Sailor Moon and the Problem With Empires
From the second arc of Bishojo Senshi Sailor Moon, mangaka Naoko Takuchi set out in no uncertain terms precisely what the future held for Usagi. Spoiler alert, Usagi and Mamoru marry, they and the other senshi do not age, and found a futuristic utopia over which Usagi rules as Neo Queen Serenity, Mamoru becomes King Endymion, and they have a daughter named Small Lady Usagi Serenity (Chibiusa). A group of rebels named Black Moon mess around with time travel, and you have the Black Moon arc of the manga, or second half of the R season of the anime (or second half of Sailor Moon Crystal season one).
The issue with this which is somewhat concerning and frequently goes overlooked is the fact that this utopia is a monarchy, and a global empire to boot. Neo Queen Serenity is depicted as having godlike power over the universe itself,
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| Neo Queen Serenity with Sailor Moon and Sailor Chibi Moon Naoko Takeuchi, 1994, Nakayoshi. Reproduced at http://mangastyle.net/sailormoon-artbook-vol-02/ |
In the DiC dub of the 90's anime, the word ginzuisho, the jewel which is the embodiment and source of Usagi's power is translated as "Imperium Silver Crystal" and "Imperial Silver Crystal", although a better translation would be "Legendary Silver Crystal", or "Phantom Silver Crystal", implying it's fantastic, unnatainable nature. But I feel that DiC unintentionally hit the nail on the head. The word "Imperium" means "ultimate power", and that is essentially correct, and also implies the notion of the Empire.
The ten senshi are not just pretty maho shojo a la Sally the Witch, but truly senshi, they are soldiers, a military group. In the final arc of the manga, Sailor Moon and Galaxia effectively go to war with one another, over Galaxia's desire to control the entire galaxy. The fact that Sailor Moon succeeds with the power of love is neither here nor there from an objective military standpoint.
The point where this becomes a rather troubling point is when exploring Japanese history. The Japanese Empire was a force of colonialism, and this older, nationalistic perspective invites all manner of racist perspectives, as well as factoring into Japan's startlingly low immigration rates. Brian Bremner recently explored the imperial hangover which is hindering Japan in "Japan's Incredible Shrinking Empire" for Bloomberg Business, particularly focussing on Japan's need for foreign investment. Bremner also mentions an extremely (and rightly so) controversial manga titled Kenkanryu, which loosely translates to "Anti-Korea Wave". Extremely racist right wing conservatism knows no racial boundaries I suppose. I would love to learn more about this text but suspect that spending more than five minutes doing so would be incredibly unpleasant and akin to spending the day at an English Defence League rally.
Naoko Takeuchi has very rarely been interviewed on her work, and of the sparse materials I have been able to view, there is nothing regarding her personal political leanings, so it seems unfair to assume either deliberate or subconscious imperialist attitudes. It's also an issue that I can't access work by Japanese political commentators and historians, due of course to the language barrier. My research is from quite a definite Western perspective, see for example the rather deliberately titled "Why Japan Is Still Not Sorry Enough", by Kirk Spitzer for TIME Magazine back in 2012. To cite the most unreliable of sources, Wikipedia, their article on Japanese war crimes lists a pretty stark collection of accusations.
Naoko Takeuchi has very rarely been interviewed on her work, and of the sparse materials I have been able to view, there is nothing regarding her personal political leanings, so it seems unfair to assume either deliberate or subconscious imperialist attitudes. It's also an issue that I can't access work by Japanese political commentators and historians, due of course to the language barrier. My research is from quite a definite Western perspective, see for example the rather deliberately titled "Why Japan Is Still Not Sorry Enough", by Kirk Spitzer for TIME Magazine back in 2012. To cite the most unreliable of sources, Wikipedia, their article on Japanese war crimes lists a pretty stark collection of accusations.
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| Wikipedia, 21/09/15 |
All the context aside, Neo Crystal Tokyo under the rule of Neo Queen Serenity need not be such a stark prospect. It is, of course, "Neo". Usagi rebuilds what remained of the old world, the Silver Millenium, the tragic past of the senshi's former lives, which ended in bloody conflict between the Earth and Moon. Perhaps the Earth and Moon are allegorical, in place of Japan and the rest of the world.
In her marriage to Mamoru, this conflict is negated, and Neo Crystal Tokyo, and the heir to the title of Sailor Moon, Chibiusa, comes from their union. Perhaps in fact, Neo Crystal Tokyo is about NOT repeating the mistakes of Imperial past, but the reality of the place is so obscure within the narrative, that it leaves fans to speculate on just how benevolent Neo Queen Serenity's rule really is.
This notion of Neo Crystal Tokyo as post-colonial speculation could be an extremely exciting direction in which to take my research, and I certainly have a great deal more contextual reading to explore.
In her marriage to Mamoru, this conflict is negated, and Neo Crystal Tokyo, and the heir to the title of Sailor Moon, Chibiusa, comes from their union. Perhaps in fact, Neo Crystal Tokyo is about NOT repeating the mistakes of Imperial past, but the reality of the place is so obscure within the narrative, that it leaves fans to speculate on just how benevolent Neo Queen Serenity's rule really is.
This notion of Neo Crystal Tokyo as post-colonial speculation could be an extremely exciting direction in which to take my research, and I certainly have a great deal more contextual reading to explore.
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