Sailor Moon follows Usagi Tsukino, a middle-school girl who discovers she’s also Sailor Moon, a warrior reincarnated from the fallen Moon Kingdom and the only one capable of defending the Earth from the forces of evil. Working alongside her Sailor Guardian friends, she fights for love and justice in an anime spanning 5 seasons, 200 episodes and 3 feature-length films. Given its fierce popularity, the next series, Sailor Moon Crystal, offered fans a faithful-to-the-manga retelling of the iconic Sailor Moon story.

Yet in the original anime series, some problematic elements found their way into the narrative, like censorship and artistic changes made to the Japanese version. From the electra complex readily apparent in the relationship between Chibusa and Mamoru to the way Rei’s characterization was drastically changed from the manga to the anime, these controversial components drew criticism and comments from the fans of the series.

10

Chibiusa & Mamoru’s Relationship in the Present Borders on Unhealthy

Chibiusa Possesses an Electra Complex for her Younger Father

Chibiusa appeared in Sailor Moon Season 2, arriving from the future Crystal Tokyo in the 30th century after the Black Moon Clan attacked her home and severely injured Neo-Queen Serenity. While appearing to be a 5-year-old, Chibiusa is actually revealed to be close to 900 years old, with her intellectual maturity and emotional intelligence seemingly fluctuating between the two ages rather frequently. Before traveling to the past, she had yet to awaken as a Sailor Guardian, which helped form her own insecurities.

Despite knowing that Usagi and Mamoru are her parents, Chibiusa remains resistant toward forming a relationship with Usagi. With Mamoru, however, she develops a kind of affection that borders on romantic, which proves to be problematic given their father-and-daughter relationship. This attraction with the Mamoru in the past does not mirror the relationship she has with King Endymion in the future, with many fans uncomfortable with the Electra complex given to the pink-haired Sailor Guardian.

9

Mamoru Bullied Usagi When They First Met

Mamoru Called Usagi “Bunhead” as an Insult

Mamoru and Usagi initially meet during Sailor Moon‘s first episode, with Usagi dejectedly leaving a jewelry store as she’s unable to purchase any of the discounted gems for herself. She laments her most recent test score, thinking that if she’d only scored better, her parents might have given her money to purchase something. Getting angry at the supposed unfairness of it all, she scrunches the test into a ball and chucks it behind her, only for the wadded up test to hit Mamoru on the top of the head.

Usagi apologizes, but Mamoru takes the opportunity to both insult Usagi’s poor test score and to lob the insult “bunhead” at her, incensing Usagi to the point where she storms off. Thus begins their odd relationship, with Mamoru bullying and belittling Usagi at various junctures. For an anime built on the premise of female empowerment, the choice to have Mamoru introduced by bullying his love interest reeks of problematic behavior, in a way that undermines the message the anime wishes to impart and somehow taints the dramatic moments between Sailor Moon and Tuxedo Mask.

8

Nephrite & Naru’s Relationship is a Controversial Choice

The Age Gap & Manipulation Incited Viewers’ Concerns

Within the Sailor Moon series, and especially in the earlier seasons before Sailor Moon unites with the other Sailor Guardians, Usagi and Naru were the closest of friends. This close proximity to Sailor Moon eventually drew an unsuspecting Naru into the relentless attacks orchestrated by the Dark Kingdom and the Four Kings of Heaven under Queen Beryl’s rule. While Sailor Moon always managed to ensure that Naru survived the altercations she accidentally waltzed into, one of Sailor Moon‘s villains took note of Naru’s closeness with Sailor Moon.

Related

10 Saddest Sailor Moon Fights, Ranked

From heroic sacrifices to tragic showdowns, Sailor Moon and her allies must contend with emotionally draining fights and heart-wrenching losses.

Nephrite initially sought Naru out, believing that she might be Sailor Moon, and attempted to form a connection with her to exploit that belief. Even when he discovered that she wasn’t his sworn enemy, he perpetuated the relationship, which many viewers found disconcerting. Given that Nephrite was a fully-grown adult man and that Naru was only a 14-year-old girl, the choice to have them regard each other with any kind of romantic interest proved to be a controversial choice.

