18 - Shingo's Love: The Grieving Doll

Okay, I'm back to nitpicking titles. ADV translated this one as "Shingo's Innocent Love! A Sorrowful French Doll". The "love/innocent love" term here is junjou (純情) which good old JDIC defines as "pure heart; naivete; self-sacrificing devotion". So... honestly, neither is super close, but I think ADV edges a bit closer. "Sorrowful/grieving" are both valid translations of kanashimi (哀しみ); in the context of the episode, ADV might be a touch closer, but either could make sense. Finally, why did Viz drop the "French" part? Well, there may be some logic to this. The term "French doll" doesn't really have any meaning in English beyond the obvious one of a doll from France. In Japanese it actually refers to a style of dolls, in particular the western porcelain/bisque style seen in this episode. So dropping "French" is actually a valid decision, and arguably more accurate, but maybe replacing it with porcelain or bisque would have been the most accurate. My thanks again to Crayola, who advised me on matters of doll etymology.

If anyone's still reading after that, it's time to start the episode. Nephrite has finally deigned to appear before Queen Beryl to explain why he's been so rubbish recently. Our pal Zoisite appears, and proposes they work together on this next mission. Queen Beryl likes the idea, but Nephrite refuses, saying he works for himself, and buggers off. Telling Queen Beryl you don't recognize her authority might not be the best long-term survival strategy, you know. Meanwhile, Zoisite is drawn to resemble the love interest in a seventies anime about manly giant robot pilots or something.

The art director for this episode is Ikuko Ito. She's responsible for some of the best art in the series, but also some really weird art. She's basically the Ikuhara of art.

For once, Usagi woke up early enough to interact with her family before going to school. Her dad reads in the paper that Shingo's friend Mika, who you may recall from episode five, won a prize in a doll-making contest. Usagi teases Shingo about having a famous girlfriend, but Shingo points out that girls are icky, and heads off to school. Usagi notices what time it is, runs out of the house in a panic... and is still late for school.

On the way back home, Usagi and Naru run into some girls from Shingo's school, who have a problem.

Don't ask Usagi, she's been wondering the same thing for years. Still, she's keen to know the exact kind of asshole behavior Shingo's been responsible for this time. Cue a flashback where Shingo congratulates Mika for winning the contest, and she thanks him for supporting her, and gives him the prizewinning doll as thanks. Then a group of boys gathers to taunt Shingo for having an interaction with a girl more complex than pulling hair and running away. He buckles under peer pressure and tries to quickly give the doll back to Mika, but in the panic it gets dropped and breaks. Mika is devastated, and Shingo is evidently too shaken by the experience to say anything.

I have a confession to make: I find this scene genuinely difficult to watch. There's something innately distressing to me about seeing toys, especially toys with anthropomorphic qualities, getting destroyed. And for some reason, vinyl records too. So anyway, yeah, parts of this episode probably have more emotional impact on me than they do on its intended little kid audience. I am super mature that way.

Usagi tells the girls she'll talk to Shingo about the incident, though her demeanor suggests less talking and more pummeling. Next up is an enormously sad scene with Mika, who's working on another doll, and is unable to tell her mom what happened to the prizewinning one, instead saying she let someone borrow it. Her mom observes that the new doll looks like it's on the verge of tears, but fails to notice that the same is true of Mika.

Over in the cathedral of solitude, Nephrite does his astrology act, and Mika is identified as his next target. And you thought her day couldn't get any worse.

Shingo is in his room, repeatedly trying and failing to write a letter to apologize to Mika. He hides his efforts as soon as Usagi comes in, and then Usagi proceeds to explain the problem to Shingo as only a sister can.

Usagi demands Shingo apologize to Mika immediately. He gets defensive, telling her it's none of her business, but when she threatens to rat him out to their parents, he agrees to go right over to Mika's house and apologize.

Shingo honestly hasn't displayed many redeeming features in the show so far, but this episode does demonstrate he feels genuinely bad about what happened. He's practicing his apology outside Mika's house, when a maniac driver in a sports car suddenly pulls up outside. Why, it's Masato Sanjoin, millionaire playboy and doll enthusiast! He's set up a meeting with Mika and her mom to discuss their dollmaking talent. As he piles on the praise, Mika's mother is enraptured, while Mika is just uninterested and depressed. He asks to see the prizewinning doll - because Mika really needed to be reminded of that whole issue again - but with it unavailable, Mika shows him the new doll instead. Oh dear, the doll just became a Youma vessel, and it temporarily gains a new, deranged expression. Sanjoin says he'd like to commission Mika for ten dolls, and her mom, who has an exhibition coming up, agrees. Later that night, Mika finishes the first doll and starts work on the second. When her mother suggests she take a break and go to bed, Mika refuses, becoming violent. Oh right, now her mom notices that something might be wrong.

