Sailor Moon R Season 2 Part 2, Disk 3 Anime (English)

January 29th, 2016

SMR22-275x318 At last, we have enough information to piece the story together in Sailor Moon R Season 2 Part 2, Disk 3. And immediately upon doing so, the final battle is upon us. So, in time-honored tradition, I would like to digress completely to discuss Chibi-Usa and Sialor Pluto.

First, let us discuss Chibi-Usa. She is a near millennium-old 5 year old. This is a critical piece to understanding the things that go on on “R”. Children are pretty basic animals. They get how training works and then they turn it around on you. I throw this binky and start to cry, you retrieve the binky. I cry, you feed me, I cry, you change a diaper. This makes sense. And because most children exist in a bubble of one, they don’t really consider that their experiences are not utterly normal. So, when Small Lady cries and no one picks her up, this is a frankly shocking change to her life. She has no idea that this is normal or that being self-reliant is a thing. Like so many humans (often much older than 5) she presumes that the general is personal, so when her friends aren’t there for her, she imagines the worst.

All of this is not beside the point – it is the point. She cannot grow up until she has to grow up. And the worst part about this has to be that both Serenity and Endymion know all this and they have to let it happen. And that is the big UGH of the series.

Which brings me to Sailor Pluto. There are literally two things she may not do – open the Doors of Time and stop time, and in both anime and manga version, she does both. Worse, she knows she’s going to do both because she’s already done them when we meet her for the first time. I mean, how *annoying* is that?

So is Pluto the worst Senshi or are the rules idiotic? Obviously, the rules are idiotic. We can see that right away, because the rule “Don’t open the Doors of Time” clearly don’t apply to the Royal Family, so it now becomes “Don’t open the Doors of Time to anyone but us and anyone we bring with us” and BAM! security is breached. And “You may not stop Time or you will die” makes perfect sense, except she doesn’t. And remember, we first meet her 1000 years in the future when she has *already* done these things…and there she is. If the conundrum around Chibi-Usa is ugh, then this one is argh. ^_^;

But all of this resolves when it turns out, as we and Saphir suspected, that Dimande is an idiot. And Serenity, joined by Princess Small Lady (as opposed to Chibi Moon in the manga) defeat the Wiseman as we had no doubt they would.

I had become somewhat complacent about the quality in this remastered version of the 90s series, so upon completion, I pulled out the Pioneer (remember them? they became Geneon, then pulled out of the US completely) edition of the Sailor Moon R Movie. Holy crap do the Viz disks look a million times better. Color, quality, sound all better. So, once again folks complaining about the visuals – the remastered version is *way* better.

Viz will be putting out the R movie, so if you haven’t yet seen it, you should. It’s 1) surprisingly gay (Minako says in the background that there are two guys at her school that “are that way” and another major plot point, I’ll keep for a later review) and 2) has an awesome end scene in which we see “Moon Revenge” sung to it’s best advantage. (Another song I jog to, so it is constantly in my ears. It’s a damn fine song.)

Ratings:

Art – 6
Story – 7 In the end it actually makes sense
Characters – 7 In the end, only Saphir has a lick of sense
Yuri – 0
Service – 1 on principle

Overall – 7 I’m a sucker for “La Soldier.”

I’m really glad to have watched all of “R” and I am SO ready for “S”! The little clippy/trailer episode only made me want it more. ^_^ Ogata Megumi plays young Mamoru in the “R” movie, as well. I am on tenterhooks for the big “S” rewatch. Back in the old days we watched the entire series in one day by skipping the OP/EDs and all the henshin and attacks after watching them once through. It’s a testament to how much I like “S” that I didn’t hate it with a passion after that marathon. ^_^

Once again, many thanks to Viz for the chance to engage in all this fannishness!

Posted in English Anime, Sailor Moon | 3 Comments »


Sailor Moon R Season 2 Part 2, Disk 2 Anime (English)

January 28th, 2016

SMR22-275x318OMG, you guys! Chibi-Usa is being targeted by the enemy!

Yes, yes, we established that last disk, but I’m re-establishing it for Sailor Moon R Season 2 Part 2, Disk 2 because if you were hoping the plot had any intention of moving forward, you’d be sadly mistaken. In fact, let me assure you that, despite the fact that the Black Moon clan has specifically stated that they are targeting this small child that fell out of the sky, it takes the smartest one of the group 21 episodes to think to ask “Why?”