7

The Sailor Guardians Sacrificed Themselves in the Fight Against Queen Beryl

The Sailor Guardians’ Deaths Were Shown in Vivid Detail

In the final battle between Queen Beryl and the Sailor Guardians, the manga source material and the original anime diverge, with the anime adopting a different route to seeing Sailor Moon finally defeating Queen Metalia. In the anime, after Queen Beryl has brainwashed Mamoru and taken him to her lair at D-Point, Sailor Moon and the Inner Guardians go after him, with all five girls determined to save him. Queen Beryl sends the DD Girls, a group of vicious and powerful youma and arguably some of the most evil Sailor Moon villains, to stop the heroes from rescuing her long-sought-after prize.

Through a series of intense battles, the Sailor Guardians tragically fall, one by one. Leaving only Sailor Moon to carry on, alone, as she proceeds into the heart of the Dark Kingdom. The divergence from the original material irked some fans already, but the odd choice to have Sailor Mercury, Sailor Mars, Sailor Jupiter and Sailor Venus all sacrifice themselves was a grisly inclusion into an anime aimed at young children.

6

Rei & Usagi Bicker Constantly

Rei’s Characterization Underwent a Sharp Change From Manga to Anime

Rei joins Sailor Moon and Sailor Mercury as the third overall Sailor Guardian and the second ally Usagi makes, with her powers as Sailor Mars unlocked just in time to save Rei from a terrible fate. Yet Sailor Moon manga fans quickly realized that anime Rei possessed a different personality than the Rei from the manga. In the manga, Rei tended to act demurely, holding herself with a grace fine-tuned from her time as a shrine maiden. However, in the original anime, Rei tended to act hotly, often flying off the handle and responding with hostility toward Usagi.

Related

10 Best Sailor Mars Episodes, Ranked

Sailor Mars is one of the most beloved Sailor Scouts in Sailor Moon. But which of her episodes is the best?

This polarizing difference proved incredibly problematic for some fans of the series, with many viewers denouncing Rei for her mistreatment of Usagi while others criticized the anime for their character assassination of Sailor Mars. This can best be seen in the odd romantic subplot where Rei briefly dated Mamoru, which undid her distaste for men and relationships as shown in the manga. The overall treatment of Rei, especially in the stark changes to her character and the somewhat abusive way she treats Usagi, makes her a highly controversial figure.

5

Sailor Moon Has Too Much Fan Service for an Anime Geared Toward Kids

The Series Includes Angles Intended for the Male Gaze

In Sailor Moon, Usagi and the other Sailor Guardians fight for love and justice, staying true to their beliefs while valiantly defending Earth from the forces of evil that would seek to corrupt it. At its core, Sailor Moon attempts to lift young girls up, giving them a beautiful role model who cares about fighting for good and justice while also embracing her femininity. To that end, the anime pioneered quite a number of tropes now commonly associated with the magical girl genre, from transformation sequences to beautifully designed outfits.

Yet in many instances of the anime, poses and angles obviously involve the male gaze in a way that objectifies the young female characters. This proves to be incredibly problematic for an anime series meant to empower and inspire young women, as some of these elements feel more intended to draw in an older male audience instead. This creates a strong dissonance between the intended message of the anime and the form used to convey that message, with the disharmony undermining the progress the message aims to impart.

4

Sailor Moon Nearly Kills an Innocent Woman

Usagi Nearly Lets Katarina Die for Minako’s Love With Alan to Have a Chance

Love and relationships serve as an integral story theme within Sailor Moon, with the anime placing a heavy emphasis on the relationships between the Sailor Guardians and their potential partners. Usagi’s own relationship with Mamoru takes this even further, with their whole relationship setting the foundation for the anime while also helping to showcase Usagi’s personality. As such, Sailor Moon fans come to see how much emphasis Usagi places on love and relationships, with her fervor sometimes going too far.

Related

10 Best Sailor Venus Episodes, Ranked

Sailor Venus is one of the most popular anime characters ever. But which of her episodes is the best?

