I thought about rewatching all musicals in order from the first to the last one and post my thoughts on them here. I will be posting a new comment post after I finish watching one musical.

The first musical to be rewatched is Gaiden Dark Kingdom Fukkatsu Hen.

Gaiden Dark Kingdom Fukkatsu Hen ~ Summer 1993 Special

Even though Gaiden is the shortest musical, the pacing doesn't feel very rushed except during the introduction part of the three other Shitennou when the girls run to them immediately, and the writers were able to fit a lot into a one hour long musical. Minako gets quite a lot of focus in Gaiden and I also think that Mamoru got more beaten in this musical than in many others.

My favorite song from Gaiden would be Namikimichi no Koi. Sailor War and La Soldier are of course there but I like Namikimichi no Koi a bit more than the first musical versions of those songs. The special effects may feel unfitting when you see them for the first time but considering this musical had a low budget, the staff came up with quite creative solutions. Same goes with the costumes that seem pretty gaudy but will already improve a lot just in the few following Myus that were recorded. I like how the ending of the musical follows the anime ending when the spirits of the Inners come to help Usagi to defeat Beryl and how Usagi dies wishing to be a normal girl again.

Next to be watched is Ai no Senshi he no Michi.

I was wondering (as a Myu newbie =p) whether you could kind of rate them in your reviews? Like 'must watch', 'not essential', that kind of thing? Or even just noting if it was your fave.

I'm pretty much basing all my Myu stuff on you, so sorry to put this burden on you..! =p

Oh I don't think that as a burden, at all! I feel that rating the musicals would be pretty hard for me since they all have great moments but I will note when I watch one of my personal favorite musicals. I will also say that all musicals are definitely essential to watch if you are interested in them . In the case that you would like to read what musicals are recommended to watch as the first ones, we have a great discussion thread about the topic here.

Sailor Moon S Ai no Senshi he no Michi

Contains Spoilers


Personal Thoughts:

First of all, like many usually mention about this musical, it's the most anime following musical of the S ones although it does have original characters and the ending is left very loose due the anime and manga hadn't finished the S season when this Myu was performed.
Wires were used in Ai no Senshi so often that I actually lost count of them after they used them for the tenth time and I'd say that we see almost as many flying people in this Myu as in all other recorded musicals in total.

When it comes to music, this musical seemed to balance the songs better than the first musical did and I personally think that Ai no Senshil had a better selection of music than Gaiden. The costuming also makes a rather big improvement and my favorite costume from this Myu would be Ami's white dress although all oufits of the girls were rather nice and fitted their charactes well.

This musical focuses more on the normal life of the girls and their dreams while Usagi and Mamoru also get part of the spotlight time with Chibiusa. This may just be me, but I feel that Anza had a tendency to over-act especially in her earlier Myus and this was rather visible in Ai no Senshi. My favorite performer from this musical would most likely be Sanae who made a good job as Haruka. Kahoru's portrayal of Michiru hasn't unfortunately left much impression on me and Sanae is definitely the star of 'Choubi! Uranus to Neptune'. Speaking of portrayals I notice myself comparing Keiko (Kaolinite) with Miki who played the same role later in Mugens and I have to say that I like Miki's portrayal of Kaolinite more than Keiko's.

Professor Tomoe's lines worked as a good comic relief and Death Mannetjes replacing the Death Busters with Death Nightmares, were another comic relief of this musical. I think that both King Endymion and Pluto were good choices to guide Usagi inside the dream world and I wish that we would have actually seen Pluto on stage in this musical but as Ai no Senshi follows the anime, we will see Setsuna for the first time in SuperS Myus. When you look at Pluto's silhouette in the dream scenes, you can actually notice that the actress is indeed Kanoko (Jupiter) in her green and pink Sailor Jupiter costume, holding the Garnet Rod.

