Interest

Sailor Moon Exhibit Opens Near Usagi's Hometown

A lavish Sailor Moon exhibit opened on April 16 in Tokyo's Roppongi Hills Observation Deck, which happens to be located near Sailor Moon's hometown, Azabu #10.

The 36-foot-high entrance hall resembles Princess Serenity's Moon Castle and is hung with giant scrolls of the Sailor Guardians drawn by Naoko Takeuchi, Sailor Moon's creator, herself. Character panels of the Sailor Guardians making their "In the name of the ~" poses are by the windows, providing a tempting opportunity for cool photos. The neighborhood of Azabu #10 and Tokyo Tower are visible outside to tempt your camera even more.

A 30-second light show plays every 10 minutes after sunset to the tune of "Moonlight Densetsu." There are also several displays of Sailor Moon items.

The exhibit is split into six rooms. The first room displays a chronology of the Sailor Moon story from the Silver Millennium to Sailor Stars. The second room shows a movie which condenses the most iconic scenes of the series (Sailor Moon's awakening, important battles) into two minutes.

The third room displays the first chapter of the manga in full color, along with displays of the prizes packaged with Nakayoshi magazine related to Sailor Moon — rainbow stickers, makeup goggles, a pencil board set, a stationary set, and a Small Lady Set.

The fourth room displays the myriad merchandise associated with the Sailor Moon franchise: toys, figures, video games and more, including some rare items. It also includes artifacts from the anime: cel art, character designs for the Sailor Guardians and Tuxedo Mask, reproductions of the script and storyboard from Episode 1, a 24-minute compilation film of the Sailor Guardians' transformation scenes and attacks, and a 20-minute compilation film of the opening and ending themes.

There is also an exhibit of Queen Neo Serenity and King Endymion's dress and tuxedo, made from silk and silver mole fur, respectively.

The fifth room features original drawings by Takeuchi, including original artworks for this exhibit and selected front and back covers of Nakayoshi. There is also a cover for the women's magazine FRaU from November co-illustrated with Asami Kiyokawa.

The sixth room focuses on recent developments in the Sailor Moon franchise: Sailor Moon Crystal, the musical, and products aimed at adults.

The Tuxedo Mask tuxedo worn in the musical

The exhibit's gift shop sells about 50 different Sailor Moon-related items, such as illustrated paper rolls, masking tape, soy sauce bottles, and a special edition of the Moon Stick. A cafe, The Sun & The Moon, sells appropriate fare like pink burgers, pudding a la mode, berry mousse with Luna's face in it, and Tuxedo Mask pasta.

Former gravure idol Chinatsu Wakatsuki conducted the opening ceremony for the exhibit in Sailor Moon cosplay. She said that her favorite Sailor Guardian used to be Sailor Venus since her favorite color was yellow, but now she prefers Sailor Moon. She also spoke of the importance of Sailor Moon to her generation and hoped that younger generations would also visit given the anime's continuing appeal.

The exhibit will remain open until June 19, but some of the artwork will be swapped out for preservation reasons; the switches will occur on May 9 and 30. Sailor Moon merchandise is regularly produced to this day; see here for some items Lynzee finds particularly unnecessary.

[Via Comic Natalie]