#and also i just really adore haruka and michiru

[k16is]

i think haruka and michiru should both date juri somewhere. in some random universe. and that’s the most random take i have in my head but i think it’s funny and i actually do think about it a lot i think it would be cute and silly!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[docholligay]

Do you think having such a personalized and detailed headcanon makes it harder to enjoy fic about the show/game that's written by others?

I mean sure, probably.

But unfortunately things I adore, for people named Doc who are me, fall into one of two buckets:

The character work and plot in this show are incredible, I find myself turning it around in my mind like a rotisserie chicken. I constantly discover new things about the show/book/game or the characters in it. I do not read fic about this, because why would I? Every answer I search for is in the text. I want to talk about this with someone, but about what is THERE, not what could be there. Ex: The Haunting of Hill House, Picnic at Hanging Rock, Piranesi, Bioshock:Infinite, Watership Down, Yellowjackets, among others.

The concepts of this could be amazing but are handled so fucking badly so consistently, in a shocking contrast to how INCONSISTENT the character work is, that all I want to do is steal it and make it better. All i want to do is turn it into something that doesn't suck ass when you look at it too hard. So I am going to take it SO seriously, and I am going to develop the rich inner lives for these characters that they lack, with intense backstories and families and motivation for how they got to be the person we know, or know sometimes, in certain episodes or shorts. Ex: Sailor Moon and Overwatch are the biggies here obviously, this is actually not an emotion I feel very often. I don't have intense backstories and extra-textual feelings and ideas about most of the stuff I read and watch, these two are just my Spiders Georg.

So! The odds on me being into something in the correct way to make me want to Seek Treasure Elsewhere but also I have a chill enough attitude about how the characters are that Any Dream Will Do is almost nil. I do not in ANY way mean this in a shady way, but I mostly read published adult fiction for entertainment and not fanfic. I am very picky about my fanfic. So, "plus these two new red and blue girls into Starbucks" often won't work for me, because the reasons to have Haruka and Michiru meet in a coffee shop are completely different from any of the reasons Fareeha and Angela might meet in a coffee shop, and so many of those types are archtypical plug and play stuff. Honestly, I have skated the idea of making a cheat sheet of fanon archetypes of various characters and buying a typewriter to sell 100-200 word 'quick fic' at cons with my sister. That's how common it is to use these archetypes. This is not a criticism! At all!

But, to take the two couples above, I have read so much BORING SHIT about both HM and FA that I could throw up. Lesbian couples have a lot of very milquetoast writing about them, and a lot of meet-cute which isn't really my bag.

But there are authors I love! @oathkeeper-of-tarth was and is one of the best harumichi writers out there and we don't even have all the same headcanons. The rare occasions @verbforverb decides to grace me with "Jewish Mercy I don't Have To Write" I pop a can of bubbly in the tub. And on both fields of battle @keyofjetwolf has stuff I've had bookmarked for years, and there are some things even within Rei's backstory and history that we disagree on.

Actually, to that point what I like is good writing. You can write me into believing nearly anything. There are things I believe about Amelie when I'm reading @lemon-embalmer's stuff that when I go back to my own world, aren't true, but when I'm in her world who the fuck cares, I'm having a great time. EVEN MORE to the point, I read @moonlight-frittata's stupid sun and moon lesbian League of Legends shit and I would rather shoot myslef than know ANYTHING about the game, but unfortunately she has a beautiful turn of phrase and plot flow to her work that I just....read anyway, because it is good. Fucking @tallangrycockatiel had me like 25 pages or so into a story before I was like, "OH SHIT, IS THIS SLASH??? WAIT I DON'T WANT TO READ ABOUT BOYS' LOVE!! NO!!" *hits next page* And I still could not care less about that podcast and would never listen to it, and if I did I would be massively disappointed because to my mind, her John and Arthur are the actual article, and whatever the fuck is going on in the source material can eat my dick.

So, yes, I DO think that having a very particular point of view is going to mean I back out of a story where like, "Lena stepped out of her Chelsea flat, custom leather high heels clicking against the step" sometimes, or, you know, "Haruka put down her copy of War and Peace, each meticulous note codified by a color-coded tab. Blue was for historical references to research, green for character analysis, yellow for themes, blah blah blah*" But I am actually shockingly open minded in what I will read, often to the point that I'm reading stuff from SHIT I DO NOT LIKE OR CARE ABOUT, because the quality of the writing is excellent. So, also no.

*I met someone who read books like this and I suddenly realized what the literary equivalent of 'knowing someone is a serial killer' was.

[echidna-auxiliatrix]

My personal rankings of the 90s Sailor Moon seasons. These are my personal thoughts, you don't have to agree. Respectfully, this anime is over twenty goddamn years old, so I will not be tagging spoilers. Without further ado:

1. Sailor Moon S

This season has the outer senshi in almost every episode! I find Setsuna, Haruka, Michiru, and Hotaru more compelling as individual characters than I do most of the rest of the main cast. Also, there are lesbians! Utena and Anthy were inspired by Haruka and Michiru, and it's obvious in the best way. Though I think Haruka is more similar to Utena in Adolescence of Utena than she is to Utena in the anime proper.

No filler in any sense of the word, every episode is exciting and progresses things beyond the monster of the week formula. The Witches 5 are wonderful mid-tier villains, especially Kaolinite, Eudial, and Mimete (BPD queen). Hotaru is one of my favorites and watching Chibiusa learn to be a senshi is a treat. For all these reasons, this is the season that turned me into a Moonhead (read: made me acquire a new special interest).

2. Sailor Stars

The Sailor Starlights are better characters than I expected. You can very logically read them as transgender girls. They're girls who have to live as boys for their own safety -- and they transform back into girls, their true selves, in their sailor forms. The Animamates are also entertaining as mid-tier villains. I also adore Sailor Chibi Chibi! She's not much of a character, but she's cute and sweet.

There are a few things dragging this season down, however: the disappearance of "Moonlight Densetsu," no Chibiusa, the outer senshi only appearing every few episodes, and the fact that they spend the first few episodes wrapping up last season's arc for some reason. Also, the Starlights' sailor outfits are hideous. Same with Usagi's eternal fuku, it's over designed to hell. This season also just straight up looks like ass for a significant amount of the episodes. The finale drags a bit and seeing all that death and hardship becomes monotonous. I also wasn't a fan of Uranus and Neptune voluntarily turning evil. They've always been morally gray, but in S their thing was "the (good) ends justify the (ugly, complicated, violent) means, even if we have to be separated from each other." Not "let's turn evil to stay together!" Despite that, it's still probably the best ending to any Sailor Moon season. It was also so exciting to hear "Moonlight Densetsu" at the end of the last episode! I found it to be a virtually perfect ending for the show, despite my earlier criticisms.

3. Sailor Moon

It's classic. It's simple. It's cute. It's fun! I so adore the introduction episodes for the inner senshi -- and their deaths in the finale are fitting yet sad. The season is very neatly written, not really any loose ends (unless you count the one true filler episode). It's very self-contained, even more so than the other seasons. Naoko intended for this to be all there was to Sailor Moon, and it shows in both good and bad ways. Unfortunately, this season just feels underwhelming compared to S and Stars. There's also one of the two true filler episodes in this season, which brings it down a bit. Also, the Naru-Nephrite romance is just plain uncomfortable. There's a lot to be said about romance in Sailor Moon more generally, but this ain't the post for that. Point being is that Naru is fourteen and Nephrite has got to be at least ten years her senior.

4. Sailor Moon R

I've felt for a while that this season is weak. I think it's because of the Hell Tree arc -- though I love Ail and An as villains, this arc just feels half-assed at times. It also introduces attacks for the senshi that they don't keep after the conclusion of the arc. As for other weakening factors: I'm not crazy about the Specter Sisters. They're not very entertaining, and so I don't really care about them being redeemed. The finale of this season is also a bit difficult to follow; I found it somewhat convoluted. This season also has the second and last true filler episode.

Contrary to most people's opinions, I love Chibiusa in this season. She's a good complement to Usagi, and her antics are fun. This season also introduces Sailor Pluto, whom I love! I'm so fond of the fact that Luna P has her voice.

5. Sailor Moon SuperS

Where to begin. Well, first I'll give this season three massive compliments. One, it's by far the best looking season of Sailor Moon. Two, it has the best ending ("Rashiku Ikimasho") next to "Otome no Policy" from Sailor Moon R. Finally, the Amazon Trio are probably my favorite mid-tier villains in the series. They're bitchy, they're friends, they find each other annoying, they clown on each other, they're sore losers, they're all so damn dumb. It's hilarious.

HOWEVER. During the first bit of the season, there's some bizarre sexual overtones. We have these scenes of the trio at a bar, looking at polariods and commenting on women's (and sometimes men's) looks in skeevy ways. There's also the fact that they restrain their victims and look into their dream mirrors against their will while they scream their heads off. The strategy they employ is seduction, and believe me when I say that this isn't subtext. This all makes these episodes an uncomfortable watch.

The treatment of Fish's Eye in particular is concerning. He's a feminine gay man who typically chooses boys (in one episode he tries to seduce an elementary schooler) instead of men. Sailor Moon's treatment of MLM is frankly not great, but the way Fish's Eye is written smacks of homophobia and even transmisogyny at times. "He's a villain!" You say. Sure, but the only non-villain MLM in Sailor Moon is Mamoru (if you count the R movie as canon), who spends the entire series in relationships with girls. It's...uncomfortable.

