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[Sailor Moon Super S the Movie: Black Dream Hole]
AKA: Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon SuperS The Movie: The 9 Sailor Soldiers Gather! Miracle in the Black Dream Hole
Genre: Magical girl fantasy
Length: Movie, 60 minutes
Distributor: Currently licensed by Viz Entertainment, available streaming on Youtube.
Content Rating: 7+ (brief nudity)
Related Series: Sailor Moon original lineup (Sailor Moon, R, S, Stars - TV season and accompanying movie, plus the "Ami in Love" short), Sailor Moon Crystal lineup (Crystal - 3 TV seasons, Eternal - 2 movies, Cosmos - 2 movies)
Also Recommended: Sailor Moon (series)
Notes: Based on the Sailor Moon manga by Naoko Takeuchi, though this story itself is not based on any previously existing manga story. This aired in theatres alongside the short Ami-chan no Hatsukoi.

This is the third and final movie in the Sailor Moon movie trilogy.
Rating:

Sailor Moon Super S the Movie: Black Dream Hole

Synopsis

A mysterious flute melody has been playing around various places in Japan lately, luring any children nearby that hear it. A trio of flute players are luring the children to their ships in the chance to bring them aboard to Marziapannu Castle, where their mistress, Queen Badiyanu, resides. She hopes to be able to use these children by putting them permanately to sleep and, using the essence of their dreams, create a Black Dream Hole that will swallow up the Earth in eternal darkness. If successful, Eaarth's inhabitants will remain asleep forever! When Chibi-Usa gets captured by these flute players, Usagi and the others step forth to stop Badiyanu and her henchmen, aided with the assistance of one of the flute players' little brothers, Peruru.


Review

Well, here we are at the final Sailor Moon movie. Like the first two movies before it, this one focuses on someone close to Usagi, this time on the love-her-or-hate-her character Chibi-Usa, even getting her own love interest in the form of a fairy boy named Peruru, the little brother of Badinayu henchmen Pupuran. In typical cliched fashion, though, he's a goody two-shoes unlike his brother, an archetype that's as overused in anime as perverted old men.

Anyway, the movie starts off with a funny scene involving Usagi and her friends baking cookies. Ami reminisces about how her mother used to make her cookies at 3 p.m. on various days, referring to the event as the "Three O Clock Fairy". Chibi-Usa laters one-ups Usagi in a funny scene where she talks about how her cookies may not look great, but provide its eater with 100X courage and 100X power, referring to them as "special cookies". Usagi then takes said cookies of hers to Mamaoru, hoping he's enjoy them, while also asking if he prefers Chibi-Usa over her. Confused by this question, Mamoru doesn't provide a clear answer, leading to Usagi getting upset. It's after this that we finally hear about the flute playing bad guys and their kidnapping of children.

When Chibi-Usa herself gets brainwashed that night, Usagi and the others finally step forth and try to stop the evil pied pipers, transforming into Sailor Soldiers and fighting a bunch of candy enemies. After losing the fight with said evil candy enemies (I wish I was making this up), the still brainwashed kids kidnap Chibi-Usa, taking her to Badiyanu's castle in the sky. At first heartbroken over the situation, Usagi later finds help in the form of the not-evil little brother of Pupuran, Peruru, who conveniently has a ship lined up for the Sailor Soldiers to use to fly to Badiyanu's place.

When Sailor Moon and the others finally arrive at Badiyanu's castle, there are spontaneously greeted by Sailor Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto, who randomly use attacks not seen in any other animated iteration of Sailor Moon that don’t even appear again in Sailor Moon Sailor Stars, such as swords and mirrors. They beat Badiyanu’s flute playing minions (who apparently turn into birds when they don’t have their flutes on them. Huh?), fight Badiyanu herself, almost lose, unlose, and then Sailor Moon and Chibi-Moon use Moon Gorgeous Meditation to save the day and defeat her. The Sailor Soldiers then land on the beach, where Chibi-Usa kisses Peruru before he leaves for places unknown into the sky.

Sounds pretty simple, huh? Well, it kind of is, but that's the great thing about the Sailor Moon series: it's always fun to watch, even when it becomes a bit predictable, thanks to humorous dialogue and the weird but close relationship between Usagi and Chibi-Usa. The animation and music are good, the voice acting is adequate, and the dub from Optimum is, well, Optimum (Three O Clock Mondays? Seriously?). The Japanese version also features in the opening theme an adorable sequence, showing Usagi, Ami, Rei, Makoto, and Minako playing as children.

In short, Sailor Moon SuperS the Movie: Black Dream Hole is good entertainment for those who like the other installments of the Sailor Moon franchise...unless you out-and-out hate Chibi-Usa.

A fun, enjoyable, average Sailor Moonromp. Subtract two stars if you REALLY hate Chibi-Usa, or add one star if you REALLY missed the Outer Scouts during Super S TV.Tim Jones

Recommended Audience: Non-sexual nudity, although the scenes in question are a little longer than usual Sailor Moon fare. Fine for older kids and up.



Version(s) Viewed: VHS, Japanese with English subtitles; VHS, edited English dub
Review Status: Full (1/1)
Sailor Moon Super S the Movie: Black Dream Hole © 1995 Takeuchi Naoko / Kodansha / TV Asahi / Toei
 
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