Note
This review is based on plot elements, characterization elements, emotional pull, episode quality, and creativity. Each category can get two points to zero points depending on how well the category does, with a final score and recommendation at the end. Thank you for reading.
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So there are two overall plots. The first plot is that the scouts can't remember anything from the first season but they are brought back because of a new evil force trying to steal energy. The energy thieves are two aliens with a large tree who want to regrow their tree so they can live. Turns out the tree, which looks evil the entire time, is actually looking for love to regrow its vines. The other plot, is a little girl sharing the name as Sailor Moon shows up. She is a brat but there are people after her, so the group tries to help her out. Tuxedo Mask gains visions and tries to help the little girl as much as he can. The villains in this plot are trying to destroy the crystal city in the future, so they use focus points to try and focus darkness rather then light. Everyone from the future is after the Silver Crystal which Sailor Moon has been using to transform.
So are the plots good? Well the first one isn't. It makes nearly no sense and drags on for the first half of this volume. Love is simply the answer which could have been given to the villains, but instead the tree attacks everyone and nearly kills one of its underlings before saying "love is the answer" which could have been avoided if the tree only revealed it could talk the entire time. The second half is a bit better with some substance to the plot of future travelers and the villains trying to set success up and Chibiusa trying to save her parents by traveling to the past. Yes the plot is still whimsical, but it is a decent read, but it doesn't make up for half the volume.
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This is horrible. We barely see any of the scouts outside of Sailor Moon, and when we do their characterization is brief but okay. It is the main focus that I have trouble with. Usagi or Sailor Moon has gone back to her old ways ignoring characterization from the first season, and doesn't begin growing as a character until the second half in which she is far better of a character, but still slow to show sings of development. The villains in the first half are horrid villains and more silly then anything. The later half villains are a bit better but they all seem rather petty and are almost just as silly. Chibiusa is actually a decent character. The worst however is Tuxedo Mask. He doesn't remember anything in the first half but has an alter ego "Moon Knight" that is basically the same character but Arabian for no reason and is a manifestation of Tuxedo's protective nature, then in the second half he sees some vision and breaks up with Usagi and is a complete jerk to her for "reasons" which we never see and makes little sense.
There are some good points to the characterization but they are so few and far between due to the drama between Usagi and Tuxedo Mask, it is hardly noticeable. Add a large majority of villains who aren't worth more then their looks, and brief moments of building for some of the scouts. Unfortunately the bad outweighs the good.
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There are plenty of silly moments in the anime, and the fights are pretty good, but not great either. There is more humor involved in the anime, the tense moments aren't too tense but it gets some good points. The emotional romance moments are eye rollers however, possibly because of the characterization issues. Honestly, there are some good points here, but noting exactly great, and a few bad moments too. There is just nothing to write home about here.
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The animation is done fairly well given how dated the anime is. Besides a slight few episodes, every episode focuses on furthering the plot and characterization. There are times that the same animation for certain moves are used and transformation scenes are a dime a dozen and take a while at times, but that's more a product of the era then anything and was used to save money in the animation department. If you hate it, then by all means hate it, but it doesn't hurt the animation quality or the episode quality and is often not seen outside of Usagi's transformation. It can be a negative point, but there is far more good here, it is the age that harms the quality more then anything, but you will have to find another reviewer to knock off points for age.
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Some of the monster designs are good and some are just ugly and silly. The new powers the scouts get are okay and their new gear looks great. I still however don't understand how people haven't figured out that Usagi is Sailor Moon since her face doesn't change. Still, the main villains in the first half and their tree look pretty good, and the main villains afterwards look okay, but the monsters and their powers are often too silly to make some situations serious which is a problem. Not bad, but not great either.
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If you are a die hard Sailor Moon fan, then this is worth seeing for the last half of the volume because the plot continues to volume 2, but outside of that, this isn't worth your time. There are some good elements in every category I review on, but due to also some bad elements, and horrid points in characterization, the first volume of Sailor Moon R just falls short of the mark it should really be at, despite how good the first season reviewed. Mistakes were made, and despite everything going on with Tuxedo Mask in the first half, his actions in the later half contradict everything, even if he does have a legitimate reason for his actions which wasn't shown.
If you are a fan of the first season and curious about Sailor Moon R, I'd check it out through a rental or free program before collecting the dvds. Is it worth the time? So far I'd say no, but since the second half of the plot goes into Volume 2, I'm not sure. Perhaps looking for specific episodes would be a better option. Either way, there are some people who will enjoy this part, and some people who obviously won't. It is acceptable watching, but not great. The thing is, it isn't completely awful either, and seems more to be right on the fence of being good and bad which makes it more mediocre. Watch it, but don't rush out and buy it until after seeing it first.