Silver Millennium

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The Silver Millennium is a fictional kingdom in the Sailor Moon metaseries. Located on the moon, it situates the past life and future reincarnation of most of the series' major characters, and is a major driving force behind both plot and characterization.

The original Silver Millennium is first shown during what is described as an ancient golden age, marked by peace, prosperity, and good relations between the people of Earth and the people of the Moon. The English dub of the anime states that the Moon Kingdom existed one thousand years ago, but in the original manga, it was prehistoric.[1] Despite its name, the Silver Millennium appears to have lasted much longer than a thousand years. The Moon Kingdom itself was located in Mare Serenitatis (The Sea of Serenity) and ruled by Queen Serenity. It was also home to Princess Serenity and her four guardians, later to be known as the Guardian Senshi. According to the Sailor Moon R series, a second Silver Millennium is built on Earth some time between the 20th and 30th centuries, this time known specifically as Crystal Tokyo.

The royal family of the Silver Millennium bear special markings on their foreheads, shaped like small crescent moons. These may be seen on Queen Serenity, Princess/Neo-Queen Serenity, and Small Lady, as well as Sailor Venus when she was disguised as the princess, and the moon cats - Luna, Artemis and Diana. In the anime, non-royal civilians of the Moon Kingdom are shown without the symbol on their foreheads.

Silver Millennium kingdoms

The Moon Kingdom

File:MoonKingdom.jpg
The Moon Kingdom as seen in the anime.

The Silver Millennium, though it had a fairy-tale appearance, is demonstrated to have been technologically advanced. It was located within a dome which produced an artificial climate, and had an advanced computer called the Eternity Main System.[1] According to Artemis, ice skating was very popular there.[2] Those who lived in the Silver Millennium had very long life spans and had two specific duties: First, they were to protect the Silver Crystal, an extremely powerful "holy stone" which had been handed down through the generations. Second, they were to watch over the evolution of Earth and protect it from any negative influence.[1]

The Crown Prince of Earth during this era was Endymion, flanked by his four guardians. Relations between people of the Earth and the Moon were forbidden, but he and Princess Serenity fell in love anyway. Out of jealousy and under the influence of the evil Queen Metaria, a peasant woman named Beryl raised up the citizens of Earth in a war against the Moon, as a result of which both kingdoms were completely wiped out, so that the evolution of life had to restart from the beginning.[1]

Crystal Tokyo

File:CrystalTokyo.jpg
Crystal Tokyo as seen in the anime.

Before dying, the Queen sent her daughter and Endymion to be reborn on Earth during the 20th century. They become Usagi Tsukino and Mamoru Chiba and, even before their memories are intact, succeed in finding each other once again. The Sailor Senshi are reborn as well, becoming close friends; through their efforts, the reinstated Dark Kingdom and even Metaria herself are destroyed. In the manga, the Moon Kingdom and its castle are "resurrected" at the end of this conflict, but Usagi decides to continue living on Earth, with her parents and with Mamoru.[3]

Later, in both the anime and the manga, it is revealed that a new Silver Millennium will exist in the 30th century, centered in the city of Crystal Tokyo. It will be ruled by Usagi and Mamoru under the names of Neo-Queen Serenity and King Endymion, and they will have a daughter named Princess Usagi Small Lady Serenity.

The Guardian Senshi are not only Neo-Queen Serenity's guardians, but guardians of the entire royal family. However, the location of the Outer Senshi, other than Sailor Pluto, is never mentioned. After their awakening in the manga, the Sailor Quartet also act as guards, but to Small Lady. Luna, Artemis, and Diana live in the palace as well.[4]

At the center of the kingdom lies the Crystal Palace, which is where the Royal Family and the Guardian Senshi live. In the manga it is shown over water, while in the anime it is larger has another palace, Serenity Palace,[5] located at the top middle spire. It is particularly shown in the beginning credits for the second opening sequence of Sailor Moon R, and is seen in a flashback where Chibiusa thinks that the Guardian Senshi and her parents have forgotten her birthday.[6] Later, the interior is shown, indicating that this is the part of the Crystal Palace where the Royal Family and their protectors live.

Exposure to the Silver Crystal renders all of Crystal Tokyo's inhabitants functionally immortal. Anyone not born there becomes essentially locked at their current physical age, as shown by the Queen and King and their court, who all appear to be in their early twenties. Anyone born in Crystal Tokyo has a slow growth rate—Small Lady, for example, is stated in the manga to be over 900 years old, yet has the body and mind of child. According to her parents, such an extremely slow growth is irregular,[7] and Chibiusa's extended childhood is an important part of the fourth plot arc.

