Hey fans!

There have been some  small pieces of news we’ve been hearing about the new Sailor Moon anime, so we would like to include all the information here in an easy to reference post. (thanks to fans on our Facebook page for tips!)

Unfortunately we do not yet have a confirmed start date nor do we have an official title for the new series.

Crunchyroll most likely to stream the new Sailor Moon (tip from ステファニー チャールズ)

According to this article, Sailor Moon 2.0 was announced on Crunchyroll as having a summer 2013 start date (possibly a hint that they will be doing the streaming). Unfortunately, there is no date other than “summer” listed, with the other summer announcements falling under a header of June to August 2013.

Here’s a screengrab of the picture from Crunchyroll:

Not sure why the picture is cut off at the bottom, but it seems a little premature to announce the show on a streaming website without a confirmed title or start date. However, we have been suspecting that Crunchyroll would be doing the streaming, given their connection to Toei Animation.

(Edit: the above has been corrected to reflect that the linked article is a list of upcoming anime series, not necessarily series that will be streaming on Crunchyroll)

New Sailor Moon Anime is Delayed

According to multiple tweets by Fumio Osano, the new anime series is delayed (screengrabs of the tweets below)

If you want to read the tweets on twitter, here are the links to the conversation threads, based on the questioned asked:

• Any news on when it will start…?
• Will it come out in June/July? (tip by Chris Tenney)
• How much longer will we have to wait for more news?
• Can you tell us some official info soon about the new Sailor Moon?
• Has the new anime officially been delayed? (tip by Audra Peloquin)
• Will it be broadcast in winter 2014?

As you can see, Fumio Osano has indicted multiple times that the new anime is delayed. Although we are looking forward to seeing the new series, we’re not very surprised about this news.

In January, Sailordees reported:

[NDK in September 2012] helped me to finally meet a representative from Funimation I had spoken to over the phone face-to-face and have a good chat about what was going on with Sailor Moon. For those who are wondering why we still don’t have any of the anime yet, I have been told that there are still a lot of hurdles to jump through, and that it is going to take “more than a cheque” to bring the series back. As of then, the new series was not even up for license and was still very early in production.

and

In July, we all learned of the new Sailor Moon series on its way to the world next year. Here’s something you probably didn’t know though. While some fans thought that this article from 2009 had marked the start of negotiations for a new series, I can now confirm that this was purely a rumor back then and there had been no thoughts about anything new. Talks about a new series did not start until about 6 months prior to the announcement, and the success of the revival played a big role in determining if there should be something new. And it was only a couple of weeks before the event was announced to the public, that i’s were dotted and t’s were crossed. So everything with respect to this new series happened pretty fast. This was pretty surprising to learn, since back in 1997 when the series had ended in Japan, tensions had pretty much decided that episode 200 was it for the anime. We had also gotten the idea from our contacts that there was no hope for anything new in the last couple of years.

Sorry about the somewhat bad news, Sailor Moon fans. We will be keeping an eye on this, and looking out for any official information confirming when we can expect to see the new anime series. Until then, we encourage you to be patient. Hopefully the new series will be well worth the wait!

Edit: Added a link to the 2009 article referenced above.

Also, an important note – at the upcoming media marketplace shows (such as MIPCOM, Kazachok, etc.), Toei Animation is continuing to appear but Sailor Moon is no longer on their list of properties they are presenting. This means neither the original series nor the new series appear to be currently available for license.

Tamashii Nations (in association with Bandai) has announced a new, posable Sailor Moon action figure.

From their website:

S.H.Figuarts Sailor Moon’s Posability & Articulation!

Intense action scenes highlight Sailor Moon’s image as a “Beautiful Soldier”.
The latest S.H.Figuarts articulation technology lets you fully enjoy the world of Sailor Moon.
You can recreate iconic action scenes of Sailor Moon from memory with your very own hands.
That is one of the greatest attractions of playing with action figures.
Part of the hair has been rendered with clear parts for enhanced realism.
S.H.Figuarts Sailor Moon will shine not only as an articulated action figure but as an elegant display piece.
A full array of interchangeable faces and hands in the set help reproduce dynamic anime scenes.
Also, 2 types of Moon Sticks (with/without Silver Crystal), and effect parts for “Moon Tiara Action” will expand the playability of “S.H.Figuarts Sailor Moon”.

Next time, we will be able to introduce not only serious facial expressions but also comical expressions of Sailor Moon.

The 140 mm (5.5″) tall figure will be going on sale in August 2013, for 4410 Yen (Approximately $45 USD/CAD). According to Anime News Network, Bluefin, Bandai’s official distributor in North America, confirmed that it will release the figure in the United States this August or September. The figure comes with 3 interchangeable face parts, 3 left hand parts, 5 right hand parts, 2 Moon Sticks (one with crystal, one without), Moon Tiara effect parts, and Luna (no pictures of Luna yet!).

You can see more pictures of the figure on the Bluefin Tamashii Nations USA Facebook page and below.

Naoko Takeuchi drew some new Sailor Moon pictures and they appeared in the March 2013 issue of Japanese fashion magazine TokyoViVi. There is a much older looking Sailor Moon, a lot of chibis, and the cover is adorned with a very angelic looking Usagi, Chibi-Usa, and Pegasus. What’s even better? In a few weeks I hope to have hi-res scans for you (the magazine is on the way to me). So more on this, later. But until then, there’s a beautiful high-res image of the cover on the magazine’s official blog.

