Picking up exactly where the previous episode left off - with Sailor Neptune and Uranus vanishing into the night - the mysterious frail girl manages to fully stand up, advise the gang to leave the academy as possible, and be on her way as well. But before she departed, Chibiusa wanted to know the name of the girl who healed her wound. With her somber emotion slowly growing to a smile, she revealed her name was Hotaru Tomoe. As a result, Chibiusa was taken aback by her sincere happy emotion, briefly entranced by how beautiful she looked when she smiled.
Opening credits roll.
In the basement area of the academy, Hotaru could be seen having another seizure, unable to walk or stand. A woman with long red hair in a lab coat rushes to her aid, calling her name in a familiar tone. However, Hotaru pushes away the woman in hostility, insisting she can get to her room by herself. It was that moment a tall, slender man appeared. He too was wearing a lab coat, and strangely designed spectacles, with one lens having a strange watermark of some kind. The red-haired woman acknowledged her as the professor, and Hotaru acknowledged him as her father. He insisted to Hotaru that the red-haired woman - whom he addressed as Kaori - only wished to take care of her since her mother passed away. Despite his father's kind words, Hotaru vehemently cursed her name, presuming her as a homewrecker who only wanted to suck up to the professor for personal gain.
Later that night, as Hotaru tried to rest in bed, Professor Tomoe appeared in her room with the intent of having a heart-to-heart, while asking if she's been taking proper treatment for her illness. Hotaru insisted that she has, but to no avail. As the professor rubs her head, Hotaru sharply reacts for some reason, then the professor reaches into his coat and takes out an amulet with a large crystal shaped like a flower before leaving. Shortly after, the illness Hotaru felt began to suddenly vanish. But Hotaru could still not get over the moment his father touched her. His hand was unnaturally cold...
Back at the command center in the basement of the Crown Arcade, Usagi and the gang round up all the information they've obtained from last night's events-- the confirmed identity of the two mysterious figures, and the strange girl Hotatu Tomoe. Meanwhile, Kaorinite - now confirmed to be Kaori's alter-ego - has taken a curiosity to Sailor Moon's source of power, the Silver Crystal. She believes it to possess a power similar to - if not greater - than their own Taioron Crystal, and if proven true, she believes it would please Pharaoh 90 to obtain it. However, she first tries to find meaning of the mysterious three lights which would bring forth a great destruction through the fountain mirror, but to no avail. Simultaneously, it seemed to trigger a dream Mamoru awakened from as soon as Kaorinite lost visual from the fountain mirror.
Elsewhere, Michiru was making a similar reading through her Deep Aqua Mirror, but also had a similar interference. Even so, she and Haruka both vowed to find all three talismans before the great destruction ever comes.
Mamoru goes to a library to do some research on the academy, with Michiru following and giving her input on the subject matter. At the same time, she offers free tickets to her violin concert. Meanwhile, Usagi runs into Haruka, and suspects she's a Sailor Senshi, despite looking like a male. Haruka playfully mocks Usagi, asking if she's into fighting games. Usagi's friends Ami, Minako, and Makoto intervene, thinking Haruka would cause harm to her. But Haruka took a hint and left.
Usagi ponders about Rei's absence, and Makoto explains that she went to the mountains for self-purification on her 15th birthday today. Concerned, the gang decides to visit her in the mountains. Kaorinite then decides to sortie Eudial for the next mission to eliminate the Sailor Senshi. Upon meeting Rei, a school training camp was conveniently taking place nearby, with Eudial recruiting new potential students for Mugen Academy.
Usagi and the gang decide to visit, observing a judo training session was taking place. To their surprise, Haruka was there too! It didn't take long before she began goading them into a judo match, where Makoto obliged, thinking it would be easy. However, Haruka proved to be much stronger than Makoto anticipated. Usagi's friends - thinking she was a male - believed she was being too aggressive on a lady. Haruka nonchalantly rebuttals with a sexist remark. Usagi and her friends then take their leave when Eudial suddenly appears on the scene.
That night, Eudial gathers the students outside, tricking them into a ritual that forced them to sacrifice their souls as Hostes for Pharaoh 90. Sailors Mars and Jupiter prevent this from happening, and a battle ensues, with Eudial setting the woods ablaze with her Fire Buster.
However, Sailor Moon brings Eudial's inferno to an end with the Moon Spiral Heart Attack, with the remaining Witches observing her death. Again, the mysterious Sailor that looked like Haruka appeared before Sailor Moon, and she was determined to catch her this time. Losing track of her briefly, the mysterious Sailor gets her attention by speaking to her. She then gives a warning to Sailor Moon:
"Don't get in our way. Fighting games are dangerous".
At that moment, the episode closes with the mysterious Sailor advancing toward Sailor Moon, giving her a passionate kiss on the lips.
It was that last quote in the end of the episode that kind of blew my mind. Knowing the franchise's history with fighting games, the most popular and competitively viable one was the Super Famicom version of Sailor Moon S. Here, Sailor Uranus is widely regarded as a top-tier character with all the perks that made her soundly superior to the rest of the cast. So to hear her say that in this game is quite ironic, and possibly a nod to the fighting game.
Overall, this show was extremely faithful to the manga, where the only notable - and much needed - change was how the battle with Eudial was executed. In the original manga, Eudial hardly used the Fire Buster as extensively as she did here, and when Sailor Mars used the Snake Fire, Eudial oddly transformed into a medusa. To this day, I never understood the logic behind that, and it kind of took away from whatever personality the villain could've had. Seeing this not happen in Crystal was a very smart move.
Once again the series delivers with an entertaining episode, and it can only get better from here, as the next episode will be focusing on not only my favorite villain of the Death Busters, but IMO one of my favorite Sailor Moon villains of all-time, Mimete. I can only wonder how creative they'll get with her time in the spotlight, since she only has one shot to make it count compared to the 90s anime (where she was many times more entertaining and funny). Please Toei, don't screw this up.
This week's episode is definitely a "Worth Watching" IMO.
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