Usagi Tsukino is fourteen, cries easily, oversleeps, fails her tests and would rather be eating. Then a talking black cat named Luna gives her a brooch, and she becomes Sailor Moon, a guardian who fights for love and justice. She soon finds she's not alone. Four more girls awaken as Sailor Guardians, a masked man in a tuxedo keeps rescuing her, and all of them turn out to be reincarnations of people from the Moon Kingdom, a lost civilisation that fell thousands of years ago.
Naoko Takeuchi's manga ran in Kodansha's Nakayoshi magazine from 1991 to 1997, and Toei Animation's anime ran alongside it for 200 episodes. Together they set the template for the team-based magical girl series, and they're still the reference point for the genre. In 2014, Sailor Moon Crystal began a new, more faithful adaptation of the manga, which concluded with the Cosmos films in 2023. The cast can be confusing because it's split across five story arcs and several English names, so this guide covers each group in turn.
- Creator
- Naoko Takeuchi
- Manga
- Nakayoshi, 1991–1997
- Anime
- Toei Animation, 1992–1997 (200 episodes); Crystal, 2014–2023
- Genre
- Magical girl, shoujo
- Setting
- Azabu-Jūban, Tokyo
Usagi, Tuxedo Mask and the guardian cats
The emotional centre of the story is Usagi and Mamoru, two reincarnated lovers from the Moon and Earth, and the future their relationship creates. The talking cats Luna and Artemis act as mentors and organisers for the whole team.
Usagi Tsukino / Sailor Moon
Leader of the Sailor Guardians · Princess Serenity
Usagi is clumsy, lazy and emotional, and that's the point. Her greatest power isn't her moon tiara or her wands; it's that she refuses to give up on anyone, including her enemies. She's the reincarnation of Princess Serenity of the Moon Kingdom and keeper of the Silver Crystal, and in the future she becomes Neo-Queen Serenity of Crystal Tokyo. Watching her grow from a crybaby into a leader without losing her softness is the spine of the whole series.
- Voice (JP)
- Kotono Mitsuishi
Mamoru Chiba / Tuxedo Mask
Usagi's love · Prince Endymion
Mamoru is a reserved, orphaned student who finds himself throwing roses and giving speeches as Tuxedo Mask without quite knowing why. He's the reincarnation of Prince Endymion of Earth, Serenity's forbidden love. He and Usagi start out bickering before they learn who they were. He's more powerful in the manga, where he has healing abilities and a deeper role, than in the anime, where he's often kidnapped or brainwashed.
Luna
Guardian cat · Mentor
Luna is a black cat with a crescent moon on her forehead, sent to find the Sailor Guardians and the Princess. She's the team's strategist and nag, and she is constantly exasperated with Usagi. She lives with the Tsukinos as a pet.
Artemis
Guardian cat · Minako's partner
Artemis is a white cat who guided Minako during her solo days as Sailor V. He's more laid-back than Luna, and the two of them have a long, sweet partnership that eventually produces a future daughter, Diana.
Chibiusa / Sailor Chibi Moon
Usagi's future daughter
Chibiusa falls out of the sky at the start of the second arc, a pink-haired child from 30th-century Crystal Tokyo who comes to the past for help. She bullies Usagi and adores Mamoru, which leads to great comedy before anyone learns she's their daughter. She later becomes Sailor Chibi Moon, and her friendships with Hotaru and with the winged Pegasus give her her own coming-of-age story.
The Inner Senshi
The Inner Senshi (Sailor Guardians of the inner planets) are Usagi's core team and her closest friends. In the Moon Kingdom they were Princess Serenity's bodyguards. In Tokyo they're middle-school girls dealing with tests, crushes and idol auditions between fights.
Ami Mizuno / Sailor Mercury
Guardian of water and wisdom
Ami is the top student in Japan, a quiet genius who wants to become a doctor like her mother. Other students assume she's cold, when she's actually shy and lonely. As Sailor Mercury, she uses water and ice attacks and a pocket computer to analyse enemies. Her friendship with Usagi is the first time anyone has liked her for who she is rather than what she knows.
Rei Hino / Sailor Mars
Guardian of fire and passion
Rei is a shrine maiden at the Hikawa Shrine with real psychic abilities and two pet crows. She can sense evil and burn it with sacred fire. In the anime, she's Usagi's hot-tempered rival, the two of them bickering constantly. In the manga, she's far more serious and aloof, devoted to her duty and indifferent to romance. In both versions, her arguments with Usagi hide a deep loyalty.
