Sailor Moon is a classic magical girl shojo and there's plenty of content for fans to revisit and enjoy. Newcomers to the Sailor Moon story may be intimidated about figuring out where to start. Viewers who grew up with the series may have forgotten how great some of the original anime movies are.
It's helpful to have a concise guide reviewing each epoch of Sailor Moon storytelling, highlighting all the best parts of each rendition and story arc. Sailor Moon Crystal is a currently-running retelling of the manga, and there are newer movies that fans who stopped at the episodic series may want to check out. Each part of the franchise is beautiful and has compelling story beats. Hopefully, the Sailor Moon franchise will only continue releasing content, like prequels about the Moon Kingdom backstory, and an anime adaptation of the companion manga series, Codename: Sailor V.
7 Sailor Moon S: The Movie, Hearts On Ice Is a Bittersweet Fairy Tale
One of the best aspects of the Sailor Moon series is how many myths and fairy tales that Naoko Takeuchi threaded into the story. The second movie of the original anime series, Sailor Moon S: The Movie, Hearts On Ice, is mainly a retelling of Hans Christian Anderson's fairy tale "The Snow Queen." Princess Snow Kaguya is the intergalactic antagonist du jour, and she has a gorgeous character design; she cloaks herself in regal, sculpted ice and commands winter sylphs for her bidding, called Snow Dancers. Though the movie could be considered filler, because it doesn't advance any of the main series arcs, it's an excellent character study of lesser-explored characters, like the Moon Cat, Luna. The Sailor Senshi also wear great '90s casual and winter fashion, which heightens the sweet nostalgia often associated with the franchise.
Luna's story in Sailor Moon S: The Movie, Hearts On Ice ties indirectly with Princess Snow Kaguya's plans to turn the earth into an eternal winter. When Luna's nearly run over by a car, a handsome astronomer takes her in and pours his heart out to her. The astronomer, Kakeru, doesn't know that Luna can understand him, of course, but it's enough to make Luna fall in love with him. She's granted a sort of temporary "Cinderella"-style transformation, given a human form so that she can spend one lovely evening in the stars with Kakeru. Hearts On Ice is a great winter-time watch with plenty of romance, fantastical danger, unique character designs, and a hilarious Santa scene (spoiler: it's Tuxedo Mask masquerading as St. Nick).
6 Sailor Moon SuperS: The Movie Is a Whimsical Fever Dream
One of the best parts of Sailor Moon SuperS: The Movie is that it opens with an animated short all about Ami Mizuno, who's a big fan favorite Senshi. The opening short film has a similar experience to the short Pikachu's Vacation that prefaced the first Pokémon movie, Mewtwo Strikes Back. Ami's short story follows her experience with a crush and her efforts to balance her schoolwork. She also gets a great new transformation sequence, as she evolves into her Super Senshi form. The main feature, Sailor Moon SuperS: The Movie has the same soft animation aesthetic as the original anime SuperS season, and elements of "The Pied Piper" fairy tale.
A flute player named Poupelin hypnotizes children with his song, waking them from their beds and drawing them into his parade. Poupelin draws poor Chibiusa into the parade of children marching toward his circus-style airship, then delivers them to Queen Badiane. Not even Sailor Moon and the rest of the Senshi can stop Chibiusa. Poupelin's dreamworld setting is like an uber-fairy tale and without a doubt the strongest part of the SuperS movie, similar to classic anime films like Little Nemo: Adventures In Slumberland and Magical Princess Minky Momo. Chibiusa tends to be more of a sidekick in the series overall, but between this movie and the series' Dead Moon Circus arc, Chibiusa really shines as the Crown Princess she truly is. It's her "sugar energy" that the evil Queen Badiane covets, so she can use it to engulf the world in Darkness. Fans of Sailor Moon's romance arc will enjoy the scenes between a dating Mamoru and Usagi. This movie is perhaps the least-referenced in the Sailor Moon fandom, and it's a total hidden gem worth watching.
5 Sailor Moon Eternal Has Neo-Queen Serenity's Dark Double
Sailor Moon Eternal is a two-part movie that covers the entirety of the Dead Moon Circus arc. The movie is full of color and smooth animation. Anime fans who want a more concise experience of the Dead Moon Circus arc will enjoy this film. It introduces a whole slew of new characters quickly, but the character designs are so beautifully done and their personalities are so unique that it doesn't feel like a blur. The central villain is Queen Nehelenia who looks particularly regal and vampy in this version of the story. She hides in her mirror and pulls the strings of the Dead Moon Circus as they consume people with their nightmares. Nehelenia represents the dark mirror image of the future Neo-Queen Serenity if she were to let her insecurities consume her, like the Evil Queen to Sailor Moon's Snow White.
Sailor Moon Eternal is far less monster-of-the-week than its original anime counterpart, but it still includes all major and minor antagonists and many Lemures creatures. The Talisman-empowered Outer Senshi really shine in Sailor Moon Eternal. Sailor Pluto was often shunted to the side in the original anime series, but since the Sailor Moon Crystal movies are so concise, her appearances feel far more in ratio to the rest of the Outer Senshi, Sailor Neptune, Sailor Uranus, and Sailor Saturn. Zirconia, Queen Nehelenia's beetle-shaped henchman, has a great voice actor and is both hilarious and devious. The Amazon Trio (Fish Eye, Hawk's Eye, and Tiger's Eye) are just as gorgeous and funny in Sailor Moon Eternal as they are in the original series, but sadly, they don't get as much screen time since they're only a part of the movies and don't star in any filler episode arcs.