The mid-tier villains that follow the trio are the Amazon Quartet, who are just straight up boring, save for PallaPalla.

Chibiusa is supposed to be the main character in this season, and she certainly has more spotlight than in S and R, but the writers can't decide if they want her to be the protagonist or if they want her to split that role with Usagi. There's also a lot of episodes that focus solely on her, Usagi, and Mamoru. Which I find terribly boring, because in these episodes the writers lean into Usagi and Chibiusa's similarities and make them virtually the same character...which they're not. Chibiusa ordinarily has a lot of early season 1 Mamoru's snark and wit, but in these episodes those traits disappear. Additionally, Usagi and Chibiusa always transform and attack together, which gets tedious and begins to feel too convenient, even for Sailor Moon.

Chibiusa is also given a love interest in Pegasus, who's actually a 12 year old boy and not an alicorn. Chibiusa is in the lower end of elementary school; she doesn't need a love interest. She's perfectly capable of carrying a season as the protagonist without this. I just find this writing lazy and problematic.

Oh, and the outer senshi are completely absent from this season, which sucks. They're in the manga, though! The idea the anime staff had for this season was to appeal to a younger audience and get back to the basics of Sailor Moon, but this just ain't it. The charm of the first season isn't there. The younger audience bit is also just bizarre when you consider what I discussed about the Amazon Trio earlier. I sense that there was a power struggle behind the scenes between Ikuhara and...someone, idk.

[beangusu]

Do you have any other sailor moon headcanons?🥰

OH MY GOD IM SO SORRY FOR ANSWERING SO LATE ANON I NEVER SAW THIS…

BUT I HAVE SO MANY MY HEAD COULD EXPLODE. id like to draw them all out properly one day 👉🏽👈🏽 but a lot of my ramblings abt my own headcanons are on twitter :]

one of my favorite headcanons have to be rei being super close with the outers! one of my favorite things ever is rei and michiru’s friendship and that led to me imagining rei considering the outers a second home cause of how often they take her in. the idea of rei and michiru bonding over their ‘seer’ abilities, haruka and rei being butch lesbian buddies, hotaru and rei being THE SIBLINGS EVER, and setsuna being a mother figure to rei like it just makes me sooooo 🥺🥺

i have a lot of reinako headcanons also regarding their silver millennium counterparts bc my god. the fucking tragedy of the silver millennium and the reincarnation aspect rly makes for some Good Shit.

i dont think naoko revealed much abt the silmil counterpart personalities, but i love imagining silmil mars having the personality of 90s rei cranked up a few notches; brash, cocky, overbearing, and extremely hot-headed, while silmil venus is more like pgsm minako; calm, quiet, solemn, and too devoted to her job of protecting the princess to really care for anything else. like the silmil reinako dynamic would be so interesting… especially when romantic feelings get involved… a case of silmil mars dying in silmil venus’ arms while venus regrets not pursuing her love for mars would totally happen

i like stealing hcs from fanfics also hehe :3 my fav being this one fic where silmil mars basically haunts rei and always makes sure that rei “puts venus first” like. its so fucking good.

theres also another fic i absolutely adored that goes in depth on ace’s ‘curse’ on mina that ends up tying into reinako ofc but im gona stop here bc i could honestly go on and on about different reinako fics and how my sailor moon headcanons tie in to each other but then this post would be like 8 pages long (^_^;)

[severeearthquakebanana]

Well friends, I barreled through the last season of Sailor Moon way faster than average...I may have had a bit too much time on my hands over the holiday. Anyway, my thoughts on Sailor Moon Stars!

Overall, I enjoyed this season. The sailor star lights were all fun characters, and I liked the McGuffin that was the star seeds. I also really enjoyed all the villains. Galaxia was honestly very creative and I feel like a good final villain of the series. You can only get so big when you bring the whole universe into play, so having her be the final villain was a great choice.

The only thing I really disliked about this season was Chibi Chibi. I know I've complained about Chibiusa, but that had more to do with the anime's handling of her and small points in the second season, not so much the character herself. I like Chibiusa's character arc, I like the concept of her being an incredibly lonely little girl and all the fallout that comes of that. She has a personality and is a fully developed character. BUT NOT CHIBI CHIBI. Chibi Chibi doesn't even say full sentences!! She just repeats what other people say! You can have people such as Sailor Saturn who are more reserved and the things they do say have weight, but not Chibi Chibi!! Usagi was literally holding her the ENTIRE final battle, and for what?! I felt like she was just a checkov's gun that was inadequately explained.

And another thing! WHOMST THE FUCK IS SAILOR COSMOS????? I see all this fan art of a "sailor cosmos" and I just assumed it was Chibi Chibi or a final powerup of Usagi but absolutely NONE of that happened. Was it just a fumble by the anime? Cause like there was no Sailor Moon Cosmos in this season or any other season. Perhaps I need to just read the manga or something.

Ok, complaints aside, another thing I enjoyed with this season was the Mamo plotline and the insertion of Seyia! So I've seen fanart of Seyusa, and I knew it was a character from Stars but i wasn't sure wtf was going on and WOW was it great! First off, we all knew Mamo was going to come back cause Chibiusa but like man, I was really guessing! I felt so sad for Usagi the WHOLE season because Mamoru was just gone! And they kept having planes in scenes and I just wanted to know what happened!! I liked that he went down fighting. But I also really like Seyia as a character! I think all the Seyusa shippers have plenty of merit and support and I would be happy to consume all the fanart/fiction that's out there. I definitely prefer Mamoru, but I'm honestly happy with both.

I also liked how the monsters of the week were the people being attacked. I thought it was super interesting! I really enjoyed the idea that by removing your star seed it turned people into the worst version of themselves. It really paid off well too with Uranus and Neptune's attempt at deceiving Galaxia in order to get in a good hit.

HOW COULD I HAVE FORGOTTEN TO DISCUSS HARUKA AND MICHIRU??? Oh my gosh, were they sickenly adorable!! No wonder they never aired Stars on American television, you could NEVER pass them as cousins this season, Michiru's comments alone. aghhh for all of Haruka's flaws, I LOVE her seriousness, and I still think she is an excellent foil to Usagi's crybaby inaction. And they brought back the various leitmotifs from the third season!! You can bet your ass I was vibing in my chair when it came on. Yeah, Haruka and Michiru are definitely my favorite characters to come out of this.

I think I'll add my thoughts to the anime as a whole in a separate post, this one's gone on long enough and I have other things I need to do irl today. But in short, I really enjoyed this fifth season. I'm glad they ended the series here, I think it kept the series from becoming a shadow of itself like some other popular shows do.

[fictive-fodder]

☕ WELL, totally complete stranger, I come off as shy or aloof to a lot of people when I first meet them, and it takes sometime for me to warm up and step out of my shell. I love writing, reading, cooking, baking, really any art form that leaves me with a physical end product (sculpture, basket weaving, etc.). I feel like I have a wide variety of interests due to finding just… a lot interesting. I’m willing to sit down and learn about pretty much anything, and particularly if it’s video essay format. I love analysis, both doing it and engaging with it as a viewer. Related to that, despite being an emotions person, I’m fairly analytical when it comes to engaging with myself and the world. Was very much an armchair psychologist at one point (not to say I’ve entirely unlearned that). I am a VERY silly person and being goofy is something I like about myself, and something that I tend to look for in others! I can get hilariously competitive with games. I wear my heart on my sleeve but am fiercely independent so it makes it difficult to rely on others. I am very passionate about what I believe in and… have a bad habit of ranting about it or getting on a soap box lmao. I’m not sure which fandoms to pick, honestly, since I’m just generally curious. If there’s multiple or any character from your fandoms I’d loved to hear it, but fandoms I’m particularly interested in? I got Bioshock brain rot and I REALLY wanna know if you’d think I’m compatible with any of the Sailor Scouts 👀👀

I’m celebrating gaining 100 followers! Click here for the details! ◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇

I ship you with Hotaru Tomoe - Sailor Saturn!

Okay. Okokokokokok just listen- you forgot to mention that you are about as kind and sweet as it gets, and Hotaru needs that. I *strongly* feel like she would see you and just absolutely become enamored by brilliance and sweetness. You would get really protective of her, I think, and everything she goes through and is responsible for. I also think you would be a lot more gracious and understanding of her needs than most people.

She's so quiet and gentle but she'd love to see you get loud and happy and vibrant. She would love to watch you laugh and do anything she could to make you silly and happy. Those memories she'd make with you would get her through her toughest moments.

I feel like Hotaru's beverage game would be on point. She'd always wake you up with warm drinks that perfectly hit the spot. You would dye your hair to match the purple of her skirt as Sailor Saturn, and she would get sooo shy and blush all over the place.

Also, Setsuna, Michiru and Haruka would basically adopt you too and absolutely adore you. Haruka would try to give Hotaru date tips and ideas that are waaaaay off and Michiru would have to step in and fix everything.

[ladymarlin]

Headcanon time!

Thought of some hcs for the outer's families when I was falling asleep, so here we go.

For reference, I personally ship the outers as poly. These are my personal headcanons.

