Nostalgia Critic releases his punches at the English adaptation of Sailor Moon that aired in the United States from 1995 to 2000.
It seems the biggest wonder for Nostaligia Critic is why Sailor Moon, even in its most awkward English adaptation, grew to be one of the most popular anime of all time. It is about a “stupid” girl with her superficial interests being saved by more capable friends and the guys she hates. He can see formula and agree it’s done well enough to keep young audiences interested.
“At least, it gives girls the fantasy that they can become the hero,” Nostalgia Critic notes. Hit the jump to see Nostalgia Critic’s video and see why Sailor Moon is so much more than that.
http://blip.tv/nostalgiacritic/nostalgia-critic-sailor-moon-6625851
It can be argued that Sailor Moon is the quintessential “Magical Girl” anime. A magical girl is essentially a young girl empowered with superhuman abilities that fight evil. It is true that Sailor Moon, as well as other magical girl anime, gives girls the image they have the power be the hero. However, it seems Nostalgia Critic overlooks just how important that is and why it resonates, and resonates loudly.
Sailor Moon creates a world where femininity is not something to be ashamed of, it’s a source of power. While Nostalgia Critic implies Sailor Moon’s interests in make-up, video games, and boys are useless and vapid, Sailor Moon uses her make up to transform into a superhero; she learns to fight evil using a video game with a powerful female protagonist; and Tuxedo Mask often finds himself being saved by Sailor Moon more often in the anime and the manga than vice versa.
The girls don’t use their pretty clothes and jewels and compacts as playthings to impress men- these things are all weapons against evil, and powerful ones. They declare themSELVES pretty, needing approval from no one. Our hero possesses all the typical “chick” attributes- emotional, tearful, forgiving, loving, nurturing- and she uses these attribute to triumph and kicks ass. She burns monsters alive with the purity of her love, sends out supersonic waves that shake the villains down when she bursts into tears, and her friendship and forgiveness is the most effective superpower one could ask for. The “girly” emotions and affectations are not something to be ashamed of or suppressed, but the source of the power these girls wield. They don’t have to imitate guy heroes at all or act “masculine” to be taken seriously- girliness is just as powerful.
Over and over again, Nostalgia Critic sneers Sailor Moon’s stupidity and cowardice. He points out the opening theme lyrics state that Sailor Moon will never run from a “real fight” and he shows clips of Sailor Moon doing just that: running away screaming. However, The Soapboxing Geek points out in her 2012 article about The Feminism of Sailor Moon.
Our heroine. Our very flawed heroine. And how refreshing that is! Instead of a very boring Superman who could do no wrong, here was a fairly young teenager thrown into an overwhelming situation, and reacting negatively to it. She’s clumsy, she’s a glutton, she’s a crybaby. And that’s okay! Teenagers are allowed to have flaws, and superheroes should too. Usagi has demonstrated time and time again that her love for her friends and family is more important to her than anything else in the world. She will give anything, including her life, to make sure that they live on in peace and happiness.
Nostalgia Critic fails to point out if clips are from the first episodes of Sailor Moon, when Serena is only beginning to learn how to fight and thus totally understandable to how she reacts to an overwhelming situation, and fails to show Sailor Moon during the dire fights against Queen Beryl. Therefore, if we’re talking about “real fights” here, such as one that is a matter of world ending proportions and not just “monster of the week” then we do see a very clear difference between “stupid” Sailor Moon to the Sailor Moon who lays down her life to save the people she loves.
Nostalgia Critic also points out the minor detail about the disguise pen, which Luna explains can transform Serena into anything she wants. He asks, why doesn’t she just use that as her transformation sequence or use it to turn into Godzilla? While it does go back to Serena because an intentionally flawed character, and note that’s meant to be a good thing, Serena namely uses her transformation pen in order to sneak into situations she would not have access otherwise, and it is namely to investigate a situation to avoid direct confrontation. It is quite similar to Power Rangers never using their morphing powers unless they have to.
At the heart of Nostalgia Critic’s concerns is the sexualization young teenage girls, namely focusing on their presumably naked transformation sequences and short skirts. He brings up the disconcerting facts of Japan’s overall struggle with this issue. In a 1997 issue of MixxZine quoted creator, Naoki Takeuchi, stated that “the anime has a slight male perspective to it, since much of the staff was male. My original version was written by a girl (me) for girls.” So, Nostalia Critic’s concerns aren’t ungrounded. However, this particular cultural issue of gender, sexuality, and sexualization, how it manifests itself in Japanese entertainment, and how it effects the globalization thereof is a discussion that goes beyond Nostalgia Critic.
Despite having a male perspective, Sailor Moon is a series made for girls and it doesn’t shy away from issues that girls at that age will go through, which does and will include budding sexuality. Nostalgia Critic himself states his 14-year-old self was quite pleased with watching animated 14-year-old girls in a way most young teens will look at each other anyway.
In addition, most fans will point out Naoki Takeuchi’s original manga illustrations and art books portray much more sensuality than the anime. Again, it is important to note characters in the manga are generally 14-18 years old and Takeuchi does not shy away from placing her characters in sexy poses. She does, however, portray sexual encounters occurring between consenting parties within the same, legal, age range; and at the end of the manga, where Sailor Moon and Tuxedo Mask as clearly in bed naked together, they are older and about to be married.
I guess you could argue that she likes” these things because she has internalized sexism and wants to please her male editors. I guess you could say that. Or you could say that maybe Naoko Takeuchi really likes looking at and drawing powerful sexual female figures, and imagines that her female readers would too.
Unlike Nostalgia Critic, who flat out calls Sailor Moon’s outfits “slutty,” Takeuchi in no way shames or portrays sex, sexuality, or even dressing in short skirts as something negative. To take it one step further, another fan states:
Usagi (Serena) is pure-hearted, but she isn’t pure” in the archaic sense. She’s sexual. And I love that she can be both. She’s the amaranthine avatar of goodness and love and serenity in the universe she is every cherished ideal we hold of what it means to be a magical girl.” She stands for truth and freedom and hope. She wears floaty pastel clothes and enormous pigtails and her weapons are covered in hearts and stylized angel wings. She’s often drawn with angel wings herself! And she has sex. It doesn’t make her dirty, or suddenly “inappropriate” as entertainment for young girls. She doesn’t lose her power or her magic. She is a multifaceted young woman who loves sweets and comics and vanquishes the forces of evil and also has sex.
In the end, Sailor Moon isn’t even about sex.
This is a story about women- tons of women. Every personality type you can imagine. Young women, old women, queer women, straight women, ditzy women, brainy women. This is story about the bond of friendship between these women and how they are the most powerful people in the universe. Sailor Moon is classic superhero stuff- eldritch villians, secret identity drama, the power of friendship, face-melting horror, epic battles- but it’s set in a world where teenage girls are the greatest heroes.[3]
While Nostalgia Critic tastes may just be well beyond anything related to anime or the magical girl series, Sailor Moon’s clear and empowering message of acceptance of one’s sexuality and femininity seems to be totally lost to him.
Sources: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7
Disclaimer: The opinions written here are of the author’s only and do not necessarily reflect Henshin Justice, its owner or other staff members. Any questions or concerns are welcome to be send to www.angelicnoir.com/contact.
August 7, 2013 @ 12:52 pm
I don’t think a magical girl needs to fight specifically. There’s lots of series where they don’t.
August 7, 2013 @ 1:23 pm
Agreed. My definition namely drew using Google’s “define:” search feature as well as my personal exposure to the magical girl genre, all of which namely included women fighting. This particular definition does better apply to Sailor Moon and is essential to my response.
August 7, 2013 @ 2:20 pm
That guy has always been an idiot to me. I don’t really remember which of his reviews I watched, but it felt so wrong and biased against what he was ‘reviewing’.
August 8, 2013 @ 9:56 pm
For god’s sake, the nostalgia critic is a comedian, not a reviewer, the fact that you want someone like that to be fair and un-biased makes you the moron. And the fact that someone is an idiot because you only saw a few videos of him makes you a bigger moron
August 15, 2013 @ 2:08 am
oh he was trying to be funny? he wasn’t. I’m a moron for having an opinion! oh my god, it all makes sense now. /sarcasm
August 7, 2013 @ 3:12 pm
….You guys realize that Nostalgia Critic is a CHARACTER, right? Not a guy just…being an asshole because he can?
August 7, 2013 @ 3:41 pm
You also realize this kind of “character” blatantly perpetuates a negative attitude that needs to be responded to. If it is just a “character”, then I am responding to “that character.” If he was pressured by audiences to talk about Sailor Moon, it’s still possible to have given a better presentation about, such as bringing other hosts of the show who *do* understand Japanese animation better. Instead, it was handled in very poor taste, which necessitated this type of response.
August 7, 2013 @ 5:49 pm
Exactly. The character should rag on what makes it a good or bad show. Doug’s blatant conservative feminist side has finally pervaded his reviews and overtaken it.
August 8, 2013 @ 10:11 pm
Also Doug Walker (IRL) seems to love intelligent debate. Giving thought to understanding an opposite point of view and respond to it, calmly and rationally is exactly the kind of thing that moves society forward. People need to be able to both disagree, debate and respect each other while doing it. I can’t give you enough props for doing just that.
August 8, 2013 @ 10:11 pm
Actually, as a fan of Sailor Moon, I’d say he handled it in a hilarious and pretty fair way, all things considered. Even at the end of the review he says ‘Well, it wasn’t really harmful and probably did a lot of good for girls.’ If you wanted a complimentary, moderate review of Sailor Moon and it’s cultural impacts, you shouldn’t have been watching the Nostalgia critic. His entire gimmick is making points in an over-the-top fashion. More than that, the idea that someone who hasn’t watched the entire show and read the manga and watched tons of anime can’t comment on it in a negative light is just plain elitism and snobbery. Frankly, the way Japan over-sexualizes girls is something that needs to be remarked on in a negative light.
August 8, 2013 @ 10:13 pm
except that, you know, the people that requested it, might have been expecting just what he did, since that is the character… if they wanted a more contextualized analisis then they shouldn’t have requested it to him. and it’s not a negative attitude either, that’s like saying that tarantino is a violent person, it is made for entertainment purposes.
you are taking a funny over-the-top commentary way too seriously.
August 8, 2013 @ 10:20 pm
Your “article” fails to mention the fact that NC admitted that the show was harmless, and was from the perspective of a guy who caught a couple episodes on TV and was trying to understand why it was so popular, not some kind of Sailor Moon/anime expert. This is not a new thing, tons of people make reviews about things from the perspective of an outsider. You cannot expect him to research the entire Sailor Moon library for a 20 minute video. Calm down.
