Radar / Sailor Moon

"There's so many fun things to do as adults."

—Sailor Neptune in the SuperS movie

The North American’s English dubs (mostly the DiC dub, but Cloverway is also notorious) of Sailor Moon is mostly remembered for (badly) toning down anything that could be too sexual or violent for younger viewers^note (there's also some cases of Japanese text and references to Japanese culture being edited, but that's localization, not bowdlerization). Sexual references and slight bits of nudity, as well as violence (including scenes of attempted murder, suicide, and death) are edited wholesale, digitally altered, or rewritten to something more child-friendly.

On top of these changes, any references to homosexuality and transgender were edited and/or cut. Zoisite from the first season was originally a man in the Japanese version. In the DiC dub, Zoisite is a woman (yet her romantic interludes with Kunzite^note Malachite were more-or-less intact). Sailor Uranus and Neptune's relationship was changed into the both of them being cousins, but this failed because what was left in made the same-sex couple out to be ambiguously incestuous relatives – especially if you’ve never seen the original episodes of Sailor Moon S. And the biggest censorship of all: the countries that did air the final season (Sailor Stars) had to change the Sailor Starlights from men who transform into female Sailor Scouts to men who summon female equivalents of themselves to battle evil (or, in some cases, have the male characters voiced by and rewritten to be women from the start). The countries that didn't do this merely ended their run of Sailor Moon after Super S, which the creator wanted to happen anyway, as she knew other countries would have a problem with The Starlights.

Despite the big changes occurring around the world, the censors fortunately didn't catch everything...

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Sailor Moon First Anime (Original and Dubbed Versions)

• As mentioned in the intro of this page, Sailor Uranus and Neptune's relationship and sexuality were censored (poorly) in the English dub (Cloverway version. Viz Media has it uncut), but the English one wasn't the only dub…
  • In some European dubs, Sailor Uranus' civilian form was voiced by a male dub actor.
  • Some dubs made Uranus male. This kept "his" relationship with Neptune alive, but also turned "him" from a lesbian to a straight male crossdresser.
• Alongside the lesbian heroes, two members of Queen Beryl’s henchmen were also homosexual: Zoisite and Kunzite (or Malachite, if you go by the DiC dub). They were both in love with each other (much like Uranus and Neptune), and were also edited to make them a straight couple in most English and non-English dubs. North American's English dub by DiC made Zoisite female and kept the relationship alive, instead of censoring it like they did with the lesbians. It was much easier with the gay young men than the gay teenage girls because Zoisite had long hair styled into a ponytail. All that needed to be done was to have Zoisite dubbed by a female actress.
  • The French dub (and, by extension, the Hungarian dub, which was based on the French one), much like Cloverway's notorious censoring of Hakura and Michiru, turned Zoisite and Malachite from a gay male couple to brothers...who are in love with each other.
• Whenever there were shots of Usagi having a bath, her cleavage submerged in the bathwater was physically drawn out of many dubs, and the rippling bathwater was colored in, which made the bath she was having look like it was as deep as the ocean.
• When Usagi's (Sailor Moon) middle school holds a school production of Snow White, she and her group of friends argue over who out of them should be the leading lady. Makoto (Sailor Jupiter) claims that she is perfect for the part because she has "the biggest chest".
  • Famous for creating loads of Narm, the DiC English dub edited this by making her (Lita) say that she was perfect because she had the "most acting experience and talent." This would've passed without any raised eyebrows...if the dub had taken out the sound effects which suggested the bouncing of breasts, or the frames in which “Lita” shoved her well-endowed chest into some of the other characters' faces, leaving them furiously blushing and turning away. Arguably, it’s not really surprising that the word "talent" became a euphemism of sorts in the fanbase.
    • In the German dub, Makoto is made to say that she is perfect for Snow White because she is the oldest and a "real woman". Not as memorable as the "talent" line, but it still works.
• In the early seasons, Zoisite purposely traps himself into a tight alleyway. Sailor Moon, Mercury and Jupiter follow him in at the same time, but get stuck at the entrance. This makes Mercury fall forward and land with her bottom sticking up in the air. This somehow attracts the attention of Jupiter next to her, who stares up her skirt for a while with googly eyes, and a deep blush◊, and then goes further by biting her fist for a second◊. It's rather amazing that that managed to be kept in the dubbed versions.
• Haruka (Uranus) and Michiru (Neptune) in the 5th season of the anime, Sailor Stars, particularly when Uranus is thrown off a building and her much smaller girlfriend tries to pull her from the ledge. Depending on how one would translate the Japanese dialogue, their exchanges are mostly translated as:

  Sailor Neptune: [slightly straining] You've put on some weight.