Michiru's mom is the snobby, self-entitled type. You know the kind I'm talking about, right? The kind that makes those small comments that just completely ruins her child's day? She'd either force violin playing/painting on Michiru (and she'd just end up enjoying it) or she'd want Michiru to go into business or sumn that makes big money, so she would be unsupportive. Her mom dislikes Haruka and tells her stuff like, "why don't you marry a rich man?" And she thinks it's weird that they're both with Setsuna, who she judges heavily. As for Hotaru, she's a little mad at Michiru for straight up adopting and raising a child, but she's super sweet bc she wants grandchildren, another thing she wants from her daughter. She's definitely the manipulative type, so Michiru would be really confused, but she eventually realized she's not good. Michiru refers to her as "Mother." Michiru's father is laid back. He's the "just listen to your mother" type, which really bothers Michiru because of her mom getting on her about every little thing. But overall, Michiru enjoys spending time with him. He really couldn't care less about who she dates, as long as they're not bad for her, and he adores Hotaru. She has no siblings, so her parents only have her to focus on her.

Haruka's mom is the opposite, she's extremely supportive and understanding, and Haruka has a lot of respect for her. Like, if someone told a joke about her mom she'd get pretty pissed, like, "dude, don't talk about my mom." Though she's be closer with her dad, bonding over things like cars. She also has a brother who she gets along with pretty well. They like playing video games together and they get really competitive about things. Haruka's the youngest by like, a year, but still, she's younger, so she's a bit spoiled. Haruka's family loves Michiru and consider her part of the family, knowing her well because she would go over often when Haruka still lived with her parents. They don't know Setsuna as well, but they're willing to build a relationship with her. Haruka's mom is a bit confused on the poly thing, but she's ok with it. Haruka's dad and brother applaud her for getting two girlfriends. Her parents are confused on Hotaru because they find Haruka adopting her just bizzare, but they like her. Her brother is not at all surprised and actually thinks it's kinda funny.

Setsuna's mom is that tired mom that looks sad all the time, which can sometimes be seen in Setsuna. She's really close with her mom because growing up it was just the two of them. Like Haruka's mom, she's very supportive and accepting.bShe likes Haruka, Michiru, and Hotaru because they make her daughter happy. Her dad is of course, Chronos. He's not really apart of her life, and Setsuna doesn't really like him because of it (plus the whole leaving her to guard a door thing.) Anyway, Chronos is off doing god things. Though Setsuna lived only with her mom, she has plenty of siblings... That she's never met. You know how gods are with having a bunch of kids, some being gods, some not.

[notapinklasagna]

Ok, so i watched th new sailor moon movie and boy do i have some thoughts

Note: if you, by any means, want to talk about sailor moon lore, theories, or just fan over the show, send me a message i am in dying need of someone to talk to about this

So, i...i don't know how to feel about the way the movie just changed the dream arc plotline, i watched the 90s show, and i really adored how the whole motive of queen Negerelia was...ultimately, loneliness, as she was always praised as a queen yet never loved as a person, she has a truly beautiful resolution when she reverses into her childhood and seeks out for genuine human care...the movie kicks that and reduces her to "bad scary girl craving darkness" ...which is just a shame, i understand this, along so many other changes were made so the arc could fit a summarized movie format...but it still such a loss...also, this twisted plotline gave a reason to the down fall of the platinum millennium...which is...not great?

I also don't understand why they kind of merged the argument of the stars arc with the dream arc? Like, the whole " crystal inside you" thing is supposed to be the big deal during the stars arc but they just kind of..borrowed it so that the resolution made more sense... but ok? Furthermore, the whole "little princess guardian inside the girls" deal was weird, like, it kind of made sense? But it was weird, that, along with the "we have castles in our planets thing" just...opens so much possibilities, are the sailor scouts rulers of their planets? Do they have duties over there, if so, that applies to ALL scouts? Even the asteroid amazons? And that's another thing, the movie implies the Amazon quartet are going to be the protector sailor scouts for chibi moon? As the Senshi are to sailor moon? How does that work? Are the sailor tittles inheritable? Like, is chibiusa eventually going to be sailor moon when her mother becomes the queen, likewise, the other scouts are ever going to step down as scouts to assume other roles while other girls become new sailor Mercury, Mars and the others? Or...no? How does any of that work?

Another thing is..as much as I love Helios and chibiusa's relationship, as they said Mamoru, Helios, the earth and helisium are all connected and "the same" doesn't imply that somehow chibiusa is dating her father? What? Like, in the show it wasn't portraited that way, it was said that Helios worked under Mamoru as the guardian of helisium, and his relationship with chibiusa made sense because this two share a confidant dynamic, chibiusa told him her woes and he offered advice, building up to mutual trust on one another, and even if i crave more of this two, i don't like how the movie is like " oh yes she is my damsel, she has always been and always will be"... pleaseee i need actual romance for this two lovebirds...

Last of my complaints would be the way they treated Haruka...i absolutely adored the three parent dynamic the outer senshi have with Hotaru, it was lovely seeing them raising her! Yet, i feel they made this lesbians so, so, dirty...this movie stayed true to sailor moon's iconic gender ambiguity with the Amazon trio, going as far as to openly address the crow guy as a man as he wore a beautiful dress, putting the queerness in front of everyone's eyes..

Yet, Haruka and Michiru, both who are confirmed lesbians, where just left there...in both the gender ambiguity of our favorite tomboy Haruka and her relationship with Michiru, first, we all now that Haruka has no problem being addressed as a man, in one panel of the manga she even says it's funny, however, the movie lack the " oh she is actually a girl (or at the very least not a full on guy) , just loves manly things" moment, which i believe it's crucial to the character, with that in mind, remembering that Haruka's masculinity served as a way for her relationship with Michiru to not be as frowned upon back in the day...it really suck how we didn't get a single scrap out of them, not s loving stare, not holding hands....a kiss, perhaps? Nope, not a thing...

Now, enough with the ranting, for what i absolutely adore out of the movie, it gave us so much Mamoru x usagi romance material, the kid like dream, the dream confession before the final battle? Hell, the whole king/ queen moment at the end was pure gold and i absolutely adore out very single second of it...on that note, i love how they addressed head on the fact that Toxedo mask is indeed low-key the weakest link out of all the sailor scouts of the solar system, that was great insight on Mamoru's insecurities and how he truly feels about being a scout without it tying directly to usagi or some villain, also loved the insight on the girls insecurities about their family and desires, i found funny how on the show Rei is the only other one of the inner senshi (aside sailor moon) to have a solid romantic interest, that temple guy, but then in this movie it is mentioned that she was the only scout to make a somewhat chastity pledge to the princess and how she don't need no man, i find that hilarious.

I overall liked the movie, it was well scripted and i had a super fun time just watching this characters i love so much, i just....want to talk about this, cause it brings me great joy~

[sailormoonandme]

Why I think Sailor Moon lends itself so well to fanfiction

It’s no secret that there is a very active Sailor Moon fanficiton community.*

Whilst every fandom has its fanfic authors in my experience Sailor Moon fanfiction proportionally forms a far larger part of the fandom than in many other fandoms, the only exception I’ve encountered would be say Harry Potter. I do not for example find as many people posting or discussing fanfiction within Power Rangers, Lord of the Rings, Marvel, DC or Doctor Who circles.

Oh, there are plenty of people who talk about ideas and concepts they have. But there seem to be far fewer actually making stories themselves, or at least willing to post/share them, nor even discuss making them.

Why is this?

Well, I’m sure there is a discussion to be had regarding fanfiction, female authors, female audiences and obviously that’d tie into how Sailor Moon is primarily aimed at (and enjoyed by) a female audience.  

But I’ve not really researched that so I don’t feel confident enough to dive into it.

To me though, when we break down the nature of Sailor Moon’s story, I very much feel it practically encourages fanfiction and taps very directly into the sort of things fanfiction writers and readers seem to like.

One stereotype of fanfiction that, in my observations, is absolutely true is that there is A LOT of romantic and/or sexual content. In fact it’s an open secret that professional erotic fiction pales in comparison to the breadth, quantity and quality of fanfiction ‘smut’.**  

One might argue ANY story that features romance in it is therefore ‘encouraging’ such fanfiction. But the situation with Sailor Moon is a little different as romance is utterly baked into its foundation. The first story arc, initially intended as the entire story, revolves around Sailor Moon and Tuxedo Mask’s relationship. Between the manga and the anime the love life’s of almost every single major character is touched upon one way or the other. Minako’s affections for Allan. Rei’s disdain for men in the manga and romances with Mamoru and Yuichiro in the anime. Makoto’s sempai and her tragic string of men even vaguely similar to him. Ami and Ryo’s relationship in season 1 and her shyness about anything romantic thereafter. Even side characters like Reika, Motoki, Unazuki, Umino, Naru, Nephrite, Zoisite and Kunzite make their love lives at least discussed.  

Then of course you have Haruka and Michiru, who’s relationship also clearly hints that they’ve become physically intimate.  

Often with more sexually explicit fanfiction the authors are diving into parts of the characters’ lives rarely even discussed (if at all) in the original canon. Whilst Sailor Moon’s focus upon romance made sex a logical leap, the show plays a Hell of a lot with innuendo, symbolism and subtle hints to the point where it was giving fic authors plenty of ‘ammo’ to work with already.  

