Welcome to "Iron Mouse 101" at
Ginga U! ^_^ We're envied by Harvard, Yale, and all those others
because our curriculum has the best Iron Mouse courses. ^_^ Well,
on with the class! Be warned, though, that there are spoilers scattered throughout.
Lesson 6: Manga Sailor Iron Mouse
I'm sure you know that there are a lot of differences between the anime (cartoon) and manga (comic book) versions of Sailormoon, right? Characters are kinda different, villains don't last as long, etc. Well, Iron Mouse is no exception. Although
she appeared for only a short time (a few pages in Act 43), there's a whole lot of info about her that didn't appear in the anime. Such as, she has an attack name! It's called Galactica Crunch (cool name, ne?) It's kinda the same as her
unnamed attack in the anime, as you can see here.
Another difference in info is that Iron Mouse's history is revealed, from her home planet being Chuu to how she became an Anima Mate. The story of this is a bit confusing (as is most of manga Stars o_O ), but it seems that Galaxia took the starseed
of the defender of Chuu (Sailor Chuu, of course), and brought ruin to Chuu. (This had happened to many other planets besides Chuu, such as Mermaid and Chronis.) Then Galaxia found Iron Mouse, gave her bracelets, and turned her into a "Sailor Senshi." She was then forced to work
for Galaxia like many other young innocents, and was promised to one day be given a sailor crystal and a planet, becoming a real Sailor Senshi (well, that's what Tin Nyanko said; I'd assume Galaxia gave the same offer to all of her Anima Mates).
A few more random differences are there's no Nezu Chuuko (but she does appear wearing sunglasses!), she already knew who had the right starseeds, she doesn't go around in a telephone booth, she was killed off by Sailor Star Healer (one of the
Sailor Starlights, new Senshi that appeared in Stars) instead of Galaxia, and little character developement. She's still pretty cool in it, though. ^_^ (Not like I'm biased or anything... 9_9;; )
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Lesson 6.5: Purchasing the Manga
Now why not get ahold of the Stars manga? Mixx has started releasing the English version, but frankly I recommend supporting Takeuchi Naoko & Co. directly by purchasing the original volumes (tankoubon). You can find out about translations here and buy the Japanese manga, and sometimes Mixx's release, at one of the following online stores:
Sasuga Japanese Bookstore
-- Probably the most well-known place to buy manga. Their prices are great and their selection is great. In stock stuff usually arrives in about a week, but out of stock or out of print stuff can take a lot longer. My Utena OST 5 came in about a month, and the "Adolescence Mokushiroku" manga came in three to four months. So, if you're lucky, you'll get your order quick, but even if you have to wait a long time, it's still worth it.
Joy's Japanimation
-- So far Joy's is one of the best online stores I've dealt with. The price of the manga is very high ($7.95), but their service makes up for it. ^_^ However, their manga stock fluctuates a lot, so when you see a tankoubon you want, get it right away. When I ordered from here a week before last Christmas, I got everything in only four days. o_o! Recommended if you don't mind paying a bit more than other places.
VOE
-- Another of my favorite stores. They have all of the Sailormoon manga, as well as Sailor V and various other manga by Takeuchi Naoko. The prices are very expensive, though ($8.50). As for speed, when I ordered an Utena CD from here, it took only about a week to get it.
The Place
-- Like I said before when talked about purchasing the anime, it takes a long time to receive items that aren't in stock from here, and about two weeks to receive in-stock items. Their manga prices are a bit higher than normal, but not as bad as some stores.
Nikaku
-- Another place I've heard lots of people recommend but haven't used myself. ^^;; You can get all of the Sailormoon manga here, not just Stars! ^_^ The prices are very nice ($5.95).
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Lesson 7: The Basics Again: Musicals
[If you know about the musicals, you can just skip this part; if you don't, shame on you! ^_~]
1. Sailormoon musicals? Huh?
Basically, a bunch of people in Japan put on wigs and costumes and sing cool songs.
2. Sounds pretty corny!
Isn't all of Sailormoon? ^_~ But really, they're actually very good. The storylines are based on both the anime and manga, yet are different (like how the anime and manga are different). Also, a lot of the acting is great, especially Ohyama Anza, Sailor Moon's
first actress (you might also know her most recently for being the singer of the second Card Captor Sakura opening song). A lot of the songs are even better than the ones from the anime!
3. The songs are like typical American musicals, right?
Not at all! (Mostly.) Ever hear "La Soldier"? That song is originally from the musicals, not the anime. I suggest you go to The Compleat Sailor Moon CD List and download some of these songs: (M1=Musical 1, etc.)
"Sailor War!" (M1), "La Soldier" (M1), "Solar Miracle, Make Up!" (M2), "Amazon Kara Circus Dan ga Yatte Kita" (M3), "Fukkastu! Crisis Yurusumazi" (M3), "To a Brand New World" (M3), "La Moon" (M3), "Chasing After You" (M4), "It's Chou Very Bad" (M4), "Sailor Busters" (M4),
"Kick out a Bloody Mystery" (M5), "Galaxia Gorgeous" (M5), "Stay Alone" (M6), and "Kokoro Tabanete Makin' For The Right" (M6). (And I still have about 20 other favorites. O_O) Once you listen to all of these, you'll be hooked like me. ^_^
4. Now I want to see these musicals. Where can I get them?
If you're cheap like me, you'll probably want to request from Glen or Phoenix. If you
happen to have a lot of money, give some to me (please?) and then check out Animenation (for a direct link, go here). If you'd like a recommendation for which musical to get, I highly recommend either version of the SuperS musicals or the revision of the Stars musical. (Skip the first season and SMS musicals! Especial SMS, it's horrid and will give you a bad impression of Seramyu! ;_;)
5. Anywhere I can find out more about the musicals?
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Lesson 8: Musical Sailor Iron Mouse
Since a musical is only a few hours long, and I haven't seen the first Stars musical yet (only the revision), there's not a whole lot I can say. ^^;; Well, Iron Mouse's actress is Maruyama Chie (thanks to here for the info). There's a whole bunch of other villains besides her; they're
Sailors Tin Nyanko, Pewter Fox, Titanium Kerokko, Chi, Phi, Theta, Batoles, MC Fly, and of course, Galaxia (click here for a visual chart; click here to see a movie I made of them introducing themselves). Iron Mouse doesn't really say much (Sailor Pewter Fox seemed
to be the lead one), but she did capture Chibi Usa, so she did play a major part in the story! And she, uh... sang stuff. ^^;;
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Final Exam!
Forget the midterm, it's time for the final! ^_^ Just put your mouse over the question mark to find out if you answered right. It's only ten questions, so you'll need to answer seven correctly to pass. Good luck!
1) What does Nezu Chuuko pose as (her job)?
2) When Nezu Chuuko transforms into Sailor Iron Mouse, what does she say?
3) Who is Sailor Iron Mouse's boss?
4) How many episodes was Sailor Iron Mouse in?
5) What act in the manga does Sailor Iron Mouse appear in?
6) When Sailor Iron Mouse leaves the fight scene, what does she leave in?
7) Who is Sailor Iron Mouse's seiyuu (voice actress)?
8) Who killed Sailor Iron Mouse in the anime?
9) Who killed Sailor Iron Mouse in the manga?
10) What is the name of Sailor Iron Mouse's attack in the manga?
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