Sailor Moon: The Importance Of 'Magical Girl' Genre | The Odyssey Online
Start writing a post
Entertainment

Sailor Moon: The Importance Of 'Magical Girl' Genre

It's more than just pretty costumes – though that's an important part.

585
Sailor Moon: The Importance Of 'Magical Girl' Genre
theafictionado.wordpress.com

Last week I read an article on Anime News Network about Vice’s mini documentary on "Sailor Moon" and its impact on LGBT kids from the 90's. Being a die-hard fan of the series (as well as a 90's LGBT kid), I was automatically intrigued. The documentary is heartwarming; it brought back a lot of memories and made me feel as grateful as ever for the existence of "Sailor Moon," a 1990's magical girl shōjo manga series turned anime. It gained a large fan following, especially since it was adapted into languages other than Japanese. The series follows a young schoolgirl named Usagi Tsukino and her friends, the other senshi (soldiers), as they fight enemies and embrace their differences. It was a staple of my childhood.

I’m, sadly, one of those people who can’t help reading the comments on every video or article that I come across on the Internet. Luckily, the comments on this article didn’t leave me with a headache. Actually, one user made a comment about being underwhelmed by the documentary and wanting more of a feminist/LGBT study of shōjo. I agreed.

But, what is exactly is shōjo? And why is it so important? Shōjo is a genre of anime and manga that’s geared toward the teenage female audience. Though it sounds pretty awesome to have an entire genre geared toward young women, it can be pretty detrimental at times. Joana Fraga wrote a piece on Dere Project, where she says:

“Shoujo Manga represents a big conquer when it comes to female authorship and market space. However, it is still trapped in meaningless stereotypes of what a woman should be and how she should behave, as well as the romanticization of abusive behaviours. As women, we can not be deceived by false ideas of representation. To have such a big market dedicated to females should be more focused on bringing more female-centered self esteem (and not by validation of a male counterpart), instruction and most importantly: empowerment.”

This applies to a lot of shōjo manga/anime that was popular in the past, but there are definitely gems that challenge gender roles and stereotypes. Most of my favorite shōjo that’s done this successfully has been about magical girls (*cough* Sailor Moon *cough*). Magical girls have been a fantastic example of girls being pretty and strong, which is something that seems to be missing in a lot of earlier shōjo. The video that Hypeathon linked to in the comments of the ANN article, uploaded by YouTube user Subsonic Sparkle, goes over why the magical girl trope is so important, and highlights the impact that it’s made even in Western cartoons ("Steven Universe," "My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic," etc).

Though the video is a bit hard to understand (the narrator speaks really, really quickly), the content is spot-on. Acceptance, femininity and friendship are among some of the things discussed. One of my favorite parts of the video, though only brushed over briefly, is the idea behind nakedness. A lot of criticism that comes along with the magical girl genre is the fact that the girls are sexualized; their bodies accentuated during the transformation sequences.

Subsonic Sparkle mentions the fact that nakedness doesn’t necessarily need to be sexual. In fact, it represents so much more than that: vulnerability, being stripped down, etc. I was so ecstatic to hear them say this. I especially appreciate the fact that the creator of the video isn’t actually a fan of "Sailor Moon," but still sees the value that the show had on kids in the 90s. Even though this video was uploaded in November of 2015, I’ve only just seen it and I’m in love. To sum it up: please watch it. Magical girls influenced much more than you might think.

Report this Content
This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
girl holding phone
NYCPRGIRLS

Now that it seems “talking” is the new way to date, and will stay that way until another idiotic term is used to describe the people who can’t settle down and just date someone, I feel as if it’s time to go over the unwritten rules of “talking.”

Rule 1. Having feeling without feeling.

Keep Reading...Show less
The Stages of Having FOMO in College
iamthatgirl.com

Are you one of those people that gets super upset when you miss out on anything? Well, you may have FOMO, or fear of missing out. In college it’s not hard to experience FOMO every once in a while. You just love doing everything and anything, so hen you have to miss out on something it's the worst possible thing in your mind. Whether you’re sick, have to work, or have so much work to do you could cry – FOMO will hit you hard in college.

Keep Reading...Show less
Vivien Leigh
Revelist

I've lived a whole 21 years with an RBF (Resting Bitch Face), so naturally, I go through most of these struggles on a daily basis.

And before you ask, yes I'm fine. No, I'm not mad. This is just my face, so take it or leave it! To those of you who have been #blessed with an RBF, you'll probably relate to these more than you'd like to:

Keep Reading...Show less
Entertainment

Iconic Duos: Timeless Legends

From Luke and Leia to Beyonce's twins...

774734
Luke and Leia from Star Wars, a iconic duo
Lucasfilm

“Name a more iconic duo... I'll wait." OK, well, if you insist. In no particular order, here's a list of 100 iconic duos that seem to be timeless.

SEE MORE: This Is The ICONIC Disney Sidekick You Are To Your BFF, According To Your Zodiac Sign

Keep Reading...Show less
Relationships

A Candid Letter to My Best Friends Ex

Because this is the real form of torture you deserve.

1060
middle finger
Photo by engin akyurt on Unsplash

What's up Asshat,

I've composed a list of things that I wish upon you, and they're harsh and cruel. These things are things that I wouldn't wish upon my worst of enemies, not even that Starbuck's barista who always screws up my order, not even him. You fall into a whole other category of hate. You surpass Starbucks barista. Congratulations, I'm actually a pretty nice person, making you worthy of every single bit of torture I wish upon you. What are these things I wish upon you you might ask?

Keep Reading...Show less

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Facebook Comments