Sailor Pluto

Sailor Pluto (セーラープルート, Sērā Purūto) is a fictional lead character in the Sailor Moon manga series written by Naoko Takeuchi. The alternate identity of Setsuna Meioh (冥王 せつな, Meiō Setsuna), she is a member of the Sailor Soldiers, female supernatural fighters who protect the Solar System from evil.

She is unique among all the characters in that she is stationed at the Door of Space-Time, with the specific duty of forbidding anyone to pass through it without permission. She possesses powers that are associated to time, space, the underworld, and darkness.

Profile

Sailor Pluto isn't introduced until late in the Sailor Moon R series. She is the Soldier who guards the Gates of Time. She is first seen contacting Chibiusa through Luna-P. Sailor Pluto refers to Chibiusa as "Small Lady." Chibiusa usually calls Sailor Pluto by the nickname "Puu". She acts as Chibiusa's guardian.^[1]

Setsuna Meioh, as seen in the anime

After the events of the second story arc, she leaves the gates of time to temporarily live as a human being, joins Sailors Uranus and Neptune, and becomes a university student studying physics. The exact nature of how she leaves her post differs between versions; in the manga, she is reincarnated in present day by Neo-Queen Serenity after sacrificing herself during the second arc, while in the anime Neo-Queen Serenity allows her to leave. Even in her civilian form, Setsuna is the oldest of the Sailor Team, around her late teens or older.^[2] Her personality has been described as distant and somewhat lonely, however she does consistently display warmth and affection for Chibiusa.^[3] When she reincarnates, she becomes more friendly, but is still not very emotional, although there are moments in the manga where she expresses much more emotion than the anime. She later cares for Hotaru along with Michiru and Haruka.

Unlike the other Soldiers (excluding Sailor Venus, who has been described as a goddess of love before), it is questioned whether she is fully human—she has been described as "a goddess, eternally guarding the Portal of Space and Time." She was born under the sun sign Scorpio, the equivalent for Pluto.^[4]

Sailor Pluto's precise abilities and knowledge of the past and present are only vaguely defined, although a common theory is a form of omniscience, possibly due to her portrayal in the anime. For example, she was presumably aware of the two Sailor Soldiers carrying the mystical objects they were hunting for, but did not inform them and allowed various people to be attacked. (This differs greatly from the manga, and may be a simple continuity error.) This omniscience is represented as being able to watch through the gates of time, and such.

Sailor Pluto appears in relatively few TV episodes. Unlike Sailor Neptune and Sailor Uranus, she is sympathetic toward the Sailor Soldiers, and assists them on several occasions. During the second story arc, she allows them to travel through time even though this is not ordinarily allowed.^[5] In the third story arc, she often extends help or advice to Sailor Moon and her companions even when Sailors Uranus and Neptune want the two groups separate.^[6] Later, Setsuna joins the Sailor Soldiers in investigating the true identity of ChibiChibi.^[7] In the manga, she is an inspiration to Ami, and her relationship with Ami gives Sailor Mercury additional strength to power-up to her Super form.

Sailor Pluto has additional, less cited influences and spheres of dominion in her manga incarnation, influences that are vaguely suggested in the anime, but never made explicit. Sailor Pluto is much darker in her initial form in the manga, identified as the "Guardian of the Underworld" with very dark skin and a black sailor suit. She is also stated to be the daughter of Chronos, god of time.^[8] She is a ruthless soldier who follows rather exacting laws, executing any intruders who dare violate the underworld in search for the Gates of Time. She nearly kills Sailor Moon before realizing who she is, stating that "all who break the taboo must be eliminated."^[9] Luna also states to the others that no one is to even know that Sailor Pluto exists, due to her dominion and nature, and that to her knowledge no one has ever seen her. Luna calls her a "lone warrior," noting the sadness in her eyes.^[9]

In the manga, Pluto's death scene vaguely implies a romantic interest in Endymion, though this is never explored again. In the Sailor Moon musicals, Sailor Pluto has an unrequited love for King Endymion. It is explicitly mentioned in Eien Denetsu and Shin - Densetsu Kourin, in the song Onna no Ronsou ("Woman's Conflicts").^[10] In the manga, it can only be inferred from depictions of Pluto blushing while around King Endymion, her reaction when he runs to comfort her during her death and in artwork depicting Neo-Queen Serenity, Pluto, and King Endymion. Various situations in the musicals have shown Pluto's unrequited love; for example, Tuxedo Mask's actor, Yuuta Mochizuki being leaned on by the actress of Sailor Pluto, Rei Saitou, and commenting on his new year's resolution: to be by Pluto's side.^[11]

A small quirk occurs in continuity between the manga and anime. Sailor Pluto (temporarily) expires in both, but at different times; her death in the manga occurs much earlier and reawakens the good side of the possessed Chibiusa. However, for all intents and purposes, in the manga the technicality of Sailor Pluto existing outside of time means she is able to be reincarnated as a normal woman while still existing back at her post at the Time Gate.