August 8, 2013 @ 10:55 pm
Thinking I’ve been watching the show a bit longer then you have. Maybe I’m not Japanese but I know enough about they’re animation. Nostalgia Critic, never said anything bad about the shows was drawn. You seem to “blatantly perpetuates a negative attitude that needs to be responded. Only thought I felt he missed was the bad voice acting!
Love Sailor Moon, have the set and Sailor V only 2 also.
April 3, 2014 @ 2:04 pm
yeah I never liked Serena’s voice she always was a crybaby more in the English dub… I only enjoyed Raye and Lita’s voice. I hated the others
August 2, 2014 @ 5:15 pm
Those aren’t their names. Especially for the new dub. Their real names are Usagi, Rei, and Makoto.
August 13, 2014 @ 5:39 pm
We did not grow up with the Japanese names, the English version was aired on Cartoon Network’s Toonami back in the late 90s and those are the names I remember by Dic productions
August 15, 2014 @ 11:49 am
Well I get that but those aren’t their names. The dub will have their original names as well so the old has become largely irrelevant now.
September 18, 2014 @ 2:44 pm
same here, I like the original ones best. the new Viz dub sucks, and now I hate anime because they killed it! I like Funimation dubbing the best
August 9, 2013 @ 1:29 am
so you’d rather remove the comedy from the comedy show and replace it with a simple discussion as to why Sailor Moon is good? Errr, gunna have to disagree with that sentiment.
There is a time and a place for a mature, balanced, and unbiased review of Sailor moon and it’s topics such as female sexuality, gender roles, empowerment, ect. But I do not feel it should be on the shoulders of a character such as the NC to deliver that. Within that ‘review’ (which it isn’t, it is a comedy show the same way the Daily show isn’t a news show) he hired a man named “Dr,Hack” to create for him a formula for television to make him rich and famous, had a flash back to having an argument with his penis, which ended with his penis pulling a gun on him and shooting him. This is a character that was constantly besieged by the burger king, casper the friendly ghost, a bum looking for change, his floor, and murdered by a ‘spooky’ balloon.
Part of the humour in his show is that he DOESN’T understand why something is the way it is. With understanding comes familiarity, and with that it does not breed for good comedy. Even if he did bring on one of the other reviewers on the site, such as JesuOtaku, the review likely would not have been changed very much but rather would have had the anime reviewer playing as comedic straight man to the NC’s over reactions.
Good article, I just feel as if the anger here is slightly misplaced.
August 9, 2013 @ 1:34 am
This article also proved to be incredibly biased itself too.
August 9, 2013 @ 1:32 am
Oh give it a rest. You basically admitted to responding to a fictional character. If you’ve ever watched his typical episodes he’s much harsher to them than he was in this video. The point is not to do it from the point of some anime fanboy or feminist but as a regular viewer. You can spin the show all you want to try to make it way more epic than it ever was. Sometimes the ditzy protagonist is just a ditzy protagonist. And sometimes the only reason there’s a panty shot is to appeal to young boys.
August 9, 2013 @ 12:07 pm
It’s a show. He’s supposed to make stabs and snide comments about shows. If he did a review as himself, I’m sure he’d give much more credit.
Even on some reviews where he makes fun of the movie, he says in commentary or later on that he does actually like it, in complete opposite to the NC.
Look at his Facebook post, he’s obviously being more mature than an anime fangirl.
August 9, 2013 @ 12:39 pm
He’s mostly does the reviews for the jokes.
August 9, 2013 @ 3:07 pm
It’s a cartoon, not life. Maybe you should learn to take a joke?
If you’re even capable of thinking someone’s made-up opinions on a cartoon can be in “poor taste” maybe you shouldn’t be allowed to watch anime. It’s obviously becoming a disturbing obsession.
August 9, 2013 @ 12:34 am
I know Nostalgia Critic is a character, but the show still expresses Doug and Rob Walker’s thoughts and opinions.
That being said, most of the stuff featured on Nostalgia Critic was done in good fun and it’s not like it was a personal attack against Sailor Moon or its fans.
August 9, 2013 @ 3:29 am
Not entirely true. Doug Walker has gone on-record in a video once stating that all views and opinions given by the Nostalgia Critic are of that of the character he portrays and that his character generally portrays the perspective of the general viewers. He has gone on to explain that he has his own views and opinions and that a some films he has torn apart as the NC he personally likes.
To be quite honest I think this entire article is taking things waaaaay to seriously.
August 10, 2013 @ 8:07 pm
He likes many of the films on a “They’re so bad they’re good” basis, he’s not just pretending good films are bad. Just because his opinion is exaggerated for comedic effect doesn’t mean he’s lying or making shit up about how he feels. Hell, many of Critic’s lines are derived from on-the-spot riffing between Doug and Rob as they watch the movie. And no, this article takes the video just seriously enough, because this is one of those videos where Critic’s thoughts most certainly do mirror Doug’s.
August 7, 2013 @ 4:33 pm
I think his review would’ve been better if he had one of the anime reviewers on to counter his opinions. He kept complaining about the reused footage, of course there’s going to be reused footage it was made on a budget like most other shows that were being shown at that time and even today.
August 9, 2013 @ 2:09 am
Budget is not an excuse for being bad. It’s an explanation that lets us know the creators weren’t idiots, but it doesn’t make the show good. If all you have is blue paint, you don’t attempt to paint a portrait and pass it off as generic or mainstream, even if what you make is good. Objectively, it doesn’t make the art any better. It just gives us a fuzzy feeling. Heck, most things would be better if you threw a few million dollars more into it.
August 9, 2013 @ 6:23 am
Really? Then why are the Transformers etc big bidget movies utter crap, while smaller productions, such as Moon, are really effective?
August 9, 2013 @ 1:01 pm
Well, I think the Transformers movies would have been worse with less money, and probably a bit better with more money.
The first Transformers movie has a higher IMDB rating than Sailor Moon. That’s not indicative of total consent, and I am even a little surprised. But “I like it” =/= Effective. Some people love Transformers, some people love Sailor Moon. My distaste for both is irrelevant to this. The fact is, being broke doesn’t make everything you produce better.
August 9, 2013 @ 6:54 pm
Also, money does not a good movie make.
August 9, 2013 @ 7:51 pm
Lack of money does not make a good movie, inherently, either.
August 9, 2013 @ 8:07 pm
No one said it did. The fact is that bigger budgets have nothing to do with how good a film is. However, smaller budgets may explain some things such as the need to reuse animation. Art doesn’t depend on money in order to be good, even if it’s just a silly girly anime.
August 8, 2013 @ 9:49 pm
Um……It’s just a show
August 9, 2013 @ 1:26 am
It generally is not an interesting thing to say, “It’s just…” when discussing pop culture. We all know it is just a show, we all have decided to care for the purposes of discussion, and arguing about the nuances of this sort of product acts as a proxy for arguing about bigger issues (like say, Feminism, the Serialization of Young Women, and the difference between a Good Character and a Character that is a Good Role Model).
It is like going to see “Pacific Rim” and complaining that there are giant robots. By having the discussion you are buying into giving a shit rather than being dismissive.
August 9, 2013 @ 1:58 am
The point being made was the article writer intentionally adds and tries to spin everything as some great example of feminism and brilliant female writing. Sometimes a spade is a spade. And a dumb shallow main character is just dumb and shallow. While sometimes dressing 14 year old girls in miniskirts that basically give constant panty shots is just obvious sexualization to attract the other gender.
August 9, 2013 @ 2:16 am
The phrase, “Um… It’s just a (whatever)” doesn’t add anything. If that is all you have to say, then don’t bother. He isn’t refuting either, he isn’t saying anything. It is a waste of space.
August 9, 2013 @ 8:29 pm
It does add something because the article clearly tries to portray it as more than a show and refuses to take anything at face value.
August 9, 2013 @ 12:40 pm
THANK YOU!
August 8, 2013 @ 9:54 pm
Doug Walker approves of your article.
https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=548438175222648&id=127127037353766
August 9, 2013 @ 7:31 am
You both are great: NC and the author of this review. ^^
August 9, 2013 @ 2:18 pm
Glad to know I’m not the only one who liked both the NC review (though I’ll admit I winced a few times he got stuff wrong) and this article ^_^
August 8, 2013 @ 9:58 pm
You anime fans obviously cant take a joke
August 8, 2013 @ 10:19 pm
Yeah we can. I found the show hilarious.
August 8, 2013 @ 10:37 pm
“You anime fans”? Funny coming from the guy with the Yu Yu Hakusho avatar…
August 9, 2013 @ 1:51 am
Likely he meant fanboys.
August 9, 2013 @ 12:52 pm
Well, the stupid anime fans.
August 8, 2013 @ 10:00 pm
It was a comical review. A satire. He brought up valid points about an anime he isn’t too crazy about. I liked it as a kid and as an adult I still like it but I can acknowledge the flaws. Plus, at the end he said that he gets why people like it and that its harmless. If you didn’t like he’s review or you thought it wasn’t funny that’s fine, but no need to be offended by a review made for comedic purposes only.
August 8, 2013 @ 10:05 pm
Satire is meant to break down powerful institutions and people. Satire is not an excuse to mock those who are constantly oppressed by said powerful institutions. Women (and other marginalized groups) are already mocked in a non-satirical sense; they don’t need to be TOLD “haha it’s funny because I’m mocking the people who make fun of you by parroting the things they tell you every day.”
August 8, 2013 @ 10:24 pm
Did we watch the same Review? NC was in no way “mocking” women, he as pointing out the objectification of women (or girls in this case) that is in Sailor Moon
August 8, 2013 @ 10:28 pm
He also makes fun of guys and how they think with their dicks. He is also respectful of the cultural differences between Japan and America. If was really ‘mocking’ women, he would have said a lot worse but he’s too smart for that.
August 8, 2013 @ 10:39 pm
In the review, Sailor Moon’s so called formula is summarized as a “fourteen year old girl who acts stupid and transforms to make herself look stupid and slutty.” So he slut shames and insults the main character within the first few minuets. If that is not insulting women, I don’t know what is. Further more, HE objectifies the characters way more than the show ever did. He first watched the show as a teen because he found the characters attractive. However, that is not the intent of the show. The characters don’t dress the way they do to impress and/for the sexual pleasure of men. As the article states, Sailor Moon was created by a woman for women.
