#Xenotime and Zeolite

[ultraericthered]

“For some, autumn comes early, stays late through life where October follows September and November touches October and then instead of December and Christ's birth, there is no Bethlehem Star, no rejoicing, but September comes again and old October and so on down the years, with no winter, spring, or revivifying summer. For these beings, fall is the ever normal season, the only weather, there be no choice beyond. Where do they come from? The dust. Where do they go? The grave. Does blood stir their veins? No: the night wind. What ticks in their head? The worm. What speaks from their mouth? The toad. What sees from their eye? The snake. What hears with their ear? The abyss between the stars. They sift the human storm for souls, eat flesh of reason, fill tombs with sinners. They frenzy forth. In gusts they beetle-scurry, creep, thread, filter, motion, make all moons sullen, and surely cloud all clear-run waters. The spider-web hears them, trembles—breaks. Such are the autumn people. Beware of them.” --- Ray Bradbury, Something Wicked This Way Comes

[themattress]

An observation based on these posts I've made.

It's been longtime commonly accepted wisdom that Naoko Takeuchi didn't know how to do villains well in the Sailor Moon manga, and that the 90s anime handled villains much better.

And I have to say....

No, that's wrong!

The truth is actually a little more complicated than that.

Naoko Takeuchi has, in fact, written some fleshed-out and nuanced villains. Danburite, Kunzite, Queen Beryl, Rubeus, Esmeraude, Safir, Prince Demande, Professor Tomoe, the Amazoness Quartet, Sailor Tin Nyanko, Sailor Lethe and Sailor Mnemosyne, and Sailor Galaxia are all more than just "evil"; they have established backstories and motivations behind what they do and distinguishable personalities. So is Kaolinite in Sailor Moon Crystal, which was supervised by Takeuchi, becoming more sympathetic than just the wicked witch she was in the manga. And of course, Evil Endymion and Black Lady are corrupted heroes.

Meanwhile, we also have Queen Metalia, Wiseman / Death Phantom, Pharaoh 90 and Mistress 9, Zirconia / Queen Nehelenia and Chaos, who are intentionally devoid of nuance because they are supposed to be pure evil. Yes, the anime changed that in regards to Zirconia / Queen Nehelenia and that worked well (in SuperS anyway, fuck Sailor Stars), but that doesn't make Takeuchi's take any less valid or effective for her version of the story.

So which villains are just one-note and existing to be fought and killed in the manga?

Jadeite, Nephrite, Zoisite, Koan, Berthier, Petz, Calaveras, Chiral and Achiral, Eudial, Mimete, Viluy, Tellu, Cyprine/Ptilol, Fish Eye, Tiger's Eye, Hawk's Eye, Xenotime and Zeolite, Sailor Iron Mouse, Sailor Aluminum Seiren, Sailor Lead Crow, Sailor Heavy Metal Papillon, Sailor Phi and Chi, and basically all of the Dark Agency's roster serving under Danburite.

And here's where I must mount a defense of Takeuchi. Yes, the anime fleshes many of those villains out greatly and I am happy for it. However, it is a fallacy to treat their roles in the manga the same as they were in the anime. In the anime, these characters are part of a formula that positions them as Subordinate Villains, the ones who control the Monsters-of-the-Week. But the manga worked differently. It was a monthly publication, with each arc lasting around a year and the chapters' contents plotted out in advance. In that more limited timeframe, these villains were not controllers of the Monsters-of-the-Week; they were the Monsters-of-the-Week...er, I mean, Monsters-of-the-Month. Complaining about them not being well developed is kind of like complaining that any Youma, Droid, Daimon, Lemures or Phage in the anime isn't well-developed. It's kind of missing the point. And yes, I know that Kunzite, Tin Nyanko, and Lethe/Mnemosyne are also technically among this type of character yet they were more strongly humanized in what time they had, but they're exceptions and not the rule (with Kunzite it happened due to personal fondness Takeuchi felt toward him; and for the others it was due to the need to flesh out Shadow Galactica as an organization, showing both the validity behind why many of its members joined and the ultimate mistake it was due to Sailor Galaxia's psychopathic ruthlessness toward any she deems failures or traitors).

So there you have it. By and large, yes, I do prefer the anime's takes on villains. But Naoko Takeuchi's writing for villains doesn't suck, it's just meeting the needs of a different medium.

[sailorcat123]

Sailor Moon Trivia #2

Most Sailor Moon villains are named after minerals. The reason might be that the manga creator Naoko Takeuchi studied chemistry in university. She also was part of the astronomy club, which explains her knowledge about planets and space.

Here are the name origins for most villains:

Dark Kingdom: Beryl, jadeite, nephrite, zoisite and kunzite are all minerals. Metalia probably derives from "metal". The term "Shitennou" means "four heavenly kings" and is also used for a group of Buddhist gods.

Ail and An: It's a pun. Their combined namens sound a bit like "alien".

