Minako Aino

Minako Aino (愛野 美奈子, Aino Minako^?, called "Mina" in Latin America and the United States, and "Carola" in Spain), alias Sailor Venus (セーラーヴィーナス, Sērā Vīnasu^?) or Sailor V (セーラー V, Sera V^?), is one of the characters in the anime and manga series Sailor Moon as well as its prequel, Codename: Sailor V. She is a high school student who has the power to transform into a Sailor Senshi named 'Sailor Venus', one of the Sailor Senshi of the Solar System who acts as the de Jure leader of the group. of the Sailor Senshi of the Inner Solar System; who have protected the protagonist Sailor Moon from the times of the Kingdom of the Moon to the present.

When Minako Aino meets Usagi Tsukino, who is dedicated to fighting evil as the eponymous heroine of Sailor Moon, Minako herself has already been serving as another mysterious vigilante as well, under the alias of "Sailor V". Once Sailor V joins the Sailor Moon team, however, she adopts the battle name of "Sailor Venus". series, it is discovered that the reason why Minako can transform in this way is because she is actually the reincarnation of Sailor Venus, a Sailor Senshi-type warrior who came from the planet Venus and protected the princess of an ancient kingdom called the Silver Millennium in her past life. On the other hand, while in the manga and anime she is only portrayed as a teenager who dreams of becoming a famous singer, in the live-action version of the series, in contrast, her character was redesigned to be already (from the start) a young celebrity.

Minako's character is first introduced in the prequel manga of Codename: Sailor V, where she acts as the protagonist of it. In this story, Minako's origins are told as "Sailor V" and her first adventures with her inseparable companion, the cat Artemis. The plot of Sailor V is generally compatible with the more recent Sailor Moon series; but generally the two stories are considered separately. Minako later co-starred with Rei Hino (Sailor Mars) in a short story included in the Sailor Moon manga, titled "Rei and Minako's School Battle&#34.; (受験戦争編　第３詰 レイと美奈子の女子高バトル, Juken Sensou Hen Dai 3 Wa Rei to Minako no Joshikou Batoru^?).

Profile

Minako Aino appears as a teenager with long blonde hair adorned with a red bow, who gains the power to transform into a superheroine; first under the name "Sailor V" and later as Sailor Venus, "the warrior of Love and Beauty". She is first introduced in the Codename: Sailor V manga, where she is thirteen when she he meets Artemis, a mysterious white cat from whom he receives a magical pen with which to become Sailor V, "a beautiful vigilante in a sailor suit". Having discovered her identity as Sailor Venus, the character also appears in the first season of Sailor Moon, where she meets Usagi Tsukino and, from then on, becomes a permanent member of her team..

Minako is portrayed as a lively, charismatic, romantic, and resilient girl; avid volleyball player and outstanding athletic prowess (despite her occasional clumsiness), who also dreams of becoming an idol and has a certain fondness for trends and figures in the world of music and pop culture. In both stories, she is shown to be very versatile; her being able to also act quite autonomously and effectively as a Sailor Senshi.At the beginning of her appearance in Sailor V , she is portrayed as a somewhat restless little girl; who is scolded by her mother for her bad habit of climbing a fence to get into her own house (just to save herself the trouble of taking the long way to the front door). She is not afraid of bullies. and, at school, she is laughed at by some of her classmates for being reckless and 'unladylike'. But later, as a result of her past battles as Sailor V, when she meets by First meeting Sailor Moon, Mars, Mercury, and Jupiter, she briefly adopts a somewhat more serious attitude focused on her mission to defeat the Dark Kingdom; which stems from her experience of having constantly fought the Dark Agency, having He even traveled to fight the minions of that evil group in different parts of the world (Greece and China in the Codename: Sailor V manga; London in the first animated series). At the beginning of almost all the versions, also, Minako (or Sailor Venus) seems to be the member of the team that has the most memories of the previous existence that all of them shared in the first Silver Millennium, and already knows the identities of the other Sailors. Senshi (since up to that point, she and Artemis had been secretly guiding and instructing the others, through Luna). Still, as she spends more time with the other vigilantes in In her spare time, little by little she begins to reveal her true optimistic, cheerful, and extremely reckless personality. Similar in some ways to Usagi herself (although much more athletic, assertive, and carefree; especially in the prequel and in the manga, where she has a more leading role than in the animated adaptations), Minako stands out for her gifts for dramatizing and even pretending at will, to get out of any difficulty. As of episode 37 in the first anime, she is already seen willing to follow Usagi and the others on all sorts of wacky teenage adventures; as well as her playful interests beyond her strict duties as Sailor Senshi.

Some of Minako's great hobbies in her ordinary life, for example, are the aforementioned volleyball and J-pop. As a fan of many young idols, she has a hobby of going to see them at their events, as well as attending acting, dancing and singing auditions when she has the opportunity. In the 90s anime, her gifts and talents for that sport and for the idol vocation reach the point that she, in Sometimes, she even wonders what it would be like to stop being a Sailor Senshi to dedicate herself to one of the two full-time; or professionally (a possibility that was only explored in a special episode of the series in live action format). Instead, in the manga versions, of the live action series, in Crystal and in Sailor Moon Eternal (unlike in the 1990s series), her dilemmas in finding a balance between the two parts of her double life are usually presented in a different way. a slightly more mature form; especially in those episodes dedicated to developing his responsibilities as leader of the vigilantes of the Inner Solar System. However, in all versions and with the passing of the chapters, it is always revealed at the end that his true passion and loyalty are always dedicated to her friends and teammates; by whose side it is implied that she wishes to remain, to solve all the problems and concerns that arise.

