To answer some of your claims (only talking about seasons 1 and 2 of Crystal, as season 3 is better than the first two and doesn't have most of the problems), why most Sailor Moon fans didn't like Crystal, why a good amount of them (dunno if it's the majority though) think the 90's anime was better (and what I'm saying has got nothing to do with "nostalgia goggles" according to the other poster, which is a lame excuse I've seen some rabid fans use which is insulting), and to state my opinions:
1. The fillers, whilst yes, there were a good amount of them, they did develop the characters and honestly gave the story more time to unfold as it was honestly rushed in the manga and in Crystal, and in the first two seasons of Crystal the lack of fillers or character focus episodes backfired as fans had no time to get interested in those versions of the characters or the story.
2. Both versions came out at the same time, so Toei was trying to make the story appeal to audiences more and improve upon it. And considering the characters and stories of the 90's anime have been popular and it got high ratings (minus SuperS but Stars managed to close the anime with a bang), no, it wasn't "dumbing it down." And just because it isn't like the manga exactly doesn't make it bad, and just because Crystal is closer to the manga doesn't necessarily mean it's automatically better. I also heard the Sailor Moon audience was more around the 8-16 level, it is NOT a show for 6 year olds or any age of little kids at all though, I say it's PG-13 at best.
3. To speak my personal opinion, only SuperS was where the anime version was weak honestly. I honestly felt the 90's anime the majority of the time was a huge improvement, due to it developing other characters and certain parts of the story changes. I'd have put Stars at a tie though.
4. The other Sailors were NOT that weak (I know everyone sees how strong they were differently, but this is what I and others believe). Most of the time, or a good amount of times the Inner and Outer Senshi's attacks would work and do damage, sometimes killing the enemy. Sure, they might not always have worked, but at least they're doing something and not just standing around like dolts. And at least one of them would attack in episodes with the others, minus some. And whilst Moon, yes, did deal the final blow most of the time, at least the other Inners were damaging the enemy so it felt like teamwork. Plus, they also even got to do something in almost every finale. Even Mercury hitting Zirconia with her attack in SuperS feels like something good.
In the first two seasons of Crystal however, I'm sorry, but, the Inners are weak and practically a joke. Their attacks don't work outside their introductory episodes 98% of the time, when they get hit, they get knocked out or fall to the ground and can't get up, or sometimes just stand around and not do anything at all, they did nothing at all in the final battle of the Black Moon arc and were so underused the final battle (and even the whole Black Moon arc itself) could play out without them, especially Mars. And don't even get me started on that Four Generals thing where they gave up like helpless damsels, and then with them weeping like crybabies when they're dead, a lot of Sailor Moon fans HATED how it was done. "We are not helpless girls who need men's protection...we can fight on our own without leaving our destiny to the prince..." Well, Moon Pride lied in this case...
5. Pluto's Dead Scream wasn't dodged most of the time. Out of 12 times (yes, I've seen all the times it was used in the anime, this is counting the two movies she was in too) it hit 8 and missed 4. So no, it wasn't dodged most of the time, it ended up working about 2/3 of the time. "Pluto's character was made into a weak side character with only one powerful Time Stop move." What? No she wasn't! Pluto only used Time Stop once, in episode 124 and in the Black Moon arc. And once again, like I said with #4, the other Sailors weren't that weak. I do wish she got used more in R also, Crystal did use her more in the Black Moon arc, which I will give credit for. Also, I felt Pluto is fine in both the manga and 90's anime.
Saturn was underused, though around power levels, I'd say both were about the same.
The reason why people talk more about the 90's anime and not so much the manga and consider it better is because the anime was what got Sailor Moon popular in the first place and had a lot of qualities making it popular (good characterization and friendships, high quality art and animation most of the time, exciting action, beautiful music) and one of the most successful franchises which also helped shape the magical girl genre, helped a lot of people get into anime, and the reason why it was so successful in ratings and merchandise sales and is still doing strong is the effort they put into it.
Whilst the manga, while a good story mostly charming characters, and beautiful artwork, didn't reflect any of those. The manga unfortunately has its flaws that are present in Crystal's first two seasons and unfortunately Crystal is making it look bad.
If you don't agree, that's fine, but then I'm afraid we just didn't see either anime in the same way...
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IkuharaKunihiko
8 years ago
For me, when I first read the manga, I thought it was a tie with the anime. Seasons 1 and 4 were better in the manga, seasons 3 and 5 better in the anime, while the R season was the weakest in either version.