Aspects and forms

As a character with different incarnations, special powers, transformations and a long lifetime virtually spanned between the Silver Millennium era and the 30th century, Setsuna gains multiple aspects and aliases as the series progresses.

Sailor Pluto

Setsuna's primary identity is that of a Sailor Soldier. Her sailor suit is colored in black and garnet, and in its first iteration has no sleeves and a jewel hanging from the choker; her appearance (including height and exact hairstyle) changes somewhat throughout the series because, due to time travel, different "versions" of her are present at different times. During the manga's Black Moon story arc, she is depicted with a chain of keys around her waist. This accessory is included in her Sailor Moon Crystal character design. She is given specific titles throughout the various series, including Soldier of Change,^[12] Soldier of Revolution, Soldier of the Afterlife, and, most commonly, Guardian of Time. Her personality is not noticeably different when she is a civilian, although certain powers seem to be unavailable to her in that form.

Sailor Pluto has power over both time and space,^[12] and is ordinarily stationed at the Space-Time Door (a time-travelling gate) to prevent its use. When charged with this duty by Queen Serenity, she was given three "taboos", rules which she was forbidden to disobey: she must not travel through time, she must not abandon her post at the Door, and she must never cause time to stop. If she does stop time, her life is forfeit.^[13] Throughout the course of the series, Sailor Pluto breaks all three of these rules. She wields the Garnet Rod, a key-shaped staff which is topped by the Garnet Orb, one of three Talismans carried by Sailors Uranus, Neptune and herself.

As she grows stronger, Sailor Pluto gains additional powers, and at key points her uniform changes to reflect this. The first change takes place in act 39 of the manga, when she obtains the Pluto Crystal and her outfit becomes similar to that of Super Sailor Moon. She is not given a new title. A similar event takes place in episode 167 of the anime, and she is given the name Super Sailor Pluto. A third, manga-only form appears in act 42, unnamed but analogous to Eternal Sailor Moon (sans wings).^[14]

Princess Pluto

In Silver Millennium, Sailor Pluto was also the Princess of her home world. She was among those given the duty of protecting the Solar System from outside invasion. As Princess Pluto, she dwelt in Charon Castle and wore a black gown—she appears in this form in the original manga act 41, as well as in supplementary art.

Special powers and items

Sailor Pluto using the Garnet Rod to stop time in Sailor Moon Crystal.

Setsuna is not shown using any special powers while in civilian form. She must first transform into a Sailor Soldier by either raising her hand, or using a special device called the Lip Rod in the anime adaptation, into the air and shouting a special phrase, originally "Pluto Planet Power, Make-up!"^[15] In the manga she eventually gains her Pluto Crystal and this phrase changes to evoke Pluto Crystal Power.^[16] In the anime, although she does upgrade to Super Sailor Pluto, the Crystal is never mentioned and her transformation is not shown on screen.

Sailor Pluto's powers over time and space are somewhat tied with the destructive power of Sailor Saturn for astrological and mythological reasons.^[17] The names of Sailor Pluto's attacks include frequent reference to the Underworld (in Act 32 of the manga, she states that she "carries the protection of the planet of the underwold, Pluto."), which was the province of Pluto in Roman myth; this is evident in her first named power, Dead Scream (破滅喘鳴(デッド・スクリーム), Deddo Sukurīmu),^[12][18] which is her primary attack throughout the anime adaptation. Unlike any other attack in the series, its name is whispered rather than shouted when she uses it. In the Cloverway English adaptation, it is renamed Pluto Deadly Scream.^[19]

In the manga, Sailor Pluto demonstrates a few other named powers, including Chronos Typhoon (時空嵐撃(クロノス・タイフーン), Kuronosu Taifūn)^[12][20] and the defensive force field Garnet Ball.^[21]

Sailor Pluto has enough power over time to stop it entirely, and although she is forbidden to do so, she uses this power one time each in the anime and manga. In the manga, Sailor Moon Crystal, and musicals Tanjou! Ankoku no Princess Black Lady and its revision Tanjou! Ankoku no Princess Black Lady (Kaiteiban) - Wakusei Nemesis no Nazo, she uses it to stop Prince Demand from touching the Silver Crystals of the past and future together, which would destroy the universe in a time paradox.^[22] In the anime, she uses this power to allow Sailors Uranus and Neptune to escape from a helicopter explosion.^[23] In each case, she sacrifices herself to unnamed punishments as the keeper of time, but is reinstated later in the series.