Makoto Kino / Sailor Jupiter
Guardian of thunder and courage
Makoto is tall, strong and rumoured to have been kicked out of her last school for fighting. She actually lives alone after losing her parents, and she loves cooking, gardening and romance novels. She sees her old crush in every handsome stranger she meets. As Sailor Jupiter, she fights with lightning and her fists, and she's the team's protective big sister.
Minako Aino / Sailor Venus
Guardian of love and beauty · Leader of the Senshi
Minako was the first to awaken. She fought alone as the masked heroine Sailor V before Usagi ever transformed, and she's the leader of the Inner Senshi. She dreams of being an idol, loves volleyball and mangles proverbs, at least in the anime. In the manga, she's much more serious, carrying the weight of her role as the princess's chief guardian and her lonely past as Sailor V.
The Outer Senshi
The Outer Senshi guard the solar system from outside threats and work alone. When they arrive in the third arc, they bring a harder philosophy: they'll sacrifice anyone, even an innocent child, to save the world. That puts them in direct conflict with Usagi, who refuses to sacrifice anyone at all.
Haruka Tenoh / Sailor Uranus
Guardian of the sky and wind
Haruka is a racing driver and an athlete with a cool, boyish style that makes half of Tokyo fall for her. She's Michiru's partner in every sense. She's ruthless about the mission and dismissive of the Inner Senshi at first, though Usagi slowly wins her over.
Michiru Kaioh / Sailor Neptune
Guardian of the deep sea
Michiru is a violinist and painter, graceful and quietly as hard as Haruka. She has visions of the coming darkness in her mirror, one of the three Talismans, and she accepted her fate as a Sailor Guardian before Haruka did.
Setsuna Meioh / Sailor Pluto
Guardian of time
Setsuna guards the Door of Time and is forbidden from leaving her post. She first appears as a solitary figure in the timestream protecting Chibiusa, and later lives in the present as a student. She's patient, kind and lonely, a guardian who has watched everything and can change almost nothing.
Hotaru Tomoe / Sailor Saturn
Guardian of death and rebirth
Hotaru is a sickly, shy girl whose father, Professor Tomoe, leads the Death Busters on Earth and who is being used as a vessel for the villain Mistress 9. She's also Sailor Saturn, whose awakening brings destruction so that life can begin again. Her friendship with Chibiusa, and the Outer Senshi's willingness to kill her, make up the darkest and most moving part of the S arc.
The Sailor Starlights and other allies
The final arc brings in guardians from beyond the solar system, plus a few ordinary friends who matter more than the anime sometimes makes them seem.
Seiya Kou / Sailor Star Fighter
Leader of the Starlights
Seiya is the lead singer of the idol group Three Lights, who are secretly Sailor Guardians searching for their lost princess. Seiya grows close to Usagi while Mamoru is away. In the anime, the Starlights are boys in civilian form who change into female guardians, while in the manga they're women in disguise.
Taiki Kou and Yaten Kou
Sailor Star Maker and Sailor Star Healer
The serious, intellectual Taiki and the sharp-tongued Yaten complete the Three Lights. Both soften once they get to know the Inner Senshi.
Princess Kakyuu
Princess of Kinmoku
The Starlights' lost ruler, hiding on Earth after her planet was destroyed by Sailor Galaxia.
Naru Osaka
Usagi's best school friend
Usagi's first friend, often a monster target in the first season. Her romance with Nephrite is the anime's first real tragedy.
Gurio Umino
Classmate · Know-it-all
A bespectacled gossip and Sailor Moon superfan who later dates Naru.
Motoki Furuhata
Arcade worker
The friendly young man who runs the Crown Game Center, Usagi's first crush.
Villains by arc
Each story arc has its own villain organisation with a leader, a set of officers and a monster for every episode. The anime adds several anime-only villains and extra episodes between arcs, but the main groups are shared with the manga.
Queen Beryl
Ruler of the Dark Kingdom · First arc
Beryl is a sorceress who loved Prince Endymion in the age of the Moon Kingdom and turned to darkness when he chose Serenity. She serves the evil entity Queen Metaria, and her four generals, the Shitennou (Jadeite, Nephrite, Zoisite and Kunzite), hunt for the Silver Crystal. In the manga, the four were once Endymion's own guards.
