She is the One…Sailor Moon!

And so we come to the end of our comparison. It is hard to declare one superior over the other. The anime is just for fun. It is your average monster of the week, heroic band of friends save the day and maybe learn a lesson along the way. The live action series was more serious and not meant for such light fare. It offered more character development than the series.

If you watched the anime, I advise watching the live action series. There are subtitled episodes up on YouTube.

And thanks for reading!

The Generals

Queen Beryl is served by four generals—Jedite, Nephrite, Zoicite and Kunzite. They used to be Endymion’s generals as well.

APPEARANCE

Anime: Jedite is blonde hair and blue-eyed. Nephrite has long brown hair. Kunzite has long white hair and blue eyes. Zoicite has long blonde hair and is a girl. It is important to stress that ONLY in the Western dub does Zoicite show up as a woman. The reason will be explained in the relationships section. All wear a gray suit with red trim, white gloves and black boots.

Live action: Jedite is blonde hair and blue-eyed, wearing the gray uniform, white gloves and black boots of the anime. Nephrite has red hair, in spikes, and wears a red uniform with a cape. Zoicite has long white hair and wears a white soldier’s uniform, complete with gloves. Kunzite has long black hair and his uniform is more of a traditional samurai’s.

Both Nephrite and Kunzite appear in the regular world looking like regular Japanese people.

POWERS

Anime: All the generals have the basic powers of creating monsters, stealing people’s energy and zapping. Zoicite also has a crystal that allows her to take the presence of the Rainbow Crystals and, by extension, the shadow monsters.

Live action: The generals have similar powers to their anime counterparts. However, some have more powers beyond this. Zoicite is a talented pianist and uses this to try and restore the Generals’ memories as well as Endymion’s. Kunzite also shows some magical powers as well—he is the one who turns Sailor Mercury evil.

PERSONALITY AND RELATIONSHIPS

Anime: Not much, they were evil minions. As Molly and Maxwell Stanton (Nephrite in disguise) grew closer, he did grow more human. He learned to care for someone else. In the end, he sacrificed himself for her and died happy. When they first appeared, both Zoicite and Kunzite served to antagonize the other generals. When they became the main generals, it was clear that while they wanted to get ahead, they had a bond. And here is why Zoicite suddenly became a girl. Zoicite and Kunzite were romantically involved. And we can’t have a same sex pair on TV in a show aimed for children.

And that is why Sailor Stars will NEVER air here in America.

Live action: Jedite is the minion who would follow Queen Beryl to the ends of the earth if need be. He also seems to be the youngest of the generals and admires the others. He is quiet but determined. Nephrite is the most volatile general. He is quick to anger and to lash out. He is more of a lone wolf but cannot stand to be seen less than worthy. He does come to rely on Motoki and Ami, showing feelings for the latter. Zoicite is the most peaceful of the four. He is more interested in playing his music than destruction. He focuses on Mamoru as his master and is the most loyal to him. He is the most merciful of the four as well.

Kunzite is the most treacherous. He has no loyalties to Beryl or Endymion, especially as he blames the latter for the destruction of Earth. In flashbacks, it shows that he was the closest to Endymion and cared for the others like brothers (though the fact that his memories of the destruction always feature a close up on a dead Zoicite doesn’t help considering their relationship in the anime). In the end, he sacrifices himself to break free of Beryl’s control but returns to Endymion’s service.

PLOT CHANGES

Well, the fact that the generals can’t die is certainly different from the anime where three out of the four do. (Jedite is only encased in ice. He could conceivably come back). The romance with Naru is cut from the live action series, though Nephrite does have moments with Ami. Kunzite and Zoicite’s relationship is completely written out as well.

Enter the Baddie!

There are no superheroes without villains, so let’s examine Sailor Moon’s—Queen Beryl.

APPEARANCE

Anime: Beryl is a tall woman with vibrant red hair. She has very pale skin, very white. She also wears a beautiful purple dress and a crown. She has long red nails that look like they could do some serious damage if she wanted to.

Live-action: Beryl…looks the same as she does in the anime. Though as a straight woman, even I noticed how big her breasts were in that dress.