Look, I love Sailor Moon as much as the next besotted fan, but come on. ^_^

But before we get there, we get a few side episodes that give us insight into Ami and Minako, including the infamous Nurse Venus episode, the moral of which is “nothing.” Life is meaningless and eventually we will die of good intentions. Or, at least, that’s what I gathered from it.

While we don’t really get an answer to the question of the enemy’s motivation (yet), we get a free trip to the future and the Moon, so okay, we’ll set the explanation on the back burner for the moment.

When the gang arrives at the future Moon they meet something they never expected at all – another Senshi! Sailor Pluto has the unenviable task of guarding the Doors of Time and is therefore isolated from the rest of the Moon Kingdom, we learn when Luna’s ability to remember important facts after they become plot points kicks in.  I have always felt that this crappy job ought to be a rotation position, so Pluto gets a chance to party with the Queen, too.

And we meet King Endymion, who looks exactly like Tuxedo Mask in lavender. Why does the King still wear a mask?… asks no one except me. He’s the *KING*, you’d think that hiding his face, even lamely, isn’t a critical piece of consorting. Maybe they just let him do it to relive the good old days.

And we learn the biggest OMG of all, Chibi-Usa’s true identity, as Serenity and Endymion’s future child.  Everyone overreacts, but the King gives us the closest thing to an explanation so far about the nature of the Black Moon and the destruction of Crystal Tokyo.

Chibi-Usa disappears, we defeat Esmeraude (we hardly knew ye) and are forced, like Saphir, to listen to both Dimande and Wiseman bore the pants off us with their obsessions.

Technicals were perfectly fine, and only one bizarre translation to note. While Diamande is waxing stalker-y about  Serenity, he comments on her beautiful green eyes. Not a horrible mistranslation, as aoi can be green but not in this case. Her eyes are blue in every version of the story. Woops.

Ratings:

Art – 6
Story – 7 Sailor Pluto, thank god you’re here.
Characters – 7 Did I mention Sailor Pluto’s here? And that her role makes no sense at all? ^_^
Yuri – 0
Service – 1 on principle

Overall – 6

So…why are the bad guys after Chibi-Usa?

Tune in next disk to find out. ^_^;

As always, thanks to Viz for providing the review copy!

Posted in English Anime, Sailor Moon | 3 Comments »


Sailor Moon R Season 2 Part 2, Disk 1 Anime (English)

January 27th, 2016

SMR22-275x318Having established that Chibi-Usa is actually the “Rabbit” targeted by the bad guys,  Sailor Moon R Season 2 Part 2, Disk 1 immediately sidetracks the story into the most pointless rivalry ever, as Rubeus’ henchwomen fight for his attention. Happily they  – and he –  are defeated with alacrity.

We learn of the existence of a mysterious Sailor Pluto through Chibi-Usa, but not much more. Maddening isn’t it? ^_^

And, finally, Esmeraude appears. Yay! I don’t know why, but of the this particular crop of baddies, the Black Moon folks, she’s the only one I actually like, even though she spends the entire time moping about Dimande. But then, so does Saphir.

And we learn that Dimande is being manipulated by “Wiseman” who looks just like Death Phantom. Hrm. Related or lack of creative juice? We’ll have to wait and see!

Technically, this disk is fine. The visuals are clear, the sound is good, the plot is excruciating and  I’m twiddling my fingers until Pluto shows. ^_^

Ratings:

Art – 6
Story – 5, we’re treading water until next disk
Characters – 6
Yuri – 0
Service – 1 on principle

Overall – 6

Change and plot progression is coming. Just not yet. Wait for it. ^_^

Thanks to Viz for providing the review copy and being super responsive to comments.

Posted in English Anime, Sailor Moon | 1 Comment »


Yuri Manga: Last Waltz, Volume 1 (ラストワルツ 1)

January 26th, 2016

71qFyOoOAULOn the surface, Shinobu seems to be a long-haired glasses-girl stereotype. She’s reticent, quiet and, compared with her outgoing classmates, reserved.

But things in Last Waltz, Volume 1 (ラストワルツ 1) are not at all what they appear to be. When her classmate, who is sleeping with the teacher, is approached by a bunch of punks, Shinobu appears and rescues the girl. But this doesn’t solve the problem, it worsens it. The punks go after the teacher and threaten him until he agrees to turn Tsukasa over to them, Shinobu has to take on punks and teacher.