Black Moon Clan: The Ayakashi Sisters are named after minerals: kermesite (Koan), berthierite (Berthier), calaverite (Calaveras) and petzite (Petz). Ayakashi refers to a type of supernatural monster/phantom or can mean "suspicious". Rubeus refers to ruby (his name means "red" in Latin, and the word "ruby" derives from that), Esmeraude is an obsolete French word for emerald, Saphir could be the French/German word for sapphire, and Demande probably refers to a diamond. It may also be a pun with the English word "demand". Chiral is a term from chemistry, describing an object that cannot be superimposed on its mirror image. Achiral is the opposite.

Death Busters: Who would've thought, the Witches 5 and Kaolinite are also named after minerals: kaolinite, eudialyte (Eudial), mimetite (Mimete), tellurite (Tellu), viluite (Viluy), cyprine and ptilolite (Ptilol).

Dead Moon Circus: The Amazon Trio are not only named after the animals they represent, their names also refer to minerals. There's also an "amazonite". The Amazoness Quartet are named after celestial bodies (Pallas, Juno & Vesta are asteroids, Ceres is a dwarf planet). These are named after Greek goddesses. Zirconia is named after a mineral (zircon). Nehellenia might be named after the Frisian-Roman goddess Nehalennia. Xenotime and Zeolite are minerals.

Shadow Galactica: The Sailor Animanates are each named after a type of metal and an animal: Iron Mouse, Aluminum Seiren (sirenia is another term for sea cows, but it might also refer to sirens from Greek mythology), Lead Crow, Tin Nyanko (nyanko means something like "kitty cat"), Heavy Metal Papillon (papillon is French for butterfly). Lethe and Mnemosyne refer to rivers in the Greek underworld, representing oblivion and memories. Phi and Chi are letters of the Greek alphabet. In the musicals they're also joined by Theta.

R Movie: Fiore is Italian for flower. Xenian might refer to the biological term Xenia, which is the effect of pollen on seeds and fruit of the fertilized plant.

S Movie: Princess Kaguya is a character from a famous Japanese tale about a princess who came from the moon.

SuperS Movie: The villains have French names associated with sweets. Badiane means star anise, banane is a banana obviously, orangeât is candied orange peel and poupelin is a kind of pastry. Perle means pearl (he's not a villain but was originally part of the group too.)

[sailorsenshigifs]

so excited to see Xenotime and Zeolite

[sailorheadcanons]

The Amazon Trio are not Earth animals given human forms, but aliens that can shift between human and animal forms a la Mauans, Coronians, etc. Zeolite and Xenotime are the same way but with snake forms, and Nehellenia and Zirconia are tick-spider things. Zircon is Zirconia’s son, who is still in his larva stage and won’t be able to take a human form until he reaches maturity. These five species are all native to the same solar system.

[mangakachan]

The newly announced Sailor Moon Eternal 1st and 2nd movie official visual book will include info on the following characters (translated via Google Translate with some edits by me):

Usagi Tsukino / Ami Mizuno / Rei Hino / Makoto Kino / Minako Aino / Chibiusa / Sailor Uranus / Michiru Kaio / Setuna Meiou / Sailor Saturn / Mamoru Chiba / Luna / Artemis / Diana / Super Sailor Moon / Super Sailor Chibi Moon / Super Sailor Mercury / Super Sailor Mars / Super Sailor Jupiter / Super Sailor Venus / Super Sailor Uranus / Super Sailor Neptune / Super Sailor Pluto / Super Sailor Saturn / Tuxedo Mask / Elios / Eternal Sailor Warrior / Sailor Princess of the Solar System / Sailor Power Guardian / Luna Artemis Diana (Human Figure) / Usagi Tsukino (close to Neo Queen Serenity) / Mamoru Chiba (close to King Endymion) / Princess Serenity (previous life) / 4 young sailor warriors (previous life) / Queen Serenity (previous life) / Princess Lady Serenity / Sailor Quartet / Priestess Menard / Zirconia / Nehalennia / Amazones Quartet / Amazon Trio / Xenotime / Zeolite / Zircon / Lemures

I’ve highlighted the one’s I’m most excited about! 🥰 You can pre-order the book on CD Japan. The book will be released in Japan on Feb. 27th.

[erinptah]

Dead Gem Circus by ErinPtah

Last set of Sailor Moon villains as Homeworld Gems. The Zirconia in the show is Neherenia's twisted reflection, so I cast her as a Zirconia (uncorrupted). She's holding an Amazonite Quartet. Flanked by the twins Zeolite and Xenotime; two Quartz soldiers, a Tiger's Eye and a Hawk's Eye; and a white Apophyllite, the variety known as Fisheye.