POWERS

Anime: Beryl doesn't show much power throughout the anime, though she does encase Jedite in a case of ice when he fails her one time too many. She has a crystal ball that allows her to see Earth. She can conjure up magic when needed.

Live action: Queen Beryl uses more powers in the series than the anime. She zaps her generals and creates Mio. She also uses magical purple flower petals to do her magic as well and creates the stone that drains Mamoru’s life from him. She also has the ability to control the Generals’ movements, even against their own will.

PERSONALITY

Anime: Beryl is your straightforward villain. She wants to advance the Negaverse and doesn’t care who stands in her way. She will destroy minions who don’t bring her the results she wants and call up another.

Live action: Beryl in this series isn’t so black and white and sadly isn’t give much backstory. It would be interesting to know how she came to be apart of the Negaverse, but she is granted powers by Queen Metaria. She seems more intent on preventing the destruction of the earth as she just wants to rule it. She is manipulative and a harsh mistress. She knows most of the generals are attracted to her and use that to her full advantage. When the generals either grow past her charms or reject them, she uses force to keep them in line.

RELATIONSHIPS

Anime: Not much to say here, just your usual evil overlord (lady)-minion relationship. She does brainwash Endymion to her side, but that’s more of trying to get the upper hand than any true feelings.

Live action: Oh, Beryl. Besides keeping her generals in line with their affection for her, she herself carries a torch for Endymion. Unfortunately, this isn’t explored as much. It is said that Beryl loved Endymion but he rejected her for Serenity. Because Beryl gets the least backstory, it is unknown exactly how this rejection took place. Did Beryl have a relationship with Endymion or did she pine for him from afar? Was she in his social circle or was she a commoner who loved Endymion. Either way, she loved Endymion and forces him to join her in the Negaverse. However, unlike the anime, she doesn’t brainwash him. She does start to drain his life when he keeps returning to Usagi. She wants him to love her on his own, but can’t follow the adage “If you love somebody, let them go.” In the end, Endymion is killed and Beryl goes down with the Negaverse in Serenity’s ensuing rage. By her side, out of loyalty and love, is Jedite.

PLOT CHANGES

The main changes to her plots have already been discussed. I just wished they had expanded more on it because she was more intriguing toward the end, when she wasn’t just your usual “evil overlord (lady) trying to take over the world.”

Queen Beryl (anime)

Queen Beryl (live action)

Bring On the Mentors!

Every good hero team has a mentor, right? The Power Rangers had Zordon initially and every subsequent team has had a mentor of their own—even if Ninja Storm’s was trapped as a talking hamster. Of course, he was a human originally. Here in Sailor Moon, our mentors are talking cats. From the moon!

Okay, maybe I shouldn’t rag on the talking hamster from Ninja Storm.

So, let’s see how Luna and Artemis are!

APPEARANCE

Anime: Luna is a black cat with a crescent moon on her forehead. When we first see her, she is surrounded by young boys trying to place a band aid on her moon, thinking it is a wound. Artemis looks like Luna, only is white.

Live action: Luna appears first as a plush cat that Usagi finds one day. She mostly stays in plush form, though when she is alone with the Senshi, she will talk. In some cases, Luna becomes CGI—especially when she moves. She resembles anime Luna, so it is likely someone took merchandise and used it. Artemis is portrayed in the same way, though not much is seen of his CGI form.

Luna in the live action series also takes human form. She does so to help the Sailor Senshi, becoming a scout herself. When she is in human form, she is but a child. (For those familiar with later episodes of the anime, she probably takes the place of Sailor Mini Moon). She has dark purple hair in pigtails. She wears a yellow skirt with a purple shirt and boots. When she transforms, she gets a poofy yellow skirt on her sailor uniform and cat ears, plus a tail. She uses a cell phone to transform into Sailor Luna. Artemis does not take a human form.

POWERS

Anime: Luna has a few powers, including the ability to produce transformation items from thin air. She can also use something called a Luna Mind Meld to beam information directly into someone’s mind—she mostly does this after the fight with Beryl to remind the girls about their roles as the Sailor Scouts. Artemis, presumably, has the same powers but hardly uses them.