However, after reading the 1st season of the manga again, I think I might have overrated it a bit initially. It overwhelms in the first chapters thanks to magic, yet becomes rather stale and routine later on, until the finale. (however, the Crystal anime adaptation is inferior in every aspect. It just feels mechanical with that "robotic" animation)
The reason why people talk more about the 90's anime and not so much the manga and consider it better is because the anime was what got Sailor Moon popular in the first place and had a lot of qualities making it popular (good characterization and friendships, high quality art and animation most of the time, exciting action, beautiful music) and one of the most successful franchises which also helped shape the magical girl genre, helped a lot of people get into anime, and the reason why it was so successful in ratings and merchandise sales and is still doing strong is the effort they put into it.
Whilst the manga, while a good story mostly charming characters, and beautiful artwork, didn't reflect any of those. The manga unfortunately has its flaws that are present in Crystal's first two seasons and unfortunately Crystal is making it look bad.
I agree. One thing that should also be mentioned is that the writers of the anime gave the characters a comedy dimension, which made them feel more alive. I always hated when the superheroes are too perfect, since that makes them one-dimensional. But even if you're not a fan of Rei and Usagi arguing, there are so many other funny moments. Takeuchi writes the characters somewhat flat, and it wasn't until SuperS in the manga that she dedicated a whole chapted to each of the senshi.
Someone went on to review the manga, and didn't take it too favorably. You can find the link here:
https://prettysoldierproject.com/2015/03/09/pretty-soldier-sailor-moon-the-manga-the-infinity-arc-pt-5/Among others, he wrote:
It’s also hard to visualise where eveything is. This goes hand in hand with this floating business that Naoko gets the Senshi to do. I always like to map visually in my head where everything is when reading, so it’s particularly jarring for me. It may not be so for others.
So, the Outer Senshi and Sailor Moon are now floating high above the Mugen Delta. There’s a kind of platform with the Inner Senshi floating about around that which Sailor Moon can’t get close to while she;s flying about. Then there’s Mistress Nine hanging… somewhere in darkness?
I’m clueless...
I continue to marvel at the anime adaptation that turned this good story into a brilliant one. Normally adaptations always disappoint, but here it surpasses it in nearly every area
Naturally, that's only someone's opinion. However, it consolidates my suspicion that it wasn't Takeuchi's writing that made "Sailor Moon" jump from a good into a great story - it was the writing of the 90s anime.
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sailorspysedna
8 years ago
Agreed about the first arc of the manga, it's good, but yeah, it does kinda feel a bit routine also...
True, they did give them comedy dimensions (I was a big fan of the Usagi/Rei fighting), it helped make them all funny, that's another reason I adore Ami, besides being cute, smart, and gentle, she can be hilarious too, here's a cute moment I found with her: http://media.tumblr.com/cc23ba39d5530fbc325db16cc32fac56/tumblr_inline_n57xwp2WcB1r6uc34.gif
Yup, that's why the Dead Moon arc is my favorite manga arc, it developed the Sailors.
I don't always agree with that website, but this article was good. I agreed with it except with them saying the Inner Senshi were being treated in the anime the same way as in the manga for the final battle of S, as we could see them fending off an army of daimons similar to the R movie in a way, plus at least with their barrier they were DOING SOMETHING, instead of just standing around like dolts and getting knocked out. Plus in their review on episode 124, they said that barrier was badass too, so I'm confused...I never even agreed with what they said on how the Inners "hadn't done @#$#" when we saw these (plus I don't agree on how they said Mercury didn't attack as much as them when from what I can tell, including Sailor Planet Attack and such here, she did):
https://prettysoldierproject.files.wordpress.com/2014/12/281.jpg
https://prettysoldierproject.files.wordpress.com/2014/12/301.jpg
https://prettysoldierproject.files.wordpress.com/2014/12/311-e1418603054845.jpg
Apparently the Sailors are flying, and whenever I always ask why, most of the time I'm given lame excuses ("it's a magical girl show!" for example). It was better when they could teleport and such, and I can understand them flying while teleporting.
I will admit though, I never knew that thing the Inners fell on in the manga was a fountain until I saw Crystal.
I agree, it was the 90's writing that helped make it jump. Unfortunately Naoko herself said she wasn't happy with how her story came out, so I'm afraid she might not like Crystal. These days though, she likes the original anime and other adaptations, she said most of her anger towards them was due to stress of having to meet deadlines.
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