  Sailor Uranus: I don't like listening to that kind of talk outside the bed.^note This had led to suggestions in the fandom that their relationship has been taken to the next level ever since the 3rd season, because their mission for the talismans is completed, so there was nothing to hold them back.

  • Viz Media's subtitles took Uranus' comment even further with, "Save those comments for when we're in bed."
• Episode 29 (25 in the original DiC dub) has Mako grab Mamoru around the neck and choke him when he criticizes her and Usagi for their obsessive crushes on Motoki. DiC cut the choking scene short by a few seconds, but it's rather surprising they left it in at all.
• Transformation sequences in the dubs resorted to editing out the Barbie Doll Anatomy, particularly the English one, that rubbed out the breast and crotch outlines.
• Often the way that the Cloverway (and DiC) company edited the English dub was to edit what was mildly offensive and leave in what would obviously be considered problematic by more competent censors. A good example being when Haruka and Michiru (Uranus and Neptune) once held hands and gazed lovingly into each other’s eyes. Considering how they are supposed to be cousins (since their status as a non-blood-related lesbian couple was edited), this was a rather suggestive action that was strangely left in during editing.
• Usagi gets drunk twice in the entire show. This was obviously edited when dubbed worldwide.
  • At one point, Usagi disguises as a frequent party goer and enters a restaurant. She confuses the waiter when she orders a non-alcoholic drink at the bar and embarrasses Luna. Notably, this episode was banned from many of the dubs, including the DiC English dub (Viz has it uncut).
  • The most infamous case was when Mamoru's old English-speaking friends visited in S, in which Usagi tries to loosen her vocal chords at a fancy gala ball with what she thinks is plain old juice. Since she was struggling with what English words and phrases she could appropriately use, she starts babbling, rhyming English words and accidentally punching Mamoru in the face. The dubs stuck to the original story, changing the language boundaries to suit the dub (for example, Cloverway's English dub made the English-speaking Sailor Moon gang interact with Mamoru/Darien's French speaking friends), but some made Usagi seem like she was going hyper from the strange juice.
    • The English dub's changes somehow managed to create more Parental Bonus. Usagi's (Serena) voice actress at the time, Linda Ballantyne, managed to make her acting for her sound even more wasted than the original.
• A moment in the 3rd season in which Mimete is heard moaning suggestively in the science lab while lifting on of her legs high in the air. It turns out she is playing Twister, but it's not very hard to be convinced that she might've been having very gymnastic sex. This is one of the scenes considered to be even saucier via Dub Text — the sultry moans were cranked up for the Cloverway version. The Viz Media version is no better at covering up the sexual undertones.
• A towelled Seiya emerges from Usagi’s bathroom in the 5th season, shocking and embarrassing Usagi and her friends. When Chibi Chibi runs over and started tugging the towel around Seiya’s waist as if she thinks it's a toy, the girls shriek in terror. A blink-and-you'll-miss-it moment when the girls are shown freaking out, Ami can be seen covering her face with her hands, but her fingers are parted over her eyes...
• This scene between Chibi-Usa and Pegasus. Amazingly, it was NOT censored when dubbed by Cloverway and aired on Cartoon Network
• One of the most infamous moments of the entire series is one of the most well-known Getting Crap Past the Radar moments between Sailor Uranus and Neptune from the Supers Movie. After killing some Mooks, Uranus wonders whether the villains' plans have good intentions. Neptune walks over to her and points out that "there are so many fun things to do as adults", therefore the villains should consider otherwise. This makes Uranus slowly blush and then cough in embarrassment.
  • Considering how vague the comment was, the moment just implies how dirty Haruka's mind is.
• Makoto is once stalked by the Monster of the Week in the 3rd season, attracting Haruka and Michiru. When they invite her out on a friendly trip, the monster shows up again and tries to capture her. It's rather notable that the monster is wearing nothing but what looks like a long cloak around its body, so when they throw it open to appear threatening, Mako reacts as if she's been flashed. It just turns out that villain was wearing a short dress and a long cloak.
• When Sailor Moon and Tuxedo Mask find out that Chibi-Usa is their Kid from the Future from a future Mamoru, they are absolutely astounded and their faces glow red with embarrassment. Not really too old for young children to understand, but what really cranked the scene up to radar-pushing was when a concerned Sailor Mars angrily bellows: "WHAT DAY, WEEK, MONTH DID THIS HAPPEN??!" The DiC dub left in most of this, but cut Mars' line.
• Haruka is often mistaken as a teenage boy. This mostly plays into her flirtatious actions towards oblivious women who end up completely flustered over the cute young man. It doesn't help that she uses male suffixes and pronouns, especially when she's wearing masculine clothing. However, she somehow manages to fluster all of the girls that know she's female.
