keyofnik: Hello and welcome to Jet Wolf Talks Excessively About the SuperS attacks. There was a lot I didn’t like about SuperS as a season, but it did bring us a bunch of new attacks, and damn if I don’t love me some Senshi attacks. I go a bit wordy whenever we see the girls do something other than their standard attacks (wow really Jet Wolf you don’t say), but that doesn’t mean I don’t love the stock footage too. I really love the stock footage too. All production and cost reasons aside, I love the stock footage because it constantly enforces ideas about the characters. Because stock footage shows up so frequently (like “every episode” frequently), the creators are super focused on details. In terms of shaping the audiences views and impressions of a character, the stock footage is one of the most important factors. Another fun bonus is that there’s so much to talk about. From characters’ poses and expressions, to the movement and direction of the sequence, everything is intentional and character-motivated. The first new attack we saw in SuperS is, of course, Sailor Moon’s. I have a lot of problems with this process, which I’ve talked about at great length. So I’m cutting Pegasus out of this sequence. His presence undermines everything and I’ll treat this attack as though he isn’t even a factor. This is about Usagi alone, as it should always have been. So here we have Moon Gorgeous Meditation. I hesitate to read much into attack names, especially Usagi’s, which can be downright nonsensical sometimes. I mean honestly, the name itself sounds like Usagi’s sending the monsters to their rooms to think about what they’ve done. Which is an musing image, but not so much in keeping with swirling rainbow lace doilies and shattering mirrors. So I don’t put much into the attack name, especially as it’s not in the show’s native language. While watching this attack, the thing that sticks with you the longest, I think, is Usagi’s determination. In all of her attacks to this point, she’s been serious, but distant from us. She goes through a lot of twirls and acrobatics, and the camera is following her all over. The sense of Usagi herself, specifically, is lost in the attack. Moon Healing Escalation, Moon Princess Halation, Moon Spiral Heart Attack, even Moon Tiara Magic to a point (which is the most basically animated attack in the show). The general impression of those attacks is that Usagi is everywhere, Usagi is inescapable, and her love-based attacks blanket the audience. There’s none of that in Moon Gorgeous Meditation (“MGM”, going forward). MGM is about sharp motions and angles. There are straight lines and points everywhere in that sequence. Sailor Moon herself cuts through the animation multiple times, and whenever the camera lingers for a moment, you’re assaulted by edges. This is just in the build-up. Even the final frame of the attack is all sharp points, like teeth closing in: When we finally reach the attack itself, quite in contrast to Usagi’s previous attacks, MGM is all about her. As I mentioned above, Usagi’s other attacks never linger and they keep us distant from her. We have the vaguest details about her face and her expression, but they’re mostly frozen in a generic “attack face”. With MGM, not only is it important that we watch Usagi, it’s important that we watch her from multiple angles. Just her body language and motions isn’t enough, we need to be right there with her. And she doesn’t disappoint. Usagi is the most fierce we’ve seen her yet when she’s attacking, which is perfectly in keeping with the more direct tone of the entire sequence. It’s no coincidence that this is the first and only (at least to this point; I don’t know Stars yet) of Usagi’s attacks to not be directed at us. Every other attack comes directly at the screen. As Usagi’s attacks (Tiara Action aside) are love-based, we get to experience Sailor Moon’s power as the bad guys might, but without feeling as though we ourselves are her victims. Moon Gorgeous Meditation is too harsh for that. So instead we stay with Usagi throughout. We experience her concentration and determination instead. Sailor Moon is here to fight. Sailor Moon is here to win. And as she narrows her eyes and focuses before unleashing her power, we get to be part of that.