In addition to these powers, when the Space-Time Door has been misused, Sailor Pluto is able to close off passage to other worlds. At the end of the manga's third story arc, Sailor Saturn asks her to seal off forever the gateway to the world Pharaoh 90 had come from. This is done with Dark Dome Close (冥空封印, "dark sky seal").^[24]

All of Sailor Pluto's attacks require the use of the Garnet Orb. The orb rests at the top of her staff, the Garnet Rod, which is shaped like a giant key as a symbol of her stewardship over the Door of Space-Time. In Roman mythology, it is stated that the god Pluto holds a key because "they say that what is called Hades has been locked up by Pluto, and that nobody will return back again therefrom."^[25] Natale Conti cites Pausanias in noting that keys are an attribute of Pluto as the scepter is of Jove (Roman Zeus) and the trident of Neptune (Poseidon).^[26] In the manga and both version of the Black Lady musicals, she also wears a chain of keys around her waist, one of which is stolen by Chibiusa in order to travel back in time at the beginning of the second story arc (She lets Chibiusa play with it in the musical version, but Small Lady runs off with it due to the Black Moon's attack startling her). The Pluto Crystal is perhaps her most important possession, as it is her Sailor Crystal and the source of all her power, which becomes especially important in the fifth story arc. It is given to her by Sailor Saturn.^[12]

Development

The statistics listed for Setsuna in the back of manga volume 10 are unusual in that most of them never come up in the series body itself. Her favorite school subject is given as physics, which tracks with her stated college major in theoretical physics; and the love of green tea attributed to her is common among Japanese people. More incongruously, however, she is listed as skilled in sewing, with a dream of becoming a fashion designer.^[27] These interests are never spoken of in the actual story, although creator Naoko Takeuchi drew concept art of Setsuna in outfits worn by real-life supermodels.^[28] Likewise, Setsuna is never actually shown to enjoy shopping, nor to dislike cockroaches, eggplant, or the study of music, yet all of these things are delineated by Takeuchi well after the character's introduction.^[27] In fact, almost nothing about her personal life or interests is ever revealed. It is not even clear whether she has a civilian history at all, as time travel and multiple deaths and reincarnations complicate any backstory. Her devotion to the life of a Sailor Soldier, too, may have cut her off from worldly dreams, as it did with Sailors Uranus and Neptune. Also, according to Naoko Takeuchi's notes in the various artbooks, she mentions that "Setsuna wears hotpants as well at home, but basically she also likes long skirts."^[29] and that she believes "Setsuna should forever wear white clothes." ^[30]

The kanji of Setsuna's surname translate as "dark" (冥, mei) and "king" (王, ō). Together, they constitute most of the name of the dwarf planet Pluto in Japanese: Meiōsei (冥王星, "dark king star"). Her given name is in hiragana setsuna (せつな) and so its meaning is not inherent, but the word itself means "moment" (刹那).

The packaging of Irwin dolls released in Canada in 1998 called Setsuna by the name Celia.

Actresses

In the Japanese anime television series, Setsuna Meioh is voiced by Chiyoko Kawashima up to episode 200 of Sailor Moon: Sailor Stars,^[31] and by Ai Maeda in Sailor Moon Crystal and all media since.

In the stage musicals, Setsuna has been portrayed by Miwa Hosoki, Rei Saitou, Yuki Kamiya, Seiko Nakazawa, Teruyo Watanabe, Yuko Hosaka, Yukiko Nakae, Miho Yokoi and Mikako Ishii. In one show, Usagi * Ai no Senshi e no Michi, she appeared only as a silhouette and was portrayed by Noriko Kamiyama.^[32]

In the DIC Entertainment English dub, her voice is heard through Rini's Luna Ball, provided by Luna's voice actress Jill Frappier then Sabrina Grdevich. In the Cloverway English adaptation, her voice is provided first by Sabrina Grdevich and later by Susan Aceron. In the Viz Media English adaptation, she is voiced by Veronica Taylor.

Reception and influence

The official Sailor Moon character popularity polls listed Setsuna Meioh and Sailor Pluto as separate entities. In 1994, with fifty one choices, Setsuna was the thirteenth most popular character, and Pluto was fifth.^[33] In early 1996, with fifty one choices, Setsuna was the twenty-ninth most popular character, and Pluto was the twenty-first.^[34]

Amongst English-speaking fans, her existence was discussed as one of the mysteries of Sailor Moon after the English dub stopped airing before she had been properly introduced to the audience. A doll bearing her likeness was sold in Canada prior to her official introduction to the audience.^[35]

Sailor Pluto is still considered a member of the Sailor Soldiers despite the reclassification of Pluto as a dwarf planet (as opposed to just a planet). Many fans joke that Sailor Moon will reinstate Pluto as a planet after becoming Queen.^[36] Others joke she was "fired" from the Sailor Soldiers.

See also

• Pluto in fiction
• Pluto (mythology)
• Time travel

References

External links

Sailor Moon by Naoko Takeuchi
Media	Chapters Codename: Sailor V Sailor Moon episodes Season 1 R S Super S Sailor Stars films R S Super S Sailor Moon Crystal episodes Live-action series Musicals Video games Collectible card game
Music	Soundtracks "Moonlight Densetsu" "Kaze mo Sora mo Kitto..." "Moon Pride"
Characters	Protagonists Sailor Moon Tuxedo Mask Sailor Mercury Sailor Mars Sailor Jupiter Sailor Venus Chibiusa Sailor Pluto Sailor Uranus Sailor Neptune Sailor Saturn Antagonists Dark Kingdom Black Moon Clan Death Busters Dead Moon Circus Shadow Galactica