EPISODE 052

Nerawareta enji! Venus daikatsuyaku

(Targeted Kindergarten Kids! Venus' Great Performance)

Original Air Date: 04-24-1993
Director: Takuya Igarashi
Animation Director: Taichi Nakamura
Writer: Katsuyuki Sumizawa

Cast
Screencaps

What's In This Episode?
Ail, An, Disguise Pen, Gigaros, Mie Sayama, Shiba Kindergarten, Shiba Koen Junior High School

Minako and Artemis are sleeping soundly in bed. In her sleep, Minako calls out Alan's name (her past romantic interest) and squeezes Artemis! This jolts him awake, and when he yells, Minako wakes up, too. She lifts him by the scruff of his neck. He is holding the alarm clock. When she sees that clock reads 8:10 AM, she screams and jumps up to get dressed. She tells him to quit stopping her alarm clock in the morning!!

Artemis begins to speak, saying, "My name is Artemis. I'm a tomcat who can understand the human language, and I also speak it very well."

As Minako is getting dressed, she accuses Artemis of looking at her and calls him a pervert, then covers him with clothing so he can't see her.

The two race out the door, and Artemis continues: "This is my long-time partner, Minako Aino, also known as Sailor Venus. She looks so dependable, but looks can be deceiving. She should have more hidden powers. I just wish she were a little more dependable."

On the way to school, Minako falls on top of Artemis's head. Squeezing out from under her, he says that she is heavy, which offends her!

They soon hear cries nearby and see that two older boys are picking on a young girl, telling her to hand over her badge. She closes her eyes and refuses, eventually beginning to cry as the boys get closer and closer. Minako soon runs around the corner and the boys flee. When the little girl sees Minako, she smiles and thanks her; she was faking her tears for the boys. She then asks Minako to walk her to the bus stop.

Minako says she doesn't have time to walk her to the bus stop, but the girl insists. She ultimately starts to cry and call Minako mean, so the older girl relents and hurries to take her to the bus stop. When they arrive, both the bus driver and little girl thank her, but Minako is completely out of breath from running so fast!

As the bus pulls away, she says, "I can't believe how kids are nowadays. Artemis sternly tells her, "Minako, I doubt you'll make it to school on time, but do you want to try running anyway?"

Minako races off to school, and sees Usagi (who is also late). Commiserating about sleeping in, she says to her friend, "As they say, 'In spring, one sleeps a sleep that knows no damn!'" Artemis quickly reminds her that the proverb should be, "In spring, one sleeps a sleep that knows no dawn." She says, "I suppose they say that, too!"

The two girls split up, since they are running to different schools. When Minako arrives, she finds that she is very late, and has been locked out! Artemis tells the audience, "You won't believe this, but she's much better than she used to be. She's such a handful."

The morning bells are chiming at Juuban Junior High School. Inside, Usagi stands in the hallway with a sign around her neck that reads, "I am always late for school." She hates that she has to stand there with the sign, even during recess! She wonders if Minako ever made it to school on time.

Seijuuro approaches her and says, "Your sorrowful eyes are truly bewitching. Now come into my arms and let us talk of love!" Natsumi angrily steps between the two and asks him what he is doing. He begins stretching and makes the excuse that he was just exercising! As he is leaving, Usagi thinks to herself that siblings are weird.

On the roof of the school, Natsumi and Seijuuro talk together. He begins talking about the next energy collecting operation, but she tells him not to change the subject and asks what he is thinking, chasing "that girl." He says that she is misunderstanding him, and that this is all part of his plan. She is still angry, but continues talking about collecting energy. She says that she has decided that this time, they should steal younger and "fresher" energy than before."

That afternoon, after school, the young girl from the morning is arguing with three older boys again. They push her to the ground, and she tells them that she knows that Sailor Moon is real. They argue that she is not.

Minako and Artemis come upon them. Minako tells the boys to leave the little girl alone, but one of them says, "Don't stick your nose in a kids' fight, old woman!" Another boy tells her to go find a boyfriend or something, and the third boy says that will be hard with her looks! The three of them laugh. Minako becomes extremely angry and the boys run off. As they do, she wonders what is wrong with this generation of kids. Artemis says, "That's why they call you an old woman!"

Minako turns to the little girl and asks what they were arguing about. She says, "My name is Mie. I'm in the Tulip Class at Shiba Kindergarten." Minako introduces herself and Artemis, and sees that Mie has a Sailor Moon patch on her jacket. She asks Mie if she is a fan of Sailor Moon, and then asks if she likes Sailor Venus as well. Mie asks, "Who's that?" Minako sighs and says, "Nevermind."

The two girls go sit on a park bench together. Mie asks if Sailor Moon really exists, and Minako says that is a tough question. Mie sadly wonders if she doesn't exist at all, but Minako tells her that as long as she believes in her, then she's real. Beliving is what's important.

Mie asks Minako if she knows Sailor Moon, and Minako says that she's even met her. Artemis begins to panic, thinking that too much information is being revealed!! Mie asks her newfound friend if she will come to the kindergarten class tomorrow and talk to the boys who bullied her, because no one believes her. Minako agrees, saying she'll teach those kids to have "real childlike innocence." Meanwhile, Artemis continues to panic!

Mie says, "If we don't believe anything now, I think we'll regret it when we become grownups!" Again, Minako wonders, "What are kids nowadays thinking?"

Meanwhile, An and Ail sit on the roots of the Makaiju, lamenting that their energy is running out. An says that this time, they will target young people with fresh energy. She picks a card, and Ail plays a melody on his flute to make the Cardian Gigaros come to life.

