted to a boy in Chibiusa's class. See the Trio are supposed to not know what morality is because they are shapeshifted animals which is what gives the leeway for their redemption later despite their thinly veiled sexual assault metaphor. That said even the other two members of the Trio are like "Wha? That's a kid" "You can't do that." This makes it harder to accept Fish Eye's redemption and also supports particular nasty stereotypes about people like Fish Eye being shota I don't want to get into. Beyond that, the Guardian Senshi have to believe in Pegasus to get their power and I'm not as Anti-Pegasus as some, but this is not a good look mixed with the idiocy of giving all the girls their super transformation in the same ep where once again SuperS was infamous for having way too much filler. It would have made all the sense in the world to give each girl an ep of getting their Super Power and maybe getting it from something inside of them like a different SM series... just saying. 

6: Episode 177: Remember that Viluy ep back in S, let's do that again but worse. Ami and Taiki are at a science presentation with the scientist Professor Amanogawa when a kid asks if the stars are our deceased ancestors watching over us. The Professor says so and Taiki gets really mad and is like "there's no room for emotion in science." This is very similar to the Viluy ep down to some of the scenes being shot the same, the same very dumb conflict that misrepresents science and scientific thinking to a childish caricature of cold and mean, except this ep actually wants you to act like Taiki is being reasonable. Like at least Viluy was like the villain of that ep, in this ep we're supposed to think Taiki is super smart and reasonable, smarter then Ami even, and yet doesn't understand the basic emotional motivations for science. 

I will say, the last 5 eps while bad I don't consider that bad. These are eps I genuinely could have and did exchange with the dishonorable mentions while ranking. However this bottom 5 was pretty clear to me immediately and the only question was ordering them.

5: Episode 65: The original ep of Minako and Makoto fighting back in R. While this ep isn't as bad as I remember it on rewatch, the start of this ep is really unpleasant to me. It just involves Makoto and Minako being mean to each other and fighting about boys as well as more unfunny Usagi/Chibiusa antics. I get that it's realistic for teenage girls, but also this is so antithetical to what being a Sailor Senshi means. 

The rest of the ep is mostly fine outside of the usual characters making fun of Usagi, but it mostly involves a very obvious parallel between Petz/Calaveras with Makoto/Minako and the two Senshi resolving their difference while the Ayakashi don't. Mainly I don't like this ep cause of the start which is one of the few times we see the Inner Senshi in really any version have a conflict that's presented as more then just comedic, and it's unpleasant.

4: Episode 145: The Ballet ep although that has very little to do with the problem with it. SuperS every couple of episodes would have the joke "haha Usagi fat." However this ep uses that joke repeatedly. I would say more often then one should make about a 14 year old girl who is drawn with the same proportions as everyone else, except one time would be too much. This is the kind of media that can be actually damaging for children watching. This is the kind of thing that gets prepubescent girls to start worrying about their weight. It's rare for me to say it but I will go so far as to say this should not exist, I believe it is objectively bad. Like I said it happens in an unfortunate lot of SuperS, but this ep easily has the most in the season. 

In case you're going to tell me that people today are just too sensitive and back then this was fine, I'm just gonna say it: not only do I think that's a really bad argument but no I'm actually old enough to barely remember the 90s and know how this was received in the early days of online Sailor Moon communications. People weren't as angry about it but even back then people thought these jokes were hacky and unfunny. Even if this WAS a good joke, it's still beating a dead horse.

3: Episode 157: So this ep has probably more going for it then either of the two eps prior, the Quartet are funny in it and Chibiusa has an amusing interaction with VesVes where she gets tired charging up a hill at her at Ves Ves's confusion. That said this ep is kinda infamous for this messages that it "accidentally" teaches. I say accidentally because they're so obviously what a child would take from this I'm not sure what the writers were thinking.

So this ep has a broad theme about having belief in things, yet its idea of belief is the kinda bad word you'd get from the more irreverent skeptics. The main plot is Chibiusa asks Pegasus what's going on and because that would involve moving the plot forward Pegasus says he can't say, and when Chibiusa wants to know, he just leaves. The Senshi rely on Pegasus to fight the villains this season which leads to the obvious unfortunate implications that tell children "hey if someone mysterious wants to speak to you and ONLY you in secret and doesn't let you ask questions... you should just go along with it." Not a great idea, especially considering the other themes already in this season. 

They try to tie it in with the other part of the ep which is about a kid making a flying bike and having childlike imagination and belief which is not quite as serious though again probably not the best idea teaching children that putting a flimsy looking wings on your bike will let you fly if you believe hard enough. SuperS in general is a rather childish season, and while being childish is not inherently wrong, this episode on a meta level shows what a really childish understanding of belief is.

2: Episode 4: This episode probably SHOULD be the worst. It has all three elements that makes a bad Toei Sailor Moon episode, all to a large degree, it represents to me what everyone thinks is wrong with the Toei Anime. This is the episode that focuses around becoming fat. In terms of bad messages, this is the kinda episode that can give children eating disorders, genuinely, expressing constantly how the very normally animated Usagi is worthy of ridicule for getting "fat." In terms of meanness characters are constantly mean to Usagi about her weight including Luna and to a lesser extent Mamoru. There's a general meanness as well where like Usagi at this point has numerous civilian friends and one of them is drawn kinda fat and the others are kinda snide about it when she says she's tried dieting and it didn't work or the way Usagi is afraid to fight and Luna literally threatens her to get her to fight. 