BICP | L&T | Art | Blog | Support

[quinttee]

Quinton’s Animation Extravaganza 527

0527

Venus Dream

I was enjoying my day with Miyako and Fluttershy. We all now knew about the curse on Elysion and were determined to help the Sailor Senshi take down the Dead Moon and save the Earth. Just then, Ami, Rei and Makoto came over. They had been invited to an idol audition by a guy who said he worked for “Dead Moon Entertainment”. I could tell this was a trap set by the Dead Moon, so I rounded up my fellow Powerpuffs and the Mane Six and we tagged along with Ami, Rei and Makoto. When we got to the audition, we found Minako, who told me that the other Inner Senshi want to depend on the Outer Senshi rather than her, the Inner Senshi’s leader. Furthermore, she was the only Sailor Senshi who couldn’t transform. We then found out that the talent contest was a survival audition, where the contestants had to get through a jungle to save children at the top of the tower. I decided that Minako and I would go alone. We made it to the top of the tower, only to realize that the children were really Lemures. Minako was overwhelmed and fell under their power, but her cat Artemis scratched her, returning her to her senses. Just then, a trap door opened up and Minako clung onto Artemis to prevent her from falling. A few seconds later, she felt a stronger grasp and looked up to see Artemis in human form. Artemis explained Minako couldn’t transform because he wasn’t strong enough. Artemis gave Minako the Venus Crystal, allowing her to transform into Sailor Venus. Meanwhile, the masterminds behind the idol scheme revealed themselves to us. They were Xenotime and Zeolite of the Dead Moon. Sailor Venus used her new attack, Love and Beauty Shock to destroy both of them. I had a feeling that we would take on the Amazoness Quartet in our next battle against the Dead Moon and that we would need the Outer Sailor Senshi’s help to take down the remaining members, so for the rest of the day, my allies and I went through intense training to prepare for the Amazoness Quartet.

[smvillainsweek]

Favorite Dead Moon Circus member

[smvillainsweek]

Favorite Dead Moon Circus member

[themattress]

I don't even need to refer to my grading post, it's Manga / Cosmos, easily. The 90s anime not only bungled the characters and the way the group should operate, it didn't even include every member! It's one thing to ditch Xenotime and Zeolite of the Dead Moon Circus because who gives a crap, but no Sailor Heavy Metal Papillon? No Sailor Phi and Sailor Chi? Fucking no Sailor Lethe and Sailor Mnemosyne!? Unforgivable. Sailor Stars in general sucked.

ps: Not every member is present in the pictures, those are just there for reference. Please check the alt text for more information.

[themattress]

Thank you! I’ll get on that right now. :)

I’ll be doing seven posts, all by villain group.

THE DARK KINGDOM: Jadeite Nephrite Zoisite Kunzite Prince Endymion Queen Beryl Queen Metalia

THE MAKAIJU: Ail / Seijuro Ginga En / Natsumi Ginga

THE BLACK MOON CLAN: Koan Berthier Calveras Petz Crimson Rubeus The Boule Brothers Esmeraude Safir Prince Demande Black Lady Wiseman / Death Phantom

THE DEATH BUSTERS: Professor Tomoe Kaolinite Eudial Mimete Tellu Viluy Cyprine and Ptitol Mistress 9 Pharaoh 90

THE DEAD MOON CIRCUS: Zirconia VesuVesu CeleCele JunJun PallaPalla Tiger's Eye Hawk's Eye Fish Eye Xenotime & Zeolite Queen Nehelania 

SHADOW GALACTICA: Sailor Iron Mouse Sailor Aluminum Seiren Sailor Lead Crow Sailor Tin Nyanko Sailor Metal Papillon Sailor Mnemosyne and Sailor Lethe Sailor Phi and Sailor Chi Sailor Galaxia Chaos

[knife-throwing-twins-blog]

Prompt; New Identities.

Xenotime combed out his long blonde and pink hair with a small smile, looking at himself in another mirror, typing back the long tresses with a ribbon, then pulling on his own suit. { Working as hit men, huh? How interesting. . . } It hadn't taken long to find the darker dreams in the area-- a wealthy drug marketer who needed a few people "taken care of" and the twins were perfect for the job. Getting in hadn't been hard, but they now wore matching brands on their shoulder blades. Ouch! They were taped up and healing, which would take about a week, but they'd been giving temporary living arrangements until they could find their own place-- probably after their first paycheck. { Surprising that worked out so well. . . So quickly, too. } But then again, the twins had always been deadly efficient.

Walking into the room, Zeolite adjusted his jacket and cleared his throat, "/Brother. What do you think?\"

Lifting his gaze, Xenotime's eyes widened just a bit-- Zeolite's hair was so short! He couldn't believe it! "{What have you done to your hair?}"

"/We have new lives now. I cut it.\"

"{So short!}"

"/Do you like it, though?\"

Pausing, Xenotime sighs and shrugs, "{It looks alright.}" He fiddles with a lock of his own pink hair and bites his lower lip in thought, then smirks, "{We're going to have fun today, brother. We can't start the job yet, but he said we'd be training with two of his personal bodyguards to test our skill. No weapons, of course.}"

"/Interesting.\"

"{Of course.}"