Adapations seem to like Prince Demande a lot

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Slowpokeking

Aurorae Lunares
Apr 1, 2020
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#1
In the 90s anime, his evil was greatly toned down compare to the manga, and sacrificed himself for Usagi.
In Crystal, while most of the villains follow their manga plot, he was given another heroic death.
In Another Story he was redeemed and gave the senshi the important Rose Crystal.
In musicals they also let him get redeemed.

I think in the manga he was given some development, more than most of the other villains, but the ending was a bit rushed. So maybe it's one of the reason that adaptation treat him nicely?
 

Seira Hazuki

Solaris Luna
Jan 17, 2007
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#3
Crystal trying to paint Demand as sympathetic/heroic/whatever was one of the worst changes in the Black Moon arc. It was extremely fitting and important in the manga when Usagi and Mamoru defeated him together.
(It also came off as incredibly sexist since the Ayakashi Sisters all got blasted to smithereens with no remorse, meanwhile a predator like Demande gets a kind of redemption that he didn't even earn??)
 

Memento

Stella Nova
Mar 8, 2012
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#4
The R season was generally sympathetic to its antagonist characters: Ail, En, the Ayakashi Sisters, and Saphir all got redeemed, as well as Demand, and even Esmeraud's death was portrayed with some sympathy.

Demand got favorable treatment in the original musicals probably because he was played by Hikari Ono, who was super popular and so charismatic she naturally imbued the characters she played with likability.

I don't remember much about the more recent Petite Etrangere musical, so I can't comment on how he was portrayed in that.

Crystal's out-of-nowhere redemption of Demand was obviously a completely thoughtless attempt at fan service.

For whatever reason, Demand is a very popular character, and there are a lot of people who ship him with Usagi (or with Saphir, which....). I guess it's the ~troubled bad boy~ thing. (See: Draco Malfoy, fangirls of.)
 

Slowpokeking

Aurorae Lunares
Apr 1, 2020
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#5
(It also came off as incredibly sexist since the Ayakashi Sisters all got blasted to smithereens with no remorse, meanwhile a predator like Demande gets a kind of redemption that he didn't even earn??)
I love the old anime's treatment on the sisters, especially Berthier is my favorite SM villain.

But if we compare the manga, they were just goons and Demande got some characterization, he even thought Usagi was so noble near the end. He also treat his own men like human beings. So it's easier to whitewash him.
 

Slowpokeking

Aurorae Lunares
Apr 1, 2020
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#6
The R season was generally sympathetic to its antagonist characters: Ail, En, the Ayakashi Sisters, and Saphir all got redeemed, as well as Demand, and even Esmeraud's death was portrayed with some sympathy.

Demand got favorable treatment in the original musicals probably because he was played by Hikari Ono, who was super popular and so charismatic she naturally imbued the characters she played with likability.

I don't remember much about the more recent Petite Etrangere musical, so I can't comment on how he was portrayed in that.

Crystal's out-of-nowhere redemption of Demand was obviously a completely thoughtless attempt at fan service.

For whatever reason, Demand is a very popular character, and there are a lot of people who ship him with Usagi (or with Saphir, which....). I guess it's the ~troubled bad boy~ thing. (See: Draco Malfoy, fangirls of.)
I don't think it's out of nowhere.

He did think about "Usagi is so noble" and hate Wiseman for manipulating him and killing his own men. When I firstly read the manga I thought he would have a better end but no, Crystal's change was understandable to me.
 
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Feb 4, 2020
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Crystal Tokyo
#7
In the 90s anime pretty much everyone was redeemed to some extent, because the target audience was changed from young teenagers to children and to tone down Naoko’s cruel treatment of her villains. Same with the old musicals. Crystal seems to have borrowed that from the 90s version in Demand’s case. Or maybe, as @Slowpokeking wrote before, to make his plot feel less rushed? (Or: "it’s ok for minor villains to get killed off like this, but the major one needs better development”?). Personally, I never considered his actions in crystal heroic, but anyway.
Petite Etrangere made him less important by giving the "if I can’t have it my way, I’ll destroy the world!!" part to Saphir, so he feels a bit less evil, too.
 
Aug 16, 2014
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#8
(It also came off as incredibly sexist since the Ayakashi Sisters all got blasted to smithereens with no remorse, meanwhile a predator like Demande gets a kind of redemption that he didn't even earn??)
It wasn't really a redemption.Ignoring saphir, and Rubeus were killed as well.
 
Jun 6, 2006
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#10
It’s been awhile since I’ve seen the scene, but I don’t think he was trying to do anything noble. But they did handle his death in a kind of “awww :(“ way. They definitely tried to paint some sort of sympathetic image of him at the last minute. Which is weird for many reasons, including the fact he literally just tried to wipe out existence for no good reason.
 

