Sailor Moon Episode 28 - The Drawings of Love, Usagi and Mamoru Getting Closer?

Upon reflection, it would seem that either I am growing a little bit soft on this show, or they've been making a concerted effort to simply make a better series. Either that, or I have become somewhat inundated to the worst qualities of Sailor Moon, instead accepting it for what it is (which is, frankly, an okay show at best).

Or there's always the option that they've been secretly lulling me into a false sense of security, in a vague attempt to get my hopes up before utterly crushing my sanity like a peanut shell. Let's find out.


So someone draws pictures that make your dreams come true, and the blonde is amazed this person has a Rainbow Crystal? Gee, so glad I know exactly what to expect from the episode before it happens. At least this particular plot element is far improved over the previous "let's come up with a half-assed excuse to get random person involved in some dark evil plot". That doesn't make this show better mind you, but at least it's more plausible.

Oh, and then the show the title, and... oh god. I'm not sure I want to watch this. You just know they're going to ramp up the romance lovey dovey shit and I don't know if I can take that right now. Not because I'm allergic to romantic things, but because this show is absolutely annoying with that.

Might as well trudge on.

So today at Beryl's Emporium of Dark Magic and Impractical Japery, Zoisite is listening to the boss tell him how he is being terrible at his job, but oh he knows where the next crystal is, so he will totally not screw this one up.

Cut to the magical sunshine park in late autumn, where everyone but our stupid rabbit seems to be a couple. Though she is joined by Naru not long after, who drags her off to see something awesome, in the process almost chucking the Moon Stick into the river.

Kids these days, right? No sense of responsibility or respect at all. Come to think of it, what are kids learning from this show? That you can be a self-absorbed, whiny brat and still get all the good things so long as destiny shines upon you (and it must since you are identifying with the main character). I weep for society.

So Naru takes her to this gallery where some chick named Yumeno has a bunch of her art on display. She's some really popular girl who draws nice things I guess. Usagi makes a comment about how the place is full of couples (just like the park hrm gee who didn't see that coming) and then Mr Nerdface shows up to put his two cents in.

I honestly think you are just following them around,
and that's just a little bit creepy dude.

I really have to wonder why anybody still puts up with this guy. It's like, with every passing episode, his Creeper Cred just keeps going up. You would think that the girls at least would have done away with him at some point, what with knowing everything there is to know about every girl on the island, or the whole taking stalkerish photos of his teacher while she's at the gym. I could see him being at least a little popular with the guys, since he appears to get his hands on just about anything and everything, but only as far as he could be useful to them. Which is to say, he'd be that guy everyone knows, but nobody actually likes, and is most likely never going to have any friends other than the other creepy otaku out there on the internet.

Yet, for some reason, the girls in this show seem to turn a blind eye to that. Is it because they feel bad that he has no friends? That must be it. I honestly have no idea how anyone could put up with this guy for so long.

Okay, so deep character analysis aside, Naru goes on to say that if you own one of this pictures your 'love dream is supposed to come true'. Love dream? Romantic dream? Okay, I can see the correlation there, but still... do girls honestly believe this kind of shit? I don't want to come off as sounding sexist but, holy christ man, middle-school girls will believe practically anything it seems.

So while the characters are talking about how the artist is probably really horrendously ugly (because of her amazing self-portrait and the revelation that she is very secretive) we see who is clearly the artist wandering around to see what folks think of her work. Or something. Until she overhears the group talking about how she's in a slump and totally not thinking the artist might possibly be right behind them.

Though, I'll be brutally honest. If I had my shit in a gallery, I wouldn't want people to know I was around either. Then I could hear what they really thought of my work. So, kudos to Yumumi or whatever your name is, you've got the right idea.

Ah, but then Usagi sees a picture and is probably about to flip shit.

I call this one, Moonlight Punishment. No? Too soon?
How about, Fifty Shades of Moonlight?

Ah but to Usagi, it seems 'familiar'. Turns out she's not the only one that feels that way, since Mamoru sees a similar poster somewhere else, and also goes straight into flashback territory, since it's just like that recurring dream of his.

Oh but now the show starts going off into strangeland, because he knocks over the artist, who declares that she's found him! So... huh? Usagi oversees the two of them talking, and immediately assumes that he is being untrue to Rei because how dare he talk to another human being, and rushes off to deal with this improper behavior.

Hold on, so Rei is actually a thing with him? I can't actually recall when that actually occurred. I remember them fighting over him, but then it was just sort of dropped, and then suddenly brought back up. Hrm...

Full. On. Creeper.

Outside, the girl is asking Mamoru to please be a model for her, and when Usagi comes by to break things up, the girl gasps and asks her to be a model too.

Five minutes later at some strange girl's house, Usagi takes a look around.

That hair isn't just for show y'know.

Oh, then the secret comes out that Yumemi is the real Yumemi. She has no friends and somehow still manages to get a paycheck. Her idea is to get these two to sit beside one another so she can get some inspiration for new art. It doesn't take long before someone starts having thoughts unbefitting of a lady.