This of course extends into the realm of queer pairings. Another stereotype of fanfiction (and again, I’ve not really researched this so I dunno how true it is) is that they engage in romantic or sexual stories where the characters have a different sexualities from their (apparent) canon ones. Perhaps the most famous (infamous?) example is Harry Potter and Draco Malfoy. Between Haruka and Michiru, Mamoru and Fiore, Zoisite and Kunzite and implications a plenty in the manga and anime (especially under Ikuhara’s rule) writing the characters as interested in people other  than the opposite sex was a relatively easy and believable leap, hardly even breaking the verisimilitude of the canon.

Speaking of verisimilitude, Sailor Moon…didn’t make sense. I love it and adore it but we all know this is true. Even beyond the mindblowing miraculous magic it employed there was more than several instances where characters did not behave realistically or even consistently. Contradictions in the anime especially were rife.  

Regardless of what that does or doesn’t say about the canon, for the purposes of fanfiction, this is something of a boon. It enables all sorts of wacky riffs and directions that aren’t going to create too large of a cognitive dissonance for the writer nor the reader.  

Want to write a story that wouldn’t be realistic? So what? This was the story where the world almost ends but society is never fundamentally changed.  

Want to write a story with elements that’d be anachronistic So what? Our heroes were named after planets that didn’t get those names until thousands of years later.  

Want to do a story that unfortunately would contradict a canon fact or canon characterization?...Have you watched SuperS…?

The flipside to the messier parts of the canon is that it equally encouraged some authors to engage in fix fics, to address what they felt were problems with the characters and narratives.***

It’s very much a getting your cake and getting to eat it too situation!

Additionally, the ‘monster of the week�� format for the show enables all sorts of wacky riffs and spins to be imposed on the characters and narrative since these monsters each had their own gimmicks. Body swap characters? Make them shrink? Make them evil? Alternate Universe? Space travel?  

Ostensibly anything and everything is on the table for fic authors to work with, just as it was for the official creators of Sailor Moon.

Alongside the ‘monster of the week’ format, the innate concept for Sailor Moon encourages the creation of original characters. There is no end of stories about ‘Sailor Sun’ and ‘Sailor Earth’ of course. But since any planetoid, celestial body or what have you in theory could have a Guardian authors could go nuts, drawing upon real list astrology or simply invent their own planets for whatever story they are doing. So the story is ripe for world building and expansion!

However, things need not go to that scale. Sailor Moon, especially the anime, revolves around the everyday lives of teenaged characters. Their ages means authors have the opportunity to write the characters growing up or having grown up and take them in any direction they like and again not create too much of a cognitive dissonance with the canon. And they can do that by drawing upon their own life experiences fairly easily without having to consider what the first day of college might’ve been like for someone on Middle Earth or whatever.

Furthermore, because romance was baked into the story, there was a greater focus in the stories upon the characters internal thoughts and feelings. This wasn’t strictly about their romantic feelings, but my point is a good 2/3 of your average Sailor Moon episode will be taken up with slice of life stuff before the Senshi go into action.  

Why is this relevant? Because that kind of internal exploration lends itself far better to the prose format than action set pieces, especially action set pieces trying to emulate those of a visual format like a manga or an anime.  

All the above actively encourages the creation of fanfics but there is aso something deeper going on.  

After all, plenty of movies leave room for characters to be expanded. Plenty of manga offer opportunities for world building. Plenty of TV shows make the creation of original characters a synch. Plenty of comic books have contradictory continuity that warrants patching up. And romantic elements are present in the overwhelming majority of fiction, even fiction that isn’t predominantly about that.

What makes Sailor Moon a particular strong candidate for fanfiction though is that it has all those things whilst also having strong concepts, endearing characters and a rich mythology to hook people in the first place.

In other words, the fact that Sailor Moon was good made people love it. And that love I think is the essence of why they wanted to read and produce more  of it.

*For the purposes of this post you should understand that by ‘fanfiction’ I’m specifically referring to prose fanfiction, i.e. the stuff you’d find on FFN and predmonantly on Ao3. Obviously audio plays, comics, art, cosplay performances can all fall under the label of fanfiction to one extent or another. And in some cases these are far more prevalent than prose fanfiction.  

E.g. there is plenty of fan art in the Marvel fandom and there is a frightening amount of audio based Dr. Who fanfiction.

**Even I know that and I do not typically care for that type of stuff myself.  

***Or expand upon characters they felt there was more to do with. I know many people who feel that way about the manga versions of the villains and the Senshi (sans Usagi), the anime version of Mamoru and the supporting cast like Usagi parents.

[merinnan]

Fic Tag Game

Grabbed from @hils79, because it looked like fun.

Name: Merinnan, which I’ve gone by for... fifteen years now, I think? Prior to that, I mostly used Calicia (and sometimes Zoi).

Fandoms: Like Hils, I’m only going to list the fandoms I’ve actually written fic for.

Star Trek: My very first fandom, and the one I’ve written the most fics for (so far - I suspect that DMBJ will overtake it. It certainly already has in terms of word count). I was (and am still) primarily a DS9 fan, and was a huge Kira/Dukat and Garak/Bashir shipper back in the day. Most of my Trekfics are DS9 fics, but I also dabbled a little bit in TOS and TNG, and had one or two crackfic crossovers that involved Voyager characters. Discovery has tempted me with a few fic ideas, but I haven’t written anything for it yet.

Bishoujo Senshi Sailormoon: aka, the show that first had me seriously questioning my sexuality. Look, Haruka and Michiru are #goals, don’t judge me. This is also where my Zoi name came from, after the first season villain Zoisite, whom I cosplayed several times. Unsurprisingly, my main ships are HaruMichi and KunZoi. Despite this fact, neither of my published Sailormoon fics are HaruMichi.

Bubblegum Crisis Tokyo 2040: A short-lived fandom, but one I still liked enough to write a fic for and get the OST CD.

World of Warcraft: I wouldn’t say I’m really part of the fandom, per se, but I’ve been playing since the dying days of Burning Crusade, am a huge lore nerd, and started writing a crossover fic that is currently on indefinite hiatus. I do plan to come back and finish it, but first RL got in the way, and now I have to try and remember where I’d actually been planning to go with it.

A Court of Thorns and Roses: That crossover fic I just mentioned? Yeah, this is what it’s a crossover with. ACoTaR fandom went sleepy for awhile, but it’s back up and kicking now that A Court of Silver Flames is out - if any of you are still following me, it’s great to see everyone active again! To the surprise of no-one who knows me, I’m a big Nessian shipper.

Mo Dao Zu Shi / Chen Qing Ling / The Untamed: I came to this fandom via ACoTaR, actually, after a certain person (hi, @rhysand-vs-fenrys!) wouldn’t stop gushing about it :-) This is the fandom that really and seriously got me back into regular fic writing again after 15-ish years. I’m a multishipper here, and have written / am writing WangXian, NieLan, XiCheng, XuanLi, and XiSang.

Guardian / Zhen Hun: MDZS fandom led me to Guardian, which, along with DMBJ, has devoured my life in a way that hasn’t happened since my Star Trek days, and I love it! WeiLan is my major ship, but I’m also quite fond of the DaMian life raft.

Zhu Yilong: Yes, I’m going to list a person as a fandom. Zhu Yilong is one of the stars of Guardian, and is both incredibly pretty and an incredibly talented actor. So much so that I have suffered through some truly terrible dramas just to watch him in them. I do not write Z1L-fic, since RPF of living people is a personal squick of mine, but I am working on a massive crossover fic of most of his characters.

Mo Du: Guardian led me along to more of Priest’s works, such as Mo Du, which is now officially my favourite book, and I adore the main WenZhou ship. The Mo Du fandom right now is pretty tiny, and I’m still working on my first fic for it, but I hope that it will grow with the donghua due out this year, and the drama having just started filming.

Daomu Biji / The Lost Tomb: I initially came into this fandom because of Zhu Yilong, who played Wu Xie in the Reboot / Reunion / Chongqi drama, and then I got sucked into the fandom pit of all of the books and dramas and spinoffs, and it’s wonderful and fantastic. I have written so much for it, and have so much more planned. PingXie and PingXieSang are my main ships here, but I’m also a HeiHua fan, and very much enjoying the RiSang pool noodle that @kholran created.

Tropes: Hurt/Comfort and crack are my major ones.

Fic I spent most time on: A toss-up between Endings and Beginnings and Reunion, both DS9 fics. Endings and Beginnings is an alternate ending to the show, while Reunion is a Gul Dukat-centric fic set around, oh, season 5ish? Both were written for and initially published in print fanzines, so in addition to time spent writing, there was a lot of back and forth for editing, etc.

Favourite fic(s) you’ve written: Look, I honestly couldn’t say. I like most of the fics I’ve written, and there are several that I’m really proud of and really like.

Fic I spent least time on: Silent Graves, a super angsty DMBJ/Lost Tomb Xiaoge fic. I think I wrote it in like 15 minutes.

Longest fic: Cat’s Paw, a DMBJ/Lost Tomb PingXieSang canon rewrite fic I co-wrote with @xantissa, at  247 826 words. For fics written by just me, not with a co-writer, then that would be Nevermore, my WIP MDZS/CQL XiCheng Pacific Rim AU, at 22 276 words and counting.

Shortest fic: Every entry in my DS9 Drabbles series, with each one at exactly 100 words. Although if you count them as a quintdrabble, then Indiscretion (a DS9 missing scene vignette about Gul Dukat, set during the episode of the same name) at 169 words.