  • Because of the censorship of any homosexual context (subtext or otherwise), most of Haruka's flirtatious banter was removed from many of the dubs. What was wrong with this was that the animation editing, that kept in all of the mesmerized looks and blushes from the girls that Haruka was courting with.
  • A drunk Usagi cannot tell the difference when Haruka is wearing a fancy suit at a gala ball and immediately accepts dancing with her after turning Michiru down.
  • Another interesting quirk of Haruka's was referring to Usagi and Minako as kittens. While this may seem like an innocent pet name, "kitten" happens to be Japanese slang for the femme in a lesbian relationship.
• The Sailor Starlights from the final season Stars were placed in the form of males in order to pretend to be teenage heartthrobs to secretly look for the princess of their planet. Their actual forms are female and only turn into them when they transform into their Sailor Senshi forms. This didn't stop them from being censored like the homosexual characters.
  • The Italian dub, for episode 188, split the real identities and their disguises into six individual people, meaning that the female heroes were always called in by their "brothers" to fight a villain. ("Always" used loosely, as this appears to have been a last-minute edit; the Three Lights and Starlights being separate people was hinted at neither before nor since.)
  • Sailor Star Fighter, Kou Seiya, developed an infatuation with Usagi, who was waiting for Mamoru to return from his study abroad in the United States. She was rather convinced that Mamoru had actually officially ended his and Usagi's relationship, and in her disguise as a male, she tried to kiss the teenager at least twice; there was an occasion in which Usagi seemed to believe that she was about to be propositioned by Seiya. But that turned out to be a misunderstanding as Seiya was actually asking her out to a nightclub.
• In the S season episode where Makoto decides to spend an evening with Haruka and Michiru, Rei says that she cannot believe that Makoto has supposedly gone on a date with another girl, to which Usagi pulls out a Takarazuka Revue-esque magazine she found somewhere in Rei's room to tease Rei with, and Rei reacts in flabbergasted embarrassment. Mistaken for Gay-Makoto aside, Japanese teen girls having Even the Girls Want Her crushes on Takarazuka actresses is common, but the way Rei reacts to Usagi's discovery is reminiscent of an embarrassed teen having their Porn Stash discovered by their parents.
• Usagi's English test◊ in the first episode of Sailor Moon S. Very appropriate to give to 15-year-olds... (for those of you who don't know, "new-half" is a slang term for a transgender woman).
  • But what's funnier is that the name of the man on the test is one of the creative staff, and when you translate "nanpa" and pair it with the reputation Roppongi has... it's basically describing one of the directors going to Tokyo's Red Light District to pick up a prostitute and getting a shock upon finding out she's trans! Oh yes, what a perfectly suitable thing to include on schoolwork!
• When stroking and petting a dog on the street, Sailor Jupiter coos that it reminds her of her old boyfriends, except the dog's "hunkier". Sailor Mars gives her a magnificent "WTF" look.
• The Amazon Quartet wore uniforms that exposed a lot of skin which made bikinis look prudish. Many of the dubs coloured in some of the bare flesh, which made it look rather weird and Off-Model. Some dubs coloured the skin in completely different colours to the outfits making the whole work look shoddy and obvious.
• There was a lot of controversy with the Mamoru/Usagi relationship. In the anime, Mamoru was college student instead of a high school student like in the manga, which meant a massive age gap. Usagi went from 14 to 16, and Mamoru probably went from 18 to (possibly) 20 years old. This is probably why many of their on-screen romantic gestures are chaste and never go further than a kiss.
• Haruka and Michiru's suggestive dialogue about the basis of their relationship in Stars is taken another a whole other level.
  • After meeting up with Usagi in the park, Michiru teases Haruka about her hatred for Seiya, and then pulls her away before she can react. As they're rushing off, we hear this:
    Haruka: That hurts.
    Michiru: Does it?
    Haruka: Yeah, you're being a little too rough.
    Michiru: [in a slight mischievous tone] Oh, am I? I'll be more gentle once we're alone.
    • They were still in earshot of Luna and Usagi, who are both left looking uncomfortable and embarrassed with what they'd heard.
    Usagi: [uncomfortable expression] Uh...they're always just a little too open.
  • When fighting the Big Bad villain of the season, the two of them have another suggestive exchange:
    Haruka: That didn't work out like I thought it would. Guess my sword's getting dull.
    Michiru: You're blaming this on your weapon?
    Haruka: Well, it's not my fault. I haven't lost my edge.
    Michiru: Care to test that?
    Haruka: Let's save it for when we're alone together.
• Just why was Luna being chased by a group of cats? This scene has some unfortunate implications about what they would do to her had she not been saved by a large cat. And if we remember the anatomy of a male cat, it was going to be a very painful experience for Luna.
