Sailor Moon Saturday #4!

Hello everyone!

So yet again, we are left with a void in our hearts. No new Sailor Moon today! (However, the new episode will be up next week.)

I'll be continuing the theme I have at the moment with the Sailor Moon column - today I'll be talking about mythology again, only this time I'll be discussing Luna.

Warning: This post is a little spoiler-y for those who have never seen the 90s show, watched the movies or read the manga.

Last week I also touched on Moon mythology, but rather than talk about Selene again I'm going to talk about Luna, the Roman goddess.

Luna is the Roman equivalent of Selene (who is Greek).

In Rome, there is a spot called Palatine Hill, which was once the home to a temple for Luna. Supposedly this temple would shine in the night, but not much is really known about said temple besides that.

Like in the image above, Luna was often shown driving a chariot. This chariot is called a biga, and is meant to sort of "pair" with the chariot that the Sun god drove (called a quadriga) to show the balance of the morning and the evening.

What I found unusual about Luna was that she was a minor god, so to speak. She was often paired up with two others, Hecate and Diana. I had always thought that they were three separate and bigger gods, but really they sort of acted like a triangle. (Also, we shall discuss this more later, but in Sailor Moon Diana is actually the daughter/kitten of Luna and Artemis.)

Because she is the counterpart of Selene, she was also commonly paired with Endymion in stories. (Which, while understandable, skeeves me out a little bit. Mamoru and Luna.... Um. Although if we're going to discuss animal-human love, we can always nod to the second Sailor Moon movie.) She was also paired with Jupiter!

I know these articles are short, but I kind of like to keep them brief. Maybe it's my way of balancing out how long next week's will be!

If you have any comments, questions, or suggestions, please leave a comment below or email me! Next week I'll be reviewing the new episode, so hurray!

xo, Kate

Cheddar Beer Dip!

Hi everyone! It's been a while since I posted one of my own recipes, and today I was feeling adventurous. I just started exercising again today, so why not pig out and negate all of my hard work!?

Unfortunately I don't have many pictures from the actual cooking process, but hopefully my instructions will be easy to understand!

ingredients:

• 3 Tbsps all-purpose flour
• 1/2-3/4 cup beer (I only used 1/2 but whatever floats your boat will work)
• 1 tsp spicy brown mustard
• 2 8-ounce packages vegan cream cheese (I used Tofutti), softened
• 1 8-ounce package Daiya shredded cheddar
• 3 Tbsps dry ranch dressing mix (most store brands are vegan but read the labels carefully anyway!)
• optional: Sriracha, to taste

instructions:

1. In a medium pot over low-medium heat, pour in the beer. Quickly whisk in the flour. It will turn into a weird beige "paste"; at this point, remove from heat (but keep heat at the ready!).
2. Whisk the spicy brown mustard into the paste, and put this back on the heat. Keep the heat on low-medium.
3. Slowly raise the heat to medium and mix in the cream cheese. Once this has begun to melt, start mixing in the Daiya shredded cheddar. I mixed a little at a time to make sure it was evenly distributed throughout the cream cheese.
4. Mix in the dry ranch dressing mix and the optional Sriracha.
5. Optional: Before eating, broil the dip in an oven-safe bowl on high for two minutes to make it extra melty and more of a golden colour!

Here's my little mise en place! The blue mason jar has my homemade dry Ranch dressing mix (which I'll talk about more in a second), and that bowl in the lower-right corner has flour in it.

I am not responsible for any of you bad little kiddies that are under 21, so none of that! But yeah, this is pretty much the East Coast's beer love. (I don't really drink much in general, especially beer, but I like Yuengling. Whoops, fulfilling that stereotype I guess!)

Please note that, despite what you may think, not all alcohol is vegan. If you're unsure about what beers are safe/if you have any questions, please visit Barnivore for more information!

Now, I got the recipe for the homemade Ranch dressing mix from this wonderful book! You can follow the lovely Lane Gold on Twitter or on Instagram! I love this book and always highly recommend it. I've loved everything I've made from it, although I tend to lower the amount of salt in my recipes just because I'd like to cut down in general.

 Here was a picture from the mixing process. Mmmmm, dip.

