Thank you for starting this re-watch thread. If you have read my posts you probably know how much I...
adore SM Crystal.
I'm going to be focusing on what I see as the nice points/interesting moments as we go along.
Act 2's nice points/interesting moments:
- I enjoyed the brief scene when Usagi shakes the machine like a maniac and gets her own pen. I can't help but wonder what she was supposed to do to deserve the pen though.
- I love the awkward moment when Mamoru bluntly states that Usagi's cat talked. It's not like "Did your cat just talk?", it's like "Hey, your cat just talked, is there something wrong with it?"
- When Ami says "tomodachi"(friend) you can really feel the significance it has to her even though she is brainwashed at the time (perhaps this makes it even more pertinent as she cannot suppress her true feelings). It's not clear if she initially knows that the nurse in front of her was Usagi or that Usagi is Sailor Moon but Luna said it pretty loudly earlier when standing right next to Ami (I don't think this positioning was by accident).
- Mercury certainly goes from being brainwashed to knowing everything about being a senshi super quick, even to the point of telling Moon to use her attack even though she has actually never seen Sailor Moon attack before. Must be that 300 IQ. Thinking more deeply about this Mercury would not have any recollection of what Sailor Moon is... she doesn't know she is the princess and even if she did know this I am not sure from memory exactly what powers Princess Serenity possessed... apart from causing mischief of one kind or another. So basically she just took a leap of faith that this person in front of her was a sailor guardian and that her powers would be useful. Luckily Sailor Moon was not Pluto or she would have stopped time and killed herself as a result.
Act 3's nice points/interesting moments:
- Phobos & Deimos are loud and looking ferocious and deeply intelligent. Excellent!
- It's funny how Luna gets abused (used as a hoodie, etc) and can't tell Usa to stop because Mamo is there on the bus. I reckon Mamo is pretending he doesn't know Luna can talk at this point.
- Crystal's animation style suit's Rei's hair colour/style. Good to see the purple. I did a quiz on another website and lost because I answered that Rei's hair was purple not black. Go figure? (くだらない ね)
- I do like the classic Crystal wrist communicators and it makes sense to have an everyday object that looks like a bracelet/watch which they can carry round without drawing much attention (like a pen, for instance).
- The scene where Rei clearly recognises Moon as Usagi and Moon tries to deny it even why being frozen is hilarious. Makes sense because she wouldn't want Cookie Jar Jadeite [sorry, random SMCA reference] to figure that out.
- It's beautiful how Usagi connects with Rei as both being girls alienated by having special powers, just try not to think about how alienated Usagi rally is yet because I don't think it crossed her mind until she met Rei. Regardless Rei really comes out of her shell at that point and becomes amazingly confident in herself and proud of her abilities. This is the fiery Rei we love.
- The scene at the end with Rei comforting the child is a great touch. In a bite-sized way it reminded me of the the PGSM Rei who always cared so much for the children at her shrine.
Gekkou/Moonbow is a beautiful song to finish off with, I love how serene it is. (かんぺき です!)
So far, those short moments when the Senshi awaken as guardians and make a deep connection (either through friendship or sense-of-belonging) with Usagi are my favourites.