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Sailor Moon is one of the most iconic anime of all time.  It's one of the big ones that you'll feel compelled to watch because everyone seems to know what it is.  

Personally, I first heard of this show when I was eight years old and my friend Elyse told me about how epic it was when she was watching it.  At the time, I had no idea what "anime" was, and when I tried to look it up I couldn't find it anywhere on my television.  Years later, I got into anime and finally looked up the show, long after I had lost track of Elyse(seemingly forever, though I wonder if she'll ever see this review or if she even remembers me...).  Did I like it?  Was it good, bad?  Chances are, if you already read the score I gave it, then you already have a good idea of what I thought about it.

Story (6/10):

The story has an interesting basis revolving around moon princesses and memory loss and magic.  Sounds great right?  Well, there are some ways they messed up in the actual delivery.

The show is, the 'classic' magical girl anime.  And... it sets up all the cliches that follow it.  Am I the only person who gets annoyed after watching ten episodes of an anime and seeing the same transformation every single time?  Well, I've seen it in every magical girl show I've watched, and though I know it's a staple of the genre, it's still annoying as heck.

Another issue I had with it was that the nature of the show seemed to ruin the moments of sadness and depth it truly holds.  This show actually has some pretty sad themes and story arcs in it, but sometimes the emotion of the moment gets cut into randomly.  The show is trying to be sad, and sometimes it acomplishes it.  It does have it's funny moments, but it also has it's times when the mood feels ruined by comedy.  I also understand that there are times when it's probably meant to lighten up darker parts of the show, but there are times it just doesn't fit.

It also suffers from a bit of repeditiveness, which isn't bad considering the length of the show, and predictability, but that's to be expected.

The story as a whole is interesting enough, but there are plotholes here and there and through some old cliches and several awkward scenes, it falls around here.  Also, it can be very formulaic.  Part of what makes it seem a little strange now is all of the early 90s things feel so strange.  Seeing young girls freak out over rhimestones is an odd sight for someone growing up about a decade after them. 

HOWEVER! I did enjoy the story, and while it suffers from flaws there are a lot of good things in it to, a lot of interesting cases, and the colorful characters placed around serve to save the show from any more awkwardness.

Animation (7/10):

Considering the time the anime was created, it's alright.  There are moments where, even for a dated show, it's easy to tell it's not perfect.  Action is relatively smooth, but there are some moments when it's not as clear.  The animation style is clearly dated, especially around the character's appearences, but otherwise not too much to complain about.  Sometimes the colors have too stark a contrast between one another, and backgrounds aren't that great.

Character designs are relatively unique and good, with some real standouts in terms of great unique design, Tuxedo Mask; for example, is a fantastic character with an interesting design and style.  

Sound (8/10):

The classic theme to start this show is one of the most well known anime songs of all time.  Tons of people know it, and it's constantly referenced and parodied in youtube videoes and things of the like.  Unfortunately, most of the other songs, particularly the ending themes, have fallen into obscurity.  The music is good otherwise, but nothing that iconic.

When I started watching this anime, I was still on a 'watch everything dubbed in English' kick thanks to Vic Mignogna.  The dub is somewhat frustrating.  The characters sound nasal, and they also have an odd very American New york-ish or Boston-ish or Baltimore-ish accent.  I'm not a master of city accents, but it definitely sounds like the voice actors were clearly from the upper east coast, which is frustrating.  It also changes some lines and story aspects which undermine story and character in some cases, harming both the show’s story and sound scores for me.  Watching it in japanesse is much better, but the dub did tarnish my experience a bit.  The sub is just fine, but the dub is messy.

Characters (9/10):

The characters are definitely the best reason to watch this show in my opinion. While Usagi herself can be frustrating at times, the other characters really shine with their personalities.  The other sailors vary with personality and Rei is a fantastic foil character for her.  Tuxedo Mask is relatively mysterious for a bit, and has an interesting 'is he on our side' thing going for him.  Usagi's unwitting friend Naru(Molly in the English version) gets rescued, falls in love, and is an interesting showcase of what happens to normal people when they get caught up in the lives of magical girls.

Though, by far, the villains are the most fun.  They all have complex interesting quirks and flaws and are balanced out perfectly.  Actually that could go for all of the characters, well balanced, quirky, and interesting.

Overall (7.5/10):

This is one of those shows that you really should see.  Even if you aren't going to watch it for any reason other than to see the magical girl genre's roots, it's a good one.  Not perfect, but definitely something I would recommend, especially to fans of the genre.