Eric and I had a box of soft pretzel mix in the cabinet, so we whipped those up too. I mean, nothing like beer and pretzels and cheese right!?

I hope you guys enjoy this recipe! I pretty much scarfed everything down in sight, heh. I recommend this for big parties or a night in with your friends. It's pretty easy to make AND it's delicious! Even people who don't like alcohol/beer will probably enjoy this dish.

If you have any comments, questions, or suggestions, feel free to leave a message for me here or email me!

xo, Kate

Sailor Moon Saturday #3!

Hi guys! I know I'm cutting it really close today, but as some of you may know I had a previous engagement. I was in Delaware for my boyfriend's cousin's housewarming party!

(I legit talked to this cutie more than I talked to people.)

And then Eric took me to Blackbird Pizzeria in Philly, which is this GREAT little gem that serves vegan pizza and has the BEST vegan cheesesteak (that I've had, at least) in the entire city. Soooooooo good.

But anyway!

So today the second episode of Sailor Moon Crystal came out, so let's talk about that.

(Warning: This post will be filled with images and will be spoiler-heavy, so turn back now if you wanna avoid all of that.)

Today's episode was entitled 'Act 2 - Ami, Sailor Mercury'.

Right off the bat I'm loving this series more because they aren't dragging it out. In the original 90s one, we had to wait eight episodes before we were introduced to Ami. Which doesn't really sound like that much, but trust me. It dragged. And in the manga, they actually do meet fairly quickly. Sooooo, thank goodness.

As always, she's depicted as an incredibly smart girl who seems to have no friends. People are constantly amazed by her, but they're probably too intimidated to actually say hi. Laaaaaame.

Luna knows what's up though. She senses something special IMMEDIATELY and runs in to do some recon. And by recon, I mean being adorable and being pampered.

At one point, when Ami and Usagi touch hands briefly as Ami hands Luna over to Usagi, we're greeted by this little "flashback". I guess I'll call it a flashback, when really it's more of a "past life back"?

People constantly bash Usagi's character (for being too whiny or stupid or loud or annoying), but people seem to rarely discuss her positive attributes. I thought this episode touched nicely on what is probably my favourite one - her friendly attitude. She's able to quickly make friends with pretty much ANYONE because she doesn't care about your past or about rumours or any of those notions. She is kind to everyone.

The storyline with the villain consists of an evil school, basically. The computer sucks out your energy, uses you to find the Legendary Crystal. You know, the usual.

Another thing I REALLY like about this series is that the villains really are, in my mind, a lot scarier. I'll touch on that more in a second, though.

Can we please address Mamoru's inability to change clothes? I'm begging you, wear something else.

USAGI'S ROOM UGH. I want her comforter. So much. (They sell fabric like that on Spoonflower though. You're welcome.)

Usagi gets her transformation pen in this episode; this is a device she uses to create disguises for herself. Today we have Doctor Usagi!

So remember how I said the villains in this are scarier?

Um, yeah.

I remember reading that this series was supposed to be aimed towards older people (I'm assuming people in my generation), and the fact that it's based around the manga means that this will probably get a lot darker later on. But I'm still pleasantly shocked.

Like.

I'm not kidding.

I AM REALLY NOT KIDDING.

CAN WE ALSO TALK ABOUT HOW SAILOR MERCURY'S TRANSFORMATION SCENE IS SO MUCH BETTER THAN SAILOR MOON'S?

I'm angry about this but also happy.

It's still not what I would call "beautiful", and the limbs are still awkward and reminiscent of the video game Octodad (thank you for that beautiful comparison, Eric), but at least it's better.

All in all, I was pleased with this episode.

The next episode of Sailor Moon Crystal will be debuting on August 2nd and is entited 'Act 3 - Rei, Sailor Mars'.

I'm currently watching the show on Crunchyroll but there are a few other places to watch it too! Hulu also has it.

If you guys have any questions, comments, or suggestions, please feel free to leave me a message below or email me!

xo, Kate

Elaine Stritch, You Funny Bitch.

Today brings the tragic passing of a hilarious actress.

Rest in peace, Elaine Stritch.