During the first three seasons of Sailor Moon, Minako attends the Shiba Kōen school (a different school from the main character and the other Sailor Senshi); until she manages to transfer to the same school. than them, Azabu Jūban, in the fourth season; to attend the same class as Usagi, Ami, and Makoto. Meanwhile, Artemis lives in her house and continues to be her closest faithful companion. Both live together with Minako's parents, who are ignorant of everything about her daughter's double life as Sailor Senshi. Although references to her family life are sparse in the Sailor Moon work, in Codename: Sailor V Minako's parents are shown to be slightly similar to the parents. from Usagi; something that arose as a result of both sets of parents having been created based on author Naoko Takeuchi's family. Although her grades are generally as bad as Usagi's, Minako's favorite school subject is said to be is Physical Education, while the ones he likes the least are Mathematics and English (although in the first anime, as a result of having lived in London for a few months, he shows a competence in this language even higher than that of Ami Mizuno).

Being identified as the incarnation of the goddess Venus, the character is often associated, in different ways, with the theme of beauty. This circumstance leads Minako to feel a slight admiration for an ideal type of beautiful and refined woman; which it is suggested that she can easily achieve in terms of physical attractiveness as well as her great charm and charisma, although not so much in terms of her effervescent and clumsy usual way of behaving. Furthermore, being the alter-ego of Sailor Venus, the "Sailor Senshi of Love", she often takes this role literally; yearning to display her intuitive knowledge of that emotion by sharing her insights and advice for a satisfying love life with friends and acquaintances. Despite her purported wisdom on the subject, however, Minako herself has very little experience in love and in couple relationships; but she is characterized as one of the most infatuated, as well as one of the most naively enthusiastic in detecting possible "signs" for the development of some romance.For this reason, she ends up having numerous & # 34; crushes & # 34; (passing, unrequited, or sparsely developed) throughout the entire series; especially in the prequel and 1990s anime. Some of these were Kaitou Ace (in Codename: Sailor V), Kunzite (in Sailor Moon Crystal), Haruka Ten'ō (in Sailor Moon S and Sailor Moon Crystal season 3), Tiger Eye and Hawkeye (in Sailor Moon SuperS) and Yaten Kou (in Sailor Moon Sailor Stars).

History

In Codename: Sailor V

Image by William-Adolphe Bouguereau of the birth of Venus, who stood out in Roman mythology as the goddess of love and beauty. Minako, alias Sailor V or Sailor Venus, is known as "the warrior of beauty."

Several of the details of Minako Aino's early history, which combined elements of the typical "magical girl" with those of the superhero, were the inspiration to later create the fictional universe of Sailor Moon. In an almost identical way to what happens to Usagi (the protagonist of this second story), Minako Aino also meets a mysterious talking cat (Artemis) one day, who informs her that she is predestined to become a vigilante to fight against the evil. Artemis reveals to Minako that she is the reincarnation of the goddess of beauty. He then shows Minako, for the first time, a vision of castle Magellan ; that belongs to her and that is in orbit around the planet Venus, which was her home planet in her past life. He is the one who also provides her with a sophisticated pen and a kind of magic compact in the shape of the moon crescent, with which she can instantly transform into the super-heroine "Sailor V" and conjure magical attacks to combat while she fulfills her mission. Thereafter, and (at first) without excessively questioning the unusual details or the fantastic nature of the whole affair, she must face a secret organization of villains endowed with supernatural powers, the Dark Agency. This malevolent group aims to steal people's energy. Its members include so-called young idols such as Pandora and her younger sister, Petit Pandora, as well as individuals who pretend to be ordinary people, such as Narciso (who disguised himself as "Higashi"), a schoolmate of Minako from the which she was in love).

Here, she surrounds herself with many ordinary characters, which in turn were the basis for creating other similar secondary characters in the Sailor Moon saga (among them, a classmate reminiscent of Umino Gurio, a boy from Usagi's school), as well as others that would also follow her to the sequel (such as Motoki, the boy from the arcade, as well as Artemis himself), and even a mysterious hero masked that had certain similarities with Tuxedo Mask, Kaitou Ace.

The pen Minako receives from Artemis (and uses to transform into Sailor V) is also used to communicate with an unknown person whom they both know as the "Boss". Her crescent-shaped compact or compact also serves to reveal the true form of enemies and to disguise herself in various ways, in the same way that Sailor Moon would do later. Other accessories that appeared briefly were a samurai sword that she used only once, and lastly a microphone that she used to attack an enemy, amplifying the sound waves that she emitted.

During the manga, Minako unknowingly crosses paths on several occasions with the four young women who were her friends in a forgotten previous existence, and who will also later be her new teammates. During chapter 5, he almost bumps into the future "Sailor Moon", Usagi Tsukino, as she is entering the game center. In chapter 6, he again walks past Usagi and her friend., Naru, as well as close to Rei Hino (Sailor Mars). In chapter 14, before leaving on a trip abroad, he walks past Amy Mizuno (Sailor Mercury), who is seeing her mother off at the airport., and later with Makoto Kino (Sailor Jupiter) on the subway in chapter 15, once she returns to Tokyo. Although she still doesn't recognize them, Minako claims to somehow feel a strange connection. At the end of the manga, finally (and thanks to the leader of the Dark Agency, who in his own past life was a soldier from the planet Venus), he recovers the memory of everything he lived through in the old Silver Millennium as well as his old identity as Sailor. Venus. After defeating the enemies, she decides to search for the other Silver Millennium Sailor Senshi, as well as the reincarnated princess whom all of them must protect. She also decides to work with the Tokyo police, since the superintendent is a great admirer of hers (and when she discovers her identity, she asks him to help her); but Minako comically says that she only does it to get money.

In Sailor Moon

In the anime and manga

Astronomical and astrological symbol of the planet Venus, in the series appears in the moments when Minako becomes.

