Please keep your arms and legs inside the emotional roller coaster at all times.

It’s hard to feel tension when you know a show isn’t actually about to end, but I’ll give Sailor Moon full credit for giving its best-known side characters some truly memorable send-offs this week. From Ami’s brilliance to Rei’s toughness and even over to Mamoru’s surprisingly sweet “You are not alone” moment with Usagi, these characters died the way they lived – and died satisfactorily, too, true to themselves and their ideals to the very end.

Except, you know, that they didn’t.

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It’s a hectic time in and out of the Moon Kingdom this week.

This would be the week you drop a barrage of plot bombs on me, wouldn’t it, Sailor Moon? It’s not enough that I’ve got Fall anime premiere week, the return of The Legend of Korra, and a mess of family engagements—oh, no, you had to go and add “Moon Kingdom Backstory Episode” to my to-do list, didn’t’cha?

In the interest of getting this sucker out on time (I’ve been trying to make Thursdays my scheduled SM Review day), we’ll be skipping the retrospective and jumping straight into the recaps. I’m sure there’ll be plenty of commentary along the way. Also flashbacks. Sooo many flashbacks.

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This week’s episodes brought to you by: Ferris wheels!

Well, Ferris wheels and misguided martyrdom, anyway. Man, sometimes Sailor Moon just so perfectly captures adolescence, and all the flavors of adolescence, too. Our characters are often dealing with new-found responsibilities—Usagi’s story arc is almost entirely about that—but they’re also learning about empathy and altruism as they struggle to understand and help other people.

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Not all filler is created equal.

In Sailor Moon’s defense, I spent a good portion of this week’s episodes fighting with my tablet, which I was pretty sure was dead (turned out it was just mostly dead), and then with my laptop which for some reason hates taking screenshots. So part of my lukewarm reaction to this week’s episodes probably have to do with the fact that I spent them in a constant state of mild annoyance. (There are also fewer screenshots, for similar reasons.)

That said, this still feels like something of a weak, er… week. It’s pure filler—barring some mild progression from Endymion, there’s no real character or plot development from either of these eps—and while it’s nowhere near as irritating or dull as the filler from when plant Nephrite was in charge, it’s lacking the exuberant silliness or unabashed warmth of SM filler at its best.

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The cards may have gotten shuffled, but Sailor Moon is still as entertaining a game as ever.

While my heart still aches from the losses of both Zoisite (ZOISIIIIITE!) and Mamoru, I have to admit the series has managed to move into its next arc without skipping a beat. There’s an almost effortless chemistry among the Moonies nowadays, to the point where the creators pretty much just have to plunk them down in a story line and I know I’m going to enjoy whatever happens next. It also helps that we’ve been gradually developing a group of likable side characters, so if the story DOES need an extra spice, lovable dorks like Yuichirou Teddy are around to add to the mix.

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The Moon Princess has awakened, and everything is terrible.

You’d think that finding the Moon Princess, the Legendary Silver Crystal, AND regaining a whole bucket-load of memories would lead to some power-ups, knockout punches, and a few happy endings, but HAHA, NO, THIS IS ‘90S SHOUJO WE’RE TALKING ABOUT, AND ‘90S SHOUJO RIPS OUT YOUR HEART AND TAP-DANCES ON THE LEFT VENTRICLE.

Turns out Sailor Moon is helmed by a bunch of sadistic bastards, so y’know that finish line we saw on the horizon? Yeah, it’s actually a mile farther back than we thought, and there’s a moat full of crocodiles between us and it. Angry, brainwashing, character-murdering crocodiles.

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Never mind hitting the fan – that just hit a whole freaking wind farm.

Boy, when Sailor Moon decides to focus on plot, it doesn’t mess around, does it? Not only did we finally meet Sailor V this week, but it turns out she’s the already-awakened (and quite well-informed) scout, Sailor Venus. She even has her own talking cat, Artemis, who despite being named after a Greek goddess appears to be the only male member of the main group. And he and Luna are already friends! (They better be friends, anyway. ‘Cause Luna/Rhett OTP, 5eva, y’all.)

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The creators have been doing a great impression of Oprah as of late. YOU get an episode, and YOU get an episode…!

…Ev-ery-bo-dy gets an episode!

I said during the last cour that Sailor Moon works better as an ensemble show, and this past (very, very good) stretch of episodes just keeps proving it. While Usagi isn’t always the most riveting main character, she’s a fabulous supporting actor, playing the roles of Cupid and Best Friend with a loveable blend of warmth and silliness. Plus, giving us time with the rest of the cast (Moonies and Muggles alike) expands the Mooniverse, opens the door for future story lines, and will make us care a whole lot more if/when Shit Gets Real with the Dark Kingdom.

Of course, SM’s episodes are only as good as the characters they follow, and so there’s bound to be some peaks and valleys. This week sees a little bit of both, although I didn’t DISlike either of them. I just happened to super-adore one and only kinda-like the other. Somehow I suspect you already know which is which, but just in case there was any doubt, the details are below. Brace yourselves for cuteness, and enjoy!

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Sailor Moon is learning that you can have your rice cakes and eat them too.

I’ve noticed that my recaps have gotten a lot longer since Zoisite showed up, and it’s not just because I’m enjoying the episodes more (although there is that). What’s happened, quite simply, is that there’s more to cover each episode, because SM has discovered B-plots.

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During a week badly in need of a little Moon Healing Escalation, Sailor Moon delivers two of its best–and warmest–episodes to date.

Given that Sailor Moon is both a superhero and coming-of-age story (as so many superhero stories are), it seems fitting that the focus of the show (outside of being crazy-awesome-fun-times) is on identity, and who people “really” are. I think these ideas have always been floating around the edges of the story, but it’s become more prominent with this arc, and especially with these episodes.

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