I was first introduced to this talented woman when she appeared on '30 Rock' as the sharp-tongued Colleen Donaghy, the mother of Jack Donaghy (played by Alec Baldwin). Though she was only in nine episodes, it FEELS like she's always there - her performance left such an impression on me, I was convinced she was in at least half of the series before my visit to IMDb proved me wrong.

She also plays a cute little role in 'ParaNorman' as a sweet and supportive grandmother (which is kind of a nice break from the role I mentioned earlier - she's not exactly a "cute and cuddly" mom).

If you'd like to check out more of her work, here's her IMDb page. Don't expect to find too much of her stuff on Netflix though. ('30 Rock' is on there, but you won't find it if you search for Elaine Stritch.) This may change now because of her death, but at the moment the only thing that appears when you search for her is the documentary 'Elaine Stritch: Shoot Me'. Which I plan on watching as soon as this headache goes away.

Keep on smilin'.

xo, Kate

Recipe Review: Alton Brown's Guacamole

For a really long time, I HATED guacamole.

I mean, my opinion on this dip pretty much just changed within the last year. Now I'm addicted to it.

But I have a problem.

I have, to put it very simply, a genetic mutation in which cilantro tastes and smells like soap to me. (Clicking that link there will lead you to a New York Times article in which they talk briefly about this phenomenon.) And cilantro is in like, 99% of guacamole that you can buy.

Mmmmm, a side of soap with my guac please.

Sometimes I'll just grin and hope I don't pick up that soapy flavour and scent, but it's ALWAYS there. And it's always foul to me. I've asked a lot of people to describe what cilantro REALLY tastes like, but they usually leave me with an unsatisfying "I can't describe it" type of statement. Ah well. That's a shame.

So the other day, before I went grocery shopping, I decided to try making homemade guac for the first time. I could easily leave out the cilantro! Hurray! And now I'm on this weird mission to try all sorts of guacamole recipes.

I love Alton Brown. I love the Food Network. (I'm addicted, oh mannnnn.) So I figured for my first guacamole attempt, I'd use his recipe.

I am actually... really disappointed. Surprised and disappointed. But let us move on, and perhaps this is just me!

(Yes, I apparently have to clarify that guacamole is vegan - people apparently like to put sour cream and mayonnaise in guac? Uhhh, okay then.)

So, if you want to try Alton Brown's recipe, just give us a click then! I'll post my reasons for not liking this at the end, but I'll show you my process first.

Check out these cute little ingredients! (I used sun dried tomatoes instead of Romas, and I only used a tiny little jalapeno from our garden because I am a wuss with spicy food.)

Also I had to stop and show you guys this goofy straw I got from 7-11 the other day; hi, I'm Ned Flanders!

I got a little distracted at times while making this because I felt this urge to rewatch Orange is the New Black for the fourth time. Whoops.

Mashin' up those avocados.

Now, here's an easy way to juice limes/lemons/etc. without wanting to rip off your entire arm in the process.

It's also an easy way to ruin some tongs. Whoops.

Mmmm, a plate of colours.

Look at how itty bitty that jalapeno is!

Now, unless you're Iron Man or Thor or some other superhero, you should really wear gloves when cutting and handling jalapenos. Otherwise, you're gonna have a bad time. I had no gloves, so whoops hi plastic bag. (I really don't recommend this method - it mainly got in the way and I was five seconds away from cutting myself open.)

The recipe says to let it sit at room temperature for an hour before eating it, so I covered it with the remainder of the lime juice, pushed plastic wrap on top of it (to prevent browning) and I waited.

And I just... did not care for it.

While it had a nice texture, I found that the cumin was so overwhelming that all I could think of were samosas while I was eating this. It was just not my cup of tea. I even found the lime juice to be a tad much, but MAN that cumin really hit me. I'd recommend either lowering the amount to 1/4 of a teaspoon, or cutting it out entirely. I will probably not be making this recipe again. Ugh, I can't stop thinking about that cumin.

If you have a guacamole recipe that you'd like me to try, link it in a comment below or send me an email!

Who wants some guac?

xo, Kate

Sailor Moon Saturday #2!

Hello readers!

So, no new Sailor Moon episode this week. (Booooo.) Alas, we must wait until next week!

However, as I said last week, I will be occasionally discussing things within the 90s series/manga while we wait for new episodes!