Minako does not make her appearance in Sailor Moon until very late in the first season, being the last of the Sailor Senshi of that season to appear. Before that, Sailor Moon and her others classmates (Sailor Mercury, Sailor Mars and Sailor Jupiter) had only heard the name "Sailor V" and learned of the existence of this other famous and mysterious justice (her predecessor, and until then unknown to them), from the rumors and numerous news that had emerged about it in the different media. Their first mutual meeting, however, occurs some time later, when "Sailor V" makes himself known, appearing suddenly and unexpectedly on the scene, to save Sailor Moon and the others from a trap by Zoisite, one of the four Shitennō that make up the group of villains from the Dark Kingdom. After this happens, although Minako officially drops the name "Sailor V" in the first anime adaptation, in the manga and in Crystal he continues to use it temporarily (along with the fake crescent moon mark on his forehead), as a strategy to confuse enemies, keeping secret the real identity of the princess of the moon protected by the Sailor Senshi.

Ultimately, in all versions, she ends up revealing her true identity as the last Sailor Senshi of the Inner Solar System, "Sailor Venus", and definitively adopts this alias to fight, alongside with the other warriors, any new evil forces that show up. Later on, although references to her former identity as 'Sailor V' are made in later chapters, the story of this past offered in some flashbacks from the 1990s anime differs substantially from the adventures the character went on. had in Codename wa Sailor V; due to the complete omission of the Dark Agency and the introduction of two entirely new characters (who seemed unrelated to the previous prequel). In this adaptation, in contrast, an unprecedented sentimental reversal of her days as Sailor V is narrated, when after a trip to London she accidentally became part of a love triangle with "Katarina" (an Interpol officer who had become his ally) and a young man named "Alan" (who was his unrequited love). In this plot, a devastated Minako would have decided to fake her death to get away from both and return to Japan. However, although she meets Katarina again (who has been turned into a youma by Kunzite and now obeys the Dark Kingdom), Sailor Moon helps her rescue her friend and resolve the issues between the two, whereupon Sailor Venus decides leave her past behind forever. Even so, although in the 90s animated series Minako does not disguise herself as Sailor V once she assumes the identity of "Sailor Venus" (except for retellings of the past through flashbacks), in the manga and in Sailor Moon Crystal she reuses the magic compact and the Sailor V outfit on at least two occasions.

In the series, on the other hand, it is established very early that Minako and the other warriors of the Inner Solar System will always remain, and voluntarily, by Usagi's side; even in the far future of the 30th century that they visit in the second season. Once they meet Chibiusa and Sailor Pluto and confirm that Sailor Venus, Mercury, Mars and Jupiter will live with her future counterpart, the "Neo-Queen Serenity", in a utopian city called Tokyo Crystal (or "Crystal Tokyo"); Minako and her companions (as well as the Sailor Senshi of the Outer Solar System) begin to conceive of fighting for the realization of such a future as their new goal, a fundamental part of their mission as vigilantes and Sailor Senshi. the second season of the first anime, however, Minako's character will also become a kind of comic relief, participating in more hilarious dialogues and funny situations, where she will manifest a personality similar to the one she shows in the short stories of the manga (so as well as in the prequel to Codename: Sailor V). An example of this is when, in the second season of the first anime, (Sailor Moon R), Minako tries to take care of her friends who have caught a bad cold, but her ability to do housework proves so clumsy who does nothing but create disasters in their homes. When it's Usagi's turn, Minako (along with Chibiusa) throws her house into chaos, but shows great affection for her by being able to take care of her for hours while she rests in her bed. During the third season (Sailor Moon S), in turn, Minako even goes so far as to once disguise herself as Sailor Moon to trick the villainous Kaolinite, into donating a lot of blood just to show that she has a 'pure heart'; (and thus be able to capture the attention of her enemy, the group of evil Witches 5), and seriously try to pursue her goal of becoming an idol. In the fourth season (Sailor Moon SuperS), impulsively decides to try to date two boys at the same time who happen to be two members of the Amazon Trio (Tiger Eye and Hawk Eye), thus forming a fun and brief love triangle.

In the central plot of the manga, by contrast, an equally giddy, but more determined Minako is portrayed as more attuned to her role as Sailor Senshi; since this one explicitly demands here a level of commitment, responsibilities and sacrifices greater than those suggested in the first anime. This is seen in his behavior later when, after transferring to the same school as Usagi, Ami and Makoto, (her fellow vigilantes "Sailor Moon", "Mercury" and "Jupiter"), react differently (depending on the versions) to the meeting the handsome members of her favorite musical group, "Three Lights": the rather cautious and suspicious attitude she finally shows them, in the manga, contrasts sharply with the lingering sympathy in her treatment from the first animated series; since only in the manga is this character's many interests and platonic loves shown to be (ultimately) less important to Minako (or Sailor Venus) than her fervent loyalty to Sailor Moon, and to the mission of fighting the evil.

Live Action Series

In Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon, Minako is already a famous singer, with a host of fans (among them Usagi Tsukino herself). She has a much busier double life, as a young girl. professional singer (who secretly suffers from a terminal illness) and as the heroine "Sailor V". Contrary to what is seen in the manga and anime, in the live action series Minako is a deeply solemn person and rarely smiles. In addition to the complications of his nameless illness (for which the doctors give him only six months to live), his fear that the tragedy of the Kingdom of the Moon could repeat itself causes him to see the mission of the Sailor Senshi as your highest priority, before which everything else (including your current life) is much less important. However, as the chapters go by, it becomes clear that she really enjoys singing as a soloist, as well as a side between mischievous and gentle that is revealed only at times (especially in her relationship with Artemis, Usagi and Rei).

When she first meets Sailor Moon and the other vigilantes (the Sailor Senshi of the Inner Solar System), she introduces herself to them first as "Sailor V", and later under the false alias of & "Princess Sailor Venus" (a kind of "stunt double" for the princess of the Sailor Senshi); with no intention of revealing her secret identity of Minako Aino to them, so that they do not have to mourn your loss when your illness leads to death. However, after one of them, Rei Hino (aka & # 34; Sailor Mars & # 34;), discovers who she really is, Minako decides to trust her and help her improve her fighting skills. In chapter 23, she even convinces a suspicious Rei to act as an idol as well, temporarily, by doing a small musical number as the singer "Reiko Mars".

