Is Sailor Moon No Longer Meant for Kids?

What do you mean "not for kids"?

What do you mean “not for kids”?

Walk into any toy store or shopping center in Japan and you’ll find yourself faced with many of the “evergreen” titans of the anime industry: Ultraman, Dragon Ball, Pokémon, and more.

Yet, despite it’s massive resurgence in recent years, Sailor Moon is suspiciously missing from the toy aisles. Instead, you’re more likely to find this 90s kids’ entertainment colossus relegated to the stationary section, hobbyist stores, or even lingerie shops!

Today we’re going to look at a 2013 interview with chief manga editor Fumio ‘Osabu’ Osano and Sailor Moon’s voice actress Kotono Mitsuishi1  as they discuss how this transition happened along with some of their favorite memories from years gone by!

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Why Was the Sailor Moon Eternal Movie Delayed?

Sailor Moon Crystal Eternal -- Coming to Theaters September 11, 2020

Sailor Moon Eternal — Coming to Theaters September 11, 2020 January 8, 2021

Three years. Three very long years have passed since the initial June 30, 2017 announcement1 of the continuation of Sailor Moon Crystal. As we sped toward the third anniversary from the announcement, we found ourselves less than 100 days away from the long-awaited theatrical debut.

That was, of course, until the surprise June 18 announcement that the movie would be pushed back until January 2021.2

So how did we go from Sailor Moon‘s editor-for-life Fumio “Osabu” Osano announcing that we were moving full steam ahead toward a September 11 release3 to a 4 month delay, all in the span of a little over a week?

Today we’re going to take a deep dive into this troubled production and look into this most recent development. Whether you’re a die-hard fan of the 90s anime of a Sailor Moon Crystal devotee, there are some interesting insights for everyone!

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Sailor Moon Editor Fumio “Osabu” Osano Discusses the Series’ Creation (Part 3)

Sailor Moon: The Next Generation

Sailor Moon: The Next Generation

In this third and final installment, Ms. Takeuchi’s friend, editor, and partner-in-crime Fumio “Osabu” Osano goes deep and discusses the inspiration behind some of Sailor Moon‘s most pivotal scenes and the impact the series has had on society as a whole!

Don’t miss out on this rare behind-the-scenes look into the history of our favorite series!1

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Sailor Moon Editor Fumio “Osabu” Osano Discusses the Series’ Creation

The Sailor Team

The Sailor Team

Whether you’re a casual fan of the series or a dyed-in-the-wool Moonie, you have to admit that very few anime series do birthdays quite like the Sailor Moon franchise does.

The June 30, 2019 event was no different, with a slew of large announcements awaiting eager fans, including some tantalizing glimpses of the character art for the upcoming Sailor Moon Crystal movie, led by the 90s Sailor Moon art director veteran Kazuko Tadano, as well as information on a Sailor Moon ice show, cafe, and more.1

But in addition to offering this exciting images of Sailor Moon‘s future, we were also lucky enough to get a “behind the curtain” look at the creation of the series through the eyes of Naoko Takeuchi’s Nakayoshi editor, Fumio “Osabu” Osano, via an interview with the Japanese pop culture news site, Natalie.2

There’s a lot of interesting background information here that I wanted to share, so I decided to translate the whole interview across several parts. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

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What Does Naoko Takeuchi Credit for Sailor Moon’s Success?

Got a few questions here for Naoko...

Got a few questions here for Naoko…

As the writer of a Sailor Moon blog, invariably the day would come where I’d sit down and put pen to paper fingers to keyboard and weigh in on the “secret to Sailor Moon‘s popularity.” I thought that today would be that day.

But then I started to have second thoughts. Why should I write this?

Why don’t we just go straight to the source, and see what Ms. Takeuchi has to say for herself? With all the dozens (hundreds?) of interviews that she’s done over the years, she must have already answered this question, right?

And, as a matter of fact, she did!

Join me, dear readers, as we follow Ms. Takeuchi’s logic behind just what made Sailor Moon the raging success that we know it to be today!

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