Most hits/kudos/comments/bookmarks/subscriptions: The answer to all of these is either Cat’s Paw or Nevermore, so I’m going to give the next highest.

Hits:  Those who fear darkness have never seen what light can do, a DMBJ/Lost Tomb PingXie supernatural AU fic co-written with xantissa.

Since this fic also takes the highest kudos, bookmarks, and subscriptions after Cat’s Paw/Nevermore, I’ll skip to the next fic along on each of those.

Kudos: Stars fall like diamonds, a DMBJ/Lost Tomb PingXie missing scene fic from Reboot/Reunion/Chongqi.

Bookmarks: A Knight in Bloody Armour, another DMBJ/Lost Tomb PingXieSang supernatural AU fic (but a different supernatural AU) co-written with xantissa.

Comments: Ears and Other Related Calamities, yet another DMBJ/Lost Tomb PingXieSang supernatural AU fic (of a different again supernatural AU) co-written with xantissa.

Subscriptions: The Rescue Job, a Guardian WeiLan Leverage AU, currently at one chapter complete and posted out of a planned five chapters.

Fic you want to rewrite/expand on: We have plans for a prequel and a sequel to A Knight in Bloody Armour, and a spinoff fic for The Zhang Identity (a DMBJ/Lost Tomb PingXie AU that is complete but not yet posted. It will be posted in April as part of the Small Fandoms Big Bang).

Share a bit of a WIP: This is from an as-yet-unnamed post-canon fix-it fic for the Guardian drama:

It was hurting again. Zhao Yunlan curled up into a tight ball under the hospital blankets, trying to ignore it enough to try to get back to sleep. He knew it wouldn't work, because he couldn't remember a time when it ever did, but it was always worth a shot, right? He squeezed his eyes shut and held himself tightly for a few...moments? Minutes?...before grabbing his stuffed cat and clutching it while he forced himself to breathe deep, slow breaths the way the doctors back in Spring City had taught him.

Eventually, the pain died back down to its usual dull ache, the one that was bearable and let him play, and watch TV, and do school lessons with his mother. One day, she said, they'd find a doctor who knew what was wrong, why he hurt all the time, and the doctor would give him medicine that would keep the worst pain away so that he could go to an actual school and meet more kids than the ones who lived in their apartment block or who frequented the same playground that he liked to go to.

Zhao Yunlan tried closing his eyes again, seeing if he could go back to sleep, but he was far too awake now. He sighed, sitting up in bed and looking around the room. Again. It was just like the hospital rooms in Spring City, and in Kiyota City. He figured that if the doctors here in Tomorrow Mountains couldn't help, his parents would take him to yet another city, and the hospital rooms there would probably look the same, too.

Then, over the faint beeping of hospital equipment, and the quiet murmurs further down the corridor of nurses at the nurse station or seeing to other patients, he heard a soft sniffling sound, like someone was trying not to cry too loudly. He picked up his stuffed cat and looked at it.

"What do you think, Dead Cat?" he asked it. "Should we go and find them?"

Dead Cat didn't answer, of course, but that didn't stop Zhao Yunlan from assuming that it agreed with him, and slipping out of bed. His feet touched the cold tile floor with barely a sound, and, still holding Dead Cat tightly, Zhao Yunlan padded over to the door. He looked up and down the corridor, then left his room to track down the sniffling noise.

He wasn't surprised that it came from the next room. He was surprised that it came from another kid, a boy who looked to be about his age, huddled in bed and wiping his eyes.

"Hi," Zhao Yunlan whispered. The other boy looked up in surprise, then stopped to clutch his chest as he began to cough. Once he'd finished coughing, Zhao Yunlan and Dead Cat were perched on the end of his bed.

"I'm Zhao Yunlan, and this is Dead Cat." He held up Dead Cat, moving one of the paws to wave hello. "What's your name?"

The boy wiped his eyes again. "Shen Ye."

I tag: ALL OF YOU! Are you a writer who hasn’t done this yet? Consider yourself tagged if you want to be.

[ffamranxii]

Bro. My shipper heart is bleeding. These are my current fandoms (Persona, Sailor Moon, Fruits Basket, and Haikyuu!!) and I have some FEELINGS (under the cut).

1. I don’t ship Ryuuji/Protag/Goro. I very specifically headcanon Joker as two different people, with slightly different personalities. Joker-as-Ren I ship with Ryuuji, Joker-as-Akira I ship with Goro.

2. Makoto/Hifumi is a chance interaction that takes place when Joker and Makoto go to Jinbocho. I decided that very second that I ship them so hard, since Makoto abandoned Joker to go shop with Hifumi.

3. I do have specific headcanons for the other thieves, but none are romantic. Ann and Ryuuji have an epic bromance; Yusuke is asexual but best friends with Futaba and Joker; Futaba and Sumire are best friends and neither of them need a relationship while they are healing from their respective traumas; I hardcore ship Haru/happiness but have yet to find a specific person to ship her with. Same with Mishima - I love my boy but haven’t found the right person for him. Also honorable mention to Iwai/Takemi. 

4. Yu/Yosuke was my first P4 ship. Never looked back. I also shipped Yukiko/Chie way before I shipped Ann/Shiho, despite playing P5 first.

5. My take on Naoto is conflicted (I understand their story from both the Japanese and Western point of view and can’t decide which I like better). I very specifically ship Kanji/boy!Naoto.

6. Teddie/Marie was a crackship I came up with during Golden and decided I really liked for some reason. I was thinking of what to write for a fic and Yosuke mentioning “oh hey my brother [Teddie]’s getting married” “oh yeah? to who?” “that weathergirl, Mariko Kusumi” just popped into my head. I’m on board now. 

7. I really like Rise but I can’t for the life of my find a person to ship her with. I do not like Rise/Yu. 

8. Honorable mention to the ball bois Kou/Daisuke.

9. I don’t know why I ship Minato/Yukari. I just really like them together and surprisingly I can hardly find any fics or art of them. I also ship the Minato/Aigis bromance and I love Elizabeth-loves-Minato.

10. You can pry ShinjiHam from my cold dead fingers. VIVA LA SHINJIHAM!

11. These two are similar to Minato/Yukari in that I don’t know why I ship them, I just do. There’s also not much art/fic of them. :(

12. Ngl, Junpei’s inability to leave Chidori alone because he can’t fathom a girl just sitting on a bench drawing really rubs me the wrong way. However, they develop an actual relationship (in as much as a secondary character can in Persona) and by the time she sacrificed herself for him I was hooked. I think Chidori really didn’t give a fuck about Junpei until she was in the hospital and saw how much he cared about a person he didn’t really even know. 

13. I’m not totally sold on the other SEES peeps. I LOVE Fuuka but I can’t find anyone I truly love her WITH. Ken is a child among near adults so I don’t really have anything for him, and Koro-chan’s a doggo. I love Rio and Saori, but not together, and also Mamoru... 

14. Maya/Katsuya are just stupid cute. I take no criticism.

15. TATSUJUN FO LYFE. DON’T EVEN @ ME.

16. Eikichi and Miyabi are honestly super sweet, I can’t even.

17. Maki and Naoya are the only two people from P1 I really connected with in any meaningful way, so of course I ship them together. I also loved Yukino in P1 (but not P2, really), and Yuka, but have no one to ship them with. Yuka married rich so maybe she married Kei! XD

18. Sailor Moon is the ONLY series where I ship people differently based on adaption. I ship Usagi/Mamoru in both, of course (and I think Mamoru was done better in the live action than the anime and especially the manga); but in the live action I hardcore ship Rei/Minako (who seemed to be the replacement Haruka/Michiru, since they weren’t in the live action), and really, really enjoyed the developing relationship with Ami/Nephrite during the Dark Mercury arc as well as the surprisingly stable and sweet Makoto/Motoki relationship.

19. However in the anime/manga I tend to ship what I’m “supposed to” (within reason, lol). Chibiusa was the first person I ever shipped with two different people. I like the idea of her and Hotaru in young love, and Mistress 9 and Wicked Lady getting together, and I love the idea of older princess chibiusa with her first love Helios.

20. Ah, the Kakeru love triangle. Kakeru just RADIATES bisexual energy - he hits on literally all the Sohma men and he LOVES Yuki. I actually did not like Yuki with anyone but Kakeru until the 2019 anime came out and I saw a lot of discourse about how well Yuki/Machi went together. I’m also a sucker for Kakeru’s girlfriend Komaki and I hope they put her in the anime. The idea of chaotic bisexual Kakeru actually having been in a longterm relationship all through high school and marrying her is just super sweet.

21. I will never let go of Hatori/Kana. They should’ve had it all.

22. Kagura/Kunimitsu and Momiji/Kimi are two crackships I found as fanart (I’ve reblogged them at some point), that every so often I stumble upon a fic or art for. I originally didn’t like them, but ended up ADORING them. Kunimitsu is exactly the calm yet gently mischievous presence Kagura needs and Kimi and Momiji would create SO MUCH CHAOS.