Warning: This post is spoiler-heavy for those who have never seen the 90s show or read the manga.

Today, I will be discussing the character of Usagi Tsukino. Specifically, I'm going to be talking about some basic Moon mythology.

First, we'll start with some basic facts from the English translation of the series, and then we'll go into the more complicated parts of the Japanese translation.

In the English version of the anime, Usagi has instead been given the English name "Serena". Serena is probably an "updated" version of the name Selene.

Selene was, in Greek mythology, the goddess of the Moon. Her Roman equivalent is Luna (who we will, of course, discuss in another article), and one of her siblings was named Helios (who appears in Sailor Moon SuperS and I will probably discuss him at a later point). Selene is commonly associated with Artemis (which is perhaps why, in the manga, we are originally told that Sailor V is the Moon princess - her relationship with Artemis was perhaps a "clue", in a way).

In the manga, we later learn that in Mamoru's past life, he was Prince Endymion. In mythology, Endymion was Selene's human lover, and we shall naturally go into his background more at a later point. As far as I can tell, their relationship is first discussed within the third century BC writing of Argonautica, an epic poem by Apollonius Rhodius.

In both Hymn to Helios and Hymn to Selene, they discuss Selene's beautiful hair, which is perhaps why Usagi has such long and golden hair? And, according to the Wikipedia page (which I will not be citing because I am lazy and this is NOT a school assignment, heh)

Selene is commonly depicted with a crescent moon, often accompanied by stars; sometimes, instead of a crescent, a lunar disc is used. Often a crescent moon rests on her brow, or the cusps of a crescent moon protrude, horn-like, from her head, or from behind her head or shoulders. Selene's head is sometimes surrounded by a nimbus, and from the Hellenistic period onwards, she is sometimes pictured with a torch.

So, some grains of salt to consider from the Greek viewpoint.

Now, for the Japanese one.

Naoko Takeuchi, the manga-ka and creator of the Sailor Moon series, purposely gave Usagi the astrological sign of Cancer, as it is commonly ruled by the Moon (according to the Sailor Moon Wikipedia page for Usagi). (Also this is more of a Western note rather than a Japanese one, but shhhhh.)

Let us talk about Usagi's name.

Usagi's full name is Usagi Tsukino. I'll admit I had to look this up because I never learned kanji, but the kanji for tsuki translates as Moon (月). The hiragana for her name (うさぎ)  translates to rabbit. (Hence why she is given the nickname "Bunny" in the American version.)

But what do rabbits have to do with the Moon? Or Moon mythology?

In Japanese folklore, there's actually a rather cute story, heh. I remember when I was in Japan I stayed with a family for a few days. They were usually too busy to actually take care of me, so I stayed with another family a lot. And there we talked about a lot of Japanese fairy tales and such (I love fairy tales, and we often talked of Kaguya-hime). And I kind of knew about this story before my trip, but I was never really obsessed with it or anything like that, and even now my memory is a little hazy.

I'll put a link to the Wikipedia page in the Works Cited area, but basically there's a story where there's a bunny on the Moon. Kind of like the Man in the Moon, but with a rabbit. It seems as though this was originally a Chinese tale, but it spread throughout Asia eventually.

This blog gives a delightful song that goes along with the story of the Moon rabbit as well.

Works Cited

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moon_rabbit

Evelyn-White, Hymn to Helios (31) 6, Hymn to Selene, (32) 18; Rudin, pp. 94–95; Morford, p. 64; Aelian, On Animals, 12.7.

Smith, "Selene". Kerenyi, pp. 196–197; Hammond, "SELENE" pp. 970–971; Hard, p. 46; Morford, pp. 64, 219–221.

Hopefully I was able to teach you something today! Next Saturday I'll do a review of the second episode of Sailor Moon (though it may be a little later in the day, I have a housewarming party to go to). If you have any questions, comments, or suggestions please feel free to comment here or send me an email!

xo, Kate

Book Buddies - Enchantment by Orson Scott Card

I dunno about you guys, but sometimes I go into a reading slump.

Don't get me wrong. I love reading. I mean, until very recently I was an English major and was totally set on becoming an editor.

