[DreamSword]

Act 28

In terms of plot, you can tell Kobayashi wrote herself into a bit of a corner.

Main in terms of how, in order for the heroes to actually be able to win, she had to change the rules of how teleporting worked.

But despite that hiccup, this was an overall really strong finish to what I consider the second act of Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon as a whole. And almost made up for the small stumbles I felt it had entirely.

The episode is all about addressing the divide that's happened between the girls over these past handful of episodes, and more importantly, Amy's' feelings on both that, as well as her own guilt over what she'd done when under Malachite's' control. And true to her character, she's rather hard on herself over it.

There's alot of nice visual symbolism that goes along with this story too, such as the four girls literally breaching a divide in the episode's' climax, resulting in them getting a team attack to beat the monster of the week with. And, more on the more subtle side, there's Amy and Serena wearing eachother's' colors, symbolizing them reinforcing their bond.

That all said, I think the thing I appreciated most was the ultimate lesson when it came this episode, which is one that the show has said before, but it's emphasized here: Friendships take effort. Sure, there are going to stumbles along the way, and everyone can't be together and on the same page 100% of the time, but so long as everyone is willing to put in just the smallest bit of understanding, true bonds will shine through, and work wonders for all involved.

PGSM absolutely stuck the landing on the end of this arc. Bravo.

[DreamSword]

Act 29

There's kinda not much to say about this one.

And I very much mean that. The episode is very much just the intro to the next arc and nothing else.

There's a new girl at school. She's a manipulative jerk. There's a monster attack. Lita and Amy are training to awaken more of their powers. That's... that's honestly it when it comes to the episode.

It wasn't a bad time by any means, but outside of a brief scene of Darien in London(who knew Ibuki could speak English? I sure didn't.), it just very much was serving the purpose of getting the plot a kickstart. And it does that, so uh, good job, I guess?

[DreamSword]

Act 30

A story is more than just its message.

If there's one commonality that I've seen when it comes to people who review tokusatsu, it's that they'll typically focus on the message and nothing else.

And as someone himself who's done that with specific episodes of shows he's talked about, I get it. When you see a show really speak to your personal philosophy, it's easy to feel seen and enlightened.

But if all you care about is the message, go to a seminar.

I watch TV shows primarily for entertainment. Not to get preached to, not to advertise my own personal philosophy, not to prove how smart something is.

Not to mention, I've always felt that, if the message really is the most important thing in the eyes of the viewer, shouldn't the execution also matter? People can preach how bad it is to kick puppies all they want, but if they're kicking a puppy while doing so? Kind of a bad look.

Case in point, this episode has a message that puts it ahead of its time: Showcasing the dangers of mob mentality and blind faith in someone of fame. As well as just how rabid fandom can be.

Sure enough, I really dug that aspect of it. But it came at the major cost of Serena being out of character in order to not only make it work, but also continue to drag on the plot with the manipulative idol come the episode's' resolution. Yeah, Serena is empathetic and naiive, but not to the point that she'd turn a blind eye to very blatant wrongdoings.

Yeah, I liked the overall episode well enough, but plot should almost never come at the cost of characterization, and it's the sort of mistake I'm not used to seeing in Kobayashi's' works. Yet, this version of Sailor Moon has had multiple examples now, and typically for the sake of melodrama. It's the sort of thing I moreso expect from Inoue; who in alot of ways I see has Kobayashi's' opposite in terms of style.

So, yeah. It's the sort of episode wherein you need to choose which aspects you want to prioritize, and it leaves me with some mixed feelings.

[DreamSword]

Act 31

My biggest issue with this episode is that I don't know what it's trying to say.

It's the episode where Lita finally gets the power up that every other Sailor Scout has gotten up to now, and at first, it seems to be set up similar to Raye, in that she needs to experience something new in order to awaken.

But then instead, the climax of the episode involves her accepting that she'll always be ultimately alone in the world, and that gives her newfound power.

Which, if you don't want that lesson to be completely depressing, you could maybe interpret it as her fully leaping into independence from her family and/or past troubles. But even then that's less of her gaining something new and moreso just reinforcing a mentality she'd already had in the past.

And yet, at the same time, the last thing she thinks about before becoming more powerful and gaining her self-actualization is Motoki, the guy she just spent the day on a date with. Which, given some dialogue earlier in the episode, got me thinking that Lita was learning to accept love from others rather than walling herself off, but no, walling herself off is apparently the correct course.

