The classic Sailor Moon anime will be re-released on Blu-ray once again.
VIZ Media announced today that it will re-release the original season of the classic Sailor Moon TV anime on Blu-ray. The new set will include the first 46 episodes of the highly-influential magical girl anime spread out across 6 Blu-day discs. The show will be presented in 1080p in its original 4:3 aspect ratio, and will be available with both its original Japanese audio track and an English dub. VIZ also released a short trailer promoting the new re-release, which will be released on June 14 and carries an MSRP of $59.99 USD.
The series tells the story of Usagi Tsukino, an irresponsible middle-school student in Tokyo who one day discovers that she can transform into Sailor Moon, a magical hero who is tasked with protecting the Earth from an ancient threat. Usagi is not alone in this mission, as she soon meets several other members of the Sailor Scouts, a group of girls who can also transform into magical soldiers, each themed after one of the planets in the solar system. Together with the charming but mysterious Tuxedo Mask, the Sailor Scouts fight evil by the moonlight and protect humanity from the plans of Queen Beryl and the Dark Kingdom.
Sailor Moon was created by manga artist Naoko Takeuchi and was first published in 1991. The original anime adaptation debuted in 1992 and is widely regarded as one of the most influential anime series of all type. It, along with fellow 90s anime hits such as Fushigi Yugi and Boys Over Flowers, is often regarded as one of the foundational works of the modern shojo genre. The show was one of the first shojo anime to be broadcast in the United States, and is credited alongside shows such as Dragon Ball Z and Mobile Suit Gundam Wing with helping to establish anime's mainstream popularity outside of Japan in the late 1990s and early 2000s.
A number of events have been announced to mark the 30th anniversary of the anime's original release, including the Sailor Moon Museum, a new art exhibition in Japan that will feature production materials, rare artwork and other memorabilia from across the series' entire history. New merchandise is also scheduled to be released throughout the year, including a new apparel collection from UNIQLO, as well as a collaboration between the anime series and Sanrio. Sailor Moon Cosmos, a two-movie series that will serve as the finale to the Sailor Moon Crystal anime, will also be released in 2023.