Summary
Sailor Moonis hardly the first anime series anyone thinks of when it comes to horror, but it’s important to remember that the original Japanese show, along with the manga on which it’s based, was intended and designed for teenagers. Every episode consists of the soldiers fighting a “monster of the week,” and there’s an impressive variety of supernatural monsters for every story.
The horrors faced by Sailor Moon and her fellow soldiersweren’t always about monsters, but also about facing their former friends and surviving in harsh and unforgiving places. The enemies of the Moon Princess don’t just have terrifying visages. They can also steal souls, see the future, and use the devastating powers of the galaxy.
7A Moon Star Is Born
A Terrifying Introduction
There’s a lot that happens in the pilot episode ofSailor Moon, including the appearances of Luna and Mamoru, but the most important is the introduction of Queen Beryl and the Negaverse. It also features Naru, one of Sailor Moon’s closest friends, as the target, a pattern that repeats throughout the series.
The first monster Sailor Moon ever faces is Morga, sent by Queen Berylto drain humans of their energy, which seems to be a fatal condition. Morga impersonates Naru’s mother first, which is already a deeply sinister thing to do, and spins her head like a bona fide demon when she shows her true form.
6Day Of Destiny
Everybody Dies
The full title of this episode is more descriptive and explains part of the horror angle: “Death of the Sailor Guardians: The Tragic Final Battle.” This is heavily sanitized in the English version, so much so that two episodes had to be combined into one. But in the original Japanese episode, the Sailor Guardians each die a sordid and painful death.
The Moon Princess must trek across the frozen wasteland and reach Queen Beryl in the Dark Kingdom, and one by one, the Guardians give their lives so she can advance. Their deaths are tied to their elemental powers, with Jupiter dying in a giant blast of electric power and Mars burning in a fiery explosion of her own making.
5Prediction Of Doom
Every Dream Is A Nightmare
Mamoru’s nightmares about Usagi continue and worsen, then finally manifest in real life when a Droid, one of the monsters controlled by the Dark Moon, puts Usagi into what seems like a permanent sleep. It’s more science fiction than supernatural horror, but it’s still terrifying, and Chibi-Usa is also a constant target.
The source and meaning of Mamoru’s nightmares also remain a dark mystery, and whetherhe’ll overcome his fearsand help revive Usagi is unclear until the very end. The foreshadowing in this episode is also scary because the viewer gets a taste of how dangerous the Black Moon really is.
The Dreams Of A Shinto Priestess
Hino Rei doesn’t only fight evil as Sailor Mars, but also in a temple as a Shinto priestess. This time, she’s the one having bad dreams about a mysterious apocalyptic event. The Guardians might be more powerful, but so are their adversaries, and this time it’s not just energy they want.
The new enemies in season three are the Daimons, sent by the Death Eaters, to drain the pure hearts of human beings in search of a special artifact they call a Talisman. The Daimons have the power to reverse the Guardians' transformations, so imagine what dangers they present to regular people.
3Dreams Take Flight
A solar eclipseis always a bad omen, and this episode sets the tone for the whole season by starting with one. Everyone thinks that the Dead Moon Circus is just another traveling entertainment event, but they’re looking for Pegasus and, by extension, Chibi Usagi.
Tiger’s Eye is one of the minions of the Dead Moon, and he summons the Lemures, the monster of the week that our heroes must defeat. Usagi and Chibi-Usa almost lose the fight, but Pegasus gives them more powerful abilities to fight the Lemures and, eventually, the Dead Moon.
2Darkness, My Old Friend
Allies Become Enemies
It’s not just the confrontation with Master Pharaoh 90 that’s terrifying, as the dark entity takes over the body of Hotaru Tomoe, but the threat of Sailor Uranus and Sailor Neptune. They insisted that Hotaru had to be killed to prevent the rise of Pharaoh 90, and although they were on Sailor Moon’s side for everything else, this was a point of bitter and violent confrontation.
The episode is one of the most tense in the whole series, with several characters meeting their end permanently and Sailor Pluto sent into an unknown exile. Even when Hotaru is saved, she becomes Sailor Saturn and must die to save the world from Pharaoh 90.
1Cherry Blossom Time
A Walk Into The Spirit World
This whole episode is surreal, and the demon of the week is an interesting study in body horror and dark fantasy. The monster on the card is part fox and part cherry blossom tree, both symbols of the afterlife in Japanese mythology. This monster doesn’t just have a terrifying visage, but also the power to destroy Sailor Moon’s transformation locket.
Not only does Usagi lose the power to transform, but Racy,the name of the monster, pulls both Usagi and Chibi-Usa into a portal with the intent of killing them. It’s only a visit from Queen Serenity that saves both characters at the last moment with a more powerful weapon.