Shingo is outside Mika's house the following morning - I guess he chickened out of the apology the first time, or was scared off by Nephrite's bad driving - and her mom explains to him that Mika has been up making dolls all night, refusing to come out of her room. Shingo goes inside to try to talk to her, but Mika isn't interested. Back in his room, he mopes, assuming all of this is a result of what he did. Usagi comes in to see how the apology went.

"Are you going to hit me again?" He explains what happened to Usagi, who tells him to cheer up and maybe bring her a gift next time. When alone with Luna, though, Usagi expresses her suspicion that this might be the work of the Dark Kingdom. Usagi can be perceptive sometimes, and besides, what could be cooler to investigate than cursed dolls? Usagi's admittedly keen to hand off the actual investigating parts to Rei and Ami, but she's still more enthusiastic about the mission than Luna, who has a pronounced (albeit rarely referenced) fear of ghosts.

Usagi, Ami and Luna go to Mika's house to investigate, but with Mika still locked in her room with the curtains closed, the only thing they have to go on is the upcoming exhibition. Meanwhile, Shingo gets inspiration for what to give Mika: they're both fans of Sailor Moon, after all.

However, since Sailor Moon doesn't have the same weight of merchandising behind her as Sailor V does, Shingo will have to get creative. His artistic skills leave something to be desired, though, and Usagi tries not to be too offended when presented with his unique interpretation of Sailor Moon.

The exhibition begins, and Mika's mom explains to Nephrite/Sanjoin that Mika is still finishing the last doll, and worked like crazy to get them finished. Mika is in the back room working, and looks increasingly weird: someone else pointed out that as the episode progresses she's drawn more and more to look like one of her dolls, with a pale complexion and painted-on makeup. And the possessed doll is moving again, yay.

Ami is checking out the exhibition with Luna, and... oh dear, Ami, what are you wearing?

Coincidentally, Rei has come to the exhibition, dragging an uninterested Mamoru along on a date. Mamoru passes Nephrite/Sanjoin, and there's a mutual moment of confusion where they feel like maybe they know each other.

Usagi and Shingo check in with Mika's mom, and are directed to the back room. Shingo's having second thoughts on the apology, but Usagi marches him over there... just as Mika finishes her last doll, and some weird stuff starts to happen. Her energy peaks, and the Youma emerges from the doll from earlier, and drains her. I hope you wanted more creepy doll monsters!

This Youma is called Jumou, a reference to French dollmaker Jumeau, in case you didn't know. Shingo dives to save Mika, but Jumou blasts him away, and his vaguely Sailor Moon-like model is crushed. Seeing that doll get broken... distresses me less. Well, now that all of the civilians are safely unconscious, Usagi can transform into Sailor Moon.

Sailor Moon gives the Youma a comprehensive telling off, but runs when she sends possessed dolls after her. She's joined outside by Mercury and Mars, and Mercury casts Bubble Spray, but that just means Sailor Moon doesn't see the evil possessed dolls flying towards her. Sailor Mars neutralizes them with her ofuda, and they fall to the ground, not breaking even though they fell quite a bit further than the one at the start of the episode. That's a tip for all you dollmakers out there: for sturdy dolls, make them with evil.

This turns out to have been a distraction, though, because Jumou is now choking Sailor Moon. Mars sends an attack at the Youma, who just moves out of the way, but detaches from her hands, leaving them around Sailor Moon's neck. She then launches her forearms at Mars and Mercury, and they're "as sharp as knives" despite that not really making any sense.

Speaking of not making any sense, Sailor Mercury detects that the Youma's right leg is the source of her power, so Sailor Moon should aim her attack there. Great, if Sailor Moon wasn't still being choked. Well, Tuxedo Mask distracts Jumou long enough for her to drop Sailor Moon, who can now confidently send her tiara at the monster...'s leg.

Well, with the Youma beaten, Mika wakes up, sans-evil makeup. Shingo apologizes that his present for her was destroyed, but she's grateful that he came to help her. Sailor Moon then appears, silhouetted in the window, telling Shingo and Mika to value their friendship. Later, Mika makes a scarily accurate model of Sailor Moon for Shingo, but then gets annoyed when he acts a little too attached to it.

Monster of the day: Jumou. Jumou has a cool design, resembling a doll base, with detachable limbs. Her weakness is her right leg for some reason. I dunno, if I'm being generous then we could say that maybe this is a reference to Achilles' heel.

Most valuable person: Shingo actually comes close, which is a surprise given how awful he's been so far, but the winner is Usagi, who shows concern for her awful brother and takes most of the initiative on this mission.

