Moon Chase Mother’s Day Special: Thanks Again, Naoko!

Today is Mother’s Day, and to our readers who are mothers, and the mothers of our readers, the staff wishes you a very Happy Mother’s Day! We also can’t forget about Sailor Moon’s “mother” (and mother of two herself), Naoko Takeuchi. Naoko, we also wish you a very Happy Mother’s Day, and will wait as long as it takes for a complete release of the Sailor Moon anime. For those of you in Japan, once again the orange Sailor Moon Carnations are in high demand for Mother's Day despite a decrease in their supply! You can spot them in this photo from the Chunichi Shimbun in the back, being packed by a florist.

On this Mother’s Day, we have a couple short Naoko updates to share. One is that last week, Sailor Moon Channel was updated to feature character profiles of all the Senshi (except for the Starlights), as well as a story page. The art on these pages is all from the manga. If there is enough demand from the fans, we may translate these pages beginning later this week (though we will always translate anything she posts on her front page, news, and photo sections).

The second update is that there was a small mention of Naoko Takeuchi in the Shenzhen Daily about a month ago. The article is a reaction to the Earthquake and how at the time it was unknown if many mangaka had survived (as well as rumors of their perish). It then took a happier tone and spoke of how anime in China is as popular as Chinese, South Korean, American, and Taiwanese dramas. The author also writes that anime is second-to-none compared to animation from the rest of the world. There is some mention of Naoko’s husband, Yoshihiro Togashi and the new animated adaptation of Level E, and his ongoing manga series Hunter x Hunter. His work will continue and never be forgotten. We’ll spare you of the descriptions of the other two paragraphs which are gossipy in tone, and lash out at him for taking the fans for granted. Naoko Takeuchi is named by this author as the greatest contributor to girls’ manga (which began in 1963), and was the mangaka who opened the door for Chinese girls to love anime featuring girl superheroes and romance (despite her limited repertoire of work). At first, girls 8-16 years old would be the only ones reading these comics, but slowly men and women now appreciate them. The author even goes on to say that the girls’ anime industry in Japan is the most widely used class!

Fans can check out our most recent translations of Naoko’s updates here, here, and here.

Sailor Moon soon to be back in Hong Kong! (and Other Toei Licensing News)

A big thanks to Senshi for letting us know about this! The evidence is very good that Sailor Moon will be back on the air in Hong Kong on Friday August 13th at 6:00PM! It will be showing on TVB J2 which is targeted toward teens, and shows teen dramas, entertainment and music programs and many of the latest anime in order to compete with fansubs.

Normally we would not post anything of this nature without a press release, but the evidence in this case is pretty solid. (We're sorry to the companies involved in this case, but we are quite sure this is legitimate.) You can find the show on their schedule here. (Click on the 13th and scroll down to 6PM to find "美少女戰士" which is Sailor Moon! We searched both Google and Baidu (China's biggest search engine; even bigger than Google in China) and came up with no official press release, nor did TVB have anything posted about it other than the schedule itself.

There are also at least two commercials for J2 this month about or including Sailor Moon! You can see them here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VQBhbNgXEQc
&
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JBdjPvSK0EU

As for news we can definitely confirm, I'll let Sailordees take over for a bit:

Hey Moonies! Sailordees here – taking some time out of my very busy schedule to congratulate the team at Sentai Filmworks, for getting the license for an older Toei Animation title, Ghost Sweeper Mikami. This marks the first title that this company has gotten a license from Toei Animation since ADV broke apart into this new venture.

Ghost Sweeper Mikami is just about as old as Sailor Moon’s anime and is about a team of specialists hired to sweep Japan of ghosts since overpopulation is forcing them to live with the living. This should be a good title to check out for all our readers who like watching older series. Sentai Filmworks currently has pay-TV, per-per-view and DVD rights to all 45 episodes in North America!

Sailor Moon in Japan (and Asia) Digest - Mid June 2010

Most of these articles are coming out of China! In the only newsbit out of Japan this update, a hi-res SuperS Boxart image has been revealed to the press. The cover features all of the main characters and Diana against a golden-colored background! While this isn't set to come out until September, already this release is starting to pop up in articles in relation to that other series that the media always seems to place in a war with it - Pretty Cure.

Ikuni Lectures in Beijing!

