And still.... You.... Like the 90s anime? That's an actual question btw, I have plenty of things in the 90s anime that are hard to swallow for me, like mamorus age, or hino grandpa, but when I look through fiction eyes those are still watchable for me. Like I still like mamoru and Usagi romance sometimes, enough to ignore the bad stuff. Hino grandpa is irrelevant enough for me to ignore him. I wouldn't ever accept those in real life, but they're watchable for me in a 90s anime.
But you sounded really angry, so just checking on you. Please remember to take breaks, okay? Don't pressure yourself into making art of something you need a break from.
(if I'm misunderstanding and you actually like the anime for real and you're just very angry and passionate talking about it, forgive me! Then please keep going! Just make sure you're doing it because you enjoy it!).
I really like your opinions and your art!
This asks is sounding like I'm criticizing you that's not the case please I'm not. I'm genuinely asking if you like the anime oh my god this ask is a mess I'm sorry I love your art
You're fine, it didn't come across that way.
Yes, overall I still do very much like the 90s anime and it is In my honest, humble opinion, the best retelling of the story and characters. (Haven't finished pgsm yet, it's my fault)
I think I have stated before, this show is literally my favorite THING ever. Like there's plenty of books, movies and shows I think are objectively much much better, but NOTHING and I mean, nothing has ever managed to keep me hooked like the endless possibilities of this narrative and the power and influence these characters have on me.
Spirited Away is my favorite piece of media ever, it changed my life and it's one of the VERY few movies I would ever give a 10/10, I never ever felt compelled to write anything about it. It's perfect. There's nothing I can add to it, it's a perfect beautiful experience. Sailor moon IS NOT that, sailor moon is very flawed. BUT it is its flaws AND those 'unexplored bits' like those pieces here and there of "omg this is so interesting/ good/this shit is literal gold" that compell me to keep making and writing stuff for this show. THAT stuff is what has its hooks on me, what makes Sailor Moon just so special to me.
If the Sailor Moon 90s anime was only the first season it would be (imo) an objectively better show. Better pacing, consistent progressing narrative and character arcs (for most characters.. Mina..), a distinct charming identity, wonderful OST like my god, an amazing ending and a beautiful little package of an incredibly memorable and mostly well written magical girl show. It would be a 7/10 or even a light 8/10 for me and that is high for me. ALTOUGH I'm glad that it is not all we got, I'm so happy we got more, because I would not be here, making and writing stuff for this blog if that were the case. It would not have changed history the way it managed to do in our time. That said I have to be also fair and honest and say, yes, the addition of the other 4 seasons does make the anime Objectively worse writing wise. Not even the frankly incredible talisman arc of S can save the show from the disasters that were R, Supers and partly also stars. The whole Sailor moon 90s anime as a whole experience and piece of media, I cannot in good faith give it more than a high 6/10, I'm sorry, some parts are genuinely terrible, inexcusably terrible.
(Also Ik a lot of people will say "oh it wasn't the writer's fault they were pressured, circumstances, strict deadlines.." I KNOW! I get it, even with Takeuchi too, I get it. There's a lot of shit both Takeuchi and the 90s writers probably did not want to add or were forced to add poorly or change or rush because they were pressured to do so or didnt have time. It sucks I really really understand, but at the end of the day, it is a piece of media that they put our for people to enjoy and criticize. Like if you were to put those breaks on EVERYTHING you consume, almost nothing would ever be rated negative. Think about it, (almost) no one eve makes something with the intentions for it to be bad, even people who know what they are doing. Because a lot of writers, artists directors and show runners DO have to bend the knee at the excecs to keep making their show/comic and shit happens. I get that some things have vastly more liberty to do wtv they fuck they want vs others, but I do think there's a limit where you have to recognize... it sucks for you and I'm sorry, I really am, but I can't not criticize the art you made JUST because of production, management and external factors, it is what what you published/released. I can't judge the piece of media based on 'what it could have been').
One thing about me and the way I approach canon and headcanons, at least sailor moon wise, is that I am VERY unafraid of just discarding shit I don't give a fuck about. I don't have that brain bug telling me "oh I need to fit this into my narrative cause it's canon" like I really don't care. I'm easily bored by shit I dont care about and I also think sailor moon in general suffers a lot for having too much shit. There's a lot of stuffing that does nothing, a lot of characters that even the story forgets about, a lot of aspects that just come out of nowhere cause the writing is a fucking mess. It is subjective and if you do like/care about those aspects/character, good for you, I personally dont care.
Like no offense, if tomorrow the "Chibiusa, Helios and Sailor Quartet show" comes out... I'm probably not gonna see it. I mean I will see it cause its sailor moon and I do like Chibiusa, but unless the writing is actually stellar, like mind blowing, I would definitely drop it. And even if it's an inners show, if the show is NOT focused on the inners as characters, in doing some actual interesting character shit instead of just speerunning through a plot that is not even that good, I am tapping out. It still kind of amazes me just HOW many sailor moon adaptations there are and how little of them actually care to do some good character writing for them, like it's crazy. Parts of the 90s anime and most of what I've seen of PGSM (again I haven't finished it, dont spoil pls thank you) are the only ones who TRY to do something with them. The rest is like.. wow, these characters are just.. a two sentence introductions. That's it.