This just starts getting awkward.

Anyhow, elsewhere in town, Luna is still trying to find her lousy master, who left behind her magical stick, while the artist arts.

The age old 'act like an asshole so bitches want me'
approach. Still works as good now as it did back then.

So Yumemi reveals that her secret is that she wants people to be happy and fall in love when they see her drawings. Of course, Mamoru, being the dick that he is, is all "man, if you're not happy you can't make anyone happy" which causes a sudden CRISIS OF CONFIDENCE OHGOD WHAT. Anyone who's an artist knows what I mean by that.

Of course, when he sees the image, he is immediately shocked upon seeing the picture - it's probably something out of his dream, and even has a little something that was recently lost (and found) in it: the star-shaped locket.

Also, Yumemi is all "I always feel nice when I draw this couple". Can you ham it up any more, I wonder?

Ah but at this point Yumemi is clearly in Zoisite's sights.

... that just sounded weird typing it. I don't think I'll use that again. Whatever.

So Yumemi walks Usagi home, and they overhear people talking about she must be some utterly beautiful person who draws nice pictures like that. Finally, though, Luna catches up with her, and delivers the stick, and blondie is all 'well I had a problem, but then it got fixed'.

Simple enough to solve in less than ten minutes
of video? Oh yeah, that's useful.

Sometimes, I wonder if they're poking at the fourth wall. Of course, since it's evening, that means Zoisite has to attack, and Usagi is on the case! Yumemi gets her stone taken, and she turns into Youma Vena. Or just Vena I guess, since she is a Youma. Why do they have to state that anyway?

I have two words for you:
DON'T. BLINK.

So today's demon is an angel. But wait, it gets even better:

ARE YOU SERIOUS?!

Okay, so let's just get this straight: Chick straight up turns into an angel, which technically speaking is supposed to be a terrifying thing, at least biblically, but is almost always depicted as being incredibly beautiful. Often, they are shown visually as creatures of serene grace, who make you feel safe upon viewing them. And this is frightening to Usagi?! I swear, does everything terrify this girl? How does she cope with paper cuts? I mean, let's face it, of everything she's seen so far, especially after last episode, this is pretty freaking tame.

She gets on the horn, does the responsible thing and calls up the gang, then transforms. Because I guess even she has to do something right every now and again, otherwise she just winds up being an utterly horrible role model, right?

By the time Vena and Zoisite get over to the construction site across the street, Sailor Moon makes her debut appearance, complete with some totally wacked-out camera movements that fly around all dramatic like, just before her SIGNATURE POSE. Though, Zoisite is all "keikaku doori", and then Vena starts using a feather to summon rocks to fall on her opponent. Sadly, this only works up until Tuxedo Mask shows up, and runs after Zoisite after making the save.

At which point Moon tries to plead with the monster, which never works. Then the other three show up (with a cat), and the tables are turned. Yay.

You're setting the bar pretty low, aren't you? She just
dodged some rocks and didn't get tied up. Geez.

Then the fight begins in earnest, Mercury summons some bubbles, and Moon goes running off for whatever reason. Now we get to see the fight between manly men, and for a change it is Sailor Moon who comes to the rescue, with a well-timed tiara, and she drops the pendant she found that one time, and suddenly they seem to have an understanding of sorts. Everyone is looking for this princess, but he won't take the pendant back. She can keep it.

But like hell he's going to give her the Rainbow Crystal, and if she's not careful he's going to up and jack her crystals too. Then he goes sailing into the night, and she remembers that there's kind of a fight going on downstairs. Y'know, probably something she should be taking part in. She arrives just in time to administer some healing pixie dust, and our nerdy artist falls to the ground, but not unconcious.

And then the four scouts... literally fly up into the air and vanish. What?

The next day, she shows her latest models the finished piece, and declares her intentions to stop hiding and show what she really looks like, ending the episode.

So what have we learned from this episode? Nothing that hasn't already been established like, a thousand times in previous episodes. How many times can they keep going over the same damned thing, going in the same freaking circles, until they finally just come out and admit "yeah that was the case the entire time, we'll make it official now I guess".

Perhaps that's the part that makes me angriest about this show. How they're all "oh gee who can the Princess be I don't know" while clearly pointing their finger at the person the entire time they're saying it, while using their other hand to cover the snicker emanating from their mouth. Doing that once or twice, yeah that can be funny. Doing it all the time is just annoying as hell.

Gah. At least that's all for this week. Except that time when I have to write another post so that there's one for the internet to read on monday.

Dare I switch shows....?

No. No I dare not.

Come back monday when it's more Sailor Moon. Probably. Most likely. It better be or I might hurt myself.

.... wait, I thought watching this show was going to make me hurt myself, not keep me from doing it? Oh dear god somebody help me, Sailor Moon has taken me hostage.