text: '''Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon''' is a ''metaseries'' consisting of an [[Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon (anime)|anime]], a [[Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon (manga)|manga]], a [[Sera-Myu|musical]] and a [[Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon (live-action)|live-action series]]. Created by [[Naoko Takeuchi]] in 1992, the series features a fourteen-year-old girl named [[Usagi Tsukino]] who becomes [[Usagi Tsukino|Sailor Moon]], a justice fighter who must save the world from dark forces.
  
  ==History==
  
  The series began as the [[Codename: Sailor V]] manga, which was published in 1991 in [[Run-Run]] magazine. [[Naoko Takeuchi]], the author of the series, was approached by [[TV Asahi]] to create a TV show (anime) of Sailor V. The series would run simultaneously in [[Nakayoshi]] (Run-Run's parent company) and on television.
  
  Although originally planned to be called "Pretty Soldier Sailor V" (''Bishoujo Senshi Sera V''), [[Usagi Tsukino|Sailor Moon]] took over as the heroine. The series originally consisted of five [[Sailor Soldier]]s, including [[Minako Aino|Sailor V]] (renamed Sailor Venus). 
  
  The prequel series, Codename: Sailor V continued to be published sporadically in Run-Run until the end of ''Sailor Moon.'' This showed [[Minako Aino]]'s adventures as Sailor V before she met the rest of the Sailor Team.
  
  Plans had been made to make two series, the Dark Kingdom arc and the Black Moon Clan arc (known in the anime as [[Sailor Moon R]]). Takeuchi took a break between the two, so a filler arc was created in the anime to let the manga catch up. This arc was the first part of R, but did not involve the same villains. 
  
  After R finished, [[Toei]] convinced Takeuchi to create a third series, [[Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon S]]. The series had a darker tone than the other two and is the most well-liked by fans. This series featured the introduction of three new soldiers, Sailors [[Haruka Ten'ou|Uranus]], [[Michiru Kaiou|Neptune]] and [[Hotaru Tomoe|Saturn]]. 
  
  The next series, [[Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon SuperS]] was the most-watched, but the least-liked by fans. The series centered around [[Usagi Small Lady Serenity Tsukino|ChibiUsa]], and her alicorn friend [[Pegasus]]. Many changes were made in the anime from the original manga series. The anime series was so badly received that Toei cut off the series at a cliffhanger point and resumed it at the beginning of the final Sailor Moon series, [[Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon Sailorstars]].
  
  Sailorstars attempted to follow its manga counterpart more closely, although many changes had to be made for length and clarity. Many characters were cut and the ending was changed. The series ended in March 1997.
  
  ===Sailor Moon in English===
  
  {{seealso|Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon in English}}
  
  Around the time Sailorstars ended, a company called [[DiC]] bought the rights to Sailor Moon in the English-speaking world. This brought Sailor Moon to North America as a popular cartoon show. Names were changed, attack names confused, and plot elements corrupted. One character even had his gender changed. Despite all the inconsistencies, the series was wildly popular and helped introduce anime to many people in North America.
  
  At first, in syndication, the series did poorly. In the middle of R, DiC gave up on the show. It ended the series at sixty-five episodes, with seventeen episodes left before the end of the storyarc. When [[Cartoon Network]] picked up the series it was so popular that they convinced DiC to take on 120 more episodes. However, DiC cut this down to seventeen, which brought English Sailor Moon to the end of R.
  
  After a few years, the demand for more Sailor Moon was so high that Toei's US branch, [[Cloverway]] picked up the series. Although Cloverway's Sailor Moon kept the original score and generally tried to be more accurate to the original, many mistakes and inconsistencies were made because of the rush to finish dubbing the series before its June premiere date. Most of the original voice actors left as well, to the mixed delight and disappointment of many fans.
  
  Sailorstars was never dubbed in English. Toei has stated that it never plans to sell the rights to any English company because it would be found objectionable in North America.
  
  ==Plot Synopsis==
  
  {{spoiler}}
  
  
  ===[[Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon (arc)|Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon]] (Dark Kingdom arc)===
  
  The series centers around [[Usagi Tskuino]] discovering her identity as [[Usagi Tsukino|Sailor Moon]] and defeating the [[Dark Kingdom]] which destroyed the [[Silver Millennium]], her past-life home on the moon. She meets a black cat named [[Luna]] who tells her of her identity and explains that she has to find the [[Princess Serenity|Princess of the Moon]] and the [[Phantom Silver Crystal]] to save the world from the Dark Kingdom.
  
  ===[[Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon R]] (Black Moon arc)===
  
  In the anime, R begins with a filler arc about an alien menace which takes energy from Earth people for the [[Spirit World Tree]], the aliens' "mother."
  
  The real story begins when a young girl ([[Usagi Small Lady Serenity Tsukino|ChibiUsa]]) falls out of the sky and holds Usagi at gunpoint, demanding the Silver Crystal. It is revealed that she is Usagi's daughter from the future. In the future, Tokyo has become [[Crystal Tokyo]]. It has been taken over by a group of exiles called the [[Black Moon Clan]] and Sailor Moon and company must go to the future with the help of [[Setsuna Meioh|Sailor Pluto]] to save Usagi's future.
  
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  ==References==
  
  *[http://www.smuncensored.com/series.php SM Uncensored: Series]
  
  *[http://http://mangastyle.net/manga_intro.htm MangaStyle: Intro]
  
  *[http://http://www.eternalsailormoon.org/ The Sailor Senshi Page]
  
  [[Category:Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon]]
diff.text: *[http://www.smuncensored.com/series.php SM Uncensored: Series]
diff.text: *[http://http://mangastyle.net/manga_intro.htm MangaStyle: Intro]
diff.text: *[http://http://www.eternalsailormoon.org/ The Sailor Senshi Page]