August 8, 2013 @ 10:46 pm
Not to be rude, but the intent an author may have with a show can be lost among the audience. Especially if that audience is from another country which is comprised of people who think that most things that come out of Japan is weird to begin with. And even if she came over and said: “This show is for girls”, people would still have their own opinions on the matter as they may not be able to see all the good the show can do or just don’t understand how it could be.
August 8, 2013 @ 10:55 pm
ok, they might not be dressed for the sexual pleasure of men, but do you honestly think any boy what may have seen it would not have thought they were attractive?and watched for that reason? Can you give any good reason for them to have such short skirts on? Secondly, Serena is very dim-witted and shallow in the beginning, also he called the uniform “sexuallized” not “slutty”, he pointed out that it was exploited sexualisation, nothing more,
August 8, 2013 @ 11:22 pm
What men think watching the show is irrelevant to how they are treated in the show. If someone sexualizes them, it’s their problem rather than the show’s. Secondly, Serena/Usagi does need to mature but he still made her and her intelligence the punchline of the joke. Why would I think the review was going to be fair if he insults the main character so much so quickly? Also, nope. He says slutty so still slut shaming.
August 8, 2013 @ 11:39 pm
When it’s the show that does the sexualizing, it is the shows problem, secondly, Serena’s intelligence was a joke, at least in the seasons I watched as a child, even though she was the main character, the was also the comedic relief, if you think what he said was insulting, well you might need to culture yourself a bit, because it was not nearly as bad as it could have been, and was also true, thirdly, your going to have to explain your view of slut shaming, because if your the type that defends a woman getting mad at a man looking at the woman in a mini skirt that hardly hides anything, well that’s a separate argument
August 9, 2013 @ 1:50 am
I’m sorry but since when did the word slutty become nigger for women? Get off your high horse. It’s a description of the way the costumes were designed. Is criticizing the way someone dresses themselves just taboo now? And in the beginning the main character is in fact…really…really…reallllly stupid.
August 9, 2013 @ 6:06 am
How the hell is sexualization NOT the show’s fault?
It’s the show that made the designs so over-the-top skimpy. How is that any fault of the viewer?
August 10, 2013 @ 3:58 pm
Over-the-top skimpy? Hardly, their outfits are no more revealing than a figure skater or a female gymnast!
August 10, 2013 @ 4:16 pm
True, but I don’t recall female gymnasts having to wear mini-skirts the size of an average belt.
The outfits in Sailor Moon are not practical like the leotard of an athlete, they are just skimpy for the sake of it. Or do you know any purpose for them except for fanservice?
August 10, 2013 @ 4:53 pm
Me too, and neither does Sailor Moon. That’s just a silly exaggeration if it was that short it wouldn’t even cover her panties. For some kind of scale, look at the artwork, her skirt is at least the same length of her head (and this is anime, that’s kinda big!).Not saying that her skirt is not short by most standards -truly it is- but that kind of exaggeration is a little ridiculous.
In what way are the outfits not practical?? They girls are often portrayed running around and jumping impossibly high distances, not all that unlike athletes.If the skirts were longer they would get in the way and limit movement.
And really, they are the outfits the creator -a university educated woman- wanted them to wear. Is that really so objectionable?
August 10, 2013 @ 5:33 pm
1.: I was exaggerating for the sake of humour. Which is something many people in this thread do not seem to get.
2.: When do people in jobs that require physical agility wear mini-skirts? Why would they not wear pants (which provide more comfortability) or armour (which provides more protection)? I mean, they are fighting evil monsters, why don’t they cover their skin a bit more? That seems like the logical solution, not a mini-skirt.
3.: A university-decree doesn’t make you uncriticisable. And whilst this is most definitely a matter of taste, I am merely demonstrating my own taste here.
August 11, 2013 @ 6:23 am
(I wrote a reply once already.but it seems to have vanished in to thin air…)
1. OK well sorry, but as you prefaced it with “True” it was hard to tell if your were actually trying to make a serious counter argument or not.
2. Well I’ve already given the examples of figure skaters who often wear a leotard with a skirt piece attached (which is exactly what the Sailor Senshi wear when they are transformed). They do this of course because it gives them freedom of movement, and the skirt piece ads an air femininity to the outfits and flows well with their movements.
As for trousers and comfort. Many girls do in fact prefer to wear skirts. Personally (and I am female, but I know my username of choice often leads people to think I am male), I find skirts and trousers to be about equal in terms of comfort. In terms of moveability I would say skirts above knee length would win out in all honesty.
There is more modesty in wearing trousers generally but to achieve the same amount of flexibility, the trousers would have to be skintight. Realistically you would be able to see the clear outlines of her thighs and butt. Wouldn’t that kind of defeat the purpose of wearing trousers to cover up?
The point about armor is an interesting one. The Sailor V manga kinda covers this topic, where the main character disguises herself as a Sentai warrior complete with armor, but finds herself to weighed down to be able to do anything useful. Armor is pretty heavy stuff and these are 5ft tall (or thereabouts) girls we are talking about.
Interestingly, in modern fiction, women with super powers or magical powers are rarely equipped with any actual armor (or at least any that would realistically save them from serious injury).
There is also the fact that the fighting in Sailor Moon mostly consists of, twirling, posing and shooting magical projectiles and beams of energy, rather than getting up close with the enemy and physically fighting. It’s a fighting style that is more about being graceful and girly than anything else, hence why I think the figure skater comparison really does work when talking about Sailor Moon.
3. Perhaps, I shouldn’t of said the University Educated part. That wasn’t the main point I wanted to get across, nor was I trying to imply that makes anyone infailable or uncriticisable . It seems to me that lot of the commentors here -perhaps not specifically you- are under the impression Sailor Moon was invented by a man or group of men who put the characters in mini skirts just for sex appeal. I find that kind of attitude kind of maddening. The are many reasons why a girl would wear a mini skirt -for comfort, style, flexibility, to keep cooler on a hot day, and yes sometimes for sex appeal too- but it seems people are focusing on the sex appeal only, ignoring any other possible reason, and acting as if the entire show is some kind of abhorrent fanservice-fest because of it.
August 11, 2013 @ 6:15 pm
Well, I do appreciate your logical reasoning.
I guess in the end we’ll be forced to agree to disagree. I’m not a fan of Sailor Moon and you are.
We should just leave it at that, shouldn’t we?
August 8, 2013 @ 11:18 pm
Sounds like someone has a case of “selective hearing”.
August 9, 2013 @ 1:46 am
The main character in the beginning at least is at best a complete airhead who literally goes shopping so she doesn’t think of her terrible grades…and the outfits are pretty slutty including panty shots of 14 year old girls that had no point other than to sexual them for the male audience. So nothing in that description was in fact false. And just because you target one gender in an audience doesn’t mean you ignore the other gender. Hence why guys in action movies tend to lose their shirts all the time. Also making fun of the obvious fan service isn’t objectifying anything.
August 10, 2013 @ 4:06 pm
A woman (Naoko Takeuchi) dressing her characters in clothing of her choice (in this case, leotards with mini skirts over them) is objectifying them?
August 10, 2013 @ 8:16 pm
explain how it isnt? just because a woman put the shirt skirts on the characters does NOT change the fact that the skirts are very sex appealing, which in this context makes it objectification, how would you feel if a man designed them instead of a woman? If this was to be the full out power to the women show everyone is making it out to be, why then open yourself to what you are fighting?
August 11, 2013 @ 5:21 am
I ask you, if a girl or woman wears a short skirt, is she objectifying herself in your eyes?
Do you believe that the only reason women choose wear mini skirts is for the titillation of men?
Honestly, what exactly do you think women are fighting against? Shouldn’t a women be able to wear what she wants? That is a part of true feminism in my eyes. It’s attitudes like yours that are more harmful to women rights than Sailor Moon ever will be.
August 11, 2013 @ 2:13 pm
It depends on the situation in all honestly, yes you can wear whatever you want for whatever reason, but don’t get mad if I stare at you while your wearing that short skirt if you have no reason to be wearing it.
I’m not a woman if you hadn’t noticed so I can’t think of any practical reasons to wear short skirts; leotards, swimsuits and the like I understand the reasoning for perfectly, and I am aware that we men still look at them, hell we’ll still look if you were covered in body armor, but you have a reason to get mad at that.
I truly have no idea what women are fighting for in the sense of clothes, I personally feel that if you choose to wear skimpy clothes in a dangerous area it is your duty to yourself to take every precaution to protect yourself, that is not saying men have a right to abuse you either, but there is a thing called personal responsibility
August 11, 2013 @ 3:58 pm
Expect I’m not getting mad at men for looking at girls (either myself, other girls or fictional characters) in short skirts, that’s not really the point I am trying to make.I am fully aware that most hetrosexual men will look at girls dressed in a way that they find sexually appealing. I wouldn’t be surprised if many guys started watching the show because they found the girls attractive.
What bothered me was the way the assumption that there is only one reason why the girls (or any girls real of fiction) are dressed like they are and that it is somehow wrong and shameful.
Yes, sometimes girls just want to wear short skirts -maybe for sexual reasons or maybe not- most teenage girls will have a mini skirt or two in their closet. The creator was once a teenage girl too, and it’s not impossible she liked wearing mini skirts at that age too and maybe thought it would be a fun item of clothing to dress her characters in or for what ever reason…. It doesn’t have to have anything to do with objectification.
August 11, 2013 @ 7:16 pm
Okay, everyone saying Naoko Takeuchi chose to draw the girls that way? No, that isn’t what happened. See, she co-created the series alongside Utena creator Kunihiro Ikuhara, who requested that Takeuchi put the girls in tiny schoolgirl skirts because that’s his fetish. She reluctantly agreed, on one condition: He had to let her indulge in her fetish too, that being mysterious men in tuxedos and fancy masquerade masks.
August 15, 2014 @ 3:35 pm
He told her to put them in schoolgirl outfits to make it more relateable to Japanese girls in Japan.