Over time, Minako finally tells Rei the full truth about her illness. However, over the course of the series she becomes so haunted by her past life in the Moon Kingdom that she begins to neglect her health and to think about stopping singing to dedicate herself exclusively to her work as a justice. Concerned, Rei reappears as "Reiko Mars", to introduce herself as a rival singer and challenge Minako to demonstrate her real prowess as an artist; in order to encourage her not to stop doing what she loves just because she is a Sailor Senshi. Later, when they are both invited to a TV contest, they compete against each other as leaders of two opposing sides: on Minako's side are Usagi and Luna (in human form) and on Rei's side are Makoto and Ami. After the contest ends in a tie, the six become aware that the event has served to make them more united.

Once the other Sailor Senshi find out about Minako's situation, their gestures of understanding and support encourage her to awaken her true power as a vigilante, as well as to continue fighting to try to cure her illness. After deciding to undergo an operation, unfortunately, she ends up losing her life, and her death greatly affects Rei as well as the rest of her friends. Her memory still serves to unite the other Sailor Senshi more, who upon seeing the planet About to fall into the hands of the Dark Kingdom, they decide to end their mission and defeat the enemy forever. After the villains are defeated, the princess uses the power of the Silver Crystal to return Earth to normal, which unexpectedly revives Minako as well. Minako is now free to follow her dreams as an idol while retaining the friendship of the villains. other Sailor Senshi.

Creation and development

Image of the birth of Venus of Sandro Botticelli. Venus was in Roman mythology the goddess of love and beauty. In Codename wa Sailor VArtemis the cat tells Minako that she's her reincarnation.

In her crossover from the work of Codename wa Sailor V to that of Sailor Moon, Minako's character profile was not substantially modified. In fact, creator Naoko Takeuchi expressed that the concept of Minako has hardly changed at all from the first moment she created it. This was partly because although the magazine that published the Sailor V, Run-Run, intended to produce an OVA based on the character, it went bankrupt before the project could be realized (when the first cels of animation had barely been finished). For this reason, the author finally had to settle for Minako's story taking a backseat, and for the character to be simply relegated to the secondary role she had as one of the friends of the protagonist of her next work, Sailor Moon, unlike Takeuchi's original plans.

However, the author decided that the character would inevitably get a new uniform, once she assumed her role as the fifth vigilante on Sailor Moon's team, "Sailor Venus," and she went through many preliminary changes before settling on the one you finally used in the post. At first, Takeuchi considered that each of the Sailor Senshi would have a totally unique costume, and Venus's was heavily inspired by the one she used to wear as "Sailor V". This early prototypical uniform was primarily navy in color, with the distinctive orange used only for the chest ribbon (which did not go into a bow), and included several crescent moon symbol accessories, prominent white armor pieces, a red stripe on the gloves and a white section with a red line on the edge of the skirt. Her classic red hair bow and her Sailor V mask would be retained. Later, Takeuchi was surprised to see these initial sketches again and stated that she did not remember drawing them.

Venus is the second planet of the Solar System. In Sailor Moon and Codename: Sailor VIt's Minako's protective planet.

Certain details of Minako's character were chosen symbolically. For example, her western zodiac sign is Libra, which in astrology corresponds to the planet Venus. In reference to a Japanese popular belief, his blood type is given as B, which supposedly indicates optimism and an adventurous spirit, albeit with a somewhat impulsive and careless side. As the character was originally the product of an earlier creation of his, which had to be "transplanted" by Takeuchi to her next work, her name still retains peculiar differences from those the author used for the rest of her. One of these peculiarities is, for example, that Minako's given name is the only one among the names of almost all the characters that has never appeared written in hiragana, but almost exclusively through kanji. The kanji in his full name translate to "love" (爱, ai^? ), "field" (野, no^?), "beauty" (美, my^?), "What" or "how" (奈, na^?), and "child" (子, ko^?). This full name is structured as a play on words, in which the syllable "no" indicates a possessive (so her name can also be understood as & # 34; Minako del Amor & # 34;). Unlike Sailor Moon and the other Sailor Senshi besides her, her last name does not start with the same kanji for the planet she represents; the kanji for "gold" or "metal" (金, kane^?) in the Japanese name of the planet Venus (金星, Kinsei^?). However, like those, it also consists of an allusion to his celestial body through the main attribute of the mythological figure to which he owes his name: Venus, the Roman goddess of love. The characters of his given name can also alternatively read (with an unconventional, but extant reading) as Binasu, a rough Japanese transliteration of the English pronunciation for the Latin word, "Venus".

Appearance and shapes

As a character with various reincarnations, special powers, and transformations between the ancient Silver Millennium and the 30th century, Minako takes on various aspects, forms, and identities as "Sailor V", "Sailor Venus" and "Princess Venus", among others.

Sailor Venus

Minako's primary Sailor Senshi identity is as "Sailor Venus". Sailor Venus is one of the Sailor Senshi of the Solar System and one of the eight warriors who follow Sailor Moon, the protagonist. She is also the leader of the four female warriors of the Inner Solar System, vigilantes whose mission it has been to protect Sailor Moon since the times of her past life in the ancient Silver Millennium. Like her fellow vigilantes, Sailor Venus is also he fights evil by means of a mystical ability connected to a specific planet or star, and wears a uniform similar to a sailor fuku. The latter stands out from the uniform of the other warriors due to the navy blue color on the chest bow and the predominance of the orange color (which is present in the sailor's collar, in the skirt and in her heels with strap as well as on the choker and on the edges of the elbows of her white gloves). Sailor Venus also wears a distinctive red bow on top of her long blonde hair, which she almost always wears when she's not in her vigilante costume as well (only in the live-action series, however, this bow appears only when she's in a of his Senshi forms, and has a jewel in the center).