The Sailor Senshi of the 30th century are depicted in their original uniforms, without any of the enhancements or powerups they are shown gaining in the latter part of the series.[8] At the time the plot arc was drawn, Takeuchi had not yet introduced the idea of the Senshi's uniforms becoming enhanced.

Key figures

Queen Serenity

File:QueenSerenity6.jpg
Queen Serenity has the crescent marking of the Silver Millennium on her forehead

Queen Serenity (クィーン・セレニティ, Kuīn Sereniti) is the mother of Princess Serenity. Though her daughter is reincarnated as Usagi Tsukino, the earthly child of Ikuko Tsukino, she occasionally appears as a guide to help the Sailor Senshi remember who they are. She states in the manga that she is the figure known to ancients as the goddess Selene,[1] and because of this her name is sometimes romanized as Queen Selenity. In the original anime, her voice is provided by Mika Doi. In the English dub, she is voiced by Barbara Radecki and Wendy Lyon. She is portrayed as having been a "good ruler".[9]

In the anime, Queen Serenity makes her first appearance as a silhouette in episode 35, and is formally introduced in episode 44, when the Senshi are transported to the moon. (In the English dub, some footage of her talking with Artemis is shown at the beginning of the first episode.)[10] Having sacrificed her own life long ago, she appears only in spirit, as a sort of hologram. It is she who tells the Senshi about their past lives, and about the history of the Moon Kingdom. In flashback, she is shown speaking the name of the Crystal (or, in the dub, "Cosmic Moon Power") to send her daughter and the others to be reborn in the future; she also uses Moon Healing Escalation, a power inherited by Sailor Moon.[11] After this encounter, she appears just once more to give Sailor Moon a new transformation brooch and rod,[12] and is mentioned again during the fourth story arc, in connection with Queen Nehellenia.[specify]

In the manga, Queen Serenity first appears in Act 10.[1] Like in the anime, she appears as a hologram, and specifically mentions having saved her spirit within the computer, in order to preserve her will. She tells the Senshi of their past lives, which they begin to remember as she describes them, and tells them that they must find Metaria, who has escaped the seal placed on her and is hiding on Earth. Early on, Queen Serenity's spirit appears in the reconstructed Moon Kingdom, telling her daughter to find happiness with the one she loves.[13] She appears three times more, all in flashback: once in Sailor Pluto's memories;[14] after the birth of Princess Serenity, confronted by Queen Nehellenia;[15] and visiting the Galaxy Cauldron.[16]

Queen Serenity does not appear in the live-action series, but does appear in its "Special Act." She is portrayed by Miyuu Sawai, who also plays her daughter.

Sailor Princesses

File:SenshiPrincesses.jpg
The ten Sailor Princesses in their formal gowns.

In manga Act 41, the Sailor Team are revealed to be princesses of the Solar System. Each one had her own castle, which she is able to call upon late in the series for power. It is this act which first enables Sailor Moon to transform into Eternal Sailor Moon. The castles are named after moons, except for Mercury's and Venus'. Venus' castle is introduced long before the others', in the Sailor V manga,[17] but she never mentions this to them.

In Act 45, Sailors Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto actually visit their castles, which are huge structures orbiting around their respective planets. Each is equipped with viewscreens, forcefields, comm systems, and other forms of high technology; each is also protected by a Power Guardian, who appears as a miniature version of the Senshi she serves. Sailor Pluto states that she remembers her castle, and that they were given to all the Senshi by Queen Serenity at the time of their birth.[18]

Takeuchi's Materials Collection artbook shows the detailed design of each princess's unique gown. The gowns appear on the Senshi's bodies at key moments in the Stars manga, and are also pictured in the Original Picture Collection Volume IV. Flashbacks to the Silver Millennium, however, always show them dressed in their ordinary uniforms.

Sailor Power Guardians

In the manga only, the Sailor Power Guardians are sprites who look like tiny versions of the Sailor Senshi and who live in their respective castles. They are responsible for keeping the castles safe while the Senshi are on Earth, and provide some of the Senshi with their Sailor Crystals during the Dream arc. Only the Guardian and Outer Senshi were shown to have Power Guardians.

Each Power Guardian communicates with her respective Senshi by calling on the power of the Senshi's Sailor Crystal. They are able to help the Sailor Princesses call on the power of their castles, increasing their own power such that they upgrade to new forms as soldiers and can help to create the Rainbow Moon Chálice, a powerful weapon, for Sailor Moon.