Nana Suzuki's portrayal of Minako seems much lighter in Ai no Senshi than in Gaiden which I think as a nice change, and Ayako (Ami) gets a rather big part in this Myu which shows her improvement. Usagi and Rei's arguing reminds me of their anime quarrels and everyone's characteristics are more in terms with their anime counterparts with the exception of Haruka (Sanae) who seems to be a bit kinder and more feminine than in the manga or in the anime.

This musical is not one of my very favorites but it is still a good Myu that shows you parts of the Inners' normal lives and dreams, mostly focusing on Usagi and Ami's friendship.

Sailor Moon SuperS Yume Senshi Ai Eien ni

Contains Spoilers


Personal Thoughts:

When Double Moonlight Romance started playing in the beginning of the musical, I kind of hoped that Prince Yuuta would have walked in casually wearing a human Helios costume and would sing the song with Shirai live instead of a recorded version of his part playing. But at least he got to sing it live in Shin Densetsu Kourin. Yume Senshi was another musical that I noticed using quite many wires but not to the same extent as Ai no Senshi did.

The music in this musical is very good in general but I did notice myself missing few songs that were only used in the Kaiteban version / were only incuded on the Memorial album. Yume Senshi got one of the most upbeat first stage musical theme songs, La Moon, playing on the background as an instrumental version and later appearing as the battle song near the end of the musical. Triple Dreams was a very good addition to this musical and I think it was the first song that combined multiple songs into one, creating a good dynamics between the groups that was later also heard in many other songs.

Yume Senshi's general theme focus was on the circus which is definitely a big part of the SuperS storyline and theme. I liked the screen time they gave to the Amazon Trio and I personally see them as less villainous characters in the Myus than in the anime or manga. I also liked their betrayal part in the end of the musical that followed more the anime plot than the manga one and they also had funny comic parts through the musical.

Some of the costuming of this musical is quite exaggerated but when considering the circus theme, it makes sense. The casual outfits of the girls are very girlish and suitable and they have improved quite a lot from the first musical. I have to say that the plot flows better in Yume Senshi than it did in the earlier musicals but the ending of this musical is left quite loose like Ai no Senshi was, again since the musical was made when the Yume arc/SuperS anime season were both still running. This especially affected Hotaru's part and thanks to that we only see Mamoru's future part in the end after his present self

I put this under a spoiler in the case that someone hasn't noticed the spoiler warning:

Helios' appearance was worked rather nicely since I think that the laser lights gave a quite good visual of Pegasus. I also felt that the Usagi Rabbit Show circus scene was, despite built rather well, a bit too long. I would have also liked to see more Nehelenia instead of only her shadow showing up in this version.

This musical includes one of the rare moments where the Inners' identities as their corresponding Planets' Princesses were mentioned after the Dead Moon had made the their minions and I like the fact that their past selves were mentioned, especially in Ami's case when Usagi sings Omoidashite Anata wo. Usagi and Mamoru also get their time in this musical and I like Anza's portrayal of Usagi more in this than in the earlier musicals.

All in all I feel that this musical was stronger when compared to the two earlier musicals that were recorded but out of the two Supers musicals that were made, Saturn Fukkatsu hen is better in my opinion.

Sailor Moon SuperS Yume Senshi Ai Eien ni Kaiteban ~ Saturn Fukkatsu Hen

(Contains Spoilers)


Personal Thoughts:

Few of the songs that were used in this musical had alternative lyrics that differed from the original versions which is a rather nice change and I also think it was quite suitable for this Kaiteban version. Double Moonlight Romance feels less romantic in Saturn Fukkatsu Hen but I did like the fact that the Inners got to sing in this version of the song which did on the other hand also mean a bit less focus on Helios and Chibiusa. While Helios and Chibiusa are less focused in Double Moonlight Romance, I feel that Usagi and Mamoru's scene in the beginning was better in Saturn Fukkatsu Hen.