Throughout the series, Sailor Venus is given the titles of "warrior of Love and Beauty" or "Soldier of Love and Hope, whose guardian planet it is the planet Venus. Unlike many of the other Sailor Senshi, Sailor Venus's special abilities are not always derived from the element contained in her planet's Japanese name, which is "Kinsei" 34; (金星, Kinsei^?) with the kanji for "gold" or "metal" (金, kane^?). But while her attack techniques invariably allude to the concept of romantic love (a reference to the Roman goddess of love, Venus); the concept of metal in the name of the planet Venus in Japanese is represented in some of them, as well as in one of the most common combat weapons of this warrior: a "chain" (チェーン, chēn^?, gairaigo from English chain) around his waist; which he removes and uses in turn to launch energy attacks, either as a whip or as a sword. Only in the manga version, this chain is finally replaced by "love's whip" (愛のムチ, Ai no muchi^? ), a weapon resembling a chain of roses, once Sailor Venus gains the power of her Sailor Crystal (in season four).

On the other hand, while Sailor Venus also has some attacks in the beginning whose names allude to the "crescent moon" motif, the latter are mostly a holdover from her past as a "double decoy" of the princess of the moon, in her days as & # 34; Sailor V & # 34;.

As she grows stronger, Sailor Venus gains additional powers, and at some key plot points her uniform changes to reflect this. The first major change takes place in the fourth season of the manga, when he obtains the Venus Crystal and his costume becomes one similar to Super Sailor Moon's. A similar event occurs in episodes 143 and 154 of the first anime., where he is given the name "Super Sailor Venus". A third form appears, finally, only in act 42 of the manga, where he also obtains a suit similar to that of Eternal Sailor Moon (but without the detail of the wings).

In the Silver Millennium

Minako is, like the rest of the protagonists, the reincarnation of one of the eight warriors who lived to protect the Silver Millennium in her past life. In those times, each planet in the Solar System had a Sailor Senshi warrior who protected it, and all these warriors joined together to protect the entire Solar System. In turn, the warriors were subordinated to the authority of the royal dynasty of the Silver Millennium, that is, the royal family of the Moon, who were the most self-sacrificing and powerful guardians of the entire System. In her previous life as Sailor Venus, Minako lived in the Silver Millennium with her companions, the other warriors. In some versions it is said that Sailor Venus was, in turn, the leader of the four Sailor Senshi who protected the young heiress to the throne of the Silver Millennium, Princess Serenity of the Kingdom of the Moon. Once this kingdom was destroyed, she was one of those reborn on 20th century Earth along with the Moon princess and her court. When she is reborn on planet Earth in the 20th century, Sailor Venus continues her work as one of the Sailor Senshi of the Inner Solar System. by fighting evil and protecting the reincarnation of Princess Serenity, the protagonist Usagi Tsukino aka "Sailor Moon".

In the Codename: Sailor V manga, likewise, it is said that the former Sailor Venus of the first Silver Millennium was loved by Adonis (the future "Kaitou Ace"), a private in his army who later came under the command of Endymion and his four guardians, the Shitennō. However, her existence went unnoticed by her, so he later ended up following the Shitennō to join the Dark Kingdom as well, and in the 20th century became a villain of the Dark Agency, after being reborn..

On the other hand, only in volume 1 of the book series Bishōjo senshi sērāmūn gengashū ("Sailor Moon Original Picture Collection") did creator Naoko Takeuchi draw her once in the arms of Kunzite, the leader of the Shitennō. Takeuchi expressed a desire to explore the possibility of such a relationship; Consequently, unlike the other three pairs of characters in the image (composed of Sailor Mercury and Zoisite, Sailor Mars and Jadeite, and Sailor Jupiter and Neflyte, respectively), in the case of Venus and Kunzite, the possibility of a mutual love attraction is suggested within the original work. In the last chapter of Codename: Sailor V, a scene from her previous life is shown, in which a blushing Sailor Venus passionately gazed at Kunzite, while in a flashback of Sailor Moon (vol. 3 chapter 13), another similar scene is shown in which, after having argued with Princess Serenity about the meaning of love, the former Sailor Venus remembers an occasion when she blushed intensely at the talk to Kunzite. In Sailor Moon Crystal, in the musicals and in the video game Sailor Moon: Another story, it was also said that the two were in love in the time of the Kingdom of the Moon. This relationship is very popular among fans of the series, to the point that numerous fanfiction stories have been written about them.

In the Sailor Moon story

Sailor Venus turns out to be the de jure leader of the four vigilante Sailor Senshi who assist Sailor Moon from the first season (Sailor Mercury, Mars and Jupiter, as well as Venus herself), who happen to be the four guardians of the crown princess of the Moon and the Silver Millennium. She, in turn, is under the (sometimes clumsy) leadership of the current reincarnation of the princess, Sailor Moon (except in those instances where they do a kind of & # 34; role swapping & # 34; to protect this last).

In the second half of the first season, after the Dark Kingdom manages to kidnap and control Tuxedo Mask, Minako also takes on a special role; as one of the Sailor Senshi of the Inner Solar System that most tries to comfort and "guide" to Usagi. In the plots of Crystal and the manga, likewise, it is she who takes care of a mysterious magical sword that the mother of the princess, Queen Serenity, has left them., to defeat the enemy. In the original ending of the manga, after using said weapon to rescue Sailor Moon (mortally wounding Queen Beryl), Sailor Venus notes that the sword has recovered its former powers, ceasing to be a blade of stone to transform into a sword made of Silver Crystal. Finally, as Sailor Moon falls dead after stopping Metalia to save Tuxedo Mask, Sailor Venus and the other guardians choose to temporarily sacrifice their own powers to summon the ultimate hidden power of the sword, with which they manage to revive the protagonist. The latter had a similar development, also, in the first anime; where, after Sailor Venus, Sailor Mercury, Mars and Jupiter sacrifice themselves to protect Sailor Moon from the Dark Kingdom's last minions, the DD Girls, their spirits return to help their princess defeat Metalia and Beryl for good, after which all five are revived by the Silver Crystal once Sailor Moon dies.

Picture of the parts of the Sailor Venus uniform.

