Learn Japanese with Sailor Moon Crystal

Anime by Japanese level › N3

How hard is the Japanese in Sailor Moon Crystal?

Ikkimi rates Sailor Moon Crystal at N3 (everyday Japanese at full speed). What sets its level: clear voices, catchphrases that repeat. Of the 192 anime Ikkimi rates by hand, 44 are easier and 80 are harder.

Levels follow the Japanese Language Proficiency Test, from N5 (easiest) to N1 (hardest). They are Ikkimi’s estimate of how hard a show’s Japanese is to follow, from how fast people talk, how many unusual words there are and how clear the voices are. They are not official JLPT ratings.

Format, episodes, year and genres are from AniList’s entry, which may cover only the first season.

The words in the title

The Japanese title, 美少女戦士セーラームーンCrystal, is a first lesson in itself. Its 4 words, as a dictionary lists them:

How to learn Japanese with Sailor Moon Crystal

Ikkimi lists Sailor Moon Crystal on Netflix. What each service carries varies by country. Ikkimi does not stream anything: you watch on your own account, in Chrome on a computer, and Ikkimi adds a Japanese line you can click on top of the player.

On Netflix

On Netflix, turn on Japanese subtitles in the player, where your country’s Netflix has them for this title, and Ikkimi makes the line clickable. If there are none, open the Ikkimi popup, choose Find Japanese subtitles, and search Jimaku’s catalogue or load a file from your computer.

1. Add Ikkimi to Chrome

   Get the extension from the Chrome Web Store and sign in.

2. Play an episode

   Open Sailor Moon Crystal on Netflix. The Japanese line appears on top of the video.

3. Click the words you keep hearing

   The video pauses and the word opens: kana, romaji, meaning, JLPT level and a recording by a native speaker where one exists (never a computer voice; otherwise the line from the show plays again). Keep three to five words an episode, the ones that come up again.

4. Review them later

   Kept words come back as flashcards on the Ikkimi website, with the scene and the line they came from, just before you would forget them.

Easier and harder shows

Shows within a level of Sailor Moon Crystal, with the most genres in common first.

Easier

• N4 to N3Cardcaptor Sakuraカードキャプターさくらa polite ten-year-old lead, clear voicesCrunchyrollNetflix
• N4Soaring Sky! Pretty Cureひろがるスカイ！プリキュアmade for children, clear voices, catchphrases that repeatCrunchyroll
• N4 to N3Dragon Ballドラゴンボールsimple adventure talk, shoutingCrunchyroll

Also N3

• N3Sword Art Onlineソードアート・オンラインclear voices, game wordsCrunchyrollNetflix
• N3Inuyasha犬夜叉a modern schoolgirl among period speakersNetflixCrunchyroll
• N3ONE PIECEloud and clear, pirate words that repeatCrunchyrollNetflix

Harder

• N3 to N2Re:ZERO -Starting Life in Another World-Re:ゼロから始める異世界生活fast emotional monologues, fantasy wordsCrunchyroll
• N3 to N2Puella Magi Madoka Magica魔法少女まどか☆マギカschool talk that turns to abstract ideasCrunchyrollNetflix
• N3 to N2HUNTER×HUNTERlong explanations of invented rulesCrunchyrollNetflix

See every N3 anime or all 192 anime by Japanese level, and read how to learn Japanese by watching anime from zero.

Questions

Is Sailor Moon Crystal good for learning Japanese?

With some help. Ikkimi rates it N3 (everyday Japanese at full speed). What sets its level: clear voices, catchphrases that repeat. It sits in the middle of Ikkimi’s levels. A beginner can follow it with kana and romaji on every word, but it is easier after one or two simpler shows.

What Japanese level is Sailor Moon Crystal?

N3, on Ikkimi’s scale from N5 (easiest) to N1 (hardest). Of the 192 anime Ikkimi rates by hand, 44 are easier and 80 are harder. The level is Ikkimi’s estimate, not an official JLPT rating.

Where can I watch Sailor Moon Crystal with Japanese subtitles?

Ikkimi lists Sailor Moon Crystal on Netflix. What each service carries varies by country. On Netflix, turn on Japanese subtitles in the player where they are offered, and Ikkimi makes every word clickable.

What does the title 美少女戦士セーラームーンCrystal mean, word by word?

美少女 (bishoujo) means “beautiful girl”; 戦士 (senshi) means “soldier; combatant; warrior”; セーラー (seeraa) means “sailor”; ムーン (muun) means “moon”.

How many episodes does Sailor Moon Crystal have?

AniList’s entry lists 26 episodes of about 24 minutes, first aired in 2014. Later seasons may be listed separately.

What should I watch before Sailor Moon Crystal?

Shows a little easier than Sailor Moon Crystal, with genres in common: Cardcaptor Sakura (N4 to N3), Soaring Sky! Pretty Cure (N4) and Dragon Ball (N4 to N3).

Sources: show details from AniList; meanings from JMdict (EDRDG, CC BY-SA 4.0); readings and word splits from kuromoji.js with IPADIC; JLPT word levels from Jonathan Waller’s unofficial lists. See Credits. Spotted a mistake? Tell us at hello@ikkimi.app.