Sailor Moon Crystal: Season III

Episode 30

This is the first episode where Uranus and Neptune join in the fight. It doesn't happen until the end, and there are plenty of nearly as important moments previous to it, but the simple fact that they've stepped out of their concealing shadows and decided to take part in fighting Mimete of the Witches 5 is a major plot point, marking their slowly growing willingness to work with the other Sailor Senshi. The impetus seems to be Chibi-Usa, possibly because of her heritage and future, but more likely because she has taken the time to seek out and befriend Hotaru. Even if they don't know exactly what's going on with her – and Hotaru herself certainly seems to have a clue – it's obvious that Michiru and Haruka know there's something amiss in the Tomoe household, and they seem like they're working to get to the bottom of it. While it would be nice to think that they're concerned for Chibi-Usa's interactions with Hotaru, it feels more possible that they see her as their "in" to the Tomoe home, someone sweet and innocent they can gently pump for information to help them in their mission.

That mission involves the Talismans, and the need to find them is so urgent that now all of the Guardians are dreaming about them instead of just Hotaru, Rei, and Mamoru. This revelation, along with her glimpse of a magazine cover with Haruka on it, makes for a more thoughtful Usagi this week, which translates into a far less shrill performance from Kotono Mitsuishi than we've heard thus far from seasons 1 and 2 of Sailor Moon Crystal. This Usagi proves not only that she's growing up, but also that she's capable of putting two and two together and coming up with four – she begins to realize that Haruka is not only actually female, but also very likely Sailor Uranus. This dovetails nicely with Haruka and Michiru picking Chibi-Usa up from Hotaru's house, both as their regular selves. This provides our first glimpse of Haruka as a woman and implies that she has to be using a glamor spell similar to those Usagi and Minako can call up, because there's no way anyone would ever mistake her for a boy even if she just put on a male uniform. Granted, this could just be Naoko Takeuchi's predilection for drawing large breasts, but given that both Chibi-Usa and her friend Momoko have seen major boob reductions to better fit their ages, it seems to be deliberately angling for the glamor option.

All of this points to the two new girls leaning more and more towards cooperating with Sailor Moon and the Inner Guardians. What has prompted this we don't know – it could simply be that they're having little luck on their own, but it also seems likely that they have interacted with Usagi, Mamoru, and Chibi-Usa enough by now to have decided that they're trustworthy. Haruka and Michiru clearly keep to themselves on a regular basis, whether because that makes it easier for their relationship (which looks no different when Haruka presents as female) or because of their mission is unclear. But it does appear to be difficult for them to trust the other Sailors, and when they do jump in at the end of the episode, it's because Sailor Chibi-Moon is being targeted by Mimete. This again goes back to that “is she useful or do they like her” question; more importantly, it shows us that they are far more powerful than the others, as they are able to take out Mimete together, while the other Guardians have to weaken someone before Sailor Moon can blow her away. (Tuxedo Mask seems to have been reduced to doing nothing but standing around, poor guy.) Of course, Sailor Moon is getting stronger as well; she takes out three monsters in one blow this week, which would have been unthinkable before.

Despite all these important revelations, this week's episode feels a little slow, as if it wasn't put together quite right. While it does have some nice details, such as Mamoru's face falling when he realizes that he waited too long to ask Usagi to Michiru's concert, and also gives Minako a chance to both use her latent Sailor V powers and have some time in the spotlight, by and large it just doesn't quite work as a whole. Luckily, that should change with Neptune and Uranus willing to play with the other girls and Hotaru's admission that she knows she's turning into someone she doesn't want to become. We're about done with the set-up – the main plot should start next week, so stay tuned.

Rating: B-

Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon Crystal: Season III is currently streaming on Crunchyroll, Viz.com and Hulu.