23. I do not like Uo/Kureno within the context of the show. I understand that Uo is probably the first non-related girl Kureno’s interacted with since his essential imprisonment and he is probably suffering from “new is always better” syndrome when he meets her. Kureno hardcore needs a few years on his own, away from the Sohmas, to figure out who he is, and what he likes to do, and live as a normal person; and Uo is NOT the person to help him do that. She’s got enough on her plate with the death of her mentor/mother figure and rehabbing her father. Uo is in a good place right now and Kureno is not, and she shouldn’t need to “save” him. I DO like Uo/Kureno as an “after the series” pairing, where Uo’s in her twenties and out of college (if she went) and got a career, and Kureno’s finally gotten his shit together, and they meet again by chance and they’re both in a good place. That’s adorable. Uo/Kureno while Uo’s in school isn’t.

24. I actually think Kagehina was the first ship I shipped in Haikyuu!! I remember watching the first episode and going “...are.... are they gonna make out?” Then Noya and his dramatic “ASAHI!!!!!” and “I’M NEVER GOING TO PLAY UNLESS ASAHI PLAYS TOO!!!” swooped in and I forgot about them. Asanoya is just so precious and pure. Daisuga smacked me in the face like, “Oh. OH. This is... this is fucking GREAT.” I think it was because I saw someone say “Daisuga are basically volleyball mom and dad” and I was hooked. I DO, however, enjoy a Kuroo/Daichi bang it out rivalry though. Tsukki and Tadashi was a no brainer; Tadashi yelling at Tsukki at the camp was just *chef’s kiss*

25. Yachi is the cutest little lesbian, and she’s even gayer in the manga. I actually can’t decide who I like more, Kiyoko/Yachi or Kiyoko/Tanaka. 

26. Iwaoi and Kuroken came to me during my first forays into AO3 for fics. I can’t imagine shipping them with anyone else. They’re just... MADE for each other. 

[docholligay]

The Youths want to know what f/f couples you would put in a March Madness-esque bracket. It is specifically couples not individuals, there is a similar Yaoi bracket going on right now. Competitors do not have to be anime thats just what its called, and they do not need to be canon either. You can have multiple competitors from the same fandom but try to keep it balanced

Boy am I the wrong person to bring this question to ahaha. I am the MARIANAS TRENCH of yuri couples. I love VERY DEEPLY, but not broadly. I don’t skip around in my interests and my ships! There are only a handful of f/f couples, of couples at all, really, that I would say I care about in any meaningful way. Even properties I really enjoy, a lot of the time, it isn’t about the lesbian pairing for me. That’s why I often ask if people want me to watch a show because it is TRULY GOOD, or because lesbians appear. I’m an old married lesbian. I have a fair amount of married lesbian friends. I enjoy having them! I don’t need to go to fiction to find the reality that lesbians can exist and have relationships. 

BUT, if we are setting up this bracket. 

Harumichi will win every time. 

Because if I’m taking this as i understand it, it’s not about how I feel about any individual character in a couple, but how I feel about the couple as its own character, how their romantic relationship moves in its own way and affects them both and the people around them in its own way. For me, harumichi is the slam dunk for that. I am very very fond of Reinako, but I think of rei and Minako as two interesting and independent people hwo happen to end up together and if they didn’t, well, that would also be fine. I love them as a couple but it doesn’t feel like its own force of nature for me the way harumichi does. In the same way i adore Lena, she is one of favorite characters of all time, but she is essentially fully formed when she and emily get together and while they make each other happy and their relationship is lovely in the light of all that, and I enjoy writing it, it’s not the same. 

I would probably place Pharah/Mercy in my slot two, but it’s mostly being carried by the fact that I think of Fareeha as being a huge mess in her very own way before she meets Angela, and even then it’s not just Angela’s love that changes her and moves her, it’s the family and camaraderie and very real love she finds within the new OW she helps create. It’s her CHOOSING to be better, as well, and I won’t take that from her and give it all to Angela. (While I absolutely WILL take that from Ms. Michiru Kaioh.) 

Anyway, as far as I’m concerned, the best I could come up with would be an elite eight: 

harumichi

pharah/mercy

reinako

lena/emily

lena/amelie (mostly for the horrific potential) 

Okay i realize that is five, but as I sit here thinking about it…as far as relationships run this is the small handful that I really feel in my bones. There are relationships I really do like and often include, and very much consider my canon (Seiya/Usagi, Hana/Brigitte) and there are relatkionships I am fine with and am happy enough to include but its whatever (Makoami, Amelie/Sombra) but only a very small handful would I say belong on a greatest list in my heart at all. 

Also, I’m not an ANTI-romance writer by any stretch of the imagination, but I wouldn’t say it’s a focus of what I write, either. I love to write romantic relationships! I think they are great, this is not at all me going “why can’t anyone write about friendshiiiiiiip??” i just in fact, do that. Because I love how Mina and Mcihiru chip away at each other as much as I love how Michiru would die, or kill, whichever is fine, for Haruka. I love that Angela teaches Fareeha that there is safety in love but I also want to see that reflected in the ways she and Lena play off each other. I think Haruka’s death is a tragedy for Mina as much as it is for Michiru. I think Lena’s great love for Winston is as moving as hers for Emily. 

I’m more interested the art that people are in the reflections of all the people who love them. We are all kaleidoscopes, and one mirror can’t make that. 

So i’m just not the right person to ask about all this. 

But, you may say, Holligay you are way fucking overthinking this, all I meant was if you had any perspective as an old as to the couples you’d put on a fucking bracket for other people jesus Christ why is everything a fucking Annie Dillard essay with you. Okay, fair. 

For the sake of brevity let’s call it a sweet sixteen, knowing that this is colored by my age and my exposure. These aren’t listed in any kind of order and it should be noted that plenty of these are couples I don’t like particularly or don’t care about, just what I think might rightly BE on a best of list. 

Harumichi

Xena/Gabrielle

Willow/Whatever the name of her girlfriend is, I can’t remember

Utena/Anthy

Catra/Adora

Cagney/Lacey

Korra/the other one, you who know who I mean

Lena/Kara

Harley/Ivy 

Eve/Villanelle

Ruby/Sapphire

Did people ship Elphaba and Glinda? I feel like they MUST have. Though I just googled Elphaba slashfic and it was inconclusive. The kids today don’t say slashfic, do they? I’m old

Pharah/Mercy

Bette/Tina

Santana/Brittany

Me/A bowl of soup

I don’t know who would reign triumphant, it would depend on how we were voting. I mean if I put it on tumblr it would be one of the contemporary couples like Korra and whoever she is, but I don’t know that I think that’s fair to the sheer historical value of, say, Xena and Gabrielle, or even, though Glee became a joke, the way Santana and Brittany were at the time. It’s hard to evaluate things that bridge something like what, forty years on this list? But this is what I would put it out as, if I had to do it right now, gun to my head

[keyofjetwolf]

Bonus Question Answers! (anime heat 1)

I asked a silly question! You gave me incredible answers. SO VERY MANY INCREDIBLE ANSWERS. Now, I present my favourites! 

If your answer is listed below, you’ve earned an entry in a random draw to win a GIFTENING liveblog OF YOUR CHOICE

—

Q: If you could drop any of the Senshi into another anime, who would you put where, and what happens next?

*  Just dropping Minako into Literally Any Anime and watch her try to fuck the hottest character(s) as chaotically as possible is always my idea of a good time. -- @commas-and-ampersands [Honestly, isn’t it a good time for all of us? Especially Minako.]

*  Probably any of them (but most likely Minako or Michiru) into Revolutionary Girl Utena for SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER and SPOILER SPOILER Doc SPOILER SPOILER reasons -- @dancinginredshoes  [FANTASTIC ANSWER THE DETAIL WAS DIVINE]

*  Mako would do very well as a character in Sweetness and Lightning. Befriend Kotori and Tsumugi and help them cook but sometimes having to suddenly jump out for 'half hour tops, be back soon, keep the heat down, don't let it burn' and leave our heroes alone to cook. They'd manage and receive another victory in cooking and then Mako would join them again and praise them on how they did such a good job. Inuzuka-sensei would be convinced that her 'stepping out' is a tactic to let them gain confidence in cooking. Little does he know she's a genuine Magic Girl. If Tsumugi accidentally found out she'd be over the moon but easily bribed to keep quiet on this most important secret of a Magic Girl.-- Daphne of the Lustrous Waters [Mako in Sweetness & Lightning was a popular -- and very correct -- choice, but your attention to detail set this above and beyond. Too good, too pure.]

*  I would absolutely put Haruka into the Ouran High School Host Club anime, and I will try to elaborate without undue spoilers. I would LOVE to see Haruka take those rich boys down a peg. As a gender nonconforming woman with a working class background who can A) navigate rich people nonsense via exposure through Michiru and B) take any of them in a fight (and I do mean ANY of them, Ouran fans, don't @me), Haruka would be a delightful addition. Watching Michiru or Rei would be a great second choice -- @goosebytrade  [The sum total of my knowledge of this anime is the opening theme by PGSM Naru, and something about smashing a vase. Still, I found that I, too, wanted all of these things, thank you.]

* Hotaru is my baby and she deserves a better life, I want to scoop her up and put her somewhere that she can make FRIENDS HER OWN AGE who won't mind that she's a baby goth. I will send her to magic school in Little Witch Academia, where she will become a quiet girl with huge amounts of power that she doesn't like to use for anything other than healing (her absolute weakest attack knocks down walls, it gets worse from there) and everyone wants to be teammates with. The other option is shipping her off to Princess Tutu land, but while having Ahiru's friends dragging her around with them would make her less lonely, I'm not sure it would make her life *better*! She'd probably make a good ballerina though, if she didn't get magically turned into a luna moth.  -- idleflower  [A better life for Hotaru! I also want this for her. Also, Hotaru being a tiny ballet luna moth is inspired.]

