Reviews

Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon, Vol. 5 by Naoko Takeuchi, William Flanagan

bangel_ds's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional lighthearted relaxing fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

mehsi's review against another edition

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3.0

The conclusion to the Black Moon saga (and the beginning of a new one I am guessing, these poor girls never have a moment rest). I disliked Chibi-Usa so so so much. I get that she wants to be an adult, it must be horrible to be 900 years old and not get bigger. But bitch, no. The things she did in this one were just horrible. She is selfish, horrendous, and should understand things a bit more. And oh boy that incest. Girl, I get that you are infatuated with your daddy, but oh no you don't do shit like this. That is just gross disgusting. This was a tough volume to read. I didn't like that Chibi-Usa got to have powers. It felt a bit like, aww you poor poor thing, you did shitty things but it is OK, you had a harsh past. Here some magical powers to make things go away.
I loved how the Dark Moon saga ended though, and I loved the love and compassion that Usagi showed in this one. Wiseman was just freaking creepy and a manipulative ass.
I felt so sorry for Pluto. The decisions she had to make in this one were heartbreaking.
I wasn't happy with the ending. Could we please just have a volume or two without that little brat? Please? Please?
Gorgeous art though, it just pulls you in.

Review first posted at https://twirlingbookprincess.com/

catburps's review

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adventurous inspiring lighthearted mysterious fast-paced

3.5

leafblade's review against another edition

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2.0

Odio este arco y odio a chibiusa jesu bendito callenla de un sopapo

rat_girl_'s review against another edition

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adventurous emotional tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

karalyndawn's review against another edition

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adventurous dark funny fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

I like how the story is progressing and I actually enjoyed Chibi-Usa in this more than the anime. The incest was sooooo cringy tho yuck.

chaosandbooks's review against another edition

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3.0

This arc had a lot of potential and the beginning of this volume started out pretty well, but it fell a bit flat at the end. There's a pretty equal amount of hits and misses, along with a rather pointless ending scene given what happens right after. The Black Lady did turn out to be the best villain, but is overshadowed by everything else.

*SPOILERS AHEAD*

The leadup to the Black Lady is fantastic and compelling, though the incest is a huge yikes for me. I do appreciate the motives and the betrayal, also how it forces Sailor Pluto to play her only hand. She's one of the most important guardians and deserved more time being developed. However, the big villain is still the Wiseman and the fight is pretty short. I love the leadup to it with the transformations of Sailor Moon and a new guardian in Chibi-usa. The fight itself is pretty lackluster though and it all ends pretty fast. Just when it's all over and it looks like Chibi-usa is finally going home with an emotional sendoff, she comes back to train? This strikes me as so odd for a number of reasons, mainly just that there's not need for it? I guess we'll see how the next volume goes.

meowchelle_salvato's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

theseventhl's review against another edition

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4.0

First things first: I got one of those crappily edited volumes from Kodansha USA with the smudging and heavy printing, but I don't have my receipt so good luck returning it for me. Seriously, where the hell is the quality control that such obvious errors can slip under the radar? JFC.

Complaints about printing aside, this is easily the strongest volume of the series so far as it brings the dramatic conclusion to the 'R' story arc. Yes, a few plot threads are wrapped up almost too nicely at the end, but this is a mahou shojo manga after all. But this is a volume about Usagi's strength and Chibiusa's growth, and in the end these two ideas work together to bring down the Death Phantom (err, 'Wiseman' to dub fans) and save the Earth from a toxic death.

Warning: Scenes with Dark!Chibiusa and Brainwashed!Mamoru can get quite questionable at times, so if you're triggered by incest, feel free to skip those panels.

eatingwords's review against another edition

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5.0

I knew what was going to happen in this volume. I still had to cry at those last few pages.

The Nemesis as the second big enemy was defeated and I'm now excited to see what the next volume will bring as I haven't read it yet.

Things I loved in this volume:
- the transformation of "Small Lady" to "Black Lady" to "Sailor Chibimoon"
- the love and friendship between Chibiusa and Sailor Pluto
- the bickering between Usagi and Chibiusa