In the Sailor Moon franchise, the Sailor Senshi might be the heroes, but they don’t do their work saving the world alone. Sailor Moon has Luna to help guide her and their team leader, Sailor Venus, has Artemis. The two might not be magical girls themselves, but they have plenty of tricks up their sleeves.
Sailor Moon fans were introduced to Luna from the first chapter of the series, but Artemis actually made his debut before her. Artemis first appeared in the Codename Sailor V series, which acted as a prequel of sorts to Sailor Moon. He gave Sailor Venus advice in the same way that Luna assisted Sailor Moon. While not much of Artemis’ backstory was revealed in the franchise, we do have answers to a few questions about him.
10 Is Artemis Actually A Cat?
Artemis looks an awful lot like a regular domestic house cat, but with a special marking on his head. Just because he looks the part, however, doesn’t mean that’s the case.
Instead, Artemis is actually not of this Earth. He comes from a planet far outside of Earth’s solar system, called Mau. Luna is also from the same planet, and in the manga, the planet even had its own Sailor Senshi, though she is destroyed by Tin Nyanko.
9 What Does His Name Mean?
Artemis, like many aspects of the Sailor Moon franchise, gets inspiration from Greek Mythology. One origin of the name “Artemis” is the Greek word “artemes,” which means “safe, “ but the name also belongs to the Greek goddess of the hunt. She happened to be the goddess of the moon.
Interestingly, the ancient Roman name for a similar mythological figure was Diana. She shares her name with the future daughter of Artemis and Luna, giving all three characters names associated with the moon.
8 How Does He Meet Minako?
Artemis actually keeps an eye on Minako when he first notices her in Sailor V. He just knows that she’s important. He actually “meets” her when she lands on him during her gymnastics class, and it’s then that he decides to observe her.
It doesn’t take long for Artemis to decide that their meeting was no accident. After observing her at school, he decides to formally introduce himself, surprising her with his ability to talk.
7 How Did Artemis Convince Minako She Was Sailor Venus?
If seeing a talking cat isn’t enough to surprise Minako, Artemis goes a step further. He doesn’t just tell her about the Sailor Senshi, and her status as one, but decides to prove it to her.
When Artemis presents her with her crescent compact, the compact actually transports them to Venus itself. Minako gets to see the castle that belonged to her in her past life. She also gets an explanation from Artemis of who she really is. Though it is initially too much for her, and she faints, it doesn’t take long for Minako to embrace her destiny when she gets her transformation pen and witnesses real evil.
6 Who Is His “Boss”?
In the Sailor Moon series, Luna receives messages from someone calling themselves “Control” before Artemis and Minako come to Japan. “Control” is presumed to be Artemis because of their interactions, but Luna isn’t the only one getting messages.
When Artemis and Minako work together in Europe before meeting up with the other Sailor Senshi, he receives messages from someone called simply “Boss.” Fans have wondered for a long time just who that person is. They only appear as a voice through technology in the Sailor V manga and their identity is never revealed. Some fans speculate that “Boss” is actually Luna, but that she later reaches out to him for advice when he is “Control” because he has an operating Sailor Senshi. Fans may never know.
5 Did Artemis Have A Crush On Minako?
Artemis and Minako have a very strong bond. She is the first of the Sailor Senshi that he meets, and he remains closest to her throughout the franchise. One moment in the manga has many fans believing that, despite his eventual relationship with Luna, he might harbor a bit of a crush on her as well.
In the manga, he blushes and becomes flustered when commenting on her beauty at one point. He believes she’s growing up to resemble the goddess of love more and more, which makes sense considering Sailor Venus is supposed to be the reincarnation of her. Artemis is supportive of her desire to have a career outside of the team, and he even calls her “Mina” in the original Japanese anime when no one else does. While all of that indicates their closeness, one comment about her beauty probably doesn’t mean he actually has a crush.
4 What Is Unique About His Crescent Moon?
Members of the Moon Kingdom’s royal family all have the same marking: a crescent moon on their forehead. Actually, all of the women have the mark. Likewise, Princess Serenity’s advisor, Luna, also bears the mark.
Artemis, as the adviser to Sailor Venus, has a mark as well. What makes his unique, however, is that no male characters in the series have the same mark. The only men to have a similar marking are those with the dark moons of the Black Moon clan.
3 How Was His Personality Changed For The Anime?
In the manga, Artemis is relatively quiet with a sarcastic sense of humor. He tends to give constructive criticism and advice, making him a mentor to Minako, not just a teammate.
The anime, however, makes both Artemis and Luna more emotional than they are in the manga. Both characters are quick to lose their patience (and composure) with the Sailor Senshi members when the young women don’t listen to them. In fact, the way Artemis treats Minako in the anime is more like they’re siblings on equal footing than a mentor-mentee relationship.
2 What Does He Have In Common With A Power Ranger?
It might seem odd to think that an advisor to the Sailor Senshi would have something in common with an actual Power Ranger, but it’s true. When the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers series went through a changing of the guard, Johnny Yong Bosch became the new Black Ranger, Adam. Bosch also does a lot of voiceover work these days.
One of the character’s he’s become known for is the English dub of Artemis. He voices the character for Sailor Moon Crystal. That’s right. Artemis and a Power Ranger share a voice. Anime fans have also heard his voice in the dubs of Black Clover and Naruto Shippuden.
1 Does Artemis Have A Human Form?
Fans who have seen the live action series Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon know that Luna can transform into a human form from her cat one. That’s also true in the manga. This particular ability isn’t Luna-specific, but instead, true of those from the planet Mau.
Just like Luna, Artemis and Diana have human forms. Their forms, however, appear in a few illustrations, but haven’t yet made it into other versions of the Sailor Moon media.