After the disappearance of these villains, later in the manga and anime versions Minako continues to transform to fight as Sailor Venus, in the second season; although this time against a new group of antagonists, the group "Black Moon". It is then when, like her companions, she meets Chibiusa and Sailor Pluto, and ends up traveling through time to the 30th century, where together with Sailor Moon she manages to save the Earth of the future from the plans of this malevolent cluster. On the other hand, he discovers that in the XXX century Usagi (that is, Sailor Moon) as the reincarnation of the former Princess Serenity of the Moon, will ascend to the throne of a new kingdom of the Silver Millennium, with the name of Neo Queen Serenity, and will live together with Sailor Mercury, Sailor Mars, Sailor Jupiter and Sailor Venus in a place called Crystal Tokyo.

After that, in the third season, Sailor Venus and the other warriors meet Sailor Uranus, Sailor Neptune and Sailor Saturn (who together with Sailor Pluto form the team of the Sailor Senshi of the Outer Solar System), with whom they help Sailor Moon to defeat, consecutively, three other sides of enemies; among which are the Death Busters and their servants, the Witches 5; as well as the Dead Moon Circus and the Sailor Animamates together with their leader, Sailor Galaxia. The character of Minako or Sailor Venus then dies temporarily, along with other of the vigilantes, at the hands of the last adversaries of the series; but eventually she and the others are resurrected through the power of their star seeds or sailor crystals. The series ends with the defeat of Sailor Galaxia's empire (Shadow Galactica), after which Sailor Venus and the others are finally free. to carry on with their lives quietly.

Princess Venus

"Princess Venus" (プリンセスヴィーナス, Purinsesu vu~īnasu^?) is the name by which Sailor Venus is designated as the princess of her home planet. As a princess of Venus, Sailor Venus owns a castle in her planet's orbit, Castle Magellan (マゼラン・キャッスル, Mazeran kyassuru^?, gairaigo from English "Magellan Castle"), and a princess dress, colored yellow, with which he appears briefly in the fourth season of the original manga, as well as in supplementary images.

Princess Sailor Venus

The "Princess Sailor Venus of the Moon" ( つき の プリンセス セーラーヴィーナス ^?, sometimes also simply called "Princess Venus") is a fake identity of Minako Aino (Sailor Venus), which is deliberately created and simulated by her, at the time of joining Sailor Moon's team and hers for the first time, with the sole purpose of confusing and distracting the members of the Dark Kingdom; villains who try to stalk Sailor Moon and the other Sailor Senshi. This form appears in acts 7 and 8 of the respective first seasons of the manga and the animated series Sailor Moon Crystal; as well as episodes 12 to 26 of the only season of the live series. action, although it only officially receives this name in the latter (titled Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon). In these versions, Minako is forced to lie, briefly posing as the princess of the moon, to protect Sailor Moon and mislead enemies; but without being able to say any of this to Sailor Moon herself or the others. Sailor Senshi of the Inner Solar System. For this reason, when appearing before them for the first time, Sailor Venus's outfit appears slightly different than usual; as part of her costume as "the double of the princess". Consequently, at the beginning of her appearance in the manga and in Sailor Moon Crystal, she herself is at first called the "moon princess", retaining the crescent moon symbol on her face. forehead (which she already had on her uniform as "Sailor V"), and does not use the name "Sailor Venus" but not until after Sailor Moon has already been discovered as the royal princess. In Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon, instead, other characters refer to her in this way as "Princess Sailor Venus"; while Sailor Venus wears, in addition to the false symbol of the crescent moon, a kind of crown with a false Silver Crystal (instead of the typical and simple tiara that all the Sailor Senshi of the Solar System wear), to further deceive the Dark Kingdom. The latter disappears after the gem is revealed to be a fake, and in all three versions the moon symbol on Sailor Venus's forehead is magically supplanted by the traditional tiara when Sailor Moon (Usagi) unexpectedly regains her previous life's memory.. In the animated series of the 90s, on the other hand, Sailor Venus is only presented simply, and from the beginning, as another Sailor Senshi of the team; she without then playing any special role (similar to the one she assumes in the other adaptations) with respect to the princess of the Sailor Senshi.

Sailor V

American cosplayer interpreting Sailor V

Sailor V (セーラー V, Sera V^?) is a previous form of "keyname" of Minako Aino, which she used temporarily before adopting the alias of Sailor Venus. Characterized as a "justice warrior" (正義の戦士, Seigi no senshi ^?) and as a "a beautiful vigilante in a sailor suit" (セーラー服 美人戦士, sērā-fuku bijin senshi ^?), she starred in the prequel to the series, Codename: Sailor V , before appearing in the Sailor Moon storyline, around the second half of the first season. As told in the different versions of the work, Minako became "Sailor V" at the behest of the cat Artemis, her inseparable companion; after which she used this disguise during the period of time when she had to fight evil on her own, before her meeting with Sailor Moon and the other Sailor Senshi of the Inner Solar System. In the early chapters of the plot of Sailor Moon, consequently, there are repeated references to Sailor V as a mysterious masked vigilante who has already achieved celebrity fame, and of which "Sailor Moon", Usagi Tsukino, is a big fan. Later, after learning that Minako (or Sailor V) is the reincarnation of one of the ancient warriors of the first Silver Millennium, she finally decides to adopt as her "combat alter-ego" again, in the 20th century, her name and identity as the leader of the Sailor Senshi of the Inner Solar System (Sailor Venus), the same as she had in her past life.

In some versions it is established, however, that the true purpose of her disguise as "Sailor V" it had been to create a distraction to confuse her enemies, making them believe that she was the lost crown princess of the kingdom of the moon and owner of the Silver Crystal; while she, meanwhile, dedicated herself to looking for the real one. To this end, the character wore a very different uniform from Sailor Venus, with a blue skirt (instead of orange) and a colorful red mask, in addition to of accessories and attack techniques that always incorporated the motif of the crescent moon. Once the Sailor Senshi of the Inner Solar System find the true princess of the moon, Minako ultimately abandons the "Sailor" costume. V" to definitively adopt the alias of "Sailor Venus", after which references to Sailor V only appear on a few occasions in the rest of the plot (except in retellings of the past and through flashbacks) and in the manga she only goes back to using her old alias twice.