*  Jetty I love you and your bonus questions, but if I'm not mistaken you have not watched many anime which makes thinking of an answer to this that you will also fully understand a bit harder then you might think, that being said if Haruka was in Utena it would be very interesting. Haruka would very much like to be a prince like Utena, but I think she would have zero patience with Touga and his bulshit. With any of the men in the student concil's bulshit really  -- Lott  [I love all this, but laughed INTENSELY at your callout.]

*  Haruka in Fushigi Yuugi. I desperately want to read more of that. -- @madegeeky​  [CORRECT AND ACCURATE WE ALL WANT AND DESERVE MORE OF THIS]

*  I would love to see Rei in any generic popular shonen and see her wreck shit --Omni  [nodding, tears in eyes]

*  Haruka in Yuri on Ice. I just like the idea of her looking amazing and Right in a mens figure skating costume and then taking one step onto the ice and....well.  --Skirto  [Wonderful setup to the perfect conclusion, full marks.]

*  I reach for the Senshi Displacer 3000, knobs winking in tandem with the soft purr of machinery. There are a hundred knobs, a thousand, a hundred thousand, there are knobs spilling out across the floor as I am momentarily overcome by the infinite amount of Senshi on a limitless plane of existence. I shake my head. No. I know who my pick is. She deserves this. The knobs retreat, leaving behind only one. Or was there ever only one? This universe is fickle like that; I don't think about it for too long. I reach for the softly glowing dark red button, but my hand is stopped with a gentle but firm chop from a gloved hand. Pluto looks at me sternly and shakes her head. She still feels duty-bound to the door, I get that, but still I plead. "Are you sure, Setsuna? Don't you want like, a tiny break? To hang out with a tiny adorable kitten?" She wavers a little. After all, Chi IS an adorable kitten looking for a Sweet Home. Eventually she shakes her head. She already knows one Cutest Kitten in the World, and she has her sacred duty to the kingdom. I sigh in understanding, defeated. Maybe I'll see how well that Gundam anime does with Rei at the helm... -- @rhiorhino  [Glorious, start to finish. Loved the story, can’t wait for the sequel.]

—

I’ll be drawing for the bonus liveblog around the start of THE GIFTENING 2020 (currently looking to be Monday, 11 January 2021). Each bonus question is another chance to earn an entry, so keep those answers coming! I CAN ABSOLUTELY AND SHAMELESSLY BE BOUGHT.

[01kitty-moon]

My thoughts on the Og Sailor Moon/Sailor Moon Crystal/Eternal Part 2

I want to start with saying this-

I do enjoy both anime. I really do.

My thoughts about Sailor Moon OG anime.

First things first I LOVE 90's anime art style, so of course I love the style of OG sailor moon, it looks really good, the backgrounds are beautiful.

Artsyle is lovely. PERIOD.

The OST for the OG anime is awesome, it can be beautiful or just plain cool.

I love the first transformation OST SO MUCH.

(I don't like the others in the OG anime transformation ost though tbh.)

The other thing I love about the original is the fashion, the sheer amount of outfits is awesome and I always enjoy a show that is able to have different outfits.

Now I really like the first few episodes when it's just Usagi and Jadeite, in fact I like the first arc a little bit more in the OG simply because idk, we get to see more of the four "eite's" though I don't enjoy some of their Arc's tbh or how their characters were handled in the end.

I found their arcs would start strong and then just kinda end leaving you like??? Okaaaay.

If I'm being honest I dont enjoy the pacing or the writing for alot of the OG anime if I'm being truthful.

Like the end of season 1 in my opinion wasnt written well, in fact it felt very meh and blotchy.

Did I like the full party kill? Yeah.

But it wasnt well written.

I REALLY don't like OG Tuxedo Mask. Like during the first half of S1 I thought his snark was funny, and I enjoyed their interactions at first.

But by the second half I came to REALLY dislike him.

No wonder everyone wanted Usagi to be with 90's Seiya, OG Mamoru was an ass.

(I refer to him as Tuxedo Ass and no I dont take constructive criticism)

Also dont get me started on the moonlight knight filler crap. (That filler arc had potential to be REALLY amazing and impactful and they totally wasted it)

Also his relationship with rei is kinda.....weird. I didnt like it. (And not for shipping reasons, but because it genuinely irked me)

Now I do love that we got more episodes exploring the girls personalities and friendships, but I often times didnt enjoy how they were written as "friends?" Alot of it felt fake despite the "development" they got.

Dont get me wrong I like the OG anime in general and some episodes I think are AMAZING.

But I'd go into an arc and be really hyped for what I thought was coming, only for the outcome to be really lame or immature. The writing just felt bland and childish, but since OG is targetted more for a younger audience I do get it.

I got disappointed alot tbh ahaha.

Also if chibi moon from OG appeared I'd simply kill her, rip to OG usagi but I'm different.

(Also they made the kid feel way more incestuous than in crystal? Like this girl is 900, she isnt really a little kid though she is a young girl. Like she knows that's her dad, stop trying to fuck your dad pls)

Plus she is super annoying, always, never likable, never. (Some scenes were definetly comedic gold but as a character I wanted to set her on fire)

Prince demand isnt that great of a character and should have been set on fire right away, end of story.

This is a lazy way of writing my feelings but yeah it's what it is.

However overall it's okay. I like it.

(This is only my opinion of course pls dont attack me)

Sailor Moon Crystal

I made alot of my points when talking about the OG anime so the crystal one is short tbh.

Now I'll be honest. I truthfully enjoyed crystal most as a whole than I did the OG anime.

When it comes to the animation of season 1 and 2 I understand why people weren't fond of it.

It was wonky in many parts and the CG transformations were really ugly.

However I loved the artsyles in the still scenes.

And some backgrounds were really lovely.

Now the animation could be off, but it isnt the worst thing ever like people make it out to be.

Mamoru was great again (look I love the boy and his manga self)

While i didnt like the lack of development in the 4 "eites" the arc was okay. I kinda liked some of their arc here more than in OG, but I wish we got more of them and their story ( or at least Bi Zoisiete, I know that's OG original but it would have been cool)

Though it did feel lackluster at times, and season 1 could be off with pacing, when it comes to the other seasons however I found the pacing to be really good.

I loved the scene where she "killed" him and then herself, though I wish it had been animated better, it was great.

I also like how they touched more on her fear of being alone, and showed hints of that trauma as well as their identities meshing with their past selves.

The music is 👌 though I miss some of the OG music.

I can't tell you the real reason I love it more than the OG. I guess I just enjoyed the tone overall?

I like the more story focused version if sailor moon I guess, I felt like the fucked around too much in the OG, while Crystak they dont fuck around enough lol.

But I'd rather watch the plot centric one rather than the overly leisure OG fillers.

I liked some of the characterizations better in crystal as well, I found rei more likable (look can we admit she was a bit TOO much of a bitch in the OG? And often wasnt justified but she got away with it?)

Haruka and Michiru weren't....super likeable in the OG sometimes for me and while that can be a good thing in writing, (and ik alot of people prefer them in the OG) I immediately fell in love with them in crystal.

Also this is probably just me but I like that everyone was less boy crazy, giving way to just, easier to bond with characters.

(Being Bi/Pan-Ace and watching girl only EVER be boy crazy is really annoying tbh I just, like for them to at least have 1 character who's just kinda eh about the whole dating thing, and tbh alot of the characters came off as more bi in crystal which was lovely)

I hear alot of people complain about how they dont feel the friendship between the group the way they did in the OG but I kinda felt the opposite, and their sudden leap into being SUPER into Usagi really stems from their identities from their past lives mixing with the present.

Also just saying, if someone like usagi came into my life? I'd immediately die for her too, just saying, she's so so kind and fun, and precious like? Duh of course she's going to make those introverts fall all over her.

Also CHIBI MOON I LOVE HER! (I do not like this kid in OG, like ever, set that creature on fire pls)

But crystal chibi moon? I adore that girl.

Season 3 was great, I LOVED IT so much.

I got my lesbian's in FULL glory.

I got Sailor Bi Moon.

I got hotaru and well, better writing in that arc compared to the butchered OG version

(If u prefer the OG version that's fine this is just how I feel)

And I'm really excited for eternal, its SO beautiful, the music makes me so emotional, the animation and art is beautiful, tbh it feels more like Sailor Moon than any of the other parts. It just instantly takes me to the manga.

(My brother and I both prefer crystal tbh)

Anyways we talk have our own opinions, and this is mine (made at 3am guys I'm tired)

The manga is BEAUTIFUL and so is Crystal, but OG has it's good points too, I like them all.

From a story and writing standpoint I think Crystal is superior to Og anime.

But if you want something more lighthearted and more slice of life the OG is probably for you!

Or you can be like me and love both.

(I also prefer crystal Usagi to OG Usagi more often than not, though OG usagi is definetly relatable like 100%, but I liked that maturity in Crystal Usagi that got stronger when her memories of her past life came to her, you can tell they all kinda go through an identity crisis and have to grow up "again" which is interesting to me)

Both stories however bring up great messages and promote femininity so much I love it ahhhh sailor moon is a treasure.