As for other songs, there are only few actual track changes in Saturn Fukkatsu Hen when compared to Yume Senshi like the instrumental version of La Moon being replaced by Solar Miracle Make Up during a battle scene, which was a nice change though I prefer La Moon's instrumental version on the background, and the addition of To a Brand New World which made Saturn's awakening moment powerful. The beginning of Over the Moon was also acapella this time around and the song got shortened quite a bit, I personally liked Yume Senshi's version of Over the Moon a bit more. Many of the songs that were lip-synched in Yume Senshi were also now live versions which was nice change in my opinion.

Speaking of the villains, Nehelenia doesn't make a big appearance in this Myu either but at least she got more spotlight time than in Yume Senshi where she only appeared as a shadow. The Amazon Trio got more jokes in Saturn Fukkatsu Hen and they were more outgoing and energetic in this musical. I feel that they were a bit more developed characterization wise in Saturn Fukkatsu Hen than in Yume Senshi Myu, as was Hotaru both as Saturn and as Miss Dream.

The costuming stays mostly the same as in Yume Senshi but some outfits are changed, par example Hotaru's clothes (I prefer her Summer Myu clothes though the Winter ones fit her role as a girl who was possessed by the Dead Moon more). The plot and storytelling both flow better in Saturn Fukkatsu Hen than in Yume Senshi due some song and scene changes and thanks to the reorganized order of some events. The Usagi Rabbit Circus Show part did not feel as long as it did in Yume Senshi and I personally found it more interesting in this version.

Saturn Fukkatsu Hen actually included a quite rare scene in the story near the end of the musical, the death of Usagi and I liked the way the girls and Mamoru asked the audience to call Sailor Moon with them to bring her back. The Golden Crystal got also mentioned few times during the story unlike in Yume Senshi, and it played a part more similar to the manga than to the anime, as did Sailor Moon's transformation into Eternal Sailor Moon and Sailor Saturn's revival. In general, I feel that this musical took more influence from the manga than Yume Senshi did and it also worked better with the jokes than the earlier musicals, Setsuna and Rei's announcements being few examples.

I liked the tiny addition of Outers mentioning Hotaru being a part of their family and Setsuna telling how she gave Hotaru the pendant she treasured even when brainwashed, it pictures their close bond very well. I personally feel that Sanae's portrayal of Uranus was closer to the anime Haruka in this than in the other musicals she was in and Rei Satou was also very good as Pluto. But when it comes to Miyuki Fuji, I feel that her portrayal of Neptune was missing something important and she was a bit better in her first musical (Yume Senshi). Also, when speaking about the actresses, I have to mention that Anza is closer to her later portrayal of Usagi in Saturn Fukkatsu Hen.

This musical is probably my favorite version of SuperS story, followed by the manga, and it is a very good First Stage musical.

Sailor Moon Sailor Stars

(Contains Spoilers)


Personal Thoughts:

This musical brings back memories as it was the first one I ever watched. Stars holds most of my First Stage favorite songs from the more energetic to serious ones. Sailor Busters is one of the Myu songs that makes me smile almost always when I hear it (Other songs that give me this feeling are from the later musicals so I'll focus on them later on) and I like how most of the solo lines of Sailor Busters actually include tiny references to the girls, Namikimichi no Koi (Minako's song) being mentioned by Ami while she looks at Minako when singing is one example of this. Sailor War Supreme is, for me, the most powerful song of Stars and it has a setting a bit similar to Triple Dreams though this time all singers are on the same side in the end. I really like how different songs are combined in Sailor War Supreme, giving all Sailor Senshi lines that picture them well.

Another great song, one of the saddest First Stage ones, is Sorezore no Elegy which concentrates on the senshi who got most focus during the First Stage musicals: Moon, Mercury, Mars and Pluto. The lyrics of this song fit the theme very well and it's no wonder why this song with Sailor War Supreme is one of the most popular First Stage songs. Three Lights also get to sing both their First Stage songs (I am not counting Kakyuu Ouhi to Three Lights in as it is a song where Kakyuu also sings), Chasin' After You and See Me ~ Bokutachi no Jidai. Both of these songs sound very suitable for the Starlights and the melody of Chasin' After You was also used as a background theme for Starlights which was a nice choice.