When Katarina, an Interpol officer Sailor Venus worked alongside during her time in England, visits Japan, Usagi learns that Minako was in love with a man named Alan. Alan and Katarina ended up together, thanks in large part to Minako’s silence about her true feelings. Yet when Katarina becomes trapped within a youma after being transformed by Kunzite, Sailor Moon was hesitant to lend aid. Her willingness to let an innocent woman, especially a decorated police officer, die just because of Minako’s past relationship with Alan proved to be an incredibly problematic moment in the original Sailor Moon anime.

3

Sailor Moon’s American Version Censored Same-Sex Relationships

Michiru & Haruka Were Cousins in the English Version

Sailor Neptune and Sailor Uranus — also known by their civilian names as Michiru Kaioh and Haruka Tenoh — were two members of the Outer Guardians who joined the anime later on, well after Usagi’s defeat of Queen Beryl and Queen Metalia. Known for their astonishing battle acumen and their immense talent (Michiru is a well-known and acclaimed violinist while Haruka excels as a race car driver with immense driving skills), the couple is also well-known as one of Sailor Moon‘s most prominent queer couples — at least in the original Japanese version.

Related

10 Best Sailor Neptune and Sailor Uranus Fights from the Sailor Moon Manga, Ranked

Sailor Neptune and Uranus are known for their effortless synergy and it’s clearly displayed by the way they harmoniously fight together side by side.

When Sailor Moon was brought over to stream on American airwaves, the anime censored their relationship, changing their queer relationship into that of cousins. A solid chunk of the more overt references to their lesbian relationship were removed, but some — such as kissing scenes — still remained, while the more subtle displays of their affection for each other still lingered. Overall, the censorship gave a weird impression of an incestuous relationship instead of a same-sex one.

2

The Sailor Starlights Were Changed to Men in the Sailor Moon Anime

Only Women Were Ever Meant to be Sailor Guardians

In the final season of Sailor Moon, Usagi and the Sailor Guardians encounter the Sailor Starlights, a group of warriors from the planet Kinmoku who came searching for their Princess Kakyuu on Earth after Sailor Galaxia destroyed their home. In the anime, the Sailor Starlights are depicted as men in their civilian forms and women in their Sailor Guardian forms, yet this arrangement departs from the manga, which depicted them as women in both identities. They did crossdress as men in an effort to disguise themselves from the Shadow Galactica, Sailor Galaxia’s cronies, but the choice to actually alter their gender could be seen as a problematic one.

Throughout Sailor Moon, one of the core tenets of the series focuses on the intersection of femininity and strength, arguing that such ideals are not necessarily mutually exclusive. The decision to alter the Sailor Starlights, to give them a masculine strength when Sailor Guardians were only meant to be female, undermined the work previously established in earlier seasons, all while irrevocably altering one of Sailor Moon‘s most underrated characters.

1

Usagi & Mamoru’s Age Gap Is Controversial

Usagi Is in Middle School While Mamoru Is in College

Mamoru’s female relationships tend to harbor all sorts of problematic elements, with his star-crossed-lover’s connection with Usagi proving to also have its fair share of controversy. In the original Sailor Moon anime, Mamoru is revealed to be a college-aged student, while Usagi is still in middle school. This gives them around 3 to 4 years worth of an age gap at the least, which has led many fans to recognize that the much younger Usagi is probably not a person Mamoru should have pursued romantically.

The sharp differences in ages, especially in an anime aimed at young girls of an impressionable age, has been a sore spot between their enduring love since the anime originally aired. The Sailor Moon franchise attempts to soften the stark difference in ages by fleshing it out with more backstory, in which viewers learn that Usagi and Mamoru were once in love ages past as the tragic Princess Serenity and Prince Endymion. But still, in the present, and for an audience unaccustomed to such steep differences in ages, the move to have Mamoru substantially older than Usagi turned many viewers off the anime.

Sailor Moon

Release Date

March 7, 1992

Directors

Junichi Sato, Kunihiko Ikuhara