It’s been nearly two years since Toei Animation announced a new Sailor Moon anime would hit the airwaves. Fans have waited impatiently for any scrap of news about the new series, and yesterday, we finally got our first look at the new design of the main heroine: Sailor Moon. The new series, titled Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon Crystal, will be neither a remake of the original television show nor a continuation of the series. What it appears to be is an adaptation of the original manga series. A short synopsis was posted with the official image:

Usagi Tsukino is a second-year middle school girl who is a little clumsy and a crybaby, but she is full of energy. One day, she meets Luna, a black cat with a crescent moon on her forehead, and she transforms into Sailor Moon, a sailor-uniformed pretty guardian of love and justice! As a chosen guardian of justice, Usagi seems to have a mission to find the Illusionary Silver Crystal with the other guardians and to protect the princess.

Meanwhile, the queen of the Dark Kingdom, Queen Beryl, also sends minions to the town where Usagi lives to obtain the Illusionary Silver Crystal, which has immense power. This causes strange events to unfold….

Can Sailor Moon really find the Illusionary Silver Crystal with the other Sailor guardians, and protect the princess…!?

The new series will be directed by Munehisa Sakai of One Piece fame, and Japanese Idol Group Momoiro Clover Z will be performing the new opening theme song.

Sailor Moon brought anime to many western audiences. The story of the middle school girl turned magical super hero captured the hearts of people around the world. What initially started as a monthly manga series in 1992 spawned a 200-episode television series, numerous toys, figures and merchandise, and a cult following that is still going strong today. Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon Crystal is expected to launch in July, and will stream world wide on the Niconico web service.

[Via Anime News Network]

Tags: sailor moon, sailor moon crystal