I liked the fact that this musical used the concert scene from Sailor Stars where Haruka and Michiru play classical music and the Three Lights come to the stage after their part. You can clearly see that the scene was taken from the manga rather than from the anime version which is a fact I like. The roof scene with Three Lights is only foreshadowing their even more comical scenes in Eien Densetsu musicals and it was rather nice to see Usagi fangirling over her three idols after being sad when thinking about Mamoru who went to US to study. I actually liked the change of Mamoru not being killed by Galaxia who stole his Golden Crystal/ Earth's Star Seed but him staying alive from the beginning of the musical to the very end and coming to help the senshi, mainly Sailor Moon, near the end.

Some of Galaxia's minions had been replaced by Myu exclusive characters and the new group worked well, at least in my opinion. Saori is not my favorite Galaxia but she was good in her role and her 'Galaxia no Dokusai' (Galaxia's dictatorship) really sounds dictatorial.

The plot and scenes flow quite well in this musical and you will notice that things are about to get serious if not after Sailor War Supreme, then after the Edo period scene. Speaking of that scene, a nice comic addition although it may feel to be a bit out of place when you watch the musical for the first time, I prefer this version over the Kaiteban one. I also liked the Starlights' transformation scene before the Sailor senshi who were left decide to part and find Usagi, even if it cost their lives.

While the previous musicals have not given Haruka and Michiru's relationship much time, the tiny Haruka x Michiru scenes in Stars have more emotions than the previous ones did. The scene where Neptune dies, her last words calling out to Uranus and when Uranus feels that her partner is dead, yelling 'I would know!' to Mercury is different from their death in the anime (which was covered in Eien Densetsu musicals) and emotional. When it comes to Hiroko (the fourth Neptune actress who debuted in this musical), I personally think that she is better than the earlier three Neptune actresses but I also feel that her portrayal still misses something quite important and she has actually dropped down on my list as Takayo Ouyama has taken her place as my second favorite Neptune. Also, I liked Anza's portrayal of Usagi in this musical more than in the previous ones, her acting feels somewhat more balanced in Stars.

Out of all First Stage musicals Stars is one of my personal favorites although it does not hold the first place on my list of Anza's musicals.

Sailor Moon Sailor Stars Kaiteban

(Contains Spoilers)


Personal Thoughts:

Stars Kaiteban is a more polished version of the original summer musical but not counting in the comic scene change, it doesn't change the scenes as much as many other revised musicals. When we go down to it, this musical is, to me, a less funnier but more emotional one than the previous one and I feel that the biggest factor that gives me this feeling is the change of some beforehand recorded tracks into live performances (which may not have been the case in the actual live performance though). Other factors are the earlier mentioned slight changes of some scenes, par example Kakyuu's silhouette showing up, and the dialogue additions and modifications.

As most of the songs stay the same my opinions on them are pretty much what I have written in my previous post but the changes to the musical numbers are definitely worth mentioning. Few songs changed places in this musical and I see both orders working although I prefer the original Stars' musical number order. While I prefer the summer performance version of Sailor Busters, I must say that my certain favorite version of Sailor War Supreme is the one from this musical. I feel that it is the most powerful musical number from the whole Stars Kaiteban musical together with Sorezore no Elegy. The choreography of Sailor War Supreme in this musical is in my opinion also one of First Stage's best ones.

Sorezore no Elegy is sung completely live this time around which does give the song a very different feeling and I like the fact that Sanae got to sing few lines in this version. Anza's cry near the end of the song is one of the most memorable first stage moments with Sailor War Supreme (and with moments from Eien Densetsu musicals which I will not mention, yet). As much I do like La Moon as the battle song of the original Stars musical, I will admit that I prefer Solar Miracle Make Up from this revised musical. It feels more powerful and fitting to the battle scene and the ending with the voice effects when Sailor Moon and Chibimoon attack Galaxia gave it a different feeling from the earlier performances of the song. Some of Stars Kaiteban's songs got partially new lyrics, like Galaxia no Dokusai that now included her minions into the song, which was once again an interesting and nice change.

