Usagi Tsukino and Mamoru Chiba are the great love story of Sailor Moon. The two are literally destined to be together before they even meet in the series, having been reincarnated from lovers who lived together a millennium ago in the Moon Kingdom.
But despite this destiny, we don’t always love them together, and Usagi has so many other potential love interests that we would have loved to see her have a romance with, and some of them feel like an even better fit than Usagi and Mamoru ever were. Here are 10 people that Usagi should have been with instead of Mamoru.
10 Motoki Furuhata
We all remember Usagi’s first and most enduring crush, Motoki Furuhata, better known as Andrew in the original English dub. Motoki is the manager at the arcade that Usagi frequents. A blond high schooler, he treats Usagi with the teasing affection an older brother might show a little sister. Usagi often makes sure to make her way into the arcade, not just to play her beloved Sailor V game, but also to spend time around Motoki, who is always kind to her and seems to legitimately like her for who she is.
9 Rei Hino
We all know that Usagi is pretty boy-crazy throughout the series, but there’s no denying that she often gets distracted by a pretty girl. Rei is no exception; the first time she sees her, she can’t help but comment to herself about how beautiful she is.
Even after Rei plants a ward against evil on her forehead and their relationship become much more contentious, with the two constantly yelling at and berating each other, the affection underlying it all is clear, and it feels like the start of a budding romance.
8 Gurio Umino
Umino is the close childhood friend of Usagi and Naru, and he attends the same middle school as them. In the anime, Umino has a crush on Usagi, and he’s often hanging around her, flirting and asking her for dates. Usagi mostly dismisses him, since he’s a nerd and wears giant glasses. Plus, he has some pretty dorky pastimes. But we’re real suckers for childhood friendships blossoming into romance, and this is definitely a relationship that could have done with a little nurturing. Maybe Usagi could have seen something more in that friendship.
7 Minako Aino
Usagi has idolized Minako since before she even knew her when she was still acting as Sailor V. Usagi followed her comings and goings in the news, played her arcade game, and did her best to keep up on all the latest merchandise.
When they finally meet and it turns out Minako is Sailor Venus, the two girls couldn’t have more in common and are often seen in cahoots about various schemes with their heads bent together. The two girls have the shared experience of being the first Scouts, and their bond from the days of the Moon Kingdom is incredibly strong.
6 Ail
We had to get a couple of villains on this list, especially since so many of them are hotties. Ail is half of a pair of alien twins that come to Earth in order to drain it of its energy. Ail and An make their way to Usagi’s school, where they disguise themselves as students, and Ail immediately becomes infatuated with Usagi. Who can blame him really? Their flirtation is completely charming, even though Usagi is in a relationship with Mamoru at this point. Ail is so attentive and flattering that even we thought Usagi should dump Mamoru to be with him.
5 Koan
Koan is one of the Spectre Sisters of the Black Moon Clan. She looks the most like Usagi, with her big buns on the top of her head, almost like she’s an inverse of Sailor Moon (which makes sense given “Black Moon Clan”).
She has similar powers and a similar personality to Sailor Mars, which makes her an even better fit for Usagi as a partner, considering that Rei and Usagi have such good chemistry. Sailor Moon first uses her Moon Crystal Power technique on Koan to free her from the clutches of the Black Moon Clan and let her start a new life. If that’s not a basis for a romance, we don’t know what is.
4 Haruka Tenoh
Haruka is in a pretty intense relationship with Michiru, and honestly, we ship them together pretty hard. But that being said, when we first meet Haruka, her flirtations with Usagi are intense. By this point, Usagi is also in a pretty serious relationship with Mamoru, and even she is not totally convinced she doesn’t want to say goodbye to him for Haruka. Who can blame her? Haruka is super good-looking, drives an awesome car, and is incredibly attentive to Usagi, which we know Mamoru was not when he and Usagi first met.
3 Makoto Kino
We know we’re pulling in a lot of the inner Senshi here but bear with us. Part of the reason that the Sailor Scouts’ relationships are so special is that Usagi’s relationships with each of them, which she formed before she even knew they were Scouts, are so sweet. Makoto is no different.
When Makoto transferred to Usagi’s school, many of their classmates weren’t very nice to her because she was so tall and looked so different. Usagi saw the beauty and kindness in her, and when Makoto offered to share her lunch with her, her heart was totally stolen. We want to see Makoto cooking, and Usagi stuffing her face, in a little house together forever.
2 Seiya Kou
Seiya Kou is one of the Sailor Star Fighters. A genderfluid character in the anime (where he is a man when he’s not a Sailor Scout and is a woman when she is), Seiya is always a woman in the manga. But regardless of gender, Seiya’s feelings about Usagi are intense. Seiya recognizes Usagi the moment he sees her from their past lives, and he becomes incredibly protective of her, even refusing to let his teammates help him protect her. Seiya loves Usagi so much that when she’s desperate to find Mamoru, he knows he has to because that’s what would make her happy. That’s true love, wanting the best for your person, and we would have loved to see a universe where their relationship could have played out.
1 Ami Mizuno
Last but not least is Ami Mizuno. Ami is the first Sailor Scout to awaken following Sailor Moon, which means she and Usagi have a special bond. Ami has been pretty misunderstood at their school, and as a shy and quiet person who gets really good grades, her classmates often think of her as being stuck up. As usual, Usagi saw something deeper in Ami, understanding there was a sweet and caring person inside of her. Their relationship is sweet and understanding, from Usagi being a friend full of unrequited love and Ami being a fiercely loyal person who will follow Usagi anywhere. It sounds like a love story to us.