Earlier this morning, Act 3 of Sailor Moon made its worldwide airing online, focusing on Sailor Mars, aka the brooding miko of the Hikawa shrine. And wouldn't you know it, it played out almost exactly like the manga.
When directly compared to the 90s anime, this take on Mars's first appearance is a bit more serious in tone although the essential plotlines of this episode remain intact. What it does differently however, is have Jadeite confront the Sailor Senshi directly. And furthermore, Jadeite's sexist demeanor that was prevalent in the 90s anime seems to have taken a backseat... but we'll get to that later.
As many fans know about the first appearance of Sailor Mars, an incident where the passengers of the 6PM bus on Sendai Hill went missing is the main problem in this scenario. And incidentally, the bus is near the Hikawa shrine, where Rei would often tell the fortunes of the patrons who willingly stop by. Since the incidents became consistent each day, some parents and neighbors became suspicious of Rei and accuse her of being the cause of these disappearances. However, Usagi - being the kind soul that she is - wants to believe otherwise. (On a side note, this is the second time Usagi's been entranced over another girl. In fact, a little TOO entranced this time around... XD)
Meanwhile, Jadeite is quickly losing favor from Queen Beryl after two screwups, and Nephrite makes an overshadowing appearance as an intended usurper. Queen Beryl then fills Jadeite in on the Silver Crystal briefly, and in turn Jadeite proposes to not only gather human energy, but lure all the Sailor Senshi to his trap in one fell swoop.
Before the main event in the second half of the show, we also get confirmation that Mamoru is in fact a high school student - as opposed to an older college student like in the 90s anime - during Usagi's unexpected run-in with him (again) inside the 6PM bus. Sailor Mars's transformation is every bit as nifty as the 90s anime, and so is her unique introductory pose. But the real kicker here is that right before the conflict begins and Jadeite has abducted Rei, Jadeite is ironically attracted to her. This pretty much is a foreshadowing of the Inner Senshi / Heavenly Kings shipping manga fans have familiarized themselves with by now. The four Heavenly Kings were once guardians of Prince Endymion, after all.
Despite this, Mars pretty much incinerates Jadeite, and the next episode is pretty much about Princess D, Nephrite's shadow, and the fruitless effort to find a Silver Crystal that is not there. Personally I'd skip it and wait 4 weeks for Sailor Jupiter. But my inner moonie tells me to remain a faithful viewer until the very end. Besides, Sailor Jupiter's first appearance in Sailor Moon Classic's this upcoming Monday, so that's something that'll keel me over. Either way, I think it's safe to say these 26 planned episodes will cover not only one, but two story arcs-- the Dark Kingdom AND the Black Moon. Not too shabby.
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