As I mentioned earlier, most of this musical's scenes stay the same so I will focus more on the differences between them. The beginning concert scene in Stars Kaiteban is in my opinion better than in the original one, mostly thanks to Hiroko's added lines and her portrayal of Michiru. Some scenes in this musical do feel to move forward smoother than in the original version thanks to some tiny additions but Three Lights' part of the roof scene didn't fell as funny as it was in the summer version of this musical. However, the Lonely Distance scene shows much more chemistry between Anza (Usagi) and Mamoru (Yuuta) than the earlier version did and thus makes the scene sweeter than it was in the previous musical. I also liked Mamoru's role that was changed slightly to make him help the senshi more than he did in the summer musical and it feels that his part had more importance in this version, par example saving Chibiusa when she was caught by Galaxia's minions and was about to get hurt.

Kakyuu appearance after the Starlights' transformation scene was a good addition that gave Starlights a stronger motive to decide to fight alongside the Solar System Sailor senshi and it added more importance into the scene. I personally feel that the Edo period scene was not as good as in the original Stars musical but Anza, Yuuko, Yuuta and Ryuuji seemed to have fun with their side roles. As this musical appears to be a more emotional one than the previous Stars, it also makes the senshi's deaths sadder and just small changes before and during Sorezore no Elegy made a big difference to the scenes when compared to the original ones. Mamoru's entrance near the end of the musical was slightly more emphasized in this version of the musical and in both versions of Stars he stops Usagi when she is about to attack Galaxia before considering what destruction her attack could do and that is something I could see Mamoru doing.

Stars Kaiteban has a more finished ending than the original musical thanks to the manga and anime being almost at the end of Stars story when the musical was performed. I feel that all performers played their roles deeper to some extent which may partially be due to this musical was expected to be the last one before they decided to make the Eien Densetsu musicals.

Stars Kaiteban is a great Anzamoon musical and also ranks as one of my favorite First Stage Myus.

After thinking about this for a little while I decided to delete the 'Favorite songs' lists from the previous posts since I like all Myu songs (Although I do have my ultimate favorite songs which I love the most) and quite many of the songs would be listed multiple times because they appear in more than one musical. I hope nobody minds this small change.

Eien Densetsu

(Contains Spoilers)


Personal Thoughts

First of all, Eien Densetsu musicals probably had the widest range of different kind of songs from the First Stage musicals and all Sailor senshi get to sing many songs, as well as many other main characters and villains. Eien Densetsu used the same kind of melody in four different songs, in two more upbeat ones (Orlean no Sei Senshi and La Fatalité Sei Senshi) and in two slow, more sad songs (Orlean no Sei Senshi ~ Uranus to Neptune no Uragiri and Oitsumerarete), working well with each song and giving them all a different kind of feeling and emotions.

After few songs it is quite clear that Eien Densetsu and its music took some influence from France which I find working well from the very beginning to the end. Some probably most memorable song from Eien Densetsu, at least to me, are Kakyuu's songs (Toki Michite Kourin and Kakyuu Ouhi to Three Lights sung by her and Starlights) and Galaxia Gorgeous which was one of the most popular songs from First Stage Myus.

I like the fact that Kakyuu was given songs that are meant to be sung by an opera singer, those gave her character and appearance a noble feeling. Galaxia Gorgeous on the other hand is a more heavier and upbeat song that fits Galaxia's image well. As I mentioned, very many characters get to sing multiple songs in this musical and they change from cheery to dark ones. And Kick Out a Bloody Mystery has both a theme and melody similar to Sailor Busters which is accompanied by an enjoyable and funny musical number scene.