August 11, 2013 @ 9:07 pm
well it sure seemed to me as though you were getting mad, I never said there was only one reason, thats just the only reason I as a man can think of, and no I don’t think its “wrong” for a woman to dress that way, but for a 14 year girl, yes I think its wrong, that makes me worry about peoples morals, I understand in japan, age of consent is different, and in some manner I understand that, but I still do not understand or maybe can’t accept a 14 year old girl in such a short skirt for as far as I see no reason, and where I do understand some women like wearing short skirts, I cant see why unless it is for the attention of a man, i just cant see anything else, I’m not saying not to just that I don’t get
August 8, 2013 @ 10:26 pm
Are you kidding me? You obviously have no idea who Doug Walker is or anything about his views, so you can stop pulling stuff out of your ass
August 9, 2013 @ 1:38 am
So women now need to be protected from criticism and mockery? That’s not sexist at all…wait yes it totally is.
August 9, 2013 @ 2:06 am
Satire applies to everyone. It’s not an excuse to mock those who are oppressed, it is a means of mocking them. A very effective one. Everyone should be mocked. You shouldn’t avoid poking fun at a group because they’re disenfranchised. Look at the gays. They’re marginalized, they deserve better than they’re getting. But they’re also hilarious to poke fun at.
August 8, 2013 @ 10:00 pm
Doug’s response to this is more mature and accepting than this entire article is.
Lighten up.
Sincerely,
A huge SM fan
February 23, 2014 @ 4:43 am
And my response to Doug is,
You are a self-indulgent, sexist, untalented, waste of semen, obese hypocrite who lives in the parent’s basement!
Go die in a fire faggot!
Sincerely,
People with a life!
June 29, 2014 @ 2:58 pm
How tasteless. Good for you being a bigger shit.
August 8, 2013 @ 10:02 pm
You do realize Doug Walker isn’t NC and he plays a character, right? While some opinions he may share, they don’t reflect what he does and all. As someone who loved Sailor Moon too, I saw where he came from. I think you took him a little TOO seriously. Nice opinion but uh, calm down. Its okay!
February 23, 2014 @ 4:46 am
Oh look, another sad waste of semen defending that no talent hack who can’t come up with a REAL character like Dana Carvey!
Go join Doug in the fire Alevan!
August 8, 2013 @ 10:03 pm
something this article overlooks is the maturity and fighting ability that Usagi gains throughout the series. She dies follow her principle set of traits but she also undergoes character development, such as passing the high school entrance exams in season 5. Some of the later plots, especially season 3, the focus shifts away from Serena and stretches to include more characters, with Serena and Darian not being the focus as in season 2.
August 8, 2013 @ 10:14 pm
The Nostalgia Critic didn’t watch the entire series. He was critiquing the first season as an outsider.
August 9, 2013 @ 3:08 am
He was critiquing the first episode and tried to pass it off as seeing more. That’s the problem.
August 13, 2013 @ 5:36 pm
Actually, he was critiquing and had seen the whole first season. He specifically mentioned he had not seen the later ones. It’s there in the video.
August 8, 2013 @ 10:06 pm
Fantastic article. I think it really comes down to the differences in how men and women notice how the world treats them growing up. the Fact that men have always had male superheroes as role models we have a very hard set view of what a superhero/ coming of age narrative is. Sailor moon is so far removed form anything we are familiar with because it not only combines these genres but is from literally the opposite perspective. Even the fact it is an ensemble cast foreign to us. Personally I liked Cardcaptor Sakura better.
August 8, 2013 @ 10:13 pm
You are obviously not familiar with the Nostalgia Critic. Doug has stated numerous times that his opinions are NOT the Critic’s opinions. He had a lot of requests to review Sailor Moon, and he tried to make a humorous review. It is in no way meant to be taken seriously.
August 9, 2013 @ 6:32 pm
Doug and the critic’s opinions are the same, just the Critic’s are much more exaggerated for humor.
August 10, 2013 @ 2:44 pm
Not true- Doug’s said multiple times that the critic’s opinions are the common opinions of those who are critical of whatever he’s watching, plus whatever jokes he can come up with. There are movies he ripped apart as the Critic that he actually likes- but for the sake of the show he still ripped them apart.
August 10, 2013 @ 3:41 pm
OK, but its still a character written by Doug, so his opinion will still play a part, especially at the end. Like here when he says its not for me, he isn’t making that up or secretly loving Sailor Moon. Sometimes his opinions match the common opinion so its possible for their opinions to be one and the same.
August 8, 2013 @ 10:14 pm
Shows will always be interpreted differently across cultures and between people even if they are born in the same area. This is because from birth we are born differently and share different experiences. Your interpretation is neither right nor wrong and neither is the Nostalgia Critic’s. Both of them are the product of your own views that you have developed through your many individual experiences.
August 8, 2013 @ 10:14 pm
Chill out article. A majority of the points he makes are exaggerations. he admits he only saw a portion of the show, admits he doesn’t know everything that happens later and states that he does hear that sailor moon does become a better character over time. It’s just a comedic review and that’s it. Besides, who the hell can find out all of this information on the show in a week, let alone the information on the manga, creator interviews and anime terms. It’s fine to make those points, but acknowledge the fact he did it for fun and not to knock the show down a peg.
August 8, 2013 @ 10:16 pm
He also admits that the show may have done some good for the people who watched it at the end of his show.
August 8, 2013 @ 10:22 pm
Everyone should just chill out and watch some Yu-Gi-Oh! Abridged.
August 8, 2013 @ 10:25 pm
LOL BUTTHURT ANIME FANS <3
Because Critic should ALWAYS be taken seriously.
His word is law.
Did you hear about that guy who beat up Bugs Bunny and shit on his face?
What an animal abusing dick.
August 9, 2013 @ 12:30 am
Yeah, I heard about that guy who took a dump on Bugs Bunny. What was he thinking?! And why would you have to beat him up first? It’s a confusing rule. I’d rather get trampled by a raging buffalo than have to follow that logic.
*takes a sip from some Rolling Rock*
August 8, 2013 @ 10:26 pm
Wow. Yeah, as a Sailor Moon fan, I enjoyed this review. Yes, I did see a lot of things wrong with it, but the NC is suppose to rag on everything he sees. Doug Walker, he man behind NC, says he sees nothing WRONG with the show itself. It’s meant to be funny, lighten up.
February 23, 2014 @ 4:51 am
Doug is a no talent hack! If had any brains, he would join SNL and create some REAL characters instead of being the waste of semen that he is!
And for that matter so are you!
August 8, 2013 @ 10:26 pm
you’re picking an argument with the NC… what are you… JOYLESS??
August 8, 2013 @ 10:29 pm
She’s not picking a fight with him. She has an opinion different from his and that’s fine. If Doug is reading this then I’m sure he applauds that someone is voicing their interpretation of the show. This allows both parties to learn and grow respectively and to get a deeper understanding of the show, other issues that the show brings u p, and of themselves.
August 8, 2013 @ 10:29 pm
He was obviously joking…
August 8, 2013 @ 10:31 pm
Hard to tell a joke through a screen. And now that he has responded as such, now I know. No harm, no foul.
August 8, 2013 @ 10:30 pm
DUDE…. are you joyless? (don’t answer I’m being sarcastic 😉 )
August 8, 2013 @ 10:34 pm
only problem is the author of this article did not watch NC’s review with objective ears, and therefore can’t have an educated debate over the issue
August 8, 2013 @ 10:40 pm
He still can. His point of view is that of an outsider; in this case, someone who doesn’t know much about anime, Japanese culture, Japanese history, etc. As such, his view of this show matches many of those who have not seen it and would find Sailor Moon foreign and strange. If an understanding between Doug and this author can be achieved then there’s a chance that other outsiders can learn from this as well.
August 8, 2013 @ 10:40 pm
He still can. His point of view is that of an outsider; in this case, someone who doesn’t know much about anime, Japanese culture, Japanese history, etc. As such, his view of this show matches many of those who have not seen it and would find Sailor Moon foreign and strange. If an understanding between Doug and this author can be achieved then there’s a chance that other outsiders can learn from this as well.
August 9, 2013 @ 1:53 am
Picking a fight…with a fictional character. What’s next arguing with Cartmen form southpark?
February 23, 2014 @ 4:58 am
A shitty one at that! The fact that people can’t tell the difference tells you that Doug is indeed a no talent, self-indulgent, sexist, waste of semen, obese hypocrite who lives in the parent’s basement!
No way this loser creates a character as compelling as Chris Kattan’s Mango.
And nobody needs to argue with with “Cartman”, instead the argument should be if you are an emo who deserves to be shot or an emo who deserves AIDS for having no life!
August 8, 2013 @ 10:28 pm
Obviously you guys missed the point, sailor moon is kind of stupid, and its fan service, and it sells toys and accesories to girls, some enjoy it, some don’t, you are just a bunch of fan boys who got their feelings hurt.
August 9, 2013 @ 2:15 am
It’s a show for girls, why would we be a bunch of fan boys.
August 9, 2013 @ 6:24 am
Fangirls then. That’s just nitpicking.
August 8, 2013 @ 10:32 pm
I’m going to raise a point that hasn’t been brought up yet. Doug Walker (Nostalgia Critic) is not a watcher of anime. He isn’t very familiar with the art form and thus has to come at any anime he intends to review from an outsider perspective. So when he chose to review Sailor Moon it should be noted that he isn’t familiar with anime so he shouldn’t be judged for “not knowing better” when, clearly, Sailor Moon has a lot of anime stereotypes and tropes that define anime. And that stuff baffles many American non-watchers. It’s a different medium for him and he did a great job stating the good in it as well as pointing out what he didn’t understand. This article seems to have missed the joke. That’s why he reviewed it in the first place.
“Put a helmet on!”
August 9, 2013 @ 12:22 am
also to remember John Travolta is the Nostalgia critic is a character and everything he chooses to review has a need to be over the top
Also his brother Rob Walker is a big anime lover so I can only assume he had an influence over his brother as he reviewed it maybe so he doesn’t go into unwanted territory
It’s also funny I came across your comment
Miss you Manny
August 9, 2013 @ 6:03 am
Are you a moron?
The Nostalgia Critic is played by Doug Walker. Where on earth would you get the idea that he was played by John Travolta?!
August 9, 2013 @ 12:46 pm
yah dude John Travolta is the nick name I call the dude above I know Who Doug Walker is but I see I wrote it pretty weird
August 9, 2013 @ 2:00 pm
Commas are your friend, Mariah. I swear. I know it’s quicker to type without them, but they so very much help illustrate grouping and context.
August 9, 2013 @ 2:11 pm
haha well what can I say my grammar is not always perfect I’ll be more aware in the future
February 23, 2014 @ 5:02 am
Given what a dumb bitch you are, I wouldn’t be surprised if you masturbate to Chris Chan!
