When I was younger I absolutely couldn’t stand how weak I thought Usagi Tsukino was when I was watching Sailor Moon. As a fellow Cancer I couldn’t stand how she was depicted as such a weak cry baby that couldn’t stand on her own two feet. It just irked me that she fit the stereotypical view of how people viewed my zodiac sign. I wanted her to be strong like me.

Turns out she was even stronger.

Many times I feel like my younger self was too hard on Usagi. Emotions don’t make us weak, all of us feel, and even if I didn’t express myself with tears I was always rather sensitive. I felt things on a deeper level than other people could understand.

Watching the series again as an adult and watching the final season with the Sailor Stars, I see that Usagi experienced growth as we all must.

There are so many times she is scared yet she pushes on anyway, and that is a bravery not everyone has.

In the end, she happens to be the strongest of the Sailor Guardians. She is the one that defeats Galaxia, and because of her that the Sailor Guardians and Tuxedo Mask are able to live again. Instead of using weapons, anger, or ferocity; she defeats Galaxia because she could see the goodness in the heart of someone no one else could think to see good in. She could see that Galaxia, at her core, wasn’t the evil creature she appeared to be on the outside.

I do love that Usagi, who is perceived to be the weakest, actually ends up being the strongest of them all. Because it proves to me no matter how intelligent and powerful one may be, there is more value in empathy and emotional intelligence than society acknowledges.

We all have lessons to learn, and why would a young girl in an anime be any different? I’m sorry Usagi Tsukino for judging you so harshly when I was younger, I applaud your bravery and your willingness to want to save everyone even the people others would tell you weren’t worth saving.



Linda M. Crate’s works have been published in numerous magazines and anthologies. She is the author of seven poetry chapbooks, the latest of which is: the samurai (Yellow Arrow Publishing, October 2020). She has also authored three micro-collections, and four full length poetry collections.