Live action: As a cat, Luna has some of the same powers as her anime counterpart. Artemis shows no powers during the series. As Sailor Luna, her powers revolve around childish things. Her main attack is Sucre Candy Attack. She also uses a giant fan as a weapon.

PERSONALITY

Anime: Luna is the mother of the group. She pretty much has to stay on top of Serena to get her to stay focused. She also is a source of advice. Artemis, while he can be serious, is the more light-hearted of the group. Sometimes, Luna can’t believe how laidback he can be.

Live action: Luna is less strict with Usagi and not so much a mother figure. She is also slightly less informed than her anime counterpart. She takes orders from Sailor Venus, believing her to be the Moon Princess. As a human, she acts much like a child. She is easily distracted and hyper.

RELATIONSHIPS

Anime: Luna lives with Serena and her family. She takes on a motherly role toward Serena, genuinely caring for the girl’s well-being. She also cares about the other girls and seems to be close to Amy, but that may be because the girl not only focuses on being a scout but because she is smart. She also has a romantic relationship with Artemis, who mostly has a relationship with Mina as he lives with her.

Live action: Like the anime, Luna lives with Usagi and her family. Unlike the anime, she takes on less of a mothering role and more of a mentoring one. Even in child form, she has no problem mentoring or chiding Usagi. The same can be said for the other Senshi, with whom she forms a bond with. Once again, she bonds with Ami as well—first over the girl’s search for the princess and second when Ami spends most of her time in their hideout. Artemis hardly interacts with the other girls at all, except to enlist Rei’s help with Minako. With Minako, Artemis serves as primary caregiver and confidante. They both tell each other they love the other as the series winds down.

PLOT CHANGES

The main plot change is of course, the addition of Sailor Luna. I do believe she was added for younger viewers to identify with as the other scouts are listed as 14 (but read more like later teens). Artemis’ main change is, of course, his relationship with Minako.

Luna and Artemis (Anime)

Luna (Live action)

Artemis (Live action)

A Mask, a Cape and a Rose

With our happy five woman band all completed, it’s time to focus on the sixth member of the group—Tuxedo Mask/Kamen. In the anime, he was given the name Darien. He will be called that for the anime while I will use Mamoru for live action. I will also refer to him as Tuxedo Kamen in the live-action sections as well.

APPEARANCE

Anime: Darien is tall with dark black hair and blue eyes. He often wears a black shirt with a green jacket and brown pants. In the beginning, he also wears sunglasses. If he isn’t wearing this, he is usually wearing some button down shirt and nice pants. As for his mode of transformation…he doesn’t seem to have one. He just seems to pull out a mask and the rest follows. He wears a fine black tuxedo with a white shirt. He wears black shoes and white gloves. He also wears a top hat, though has appeared without it. The cape is also sometimes disregarded. He usually announces his presence with a red rose and a cheesy one-liner. His main weapon is a cane.

Live action: Mamoru is tall with dark black hair and dark eyes. He often wears dark clothing, generally shirts and pants. He wears a dark jacket and drives a motorcycle. Like his anime counterpart, Mamoru doesn’t have a manner of transformation. He just pulls a mask out of nowhere. His mask is white with sequins and a purple gem in the middle. His tuxedo is the same, complete with cape, hat and gloves. He once again has a rose as his calling card, a cane for a weapon and a cape that works like a shield. When he becomes Endymion, he wears a white suit with large shoulders. There are poofs on said shoulders and he also wears white gloves.

POWERS

Anime: None, except the power of cheesy one-liners!

Live action: None, except the power of wire-fu. When he’s Endymion, he’s pretty capable with a sword.

PERSONALITY

Anime: Darien is a young man who likes to tease Serena, despite not knowing her. We learn he is smart and older, already in college. He’s kind and sensitive. Eventually, he warms up to Serena and stops teasing her so much. He wishes to be a doctor and is often willing to lend a helping hand. As Tuxedo Mask, he’s an enigma. He pops in, rescues Sailor Moon and pops back out. His motives aren’t exactly clear, except that he’s doing it to find out who he is. When he becomes Endymion in the anime, he becomes evil. He doesn’t care who he takes out, even Serena whom he has fallen in love with.

