Here are my random thoughts.
I had mixed reactions to this episode. It met my expectations in some ways, disappointed me in others. First, I never thought the [Inner] Senshi would actually try to fight Sailormoon. My jaw dropped when PSM produced her own youma. Even though they didn't seem like they knew how to land a punch, they just seemed cool to me. They were wearing the Moon symbol so they seemed like good guys, but they were also fighting the senshi making them just like any other youma. They were a nice change from the Putty Youma.
It sorta hit me that this was the last ep when each senshi transformed their tambourines into weapons. I think it was the BGM.
I expected that if the senshi were to fight PSM, they would have had their butts handed to them, and in the end, they would have to appeal to Usagi's desire to protect the world she loved. That way, it would be up to Usagi herself to stop Serenity from using the crystal to finally destroy the world, while at the same time fighting her remorse over Mamoru's death. Obviously, that didn't happen.
Minako's death shocked me cause I never thought they would do it. It seemed realistic to me in this Live Action format. PSM destroying the world didn't shock me for some reason even though I never thought that would happen either.
It's weird that Beryl didn't fight Sailor Moon in this version. She is the legendary "Queen of Darkness" after all. In the end, I felt sorry for her, as she was going through remorse like Sailor Moon was, which made her human to me. I guess the emphasis was on two women having the same feeling for a man, more than the battle between good and evil.
Strange enough, Jadeite actually earned a few cool points by staying with Beryl, even though I wished he was more loyal to Endymion. I'm disappointed that Neph didn't have his revenge.
It's going to take a while for me to have a lasting opinion of this episode. While I really like PSM as a badass character, I was never really excited with the whole "Princess was responsible for the destruction of the world, and may do it again" plotline. It was intriguing to see Sailormoon as the biggest threat, but it was one of those plotlines that I took a wait and see attitude before I really sum up my reaction to it (like the whole Minako illness thing).
Personally, I think time was reversed. Minako's "Venus" album looks like it just came out, and she is recording Cest la Vie. I'm Ok with that. This way, if Minako still has that illness, she will fight this time, and hopefully win. If she doesn't have the illness anymore, then she remembers what it was like to be only centered on her past life and appreciate being Aino Minako this time.
There were huge gaping potholes, and this Act doesn't have the same feel of finality like ep 200 (maybe intentional?), but it was a nice way to spend a half-hour.
Funny, it's the last act, and we still have something to wait another week for.
hoshiko said:
*sigh* I wonder how I can finish up that darn music vid now?
I really hope you finish that. I still play your "As For One Day" vid on my iPaq.
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