Monday, January 24, 2011

Random Monday Moonbit - Is There a Generation Gap When it Comes to Sailor Moon and PGSM?

So, we don’t know what surprises this week is going to bring in terms of licensing news. Maybe there will be nothing? Sailor Moon news of this kind tends to come in short bursts for a few weeks and then it disappears for a while. We came across an editorial in the Japanese news over the weekend that featured a very interesting thought about the Sailor Moon anime in comparison to PGSM. The article is called “Is Sailor Moon = Drama? How Do 20-Year-Olds Feel The Generation Gap To Their Juniors?” and is written by blogger Yae Onoda. She asked various people in their 20s about the fads of today that are popular with youth, and if they felt that things were any different for them when they were that age. A 26-year old was asked about Sailor Moon, and she definitely felt a generation gap. She watched the cartoon as a child, but her little sister was in high school when PGSM was broadcast. She thought that the drama was definitely a departure from the anime, and wanted to "punish it in the name of the Moon!" She likened PGSM to the Sailor Moon anime as new artists covering old songs that were popular. She felt that those fans who were attached to the anime, would likely be frustrated with PGSM. Fans, do you agree that there is a generation gap between PGSM and the Sailor Moon anime? Leave your thoughts below!

14 comments:

Anonymous said...

I'm a 22 year old dude, and I totally agree that there is a generation gap with Sailor Moon and PGSM. The PGSM drama is so different from the original manga and the anime that fans like me have conflicting views about it. Not only did they change the plot, they also "updated" it, replacing the communicator watches and henshin pens/broaches with cell phones and necklaces, and replacing the arcade with a magic karaoke room.

corinne said...

I grew up loving the anime (I'm 27 now), but I was really excited when I heard about the live action, and I thought it was super fun! Yes, it was different, but it was a new way to see more of the thing I already loved, and...it was brightly colored. That's pretty key to my enjoyment of things=P
Plus some of the guys were pretty cute!

Sakky said...

I'm 26 and loved PGSM! I've watched it many times. I really liked the updates they did to the story and the way the minor characters got more development. Some of the story changes took some time getting used to, but with Sailormoon I'm already so used to widely varying stories so that in and of itself did not bother me.

xXPrettyNekoXx said...

I'm 21 years old and I loved PGSM. The updates made it modern and appealed to the new generation. The only things I didn't like was the looks of the Shittenuo, Sailor Luna's attacks and that they lose their powers at the end because their not truly the princess and senshi(s). Think of PGSM as a fanfiction, another take/story just like the musicals. Maybe the Japanese feel differently because of the gap since SM was more mainstream than in America

Anonymous said...

I'm 26 years old and I love all forms of Sailor Moon. PGSM was a great twist on something that is considered classic. The changes in the story were interesting and kept me going and I personally loved the new henshin bracelets. To me it made more sense than the pens they carried around. Only thing, imo, that PGSM could have done better were the fights scenes lol.

June said...

I'm 19, and I remember watching Sailor Moon every day after school about 7 and 8. I still watch the entire series over and over again, especially after just finding the episodes of Sailor Stars on Youtube. It wasn't until very recently that I stumbled across PGSM, and at first I thought it was very campy. It really, really irked me, its campy-ness. However, I heard such rave reviews about the live-action drama that I forced myself to try it, and after getting over the general campy atmosphere of the show, I really liked it. At first, it was quite a bit closer to the original manga than the anime was, but then it took its own direction. I really like it, sometimes even more than the anime, which at times feels like I'm watching the same episode over and over again, just with a new youma to overcome. I also really liked the addition of Sailor Luna, who was so cute!

Unknown said...

As someone who discovered Sailor Moon through PGSM at first, I have to say that while I do respect the anime as the original TV adaptation, I think PGSM got a few things right, the Shittenou (in my opinion anyway) were a lot cooler and actually had something to do with the story.

But for the most part it was just really goofy and weird. Especially the ballerina-fu fight scenes and OH GOD SAILOR LUNA, MY EYES, and killing off Minako D:

As for the cell phones and karaoke and whatnot, what remake doesn't update things like that? Look at Tron Legacy or Flubber or I Robot or any other modern remake or distant sequel compared to the originals. They're all updated to reflect the modern world. PGSM is no different in that regard.

fighter4luv said...

Very much not a fan of the anime. I feel it kinda ruined the series. It wasn't enough like the anime to make it awesome - and it wasn't even closer to the manga... I'll always be a manga/anime fan only.

Anonymous said...

I really love both, but if they ever do another live action i want to see a lot of drama, and action. i love the soap opera feel of pgsm it just needed a tone down on the cutenes.I think the minako illness plot was awesome it made her a more tough less dumb blonde character i loved pgsms minako way more that the anime ver.

Unknown said...

I'm 23 and I grew up loving the anime but I did enjoy PGSM, partially I suppose the differences didn't bother me as much because of being a fan of the Sailor Moon Musicals which certainly went their own directions sometimes. I've also shared PGSM with some younger people who are now big Sailor Moon fans so in a way the generation gap worked in Sailor Moon's favor with them. The only things that I really disliked (and funnily enough the younger fans did as well) were Sailor Luna, annoying Minako (and her dying), and Kuroki Mio. Classic Beryl is so much cooler. Best thing about PGSM for me? Character development of the Shitennou. Love them!

Sailor Auron said...

I'm 25 (almost 26), and I enjoy the anime and PGSM. I've seen dubbed and subbed Sailor Moon, but I enjoy the freshness of PGSM.
Probably the only thing I didn't like about it was Jupiter's portrayal and actress (She wasn't
ugly, but she wasn't how I would picture Mako). Jupiter's story felt boring and rehashed. I didn't like all that 'I must be alone forever' crap either. Depressing!!
I felt much more attatched to Mars in PGSM because you just felt for her. Anyway, yes there is a generation gap between the two shows, but that's to be expected and does not mean it has to be bad. If you like one over the other, whatever. You like what you like.

Anonymous said...

I am a 19 year old guy, and I will admit, Sailor Moon was my favorite show when I was little. Despite this, I like the live-action show a lot better. It developed a lot of the characters better, and was much closer to the original manga, yet was much better-suited for children to watch than the anime (kids in Japan allegedly got sick watching the Senshi die in the anime.) I also love (and love to hate) Mio (and only love Alisa DuBrow). I wish she appeared in more continuities.

Anonymous said...

I am well under 20 and know sailormoon because I watched the g rated versin Ytv in Kindergarden but got hooked on it again after watching the normal Japenese subbed version on youtube(much better).I also at this time checked out the pgsm.Sailormoon psgm could of been changed and updated so more people my age could watch it. But there changes are all wrong.+ the costumes never look as nice as they did in the Anime/Manga. It a different take and being in highschool I still prefer the origanalal version. If I saw the pgsm first I would not like sailormoon. To pgsm:good try

Anonymous said...

I am 26 year old female from the USA who grew up with Sailor Moon and still love the anime to this day. I was very hesitant about PGSM, but after a few years of it being out I gave it a chance and watched it. Is it different from the anime? Yes. BUT I think it's a GOOD thing. I love PGSM, and although I will forever cherish the anime, I can almost say I enjoy watching PGSM more just because the plot line is more complex ( and surprising!)and I adore all the characters. I love a show where at the end, you can't really tell who really is the bad guy or good guy. Plus it's funny! It makes me feel many emotions, so I can say I love both! I can almost guarantee all the PGSM haters have never sat down and watched the whole series beginning to end.