Actually, I prefer this opening scene over the Kaiteban as it includes Haruka and Michiru in it and their dialogue foreshadows the later scene from the musical. It may not feel as emotional if you don't know what will happen later on but when you once get to know it, the beginning scene's importance grows a lot, especially when you hear those two literally repeating their dialogue lines but this time only few seconds before they die. I have to admit that I found myself missing the live performance versions of certain songs from the Kaiteban version when I was watching this musical but it's still certain that the Myus began to use more live versions of the songs on the video releases, as well, which blows a very different, deeper feeling into the song numbers.

Not all scenes in this musical move forward smoothly and many things are left without explanations which may make some new musical fans confused, especially when speaking about the revival of Queen Beryl and her two Shitennou, Zoisite and Kunzite and their role in this musical. I personally feel that the Ami x Zoisite and Minako x Kunzite subplot in this musical was not necessary, especially when it reminds me of the other musicals that include Shitennou x Inners into the plot much smoother. Regardless of this, the main plot focuses on the basic story of Stars, Galaxia and the Sailor Senshi's battle, adding new elements into it. It is quite clear that the manga and anime had finished when this musical was made which gave it free hands to cover the full Stars arc and as this Myu was made after the anime and manga, it also included quite a lot of originality into the story.

Out of the recorded First Stage musicals this one had the second most adlibs and comic scenes added throughout the story but even when most of them worked out quite nicely, the ' Mizusakiannainin no Game' scene was, in my opinion, out of place and the musical could have worked well without the scene, as well. Eien Densetsu worked with the Senshi's deaths the same way as the anime did which I think as a very good decision. Despite this Eien Densetsu also used themes from the manga such as The Galaxy Cauldron and giving Chaos the role it had in the manga story which was something I did miss in the first two Stars based musicals. Although the scenes near the end feel a bit rushed, Eien Densetsu succeeded to give time to all groups although there is a character who I felt was quite forgotten in this musical, Mamoru. The curtain call of Eien Densetsu was the most enjoyable of the musicals I have rewatched thus far and Usagi (Anza) and Mamoru (Yuuta) coming to the stage wearing wedding costumes was also a nice addition.

Eien Densetsu is a very good First Stage musical but if I would recommend a Stars based First Stage musical for a new Sera Myu fan, I would most likely go with Eien Densetsu Kaiteban that is the musical I will rewatch next.

I love reading your opinions and analysis of these Though I don't read the ones I haven't seen yet xD I can't wait to read the Kaguya ones as those are my favorite :3 haha

I hope it's okay to have posted here xD

I haven't read everything yet (only your analysis of those I watched: Dark Kingdom, Ai no Senshi e no michi, Stars Kaiteban) and I can tell you I absolutely love everything about your posts! It's so great to read the point of view of somebody else on the musicals! I even learned a few things oo" I didn't understand everything when I watched Stars.
Keep it up Tsuki ^^ you do a great job!

Thank you, Verdi and Mayo! I am glad to hear that you two have enjoyed reading my thoughts on Myus. ^^

(It's definitely okay to post here, Verdi )


I will try to get my thoughts on Eien Densetsu Kaiteban posted today.

I really want to watch Eien Densetsu now.... Can't wait for you to reach the Dracul Arc :3

Eien Densetsu Kaiteban ~  The Final First Stage (Both the regular and Senshuuraku version)

(Contains Spoilers)


Personal Thoughts

Most of Eien Densetsu Kaiteban's songs stay the same as in the previous musicals although this Myu marks the first comeback of some earlier heard songs; Dream Yume wa Ookiku, Tabidachi, Gondola no Koibito-tachi, Double Moonlight Romance and Galaxia no Dokusai. It's interesting to notice that majority of these songs replaced some songs from the original Eien Densetsu musical and that many of them were given new lyrics. I actually prefer these added songs over the original Eien Densetsu's musical numbers on most part although there is one song that got replaced and which I would have liked to hear in the Kaiteban version, as well. This song is Tenkuu no Utage that showed the contrast between Galaxia and Beryl very well while they were working together, both still having their own plans.

