Sailor Saturn's Brooch is Weird

  • This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this site, you are agreeing to our use of cookies. Learn more.

Memento

Stella Nova
Mar 8, 2012
6,076
7,950
1,665
underwatersphinx.blogspot.com
#1
The earliest known sketch of Sailor Saturn, dated November 1993, shows her brooch as being shaped like the planet Saturn, a somewhat cutesy idea.



Naoko evidently found the idea a little too cutesy for the Soldier of Destruction, and quickly simplified it to match the plain brooch design utilized by the other (non-Moon) Sailors, as shown in the Materials Collection. (Saturn's image color was also changed at this stage from yellow ocher to purple.)



But in the final product, Saturn's brooch design ended up being a rather ornate crystal, unlike any other brooch worn by any other character in the series.



In the anime, even if Saturn's brooch isn't necessarily literally her Heart Crystal, its design at least recalls that of a Heart Crystal, and so it makes sense from a general aesthetic perspective. But there are no Heart Crystals in the manga, which raises the question of what the significance is of Saturn's brooch.

Is it possible that the Heart Crystals were Naoko's idea? That she had intended to include that concept in the manga at some stage, but ended up going in a different direction, with Saturn's brooch being a vestigial holdout? Or is her brooch meant to be her Sailor Crystal, suggesting Naoko may have intended to introduce that concept a little earlier than what ended up happening? Is it meant to be some sort of counterpart to the Taioron Crystal?

What do you think?
 

Starlight

Aurorae Lunares
May 31, 2009
1,348
1,523
1,665
Tankei Kingdom, Kinmoku
#4
It seems just an aesthetic choice to me. She wanted something that would make Saturn stand out from the rest of the Sailor Soldiers; something befitting her unique role and power. Her brooch may be beautiful, but it also signifies something dangerous. It doesn't have a serene design. It's intricate and busy. It makes you feel a bit uneasy when you look at it. It looks like something that was formed out of the collision between two other crystalized bodies. I think it represents the beauty of rebirth that follows destruction. It, like Sailor Saturn herself, contains both beauty and devastation. Perhaps that's what Naoko was trying to convey. I don't believe it has (or used to have) any other storytelling significance.
 
Last edited:
Jul 31, 2012
5,449
4,643
1,665
Outer Space
#5
I think it represents the chaos Sailor Saturn brings as opposed to Sailor Moon, whose Crystal is secure in her compact. Even when out, the Crystal itself is perfect with no defect. However, Saturn's broicg looks like a chaotic Crystal formation. Lol.
 

MariaTenebre

Systema Solare
Jul 22, 2009
5,778
1,225
1,665
#6
I was always shocked that given Sailor Saturn's rather unique and powerful role of the Outers that she wouldn't be their leader in the same way that Sailor Venus is for the Inners. However most people and the manga seems to point that Sailor Uranus is the leader of the Outers.
 

foenyanko

Solaris Luna
Sep 21, 2010
2,019
1,546
1,665
#7
I was always shocked that given Sailor Saturn's rather unique and powerful role of the Outers that she wouldn't be their leader in the same way that Sailor Venus is for the Inners. However most people and the manga seems to point that Sailor Uranus is the leader of the Outers.
I think, traditionally in the Silver Millennium, Saturn was closer to being the three of them's child rather than anything else, hence why she wasn't the leader. It's only with their combined power that she appears, so she's a product of theirs, not their leader.

That being said, she does kind of seem like their leader once she's reborn as Saturn for the third time. She's the one that shows disaster appearing and urges them on. Gives them power, too. Even the thing of her running off near the end of the Dream arc.

Anyway, her brooch doesn't actually strike me as chaotic. It's too symmetrical. Crystals can grow very unevenly and erratically so I feel like hers would be more misshapen in that case.

Maybe Takeuchi drew it that way once she switched from that odd staff to her scythe. The shape on that is a bit reminiscent of her final brooch.
 

Memento

Stella Nova
Mar 8, 2012
6,076
7,950
1,665
underwatersphinx.blogspot.com
#8
Saturn is to the Outers what Moon is to the Inners IMO. Like foenyanko said, she's not so much their leader as she is the one they guard.