But sometimes, you just get restless. Or at least I do. And I know my mom does, too. We go through phases where we kind of switch what we're doing - we'll binge read for a few months, then binge watch some TV shows, then binge watch some movies, and so on and so forth. (My binging has increased dramatically since I caved to the power of Netflix.)

To get to the point, I was in a reading slump for the first half of this year! 

Usually it's a month or two max, so this was kind of surprising. I understood that I didn't really want to read during the work season (I'd just be putting down the book every other minute anyway, so there would be no point in getting absorbed), but afterward? Hmmmm.

So I decided to push myself out of the slump. By force. No little nudges or baby steps here. Sink or swim!

My first book that I chose to get out of the slump was 'Enchantment' by Orson Scott Card.

I've never read any of his stuff before this, but I knew of him by reputation. Not only did he write the incredibly popular 'Ender's Games' series, but he's also known for being a shitty person. I could go on and on about his hatred towards others, but here's a nifty link that will lead you to a few of his... negative opinions. In fact, his bigotry has led many people to completely boycott his work (ex: when 'Ender's Game' recently came out as a movie, people were holding protests, such as the LGBT group Geeks Out - read more about it here).

Before I published this review, I was originally going to write an entry about how shitty people can create beautiful art. And that it's okay to appreciate that art and not the artist. However, I found a lovely article on the New York Times Opinion Page, so feel free to read this too, as it's very well written and eloquently explains this phenomenon better than I could.

So dear readers, feel free to boycott Orson Scott Card. I certainly understand the reasoning behind it. But don't feel bad if you don't. Don't feel bad if you read his books. A terrible person can create a beautiful thing, and one should not interfere with the other.

With that said, let's dive in to the actual review.

From the back of the book, here is the synopsis we've been given:

"The moment young Ivan stumbled upon a clearing in the dense Carpathian forest, his life was forever changed. Atop a pedestal encircled by fallen leaves, the beautiful princess Katerina lay as still as death - while a malevolent presence stirred in the hidden depths below.

Now, years later, Ivan is compelled to return. He finds the clearing just as he left it. This time he does not run..."

I like to think of this story as a "fairy tale for grown ups". (Sometimes I forget that I am now an adult, ugh. The melancholy of leaving childhood has been plaguing me, which is hilarious considering I'm only 24 years old. Such is life.) (Also, from this point on, I shall refer to Orson Scott Card as OSC.)

OSC hits upon the topic of religion multiple times within the story, so I highly recommend having some basic knowledge of Christian and Jewish religions. (But really, very basic.) I will teach you all, quickly, about mohels though, as this is discussed early on in the story and I honestly don't have many friends who are Jewish/have a Jewish background. (I always think of this as common knowledge, but maybe not everyone has watched Seinfeld as much as I have.)

In the Jewish religion, as I'm sure you all know, the men are circumcised. However, it's not a simple medical procedure. Oh no. For some strange reason, we seem to enjoy glorifying or reveling in our pain or the pain of others. We always have to make it an event, heh. 

When the boy is circumcised, a mohel is brought in. A mohel is the one who performs the bris/brit milah (removal of the foreskin). Afterwards, everyone eats and parties over the fact that they just scarred an eight day old baby. I feel like that's really the only thing in the book I'd need to explain to some people, but if you read this and have any other questions feel free to email me/comment here and I shall edit this entry to include more information!

But, I will admit... as someone who classifies herself as an Atheist Jew (like Woody Allen in that regard), I was a bit turned off by the amount of religious talk in this work. Here I was expecting a fluid fantasy story, and I felt like I was listening to a bunch of cantankerous college professors. It just seemed to drag at times due to the dry nature and lack of compromise by any of the characters.

Speaking of, I had a hard time dealing with the characters as well. I liked them well enough on their own (when Ivan was alone he was okay, when Serge was alone he was okay, etc.) but when brought together I wanted to slap them all. None of them seemed to get along at all and their bitterness towards each other drove me up the damn wall.

WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD.

I hated Katerina. I mean hated her. And I hated her relationship with Ivan. I found them tiresome and their romantic relationship was unbelievable. I mean they're obviously not going to get along at first due to culture shock, but I figured they'd both be intelligent enough to listen to each other. (But maybe I'm giving people in general a bit of a stretch there?)