Since Sailor V's character creation predates the Sailor Moon series, some aspects of the character seem somewhat incompatible compared to other Sailor Senshi. For example, her magical attacks do not strictly follow the pattern of association with her elemental astrological traits: although the planet Venus is typically associated with metal in Chinese astrology, Sailor V's attacks (just like in the prequel) are in her mostly related to light and love. The incorporation of the "element of love" it comes from the Roman goddess Venus, while the association with light derives from astronomy, where the planet Venus is the brightest object visible in the sky.

The most prominent colors of sailor fuku from Sailor V are blue (on her skirt) and red (which is present in the bow on her chest, in the wide side stripes of her shirt and her white sleeves, and also in her mask and in her hair bow). Unlike her costume from "Sailor Venus", here she wears a shirt instead of a white leotard, as well as her signature red mask. Some of the details vary from version to version; such as in the first anime, where (unlike her appearance in the manga and live action series) her shirt was sleeveless and the edge of her gloves was topped with rings. The first anime also added a second layer to her shoulder pads, omitted the crescent moon mark on her forehead, and added a second red stripe to the edges of her sailor uniform collar. In the live-action series, the color of Sailor V's chest bow was changed to a dark shade of pink (similar to the red parts of Sailor Moon's costume), but her mask and hair bow remained the same. original red.

Special powers and items

The uniform style Sailor Fuku (image) was the main inspiration for Naoko Takeuchi to create the Sailor Senshi costumes

Minako, like the other Sailor Senshi, must transform "magically" in order to gain access to her special powers. In order to transform into Sailor Venus, she first has to use a special device (feather, bracelet, wand, or crystal) and say a special phrase (which was originally: & # 34; By the power of Venus, transformation! & # 34;). As she becomes more powerful, she gains new transformations with new gadgets, whereupon she changes the phrase to evoke the power of Venus (either taking it as a star or a planet) or to evoke it through the power of her crystal. sailor. In the anime, whenever Sailor Venus becomes more powerful, her transformation sequence changes to reflect this. With each evolution, the images are updated to either change the background, or to accommodate changes to her uniform or a new transformation device; although almost all animations of her transformation always include the same kind of rhythmic gymnastics ribbon accompanied by stars, which she quickly advances to cover her entire body, before taking the shape of her uniform.

Minako's transformations in "Sailor V" they are not shown as clearly in the Codename: Sailor V manga. Although her true identity as Sailor Venus takes precedence over her temporary Sailor V appearance, in the manga herself she uses a number of powers unique to this identity. For example, to transform, she raises the transformation feather and says the phrase Moon Power Transform (& # 34; Lunar power, transformation & # 34;). These words associated with the moon complement the same theme present in the costume accessories and in his main combat weapon, the compact or compact in the shape of a crescent moon. This is his most important accessory, which must be recharged every night with the moonlight (as a kind of rechargeable battery) to get energy for his main attack, the Crescent Beam (a beam of light that hits enemies), although he can also use it as a thrown weapon (to the cry of Crescent Boomerang). Sailor V also features numerous attacks named after his "true" guardian planet, Venus, as with various hand-to-hand combat techniques. Sailor V's feather, on the other hand, has an extendable antenna to contact the "Boss". or "Boss" (a mysterious character who instructs her on her missions), and if she uses it to write her homework or tests at school, it will always write the correct thing. Later, in the Sailor Moon manga, she initially uses the same pen and compact to transform and fight as Sailor Venus. In the live-action series, on the other hand, she has an item vaguely similar to the compact (called the "Crescent Moon Cutter") and can store his uniform in a suitcase, though he continues to use some kind of magic spell every time he must transform "instantly" into his body. in Sailor V (such as while she is running down the street).

Several of Sailor Venus' early attack techniques are also related to themes of light or love. However, although in almost all versions of Sailor Moon the first attack of her as & # 34;Sailor Venus & # 34; remains either the Crescent Beam ("Rayo Crescent") or the Crescent Boomerang ("Crescent Boomerang"), two of the main ones she had as "Sailor V", only in the 90s anime adaptation is she able to perform the first one without the use of the old Sailor V compact, or any another accessory. An attack very similar to this, called the Venus Beam ("Venus Beam"), is performed in a similar manner in the live-action series, without the need to use an item. or some special phrase. Later, the first attack of her to appear consistently through the different adaptations is Venus Love-me Chain (& # 34; Venus Love Chain & # 34;); which in some versions of the work (such as in the manga, in Crystal and in the live action series) involves the use of the chain that Sailor Venus wears around her waist (unlike in the first anime). Later, although in some versions she occasionally uses an alternate attack to Venus Love-Me Chain, called Rolling Heart Vibration ("Revolving Heart of Venus"), the above string remains part of his main attack techniques for the remainder of the second and third seasons, as well as part of the fourth. The reason for this is that it can be used in different ways; as for example, in the Venus Wink Chain Sword attack ("Chained Sword of Venus"), or in the Hissatsu Love-me Moon Chain technique ("Sailor Moon Love Chain"), from when she dresses up as "Sailor Moon" to deceive the enemy, in the first anime. While the chain links are initially round in the other versions, in the 1990s anime they are always heart-shaped.