We told you at the end of May about a special lecture series that Kunihiko Ikuhara (Series Director) was going to kick off. People's Daily of China posted an article detailing what happened at his lecture! He began by talking about the general process of animation, and said that successful anime has high ratings, which in turn leads to high sponsorship, and the money earned by the anime funds more production. According to Ikuni, there are many Japanese anime studios that experience a lot of headaches because of high prodution costs. And then, he began to speak of Usagi Tsukino, as a real example of the successful career woman. This struck us as odd, but as we read on he said that this was true because many women want to be everything but it is hard for them to be it all during their life. Usagi, was an example of how she was happy herself with everything she was.Back when the anime was first broadcast, it was controversial for females to be depicted in miniskirts. Ikuni said that they wanted to show the girls as being uniquely female, and said that this was more about females exposing their femininity without the need for anything from males. This alone is a pretty strong sentiment about Sailor Moon and her feminist themes! He also talked about the differences between Japanese anime and animation from the USA and how they had portrayed girls. In the 90s, many women were still at home in Japan and not in the workforce, but in the USA it was so much different - women were almost equal in number to men in the working world! There was more of a diversity among women's professions in America than there were in Japan, so Sailor Moon was seen a lot differently from an American girl's perspective than a Japanese girl's perspective that focused more on the kind of "magic" she could use. We're actually a little curious about this and we'd like to know how he knows all of this!

He then shifted gears and spoke of the state of the Japanese animation industry. He said that anime is produced mainly for two extremes in programming blocks in Japan - the weekend morning blocks for children, and the late night block. Advertisers and sponsors also have their preferences for which anime they want to support. Toy manufacturers and food/grocery companies choose the weekend morning blocks, and film companies choose the late night blocks to advertise upcoming cinema and DVD releases since a much larger consumer base watches in this timeslot. He notes that while the anime that airs in these two time blocks are no different and don't really appeal to different age groups, that it is the sponsors who think that there is a difference. He also calls for change in the anime industry, that a new business model needs to be adopted in the face of copyright issues and international popularity. He hopes that the latter will help to inspire different kinds of anime productions.

At the end of the article, special mention is made that Sailor Moon was created by Naoko Takeuchi, and was a huge it in Japan, the USA, and Europe. This show changed the face of cartoon transformations forever around the world, and charmed girls all over. The introduction of the Sailor Moon anime in China was also highly popular.

We have also come across some more images of the lecture as well! Up to now we had thought that the cosplayers were just there to present him the roses at the end and to just come up on stage. But these photos tell a different story: these cosplayers were actually students at the lecture! We especially love the shot of Sailor Mercury in deep thought at her desk! Unfortunately, the source of these images had only the tiny thumbnails for free (larger, hi-res images are only given to paying members of the Chinese press). You can see these images below!

Sailor Moon Cosplayers Rock Shanghai World Expo!

We hope Hebe Tien was there to see this! On June 13th at the Shanghai World Expo, a special event was held during the Expo's Japan Week to celebrate anime and cosplay. The Contents Festival (or CoFesta for short) featured one very special act! 10 cosplayers from Shanghai donned their best Sailor Moon costumes and performed to a medley of songs from Sailor Moon! There was also a portable shrine just like the one seen in the popular anime Lucky☆Star! More than 3000 people attended CoFesta, and the crowds stretched right up to the roadside. When the Sailor Moon cosplayers came to perform, many of the youngsters in the audience got up and sang along! A senior student at the Expo commented that anime and manga make anyone feel like being cute. Sailor Moon is all about peace, friendship, and unity, and this is a good message to convey to people coming to the Expo. There is so much more in store for Japan Week!

This celebration actually began on the Saturday night before, and featured singer 22-year-old singer Ichiro Mizuki (not the same Ichiro Mizuki as this one) singing a Yoko Ishida song, and the renowned actress Kuroyanagi Tetsuko appearing in an angel costume that the audience thought was cute! And speaking of cosplay, at Nanjing University there was a Cosplay Elite Championship held on June 14th. Ten of the best cosplay teams competed at this event and one of them was devoted to Sailor Moon!

And boy do we have a treat for you! One of our readers in Shanghai, Chen Lien-hua, was kind enough to send us a lot of fan videos of the event which we have uploaded to our Sevenload page. We have to say, that these cosplayers did a very good job performing their Sailor Moon medley for the world to see! The videos are posted below.

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And finally, a writer has decided to share their favorite toys from after the 80s in honor of the 61st International Children's Day! Some of the merchandise in her collection is obviously not official, but we're sure you'll find something you've never seen before!

Sailor Moon in Japan Digest - Early June 2010

We’re retiring the old News from the Other Side of the Pond titles and are instead bringing in a new Sailor Moon in Japan Digest title. Mainly because, now Sailor Moon mentions in Japanese media are coming in packs (when they do).

