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A review by laurak23
Sailor Moon, Volume 8 by Naoko Takeuchi
5.0
Whew, this volume gives us the end of Infinity arc, and they are quite fast-paced! The first act of the Infinity arc is also included here, and leaves us on a nice cliffhanger of mystery and intrigue.
This volume picks up with the transformation of Hotaru-chan. Mistress 9 is becoming Master Pharoah 90, is trying to become one with the planet earth, is battling with Sailor Moon and is trying to suppress the soul of Hotaru-chan. I think that Hotaru-chan is the real hero of this arc. I love all the forms she takes and all the sacrifices she makes.
There is a lot of really beautiful art with the awakening of Sailor Saturn. Lots of those "soft" images (I really don't know how else to explain them) at the start of the acts, and throughout the pages, but I think my favorite is the sparse, simple line drawing of Saturn with her Glaive (page 100 in my book). It's simple and elegant and I think it just captures the moment perfectly.
Oh, speaking of sacrifices...Super Sailor Moon makes a pretty big one herself. When Mamo-chan realizes what Super Sailor Moon has done, and thinks that she has left him forever, his reaction is gut-wrenching. So is Super Chibi-Moon's. When she calls her "Mama," I honestly had tears in my eyes. Uranus doesn't take it well, either, lamenting that all she wanted to do was protect her Princess with her own two hands. But, thankfully, all is not lost. And hey, the senshi get another fuku upgrade!
I was a little confused about one thing, though, as that arc came to a close. Sometimes I have a hard time figuring out how much time has passed in these comics. If the characters don't make a specific reference to what month it is, or how long something has been going on, it feels like it's only been days, not months. For example, it was Rei-chan's birthday (April 17th) during act 28/Infinity 2. At the end of act 38/Infinity 12, Chibi-Usa is preparing to go back to the 30th Century on April 1st. So a whole year has passed! It certainly didn't feel like that arc took a whole year.
One funny thing I noticed had come to mind before, but had never really been addressed until now. Usagi calls her mother to tell her she's staying at Mako-chan's house, when she's really staying the night at Mamo-chan's. I had wondered several times whether her parents knew/noticed that she and Chibi-Usa were sleeping over at Mamo-chan's house. Mamo-chan's nervous reaction to the girls' insistence that they spend the night was hilariously endearing. "Your parents will lose their trust in me!" I also liked Usgai's reaction to Chibi-Usa's continued obsession with Mamo-chan seeing her as "100% woman." She reminds her that that is her father she's talking about. I don't know why that made me laugh so hard, but it did. I also loved the envy they have for each other; Usagi wishing for youth, Chibi-Usa wishing for adulthood. And, thanks to the (rather creepy) Amazon Quartet, have they gotten their wishes fulfilled?
Oh, and another thing that bothered me - there were no translation notes! There wasn't even the usual "STOP - TOMARE" warning at the "front" reminding you to start at the "back." There wasn't even an ad for the other volumes or a preview of the next volume. This has happened once before in one of my volumes, and I wonder if it's a flaw of the books grouped in the box set? Doesn't seem like it should matter, but I can't help but wonder.
This volume picks up with the transformation of Hotaru-chan. Mistress 9 is becoming Master Pharoah 90, is trying to become one with the planet earth, is battling with Sailor Moon and is trying to suppress the soul of Hotaru-chan. I think that Hotaru-chan is the real hero of this arc. I love all the forms she takes and all the sacrifices she makes.
There is a lot of really beautiful art with the awakening of Sailor Saturn. Lots of those "soft" images (I really don't know how else to explain them) at the start of the acts, and throughout the pages, but I think my favorite is the sparse, simple line drawing of Saturn with her Glaive (page 100 in my book). It's simple and elegant and I think it just captures the moment perfectly.
Oh, speaking of sacrifices...Super Sailor Moon makes a pretty big one herself. When Mamo-chan realizes what Super Sailor Moon has done, and thinks that she has left him forever, his reaction is gut-wrenching. So is Super Chibi-Moon's. When she calls her "Mama," I honestly had tears in my eyes. Uranus doesn't take it well, either, lamenting that all she wanted to do was protect her Princess with her own two hands. But, thankfully, all is not lost. And hey, the senshi get another fuku upgrade!
I was a little confused about one thing, though, as that arc came to a close. Sometimes I have a hard time figuring out how much time has passed in these comics. If the characters don't make a specific reference to what month it is, or how long something has been going on, it feels like it's only been days, not months. For example, it was Rei-chan's birthday (April 17th) during act 28/Infinity 2. At the end of act 38/Infinity 12, Chibi-Usa is preparing to go back to the 30th Century on April 1st. So a whole year has passed! It certainly didn't feel like that arc took a whole year.
One funny thing I noticed had come to mind before, but had never really been addressed until now. Usagi calls her mother to tell her she's staying at Mako-chan's house, when she's really staying the night at Mamo-chan's. I had wondered several times whether her parents knew/noticed that she and Chibi-Usa were sleeping over at Mamo-chan's house. Mamo-chan's nervous reaction to the girls' insistence that they spend the night was hilariously endearing. "Your parents will lose their trust in me!" I also liked Usgai's reaction to Chibi-Usa's continued obsession with Mamo-chan seeing her as "100% woman." She reminds her that that is her father she's talking about. I don't know why that made me laugh so hard, but it did. I also loved the envy they have for each other; Usagi wishing for youth, Chibi-Usa wishing for adulthood. And, thanks to the (rather creepy) Amazon Quartet, have they gotten their wishes fulfilled?
Oh, and another thing that bothered me - there were no translation notes! There wasn't even the usual "STOP - TOMARE" warning at the "front" reminding you to start at the "back." There wasn't even an ad for the other volumes or a preview of the next volume. This has happened once before in one of my volumes, and I wonder if it's a flaw of the books grouped in the box set? Doesn't seem like it should matter, but I can't help but wonder.