It was pointed out to me that Naoko refers to the heart crystals as "talismans" in the Materials Collection, so maybe Saturn's brooch is meant to represent the union of the talismans' awakening of her?
 
Jul 31, 2012
5,449
4,643
1,665
Outer Space
#10
I never really saw Uranus as the leader. I always assumed she was just the most aggressive and liked to take charge like Jupiter.

I dont even think they have a leader since they all have very different roles compared to the Inners.

I havent read the manga in a long time and I always was kinda in the air about the classification because Pluto has been guarding the Space-Time Door for a long time and really never gets into any heavy battles, and neither does Saturn as far as protecting from outside threats.

I still think Saturn's brooch represents something. At least for the sake of it being clear quartz which represents a stone associated with the planet Saturn. I wish there was more information about such things as I've become interested in the little details of their outfits now. I guess it could have asthetic like Mars' pendant and Jupiter's belt (two items I wish they kept).
 

Rika-Chicchi

Staff member
Site Admin
May 7, 2009
44,741
7,765
1,665
#11
I wish her brooch to be some extremely powerful & destructive ultimate weapon like the Silver Crystal, like tearing the spacetime fabric apart or something like that, leading to an exponentially faster-than-light collapse of the entire universe. :cool:
 

MariaTenebre

Systema Solare
Jul 22, 2009
5,778
1,225
1,665
#12
Saturn is to the Outers what Moon is to the Inners IMO. Like foenyanko said, she's not so much their leader as she is the one they guard.

It was pointed out to me that Naoko refers to the heart crystals as "talismans" in the Materials Collection, so maybe Saturn's brooch is meant to represent the union of the talismans' awakening of her?
I would have to say that I disagree with you on that MementoNepenthe. I do not think that Sailor Saturn is the Outer's equivalent of Sailor Moon. Rather she is just one of the 4 Outer Senshi. Really we have Four Inner and Four Outer Senshi that Guard Sailor Moon. The reason I say this is because Sailor Saturn is portrayed while being exceedingly powerful as just another Guardian Senshi of Sailor Moon and not say a Princess in her own right like Sailor Moon nor is her Crystal The Saturn Crystal a special Crystal or on the same level as say Sailor Moon's Silver Crystal, Tuxedo Mask's Golden Crystal or even say Sailor Galaxia's Saphir Crystal. Which with Sailor Kakyuu while her Crystal was never named ( I head canon it being called the Osmathus Crystal but that is just me) it was seemed to be portrayed on that sort of high royalty level as the other three I mentioned. Where as Sailor Saturn was never given that kind of leve. At best she was depicted as a super powerful Outer Senshi that was exceptional in a similar way that Sailor Venus was exceptional to the Inners. Now of course it was never revealed who was the leader of the Outers. I believe that Sabrblade theorized that in the manga that Sailor Uranus was the leader because of when the two groups talked it was typically Sailor Venus who spoke for the Inners and Sailor Uranus wh spoke for the Outers even when Sailor Saturn was present. Again I have nothing to go on but that tidbit but it is interesting.
 

SM458

Lumen Cinererum
Nov 16, 2014
396
400
165
31
California
#13
I actually liked Saturn brooch design. I think Naoko wanted to portray Saturn as a beautiful but powerful Senshi.

I was never a fan of how her super form never kept the Crystal brooch design. I think Saturn early concept were odd choice to use a planet silhouette brooch. Using a regular brooch would make Sailor Saturn plain. I wonder what made her come up with a wooden like staff?
 

noildoof

Solaris Luna
Feb 1, 2011
2,179
198
165
#14
To me, Saturn's brooch looks a lot like a Moravian star. This may be far-fetched, but it's possibly meant to be yet another Messiah reference in the 3rd arc (another reference being the Holy Grail). The Moravian star is a common advent symbol - including that of the second coming, possibly referring to Saturn's themes of resurrection.

Then again, it may just be a nifty crystal design Naoko liked and I'm way overthinking this. :P