Least valuable person: Mika's mother really rubbed me up the wrong way with how oblivious she seemed to Mika's problems during the first segment of this episode.

This is definitely a memorable episode, and there are some good character bits. It's a particularly strong episode for Usagi, as we get to see her take her brother to task for something he did wrong, then support him when he tries to do the right thing. I think my main problem was how derivative it seems of earlier episodes, especially of episode five. Both episodes have the same writer and art director, feature Shingo and Mika heavily, and have a monster that can be beaten by aiming attacks at a specific part of its body for no obvious reason. And episode five itself was derivative of episode two, so this is like a copy of a copy.

On the other hand, there's enough fresh material here to make it mostly work. It's not a classic episode, but the parts that annoy me are balanced by the good, giving this episode three stars out of five overall.

5 - Scent of a Monster: Chanela Will Steal your Love

Watching the opening teaser of this episode, I think I have my first real complaint with the translation. In the original, Sailor Moon lists various animals that are angry because of the Dark Kingdom's plan to use pets against their owners. It's just the kind of quirky thing Sailor Moon likes to do in her speeches. This translation just... doesn't mention them. This isn't a case where it's an obscure reference or a joke that wouldn't translate well. They just left it out, and that sucks. If the Martina Navratilova line in Episode 14 gets cut, I'm not gonna be happy.

The episode begins with Usagi having a nightmare where she's chased by an evil dark cloud. Then Tuxedo Mask appears to vanquish the demon using rose petals. The dream is just getting good, then Usagi hears a scream and Tuxedo Mask disappears. She wakes to discover that it's Shingo screaming: he has a fear of cats and Luna was sleeping on his bed. So naturally, Usagi picks up Luna and starts dangling her in front of Shingo, demanding he bow to her as the Goddess Queen of Space. Yeah, it's cruel, but Shingo's been so awful to Usagi in his last few appearances that he really had this coming.

At breakfast, Usagi asks her parents if they can keep Luna, but Shingo is opposed. Their parents tell them they have to work it out between themselves, which doesn't bode well for progress. On the way to school. Luna says that she was so tired after looking for the Moon Princess that she didn't realize she'd fallen asleep in Shingo's room. Usagi suggests that Luna should try to make Shingo like her. So Luna goes to a pet shop and observes the animals, hoping to pick up some tips on how to be appealing.

We get a brief scene in the Dark Kingdom, where Beryl and Jadeite discuss Jadeite's newest plan in the vaguest possible terms, then it's back to Usagi, who's discussing the Luna situation with Naru. Apparently Shingo's fear of cats goes back to an incident when he was a baby, and a cat bit his nose. Umino mentions that this is a trauma he can identify with only too well, as when he was a baby, he was eaten by an alligator (handbag).

Yeah, it's a joke so weak it's barely a joke at all, but it's worth it just to see baby Umino.

Outside Shingo's school, Luna tries to win his affection by jumping on his shoulder and being cute, but just ends up traumatizing him. He explains his problem with cats to his friend Mika, who takes him to Pet Shop Perfume, a new pet store selling a new kind of pet called a Chanela.

As if by magic, a shopkeeper appears! The slightly sinister lady extols the virtues of the sweet-smelling Chanelas, which convinces Shingo, though not half as much as the weird hypnotic light one of the creatures uses to put him under its spell. Mika, similarly hypnotized, says that she wants one as well. The shopkeeper says they can just take the Chanelas now and pay whenever they want.

The pets have an immediate effect on Shingo and Mika: as they're walking home, they're unable to concentrate on anything other than their Chanelas. Meanwhile, Jadeite lurks in the dark, harvesting energy.

At home, Luna tells Usagi that her mission to make Shingo like her has failed. Usagi insists she shouldn't give up, and here comes Shingo now! Luna tries to be affectionate again, but this time gets kicked away!

Ouch. Shingo announces that the Chanela is now his pet, so Usagi must get rid of Luna. Usagi responds to this outrage by crying, which drives Shingo away. It really does seem at this early point that they were going for "people under evil influence are hurt by Usagi's crying", but as a superpower, it sucks, and pretty soon it was forgotten about.

Shingo informs the family of how great the Chanela is: for instance, the fact that it doesn't eat anything. Dad thinks this makes good economical sense for a pet, but I personally make a point never to trust any creature that violates the laws of thermodynamics. Or for that matter, any creature that causes your child to make this face.

Mom and Dad decide that keeping both the Chanela and Luna would be the perfect compromise, but Shingo deems it unacceptable, and leaves to stare lovingly at his Chanela for fifteen straight hours. Not an exaggeration: when Usagi's getting ready to leave for school the next morning, Shingo apparently hasn't moved all night. As she spies on him, she notices the Chanela is glowing.