Finally, when she gains her first most powerful form as a Sailor Senshi (called "Super Sailor Venus" in some versions), she gains a new attack called Venus Love and Beauty Shock, which also appears in the following season and turns out to be his most powerful attack in the entire series. In the manga and Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon Eternal, she also gains the Venus Crystal, which is her sailor crystal and the source of all her power. Instead, in the first and only season of the live-action series (where Sailor Venus only faces a single group of enemies: the Dark Kingdom) she uses a combination of some of these attacks and some totally new ones. Later, Sailor Venus becomes more powerful after learning to manipulate a weapon previously received from Artemis and called the Sailor Star Tambourine: a type of tambourine made in the shape of a star, with which she can launch attacks of more powerful energy. Once your "true" Power as Sailor Senshi, on the other hand, she acquires the Rolling Heart Vibration technique, which here works by shooting multicolored hearts at her opponent. Towards the end of the story, her Sailor Star Tambourine transforms into a combat dagger. However, as the latter appears during Sailor Venus's absence, she is only used at first by one of her companions (and her most faithful friend in this version of the play), Sailor Mars; after which Sailor Venus herself only gets to use it once, in the bonus episode titled Special Act.

Minako's Items

• Transformative Pen: (received from Artemis) uses it to become first in Sailor V and later in Sailor Venus; as she gets more powerful transformations, her pen is replaced by a more powerful one, like the Star Power Baton and then its Venus Crystal (only in the sleeve) that in the animé is replaced by the Crystal Transformation Varieties Helios delivers him.
• Venus Love Chain: uses it to perform the attack of the same name.
• Just in the sleeve version.
  • Crescent Moon dust: (used for some of its attacks and to adopt costumes since it was Sailor V).
  • Sword of the Moon: (It is made of Silver Crystal; it is the sword that protects the Princess of the Moon and belongs to the leader of her guardians, Sailor Venus).
  • Latigo de Amor de Venus: (In the sleeve version, you get it during the Death Moon Circus Saga and use it to perform your attack Kiss of Love and Beauty of Venus).

Transformations

To transform into Sailor Venus, her phrases vary throughout the 5 seasons of the anime and throughout the entire story during the manga:

Sailor Venus
Original	Translation	Translation	Translation
Venus Power, Make Up!	Power of Venus, Transformation	Planet Venus, give me the power!	By the power of Venus!
Venus Star Power, Make Up!	Star Power of Venus, Transformation	Planet Venus, give me the power!	By the star power of Venus, Transformation!
Venus Planet Power, Make Up!	Power of Planet Venus, Transformation	Power of Venus!	By the Power of Planet Venus, Transformation!
Venus Crystal Power, Make Up!	Power of the Venus Crystal, Transformation	Christal of Venus, give me the power!	By the Power of the Crystal of Planet Venus, Transformation!

Attack Techniques

Sailor Venus
Original Attack	Translation	Translation	Translation
Crescent Boomerang	Growing boom		Growing boom
Crescent Beam	Growing Ray	Growth	Growing Ray of Venus, Fulmina
Crescent Beam Shower	Rhinestone growing	Growth	Cascade of Venus, Fulmina
Rolling Heart Vibration	Vibrant Heart Giro	Heart of love, vibrate immediately! (manga)	Rotary Heart of Venus
Venus Love Me Chain	My chain of love of Venus	Attack love chain	Venus Love Chain
Venus Wink Chain Sword	Sword of the Charm of Venus	Venus Chain (manga)	Venus Sword
Venus Love and Beauty Shock	Love and Beauty of Venus	Venus! Beso Fulminante(Sailor Moon Super S) Venus! Beso de Amor (Sailor Moon Stars)	Kiss of Love and Beauty of Venus Beat of Love and Beauty of Venus(manga)

Reception and influence

Sailor Moon's official character popularity polls list Minako Aino, Sailor V, and Sailor Venus as separate entities. In 1992, readers ranked Sailor Venus the second most popular character, Minako tenth, and Sailor V ninth, out of thirty-eight choices. A year later, now with fifty character choices, Minako was the fifth most popular character, Sailor Venus was seventh, and Sailor V was tenth. In 1994, with fifty-one choices, Sailor Venus was the twelfth most popular character Minako was the fourteenth most popular character, and Sailor V was the nineteenth most popular character. At the beginning of 1996 with fifty-one choices, Sailor Venus was the seventeenth most popular character. Minako was once again the fourteenth most popular, and Sailor V was no longer on the list.

Minako has had her Sailor Senshi powers longer in the series, and because of this, Jennifer Brown suggests that her sense of self-worth is more related to her confidence in her powers.

There are also PC games related to the character, for example in a PC game where she plays Sailor V and has to defeat many enemies, on the other hand there is a dating simulator on which the objective of the player is to win Minako's love through invitations to appointments, giving her gifts or playing minigames with them, if this is achieved, he will receive a love letter from Minako corresponding to his feelings.

Actresses

• In the anime, Minako's Seiyu is Rika Fukami (in the Sailor Moon Crystal version it interprets Shizuka Itō) while in the English language bent, Minako's voice is Stephanie Morgenstern (in the first and second seasons, as well as in movies) and Emilie-Claire Barlow (in the third and fourth season). For the English redoubling of the anime produced by Viz Media, Minako becomes bent by actress Cherami Leigh, who also retakes her character at Sailor Moon Crystal.

• In theatre musicals Minako has been played by eleven different actresses: Nana Suzuki, Sakae Yamashita (" Yume Senshi - Ai - Eien Ni" in the soundtrack only), soy Chizuru, Nakaya Kanatsu, Miyazawa Akiko, Otani Miyu, Nao Inada, Yuki Nakamura, Ayumi Murata Watanabe Mizbuki and Mom.

• In Spain it has been bent by Beatriz and by Raquel Martín in the fifth season, this due to the change of folding companies,

• On the other hand in Latin America it has been folded by the Mexican Maria Fernanda Morales (both the anime of the 90's and the Crystal version), who when asked what was the most liked of her character she answered:

"I think Sailor Venus is an extremely important character in the history of Sailor Moon, for in one way or another, it is a Sailor Scout that comes to reveal many mysteries about the past lives of the rest of the girls. She's an independent, dreamy young woman, something distracted, but she knows how to be a friend and I think she's someone she can trust. I really liked this character, especially because it shows that girls are also brave and entrepreneurs."

• In the Royal Sailor Moon series, Minako is interpreted by Ayaka Komatsu.