My favourite thing about this story was the incorporation of Russian fairy tales. Specifically, I loved Baba Yaga and her spells. (The tricksy little wasp was lovely.) I do not come from a stereotypical Russian family (they had all passed away before I could have any understanding and such of Slavic culture), but even I grew up with stories of Baba Yaga. Baba Yaga still sends shivers down my spine. But she's my favourite little imaginary beastie. She's terrifying! And this book does a lovely job of portraying her.

Overall I'm glad I read this, but I would probably not read it again. It was just too slow at times and it read like a debate between elderly folk who won't acknowledge change. (I know I said to separate the art from the artist, but I will admit that this rings a bell heheh.)

I hope you enjoyed my review! I know it's a bit scattered, but I felt like throwing in some educational tidbits today! If you have any questions, comments, or suggestions for articles feel free to comment here or send me an email!

Have a lovely day, kiddies!

xo, Kate

Sailor Moon Saturday #1!

Hello all!

Oh maaaaan it's been a while. I know. I'm sorry, heh. I've been depressed and making some big life decisions (like going back to school for art!) so uhhhhh whoops. The Geeky Gal has kind of been on the back burner. That, and my lack of an external hard drive made this difficult.

But I've thankfully purchased a new one, so back to the blog!

Today I've decided to start a new column here with Sailor Moon Saturdays. (Warning: These entries will be filled with spoilers and they will also be image heavy, so be aware!)

With the release of the new anime series, I've decided to post a review of each new episode as they're released. I wanted to post this sooner, but my dear friend Ben was visiting from Massachusetts and then I went to the movies. (Saw Maleficent by the way. Enjoyed it more than I expected!)

In celebration of Sailor Moon's 20th anniversary, Toei Animation decided to reboot the anime and create a version that was much closer to the manga. Which, as an American fan especially, I'm grateful for - while I love the original Sailor Moon anime with all of my heart, it had a much lighter tone than the original work, and with our butchered version it really took away a lot of the depth that was originally intended. (But hey, I still love it. So, whoops.)

Today's episode was entitled 'Act 1 - Usagi, Sailor Moon'.

In today's episode, we're introduced to the titular character, Sailor Moon. However, during the day she's known as Usagi Tsukino. She lives with her mother, father, and younger brother (her father is the only family member not shown in this episode) and goes to school like any other kid. She's a 14 year old crybaby that's a bit ditzy, not really into studying, and she has a whimsical romantic side.

While on her way to school, she runs into a cat with bandages on its forehead. As she removes them, she sees a crescent moon-shaped bald spot. We're also introduced to some of her friends, as well as her future love interest and some enemies.

She soon reunites with the cat and gains magical powers that will transform her into the hero known as Sailor Moon. Why was she chosen? What must she do? These are questions that will obviously be answered as the series progresses, heh.

Let us take a look at some of the animation.

We're first greeted with this lovely image of the moon, which (OBVIOUS SPOILERS) is going to be important. Considering, you know, the main character's hero persona has the word Moon in it?

To differentiate this series from the older 90s one, it has been give a new title (Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon Crystal, though most people still only refer to it as either Sailor Moon or Sailor Moon Crystal).

Here is our first facial shot of Usagi. Man, if only it were a little more flattering. But I guess that's the point, right? At this point in the story, she's whiny and clumsy and just not mature. But what else do you expect from a teenager? (I've been reading a lot of negative criticism about how "annoying" she is, but I guess everyone has suddenly forgotten that teenagers are all annoying.)

Haruna-sensei is the one character that, as of now, has changed the most. And by that, I mean OH WOW HER HAIR. It threw me off quite a bit, considering she used to be a dark brunette. Everyone else is pretty on point, but ohhhhh man. I like this look, but it's jarring compared to everyone else.

Naru seems to be much more mature in this version (I think it's because her face shape is slightly elongated and her lips are more prominent), but perhaps that's a little unfair to say considering she always plays a bit of a feminine foil to Usagi's ridiculous behaviour while she's in school. Even so, it's nice to see her like this.

