Sailor Moon Crystal: Infinity Arc 1
So the first episode is out: I hope this video will stay online for a while before it gets deleted.
[Spoilers and pretty screenshots...]There are good things and bad things. But all in all, I'm happy about this episode. First the bad stuff so that I can move on to the good ones:
The fluffy short hair is so terrible to look at. It's like they have an extra brain in their giant head although this can't be what the animators intended. And Haruka's voice is actually easier to get accustomed to than her new blue-grey eyes. I miss the sea-green/deep peacock blue ones. They went so well with her hair!
Smart and mysterious Sailor Venus is gone, replaced by Minako-airhead, who teams up with Makoto to fangirl about Haruka. Actually, I like Minako's happy dizzy blonde side. It's just the white highlights and the pink cheeks and glossy plastic-like skin we get in Crystal already look terrible enough without her behaving like a dumb blonde. (Edit: Also, they all still look like dolls although it's a bit better than in the first Crystal seasons.)
Also, terrible transformation sequences and mutant limbs are there to stay, sadly. But I'll try to get used to them just as I got used to the dumb Sailor speeches. (The old anime mocked itself when the demons got bored in the meantime. XD) I like how the lines are fitted to their personalities, though.
Now to the good things: The Inners look better than they did in the beginning because they toned down the sparkly shoujo look a bit although we still have the glossy skin. We also get a bit of the old banter and their old dynamic back: Rei's taunts, Ami's unintentional blunders, Minako's poetic speeches, Makoto's directness. I don't mind the introduction to their characters at the beginning since it helps the people who have skipped the past seasons:
I don't mind the sparkles around Ami but these highlights on her skin are simply too much. O_o
Rei is still gorgeous but she is also mean again. (Thank God! I missed that side of hers.) It's great how Ami and she team up to ruffle Usagi's feathers:
This is the good stuff in Sailor Moon, which makes me overlook all the weaknesses of the show! :X I hope we see more of the Inners (and of course the Outers) now and less of the cheesy Usagi-Mamoru interactions. Speak of Usagi and Mamoru: I did like them in this episode, when we see Mamoru's serious side and Usagi's playful side and they even each other out so well. They are much easier to endure when they don't try to be romantic:
I love how she tops in the relationship by staying cheerful and how he fails to be angry at her. We have a dangerous love triangle, though:
It was creepy in the Black Moon arc but in this arc it's actually cute. Chibiusa is less annoying than she usually is, and angry Usagi is endearing.
I also love how Makoto and Minako team up to be the airheads in this season while Ami and Rei are the sensible ones.
Meanwhile, Ami and Rei don't seem very affected by Haruka's charm:
We get the silhouettes of the three Outers with their talismans at the beginning of the episode.
Michiru is gorgeous although I prefer her hair as it was in the old anime, now that I see her with her fluffy long hair. The old one was lighter and more elegant. Also, she has a rather large bust in this version, which she didn't have in the old one, in which she was slighter and more graceful whereas she is more majestic in this one. Either way, Michiru is great in both versions. It's harder for me to get used to Haruka, however.
Everything is off, the eyes, the voice, the hair. But Haruka looked odd in the first episode of the original anime, too, and in the manga, before her design changes. I miss androgynous Haruka since this one is simply too, er, male? Also, the hair looks weird although I can grow accustomed to the new voice.
Of course we get the Haruka-Usagi right from the start and the little jealousy game Michiru and Haruka play with each other, which is actually cute (although it's too much for me later on when Haruka pursues Usagi and longs for her when she is away).
Lol. Time to rethink your preferences, Usagi. (Well, she did crush on Rei and Makoto a bit when she first met them, but Haruka will be the first to ask her the question whether gender is really important.)
Have I already mentioned how much I hate the highlights?
Also, the art in the middle of the episode, which is used as a divider, has changed to Uranus and Neptune.
I wonder how many heterosexual females will turn bi or gay after watching this season. Lovely ending with Neptune&Uranus only:
*goes off to write the next chapter for "Encounter in Venice" before continuing "Ghost at Twilight"....
Anyhow, I'm going to watch this since I can't resist Uranus&Neptune. Until now I'm enjoying this although I still prefer the pair in the original anime series.