New Read - Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon (Naoko Takeuchi Collection), Volume 10 (Final Volume)

This was the end of Sailor Moon. The final volume, frankly, gave me all I wanted and more. A confrontation with Sailor Galaxia, the truth behind the source of the Sailor Scout's power, a twist about the nature of the Sailor Scouts and the origin of their power / enemies, and entirely unnecessary time traveling characters.

I did not know what to expect, but it exceeded it. And Usagi's Christ-like willingness to offer herself up not only for her friends, but for her enemies had me tearing up as I'm reading it.

I included an early panel from the volume where Sailor Moon is confronted by two enemies who clearly are only doing the bidding of Sailor Galaxia to end the eternal conflict in the universe. So, Sailor Moon offers her own life it it will end the conflict.

No one expects a person to willingly sacrifice themselves for someone they love, let alone someone they hate. It was jarring for everyone. And yea, it was an emotional moment.

Now that I've read it all, I need to re-read it again. This time, though, I think I'll do a thorough re-read starting with Codename Sailor V first, followed by all of Sailor Moon. But, that's for another day.

This finale is worth experiencing yourself, so I definitely recommend checking out this older series.

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New Read - Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon, Volume 9 (Naoko Takeuchi Collection)

Holy cow did it get real in Volume 9.

After the defeat of the Dead Moon Circus by the end of Volume 8, there was relative peace. Mamoru was going off to college in the US. But then something happens. Usagi keeps mentally blocking the horror so she pretends it isn't happening. But she has to face it as the volume continues.

Sailor Galaxia has arrived. Another Sailor Scout who is bent on becoming the most powerful Sailor Scout in the universe by stealing the power of others. In the process, she is decimating other Sailor Scouts across the Milky Way Galaxy.

Sailor Moon mentally blocking things which had upset her to avoid thinking about them...sadly, mood.

New Sailor Scouts as both enemies and allies are introduced in this wild volume. The ending is a huge setup for an amazing battle to come with Sailor Moon going after Sailor Galaxia!

I have Volume 10, which is the final volume of Sailor Moon for this edition.

I can't wait to see how the series ends. I also am definitely planning a reread in the future now that I have them all. Maybe even checking out some of the anime. When I am done.

Either way, this is great and I look forward to more.

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New Read - Codename Sailor V, Volume 2 (Eternal Edition)

Volume 2 continues the tale of Minako Aino, AKA Sailor Venus or Sailor V, before the other Sailor Scouts unlock their potential.

The first few chapters are very monster of the week, which is fun, albeit a bit fat-shamey in the very first chapter. But, the story ramps up a bit more as you get closer to the end of the volume.

Minako begins to remember her previous lives as Sailor Venus. She begins to remember that she is just one of many Sailor Scouts who are tasked with protecting the kingdom and the Queen. These moments are great as she slowly uncovers the truth in the back of her mind about who she really is and who she had been in the past.

That said, much like Volume 1, there's also a lot of campy fun with Sailor Venus stopping villains of the week from the Dark Agency as well as her romantic interest in Saijyo Ace. However, her romantic interest takes a dark turn as she discovers Ace's true nature and how he too is reincarnated from another previous life.

It all ties back together and ends on a more serious note which brings us into the beginning of the mainline Sailor Moon franchise.

It's a great ending to a fun series.

All that said, the pages I decided to take pictures of are just ridiculous and I'd apologize, but I ain't sorry.

Can't wait to get back to reading more of the mainline Sailor Moon manga.

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New Read - Codename Sailor V, Volume 1 (Eternal Edition)

Another early birthday present I received was the complete set of Codename Sailor V manga. What I did not realize at the time was that it was the Eternal Edition, which is just enormous compared to the new editions of the main Sailor Moon series that I am collecting. This is fine and is still a joy to read.

The series is a side series of the Sailor Moon franchise. As Sailor Moon began, Sailor V is a character in the background. She has a video game at the arcade and is a known vigilante hero in the community. That hero is middle schooler Minako Aino.