Out of the returning songs and their performances in this musical my favorite would be Tabidachi 98' version that is my second favorite version of the song and very emotional. As I mentioned earlier, I think that Eien Densetsu musicals have the widest range of different kind of songs out of the First Stage and it is great to hear majority of the songs performed live.

People who have seen the original Eien Densetsu musical will notice that Oitsumamerarete's vocal version was missing from Eien Densetsu Kaiteban but was instead present in the same scene as an instrumental version, playing in the background. Also, just a moment later the music changes into another earlier heard background music track, Overture kara King ~ Endymion no Theme, the original overture from Usagi Ai no Senshi he no Michi which I think was a rather good addition, both referring to the earlier Myus and also reminding what are Usagi's reasons to fight.

The actual musical starts with the same scene as the original Eien Densetsu but Mamoru's fight against Galaxia is a bit longer in this version which made the scene better in my opinion. The Haruka x Michiru scene is removed and replaced by one that refers to Usagi and Mamoru using partially same dialogue as their discussion just before Triple Dreams in the SuperS musicals which was a nice reference to the earlier musicals. This scene is the one that will show you what some of this musical's most important scenes will focus on, the main couple (Usagi and Mamoru) who did not get as much time together in the original Eien. Many characters get nicely time on stage in this musical but you will notice which of the performers had been in the Myus for longer as they get additional focus.

Eien Densetsu Kaiteban's plot and story both move forward better than in the previous musical and the removal of Kunzite and Zoisite was a good decision since the musical was thus able to give more time to certain characters and to the main story. The regular recorded performance of this musical had quite a lot of inside jokes and adlibs in it, many of these referring to the actors' earlier roles or scenes from the previous musicals. Actually, I feel that Eien Densetsu Kaiteban celebrated the First Stage in the regular recording version, as well, and thus had many jokes and adlibs itself but the final day version did include special footage that was seen after the actual performance (Naoko coming to the stage and Anza and Ayako reading the poem par example) .

The main villains' actresses made a very good job in their roles in both Eien Densetsu musicals and Beryl also got more stage time in this version of Eien Densetsu. Although the Stars' Nehelenia arc in the anime was good, I personally prefer Beryl to be the one who gets resurrected by Galaxia and especially the Stars based musicals gave her character a whole new side that is not seen in the other versions of Sailor Moon. She is portrayed more as a character who is not bad in the end. I also feel that Tamami Matsumoto's portrayal of Galaxia was the crulest one out of all Sailor Moon versions and out of the four Galaxia actresses in Myus.

The characters' death scenes stay mainly the same in this version (Mercury got saved by Chaos though) but they feel somewhat more emotional than previously, especially Uranus and Neptune's death scene and the moment when Kakyuu dies in front of Starlights when protecting Sailor Moon. Eien Densetsu Kaiteban is, in my opinion, the best Anzamoon and Yuutatuxedo musical and their chemistry works very well in the scenes they're both in. The moment when Usagi (Anza) kisses the puppet Mamoru (Yuuta), making him remember her is actually one of the rare moments when we see a real kiss on Myu stage. I think that Eien Densetsu and its final song before the curtain call (Double Moonlight Romance) gave the First Stage musicals a great ending.

I personally feel that Eien Densetsu Kaiteban is the best First Stage musical and if I were to recommend a first stage musical to someone who is new to Myus, I would go with this one.



This completes the First Stage musicals and I am now off to the Second Stage!

