Sailor Moon - The Legend Begins (TV Show, Vol. 1) [VHS]
High-pitched, relentlessly fast paced, and filmed in eye-gouging gumball colors, this video series combines two previously released dubbed episodes from the Japanese animated series, along with a couple of new ones. The adventures of a group of schoolgirl superheroes,Sailor Moonis a lighthearted kiddy variation on a ubiquitous Japanese subgenre, stories of alienated adolescents granted paranormal powers and enlisted on the side of virtue in apocalyptic struggles across space and time. Imported to the U.S. in an attempt to create a post-Power Rangersfranchise for girls, the show never became a mainstream megahit in the states, although it still has passionate fans (thanks to airings on the Cartoon Network). The chirpy, giggly tone may be off-putting, but the level of visual imagination (and the self-sufficient courage of the young heroines) can be exhilarating, especially when kids and parents watch together. This first volume kicks off with the "secret origin" episode, "A Moon Star Is Born," in which Tokyo middle-school student Serena is transformed into the title character by the occult power of a mysterious locket. She acquires a cute sidekick (a talking cat named Luna), and in the three succeeding episodes she begins to assemble her support team of spunky Sailor Scouts, with names like Sailor Mercury, Sailor Jupiter, and Sailor Venus. In the second episode, "Talk Radio," a phantom radio program is somehow connected with the door-to-door delivery of flowers whose fumes put people to sleep. Also includes the episodes "Slim City" and "So You Want to Be a Superstar," with a total running time of 90 minutes. These edited shows are appropriate for fans age 5 to 12.--David Chute