So yeah, I have no idea what was trying to be conveyed with Jupiter's' arc here. I didn't mind the journey; Her and Motoki made for good starts in this one. It's just that the ending left me very confused. But hey, I finally got my wish for Lita to be on the same page as everyone else, I guess.

Oh, and the plot with the Generals gained a small step forward, but more on that next episode, I assume.

[DreamSword]

Act 32

A warning, when it comes to the subs I've been using for this thread.

I've been using the Miss Dream subs, which for the majority of this show, have been pretty solid. A typo here or there, but nothing terrible.

But uh, I don't know if they got a new translator halfway through the project or what, but ever since a few episodes the quality of these subs has been deteriorating more and more with each episode.

It was very, very noticeable and a little distracting with this episode, to the point that I seriously wonder if anyone even proofread the script. And it's a shame, because this was otherwise a pretty nice episode about resolve and how much you let the past dictate your future.

Everyone is starting to get the memories of their past lives back, and the cast is split between those who believe in following the destiny set by their previous existences and those who feel they change fate and carve their own future. Notably, Darien is one of those who takes the subversive route; following the love that Prince Darien had for Princess Serenity but not wanting the world to die.

Because it's not just the heroes who are torn up in this way; The villains are every bit as broken up about the situation too. And that made the overhanging question all the more powerful to me.

Oh, and there's a plot about Gai from Kamen Rider Ryuki treating Serena like garbage under the false promise of taking her to London to see Darien, but that's the less important part.

Cool episode all around though.

[DreamSword]

Act 33

Despite being the first piece of a two-parter, I really dug this one.

Uniquely, it's not so much a one-on-one between Amy and Raye as it is them both being caught in the same situation with their parents.

And on a character building aspect, I really liked how this episode showcased the different ways the two process the wrongdoings of their parents and their ways of dealing with it all.

Not helping is that both parents involved are genuinely horrible. Amy's' mother is the sort of "soothing" passive-aggressive parent who gaslights through conflicting words and actions, while Raye's' father is much more direct and physically aggressive. And neither of them properly owe up to their mistakes.

I felt the episode really did do a great job at carrying the weight of how heavy these kinds of burdens that some children face are. There's no sudden jokes to ruin the mood, no last minute save that makes everything in the conflict suddenly resolved with no hard feelings; just sheer, raw emotion in the face of adversity. And I respect the episode for that.

It's such a shame that storytelling like this has fallen to the wayside in recent years.

[DreamSword]

Act 34

Mixed feelings on this one.

On the one hand, where this episode really shines is that it gives us a one-on-one with Raye and Amy.

Just like with the previous episode, I dug how their situations mirrored one another, and with this being the second half of the story, we get the added bonus of the two bonding together directly.

But on the other hand, the way both stories end... I'm not a fan. With Raye's' father especially, who seems to just be easily forgiven and, in my eyes, no way deserves it. Atleast with Amy's' mother, we got the scene of her seeing the photos of Amy with her friends. Nothing like that with Raye's' dad.

It all just feels a bit too easily wrapped up. I get the overall themes of forgiveness and understanding, but I just can't bring myself to accept the dad's' answer of "I work alot, deal with it." That scene at the end with Raye looking at the photo of her father in solidarity just really rubbed me the wrong way. "Accept being a cog in the machine" isn't exactly a good message, I feel.

But the ending(s) aside, I did realy enjoy everything else that this episode had to offer, and I can't bring myself to be full on mad at it. It could've been way better, sure, but it has enough going for it that I wouldn't really blame anyone if they said they were fully into it.

[DreamSword]

Act 35

Mina finally accepts the love between Serena and Darien.

It's a very simple and to the point concept, but it's overall executed pretty well. Especially since this is also a major plot progression episode.

While arguably Venus is the main focus, and her time with her Princess is all handled well enough, I was far more intrigued by the villains this time around, since they get a healthy amount of screen time too.

More of Beryl's' backstory and motives get revealed, and the case of how each General is handling their past lives gets a big highlight. And adding onto that, I loved the little bit of irony of Jadeite using a pair of ice daggers to fight in this one. If you know, you know.

It's a simple tale, but a well done one.