Shinobu is herself sleeping with a teacher, Yukari, who is hopelessly in love with the girl. When Shinobu saves another classmate, who is a idol, she falls for Shinobu as well.

And so the rest of the volume goes – Shinobu saves woman from mean nasty man and sleeps with woman who falls in love with her. If it weren’t so silly, it might be depressing.

When I bought this volume I stared for a while it, wondering why I just could not remember what the story was, even though I know I read it when I get Comic Yuri Hime. After struggling to make sense of it, I realized that the problem is that there isn’t a story, really. It’s a single chapter on repeat.

Katakura Ako’s art is wildly inconsistent, vacillating from not-great to good panel to panel. There is lesbian sex, and apparently Shinobu is great in bed, but as a story character, she falls flat. 160+ pages later I know exactly nothing about her except that she’s got a wicked axe kick (eyeroll, that’s so likely) and is good in bed.

Ratings:

Art – 6
Story – 5
Characters – 5
Yuri – 8
Service – 8

Overall – 5

Volume 2 is coming out in Summer 2016 and I’m pretty sure it’ll be more of the same. So depending on what you want out of your stories, you may want to get that. I’m going to have to think about it. Maybe.

Posted in Yuri Manga | 4 Comments »


Lesbian Live Action: Transit Girls (トランジットガールズ )

January 25th, 2016

story03_ph01Back in October 2015, we reported news that Fuji TV was airing the first-ever “lesbian” drama on Japanese television. The storyline received negative press before it even aired, with the Japanese LGBTQ community calling the plot “out of date.”  And I had many reservations, as well.

Transit Girls (トランジットガールズ ) follows the lives of Yui, a young professional photographer and Sayuri, a high school student, as they meet when their parents move in together and subsequently fall in love. The plot sounds pretty eye-rollingly shoujo manga, and to be honest, it was.

As the story opens, we see Yui taking photos of a young woman praying at a local shrine. We’re supposed to see that she’s instantly charmed, because she’s giving the girl long meaningful looks from a distance. The young woman is Saiyuri. Saiyuri and her father, Keigo, live alone together; her mother’s been dead for some years.  Dad tells Saiyuri that he’s met someone and she is moving in with her daughter, Yui.

Madoka, Yui’s mother, is very nice but Yui reacts weirdly, as we know this is the girl she was photographing, zOMG. Unsurprisingly, Saiyuri is ignoring the both of them, and Dad is quietly suffering. Yui tries to talk to Saiyuri and ends up kissing her. Saiyuri pushes her out of the room violently. End of episode 1.

The eight episodes of this series were all a half hour or so, so the story moves very quickly. And this, in a nutshell, is why we’re supposed to understand that Yui isn’t just a random predatory lesbian, she’s supposed to have been secretly charmed by Saiyuri all along.

The story moves briskly as Saiyuri begins to question her own feelings for Yui. They both agree that “sister” is not a relationship they want. The story becomes slightly more complicated when we meet Nao, Saiyuri’s childhood friend. He (obviously to us) has feelings for Saiyuri, even as she’s finding herself becoming more attracted to Yui. Another friend, Mirai, is in love with Nao.

Yui and Saiyuri are already falling in love, when Mirai confesses to Nao, who apologizes and says he has someone he likes. “You’re not supposed to say ‘Sorry’!” Saiyuri rebukes him. “You’re supposed to say ‘Thank you.'”

Saiyuri and Yui spend a night together, but are seen in bed by Madoka, who confronts Yui. Yui leaves home immediately, leaving a note for Saiyuri.  Madoka tells Saiyuri that Yui’s always been this way. Although she learns where Yui is staying, Saiyuri can’t bring herself to go through with contacting her. Saiyuri speaks briefly with Yui’s business partner, a nice guy who likes Yui himself.

Madoka, too embarrassed to face this situation her daughter created, also leaves home, leaving Dad and Saiyuri alone again..and, for the first time in many years, both of them feeling lonely.

While studying together, Nao confesses to Saiyuri, who then has to tell him that she’s in love with someone else. She admits that it’s Yui and Nao says he’s not really surprised. He’s always thought she wasn’t really into guys. She’s kind of surprised at this.  It’s worth noting that Nao is an awesome character and without him this story would have been pretty grim. He provides most of the laughs and a much-needed relieved sigh when he doesn’t get all weirded out at Saiyuri.