Prince Demande
Leader of the Black Moon Clan · Second arc
Demande comes from a rebel faction in 30th-century Crystal Tokyo and is obsessed with Neo-Queen Serenity. His brother Sapphire, the Ayakashi Sisters, Rubeus and Esmeraude serve the clan, and the mysterious Wiseman pulls the strings. The arc also corrupts Chibiusa into Black Lady.
Professor Tomoe and the Death Busters
Third arc
A scientist possessed by an alien being, working for Pharaoh 90 from the Tau system. His followers, including Kaolinite and the Witches 5, steal pure hearts, and his daughter Hotaru is being prepared as Mistress 9.
Queen Nehelenia
Ruler of the Dead Moon Circus · Fourth arc
A vain queen terrified of growing old, who hunts the Golden Crystal and Pegasus through her circus troupe. The Amazon Trio and the Amazoness Quartet serve her, and the anime gives her one of the series' most surprisingly sympathetic endings.
Sailor Galaxia
Leader of Shadow Galactica · Final arc
The most powerful Sailor Guardian in the galaxy, now consumed by the darkness of Chaos and stealing other guardians' Star Seeds. Her Sailor Animamates are corrupted guardians too. The final battle with her is about whether Usagi can save someone who's already lost everything.
Ail and Ann
Anime-only villains
Alien siblings from the Makaiju arc at the start of Sailor Moon R, which doesn't exist in the manga.
Voice cast at a glance
Kotono Mitsuishi has voiced Usagi in Japanese across both the 1990s series and Crystal. Most of the other Japanese roles were recast for Crystal. In English, Viz Media's 2010s redub uses the original names and a new cast, replacing the 1990s DiC and Cloverway dubs.
| Character | 1990s anime (JP) | Crystal (JP) | Viz dub (EN) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Usagi Tsukino | Kotono Mitsuishi | Kotono Mitsuishi | Stephanie Sheh |
| Ami Mizuno | Aya Hisakawa | Hisako Kanemoto | Kate Higgins |
| Rei Hino | Michie Tomizawa | Rina Satō | Cristina Vee |
| Makoto Kino | Emi Shinohara | Ami Koshimizu | Amanda C. Miller |
| Minako Aino | Rica Fukami | Shizuka Itō | Cherami Leigh |
| Mamoru Chiba | Tōru Furuya | Kenji Nojima | Robbie Daymond |
| Luna | Keiko Han | Ryō Hirohashi | Michelle Ruff |
| Chibiusa | Kae Araki | Misato Fukuen | Sandy Fox |
Tōru Furuya, the original Tuxedo Mask, is also known as Yamcha in Dragon Ball and Amuro Ray in Gundam. For more on the people behind these roles, see our voice actors page.
English dub names
If you grew up with the 1990s English dub, you may know the cast by different names. This table maps them back to the originals.
| Japanese name | 1990s English dub | Guardian |
|---|---|---|
| Usagi Tsukino | Serena | Sailor Moon |
| Ami Mizuno | Amy Anderson | Sailor Mercury |
| Rei Hino | Raye Hino | Sailor Mars |
| Makoto Kino | Lita Kino | Sailor Jupiter |
| Minako Aino | Mina Aino | Sailor Venus |
| Mamoru Chiba | Darien Shields | Tuxedo Mask |
| Chibiusa | Rini | Sailor Chibi Moon |
| Haruka Tenoh | Amara | Sailor Uranus |
| Michiru Kaioh | Michelle | Sailor Neptune |
| Setsuna Meioh | Trista | Sailor Pluto |
| Naru Osaka | Molly | Usagi's friend |
| Gurio Umino | Melvin | Usagi's classmate |
| Kunzite | Malachite | Dark Kingdom general |
Where to start: the 1990s anime or Crystal?
Sailor Moon (1992–1997)
- Five seasons: Sailor Moon, R, S, SuperS and Sailor Stars, plus three films.
- Lots of episodic, slice-of-life comedy and anime-only filler.
- Gives the Inner Senshi bigger, funnier personalities.
- The version most people mean when they say "Sailor Moon."
Sailor Moon Crystal (2014–2023)
- Three seasons, then the Eternal and Cosmos two-part films.
