Sailor Saturn, Hotaru Tomoe in Sailor Moon
Sailor Saturn is the guardian of the planet Saturn in Naoko Takeuchi's Sailor Moon. Her civilian identity is Hotaru Tomoe, a frail schoolgirl and the daughter of Professor Soichi Tomoe. As the guardian of destruction and rebirth, she wields the Silence Glaive, which can wipe out a world so that a new one can begin. She first appears in the Infinity arc of the manga (1994–1995) and in the anime's third season, Sailor Moon S.
Contents
Hotaru Tomoe, a different kind of heroine
In the story's third arc, Hotaru is a lonely, often sick student prone to seizures and shunned by classmates because of the rumors that surround her. She befriends Chibiusa (Rini in the English dub), Sailor Moon's daughter from the future, and that friendship is the emotional thread of the whole arc. Her father, Professor Tomoe, is a scientist who secretly leads the Death Busters, an organization serving an alien entity. After a lab accident nearly killed his daughter, he saved her through a pact with those forces, and Hotaru's body now harbors Mistress 9, a hostile being trying to take control.
The character therefore carries two opposing threats: Mistress 9, who wants to open Earth to invasion, and Sailor Saturn, whose awakening means the end of a world. The other Outer Guardians, Uranus, Neptune and Pluto, are at first willing to kill Hotaru to prevent catastrophe, setting up a strong moral clash with Sailor Moon, who refuses to sacrifice a child.
The powers of the guardian of silence
Sailor Saturn is presented as the most fearsome of all the guardians. In the series' mythology she awakens only when a world must end: by bringing down her glaive, she destroys everything so that life can be reborn. Her appearance is both a threat and a promise. She also has defensive powers, such as a protective barrier, and in the manga she can heal.
In the 1990s anime, she awakens in the finale of Sailor Moon S, confronts the entity behind the Death Busters, and is reborn as a baby returned to her father, who is freed from its hold. In the manga, Hotaru's rebirth is followed by rapid growth, and she is raised by Haruka (Uranus), Michiru (Neptune) and Setsuna (Pluto), who form an unconventional family around her.
Manga, anime and newer adaptations
- Manga (Kodansha, 1991–1997): Hotaru is central to the Infinity arc and returns in the later Dream and Stars arcs, fighting alongside the other guardians.
- 1992–1997 anime (Toei Animation): introduced in Sailor Moon S, she stays in the background during SuperS and returns, grown up, as Super Sailor Saturn in Sailor Stars.
- Sailor Moon Crystal: Season III (2016), devoted to the Death Busters, follows the manga more closely.
- Eternal (2021) and Cosmos (2023) films: Sailor Saturn appears in these adaptations of the Dream and Stars arcs.
Darker than most of the cast, Hotaru is one of the series' most popular characters among adult fans, and a fixture of cosplay at anime conventions.
What Sailor Saturn owes to the god Saturn
Takeuchi built her guardians from astronomy, mythology and astrology, and Sailor Saturn may be the most fully realized example. The god Saturn, identified with the Greek Cronus, is a god of time who devours his children, but also the ruler of the Golden Age: he destroys and he founds. Hotaru's glaive recalls the scythe or sickle that is Saturn's traditional attribute. In astrology, Saturn governs endings, trials and rebuilding, themes familiar from the Saturn return. Even the old tradition of Saturnine melancholy, a dark, solitary and fragile temperament, can be read in Hotaru's personality.
Astronomically, Saturn is the most distant planet known since antiquity, the edge of the visible cosmos: a fitting choice for the guardian of the end of worlds. For the real planet, see planet Saturn and its rings.
FAQ
Who is Sailor Saturn?
She is Hotaru Tomoe, the guardian of Saturn in Sailor Moon. She embodies destruction and rebirth and belongs to the Outer Guardians.
What season does Sailor Saturn appear in?
She appears in season 3, Sailor Moon S, and returns as Super Sailor Saturn in season 5, Sailor Stars. In Sailor Moon Crystal, she is at the heart of Season III.
What is Sailor Saturn's power?
With the Silence Glaive, she can destroy an entire world so that it can be reborn. She also has protective powers and, in the manga, the ability to heal.
Why is Sailor Saturn linked to destruction?
The character draws on the symbolism of the god Saturn, lord of time who destroys and renews, and on Saturn's astrological image as the planet of endings.
Sources
- Naoko Takeuchi, Bishōjo Senshi Sailor Moon, Kodansha, 1991–1997 (English edition: Kodansha Comics)
- Toei Animation, Bishōjo Senshi Sailor Moon S, 1994–1995
- Toei Animation, Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon Crystal, Season III, 2016
- Official Sailor Moon website