Live action: Mamoru is a young man who keeps crossing paths with Usagi. Unlike the anime, his taunts seem a bit mean-spirited at first—but he may just be blunt. He slowly grows to tolerate Usagi, then like her and finally finds himself in love with her. His taunts go from blunt observations to genuinely affectionate teasing. As Tuxedo Kamen, he’s a bit of an enigma. However, he’s mostly trying to find the Mystical Silver Crystal. He has no lasting memories and a recurring dream. A shadowed figure asks him for the crystal—and he believes that’ll unlock his mystery. His reason for saving Sailor Moon is out of chivalry. When he learns about his past as Endymion, he is the first to reject the notion that the past life will repeat. He is determined to be with Usagi. He also becomes more authoritative and shows he is still a prince.

RELATIONSHIPS

Anime: Darien is established as an orphan, his parents dying in a car crash. He is only seen with Andrew, who shortly disappears with his own girlfriend Rita. After that, he mostly associates with Serena and her friends. He and Serena become like a married couple rather quickly, which is eerie given that her age is only 14. But he is shown to love her deeply and would sacrifice himself to protect her. The same can be said for Serena as well. Though he dated Rei, he comes to view her more like a little sister. In fact, he comes to have a brotherly-type relationship with all the scouts. Darien is also the one the bad girls will go for as well, in this season’s case—Queen Beryl. She brainwashes him and makes him her servant, showing some sort of lust after him. She is only the first in a long line.

Live action: Mamoru is established as having few memories of his childhood. He is close with Motoki, who is a friend from school. He also forms a friendship with Usagi, but is never seen interacting much with the other girls.

Before Usagi, he does have a girlfriend. Her name is Hina and is a childhood friend of Mamoru’s. He promised to marry her when he was younger and sticks by that promise, no matter that he has fallen in love with Usagi. Finally, Hina realizes that Mamoru no longer loves her and is only marrying her out of duty. Her father, though, had promised to pay for Mamoru’s schooling as long as he married Hina. She isn’t vengeful and arranges for Mamoru to still go abroad to study when she breaks their engagement. She is bitter and sends him abroad to be far away from him. He returns to be with Usagi, vowing to love her and prevent the fate of the past life.

Zoicite reaches out to Mamoru once he realizes the other man is his former master. Mamoru tries to bond with each of his former generals, but succeeds mostly with Zoicite. Nephrite obeys him as well while Kuncite is torn over the betrayal from the past life. Jedite chooses to remain loyal to Queen Beryl until the end of the Negaverse. Mamoru tries to befriend them all, trying to rekindle their brotherhood. He does care for them and in turn, they are loyal to him.

PLOT CHANGES

The introduction of Hina added a new dimension to Mamoru and his relationship with Usagi. It showed us his devotion and that he is trustworthy.

Another change is that while Beryl captures Mamoru, she doesn’t brainwash him. She keeps him with her by threatening the generals and drains his life-force, but he remains faithful to Usagi.

Both of these serve as roadblocks to Usagi and Mamoru’s happiness and add more depth to their storyline.

Darien/Tuxedo Mask

Mamoru/Tuxedo Kamen

Soldier of Thunder and Nature

The fourth member to join the Sailor Scouts/Senshi is Kino Makoto, called Lita in the dub. Lita is the name of one of Jupiter’s moons, which is probably why it was chosen. For convenience sake, I will refer to Lita for the anime and Makoto for the live-action.

APPEARANCE

Anime: Lita is the tallest of the Sailor Scouts and is described as being the most ample. There is a long-running joke amongst anime fans about this. There is an episode where the girls argue over who gets to play Snow White. Lita says she should because she has the most talent. The original script calls for her to say it is because she has the biggest breasts. They didn’t change her motioning to her chest for the dub, so that’s what anime fans now refer to as “talent.” She is a brunette, wearing her hair in a high ponytail held with a green scrunchy. She often wears pants. Even though she attends the same middle school as Serena and Ami, her uniform is different. It is said that it is because the school didn’t have a uniform in her size. It consists of a white tie up shirt and a brown skirt. Her mode of transformation is a green pen with the Jupiter symbol on top. As it spins out, lightning surrounds her and forms her uniform. Her skirt is green and her bows are pink. She wears green ankle boots.