  • The new English Viz dub suggests she wandered into the middle of a turf war between some stray cats. Meaning that whatever she did to get on the wrong side of them, meant that they were probably chasing after her as if they wanted to kill her.
• The whole deal with the "Dream mirror catching" in the first part of Super S reeks of sexual allusions. The member of the Amazon Trio who's on the hunt first tries to befriend/seduce his victim and lure them to a secluded area. When rejected by them he gets them immediately restrained with handcuffs onto a horizontal surface... and once the aggressor gets his head inside the mirror, the victim starts screaming...
  • Not to mention that one of the Amazon trio dudes, Fish Eye, specifically looks for pretty guys and crossdresses to approach them. Related to this — there was one time when Fish did NOT crossdress for his work... when he was targeting a pretty boy who was implied to actually be homosexual, and probably in a relationship with his male assistant.
  • Even more so! When Tiger's Eye and Hawk's Eye looked inside Minako's Dream Mirror not only their reaction about her "amazing dream" implies her life dream has a pornographic nature, but, differently from anyone else, she was apparently excited by the experience.
  Minako Aino: [with shiny eyes and a rather unsubtle blush on her face] Please be gentle... my heart... it could break!
  • Tiger's Eye's Evil Laugh whenever he looked in a Dream Mirror. He seemed to enjoy it a bit too much. Especially in one episode where he flat out chases his target to a balcony - and says that someone like her should have some loud dreams.
  • One episode has Hawk's Eye target Usagi's mother Ikuko, and of course Hawk's eye tried to hit on her (Despite that she's married.) The English dub makes it arguably even worse with the talk of Lemon Pie, as well as when he does the famous count.
    • It cannot be stressed hard enough just how easy it is to take the "Lemon Pie" comments out of context in the English dub.
  Serena (During the preview narration): Everyone knows mom's lemon pies are the best and we all like to eat them, but could it be that there's a new man in mom's life who ALSO likes to eat mom's great pie?"
  • Oh, and to further hammer it home, the targets included teenage girls, a nun, and in the case of Fish Eye there was an 8-year-old boy. Tiger's Eye even goes after a little girl. The nun episode turned out to be offensive enough in Poland to get banned.
• Zoisite once challenges Mamoru to a showdown for the Rainbow Crystals. In the original, his line is "here are my Crystals. Now, present yours"; in the English dub, Zoisite says "I'll show you mine. Now, you show me yours." Without context, it sounds like she's asking for something other than Crystals.
• Episode 106. Haruka's race suit is clearly a cleverly-put Marlboro advertisement, as the overall design of the suit fits the general design of most Marlboro race suits except for the words in the logo ("TENOH" in the rear, "HARUKA" in the front). The styling on the rear part of the suit even fits to Marlboro's logo styling is^note Notice in the words "TENOH", the letter in the middle ("N") is taller in contrast to every other letter; much like how the real Marlboro logo have the letters in the middle ("lb") to be taller than all other letters except the capital M (even then, the height of the M isn't as tall as "lb").
• In one episode Minako attempts to take Taiki to a movie. After he turns her down, Makoto asks what the movie is, and Minako gives the title of what is clearly a porn movie. When Minako runs off to try to ask Yaten, Makoto takes things further by offering to go with Minako if Yaten turns her down.
• Ryo's premonition in episode 27. He sees himself turning into his true form, a Swiss Army knife-handed monster, and cutting all the clothes off of a helpless and terrified Sailor Mercury as if he's about to rape her.

Original Manga and Sailor Moon Crystal

• During the manga version of the Black Moon arc (and its equivalent in Sailor Moon Crystal), Usagi visits Mamoru's apartment, wearing a cute dress with a blouse underneath. The couple have a romantic scene, he lowers her to the floor, kisses her, end of scene. The next scene takes place the day after... with Usagi in the same dress but no blouse.
  • Later in the arc, Sailor Moon is fighting and she summons mental images of her loved ones to strengthen herself. When she thinks of Mamoru, he's shirtless, and it's strongly implied that she's recalling the moment mentioned above. This was also included in Crystal, and the suggestiveness was arguably *amped up*.
    • It is worth noting that the two don't go all the way in this scene, but clearly wanted to (After being deaged at the beginning of the SuperS manga Usagi laments that she was finally grown up enough "to go for it"). In the manga, a scene at the very last chapter states that Mamoru and Usagi finally had sex some time later, with them waking up nude in the same bed and Talking in Bed... which was followed by their wedding day where it's all but stated that Usagi is either pregnant with Chibi-Usa or will be very soon.
• Some official art by Naoko Takeuchi herself has Usagi and sometimes Mamoru either naked, half-dressed, or straight up in underwear. This often includes showing nipples. Even more: Usagi is never demonized for it.

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