Informatii generale

Sailor Moon (美少女戦士セーラームーン, Bishōjo Senshi Sērā Mūn?, officially translated as Pretty Soldier Sailor Moon) is the title of a famous media franchise created by Japanese manga artist Naoko Takeuchi. It is generally credited with popularizing the concept of a sentai (team) of magical girls, as well as the general (re-)emergence of the magical girl genre itself.

The story of the various metaseries revolves around the reincarnated defenders of a kingdom that once spanned the solar system, and the evil forces that they battle. The major characters—called Sailor Senshi (literally "Sailor Soldiers"; frequently called "Sailor Scouts" in the North American version )—are teenage girls who can transform into heroines named for the moon and planets (Sailor Moon, Sailor Mercury, Sailor Mars, etc).

The autentic manga resulted in spinoffs into many other types of media, including a highly popular anime, musical theatre productions, video games and a live-action tokusatsu series. Although most concepts in the many versions overlap, there are often notable differences, and thus there is limited continuity between the different formats.

Story

Fourteen-year-old Usagi Tsukino is an ordinary schoolgirl until she is found by a talking cat named Luna. Through Luna, Usagi learns that the world is about to be attacked by a Dark Kingdom that had appeared once before, long ago, and destroyed the kingdom of the moon. She is granted powers to defend the Earth against the coming onslaught, and is led to a number of friends who join her in the battle.

Usagi fights using the identity of Sailor Moon, and as the story progresses she learns more and more about the enemies which face her and the evil force that is sending them. Gradually she discovers the truth about her own past life, her destined true love, and the possibilities for the future of the Solar System.

The plot spans five major story arcs, each of which is represented in both the manga and the anime, usually under different names. These are the unnamed original arc, the Black Moon arc (Sailor Moon R), the Infinity arc (Sailor Moon S), the Dream arc (Sailor Moon SuperS), and the Stars arc (Sailor Stars).

Characters

In order of appearance. See individual articles and the article on the Sailor Senshi for more detail. (Names are listed in Western order.)

* Usagi Tsukino - The main character of the series, a carefree schoolgirl with a heart of gold. She transforms into Sailor Moon and is called Serena in the English anime (Bunny in the manga).
* Mamoru Chiba - Usagi's boyfriend and destined true love. He transforms into Tuxedo Mask and is called Darien in the English versions of the series.
* Ami Mizuno - A quiet bookworm with an IQ of 300. She transforms into Sailor Mercury and is called Amy in the English versions.
* Rei Hino - A slightly short-tempered miko. She transforms into Sailor Mars and is called Raye in the English versions.
* Makoto Kino - A tall, domestic tomboy who lives alone. She transforms into Sailor Jupiter and is called Lita in the English versions.
* Minako Aino - Acted on her own as Sailor V before joining the other Sailor Soldiers. She transforms into Sailor Venus and is called Mina in the English versions.
* Chibiusa - A little girl from 1,000 years in the future who co-stars in certain arcs of the series. She becomes Sailor Chibi Moon and is called Rini in the English versions (and Sailor Mini Moon in the anime).
* Setsuna Meioh - A woman whose earthly life is mysterious. She transforms into Sailor Pluto, the guardian of time, and is called Trista in the English anime.
* Michiru Kaioh - A highly talented violinist with some precognitive ability. She transforms into Sailor Neptune and is called Michelle in the English anime.
* Haruka Tenoh - A very friendly, masculine girl who once dreamed of being a racer. She transforms into Sailor Uranus and is called Amara in the English anime.
* Hotaru Tomoe - Daughter of a possessed mad scientist whose life has been greatly shaped by her father. Sickly and weak, but able to transform into the powerful Sailor Saturn. Her name is unchanged in English.

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