Umino looks the same but SO DIFFERENT? His hair seems bigger, which makes him seem a little more delicate. I like that. I think a lot of people write Umino off as a "very annoying guy" (coughUsagi), but he's probably more sensitive than he wants to let on and understands that people don't really like him. So in a way, he probably works hard in school to find some kind of praise and attention.

Mamoru Chiba's design, while pretty much unchanged, is still very gorgeous. Oh yes, it'll be nice to see him as the love interest again! (Although it's kind of insulting that he doesn't get a nice "flower shot" like the next person I'm about to introduce...)

And then we have Motoki, who as Usagi says, works at the arcade. He's a bit more prominent (yet not terribly important) in the manga as Usagi's first love interest. At least, before she really begins interacting with Mamoru.

I like the little updated Sailor V game footage that we had in this. The video game is actually really important in the manga (as well as that arcade) so I'm glad they seem to be heading in a direction where they'll feature that more.

BY THE WAY CAN WE JUST LOOK AT HOW CUTE LUNA IS? A talking cat that wants to give you magical powers AND good advice? I'm sold.

Here we have our first look at Sailor Moon after her first transformation. I'm sure if you thought a cat was talking to you and handed you a magical broach, you'd probably think you were delirious and check right in to a hospital. But Usagi just kind of goes with the flow. Okay!  She looks super cute though.

And look, Tuxedo Mask! Flying gracefully through the air! (Also, please note the watch he carries on the left bottom side of the screen. That watched played a bit of a part in the manga as well and when I first saw Mamoru carrying it earlier I pretty much screamed at my computer.)

This is Jadeite, one of Queen Beryl's henchmen. I'm wondering if they'll go into his background a bit like in the manga, but we shall see just how accurate the show is. But for now, he'll be the antagonist against the Sailor Scouts. Supposedly we'll get a good shot of Queen Beryl in the next episode though!

Now, I want to briefly hit on things that I liked about this episode, and things I didn't like.

Let's start with the things I didn't like.

I really only have two major complaints with this show so far, but considering it's the first episode I do want you guys to take this with a grain of salt. And perhaps I'm being far too picky.

1. I HATED Sailor Moon's transformation scene. When she first transforms from Usagi to Sailor Moon, I was devastated by the animation choice they chose. Rather than sticking with traditional 2D, they decided to switch it up and mix in a clunky 3D bit in there as well (which has been rather common lately - see ANY new Pokemon series). I was so disappointed. I love 3D, and I love 2D, but it's SO hard to mix the two mediums and I consider this a hard miss. (Hence why I didn't take any screenshots of it. Not only did I not want to share the ENTIRE episode with you guys, but I just thought it was that disappointing.)

2. The music. Neither the opening or closing songs had me humming afterward. There was none of the 90s nostalgia for me. However, I'm trying my best to not really compare the two in terms of music and to let them be their own "animals". And this may change the longer the series is on, so we'll see.

And now, for the things I do like.

1. So far, I'm really happy that they're sticking closer to the original source. In the next episode we're supposedly going to be introduced to Sailor Mercury. This is kind of big, considering the first series made us wait eight episodes before introducing her! (That may not SEEM like a lot, but it kind of drags in the beginning because of this. Also, it was kind of annoying considering they all seem to meet each other in a second in the manga sooooo.)

2. I love the "title screens" for the show. These are the pieces of art that would appear between commercials on Japanese TV (to let you know when the show is taking a break, when it's coming back, and when it's over).

The last one especially seems to have a nice twinge of Alphonse Mucha's style in there, so I was very pleased with that.

On a happy note, I'm going to leave you with one of our first shots of all of the "inner" Sailor Scouts together! It's shown during the opening theme song, and I'm so excited to see how they all turn out in the show.

If you're interested in watching the new anime, you can watch it over on Hulu.com or Crunchyroll.com! (I tend to prefer Crunchyroll but to each his own!)

As of now the next episode is scheduled to air on July 19th. (Ugh! Delaying the series twice AND making us wait this long in between each episode? You guys are killing me.) However, I'm considering doing this every Saturday in the sense that I'll talk about something Sailor Moon-related each week, whether I discuss mythology or theories or opinions!

If you guys have any Sailor Moon-related topics you want me to discuss next week, feel free to leave a comment or shoot me an email!

Hope you enjoyed this review, and keep reading!

xo, Kate