Sailors Neptune and Uranus finally introduce themselves and the romantic tension between Usagi and Haruka deepens in another solid entry in Sailor Moon Crystal’s third season, officially titled “Act 29: Infinity 3 - Two New Soldiers.”
The episode begins shortly after last week’s events at Crown Game Center, with Usagi telling the girls and kitties about her encounter with the short-haired Sailor Senshi after their last battle. She doesn’t mention the kiss, though she clearly hasn’t forgotten about it, either. She thinks that the girl looks a lot like Haruka, which doesn’t make sense to her, given that she still thinks Haruka’s a guy. Later that night, Usagi drifts off to sleep, imagining another kiss. Although Haruka’s dressed in a boy’s school uniform, when they pull apart, Haruka appears more feminine, sporting hoop earrings, a spotted scarf, and a hint of cleavage.
As night descends, our heroes are plagued by nightmares of the mysterious “deity of destruction.” The following afternoon, Haruka runs into Usagi outside Crown. There’s a clear attraction between the two, which Mamoru uncomfortably notices from a distance. “I missed you,” says Haruka, before giving Usagi several tickets to Michiru’s upcoming violin performance. As they part, Usagi realizes she sees Haruka as “both a man and a woman.”
Back at Crown, the girls discuss their shared dream and plans to go to Michiru’s concert. Minako wants to go see an idol, Mimi Hanyu, perform instead. We learn that Mimi Hanyu is actually Mimete, one of the Witches 5.
Elsewhere, Momo brings photos of their day at the amusement park, reminding Chibiusa that she ought to return Hotaru’s handkerchief. Hotaru is pleased, in her solemn way, and invites Chibiusa in for a chat, revealing that she has “a lot of scars” due to a past accident. Hotaru then suffers some kind of attack and Chibiusa heals her using her “amulet,” the silver crystal from her transformation locket. Their friendship blossoming, Hotaru divulges that the monster they fought at Mugen likely came from her dad’s lab. He’s eccentric and creepy, she explains, but not a bad guy. (The pentagram monocle and psychotic cackle would seem to suggest otherwise.)
Lurking nearby, Haruka and Michiru offer Chibiusa a ride home in their helicopter. The three chat and Michiru reveals that she possesses a talisman - a golden hand mirror. Haruka also mentions that they know Usagi “very well” before plonking the chopper down in the middle of a busy intersection.
The day of Michiru’s concert arrives, and all the girls turn up in their finery. Usagi is surprised to see Mamoru there with Chibiusa, but if she’s annoyed by the presence of her tiny doppleganger, she keeps it to herself. The group watches the concert, spellbound by Michiru’s skill. Though past seasons of Sailor Moon Crystal have seen characters go badly off-model when shown from the side (often looking sort of turtle-like), all the characters look great in this shot.
As they enjoy the music, the girls notice Mina is missing; she’s snuck out to see the idol show, helped with her nifty disguise brooch from her Sailor V days. She transforms into a male Mugen student, who looks very much like the love-child of Harry Potter and Sailor Venus. Before long, Mimi Hanyu / Mimete reveals her nefarious agenda by launching into a creepy brainwashing song. Mina transforms into Sailor Venus, throws down a Wink Chain Sword, hijacks the mic and radios the others for backup.
Venus deals some damage, but Mimete retaliates by turning three students into monsters. The others show up and Sailor Moon one-shots the three minions. Mimete takes advantage of the distraction and ambushes the weakest link: Chibi Moon. Two previously unseen attacks - Deep Submerge and World Shaking - suddenly blast Mimete to dust. The episode draws to a close as Sailor Neptune and Sailor Uranus formally introduce themselves to the group.
With Sailor Moon Crystal’s less than stellar track record for character development in its first two seasons, it wasn’t clear how the show would handle Haruka’s androgyny and relationship with Michiru. This episode suggests that Neptune and Uranus are in capable hands. For the most part, the episode looks great, though a few odd frames here and there suggest an ever-so-slight drop in quality from the first three weeks. Still, there are some downright squeal-worthy moments in this episode: the overlapping images of masculine and feminine Haruka, the appearance of the Sailor V transformation brooch, and the combat debuts of Neptune and Uranus.
Sailor Moon Crystal continues to do a great story justice, even managing to make the typically grating Chibiusa mostly likeable, sweet and endearing. Will next week’s episode give us a transformation theme song for the Outer Senshi that lives up to the sheer amazingness of the old one? Watch this space. In the meantime, check out iDigi’s recaps of Sailor Moon Crystal Season 3 episode 1, episode 2 and episode 3.
New episodes of Sailor Moon Crystal premiere every Monday on Hulu, Crunchyroll and Viz.com.
What did you think of the latest episode? Do you think we're due for any surprises in next week's installment? Let us know in the comments!