So around April Fool’s Day, somehow a rumor got perpetuated around the fandom that on April 4th, the new Sailor Moon Series’ theme song (performed by Momoiro Clover Z) was going to be released. No fans shared the source of this rumor with me, nor was I able to find any news in Japan related to this. Sailor Moon likes to surprise all of us when we least expect it, so I was 95% sure that nothing was going to happen. Something did happen that day though! Bakusho Show Battle is a variety show in Japan that airs twice a year, and celebrities, bands, idol groups, and comedians come together to battle. And how do they battle? By parodying hit songs of course (either by shooting a video or performing live)! They are placed on two teams, Team Ronbu (or team “London Boots”), and Team Chutto. There are different categories, and one group from each team are placed head to head against each other. At the end of each battle, 5 celebrity judges pick their favorite, and at the end all the votes are tallied to see if Team Ronbu or Chutto wins. The episode can be found around the internets if you know how to look. Momoiro Clover Z was given the task of parodying the Sailor Moon S opening. While this gave fans a good taste of what they might sound like when the new series makes it to broadcast, at least one fan on our facebook page was not amused. Momoiro Clover Z did not win their challenge against Natsuki Kato, Oniyakko Tsubaki, Mou Chugakusei and Ryosuke Tsunaba (aka Ronbu) parodying the opening and the ending (where Nello and Patrasche die) to Dog of Flanders. Momoiro Clover Z came to the show in their typical character colors, adorned with sashes featuring their website address. While Momoiro Clover Z didn’t get much love from the judges (only one vote), they were on the winning team, Team Chutto! Here’s the video below for you to watch. Fans can see some photos from the show and read more about the challenges here.

As far as the new series goes, it’s probably going to be delayed (and some things aren’t even decided yet). Follow Osabu8 on Twitter – and he tweets in English too so don’t be afraid to ask him questions! We’ve noticed he’s pretty receptive to fans. We’re going to be taking Operation Moonrise in a completely new direction soon too, so watch out for that.

In case you missed the mentions on our Facebook page, here is a little info about a couple of events we think Moon Chase readers might enjoy in the Toronto area. I will be attending both of the following events. Feel free to say hello if you see me!

Toronto Comic Arts Festival (TCAF)

Cost: Free!

Location: Toronto Reference Library and surrounding area (Yonge and Bloor, Toronto)

When: May 11, 9am-5pm and May 12, 11 am-5pm.

Who Should Go: anyone who likes comics! Especially if you want to see smaller publishers and independent comic artists.

What You Can Expect: This celebration of comics, graphic novels, and their creators includes a vendor fair of comic artists selling prints, merchandise, and of course comics! There are also readings, interviews, panels, workshops, gallery shows, art installations, and much more.

Guests: You can find the full list here.

Cosplay?: Not recommended. This event is held in a public library. Geeky and comic fan clothing is cool though 🙂

Anime North

Cost: Varies. See the registration page for full details. Currently $60 for a full weekend pass, kids 6-13 are half price.

Location: Toronto Congress Center, 650 Dixon Road, and at the Doubletree International Plaza Hotel, 655 Dixon Rd. (directly across the street) and surrounding area.

When: May 24, 6pm -2am (dealers’ room opens early at 5pm); May 25, 10am-2am; May 26, 10am-6pm

Who Should Go: Anyone who likes anime!

What You Can Expect: This large, fan-run convention features a variety of vendors (dealers’ room, artists’ alley, crafters’ corner, comic market, and art show, various contests (masquerade, music videos, Anime North idol, skit contest, etc.), panels (fan run and guest run), anime showings, and many other events.

Guests: You can find the guests of honour listed here, and featured guests listed here.

Cosplay?: Strongly encouraged! even if you do not want to participate in the masquerade, there are lots of photoshoots and you will see many attendees walking the halls in costume. Saturday is the most popular day to cosplay, but you can wear costumes as often as you like. Regular clothes are cool too 🙂

Hey fans! We have a big announcement to share with you today. A new live-action movie has been announced for Sailor Moon!

This new film is currently in development and will include all of our favourite senshi.

The cast so far:
Sailor Moon – Dakota Fanning
Sailor Mercury – Candice Accola
Sailor Mars – Janel Parrish
Sailor Jupiter – Alexa Vega
Sailor Venus/ Sailor V – Amanda Seyfried
Sailor Uranus – Celeste Beryl Bonin
Sailor Neptune – Nina Dobrev
Sailor Pluto – Kat Graham
Tuxedo Mask – Ian Harding
Motoki Furuhata – Zach Roerig
Naru Osaka – Emma Watson
Queen Beryl – Salma Hayek

Other roles are still under negotiation at this time. The screenplay will be written with the consultation of Naoko Takeuchi. If this film is successful, we can expect it to be expanded into a series of movies. Michael Bay is slated to direct this film, to be called Sailor Moon: Moon Rising and is excited to add his flair to the Sailor Moon franchise.

All of us here at Moon Chase can’t wait to buy our tickets!

Edit: April Fool’s! There isn’t really a live action movie in the works, but we hope you all have fun today with April Fool’s jokes. Feel free to share your favourites from the web in the comments.