Live action: Makoto is the tallest of the Sailor Scouts and doesn’t consider herself feminine. When others compliment her, she is often surprised. She has brown hair and brown eyes. Her school uniform is different from the others, recreating the anime’s. When she isn’t in her uniform, she often wears pants and sporty outfits. Her mode of transformation is a bracelet with a green stone. Her outfit is a recreation of the one from the anime, with a belt added. Her hair becomes lighter, almost red and put into the ponytail.

POWERS

Anime: Lita derives her powers from thunder and lightning. Her first power is “Jupiter Thunderclap Crash” which hurls lightning at her enemy. Otherwise, she can also do hand-to-hand combat.

Live-action: Makoto has the same powers as Lita. Though once she is awakened as a Senshi, she gains more powers that show up every so often. And like Sailors Mercury and Mars, she has her own tambourine to play and shoot down enemies.

PERSONALITY

Anime: When we first meet Lita, she is the transfer student in Ami and Serena’s school. The others are gossiping about her, saying she was kicked out of her old school for fighting. But Serena soon learns that Lita isn’t the bad girl everyone thinks she is. She is a cheerful person who is loyal to her friends, who also likes to cook. She is a tough girl and will beat you up if you hurt her friends, though. As for Sailor Jupiter, she is one of the toughest fighters and usually one of the first ones to jump into the action. Like Sailor Mars, this can either help or hinder her. While she can easily get captured, she can also easily land some strategic blows to the monster.

Live action: Like Lita, Makoto starts out as the transfer student in Usagi and Ami’s school. Like Lita, she is subject to the same rumors. Usagi befriends her and Makoto soon becomes attached to the young girl. Especially since both like Minako. Makoto also befriends Motoki, the young man who works at Crown Karaoke. As Sailor Jupiter, she is often the first one to dive into a fight. She will fight with all her heart and is willing to sacrifice herself at one point to protect the earth. Makoto is the one who accepts her past life as destiny in her current one. However, she overcomes this belief and fights for her the future, not the past.

RELATIONSHIPS

Anime: Lita is an orphan after her parents died in a plane crash. She lives by herself and is fully independent. She is used to being by herself, but welcomes the other girls in wholeheartedly. In a sense, they become her family.

On the romance front, there is a running gag in the series. All the guys Lita spots remind her of her old boyfriend, Freddy. However, the true story is a bit more heartbreaking and turns this running gag into a case of obsession. Freddy was an older student whom Lita had a crush on, but who broke her heart by going out with another girl. The only person she could rely on was her friend, Ken. He was there for her during the heartbreak and she’s there when he needs her…for an episode, then we hardly see him again.

Live action: Makoto is an orphan after her parents died…somehow. She lives alone and is fully independent. She is used to being by herself and even says that it was determined in the past life, which is why she is okay with it. The girls end up being like family to her, and she takes care of them when need be—when Ami is sick, when Rei and Ami run away, etc.

On the romance front, Makoto is pursued by Motoki. At first, she doesn’t return his feelings but just views him as a friend. As they spend more time together, she grows to love him as well. She eventually reveals to Motoki that she is Sailor Jupiter and he takes it pretty well. She even wears a good luck charm he bought her and he realizes he has a chance.

PLOT CHANGES

If the creator of Sailor Moon made the live-action series tone down Makoto’s obsession with her sempai, praise the Lord! I also like the romance between Motoki and Makoto, which gives you someone else to root for besides Usagi and Mamoru. And they are adorable.

Lita/Sailor Jupiter

Makoto/Sailor Jupiter

Soldier of Passion and Flame

The third Sailor Senshi/Scout to join the group is Rei Hino, a priestess living at a temple.