Saiyuri decides that to be fair to her friend Mirai, who can’t not be resentful at her and Nao’s relationship – and who naturally presumes that Saiyuri and Nao are an item. So Saiyuri tells Mirai the truth, that she’s in a relationship with her “onee-san”. Mirai laughs and says, “It’s like being in a shoujo manga.” Saiyuri agrees. Mirai is also not particularly weirded out and just accepts Saiyuri’s relationship at face value.

Christmas is coming. Yui’s father left them at Christmas, and so Saiyuri had promised to spend it with her to reverse her negative feelings about the holiday, but now that isn’t possible.

Dad goes to see Yui, ostensibly to ask her what to get Saiyuri. Remembering the ema the girl had written at the shrine, Yui suggests a Tiffany double-heart necklace. Then Dad asks what Yui would like, indicating that he’s still willing to be a “Dad” if she’ll let him.

Madoka and Keigo meet for dinner, and Madoka apologizes profusely. Dad makes a startling confession. Since his wife died, Saiyuri has been very removed from human relationships. She’s just not really noticed other people. Yui is the first person she’s taken any notice of in years. Madoka and Keigo decide that they will root for the two women and support them whatever happens. Then he asks Madoka to return home.

Dad gives Saiyuri the necklace and tells her that he knew what she wanted because Yui told him. He tells her to go see Yui. Saiyuri runs to the shrine and finds Yui there, then runs into her arms. They kiss and hug and kiss again as the end credits roll.

Very shoujo manga. And really fast-paced, sometimes really stretching the ability to accept that all this happens so quickly….but it doesn’t. The seasons change while the story takes place, but the episodes are so short, you kind of have to remind yourself this doesn’t take place over a week. ^_^;

On the negative side there is one almost insurmountable obstacle. The kissing. Sorry J-Dramas, you just have the worst kissing in the world. So terrible. My wife and I tried to kiss that badly, touching lips without moving or even a pucker, nothing, just dryly placing lips against each other, but we kept cracking up and couldn’t do it. It was particularly distracting/laughable in the final scene as they kiss. It looked kind of like if you asked two children to watch grown ups kiss, then kiss like them. They move back and forth, but the lips stay dry, pressed emotionlessly against each other. Totally put a harsh on what would have been a great moment otherwise.

The only other negative was the plot. You know how I feel about stories where people fall in love with the only other person in the house near their age – it’s lazy writing and a tiresome plot.

Other than these two rather amazing high hurdles, the story wasn’t bad. ^_^

On the positive side, Itou Sairi, who played Saiyuri, was excellent. Honestly, she carried the show all by herself. Her voice is an interestingly deep, burry one, that I found rather attractive, but her acting really made Saiyuri come alive. The rest of the cast was absolutely fine, but Itou was stellar.

The most – surprisingly – positive quality of the story was everyone’s reactions to the relationship. It was made plain that Yui is a lesbian, (and I think she was meant to look a little butchy, with short hair) although that word is never used.  Yui and Sayuri discuss “onna-doushi” and Saiyuri admits to being a little frightened of her feelings and this whole can of worms. But when she talks about the relationship to other people, they just…support her. No histrionics, no shouting. Keigo admits to being confused at first, even as Yui is insisting her feelings are for real. And that’s about it. After that, there’s no conflict except getting them back together. For the complete lack of homophobia, I’ll give props to Fuji TV.

And the final positive note is that both Keigo and Nao are totally not weird about it. A real shoujo manga probably world have had Nao (or Mirai) out Saiyuri to the whole school or try to sabotage the relationship. Instead they were like, “it’s cool” and we all moved on. That’s a handwave I can definitely live with.

I’m not sure I’d say this was a great series, but it was more good than bad and a positive, if ridiculous, beginning for lesbian stories on Japanese television.

Ratings:

Story – 4 at the beginning, going up to 6 by the end
Characters – start at 6, 8 by the end
Service – 5 a number of bath scenes and a bed scene, no full nudity, just implication
Yuri – 9

Overall – I think 7 is a fair score.

One last thing of note and it’s utterly dorkstastic – the bus station Saiyuri and Nao get on the bus at is Yuriyamakoen, so Lily Mountain park. So clever those production folks. Hah.

 

Posted in LGBTQ, Live Action | 6 Comments »