An Article Comparing the Success of Pretty Cure to Sailor Moon in Japan (Again)

Once again, the Mainichi Shimbun has posted an article about Pretty Cure’s 7th year, and this time questions the roots of the series. Sailor Moon is mentioned as the first anime that started the trend of girl superheroes, but the article does not go without making a few controversial remarks about Sailor Moon. Fans can read an English version of the article here. Among the things that really struck a chord with us:

☽ Takashi Washio, a producer with Toei Animation comments: "We wanted to portray girls who don't depend on other people, but always try to help others, the main characters are working hard towards their dreams, and we wanted audiences to see that as a cool thing." Fine. Sailor Moon may have been dependent on Tuxedo Kamen to provide that crucial blow to weaken the enemy so she could use her “ultimate weapon”, but aside from that situation, every other character ALWAYS tried to help others. There were so many moments in the series where each of the Senshi were caught in a tough situation on their own. They handled it as best they could, until Sailor Moon could come and save the day. And don’t act like the girls of Pretty Cure aren’t dependent on each other either – they all have to unite for their “ultimate weapon” too.

☽ Akinori Takada, a media theory at Ferris University comments: "'Sailor Moon' tried to work its charms on men, but 'Pretty Cure' is different. I think that audiences have responded to the representation of independent girls fighting and solving problems." Sailor Moon didn't primarily try to work its charms on men. While the show did implore a few things to get guys to watch it, it was still at the end of the day an anime that was made for girls, and made to appeal to girls. And, audiences responded to much of the same things back in Sailor Moon’s day too, this doesn’t make Pretty Cure all that different at all.

☽ And finally, a comment from Ryota Fujitsu, 41, an anime critic: "Pretty Cure" focuses on the importance of friendship, and what sets it apart from "Sailor Moon" is the lack of romantic side plots. "The protagonists are cute, but they don't flaunt their sex appeal, because the anime portrays girls who are vibrant and enjoying life, audiences are able to watch comfortably." Uhh, there have been some romantic side plots involved with Pretty Cure, since many of the girls had crushes on guys (and vice versa). Nagisa had a crush on Fuji-pi, in the first season, Kento-kun had a crush on Inori last season, and those are just two examples. Sailor Moon focused on the importance of friendship just as much (if not more) than Pretty Cure did. Of course, we also think the protagonists of Pretty Cure have their own sex appeal, but we think we've written enough for this post.

Pretty Cure has a lot more in common with Sailor Moon than the people in this article think it does. While we think Pretty Cure has it’s own charm, just because it has had more movies and a much longer run than Sailor Moon, doesn’t bring it close to the legacy Sailor Moon continues to have in the hearts of anime fans all over the world.

Japanese Schoolgirl Confidential Hits Shelves in Japan, On Way Here Soon!

Gigazine posted a review of Brian Ashcraft (Senior Contributing Editor of Kotaku.com) and his wife Shoko Ueda’s book, Japanese Schoolgirl Confidential: How Teenage Girls Made a Nation Cool. There is also a translation posted on their English site here. In there is a chapter dealing with sailor-style uniforms for any otaku wishing to learn more about how they came to be popular, as well as a section on comic icons which largely seems to focus on Sailor Moon! This book looks like it would be a great read, and we look forward to bringing you a few exclusives ahead of the book’s North American release in August. Brian also told us that he interviewed someone very close to Naoko Takeuchi for this book and we can’t wait to read what they had to say! However, those of you that can’t wait to purchase the book in stores in North America, you can import this book from Japan – it’s published in English there!

People Surprised by Character Ages!

Japan’s biggest social bookmarking site Hatena ran a special feature last week about the ages of different popular characters in anime, manga, and video games. While some people expected that Sailor Moon was around 14 years old, many were surprised by the age of some other favorites! Nintendo’s Mario is around 25, Hiroshi Nohara is thought to be around 35, and Bakabon’s father from the old favorite Tensai Bakabon is around 41. Some ages of these characters were unexpected by Hatena users, but nonetheless a lot of people were interested to find out what the ages of their favorite characters might be.

And to Cap...

Later this week we will talk more about Kunihiko Ikuhara's recent trip to China, but for now here are a few images from the People's Daily of Ikuni in action! We think he needs at the very least, a top hat, a mask, and a cape in that last picture to go with that big bouquet of roses... just sayin' ;)!

Kunihiko Ikuhara and Other Japanese Pop Culture Scholars to Lecture in China!