APPEARANCE

Anime: Rei is about Serena’s height with long black hair. She has bright purple eyes. As a priestess, she is constantly seen in her robes—a white top with a red bottom. She doesn’t go to the same school as Serena and Ami, going to T*A, which many believe is a well-known Catholic school. Her uniform consists of a gray skirt with a white shirt, complete with red scarf. Otherwise, she generally prefers either red or purple and often wears pants. Her mode of transformation is a pen, like Ami. Hers is red with the symbol of Mars on top. It spins out to start the flames that form Rei’s Sailor Mars uniform. Her skirt is red, but her bow is purple. Unlike Sailors Moon and Mercury, she wears red heels.

Live action: Rei has shorter black hair and brown eyes. Like her anime counterpart, she often wears the priestess robes of her temple and her school uniform looks the same as well. When she isn’t wearing those, she is usually in dark colors and pants. Like Ami, her mode of transformation is a bracelet with a red stone in the center. Her uniform is the same as her anime form, but her hair grows longer.

POWERS

Anime: Rei’s powers are derived from fire. Her first power is the fireball. She can also use her priestess powers to banish evil spirits. She eventually gains the power to throw flaming rings at evildoers as well. With her priestess powers, Rei is usually able to sense the presence of the Negaverse before the others.

Live action: Like her anime counterpart, Rei once again gains the power of fire. Her attacks look more like a beam of red light, though, than anything resembling fire. Once she is awakened as a soldier, she gains more powerful attacks that barely stick around for more than two episodes. Like Mercury, she too gets a “weapon”—another tambourine. When played, she can use it to defeat the monster.

PERSONALITY

Anime: Rei…is probably just as annoying as Serena. She is hot tempered and often directs her rages at Serena. A classic screen shot in the series is usually Rei and Serena sticking their tongues out at each other. When she isn’t on a rampage, she can be quite nice. When she isn’t being judgmental, she is quite loyal to Serena and the other girls. Serena isn’t the only one who can raise her ire. Further into the series, washed-up rocker Chad moves into the temple. His laid-back attitude conflicts with Rei’s Type A one and she often chases him around with a broom. She wants to be a rock star when we first meet her and is not shy.

As Sailor Mars, her fiery temper can either serve her or hinder her. There are times it can lead to her getting hurt or captured but other times it spurns her to fight harder.

Live action: Rei…is less annoying than her anime counterpart. She isn’t quick to anger, though her temper is not something one wishes to experience. She is guarded and doesn’t easily let people in. She eventually lets the Sailor Senshi in and will do anything for them. She doesn’t want to be famous, unlike her anime counterpart. She is forced into the role and does it out of her kindness toward children, who she is shown to have a gift with. But when she does step out in her star role, it is clear she has a good voice. While she doesn’t seem to like parties—and often states it—she still likes to enjoy herself once in a while. As Sailor Mars, she is less impulsive than her anime counterpart. But she will fight with all her heart, especially to protect her friends. Rei reacts the most vehemently about their past life. She doesn’t think it will dictate what will happen in this life and argues with anyone who thinks otherwise. She fights to protect the world.

RELATIONSHIPS

Anime: In the anime, not much is said about Rei’s parents. She lives at the Cherry Hill Temple with her grandfather, who is quite a skirt chaser. It doesn’t help that he is no taller than most women’s knees. While she loves her grandfather, his antics usually annoy her. Not much is known about her school life, so it is unknown if she has any school friends. Serena is listed as her best friend, though they often clash. She is close with the other Sailor Scouts, indicating they may be her closest and only friends.

On the romance front, there are only two possibilities. At first, she tries to go after Tuxedo Mask, even though Serena already expressed interest in him. Rei does go on a date with Darien, but realizes that they aren’t compatible. Then there is Chad, mentioned above. While it is clear that he is smitten with Rei, the anime never makes her feelings about him clear. Other than sheer annoyance, that is. So, it’s up to the viewers—they are either friends or they have the possibility to be more.

Live-action: In the show, Rei lives at the Cherry Hill Temple alone. Her father is alive and appears in the show, while her mother is dead. It is shown in the show that her mother died from Generic Terminal Illness and that a young Rei stayed in the hospital with her. Her father though was nowhere to be found. We learn he is a politician and often puts his career in front of his family. Any time he tries to talk to Rei, it is to plead for her to appear in press photos and interviews. So, understandably, she doesn’t have a strong home life like Usagi or Ami.

