December 5th is Makoto Kino/Sailor Jupiter’s birthday!
So how can you celebrate?
♃ Rewatch or reread your favourite Jupiter-centric chapter, episode, or musical! Start with episode 025, her introduction and the first instance of her famous “senpai crush”; then move to episode 039, where she crushes… again, this time on a handsome figure skater; episode 049, where her close friend Shinozaki is put in critical condition by a Cardian and she goes looking for revenge; episode 055, where she expresses her love for alien-turned-senpai Seijuro by way of homemade lunch box; episode 096, where Makoto gets a crush on Haruka and learns to explore her own presentation; episode 105, where she loses to a Daimon in a contest of strength and starts to second-guess her abilities; episode 134, where she visits a friend from her old school whom she encouraged to pursue writing; or episode 147, where Makoto waits for her “prince charming” Tiger’s Eye at a dance and launches a thousand MakoAmi shippers yes I see you there.
♃ Sailor Jupiter has several official image songs across different canons you can play for her big day:
90s anime: Anata no Sei Janai [“It’s Not Your Fault”]; STARLIGHT ni KISS Shite [“Kiss Me In the Starlight”]; Wasureru Tame ni Koi wo Shinaide [“Don’t Fall In Love to Forget”]; WE BELIEVE YOU Live Action: MIRACLE DANCE NIGHT; LOVELY YELL Crystal: cherry pie Musicals: Zigzag Slash
She was also given a totally new image song in Dic’s original English dub that took the place of “Anata no Sei Janai” in episode 49, Rainy Day Man.
Here’s a playlist of all these songs and other Sailor Jupiter BGM cues!
♃ Whip up Makoto’s favourite foods, meatloaf and cherry pie. Unlike some other fellow Sailor Guardians she’s not a picky eater and has no least-favourite food, so why not challenge yourself to try something new or revisit an ingredient you thought you hated? You never know, you might grow to love it!
♃ Makoto’s very self-reliant, and her hobbies reflect her practical nature, particularly as she had to look after herself from a young age after the deaths of both her parents in a plane crash. She’s also intentionally pursued hobbies considered traditionally “feminine” out of concern that her outward appearance and mannerisms don’t convey who she is inside.
Her most oft-portrayed hobby is cooking, which is both something that brings her personal satisfaction and a way for her to express her love for the people closest to her - she shares her lunch with strangers, serves her friends fruit sandwiches & tea when they meet at her apartment, and daydreams about giving a personalised boxed lunch (bento) to her sweetheart. She’s also a natural teacher, showing the gang how to make curry (which becomes the one dish Usagi can make) and cookies, and showing Motoki how to make hayashi rice (“hashed beef”).
Why not host a little dinner party or pot luck for your friends, teach yourself a new recipe (or teach someone else a favourite recipe of your own), or simply celebrate food by patronising a small cafe/bakery like Makoto dreams of owning someday?
She’s also a demonstably skilled sewist, making anything from stuffed toys (apparently, her specialty is teddy bears), to knitting, to bespoke patterns for her class’s maid cafe stall at their high school festival. If you’re a beginner, why not start with some simple DIYs or by altering clothing you already own/thrift, and if you’re experienced, now is a good time to revisit that project you have lying half-finished in the back of your crafts cupboard you keep saying you’ll finish someday when you unpick that one bit I SEE you there.
Makoto loves flowers and has quite a green thumb, perhaps influenced by the Japanese element she draws her powers from - wood. She tends to the strawberry patch at their high school with great success, and though she is often associated with roses, her favourite flower is actually the sasanqua (a type of camellia). She loves flowers so much that she dreams of being a florist someday, a dream she actually achieves in the live action!
Pick up a new plant from a local nursery, fill your house with flowers from an independent florist, or start your own produce garden in your back yard, flower pots, or a small indoor terrarium/windowsill. If you don’t have the means to tend to a garden of your own, why not look into seed bombing with plants native to your specific area to combat invasive plant species. Or simply visit your favourite nursery, arboreum, or public garden to surround yourself with nature!
For sports, Makoto is proficient in martial arts, specifically karate (in the original anime) and judo (in the manga and Crystal). She’s also shown to be naturally gifted at ice skating thanks to her past life as Princess Jupiter, since it was a popular sport in the Moon Kingdom, pulling off even very difficult moves like lifting her partner over her head. Check out some local martial arts classes in your area or take some friends to the ice rink! She also enjoyed, and was quite good at, ballroom dancing, so take your partner or a small blue gal pal to some dance lessons - just not ballet, which she can’t quite finesse.
♃ Dress like Makoto for the day! Particularly in the first season, Makoto stuck mostly to “tomboyish” fashions, again reflecting her practicality and sporty side, rarely daring to wear skirts or dresses. However, as the series went on we learned that she in fact admired traditionally “feminine” clothes but feared they wouldn’t suit her. With encouragement from her friends like Usagi and role-models like Haruka, later seasons saw her branch out into a secondary style, with a more mature, “womanly” edge than the young, girlish styles of her friends - though she still enjoyed her original “boyish” fits. Wardrobe staples include casual jackets/hoodies, cable knit sweaters, slacks, shorts, loafers, and sneakers, and later midi skirts, turtlenecks, and bodycon mini-dresses. She wore a lot of green in varying shades, but also orange, teal, and increasingly pink.
As Sailor Jupiter, her image colours were dark green and “sugar pink”, and she wore green ankle boots accented with bright white laces. Her most iconic accessories were her pink rose earrings which, unique amongst the Sailor Guardians, she wore both transformed and not, even throwing them once as a makeshift weapon. Her nails were painted apple/avocado green from her second transformation onwards.
Her hair, which to the disbelief of her teachers was naturally curly, was usually worn in a high ponytail with a bobble hairtie (plain teal in the 90s anime, green with petal-like accents in the manga/Crystal/PGSM) and two locks falling over her ears, though she did sometimes swap the hairtie for a ribbon or scrunchie.
Makoto didn’t seem to wear much makeup but did wear cologne/perfume, almost certainly rosen/floral; in fact, it’s one of the first things Usagi notices about her when they meet. If you don’t already have your own signature scent, browse for some local indie perfumers to find something that speaks to you - or look up how to make your own!
♃ Makoto wears a belt of potpourri around her waist in the manga and live action, so you could try mixing a blend of your own dried flower petals and displaying it in a bowl or tucking it in sachets amongst your clothes. In addition to the obvious rose petals, consider including oak leaves or pine needles for an earthy, woodsy note.
♃ Fall in love with someone you met 3 minutes ago!
♃ Clean up your living space! It’s good for the body and the mind.
♃ Fav and read some Sailor Jupiter fanart and fanfic on sites like Pixiv, Twitter, and AO3 - or contribute your own new content! Don’t forget to tag!
Feel free to reply and reblog with your own ideas of how you’re going to celebrate Makoto’s day!