Shin Densetsu Kourin

(Contains Spoilers)


Personal Thoughts

Shin Densetsu Kourin reuses some of First Stage's songs but also added new, original songs into the mix. I really enjoyed the new songs that were heard in this musical and they definitely have a slightly different feeling in them than the Fist Stage's songs do. The combination of old and new songs worked well and some of the not very often replayed songs like Triple Dreams ('98 version this time) and Double Moonlight Romance got my favorite versions in this musical. Unlike the few previous musicals, Shin Densetsu gives a bit more room for individual character and smaller senshi group songs and one of my favorite Outer Senshi songs, Kokoro Tabanete Makin' for the Right was played for the first time in this musical. When it comes to Shin Densetsu Kourin's theme song, Everlasting Moonlight, I like it that the lyrics tell more about a beginning (more than likely a reference to the musical's name: 'Shin Densetsu Kourin - The Beginning of the New Legend) than an end of a story as par example Densetsu Seitan which was Sailor Stars musicals' theme song did.

Chibiusa's new song, Chibiusa no Kokoroiki, is a very fitting song for her character and I have to say that I think Ayano Gunji is the only Chibiusa actress who had the right kind of spunk to sing it. I also really liked Tekichi wa Ginga Terebi Kyoku! that had this slightly ominous feeling in it while it still had a more upbeat rhythm accompanied by an enjoyable choreography, the funny spotlight poses in the particular. This musical also had one of the few scenes where La Soldier was sung during a battle scene, this happens to be most common in Fumina's musicals, as usually it appears as a service number song only. Also, before I will get on this, I will note that I enjoy all versions of La Soldier. That being said, I think that I like Fumina's version of La Soldier more than Anza's, at least at the moment, this probably being thanks to her haunting voice that I find very fitting for the song. I also noticed that this musical used quite many karaoke / acoustic versions of character songs.

The musical itself starts with Chibimoon being chased by some of the enemies, most likely on her way back to the 21st Century, then Double Moonlight Romance starts playing and is soon followed by a scene of Mamoru and Galaxia fighting, Galaxia killing him a moment later. The first sixteen minutes of the musical are pretty much only building the basic setting of the story and plot than having longer scenes. The order and transitions of the first four scenes before the first longer one that introduces all senshi may feel a bit incoherent at first sight, however, when considering the later events and scenes of Shin Densetsu Kourin, the order of the beginning scenes does work well.

Combining elements from both the earlier SuperS and Eien Densetsu musicals, Shin Densetsu Kourin makes the plotline of Stars a bit different in some aspects by adding certain characters while some of Stars' original characters, Starlights and Animamates, are absent from the story. In general, I think that the changes worked pretty well and it was interesting to watch how certain things were changed for this musical to work with some non-Stars storyline characters like the Amazon Trio. One fact that needs to be mentioned is that the whole senshi cast was new and I think they did a good job for this was their first (and also majority's only) musical. The entirely new senshi cast was also one factor why this Myu has a different kind of feeling than the First Stage ones even without the story or new songs.

I think that the Outer senshi group as a whole got a bit more time and focus in this Myu than in the earlier ones which I liked although out of the Outers senshi, Pluto was definitely the one who got most development. Uranus got the second most time and focus of the Outers and her character was a more leader kind of type than it was in the First Stage musicals, in my opinion. Nao did a great job as Sailor Uranus and I felt that her dancing had most energy of the senshi actresses.

Fumina was also good in her role and her portrayal of Usagi is definitely a more serious and mature one which fits well with the given timeline where Usagi is supposed to be 16-17 years old. The scene when she returns Mamoru's mud puppet to normal by hugging him was a very good one and I personally see the hug as a quite emotional one, Fumina expressing her feelings in a more silent kind of way. Also, Ayano made a good job as Chibiusa, especially in the scene where she died in Usagi's arms.

Shin Densetsu Kourin had some more modern stage effects than the previous musicals and it was overall a very good musical with some of the villains being the comic relief (Amazon Trio to be exact) while having serious scenes, too. I personally think that Shin Densetsu Kourin was partially dedicated to the First Stage and was a good musical to start the Second Stage with although out of Fumina's musicals, Shin Densetsu Kourin is my least favorite.



This means that I am off to the first six original storyline musicals, the original Kaguyas and Draculs!