She initially tries to rebuff Usagi and Ami’s attempts to befriend her, but eventually gives in. Her biggest relationship amongst the Sailor Scouts seems to be with Minako, whom she befriends and argues with constantly. But she convinces Minako to get a needed surgery and reacts the most when it is revealed that Minako died. In the end, their friendship drives her.

PLOT CHANGES

The focus on Rei’s family really helps delve into the character. Another good change is her personality. Once again, the creator of Sailor Moon was more involved in this series than the anime so she may have been responsible for toning Rei down. This makes her more likeable and allows the audience to feel for her.

Rei’s denial of her past life being gospel in her current one also adds another layer. I know when I was watching the show, I was yelling about how everyone just accepts that everything is going to be like the past life. Rei’s rejection made a lot more sense.

Rei/Sailor Mars (Anime)

Rei/Sailor Mars (Live action)

Soldier of Ice and Water…

The second Sailor Soldier/Senshi to be revealed is Sailor Mercury—Ami Mizuno.

I feel the need to preface this with the statement that Sailor Mercury is my favorite Sailor Scout, so bias is expected.

APPEARANCE

Anime: Ami has short dark blue hair and big blue eyes. As she attends the same school as Serena, she often wears the same uniform. It is what she is most often seen in. When she is seen in regular clothes, her tastes remain modest. Her mode of transformation is a pen given to her—a blue stick with the Mercury symbol on top. This symbol will spiral out of the pen and start the transformation sequence. Her Sailor Mercury outfit is similar to Sailor Moon’s, except she has a lighter blue skirt and sky blue bow. Her boots are also blue and a blue jewel rests in the tiara she wears. If needed, her earring can activate a visor for Mercury to use to figure out battle tactics.

Live action: In civilian form, Ami has long black hair that she usually pins back in some way. She also wears glasses, but an early episode shows that she actually doesn’t need to wear them. She implies that she wears them more as a safety blanket than to project an image of being smart. When she isn’t wearing her school uniform (similar to the anime’s), she is often seen wearing dresses or skirts. She also tends to favor sweaters. She generally wears pastel colors, favoring either blue or pink. Her mode of transformation is a bracelet with a blue stone in the center. When she transforms, her hair turns into the blue bob from the anime. Her uniform is the same from the show, though she does have a blue belt in the live action version.

POWERS

Anime: In the first season of Sailor Moon, Sailor Mercury’s powers were more defensive than offensive. Her main help in battle was analyzing the monster and coming up with strategies. When she did use her powers, it was “Mercury Bubbles Blast!” And all that does is…create smog. Which is good in distracting the monster or concealing the Scouts, but little else. She eventually gains more powers, but not until later seasons.

Live action: In the series, Sailor Mercury is more powerful than her animated counterpart. They use one of the anime’s later powers, Shine Aqua Illusion, as Mercury’s primary power. This is manifested as a jet of water. That’s honestly how most of her powers are usually manifested. When she is full awakened as a Soldier, she gains some new powers but none that stick around on a regular basis. She also gains a “weapon.” I loathe to call it that because it’s a tambourine. She shakes it and a blue light appears…At least it’s better than smog.

PERSONALITY

Anime: Ami is a shy bookworm who is established as a genius. In her first episode, she is attending special computer classes. After she becomes a Sailor Scout, she comes out of her shell a bit more but is still shy. And god help you if you attack either someone she cares about or the helpless, because she will kick your ass. As Sailor Mercury, she usually hangs back in order to analyze the situation. But when she is needed, she is right there in the middle of the battle.

Live action: Ami is a shy bookworm who is established as a genius. In her first episode, she attends a special “cram school” where she excels at math. This is later emphasized in a contest where she solves a math problem in her head, even astonishing the host. She does have a love for Minako, which saves her from a youma. She also likes to knit, but her cooking skills are less than desirable. As Sailor Mercury, she takes less of an analyzing role and more of a fighting role. For the first part of the series, she focuses on finding the Princess as her task. But like her anime counterpart, if you hurt any of her friends—she will kick your ass.