The Sailor Power Guardians disappear in the Stars arc around the time the Senshi they protect are killed.[19] The exact nature of their fate is unclear, although the Senshi themselves are later reborn.

Silver Crystal

The Silver Crystal (銀水晶, Ginzuishō) is one of the most important items in the Sailor Moon metaseries. Its full name is translated as "Illusion Silver Crystal" (幻の銀水晶, Maboroshi no Ginzuishō), "Phantom Silver Crystal," or other names, but it is frequently referred to in the series by its shortened title. In the English-dubbed anime, it is sometimes called the "Imperium Silver Crystal," as well as various other names.

The Silver Crystal possesses tremendous power, capable of reviving an entire world from ruin, but the strain of using such power often costs the user her life - as the power is actually derived from the life force of the Moon dynasty, the members of which are the only ones who can actually use it. This is shown happening three times in the anime. The first time is in a flashback with Queen Serenity, and the second time is Usagi defeats Queen Metaria at the end of season one and finally, in the R movie. It is shown as the source of Queen Serenity's power during the Silver Millennium; Usagi Tsukino and Chibiusa each go on to inherit the Crystal in some form.

It is commonly portrayed in both the anime and manga as possibly the single most powerful artifact in the universe, able to focus the energy of its wielder to perform magnificent feats. However, there are several artifacts that rival it in strength, including the Black Crystal of the Death Phantom in Sailor Moon R and the Saffer Crystal of Sailor Galaxia. In the fifth series of the anime, the crystal also appears to double as the starseed of Sailor Moon, which reality was hinted at in the R movie, and the manga implies that it is her Sailor Crystal. It takes on a multitude of shapes.

Because Chibiusa comes from the future, and will eventually inherit the Silver Crystal from Usagi, there are two versions of it present in the series. After the first story arc, they are kept in their respective transformation brooches and only removed in times of urgent need. In the final Last Dracul musical, a third Silver Crystal appears when Usagi's crystal resonates with a past version of itself, owned by Princess Serenity. This allows Serenity to briefly come to the present with her crystal and aid her future self. Before leaving, she states that the Silver Crystal cannot be used by just anyone, and that it will always find itself when it needs to.[20]

Although criticism of Sailor Moon has included that her powers are gained from her "consumerist" external baubles, Emily Ravenwood notes that the Silver Crystal, which "saves the day", comes forth from Usagi's tear, and is therefore internal.[21]

Use in the manga

The Silver Crystal is used several times in the manga, often in battle to defeat the final "boss villain". The crystal has two primary powers: the ability to generate a powerful magical attack and the power to rejuvenate (both physically and mentally). The crystal seems to have both more control and more focused power attached to Sailor Moon's Moon Stick, though Usagi eventually becomes so in tune with her power that she no longer needs the extra help of the Moon Stick - it can be inferred that the reason why her mother needed it was because the Silver Crystal's true form is as Usagi's star seed - the most powerful senshi of all times and universes due to her immense capacity for love - as opposed to sheer power or skill - and thus she's the only one that can make full use of it potential, though to use all of it would kill her as it would use up all her life force, but because her love for others and desire to help them appears to be strong enough, if her will is strong enough, to extend that life force interminably - as seen in the anime version of Sailor Stars, when Usagi uses an unprecedented amount of power and comes out of it not only without collapsing but also none the worse for the wear, which was also unprecedented in the anime. It often blooms into a lotus shape, which indicates a more powerful version of the same crystal - indicating a more direct link to her life force and the amount of energy she can expend from it. However, it is not officially a Sailor Crystal until it evolves for the user.

It was first used by Queen Serenity to remove negative influences from the Earth and also to send Princess Serenity and her court to Earth. It was also used to send the souls of her fallen subjects into the future to be reincarnated, which cost the queen her life. It also extends the life of the user and those around them if they do not use it to its limit.

It eventually evolves into the next form--a Sailor Crystal. For Sailor Moon, it evolved into the Silver Moon Crystal. For Chibiusa it evolved into the Pink Moon Crystal.

The Silver Crystal is also considered the most powerful crystal next to its evolved forms.

Use in the anime

The anime adds a few extra powers to the Silver Crystal, for instance, the Sailor Moon R movie showed that it could be used to construct a shield, as it did in the first season when Princess Serenity was battling Queen Beryl with the Moon Stick. In conjunction with the Moon Stick it is also used to heal people back to their normal forms. Most of the other properties of the Silver Crystal are the same of the manga. It is used in the anime far more than the manga. In the anime, specifically in Episode 83 of Sailor Moon R, the Crystal was not only powerful enough to restore the Earth and its people to life after the planet was devastated by some unspecified ecological catastrophe, it also created the metropolis of Crystal Tokyo.[22]

The Silver Crystal, however, was never used to remove any negative influences from the Earth.