Slowpokeking

Aurorae Lunares
Apr 1, 2020
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#11
It’s been awhile since I’ve seen the scene, but I don’t think he was trying to do anything noble. But they did handle his death in a kind of “awww :(“ way. They definitely tried to paint some sort of sympathetic image of him at the last minute. Which is weird for many reasons, including the fact he literally just tried to wipe out existence for no good reason.
He was shocked by Wiseman's portrayal, especially after he had to kill his own brother. It's understandable that he went crazy for a moment. But it also showed that he was touched by Sailor Moon's action somehow in the manga. I think his last action in Crystal fit his character well. Deep down he likes Usagi for her beauty and heroic action, but his pride couldn't let him openly speak up about it.

And before he tried to mess up, Black Lady got the 2 Silver Crystals which was a very cruel situation. It's hard to say what did his action affect the outcome.
 

Slowpokeking

Aurorae Lunares
Apr 1, 2020
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#12
Even the manga remastered version improved his scense a lot, making him more handsome.
 
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Jul 31, 2012
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#13
He was shocked by Wiseman's portrayal, especially after he had to kill his own brother. It's understandable that he went crazy for a moment. But it also showed that he was touched by Sailor Moon's action somehow in the manga. I think his last action in Crystal fit his character well. Deep down he likes Usagi for her beauty and heroic action, but his pride couldn't let him openly speak up about it.

And before he tried to mess up, Black Lady got the 2 Silver Crystals which was a very cruel situation. It's hard to say what did his action affect the outcome.
I like this as well. Not a fan of his rapey ways but I thought he was a very "different" kind of villain.
 
Likes: Crystal Moon

Slowpokeking

Aurorae Lunares
Apr 1, 2020
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#14
I like this as well. Not a fan of his rapey ways but I thought he was a very "different" kind of villain.
I always think he went to the wrong path.

He is powerful, handsome and the leader of the BMC. If he didn't try to win love with force, certainly he would make a strong competition against any male character in winning ppl's heart.
 

Slowpokeking

Aurorae Lunares
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#15
Before I made the Demande/Michiru video, I never took a serious look at the character. And didn't know he was so popular and so hated by some ppl.

I guess it all started from the manga, he was not very well received despite some characterization. But the 90s anime gave him redemption so it makes his character lovely to many ppl and atoned his crime for abducting Usagi. And he really is handsome, so the others followed this route.

A few days ago I found Naoko edited many of his scenes in the manga in the new edition, making him look a lot more attractive now. It's hard to say how does she view the character. Did she do it for fan service? Or she knew the character would be cool but chose not to let him outshine Mamoru?
 

Nadia

Aurorae Lunares
Jun 30, 2010
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#16
The adaptations, and as you mention, Naoko herself in the new edition, soften Demande for three reasons:
  1. He's conventionally handsome. In kids media, that usually translates into goodness. It also leads to audience appeal. You don't want a good looking character being too bad.
  2. He's an obvious foil for Sailor Moon, who herself has undergone character evolution. With Queen Beryl, we had already have the evil royal vs. good royal. This time there has to be something different, especially since we're talking about the untapped potential of the future as opposed to reliving the past. What better way is there to show a change than to show that the bad guys can change?
  3. He's male and making him into just a male Beryl leads to unfortunate implications. Witches putting men under love spells is never seen as negatively as wizards doing the same to women due to different societal standards. Plus, there has to be some element of a threat to the union of our main couple. If Demande is just puppeting Usagi like a ragdoll, that's not a challenge to their love.
Petite Etrangere made him less important by giving the "if I can’t have it my way, I’ll destroy the world!!" part to Saphir, so he feels a bit less evil, too.
That musical subtly gave another reason for his potential turnaround, but there's no way of going further without ruining the twist (one of the best in Sailor Moon media).
 

Slowpokeking

Aurorae Lunares
Apr 1, 2020
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#17
The adaptations, and as you mention, Naoko herself in the new edition, soften Demande for three reasons:
  1. He's conventionally handsome. In kids media, that usually translates into goodness. It also leads to audience appeal. You don't want a good looking character being too bad.
  2. He's an obvious foil for Sailor Moon, who herself has undergone character evolution. With Queen Beryl, we had already have the evil royal vs. good royal. This time there has to be something different, especially since we're talking about the untapped potential of the future as opposed to reliving the past. What better way is there to show a change than to show that the bad guys can change?
  3. He's male and making him into just a male Beryl leads to unfortunate implications. Witches putting men under love spells is never seen as negatively as wizards doing the same to women due to different societal standards. Plus, there has to be some element of a threat to the union of our main couple. If Demande is just puppeting Usagi like a ragdoll, that's not a challenge to their love.
I will say even in the manga, he was a much more complete character than Beryl, who was all about MUST HAVE MY LOVE. He was more than about romance.

