The Sailor Guardians put their lives on the line in the penultimate episode of Sailor Moon’s first season.

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Do I need to even bother with a summary, given that title?

sigh Might as well.

The Sailor Guardians travel to the Arctic via the completely ass-pulled Sailor Teleport.

and take the fight to Beryl.

Youre kidding me with this episode title, right?

I mean, its not like Im affected per se.

By the time I got to this episode, Id already seen the dub.

I knew what had happened despite how DiC tried to mitigate it as some kind of capture.

I knew… but not everyone did.

People coming toSailor Moonfor the first time through this medium, this version… why punish them like this?

Why deny them the dramatic effect, the emotional gut-punch of the surprise deaths of four major characters?

This is something about anime in general I will never understand, even anime based on a well-known manga.

Im very torn on the pacing of this episode.

On the one hand, I appreciate how it gets straight to the point.

This was a good move, because at this point in the plot we know what the stakes are.

We dont need a reminder.

Thats why I was actually a little disappointed upon rewatching this episode.

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Now, like many people, I first came toSailor Moonthrough DiC.

That was my original point of reference.

Lets start with the setting.

Which is not to say that a winterscape cant be scenic, but this one isnt.

A flat, frozen wasteland with an extremely limited color palette?

We see a little of this in the next episode when Sailor Moon comes face to face with Beryl.

Theres a reason that scene is so satisfying.

That was with just one of the Sailor Guardians in one room.

Especially if they had foes worth fighting in that setting.

To their credit, the DD Girls were formidable.

As far as youma go, the DD Girls could do a lot worse.

Most importantly, they clearly get shit done.

Its not that theyre sucky youma.

They just didnt deserve to be the characters who take the Sailors out.

See, this would be the perfect time to show what a bad-ass Kunzite was.

Kunzites last stand always rubbed me the wrong way.

That way, the Sailors could get separated and each fight a one of the Four Kings.

Those fights could be really personal and intense, each with its own unique backdrop.

Its a shame it was the only time we got anything like it.

The four of them pitted against the Sailor Guardians?

Damn, that would have been great.

Having seen such a battle go down in Act 10 ofSailor Moon Crystalonly proves that point.

Sure, it would have required another episode to cover all that, but so what?

Like there arent a dozen completely disposable episodes that could have been swapped out for something like this?

What about paying off this idea of this mega-youma that would result from merging the Rainbow Crystal carriers.

What if Evil Endymion had succeeded in that little venture?

That would at least be one-shot enemy that had been sufficiently built up as part of the mythology.

No mega-youma, no generals.

After 44 episodes of bad-assery, who ends up taking the Sailor Guardians down?

A cadre of random demon stripper faeries.

Well, once you get past that and really, what choice does one have?

the deaths are pretty good.

Theyre all memorable, and the girls go down swinging.

Jupiters tendency to project affection onto every hot guy she met led her into a trap.

That is some high voltage.

Mercury really shined and not just in how she died.

Talk about a sobering dose of reality.

Because yeah, she found Usagi annoying most of the time, but she loved her in her way.

She loved her, cherished her, and was willing to die for her.

And, oh how she died.

Can I get an amen?

And wow, did Mars look fabulous lying on that ice.

The only death that suffered a little was Minakos.

Sailor Venus death, while certainly graphic and noble, wasnt terribly character-specific.

Still, it was a very striking death.

I kind of wish it had been a little more dynamic.

I also wish it had a better build-up.

She just gets attacked.

I think Minako deserved a little better than she got.

All that said, though, its still a great episode.

That doesnt work if shes already been physically beaten down.

Its not as good a contrast.

It is smart writing.

So, there it is.

Forty-five down, one to go.

Rating:

4 out of 5