Rainbow Crystals

In the anime, there are seven rainbow crystals that had the Seven Great Youma (Daiyōma, Seven Shadows in the English dub) sealed into them. They are the most powerful youma in the Dark Kingdom. Thanks to the power of Queen Serenity, they were sealed within seven separate shards of the Silver Crystal and carried to Earth where they were reincarnated centuries later, with no memories of their prior existences. All seven rainbow crystals (and, as in the manga, one of Usagi's tears) are needed to recombine into the Silver Crystal.

These are the seven carriers of the Rainbow Crystals:

  • Gēsēn (ゲーセーン), episode 25: The keeper of the red Rainbow Crystal, he was a cyber-youma reborn as Crane Joe, a pro at arcade games. His name is short for "game center."
  • Bokushī (ボクシー), episode 26: The keeper of the orange Rainbow Crystal, he was a winged, boxing youma reborn as a priest who Naru was with at a cemetery. His name is a pun on bokushi, meaning "minister" in Japanese, and bokushingu, meaning "boxing."
  • Bumbō (ブンボー), episode 27: The keeper of the yellow Rainbow Crystal, he was a reptilian youma reborn as Ryo Urawa, who developed a crush on Ami. Though the beast awakened, Urawa attempted to retain control over himself and attacked Zoisite, only to end up completely under his control.
  • Bīna (ビーナ), episode 28: The keeper of the green Rainbow Crystal, she was an angelic plant youma reborn as local artist Yumeni Yumeno. Her attacks are art-based.
  • Rikokeidā (リコケイダー), episode 29: The keeper of the blue Rainbow Crystal, she was a youma reborn as Motoki's girlfriend, Reika Nishimura.
  • Jiji (ジジ), episode 30: The keeper of the indigo Rainbow Crystal, he was an Oni-like youma who is reincarnated as Rei's grandfather.
  • Bakēne (バケーネ), episode 31: The keeper of the violet Rainbow Crystal, he was a beastly youma reborn as the cat Rhett Butler, who had a thing for Luna, even in youma form. He and his owner, Ohara, share names with the main characters of Gone with the Wind, Rhett Butler and Scarlett O'Hara.

Use in the live-action series

As in the manga, the Silver Crystal is originally concealed within Usagi's body. But the Crystal is a double-edged power: even in the possession of Sailor Moon, its excess power could not only energize Metaria but, if enough is exerted through it, could destroy the entire planet. It is shattered in the series finale, causing all of the Senshi's transformation devices to vanish.

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f Naoko Takeuchi. Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon manga, Act 10. "The Manga of Takeuchi Naoko". Retrieved 2006-09-09.
  2. ^ Anime episode 39.
  3. ^ Naoko Takeuchi. Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon manga, Act 14. "The Manga of Takeuchi Naoko". Retrieved 2006-09-10.
  4. ^ Takeuchi, Naoko (November 6, 1993, July 5, 1995). "Act 19". Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon Volume 5. Kodansha. ISBN 4-06-178764-0. {{cite book}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  5. ^ Anime artbook, Sailor Moon R.
  6. ^ Episode 85.
  7. ^ Takeuchi, Naoko (April 5, 1994). "Act 20". Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon Volume 6. Kodansha. ISBN 4-06-178772-1.
  8. ^ Manga Act 23, anime Episode 88.
  9. ^ Emily Ravenwood, More About Gender Dynamics, Etc.
  10. ^ Wheeler, Robert. "Sailor Moon Uncensored". Retrieved 2006-10-27. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help) Full list of changes made for English dub
  11. ^ Episode 44.
  12. ^ Episode 51.
  13. ^ Act 12.
  14. ^ Act 22.
  15. ^ Act 41.
  16. ^ Act 52.
  17. ^ Takeuchi, Naoko (December 18, 1993). "Vol. 1". Codename: Sailor V Book 1. Kodansha. ISBN 4-06-322801-0.
  18. ^ Takeuchi, Naoko (September 6, 1996). "Act 45". Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon Volume 16. Kodansha. ISBN 4-06-178841-8.
  19. ^ Acts 45 and 47.
  20. ^ 2001 Spring Special musical, Chou Wakusei Death Vulcan no Fuuin.
  21. ^ Ravenwood, Emily Informal Responses to Essays Published on Sailor Moon
  22. ^ "www.tcp.com/doi/smoon/episodes/smr083.html".
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