Breaking yesterday on AnimeAnime.jp was a press release from Meiji University. Beginning on May 31st at China's Peking University, a new course called "Advanced Course in Japanese Manga Culture" will be offered. This course will teach students about many aspects of Japanese pop culture, and will feature lectures from people involved in the study of Japanese pop culture. To kick things off will be a lecture about the history of anime, presented by none other than Kunihiko "Ikuni" Ikuhara (Series Director). Throughout the years, Ikuni has participated in panels and lectures on the subject. Other lecturers who will be teaching the course will include two Professors from Meiji University, Kaichirou Morikawa (Associate Professor specializing in Otaku Culture) and Yukari Fujimoto (Associate Professor specializing in Manga Culture). Both of these professors have published many scholarly articles about anime and manga cultures! Don't we all wish we could go to this classroom? If any of our Chinese readers are planning to attend this course, we'd love to hear about this course!

S.H.E. Likes Sailor Moon!

Taiwanese Pop Group S.H.E is on a mission to help girls and women find the heroines within themselves! In March, the trio released their 12th album called Shero, and the title track is even being used as the official theme song of the 2010 Taipei International Flora Expo. Fans can check out the music video for Shero here and a translation of the lyrics. On May 12th, an event was held in Shanghai, China, to celebrate the release of Shero there, and the trio was presented with special tickets to attend the World Expo 2010 in Shanghai. They are looking forward to attending the Expo and also meeting their fans after a long time! Leading up to this event was a campaign in China to encourage everyone to "Find their Heroine" and the girls were asked who their heroines were. Selina Jen chose the sweet, sexy, and charming Catwoman, because she matched her straightforward and lively personality. Ella Chen chose the "superwoman" Mrs. Incredible/Elastigirl, and Hebe Tien chose every reader of this site's favorite, Sailor Moon! Hebe chose her because Sailor Moon is recognized as a most useful character, and Hebe even did Sailor Moon's infamous poses on stage! Oh, and did we mention this is on YouTube? We've got it posted below, and this happens right at the beginning! Fans can check out more photos from the event here.

Sailor Moon in Asian Culture News!

Japan's Pop Culture Influence Grows in China

Searchina reports that Japan's growing pop culture influence on China is growing to epidemic proportions among those born from the 1970s on. These Chinese look forward to skateboarding, listening to Japanese Hip- Hop, and wathing anime like Doraemon, Chibi Maruko-chan, Slam Dunk, and Sailor Moon. We don't see a problem, but the tone of the article makes it seem like it is *shrugs*. The article goes on to say that J-dramas like Love Letter and Tokyo Love Story are very popular. They also like wearing platform shoes, short skirts, and curly hair. Celebrities like Noriko Sekai, Namie Amuro, Utada Hikaru, Ayumi Hamasaki and SMAP star Takuya Kimura are more popular than Chinese celebrities. Ayumi Hamasaki's statue is especially popular in Hong Kong's Madame Tussaud's Museum, and many stop to take pictures with it (We've pictured it here for you). We'll also add that Ayumi Hamasaki in 2007 performed for the first time in Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Shanghai. She'll be performing in those places again in the fall. In 2006 , her song Secret was used as the theme song for a Hong Kong film, Confession of Pain. We thought this hit sounded a lot more oriental than what we are used to hearing from her (except for her song Will which we think is highly underrated). Last summer's smash singles Glitter and Fated had videos that were shot in the form of a mini-movie called Kyo Ai - Distance Love. Those were shot in Hong Kong, and featured Cantonese film actor Shawn Yue as her love interest. It's always nice to see celebrities cross countries , seeing past country rivalries because in the end it's all about what a fan likes to see.

Nakayoshi's Big Event to Have Restrictions on Attendance This Year

Nakayoshi, is a manga magazine that is aimed for little girls in Japan, featuring a special toy in each issue. Sailor Moon made it's debut in the magazine in February of 1992. Each summer, Nakayoshi holds a special convention known as the Big Event, in Tokyo. There are activities for the girls like screenings, dance lessons, mini-drama (we assume they are talking about kigurumi), and autograph sessions where the manga artists and actors come together. Anime such as Pretty Cure, and Sailor Moon have been featured in the past. Lately, there has been a disheartening trend, according to Techinsight. More and more adult men are coming to the Big Event, taking all of the swag before the little girls can. The article goes on to say that there is a famous picture somewhere on the internet of a little girl being shoved from the front of the stage by much bigger, adult men who wanted to watch a Shugo Chara show. It was her backside that they should have been seeing, not the other way around. Sponsors of the event this year expect Nakayoshi to place restrictions so that the girls can enjoy it without being intimidated.