Minako Aino is a spunky, silly, romantic, video game loving girl who suddenly meets a magical cat that can talk who tells her she is a reincarnated form of Sailor Venus with incredible powers! She, reluctantly at first, accepts and just chapter after chapter of her taking down the enemy.

The first volume covers ~8 chapters from the series in gorgeous, glossy pages. The art is fantastic and the story is fun as one by one, Sailor V solo defeats villains all coming from the Dark Agency. The Dark Agency is trying to use pop culture to infiltrate and take over society by using music, television shows, or video games to brainwash people. Sailor V or her trusty cat companion Artemis (mostly Artemis, he's the brains) figure out what is going on and stop them in a villain of the week style.

It's a lot of fun. If you like Sailor Moon and want more stories, focusing in on Sailor Venus, check it out. It gives you her backstory before she meets Usagi and it's so fun.

Can't wait for volume 2.

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New Read - Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon, Volume 8 (Naoko Takeuchi Collection)

Volume 8 continued where Volume 7 left off, finishing up the story of the Dead Moon.

It continues with Sailor Moon and Tuxedo Mask being very sick while the other Sailor Scouts are fighting against the Dead Moon Kingdom. Sailor Moon and Tuxedo Mask try to come out anyway, and they discover some new powers within Mamoru himself! Also, our Pegasus friend is freed.

A lot happens as we conclude this chapter filled with nightmares consuming the planet. See the third pic for one of Sailor Moon's personal nightmares, and one that will haunt me forever.

The last handful of chapters of this volume are more Sailor Moon side stories telling tales about individual Sailor Scouts, their background, and a quick hit self contained story. They were cute, but I am looking forward to the next volume as we proceed the plot forward overall.

Personally, I have really been enjoying the mainline plot a lot more than the seemingly filler side stories. There have been a few good ones, but overall the mainline plot following all of the Sailor Scouts has been my absolute favorite part of reading this. Can't wait for more when Volume 9 of this edition drops.

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New Read - Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon, Volume 6 (Naoko Takeuchi Collection)

Flying solo today with the kids and Mrs out after I got home from work.

So, decided to get myself some sushi for dinner and catch up on some Sailor Moon. I'm on Volume 7 of the Naoko Takeuchi Collection re-releases of Sailor Moon.

This volume is all plot, no side stories, with a new enemy arriving - the Dead Moon. They set up a circus in town and there's an eclipse; no stars show up in the sky. Throughout the volume, each of the Sailor Scouts loses their power and digs down to find a new, more potent power.

This includes our trio who ran off to raise Sailor Jupiter as a throuple in the woods. They regain their powers, all four of them, and are on their way to rejoin everyone to eventually take on the Dead Moon Circus and their leaders.

It's a solid volume and there's some concerning magical sicknesses hitting Mamo and, by the end, maybe Usagi too. We also meet a powerful new character who can project as an alicorn.

Can't wait to see what happens next!

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New Read - Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon, Volume 6 (Naoko Takeuchi Collection)

Last night I sat down and finished reading Volume 6 of Kodansha's reprint of Sailor Moon. This volume had three components. First, it finished the story arc of the Outer Sailor Scouts (Pluto, Neptune, and Uranus) and Sailor Saturn / Hotaru Tomoe. The story's conclusion was well done, with the world saved once again with Saturn giving the final blow to Pharaoh 90. Hotaru is then reborn as an infant to be raised by a trio of Sailor Scout Moms. It was an unexpected (to me, who is learning about all this for the first time now) plot point, but I appreciated how it was handled.

The remaining chapters of this edition include a side story with Sailor Chibi Moon for her birthday followed by a special story entitled "Kaguya Hime's Beloved." This story was adapted as "Pretty Soldier Sailor Moon S: The Movie," too. It also has Luna falling in love with a human. The story was cute and well done...and absolutely brought some tears. While I loved the main story plot conclusion, this side story was just so well done; it makes me want to watch the movie - even if parts of it have been adapted and changed.

Overall, looking forward to the next edition so I can keep reading about these Sailor Scouts.

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