Demande had his own reason for against Silver Crystal's power of immorality, along with feeling for his followers and brother. And unlike Beryl was mostly loyal to Metallia(while have her own ambition mentioned), Demande went nuts and keep trying to rebel against him, even being convinced of Usagi's noble spirit. Among the manga, Demande is one of the most developed villains. Yes he is evil but he is also human.

But his ending was like meh, it seems like he was chopped down like a random goon. At least shouldn't he try to kill Wiseman first based on his development? Even Beryl, who was a more bland character, had a flashback to make her feel more human. Even Tomoe, who was a pure maniac, has his daughter say goodbye to him showing her love.

That's why I think Crystal's change makes a lot of sense. And I really want to know why did Naoko make the sudden turn.
 
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Slowpokeking

Aurorae Lunares
Apr 1, 2020
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#18
The adaptations, and as you mention, Naoko herself in the new edition, soften Demande for three reasons:
  1. He's conventionally handsome. In kids media, that usually translates into goodness. It also leads to audience appeal. You don't want a good looking character being too bad.
  2. He's an obvious foil for Sailor Moon, who herself has undergone character evolution. With Queen Beryl, we had already have the evil royal vs. good royal. This time there has to be something different, especially since we're talking about the untapped potential of the future as opposed to reliving the past. What better way is there to show a change than to show that the bad guys can change?
  3. He's male and making him into just a male Beryl leads to unfortunate implications. Witches putting men under love spells is never seen as negatively as wizards doing the same to women due to different societal standards. Plus, there has to be some element of a threat to the union of our main couple. If Demande is just puppeting Usagi like a ragdoll, that's not a challenge to their love.


That musical subtly gave another reason for his potential turnaround, but there's no way of going further without ruining the twist (one of the best in Sailor Moon media).
Actually this reminds me of many ppl having double standards over Beryl and Demande.

Demande abducted Usagi and kissed her=sick baddie, go die!
Beryl waged a war to destroy the Moon Kingdom to win Endymion by force and caused his death, then in present life used dark energy to brainwash Mamoru into a puppet=oh she was so sympathetic.

Especially in the anime Demande was much less evil than Beryl overall.
 
Jun 17, 2019
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#19
Maybe it's just me, but I didn't find Crystal softened Demande at all, I don't think that change to his death should count or be viewed as heroic considering he still states his intention to murder Sailor Moon himself after he's done with Death Phantom. I don't really know where you're all seeing the softening?

I will say even in the manga, he was a much more complete character than Beryl, who was all about MUST HAVE MY LOVE. He was more than about romance.

Demande had his own reason for against Silver Crystal's power of immorality, along with feeling for his followers and brother. And unlike Beryl was mostly loyal to Metallia(while have her own ambition mentioned), Demande went nuts and keep trying to rebel against him, even being convinced of Usagi's noble spirit. Among the manga, Demande is one of the most developed villains. Yes he is evil but he is also human.

But his ending was like meh, it seems like he was chopped down like a random goon. At least shouldn't he try to kill Wiseman first based on his development? Even Beryl, who was a more bland character, had a flashback to make her feel more human. Even Tomoe, who was a pure maniac, has his daughter say goodbye to him showing her love.

That's why I think Crystal's change makes a lot of sense. And I really want to know why did Naoko make the sudden turn.
Beryl had more going on for her than just unrequited love in the manga as well, she legitimately believes that the Moon is spying on the Earth (and she was actually right) and trying to take control and the musical La Reconquista further expands on this idea by making her something of a revolutionary leader for the Earth's protection.
 

Slowpokeking

Aurorae Lunares
Apr 1, 2020
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#20
Maybe it's just me, but I didn't find Crystal softened Demande at all, I don't think that change to his death should count or be viewed as heroic considering he still states his intention to murder Sailor Moon himself after he's done with Death Phantom. I don't really know where you're all seeing the softening?



Beryl had more going on for her than just unrequited love in the manga as well, she legitimately believes that the Moon is spying on the Earth (and she was actually right) and trying to take control and the musical La Reconquista further expands on this idea by making her something of a revolutionary leader for the Earth's protection.
It's not soften, just a more fitful ending, if they could add more setup.

Beryl's love to Mamoru ALL came from this flashback, other than that you don't see any real love from her at all.