- Follows the manga closely, with almost no filler.
- Faster, more serious and more romantic.
- The only animated version of the manga's ending.
Why these characters still matter
Sailor Moon proved that a story about girls could be about friendship, romance and saving the world at the same time, without having to choose one. Usagi's strength is compassion. She wins most of her battles by understanding her enemies, which makes her one of the defining female protagonists in animation. The Inner Senshi are a found family of girls who were each lonely in different ways. Haruka and Michiru gave many viewers their first openly queer couple in a cartoon.
You can see Sailor Moon's influence in the transformation sequences of Miraculous Ladybug and the team dynamics of Steven Universe. For the genre's background, see the magical girl and shoujo sections of our anime genres guide.
All Sailor Moon character names A–Z
A–C
- Ail and Ann — Anime-only villains
- Ami Mizuno — Sailor Mercury
- Artemis — Guardian cat
- Chibiusa — Sailor Chibi Moon
D–J
- Demande — Black Moon Clan
- Diana — Future cat
- Esmeraude — Black Moon Clan
- Galaxia — Shadow Galactica
- Haruka Tenoh — Sailor Uranus
- Helios — Pegasus
- Hotaru Tomoe — Sailor Saturn
- Jadeite — Dark Kingdom
K–M
- Kakyuu — Princess of Kinmoku
- Kaolinite — Death Busters
- Kunzite — Dark Kingdom
- Luna — Guardian cat
- Makoto Kino — Sailor Jupiter
- Mamoru Chiba — Tuxedo Mask
- Metaria — Dark Kingdom
- Michiru Kaioh — Sailor Neptune
- Minako Aino — Sailor Venus
- Mistress 9 — Death Busters
- Motoki Furuhata — Friend
N–R
- Naru Osaka — Friend
- Nehelenia — Dead Moon
- Nephrite — Dark Kingdom
- Pharaoh 90 — Death Busters
- Queen Beryl — Dark Kingdom
- Rei Hino — Sailor Mars
- Rubeus — Black Moon Clan
S–T
- Sapphire — Black Moon Clan
- Seiya Kou — Sailor Star Fighter
- Setsuna Meioh — Sailor Pluto
- Souichi Tomoe — Death Busters
- Taiki Kou — Sailor Star Maker
U–Z
- Umino Gurio — Classmate
- Usagi Tsukino — Sailor Moon
- Wiseman — Black Moon Clan
- Yaten Kou — Sailor Star Healer
- Zoisite — Dark Kingdom
Frequently asked questions
Who are Usagi's friends in Sailor Moon Crystal?
Her fellow Sailor Guardians: Ami Mizuno (Mercury), Rei Hino (Mars), Makoto Kino (Jupiter) and Minako Aino (Venus), plus the guardian cats Luna and Artemis. Outside the team, her oldest school friend is Naru Osaka, and Gurio Umino is the class know-it-all. Crystal follows the manga closely, so Naru and Umino appear much less than in the 1990s anime.
What are the Sailor Moon characters' names in the English dub?
The original English dub renamed most of the cast: Usagi became Serena, Ami became Amy, Rei became Raye, Makoto became Lita, Minako became Mina, Mamoru became Darien and Chibiusa became Rini. The newer Viz Media dub and Crystal use the original Japanese names.
Who is the strongest Sailor Guardian?
Sailor Moon herself, especially in her later Eternal form, wielding the Silver Crystal. Among the others, Sailor Saturn is usually ranked highest, because her awakening can destroy a whole planet so that it can be reborn. Sailor Pluto, who guards the gate of time, is also near the top.
How old is Usagi in Sailor Moon?
Usagi is 14 at the start of the series, in her second year of middle school. She ages through the story, and by the final arc she's in high school.
Are Sailor Uranus and Sailor Neptune a couple?
Yes. Haruka and Michiru are a couple in both the manga and the Japanese anime. The 1990s English dub tried to hide this by calling them cousins, which made their scenes very strange. The Viz Media redub and Crystal restore the relationship.
What order should I watch Sailor Moon in?
The original anime runs in five seasons: Sailor Moon, R, S, SuperS and Sailor Stars, with three films. Crystal is a separate retelling that follows the manga, continuing with the Eternal and Cosmos films. You can start with either; see the section below.