August 9, 2013 @ 9:19 am
It’s not tfirst time he’s seen anime. He watches the Miyazaki movies and has said to have watched Cowboy Bebop
August 9, 2013 @ 12:08 pm
He’s also praised Japanese animation on some accounts.
August 10, 2013 @ 8:12 pm
I’ve heard he’s apparently a fan of Death Note too.
August 8, 2013 @ 10:32 pm
oh, so most of the hardcore Sailor Moon fans watched the Japanese dubbed before it was brought to America…
August 8, 2013 @ 10:38 pm
Annnnnnnd Doug just linked this to his page…
August 8, 2013 @ 10:44 pm
The other reason the PSA was at the end of each episode was from the
amount of censored material they just omitted. And there are episodes
they just flat out didn’t bother censoring, like the summer vacation one
where they are all in bikinis.
August 9, 2013 @ 6:26 am
Why would you need to censor bikinis? O_O
August 9, 2013 @ 11:27 am
because it was the 90’s.
August 8, 2013 @ 10:45 pm
Thank you very much for this article. 🙂 A big problem I had with the Nostalgia Critic’s review was that came from a sexist perspective. I’m not saying you agree with me but it is a reason I’m glad to see more discussion on the female empowering aspects of Sailor Moon. You articulated what is so great about the show very well.
August 8, 2013 @ 10:48 pm
It came from the perspective of someone unfamiliar with Sailor Moon and anime in general. You clearly know nothing about Doug or the NC if you think he is sexist.
August 8, 2013 @ 10:50 pm
I have been watching Doug’s work since 2009. Unfamiliar with the show or not, describing the main character as “stupid and slutty” is sexist.
August 8, 2013 @ 10:55 pm
It’s very clearly a joke. I’m a girl and I can tell the difference between malicious sexism and a flipping joke. If you have been watching his videos for that long then you would know that he makes fun of everyone and everything anyway. Also, Serena is clearly “stupid” in the anime episodes that he watched? They don’t try to hide it, she fails all her tests. The “slutty” joke may not be to everyone’s tastes, but it’s just that, a joke.
August 8, 2013 @ 11:15 pm
Something does not have to outwardly malicious to be sexist, though. I agree that it was intended to be a joke but it was a sexist joke. Slut shaming is still a real problem in society so calling an underage girl a slut so casually is just adding to the problem. I know very well that he makes fun of everyone but the problem is that humor does not exist in a vacuum. Some of the people he makes fun of are minorities. Jokes at their (well, our too) expense just further trends that disrespect them in larger society. Granted, Critic has been better about this in the past but he just dropped the ball on this one.
August 8, 2013 @ 11:46 pm
You know what, if you are determined to take this lighthearted 20 minute review of a TV show as some sort of attack on women and “slut shaming” then there is nothing I can do about that. Continue having a bad time I guess.
August 8, 2013 @ 11:49 pm
If you look for sexism in everything you’re bound to find it, yes it is a real problem but perpetuating like this doesn’t help anything
August 9, 2013 @ 1:05 am
Except she isn’t a real girl. She’s a cartoon character. She has no feelings to be hurt and if the creator’s feelings are damaged by the opinion of a single man on the internet then..well, they need a thicker skin if they wish to submit material for public consumption. Sailor Moon isn’t real, she is a work of art. Art, being a subjective medium, can be called slutty if that is what someone sees when they look at it.
February 23, 2014 @ 5:05 am
I bet Ana would leave you in bloody piles if the two of you ever went at it limp dick!
August 9, 2013 @ 6:31 am
Umm, no it isn’t. I someone’s stupid, they’re stupid. If they dress in a slutty fashion, they’re slutty. You need to learn what sexism means.
August 8, 2013 @ 11:17 pm
How was it sexist? He didn’t call the main character “slutty” he described the outfit, which I also find to be so, as such. I watch anime so I know tiny skirts are the norm, but Sailor Moon be it for girls or boys makes this very uncomfortably obvious. It’s marketed towards kids. Sex appeal should not be in a show for kids.
August 8, 2013 @ 11:34 pm
Read the article? Again, not saying it agrees with me but it does a great job at refuting the more problematic aspects of the review. Still, my personal problems were basically: he calls the main character a slut, tried to discuss exploitation but sexualized the characters himself, and largely ignores why the show is appealing and empowering to women. Further more, yes, in the review the main character is called “slutty”. Dr. Hack says the formula of the show involves her acting “stupid and slutty”. The show is not meant to have sex appeal. If you see it that way, it is more on you than the show.
August 9, 2013 @ 1:18 am
And if you see that the NC’s remarks as totally sexist and without merit then that is on you more than him. The reason it “Largely ignores why the show is appealing and empowering for women” is because he wasn’t trying to give a fair and unbiased, honest review. He was putting on a comedy show…or was the part where he hired a guy called “Dr.Hack” to create a formula for television to make him rich and famous too subtle? He pointed out the flaws, made jokes about the obvious sexual depiction, and hyper female traits of the scouts within the show. but in the same ‘review’ (which it still isn’t).
He also pointed out that the characters were indeed a decent batch of characters, the show, while not great, wasn’t actively hurting viewers and was somewhat of a good show for women (he even does make a mention that the show can be quite empowering showing such a ‘normal’ character being so empowered. He even mocks the Americanized version for its incredible homophobic reaction to those two scouts. The ‘review’ is mixed, if you ask me. On one hand it does use the word slut a few times..but on the other hand it does make fun of the sexualized attire of the 14 year old scouts, the homophobia the american version, does bring to light several rather damning points about the sex trade in Japan, and mentions that the show can actually be empowering…
So yeah, I take it back. The ‘review’ (which it still isn’t) isn’t a mixed thing with balanced good and bad points. It is mostly good points, but with the one bad point is that he used the word slut a few times.
Just my two cents, you are of course entitled to your opinion, but I am equally entitled to think it incorrect and offer my own.
February 23, 2014 @ 5:07 am
“Just my two cents, you are of course entitled to your opinion, but I am equally entitled to think it incorrect and offer my own.”
And everybody agrees that Ana would put you in a hospital two ways till Sunday!
August 9, 2013 @ 12:01 am
If the show wasn’t going for sex appeal, wouldn’t she be in battle armor as NC pointed out? I’m not sure what’s empowering about a mini-skirt. Like he said, the creators sexed up all those 14 year olds for the sake of fanservice, I just can’t see any other reason for them to be in outfits like that. Just one other thing I want to point out, being stupid isn’t sexist. Slutty yes, but anyone can be stupid. And from what was shown, she was failing school and didn’t care at all, sounds like she was acting stupid.
August 9, 2013 @ 2:45 am
Actually, there are lots of reasons for them to wear those uniforms. They are designed after the very same sailor school uniforms that a real 14-year-old girl would wear, but made more compact and lighter for ease of movement, much like a gymnast or figure skater. We could easily get into a similar argument about why western super heroes traditionally wear leotards instead of body armor. In the Sailor V manga, there was even a joke where she tries to wear full-plate armor instead, and falls over because it’s too heavy to move in. And, despite how short the skirts are, the up-skirt shots are pretty minimal compared to many other anime series–the animators kind of went out of their way to keep the skirts in place.
Yes, of course it’s a little bit sexy, but the costumes were designed by a woman, reflecting what she would have wanted to see a super hero wear when she was a teenager. So while men might find them sexually appealing, that is not the original purpose of the costumes at all.
August 9, 2013 @ 3:02 am
Fair enough actually. There was always that whole sexism thing in comics that I thought was ridiculous. Really good point.
August 9, 2013 @ 1:03 am
You know it wasn’t a review, right? It was a comedy routine focused around the prospect of an outsider looking in at only the most surface level aspects of the anime which made it ‘goofy’ or stand out in the minds of the fans that requested he do it. While some of the words may be sexist, the intent was not. He admitted that the show could be good for girls in some of the lessons it could teach, and that at the time it was better than many female oriented cartoons. He even made comment that while the character annoyed him he could admit that it was a good character. While I don’t feel as if your concern of sexism in the comedy show are unjustified, I think it needs to be remembered that this is a comedy show and thus is meant to be taken with a grain of salt. The lowest hanging comedy fruit with Sailor Moon is of course the sexuality within.
August 9, 2013 @ 1:27 am
I appreciate the way you articulated that, its what I was trying to get across, but you did it FAR better
August 8, 2013 @ 10:48 pm
Butthurt Sailor Moon fan much?
August 8, 2013 @ 10:50 pm
Another thing to consider is that he was going off of the dub by DiC entertainment, and even said in the video that he didn’t get very far. In the case of the English, there’s bound to be some things that we’re conducive to the overarching story that weren’t present in the dub. Another thing to consider is that, like so many other commenter have pointed out, he was coming at it from an outsider perspective. That’s part of the comedy of the Nostalgia Critic, pointing out the flaws to things we overlook because of NOSTALGIA! Also, to respond to the “reused footage” issue, just because it’s a staple of the genre doesn’t necessary mean it’s good. There are series that have attacks like Sailor Moon that were able to avoid the trope, such as Slayers and the first season of Sorcerous Stabber Orphen.
August 9, 2013 @ 11:33 pm
…I love that someone else remembers Sorcerous Stabber Orphen. I think, though that it really comes down to budget. Did Sailor Moon have a bigger budget than Slayers and Sourcerous Stabber Orphen? No idea, but it’s very likely, at least, that the budget for Sailor Moon was going elsewhere, and while it’s not really able to be said that it’s GOOD that they reused footage, I think a bit of slack can be cut for it, based on that knowledge 😛
August 8, 2013 @ 11:28 pm
Nostalgia Critic is a character. Have you seen other Nostalgia Critic reviews? He is supposed to be harsh on everything and nit pick all the flaws.
August 9, 2013 @ 12:45 am
To be fair, he did say good things about Gargoyles. And Double Dare. And Follow That Bird. And SATAM. And Turtles Forever. And a handful of his top 11 lists and Old vs New videos.
February 23, 2014 @ 5:09 am
And a very bad one at that! But hey whatever keeps you on the depressants loser!
August 9, 2013 @ 12:10 am
Ooh, Doug linked this on facebook. I’M GETTING POPCOOOORN! I wanna see where the flames go! …Does this make an asshole? I suppose it does. Oh well!
August 9, 2013 @ 12:51 am
I came the the horrifying determination that My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic, is almost exactly the same as Sailor Moon. Feel free to scream in horror and fear now.
August 9, 2013 @ 3:43 am
Naah, just ignore it, it’ll disappear like all fads do.