Crystal made me fall in love with the story, while OG made me lowkey ship Jadeite and Usagi in the first few episodes.

(Pls dont ask, ok, just don't, that one seen was a bit too hot for me to not immediately think they should kiss)

[severeearthquakebanana]

ALLLL RIIIGHT Friends! I've made it through Sailor Moon S (aka season 3) and I'm just going to give up on my comments about Sailor Moon R/Season 2. Season 3 was just superior. There's a couple reasons for that.

First off, I ADORE Haruka/Sailor Uranus and Michiru/Sailor Neptune. They are so incredibly cool!! Like Sailor Neptune's "here to fight with elegance"?! The entire sequence that is Sailor Uranus' 'World Shaking' attack?!? !!! idk how they are animating that, i think it's just they aren't including as many frames so it makes her arm movements seem more sharp but wowee is it cool!! Gotta be my favorite part. Additionally, I really like their voice actors! Sailor Uranus is much more serious most of the time, and I really appreciate her contradiction to Usagi's naivete. They not only were told to be on a higher level than the rest of the sailor guardians, but it was actually shown! Sometimes I feel like in these long running shows a character gets real talked up and then don't ever do anything to show for it. Not the case with Sailor Uranus and Sailor Neptune! They really did feel stronger and more informed, like they had a specific mission, and they accomplished it. Very Interesting. Also their transformation music KICKED ASS omg it's my second favorite transformation soundtrack, after the original one from the first season.

Secondly, i just liked the villains more this season. As I said in earlier posts, Mimette was just hilarious, I love her dearly. And the monsters of the week were so creative! I really enjoyed seeing what new creation the design team cooked up, and how they chose to weave it into the story. One of the later ones was inspired by gambling, so she had a face of a queen from the card deck, her torso was a die, and her arms were chess pieces. And then she captured the guardians in glass playing cards! Truly, a fun fun time.

Thirdly, I liked Chibiusa SO MUCH MORE this season. I think my dislike was cause of the whole 'fighting over Mamoru' plot point that they had in season 2, i just could not stand it. In the slightest. Like Chibiusa's big character point is that she is an incredibly lonely little girl. It's why her friendship with Hotaru this season was so important. Not only did we get more time with the two of them together just being friends (in comparison to Crystal), but I truly believed they were friends and cared deeply about each other. I may never have been alone like Chibiusa is, but I understand deep friendships, and the anime executed. Additionally, like I said before, her 'pink sugar heart attack' never working correctly was absolutely a highlight and in the last episode they just had her shout the words then run into the villain and it was excellent lol I laughed every time it happened.

Fourthly, the pacing. As is expected from the '92 anime, the actual plot points again came kinda out of left field at the tail end of the season. I would say this was handled much better this season, but it was more that I felt they used the 'crisis make up' way too much. Like to me, the 'crisis make up' to become Super Sailor Moon was a big deal. So why are we upgrading ourselves for the monster of the week? I really didn't get that. I mean it sorta made sense considering episode 125, but honestly I just felt like they could have kept the big attack sequence the same. But I also understand having even an extra 10 seconds of stock footage for a weekly anime can be the difference of hours of work, so I will never fault that. Jumping back to the pacing and plot points, perhaps it's cause i watched this season more in chunks cause work was busy during week days, but I felt knowing the plot points from Crystal was not a negative comparison! While Crystal obviously integrated the setting of Mugan school much better because it was more streamlined, I feel like I actually got to know Sailor Neptune, Sailor Uranus, and Hotaru so much more as characters within the '92 anime. And I felt the integrated Mugan as a decent setting early enough that it wasn't that bad. idk, I think i just found season 2 to not have as strong of a final few episodes.

Fifthly, Sailor Pluto. Sailor Pluto was absolutely my favorite character to come out of Crystal, her voice actress is stunning and Pluto's role as Chibiusa's friend was just beautifully executed. Her sacrifice in season 2 of Crystal and subsequent return in season 3 was so meaningful and absolutely crazy. In the '92 anime? There was absolutely no exploration of Pluto and Chibiusa's relationship outside of Chibiusa calling her a nickname, and Pluto looking at her fondly. Useless. AND Pluto was only in like an episode and a half of all of Sailor Moon R! She didn't even sacrifice herself for Chibiusa! So her appearing in Sailor Moon S was nice, but really lacked the punch Crystal had. However, they definitely did a much better job with her character in S, so I put it as a point in Sailor Moon S's favor.

Finally, episode 125. Boy oh boy episode 125. I have never been more annoyed at a character more in my life. Usagi's ass got saved by the plot. Yes, she was still Hotaru, and her belief that Hotaru was still in there was valid. But she literally did nothing but stand there, look sad, give up the McGuffin, be upset about giving up the McGuffin, block an attack with her person, and then scream/cry until the plot worked in her favor. At least in Crystal, the final powerup was from everyone voluntarily giving their power to her, not just the tiaras glowing and coming to the main character's aid. Despite all of that, despite my annoyance, I was still quite moved by the whole situation. Stephanie Sheh, Usagi's voice actress, is seriously amazing. She had so much anguish in her voice, and i have since learned i'm watching the Viz 2014 redub, so apparently Stephanie's Usagi has a higher pitched voice that 'sounds like she inhaled helium' but I think it's just fine considering she's supposed to be 14, but ANYWAY the emotion in Stephanie's voice, plus the background music, it all sold it for me. And they didn't show the fight, they just showed the ball of energy be defeated, and the music box version of the main theme (which they would previously play in season 1 when anything serious happened) played as everyone emerges from the wreckage with ripped clothes and all looking worse for wear. Quite a success in setting tone and everything. Also I liked how the sailor guardians all made a shield with their persons/power to keep the evil energy/daimons from getting into the city. Great callback to how they protected Crystal Tokyo in Sailor Moon R, and gave them something to do more than stand around looking worried. Yeah, episode 125 was really great.

So yeah! Sailor Moon R was kinda meh, but Sailor Moon S was very good! I'm a sucker for elegant characters like Michiru, and the friendship between Chibiusa and Hotaru was so incredibly wholesome and beautiful, it made me happy. Completely unrelated, but Sailor Jupiter's main attack 'sparkling wide pressure' is basically thrown like a baseball and it gives me LYFEEEE omg like i'm sure its leaning into the tomboy stereotype Mako embodies BUT I DON'T CARE I still like it.

Now we get to step into Sailor Moon SuperS, which is brand new territory! Crystal as a tv show only made it through the third arc, and there is a movie covering this fourth arc and another movie that came out at some point this year that covered the fifth arc, but honestly i may as well just stick with the '92 anime. I really love the softer art style, and with work picking up the monster of the week format is really quite relaxing and a fun way to unwind in the evenings. So yeah! Very excited to see what's next. On to Sailor Moon SuperS!

[beautymercurydragon]

MakoAmi Headcanons

Since this ship has officially kidnapped me, here’s some headcanons for these cuties (also my two fave characters)

If they’re both 30 and still single, they would marry each other and adopt a million kids.

Sometimes, they ‘accidentally’ flash each other because Mako’s legs are too long for her skirts and Ami is more sinful than their friends think. Makoto gets as horny as a frigging clown car LMFAO, Ami’s super blushy and can’t even make eye contact with her

Makoto wakes up Ami on her birthday and carries her down their apartment’s hallway bridal style, as they’re both giggling like schoolgirls and pecking each other on the cheeks and lips

When Makoto was discovering her sexuality (panromantic demisexual in this no-powers AU), Ami was the first person she came out to. Ami even told her she was bisexual the same night. (Super GFs lol)

They adopt two children, while Ami gives birth to one and Makoto bears two. Their kids’ names are Kaito, Daiki, Mari, Hime, and Kimiko. (I reuse these ones a lot, even with my ZoiAmi/RyoAmi and MakoNeph fics too, I just really like them)

Usagi was their wedding planner. She was really irritating them, and Ami has to refrain Makoto from bitch-slapping/punching/clobbering poor Usagi ssksaksak

Minako makes the world’s worst dirty jokes, so that’s where Makoto goes for pick-up lines and gets the dirtiest ones to use on Ami. But Ami retaliates with an even dirtier set and Makoto is bright red and faints XDXDXD

Ami’s mother adores Makoto. She even lived with them throughout her middle and high school years.

They go on fricking double dates with Haruka and Michiru, being chaotic disaster pans, lesbians and bis as a team LMAO

As above, Michiru and Ami are the soft ones with calmness and manners while Makoto and Haruka hand you your ass any day of the week. Do not f**k with them. (Or their girlfriends SKASKAJSJS, I feel so horrible for that but really amused because it’s funny and true)

They absolutely sing in the car on the way to work. It’s always strange for Ami’s coworkers at the hospital when she and her wife pull up scream-singing.

They both sob like babies on their oldest child Mari’s first day of school. Mari had to wipe away her mothers’ tears for them.

When Ami gave birth to their son Kaito, Makoto held him and whispered ‘I will kill anyone who hurts you’, so Ami yelled at her and smacked her on the arm.

Kaito soon enough becomes BFFs with Akane (Rei and Yuichirou’s daughter, I also am giving this name to her and Jadeite’s daughter in another AU series). Mako thinks he likes her, and she’s correct.