At school, a large number of students have brought their Chanelas with them. They hide them when Haruna comes in, but are unable to resist looking at them for too long. When Haruna sees one of them and tries to chastise the student, she gets attacked and knocked over. That's pretty harsh: I mean, it was only last week that she was almost killed by an unlicensed weight loss procedure. And the week before that she spent a few days in a coma. And the week before that, she was attacked and sexually harassed by demonic students. Wow, Haruna's had a terrible month. She'd probably be safer teaching at Sunnydale High.

Usagi asks Naru if she thinks something might be suspicious about the Chanelas. Well, they turned your brother into a zombie, caused a student revolt and glow eerily when they think nobody is looking... so yeah, I think something's suspicious about the Chanelas. It's a pet peeve of mine when the characters take forever to notice the blatantly obvious bad thing that's happening, so this scene irked me a little.

Anyway, Usagi decides to go and check out the pet shop selling the Chanelas. Mamoru shows up there too, because apparently his day isn't complete without annoying Usagi, but on this occasion she just tells him to sod off and carries on with her day. Luna is in the pet shop as well, apparently having come to the same conclusion as Usagi. Unfortunately, Usagi looks into the eyes of one of the Chanelas, and falls under its spell.

Usagi starts acting like Shingo, completely focused on her Chanela, becoming hostile to Luna and ignoring a little girl who's fallen off her bike. So Luna takes action, jumping on Usagi's head, and pulling the Chanela away from her.

With the spell broken, Usagi apologizes for her dickish behavior, but the more immediate concern is Shingo, who's still in his room, staring at his Chanela. Usagi tries to grab the Chanela, but fails. She slaps him to snap him out of it, which doesn't work either, and he runs off with his pet. Luna suspects he'll return to the pet shop and instructs Usagi to transform into Sailor Moon.

At the pet shop, a crowd of Chanela owners has gathered. The shopkeeper releases the remaining Chanelas and instructs her new minions to distribute them throughout the city. Sailor Moon bursts in and confronts them, and the shopkeeper reveals her Youma form, before sending her minions - who now look like lizard people - after her.

Sailor Moon doesn't want to use her tiara against the minions in case she ends up hurting them. So Luna tells her to shout out "Moon Tiara Stardust" instead. This makes the tiara do a few little loops over their heads, and... okay, it's a crappy power the writers pulled out of their asses for this episode that would never get used or mentioned again. But it works, and Shingo and the others are returned to normal. Then there's just the matter of the huge lizard Youma. Sailor Moon leads her out into the parking lot, but gets grabbed by her tail. Then she and Luna notice her "weak spot", at the base of her tail. You can tell it's a weak spot because it flashes as if she's a video game boss on easy mode.

 

Subtle, eh? Yeah, this whole battle is one cop-out after another. So Sailor Moon throws her tiara at the target, and the Youma is no more.

Shingo rushes out into the parking lot, hoping to get Sailor V's autograph. Sailor Moon hides behind a car, explaining that Sailor V and Sailor Moon are totally different. Shingo says whatever, Sailor Moon's cute too. Well, that's awkward. Still, Sailor Moon uses the hero worship to her advantage, telling Shingo that he has to be nice to Luna. He agrees, and is true to his word, spoiling Luna rotten from that point on.

Monster of the Day: Iguara has a simple but neat design. Her powers are being huge and wrecking stuff. Can't argue with the classics. It's a shame her fight with Sailor Moon ended up being so pathetic, though.

Most Valuable Person: Luna is back to being a pleasant character from her awfulness in the last episode, and she puts up with a lot in this episode without any complaints.

Least Valuable Person: Since it's going to get boring if I just keep putting Mamoru here every episode, I'm instead going to go with Mika, whose sole function in this episode was to lead Shingo into an enemy trap.

There are some bright spots in this episode, but it quickly becomes apparent that this is basically episode two all over again, but with pets instead of tarot cards and not as good. Seriously, the plots are exactly the same. Dark Kingdom opens new business run by a Youma. Youma distributes object to customers, including someone close to Usagi, making them evil. Customers become hostile to those around them. Haruna gets knocked on her ass. Customers are driven away by Usagi's crying. Customers return to business and are issued further instructions by the Youma. Sailor Moon bursts in, customers are transformed and sent after her. Sailor Moon must deal with them and the Youma, which shows its true form. Yeah, I know this show had a lot of formulaic episodes, but not usually to this extent. And don't tell me they were stuck for ideas; it's episode five. And just in case you think there's a chance this was all a coincidence... guess what? This episode and episode two have the same writer.

This episode gets two stars out of five. There are good parts, and it's nice to have an episode that shows us how Luna became an official pet of the Tsukino family. Sadly though, the good is overshadowed by a highly derivative plot and a fight scene that just plain sucks.