August 9, 2013 @ 12:54 am
Not bad. I think that was a good response to Doug’s response to Sailor Moon. And Doug likes it, so I guess we’re all good 🙂 Also I’m glad no one went all nuttymadame.
August 9, 2013 @ 1:04 am
An argument about whether Sailor Moon is a good anime or not? Just when I thought the 90’s were over.
August 9, 2013 @ 1:20 am
A fantastic article. Well written. I do not agree with all the points, but it is still an interesting read.
August 9, 2013 @ 2:25 am
It’s because of shows like Sailor Moon that the only Japanese cartoons I can stand are Miyazaki films. His works are the only Japanese animation I’ve ever seen that doesn’t fall in to the terrible cliches and tropes so prevalent in shows like Sailor Moon.
August 9, 2013 @ 6:27 am
T
I love Miyazaki’s work too, but to be fair, he does recycle a whole bunch of tropes, the most prevalent of which being the enviromental message in most of his films.
August 9, 2013 @ 2:26 am
I think it’s perfectly valid to present the other side of the argument, because a lot of people who are not too familiar with Sailor Moon probably don’t realize a lot of the underlying themes involved in the series. Yes, to an outsider the costumes probably look like they are for male gratification. Here is why, if you look a little deeper, that is not the case. Yes, to an outsider, the main character seems hopelessly inept and cowardly. Here are reasons why that is actually a positive thing.
This is not an insult to NC or the guy behind it. He admits himself that he was not a fan of the show, thus probably was not aware of these things. This article fills in the blanks. There is no reason for all you NC fans to be upset. You got your jokes, now here is the real truth.
August 9, 2013 @ 2:37 am
this article fills in blanks in an attacking way, she thought NC was “stabbing” at Sailor Moon, She decided to stab back, and effectively turned this comment section into a rally against sexism. If it had been in more of a discussion like tone, fewer people would find fault, but since she wants to accuse NC of being sexist, the fact that his description of Serena was accurate and the fact that many things he said were misconstrued in the context of the article itself, we see fit to defend, even though Doug (NC) himself, likes it
August 9, 2013 @ 2:53 am
Uh, you do know that “take a stab” is a phrase that simply means “attempt” right?
August 9, 2013 @ 2:55 am
while usually is does, I believe is means “attempt to insult” in this case
August 9, 2013 @ 2:59 am
I think you may want to read over the article again, because I don’t believe it is as accusatory as you seem to think. She said that NC had “concerns” over the sexualization of teenage girls. At no point does it accuse Doug himself of being sexist.
August 9, 2013 @ 3:11 am
I may be combining the article with some of the comments I’ve read, my apologizes, but it still doesn’t acknowledge the fact that NC did state it was good for girls, the article states: “While Nostalgia Critic tastes may just be well beyond anything related to anime or the magical girl series, Sailor Moon’s clear and empowering message of acceptance of one’s sexuality and femininity seems to be totally lost to him.” this seems to be confrontational to me, especially when NC said it was a good show for kids, even with the issues it does have
August 9, 2013 @ 2:57 am
The reason people are upset is because NC (whether he’s a character or not doesn’t matter), took an extremely beloved and influential show that spawned 200 episodes, a number of specials, 3 movies, over 800 musical performances, and a 50 episode live action series and that was based on 18 graphic novels
and watched one episode (almost every clip he showed was from episode 1) and presumed to comment on ALL of that material.
If he had spun his “review” or comedy show or whatever as a first impressions type thing or even called it a review of episode one, I would have found it really funny because in the first episode, you’re supposed to find Sailor Moon ditzy and stupid.
But he didn’t do that. He presumed to talk with authority about the entire franchise when he really didn’t know anything about it and called a character that’s generally considered extremely inspirational and empowering “slutty”. That’s not funny, that’s just insulting to fans who grew up admiring this gigantic meta-series
August 9, 2013 @ 3:40 am
Okay, if you were a parent, would you REALLY let your daughter run around in that short of a skirt and be okay with it? I sure as hell wouldn’t.
Then there’s a fact that he nailed it on the head pretty much, I remember watching this show off and on when it first reached the states, and it was the same thing over and over and over. Just because he used scenes from one episode does not mean he didn’t watch more episodes. Doug is an intelligent man, and I’m fairly certain he did his research.
August 9, 2013 @ 5:51 am
Good lord Angelicnoir, calm your tits!! Nostalgia Critic gave a comedy review of an anime you like, big woop! Nothing to cry over, don’t be so butt hurt over it.
August 9, 2013 @ 6:11 am
You guys realize 1. the Nostalgia critic is a character. 2 He is allowed to not like something. 3. I’m a woman and never got into the show as a kid, but I do not knock other people who like it. He also says in the review that he can see why it was popular it just didn’t appeal to him.
February 23, 2014 @ 5:14 am
You realize that Doug is a no talent, self-indulgent, sexist, obese hypocrite who can’t come up with a character that people know it ain’t real.
But seeing as you are a filthy disease ridden whore, you can join him in a fire pit!
August 9, 2013 @ 6:41 am
You know this show was originally made for japanese businessmen, right?
August 9, 2013 @ 6:49 am
really?
care to explain?
August 9, 2013 @ 6:49 am
Let’s make Doug Walker watch “Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon”
August 9, 2013 @ 7:13 am
This was a good red, and a good complimentary article to the NC’s review showing a different perspective. Kudos.
August 9, 2013 @ 8:25 am
What I’d like to know is… does the show get better as it progresses?
I gave up on it at some point in its teens, because it really took “formulaic” to an extreme, and as such became a terribly boring experience. I love the *idea* of Sailor Moon, I think, but not the execution from what little I’ve experienced.
August 10, 2013 @ 1:07 am
Start by not watching the atrocious dub or you WILL be put off. You can get fansubs at Sailor Moon Center.
Uh…I guess you can tell from my avatar I’m an old fan 🙂
August 10, 2013 @ 8:39 am
That was already my starting point. I don’t make a habit out of watching dubs unless they’re parodies.
August 10, 2013 @ 8:42 pm
Once the Naru-romance-with-a-villain subplot starts to appear, then it begins to pick up a bit. (Unless you wanna skip that sadness all together and just start watching when Jupiter appears)
I’m currently marathoning the Japanese dub with my boyfriend and that’s what it feels like. Keep in mind that the formulaic elements never really “leave” the show, but you do get more variety the further you go into it.
August 10, 2013 @ 11:03 pm
Alright, thanks. 🙂
I might give it a second chance once I’m done with Dragon Ball, then. (Another oldie I haven’t properly watched yet.)
August 9, 2013 @ 9:15 am
I don’t remember him saying “slutty” but he made a good point that the skirts is for sex appeal and these are young girls. The point is that NC is a character that went into from the perceptive of someone who’s not a hardcore fan. He even said he gets why it was popular but it just wasn’t for him
August 9, 2013 @ 9:16 am
Thanks for the refreshing and well-timed article. It was very interesting to read an anime-fan perspective, remembering that NC is the voice of the nostalgic 80s and 90s youth and adolescence who probably did not have the chance to explore anime as a stand-alone art.
I was especially interested in your thoughts about sexuality, gender and sex as an act. Doug Walker’s character did, in fact, make a lot of assumptions and generalization based on how little he knows about the Japanese culture (which is the character’s trait, anyway).
It was a shame, though, that this was not done as a collaborative review, so that there could be two sides arguing on the issue. Especially that it was also stated that Nostalgia Critic (as a character with his own story arc) did not have major interest in anime at all. (You could actually see that in the episode – he did not point out Sailor Stars, who would have been of great interest to NC, as he seems to have a lot of issues with portrayal of LGBTI characters).
Also, even if NC is just a character (like many people in the comment section have already underlined), it does not mean that one should silent their voice, if they want to speak. In other words – great job and nice insight. 🙂
August 9, 2013 @ 9:29 am
as a streight guy who watched the show i agree with you 100% (no i do no know why i found the show compelling but i did though i am also a brony)
August 9, 2013 @ 10:25 am
As someone who doesn’t really care about Sailor Moon? This is a good response And all these Nostalgia Critic fans need to chill. When you have a voice that reaches a certain number of people, you need to understand that your opinion will spawn other opinions.
Angelic Noir isn’t “butthurt”, she’s responding in an adult manner. She didn’t insult or mock his opinion, she merely disagreed. She’s showing that its okay that he didn’t like it, but its also not okay to misrepresent the show. She managed to stand up for a favorite show of hers without being a typical “internet person” about it, and I’m okay with that.
Great article Angie.
August 9, 2013 @ 11:51 am
I didn’t say she didn’t use an adult manner, I’m saying the tone of writing is angry FANGIRL. Now The reason I put an emphasis on fangirl, is because she seemed to look at Doug’s review with blinders, ignoring what he is know for, which is comically taking jabs at things, even things he likes, because of their flaws. Now you can write in an adult manner, but the tone can still convey a different message. Now don’t get me wrong I like sailor moon, I’m not a NC fan trolling the page just to disagree. But parts of her review seem exaggerated on the part of what she perceived Doug doing. Butt hurt may have been immature, but I was getting more annoyed when I thought about her words and what Doug did while writing, I shall apologize for that. But I will state what I put on Henshin Justice’s FB page about this. It sounds more like Angie would have enjoyed Nostalgia Chick’s style reviewing on Sailor Moon, though she hasn’t done one. Lindsey has more of an analytical approach to reviewing than comical. That’s not to say Lindsey will not find flaws as well and will state them whether they are production related or content related.
I forgot the point out that the idea of NC’s review was the formula of the show, in what happens in every episode. Which is, Serena acts selfish or stupid, monster attacks, the other scouts fight and do critical damage, and Serena finishes it off then moral of there. there are some deviances as the series progressed nut it was still generally the same.
Now as for the NC fans needing to chill, most feel she’d didn’t get that it was a joke and took him seriously, which will probably be address in a commentary for the review. And for many, Her holier than thou words at the end pissed them off. Sailor Moon was not perfect, especially in animated format. She basically treated it in her review as if it were flawless.
August 9, 2013 @ 1:40 pm
Couple things:
– Just because you write something doesn’t make you angry.
– There’s nothing wrong with being a fan of something besides snark and sarcasm, or with defending something you like.
– “Sailor Moon was not perfect”. No one said it was. This isn’t a review. It’s a response to snark. I’m sure if AngelicNoir had to actually review the series she would talk about its successes as well as its failures, but that’s not what this was. Much like with how you feel her tone was “condescending” and that of an “angry fangirl”, what we have here seem to be perception problems.