Even beyond all that though if you somehow get past all that this episode is boring. Sailor Moon is, depending on the medium, a villain of the month or monster of the week type series. That might seem superfluous but this episode is before any other Senshi has entered the story and has no Monster of the Week, it's just Jadeite without any confrontation with Sailor Moon, and at the end a few regular brainwashed humans. Because of that the ep is slow and boring, involving the cast by accident of their teacher going to the evil brainwashing gym, ending up there and running across Jadeite's plan. 

This episode I feel probably should be number 1 because it has everything you'd expect of a bad Toei SM ep. When people think of what they don't like about Toei SM it's usually that its got boring filler that you have to get through, its the characters being whiny or mean, its dumb 90s anime plots, and this ep is all that and it has a really terrible message on top of it. There's nothing I can think of I actually like about this ep, and plenty to dislike. So why is it number 2? The episode of Toei SM I dislike most is one that hurt me much more personally then Episode 4. 

1: Episode 61: I wanna start by saying, I've seen this ep in people's Top 10 eps lists before and... I get it, I really do. This episode is beautifully shot and intensely emotionally evocative. The Phonebooth scene where Usagi breaks down crying in the phone booth after Mamoru leaves her is emotionally devastating and never fails to make me cry. The ep even has some good comedy and social satire with the makeup droid that tries to get women to think if they use more makeup they can get the man they want. This ep is a very polarizing ep, and if you're on the love it side for this one I truly do get it. But where Episode 4 represents I think the common critiques of Toei Sailor Moon, Episode 61 episode represents my problems with it as someone for whom this franchise means a hell of a lot.

This is the episode Mamoru declares a breakup with Usagi, secretly because he's been getting bad dreams that being with him will destroy her. As a young girl, I had my favorites but I liked almost any show you put in front of me. Even as a child though I HATED this. I was like "No, Sailor Moon and Tuxedo Kamen have to be together!" As an adult I still hate this decision because it's antithetical to what I want from Sailor Moon. We had Mamoru famously be turned evil in Season 1 and Usagi forced to fight her true love and finally do it. Then immediately after we have Makaiju where he doesn't have his memories and Usagi has to restore them. Frustrating to delay this further, but okay whatever. But of course they can't just have them finally be together, no we have to delay this even further with petty BS like this. Mamoru not telling Usagi is so frustrating, the series delaying the romance we know will happen is so frustrating, and the series focusing on this stuff instead of the magical girl superhero series with elements of cosmic horror shows a complete misfocus from what I come to Sailor Moon for. I enjoy romance stories but I will drop a romance I'm enjoying if they even start to do this delay the inevitable type stuff. I have a disdain for stories actively wasting my type like this, especially with such a lazy way to do it. That by itself could put this ep in my bottom 10. But the reason it's at the bottom is because of Mamoru's excuse for breaking up with Usagi. Mamoru says that the reason he doesn't love her anymore is because "I don't like weak girls." This is a lie, but it's something we are supposed to find believable with the other characters acting like Usagi should be better for Mamoru. 

This is the kinda thing that can cripple a young girl's self-esteem and unlike Episode 157 and Episode 4, I'm not talking in hypotheticals. I'm talking from firsthand experience. I compared myself to Usagi a lot at her age. I saw her go through the emotional journey of the First Arc Finale, I saw her development into into a Superheroine and save the world. What this episode taught me honestly was that is still not enough, that if I didn't do it perfectly, if I still cried sometimes, if I was still scared sometimes, that I was not good enough to warrant true love. This episode to me reflects the element more then anything I can say is the problem with Toei SM for me, the thing I despise. There's a lot of jokes at Usagi's expense in the Toei anime. I don't like these but at the end of the day they're not supposed to be taken seriously. This is the one time that dismissing Usagi's capabilities is played seriously and it exposed how messed up that whole thing is. People will sometimes say the manga makes Usagi out to be the Messiah. She literally is in both versions but besides that sometimes I wanna say to those people "I'm sorry that I prefer the version that told me I could be the savior of the world rather then the version that told me I could save the world and still not be good enough." 

What I don't like about Toei Sailor Moon is essentially reflected in those bottom two eps on a much more minor but broad scale across the series. It delays things the developments I want and find interesting for content that I find boring at best and insulting at worst, pettiness and civilian drama that I could find in any series as opposed to the Magical Girl Superhero content that is unique to Sailor Moon. It is a series that feels so bound by its time, a time where teenage girls were pushed to be straight and unnaturally thin and told our emotions were something to find funny. It has weird unexplained plot and thematic hiccups caused by its weird relationship to the Manga where it will include elements from it but not the context or the results from it. It's a series that's longer then is optimal with numerous episodes that are made purely to kill time like the clipshow episode or are just repeating the same things that are not going to push the status quo. I associate it so strongly with my adolescence when I first sat down and purposefully watched the entire thing front to back. Those were hard days when the world stopped seeming to make sense, when I noticed people constantly diminishing the importance of my feelings, when petty school drama became common, where day after day would go by in a seemingly never ending status quo of tedium and perhaps on some level I can't help but connect those two things.