The latest episode of Sailor Moon Crystal Season 3, “Act 30: Infinity 4 - Haruka Tenoh, Michiru Kaioh – Sailor Uranus, Sailor Neptune,” keeps up the laughs, feels and thrills as the girls uncover more links between the Death Busters and Mugen Academy. (Yep, the title-making formula could use a rework.)
The story picks up immediately after Uranus and Neptune’s introductions from last week, with Uranus making it very clear the two of them do not wish to be Sailor Moon’s allies. With that, Neptune takes out her violin and plays a melody that incapacitates everyone (yes, it’s in the manga, but that doesn’t make it less of a head-scratcher). As the girls protest, Uranus unleashes a World Shaking attack right at a gobsmacked Sailor Moon.
Usagi wakes up unharmed at the base underneath Crown Game Center, where Luna and Artemis explain that the Outer Senshi had little to do with the Moon Kingdom in the past, tasked mainly with guarding the outer reaches of the solar system from invaders. The girls resign themselves to fighting Uranus and Neptune if they must, but Usagi remains conflicted.
The following afternoon, Haruka sneaks up on Usagi and flirts with her some more. While it’s a bit odd there’s no mention of the unprovoked attack that left Usagi unconscious, it’s easy to forget in the face of all the simmering chemistry between these two. “Stop stalking me on my way home,” Haruka says, “or I’ll grab you and eat you.” Rattled, Usagi asks if Haruka/Sailor Uranus is male or female. Haruka responds by getting all up in Usagi’s business, and just when it seems there’s another kiss in the offing, Mamoru interrupts the moment. Haruka leaves and Usagi bursts into tears.
Later, Chibiusa tells the other girls that she is working on an art project, building a clay model of the Holy Grail, owned by her mom, Neo Queen Serenity. In an adorable montage, she gets a bit nostalgic for home and misses her mom. Mako affectionately pats her on the head, and the girl runs off to Mamoru’s to get his help on her project.
Awkward silence prevails at Mamoru’s as Chibiusa comes in with her project. Mamoru explains more about the Holy Grail, and Chibiusa asks Usagi to stay and help as well. Happy to see them getting along again, the girl falls asleep. Usagi embraces Mamoru, admitting she was jealous when she saw him chatting with Michiru. Mamo confesses that he struggles seeing his girlfriend/future wife/past-life secret lover all in a dither over Haruka. It’s refreshing to see the two of them talk and act like people in a real relationship, instead of simply coasting on the whole “Miracle Romance” established in the first season. It’s also nice to see Mamo do something other than babysit Small Lady and furrow his brow… even though he’s actually doing both in this scene. The couple kiss and he tells Usagi to stay over. OoooOOOooo! It’s shades of the swoon-worthy high romance of Sailor Moon Season 1, until you remember Usagi is 14 and their daughter from the future is in the same room (and is clearly not really asleep), which actually makes it all super gross.
The next day at Juban Junior High, Ami has come in first place on the latest exam. She mentions wanting to meet Yui Bido, her rival that consistently beats her results. Things get a little confusing here, honestly: how can Yui do better when Ami consistently gets perfect scores? Why does Yui show up at Juban right at that moment, even though she’s clearly a Mugen student? Anyway, Yui is obviously evil from her eyebrows alone, and invites Ami for a “trial enrollment” at Mugen with a openly sinister expression on her face. So “genius girl” Ami agrees and goes there immediately.
We learn that Yui is one of the Witches 5, Viluy, and that Mugen Academy has classes where you can build a Sailor Senshi-detecting “miniature universe” the size of a small glass case. Neat! Ami destroys a security camera with a remarkably well-tossed pen and bolts straight for the curiously well-marked monster experiment lab, where she learns the daimons they’ve been fighting for the last month are being produced at the school. Viluy shows up, getting her zombie minions to brainwash Ami with a computer, marking the second time Ami’s nearly been brainwashed in an evil computer lab; the first was when she became Sailor Mercury in Season 1. Haruka and Michiru give the hench-students a clobbering and allow Ami to escape.
Ami jumps out a window into a pool (who knew she had it in her?!) and transforms as she careens down. No transformation scene, she just leaps out of the water as Sailor Mercury. It’s an awesome moment. Unfortunately, the badassery is very short-lived: Viluy attacks hard, makes some quality villain faces, and Mercury never really lands a shot. The others show up in the nick of time, but it seems like a wasted opportunity to see Ami hold her own for once.
Viluy summons more of the daimon monsters, but just as the girls brace for a fight, Haruka and Michiru step into the fray. You know what that means: it’s time for the Uranus and Neptune transformation sequences! They're basically shot-for-shot remakes of the 90s versions: not as thrilling as they could have been, but given the fan backlash that greeted Seasons 1 and 2 of Sailor Moon Crystal, it’s easy to understand why the creators have gotten a bit gun-shy about moving too far away from the original anime. Anyway, Uranus reveals she possesses the second of the three talismans, the Space Sword, which she uses to wipe out Viluy and the daimons in a single blow. This marks the second episode this season where Sailor Moon doesn’t kill the enemy -- yay for variety! Neptune and Uranus bolt immediately after the battle.
In the brief final scene at K.O. University, we’re treated to cameos of some familiar faces. First is Motoki, erstwhile smock-clad employee of Crown Game Center, and his (girl?)friend Reika. He invites her out for drinks, but she’s busy. (Implied “intimacies” AND adult beverages in Sailor Moon? Scandalous!) Moments later, Reika introduces herself to the new, green-haired theoretical physics student: it’s Setsuna, the guardian of space-time, Sailor Pluto!
This was another strong episode for Sailor Moon Crystal, though the weakest thus far of a very solid third season. The pacing throughout felt odd: Ami and Yui’s acquaintance felt hasty and poorly explained, and the battle with Viluy seemed rushed, if refreshingly low on stock footage. While the transformations of Uranus and Neptune didn’t disappoint, they didn’t exactly thrill, either, and the new music has nothing on the classic Outers Theme. (Space Sword Buster looks fantastic though, a huge improvement over the original.)
Shortcomings aside, Sailor Moon Crystal Season 3 continues to get a lot of things right. The writers are doing a great job of making Chibiusa a sweet, endearing girl instead of an obnoxious little snot. They’ve also allowed us to explore the girls’ personalities a bit more closely, revealing Minako’s love of girly-girl things last week and Ami’s competitive, sleuthy side in the latest episode. Going forward, it would be pretty swell to move past the Usagi/Haruka flirtation and dig more deeply into the Haruka/Michiru relationship: apart from her weird violin solo, Michiru didn’t have much to do this week. Season 3 has also notably pushed the envelope when it comes to the battle scenes, dropping transformations here and there, and not adhering with absolute strictness to the “Sailor Moon must defeat EVERY villain” formula. It would be lovely if the writers and animators continue this trend in the future; not to say they should change the milestones of a tried and true story, but some little surprises about how we get to those milestones could really add to the fun.
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New episodes of Sailor Moon Crystal debut Mondays on Hulu, Crunchyroll and Viz.com.
What did you think of Uranus and Neptune’s transformations? Did you like the peppy new song for the end credits? Let us know in the comments!