– If you’re typing a nearly 400 word response to 900 word (minus quotes) article, then another 300 word response to my supporting her, then yes, you probably need to chill out. At the rate your going, you’ll have put more effort into the comment section than she did into the article. The guy who plays NC is a grown man, and he does work on the internet. He’s seen so, so, SO much worse than this.
August 9, 2013 @ 2:32 pm
Couple responses in order:
-No shit, as a former English major I know that writing something doesn’t make you angry. But when you write about something you’re passionate about, you do get a tone in your writing that sometimes cannot be hidden.
-I never said there was anything wrong with being a major fan of something. I’m a major fan of things too like Godzilla, Kamen Rider, and even Sailor Moon. Hell, she could probably talk to me for hours on the show.Its the how that can be a problem, I’ll get to that in a second.
– I know she didn’t say it was perfect. But the information she presented with HER arguments against his review go with the fangirl mindset that comes off from the tone of the article, which by the way, IS a review. Its her review and response to the Nostalgia Critic video. I know thats just nitpicking but its still true.
-now as for that last part. I know Doug Walker is a grown man, and has seen much much worse things. He was amused by her article. No real concern to him. I’m not here to defend him, I just noticed flaws in her argument, some of them are actually bad, like misquoting Mr. Walker. I’m all for her opposing the “comedic” opinion of his, but parts were invalid. And honestly ignoring those errors, she did a nice job of putting the article together.
-Now as for me using 300+ words to respond, is that really a problem? cause I like explaining things and having discussions, its who I am, and doesn’t take much for me to write a lot. And don’t tell me to chill out, I have yet to write anything angry on here and honestly I’ve nothing but a good laugh at your responses to me.
But I’m done here. I have a life outside the internet that requires my appearance. You or someone else will just keep responding cause you feel the need to come to her aid, AngelicNoir is a big girl too, she can defend for herself. But this is the internet and we know how that all works. Have a good day everyone, and stop taking things seriously.
August 18, 2013 @ 11:18 am
Wow, former English major, really? That’s an awful lot of egregious grammar mistakes, dude.
April 7, 2014 @ 2:38 pm
Why do you think I’m a former major. Haha
August 9, 2013 @ 10:52 am
You’re article took a condescending tone here. Some of the things you complained that Doug Walker’s character said, where a bit of an exaggeration such as his complaints on magic devices based on girly items. The only one he really commented on was her disguise pen, and there he does what he always does which is touching on an item or idea that in a real life scenario would be blatantly abused or common sense would make you use immediately, He did the same thing with the Turbo:Power Rangers movie review and the idea of using the megazord to quickly stomp a small monster. This is done in humor, and yes I know that the pen only changes appearance and grants no power, but the joke is still there. Others have said it already, but Doug isn’t going to do a review of the whole show, he has other character videos to put out, a studio that he either runs or co runs, charity work (he has been awarded for his charity work, bet you didn’t know that.) and a personal life on top of the fact he isn’t a big anime fan. But he tries give fan bases slack when he reviews because he knows its out of his comfort zone, but he’ll jokingly question or attack things obvious or not. Honestly this article is more a complaint that someone didn’t agree with your opinion, say what ever you want at the end of the article but that is still the tone here. If you wanted a more serious, and analytical review you should request Nostalgia Chick to do it, a slightly more serious and analytical style is how she reviews things, Doug is more about the comedy. And it other fans of Sailor Moon do not apparently mind, we understand how Doug handles his reviews and still requested the review know what he would probably say about it. Its like with the Abrigded series of DBZ, Hellsing, One Piece, and Sailor Moon. These people are fans, and fans know the flaws, laugh at them and still enjoy the show, which is why they requested it. The big problem here with your article is you trying to make you butt-hurt song professional. You really just sound close-minded to any opinion other than praise to something you like.
August 9, 2013 @ 12:43 pm
I personally thought the show was stupid, nothing as good as anime series that I consider better, such as Cowboy Bebop, Trigun, and hell, even Inuyasha is better. I think people are making a bit too much of a big deal out of a anime.
I also found the nostalgia critic review for this show to be very funny, and that’s the thing that I think some people don’t understand. In the critic’s top 11 fucks videp part 3, he stated that he’s mostly here to make jokes.
Doug Walker, AKA the Nostalgia Critic: “I’m here to make jokes. Calm the fuck down.” I really think more people should take this advice when they are somewhat offended by one of his reviews.
February 23, 2014 @ 5:19 am
“I’m here to make jokes. Calm the fuck down.”
Just more so the reason he is a hack who can’t get a real job!
Maybe you can get him run “entertaining” truckers for 30 dollars an hour like you do!
March 19, 2014 @ 7:56 am
Trolling level: 2/10
You can do a better job at offending people.
August 9, 2013 @ 12:59 pm
I think some people are taking the review too seriously. It was mostly made for jokes, and in my opinion, Sailor Moon isn’t anything great. It sucks compared to Cowboy Bebop, Trigun, Wolf’s Rain, DBZ, and some other anime series that were out at the time.
I like the reveiw and found it funny. The reveiw was most likely intended to be funny.
August 9, 2013 @ 1:58 pm
Good article, though for some reason I do feel like malice was assumed that Doug himself never tends to suggest. He has such a tight schedule making these videos that he had to go to bi-weekly on the main vids just to have a chance, and that probably cuts into his research time. (It’d be better if he got Marzgurl or JesuOtaku involved with this, of course, but who knows what THEIR schedule is?) So he could only possibly have gotten an impression at best.
But the thing is, I personally never saw this show as empowering. Blame my tomboy self, but I never really got into this. And the whole Tuxedo Mask thing bothered the hell out of me to the point that I never DID give this show a chance, which if you’re right means I never got to see Serena pay TM back. (The fact that I never really ‘got’ anime style was also a thing.)
Maybe that’s my loss.
August 9, 2013 @ 2:17 pm
You know what pissed me off more than him poking fun at Sailor Moon? the fact A: every single “Episode” he makes has nobody but himself, that black dude, and im guessing his wife in it… and B: He made a couple Jabs at Spoony, after having the guy KICKED OFF his website. if your going to fire a guy, fine fire him. but dont start ripping on said person and ripping off his IDEAS (I.E. Doctor Hack) Ect. Doug just seems to be out of Gas and Out of Ideas as a Whole… his reviews used to be funny as hell, but now they just seem… pathetic and sad.
February 23, 2014 @ 5:21 am
Finally, somebody who gets it!
Thank you for your wonderful insight Mack King.
August 9, 2013 @ 3:10 pm
What is with Sailor Moon fans being unable to handle any kind of criticism or jokes? You’d think Sailor Moon was a real person who literally saved their lives.
The comments here are just disturbing. The level of anger you people are capable of feeling over a cartoon (yeah, I said CARTOON instead of “anime,” oooohhhh, now you’ll hunt me down and slash my tires!) is ridiculous, especially when it hasn’t even been insulted in any real way, just used as comedy fodder the same way any sarcastic comedy reviewer reviews anything and everything ever made.
GET OVER YOURSELVES.
February 23, 2014 @ 5:23 am
“GET OVER YOURSELVES.”
You should take your own advise bukkake receiver!
August 9, 2013 @ 3:17 pm
Pah, Cardcaptor Sakura was the superior series in terms of magical girling.
August 9, 2013 @ 4:22 pm
I agree with NC more, it’s not that liking girly things is what MAKES her vapid and shallow, it’s that it’s all she likes, she runs away all the time, a talking cat has to make her fight half the time, and she obsesses over pointless things. I know most of us did that as teenagers to an extent, but the only people I knew as shallow and air headed as Serena where trying hard to be pretty and dumb so boys would like them.
August 9, 2013 @ 4:47 pm
I was reading some of the comments and some people are getting too mad. nostalgia Critic fans and Sailor Moon fans are being ridiculous. There are these things called opinions. Look it up.
Now, I don’t really like Sailor Moon but I can see both sides of the argument here. Doug made a lot of really good points but angelicnoir also made a lot of good counter points. Doug not really being a fan of anime and not knowing a lot about Japanese culture means he didn’t know much about what he was talking about. All he could really do was just review the show for what it really is. But, now we have someone who does watch anime and does know about Japanese culture so it’s a good,valid argument going on. Just accept Doug’s and angelicnoir’s opinion and get over it.
Also, whoever said that “Dr.Hack” was a jab at Spoony obviously did not get the joke. The joke was a jab at people who come up with these stupid ideas that somehow become huge hits. I didn’t know that people actually didn’t get the joke. It’s not a joke that is hard to understand.
February 23, 2014 @ 5:26 am
“Also, whoever said that “Dr.Hack” was a jab at Spoony obviously did not get the joke. The joke was a jab at people who come up with these stupid ideas that somehow become huge hits. I didn’t know that people actually didn’t get the joke. It’s not a joke that is hard to understand.”
You apparently have no life if fawning over shit jokes makes you wet!
Go join the other faggots in the fire pit!
August 9, 2013 @ 7:28 pm
Commiserations on losing your sense of humour.
August 9, 2013 @ 10:55 pm
I understand the Critic was misinformed about Sailor Moon and looked it from a biased and yes, sexist point of view. But at this point I think people are overblowing it. We need entire internet articles explaining how the Critic had no clue what he was talking about? I feel sorry for Doug now, he is never going to live this review down. Wouldn’t surprise me if he needed another damage control announcement after Bart’s Nightmare.
August 10, 2013 @ 12:30 pm
LOL at all the Nostalgia Critic fanboys who can’t stand to see their hero being critiqued and are only here crying about it because Doug Walker linked to the article.
Seriously, guys, if Doug can handle opposing criticism, you can too.
August 10, 2013 @ 9:14 pm
Mr. Walker, as he plays the part of NC, is allowed to expression his opinion just as much as the writer of this article is allowed to expression their own, he or she is allowed to have an opinion about his opinion–stop bashing the article because “he’s playing a character!” no one said he wasn’t, why can’t someone have a counter argument? It’s like disagreeing with something said by Steven Colbert– though he’s a character, you can state a different opinion!
February 23, 2014 @ 5:28 am
Too bad you turned out to be a failed abortion!
August 13, 2013 @ 1:21 pm
I feel so much like Doug didn’t actually watch the show but just the first episode and skimmed wikipedia for the rest.