Gigaros is let loose into the city, and immediately targets a bus full of young children headed home from Kari Kindergarten. He blasts a hole in the roof of the bus and leaps inside, then steals the children's energy. Back at the Makaiju, An and Ail are amazed; this is much more energy than they were expecting!

[Commercial Break]

Later, Luna shows Makoto, Rei, and Ami a newspaper with the headline, "Mysterious Attack on Kindergarten Bus?" Luna thinks it is the aliens again; Rei is angry that they are targeting children. Ami uses her mini computer to determine the next kindergarten that will be attacked. She says that there is 67% probability that the next one will be Shiba Kindergarten. Luna says they should infiltrate the school immediately!

Although the girls are very serious, Usagi interrupts them by loudly laughing at a comic book. They realize that she was not paying attention, and tell her to fight hard for them... evidently, she will have to do this alone.

While the other girls are discussing these events, Minako is at the kindergarten, telling a large group of children that Sailor Moon and Sailor Venus really do exist. A boy on the front row says that he won't believe it until he sees them, and several other students agree. Mie sagely says that believing in them is what's important. Minako confirms this, saying that if you keep believing, one day you'll see them.

One boy tells Minako he wishes she'd be more realistic. Another boy asks if she is going through a hard time or something due to her "escapism." The first boy says that it must be nice to be a grown up, always pushing hardships on children and running off to a fantasy world. Minako becomes very angry, but doesn't say what she is thinking. Artemis thinks that they should have just left the kids alone.

A teacher soon appears and tells the children that it is time to go home. When she tells that that she won't be on the bus today, they are very disappointed. Minako offers to take her place on the bus, which excites Mie. One of the boys says that if they have "no choice," then he'll let Minako ride in the teacher's place.

Usagi and Luna look on as the students finish boarding the bus. Usagi wonders why she has to do this alone, and Luna reminds her that she is the only one who can use the disguise pen. Still, she thinks that the others are being very cold, and she is worried about what to do if the monster really shows up.

Usagi uses the disguise pen to transform into a "sweet and stylish kindergarten teacher." As the bus leaves, she catches the driver and apologizes for being late, saying that she is a new teacher. Usagi recognizes Minako on the bus, but Minako also recognizes her, leading to a brief moment of confusion.

Meanwhile, Gigaros has returned to the Makaiju. Ail orders him to go out and collect even more energy!

On the bus, Minako and Usagi (still in disguise) lead the children in singing the Sailor Moon theme song. When the bus enters a tunnel, Gigaros is standing in the middle of the road. As they get closer, he bursts through the windshield and onto the bus. The driver screeches to a halt.

The children are terrified. Minako assures Mie that Sailor Moon will surely come to rescue them in a situation like this. Usagi overhears this and rushes towards Gigaros to attack him. The Cardian deftly pushes her away and out of the door, which closes behind her. She uses the opportunity to transform into Sailor Moon when no one is looking.

Gigaros prepares to attack the others on the bus when Sailor Moon appears behind him and says, "Wait! Stealing energy from the children who bear the future of the 21st century... you cannot get away with making us worry about old age!"

The children are surprised to see that Sailor Moon really does exist! She flashes a peace sign towards them and says, "Thanks for waiting!" Gigaros quickly exits the bus to face Sailor Moon. He blasts her with a cyclone of energy, while the children worry about her safety. With the children distracted, Minako slips away and transform into Sailor Venus. She quickly attacks the Cardian with "Crescent Beam," briefly incapacitating him. The children are very impressed by her!

Gigaros soon stands up, much to the dismay of Sailor Venus, who cannot believe that her attack didn't destroy him. She uses Crescent Beam again, but he deflects it. Both Senshi are knocked to the ground, while the children attempt to encourage them.

As Gigaros moves to attack again, a white rose flies through the air and stops him. The Moonlight Knight appears near the bus and says, "Once you pass through the tunnel of despair, you will see the garden of hope. You can overcome any kind of difficulty. Believe in yourself. You already have a strong ally who believes in you." With that, he points to the children, who continue to cheer the girls on.

Sailor Venus is more determined than ever. She rises to her feet and says, "These children have taught me just how important it is to believe! I will protect the children!" She uses a new attack, "Crescent Beam Shower." Several beams of light engulf Gigaros, completely incapacitating him. Sailor Moon uses the opportunity to attack with "Moon Princess Halation," destroying the Cardian once and for all.

The children are overcome with joy. The Moonlight Knight is also impressed with the girls for "showing us the importance of believing in ourselves." He disappears as quickly and mysteriously as he came.

Sailor Venus is thinking about her newfound power, Crescent Beam Shower. Artemis tells her that it is one of the hidden powers she possesses. He says that they owe everything to the children. They wave goodbye to everyone on the bus.

Later on, Mie and Minako talk about their day. The little girl says that both Sailor Moon and Sailor Venus were great, and that she is thinking of becoming a Sailor Venus fan!

Episode 052 Cast

Character	Seiyuu
Usagi Tsukino/Sailor Moon	Kotono Mitsuishi
Ami Mizuno/Sailor Mercury	Aya Hisakawa
Rei Hino/Sailor Mars	Michie Tomizawa
Makoto Kino/Sailor Jupiter	Emi Shinohara
Minako Aino/Sailor Venus	Rica Fukami
Luna	Keiko Han
Artemis	Yasuhiro Takato
Mamoru Chiba/Moonlight Knight	Tohru Furuya
Ail/Seijuurou Ginga	Hikaru Midorikawa
An/Natsumi Ginga	Yumi Touma
Gigaros	Miki Narahashi
Mie Sayama	Taeko Yamada
Teacher	Masami Kamiyama
Primary School Students	Megumi Ogata, Yuko Nagashima
Kindergarten Student	Junko Shimakata