RELATIONSHIPS

Anime: Ami is an only child being raised by her mother, a successful doctor. It is said in an episode that her father went off somewhere to be a painter, leaving Ami with her mother. They correspond and we see that Ami does have artistic tendencies. But she wants to be a doctor like her mother and seems to be close with her. At school, her intelligence and bookworm nature tends to alienate the other students. Serena is one of the first to befriend her and we do not see Ami have any friends outside the Sailor Scouts. Within the group, she is clearly the voice of reason.

As for her love life, she only has one romantic possibility. During the Queen Beryl arc, she befriends another genius named Greg, who has premonitions. These are caused by the piece of the Silver Crystal he has in his body and that Zoicite wants. This also allows Greg to know that Ami is Sailor Mercury. Once the crystal is out, Greg moves away but thanks Amy. Later, it’s the image of Greg that leads Ami to her doom. After that, no other possible love interest emerges.

Live action: Ami is an only child being raised by her mother, a successful doctor. Her father is never mentioned and it can be assumed that Ami has no relationship with him. Her mother is often working long hours, but leaves messages on the board in their kitchen. Ami responds in kind. In an episode, Ami and Rei are caught out late at night after fighting a youma. Since they can’t tell the cop the truth, they lie that they were working on a school project and lost track of time. The cop escorts them home and calls their parents. Ami’s mother calls her to the hospital and decides to transfer Ami to the Special School for Ridiculously Smart Children. But Ami doesn’t want to leave her friends! But she doesn’t want to be disobedient! In the end, she decides to be honest with her mother, who just wants what’s best for her daughter.

Usagi is Ami’s first real friend and Ami isn’t entirely sure how friendship works. When Usagi makes a comment about Ami constantly referring to her in a formal manner, Ami goes into panic mode and decides to be a better friend by following a book. That goes horribly and Ami learns that to be a real friend, all she needs to do is be herself and honest. After that, Ami is a constant support to her friends, even when they all end up growing apart. She believes they will come together again and they do. While Usagi and Ami remain close, Ami has her moments with the others as well. She and Rei have a sleepover in their secret hiding spot while escaping their parents after the cop incident and Makoto takes care of a sick Ami. She even takes her to an amusement park for some fun.

Ami also slowly becomes friends with Naru, as the two are thrown together by hanging out with Usagi. By the last episode, it seems the two are genuinely friends.

As for romantic interests, not much happening on that front. There seems to be something with Nephrite toward the end, but this is never fully addressed and quickly dropped.

PLOT CHANGES

The live-action series ignores a large arc from the anime. In the anime, it is said that Queen Serenity split the Silver Imperial Crystal into the seven rainbow crystals. She sealed Queen Beryl’s shadow warriors inside the crystals and sent them to Earth with her last ounce of strength. These crystals were buried inside several different people, which caused the shadow monsters to be unleashed. After healing the person, it was often a fight over who got the rainbow crystal—one step closer to forming the crystal.

While it doesn’t have this plot, the live-action gives Sailor Mercury/Ami her own special plot. At a point where everyone is busy with their individual plots, Ami is often left alone. During this, Kunzite kidnaps her and brainwashes her to become Sailor Dark Mercury. It adds a new dimension to the fighting as they now are forced to fight a friend. Ami, in her dark form, is particularly scary. She uses her dark magic to make everyone be her friend and has no problem trying to kill her friends. However, some instances of her humanity still emerge: she fixes Nephrite’s cape.

Ami is healed by the Mystic Silver Crystal, when Mamoru is hit protecting Usagi. This reveals that Usagi is the Moon Princess and starts Ami’s healing process. When Sailor Dark Mercury has one last battle against Sailor Moon, she shatters Sailor Moon’s scepter and knocks Usagi unconscious. Ami takes Usagi into some part of the Negaverse and they try to get out. But Ami feels she should remain to be punished, that she can’t go back after what she did. Usagi convinces her otherwise and Ami is happy to be back.

While the rainbow crystal arc was a nail-biting one, I quite liked Ami’s brief walk on the evil side. It added a new dimension to her character that the anime never had.

Ami / Sailor Mercury

Ami/Sailor Mercury (Live Action):