August 18, 2013 @ 10:40 pm
I hate to say it, but Usagi/Serena actually really doesn’t seem to change that much as the series progresses. During big fights with the boss she seems to actually be courageous and active, but for the most part it’s the same basic formula over and over.
On the sexuality, I’m sorry but it is still FOURTEEN year old girls being animated this way. Older female characters with these designs don’t show up for a considerable amount of time, and even then it’s very long before they appear more than once every few dozen episodes. Nothing wrong with exploring sexuality, but society tries to make it pretty clear that there are certain age limits you should cross before you start dressing a certain way.
Lastly, just because the Power Rangers do (or refrain from doing) something doesn’t mean it’s smart. The smart thing would be to use any tool at her disposal to end fights quickly to keep civilians from being hurt and to minimize the chances of the Scouts/Senshi being defeated and leading to more civilians being hurt. Also it doesn’t change the point that it’s bad writing, the writers could have just as easily written “change your appearance to whatever you want to look like” and it would have been far more intelligent.
September 18, 2013 @ 12:14 pm
This article is very unfair. I’ll leave it at that.
October 15, 2013 @ 8:36 pm
NC is satirical though
October 15, 2013 @ 9:01 pm
also he is only talking about the first season. there’s several more seasons, also showing their growth and maturing
October 28, 2013 @ 1:40 am
True story: my brother watched an episode of Sailor Moon once, and then complained immediately afterwards that “if she was really Sailor Moon, there would be more panty shots.” I laughed because I genuinely thought it was funny, but like most people, sometimes he tells a joke that seems callous or stupid to someone in the audience.
November 19, 2013 @ 4:02 pm
Frankly I can see both sides of the argument. I can understand how someone could argue that we shouldn’t shame sex, but revealing clothing like that being use as a combat uniform just always drives me up the wall. It’s just not a practical choice, plain and simple.
December 1, 2013 @ 12:52 pm
I heavily disliked the Critic’s review because he was just so wrong about so many things. And he admitted himself, he wasn’t a big fan of anime, so he didn’t pay much attention to the show – I don’t think he should have reviewed it.
But this article seems off. Nothing in the original show or manga was actually about accepting one’s sexuality or femininity. Usagi matured as a person and a fighter, not by being okay with realizing that she likes a guy and sleeps with him, but by fighting and facing her foes, taking the responsibilities she has and so one. Yes, Sailor Moon had Haruka and Michiru, two lesbians. They are still not the huge focus of the manga, nor is their sexuality.
January 22, 2014 @ 9:37 am
Great article! While the Sailor Moon anime certainly has its flaws, I do love the positive messages that it sends out for young girls and I’m glad it was part of my childhood (although not the Americanized version).
February 2, 2014 @ 4:09 pm
The issue with the whole male to female gaze ratio is that it makes no sense that in spite of the fact that it’s mostly men who work in the anime/manga industry, and most of those men completely ignore what would sexually please any potential female viewers, that the women who do work in anime still make more fanservice for men than men make for women, even though most anime primarily focuses on what male fans want already, still leaving potential female fans completely in the dark, even with anime/manga made by women. Yet apparently most women seem fine with being baselessly ignored and denied any equal treatment and representation within the majority of any fandom.
February 23, 2014 @ 5:35 am
They need to do an episode where former SNL alumni Jan Hooks and Victoria Jackson screw the bejeezus out of Sailor Moon against her will ala the South Park episode where Steven Spielberg and George Lucas forced themselves upon Harrison Ford/Indiana Jones against his will!
If that happened, it would be the best Sailor Moon episode ever!
So, of course the retards who make Sailor Moon won’t do it.
March 6, 2014 @ 12:08 pm
Nicely done. It’s nice to see someone respond to this video without simply being insulting.
March 19, 2014 @ 7:16 pm
I like Sailor Moon and I like Nostalgia Critic.
I feel NC’s opinion of the show is just observing the earlier part of Sailor Moon where it began as a sort of prophecy and his comparison to Star Wars. In the original (which I’ve watched completely, plus waiting for its remake to get here [if it ever gets here]), it just starts off as a current event, just an average day. Which I like a lot more because it starts to describe who this main character is, what her story will be. The dub that shoehorns “that” kind of ruins the experience of what will happen down the road.
I’m also not pleased on the fact that they removed I believe 6 episodes out of the 1st saga. Those 6 removed episodes granted Usagi/Serena more credit than what the show delivered. They revealed that Usagi is more thoughtful of the current situation, and as mentioned, her friends and family.
I love the original Sailor Moon. Dub version just doesn’t do it for me.
April 3, 2014 @ 2:01 pm
I use to love Sailor Moon but to me when I looked at Serena’s first outfit, I was like, did they copy the colors from Super Girl – Blue Skirt and Red Boots? But wait, Sailor Scouts don’t have capes and they cannot fly. This is why I don’t like Sailor Moon much, plus they do not have super powers as great as comic book heroes. Serena especially has no powers except from her wand and compact locket. So yeah….
June 12, 2014 @ 12:14 pm
I like Doug walker too it seems he didn’t take the time to think that kids in that region can deal with these issues far better than he can
June 15, 2014 @ 2:55 am
while i know this is old and as well are the comments, there’s no harm in pointing out misogynistic or harmful comments, even if it’s a character. a lot of people take what NC says seriously because they don’t know any better.
August 2, 2014 @ 5:09 pm
The problem is he should have reviewed the original and not the shifty dub. He has no idea what he is talking about here.
August 2, 2014 @ 5:16 pm
His whole review Is almost invalid because he almost completely ignored the original.
August 15, 2014 @ 12:05 pm
The Nostalgia Critic dropped the ball with this one by failing to review and differentiate the Japanese (original) version from the garbage crappy dub version.
September 18, 2014 @ 2:42 pm
I liked it now better then back then, but the Sailor Moon Crystal kinda sucks, I mean, it is not the same animation. Hard to tell apart, I miss the originals. Why does Japan have to mess things up after they created it!
December 21, 2014 @ 8:43 pm
I’d like to say you were on the mark, because I don’t think there should be such a thing as a true “sacred cow”, but the fact is, you were way, way off. This “sexuality-empowerment” schtick is just bullshit. In the context you’re using it, rather. I saw the review myself, and it was pretty clear that he was creeped out by the IDEA of underage girls being sexualized, namely what that sort of thing says about the makers of the show to him. It wasn’t a bunch of slut-shaming, it was plain old-fashioned shaming for something many would find taboo. Now I personally found a few of his jokes rather tasteless, even for his kind of dark comedy, but I get where he’s coming from. I myself have an especially lax attitude to a great many number of controversial issues, but I respect how an issue like girls so young dressing sexy can be disconcerting to some, Hell, take Linkara for example. He’s said twice how he feels Old Man Miller is scum, but brings up the point that he doesn’t sexualize underage girls as one of his few standards. Where’s all this “get with the times” rhetoric for him?
I believe you do have a good point, I don’t think this should be automatically broken down to anime jailbait, I think it’s natural for those growing to embrace their sexuality as it grows within them, and I certainly don’t give a rip if freshman dress in miniskirts or whatever the hell the fashion is these days. Hey, if you got it, flaunt it… -but let me ask you this: say a man was writing the show, better yet, in America. Instead of Sailor Moon, it’d be “Stargurlz”, with four bikini-clad teenage girls doing sexy dances to power up. What kind of reaction do you think it would get? You think there’d be feminists praising the show for it’s strong heroines accepting their sexuality? In short, I get what both of you have said, but at the very least, he acknowledged the reasoning for that mindset being less taboo in Japan, where you don’t seem to have acknowledged it all. When one disagrees with something, one cannot make a valid argument against their opponent while completely dodging the reasons the opponent has for it. Otherwise one looks quite biased and arrogant. Oh, and TvTropes can suck it.
January 10, 2015 @ 5:14 pm
The rage and tears from butthurt Nostalgia Critic fans is hilarious.
I grew up watching Sailor Moon as a young boy, and while it had a lot of glaring flaws, the overall message the show presented-that femininity doesn’t equate to weakness and you can be strong without being ‘manly’-is very beautiful and needs to be presented to a lot of young men and women in this day and age.
Now if you’ll excuse me, i’m off to rewatch season 3.
January 23, 2015 @ 2:20 am
To the people of the future,
Lo and behold, the comments section filled with Channel Awesome fans who insufferably desire the attention of Doug Walker and vehemently defend his “review” with all of their pedantic being and soul.
To the person named Mushroom, you are in fact, the epitome of #WhitePeopleProblems. Without anime and manga to bail out animation out of the drudgery that was the Comic Book’s Code, I wouldn’t see a future with any respect to drawn medium of any sort. Your snobbery that demands all art to be perfect and like Miyazaki… Hell, you’re just like Disney Corp. Say all you want about creative freedom- I’d rather let my kids watch Sailor Moon and the 30 minute toy commercials from Japan that have moral and ethical messages than any 30 minute toy commercial here. Most of all, you’re just a whining loser like the “Critic”- Those without talent and creative insight that moan and grief those who do. Get a life.
And James Rolfe shouldn’t even be placed next to Walker, at all. I don’t care if he had a crossover with him- Doug is a hack, plain and simple. He may have taken a huge dump on Bugs Bunny but his episodes are meant to be tongue in cheek and jabbing at what is wrong with a video game. Doug? All he can do is narrate along a hackenyed Mystery Science Theatre 3000 knockoff with little analysis and humor to be found, that calling them reviews would be like calling dog feces = chocolate. There’s no comparison.
Also, because of how stupid the comments section is here, and how everyone vehemently directs their “freedom of speech” here, I’ll be free to give you a piece of my mind as well. When you are done saying your comment, give yourself a good, long stare in the mirror when you are about to go to bed. Remember me, and what you put down here. Say what you wrote here on this comments section, in front of yourself. Hear, how the words you wrote composed what you have in your being. Hear, what kinds of things you had to say from the bottom of your heart. If you can still live with yourself after this experience, I think I can respect you. That all depends however if you are a rotten person or not. Because I can say all I said in real life given the right moment and the wrong things out of your mouth.
Most of all, it’s been two years since you all have written your comments here. What have you all been doing? You, those who vehemently defending the Nolstalgia Critic feel proud yet? Hiding behind your computer? Enjoy knowing your words are forever engraved here as testament to who you are. Because I will remember what I did here, unlike you.
Also, the artist who drew that picture for the Doug Walker “review” sucks fat dickies bigtime. I hope you didn’t quit your dayjob.
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