4 Sailor Moon R: The Movie, The Promise of the Rose Is Particularly Romantic
The "R" in the second season of the original anime, Sailor Moon R, is thought to stand for "romance," and Sailor Moon R: The Movie, The Promise of the Rose has plenty of broken and healed hearts. It revolves around Mamoru Chiba, Tuxedo Mask, and his backstory with his first love, a sweet lost alien named Fiore. Fiore comes back after being gone for decades just as Mamoru and Usagi begin their relationship. The first romantic scene in Promise of the Rose really captures the first awkward and darling moments of a couple getting used to being together. Fiore still loves Mamoru, and he is quite a sympathetic person; it's the parasitic Kisenian Flower alien that warps his heart and turns his love for Mamoru into something dangerous. Sailor Moon is heartbroken when Fiore injures Tuxedo Mask in a skirmish and abducts him.
The Sailor Senshi follow Fiore and Tuxedo Mask onto Fiore's base — a comet hurtling through space, covered in more pink Kisenian blossoms. If Fiore can't make his heart whole again, he will (under Kisenian's influence) destroy Earth. Sailor Moon and Tuxedo Mask's strength and love are put to the test. Just as Kisenian gets the upper hand on Sailor Moon, gravely injuring her, Tuxedo Mask musters every bit of strength he has and protects her with a rose dart. Sailor Moon R: The Movie, The Promise of the Rose has a very intense finale with a gorgeous song titled "The Power of Love." It's about Sailor Moon's love for Tuxedo Mask, her friends, her enemies, and the world. In Fiore's case, The Promise of the Rose is about how healing and redemptive true love can be. Although Fiore only exists in this one movie, he's a wonderful and complex character, and viewers shouldn't miss out on his story.
3 Sailor Moon Cosmos Ties Everything Together
Sailor Moon Cosmos is a two-part movie that concludes the Sailor Moon manga by Naoko Takeuchi. As of 2024, it's only had its Japan release, and an English dub and theatrical release are coming soon. Trailers, screenshots, and reviews are available, and fans who read the entire manga series can safely assume what happens in the final movie. The main antagonists are Galaxia and Chaos, the strongest Sailor Moon villains yet. Not only are both the Inner and Outer Senshi in Sailor Moon Cosmos, but it also introduces the Sailor Starlights (Sailor Star Fighter, Sailor Star Healer, and Sailor Star Maker), and the Starlights' leader, Princess Kakyuu. Naoko Takeuchi didn't care for some of the changes made in the original anime depicting her Sailor Starlights, and it looks like the Sailor Starlights will be much closer to her original vision in Sailor Moon Cosmos.
Sailor Moon's heart undergoes much love and turmoil because she and Seiya, Sailor Star Fighter, have a strong attraction. Fans can look forward to Sailor Moon's final superhero evolution, complete with angelic wings and a multicolored Senshi uniform. The final showdown with Galaxia promises to be epic and has the highest stakes yet. Sailor Moon fans can also look forward to a long-awaited fully animated wedding scene, as teaser trailers reveal that Sailor Moon and Tuxedo Mask will finally tie the knot with the Senshi as bridesmaids.
2 The Sailor Moon Crystal Series Is a Manga-Loyal Adaptation
The Sailor Moon manga is divided into five seamless arcs, and Sailor Moon Crystal keeps to that original storyline with no extra episodes, characters, or arcs. Anime viewers who don't care for extra content or didn't like some of the changes made from the source material in the anime really appreciate Sailor Moon Crystal. The main downsides of the adaptation that fans often cite are the clunky CGI transformation sequences. And while the musical score is nice, it's not quite as dynamic as the original anime's soundtrack. Changes in the original anime ranged from harmless to silly to downright censorship. Sailor Moon Crystal skirts those issues and doesn't censor or make any weird content deviations with the canon queer couples.
Sailor Moon Crystal follows Usagi Tsukino from the very beginning, as a middle-schooler who flunks math tests and looks forward to playing video games at her local arcade. Everything changes for her when she saves a talking purple cat named Luna and unlocks her destiny as the Guardian of Love and Justice, Sailor Moon. All the recognizable and lovable Sailor Moon characters are present, including the Sailor Guardians, Tuxedo Mask, Queen Beryl, the Shitennou, Wiseman, Prince Demande, Chibiusa, and more. Though the series is far shorter, with seasons only 12–14 episodes long, there's still plenty of character development and convincing pathos. Usagi and Mamoru's relationship is just as emotional, and it has a smoother path with no tsundere-style bickering or mid-act breakups.
1 Nothing Beats the Original Sailor Moon Series
The original Sailor Moon anime will always rank best, and not just because of the nostalgia factor (though that does play a part). It made the manga come alive with color and kept all of Naoko Takeuchi's high fashion choices. There's so much content to enjoy and a fun monster-of-the-week formula that never gets old because the characters and evolving Senshi/Guardian powers are so creative. Each character is well-developed, not just because it incorporated all parts of the original manga series, but because it added on plenty of filler episodes and extra mini-arcs. Sailor Moon wouldn't have the Moonlight Knight or the Makai Tree arc with An, Ail, and their Cardian creatures if it wasn't for the filler arcs. Kunzite and Zoisite's beautiful romantic relationship only happens in this version of the anime, as it doesn't stem from the manga.
The original Sailor Moon anime was completely hand-drawn with classic cel animation. Aside from some film preservation issues, it's one of the best-quality anime classics around. Even though the animators reused the transformation sequences, it didn't matter because they were so beautifully done, complemented with ethereal and energizing theme songs. There are several different versions of the original anime to enjoy, from the original Japanese version to the three English dubs, all with different voice actor casts. The remastered Sailor Moon dub versions also took care of many of the censorship issues there were in the original American release.