The aspects I criticize are things I can overlook at times depending on what it is. I do not generally enjoy the Mamoru/Usagi romance, I'm sorry. They have cute moments sometimes and some very rare gems here and there, but overall everytime I see a "romantic" moment for them incoming I just kind of zone out at best or groan and get annoyed at worst. BUT I get it, I understand why people like them (except the aspect of the lasting miracle romance, I do NOT fw that) and I do ship them. I like them in the abstract, it just has never been really executed well in my opinion. Pgsm is the closest, but again.. why is he older..
Yeah, I ignore Grandpa Hino too. I just roll my eyes and remember how unimportant of a character he is and I'm fine. I don't like him, at all, but he's not something I'm even remotely interested in entertaining (unlike Usamamo). Rei has a grandfather, but that's not him, I keep nothing about him in my idea of who Grandpa Hino is. Except maybe the fact that he's bald, that's it.
Most of the time I am not angry, I'm really not. Even if it comes across in the way I write. I think it's just easier for me to be more "blunt" when writing critiques in an informal setting like this blog because it gets the point across with less effort. Im also more than a little lazy and writing is hard, I dont wanna strictly blame English being my second language cause I have been here for 10 years, but it doesn't help.
I do not dislike being angry/frustrated at the show also, I think it's very fun to criticize aspects of something I love. I like doing this.
UNLESS the subject makes me genuinely uncomfortable like talking about the S*A metaphors in Supers and Demande's whole deal, that I do not like discussing with people cause I just don't like it. If you do and wanna defend it.. fucking good for you, dont tell me about it. I was NOT happy when a dude on Twitter really tried to argue with me about how Demande's attempted assault was "good writing" like no, it was not. It is the textbook definition of what NOT to do when depicting such a heavy, terrible real life issue. I should not be arguing online with a MAN as a WOMAN about how unnecessary that whole thing was.
But everything else it's like, I'm fine discussing, even like it as I said. Just don't be weird, be respectful, especially in queer spaces pls. If you're malding over people headcanoning ships or characters as gay like.. maybe log off for a bit. Get checked out. But also, me saying Usagi Tsukino's character from the Manga is not well written (or even very likable imo) should not be leading to me being called a misogynist. Like?? Yeah I clearly hate women.. It's so obvious.
Hello @alevolpe.
I'm mostly a lurker on your blog, but I wanted to send you a message because I really admire your work. You're a fantastic artist, and I always enjoy reading your meta. I've lovedĀ Sailor MoonĀ since the beginning, and while I think both the manga and anime have their flaws, that has never lessened my affection for either of them.
I've noticed that you sometimes end up having to defend your perspective as a fan, and I wanted to say that I don't think you should have to.
So I have this to say to these people asking.
Don't tell anyone HOW to be a fan.
Don't QUESTION anyone's perspective on being a fan.Ā
One of the things I love about fandom is that there isn't one "right" way to be a fan. Some people love every part of a series. Some people enjoy picking apart its flaws. Some people rewrite canon entirely through fanfiction, meta, or art. None of those things make someone less of a fan. Fandom thrives because people bring different perspectives to the same work.
Reading that ask made me feel a little sad, not because I think the person meant any harm, but because it seemed to make a lot of assumptions about how you feel and it somehow mattered. Whether you're frustrated with certain aspects of the anime, passionate about discussing it, or simply having fun making art, only you can really speak to that. I don't think bloggers or artists or fic writers should have to reassure strangers that they enjoy making the things they make.
Your art and your meta stand on their own. If someone disagrees with your perspective, that's completely fine! That's part of fandom. But disagreement doesn't mean any interpretation is any less valid, and any artist should not have toĀ Ā feel like they need to defend their enjoyment of something.
Part of why this resonated with me is because I had a similar experience years ago when I was posting fanfiction. At first, people offered suggestions, and I appreciated that. But after a while, those suggestions started feeling less like encouragement and more like criticism of the stories I wanted to tell. I was inundated with comments that eventually were telling me I was wrong in the way I was writing. It made me second-guess myself, even though I was writing because I loved it.
I think it's completely possible to love something while also recognizing the parts that don't work for you. Loving the '90s anime doesn't mean you have to love every episode, every character decision, or every adaptation choice. That's true of pretty much every fandom.
I'm in theĀ SherlockĀ fandom too, and I love everything fandom createsāthe fanfic, the art, the discussions, the headcanons. Did I love every decision the show made? Not at all. Am I still a fan? Absolutely. One of my favorite headcanons is that Mycroft and Sherlock's grandmother was French. Is that canon? Nope. Do I care? Also nope.
I just wanted you to know that there are quiet readers like me who genuinely appreciate what you create and the perspective you bring. I hope you keep making the art and writing the meta that makesĀ youĀ happy, because there are plenty of us who enjoy seeing it.
You donāt need to reply or reblog. I needed to just get this out there and give some support.Ā
Fun is fun.
Please, just let fun be fun.
