Usagi/Mamoru
| Pairing | |
|---|---|
| Pairing: | Usagi/Mamoru |
| Alternative name(s): | |
| Gender category: | straight |
| Fandom: | Sailor Moon |
| Canonical?: | yes |
| Prevalence: | |
| Archives: | |
| Other: | |
| Click here for related articles on Fanlore. | |
Canon
Usagi Tsukino is a fourteen-year-old junior high school student, and depending on the adaptation Mamoru Chiba is either a second-year high school student (manga/Crystal)[1] or a first-year university student (first anime).[2] In all incarnations, they first meet when Usagi tosses a crumpled-up test paper over her shoulder and hits him in the head; Mamoru notices her low test score and chides her to study harder. Neither of them are impressed with each other, and spend the first arc of the series bickering whenever they meet.
In the manga, they warm up to each other much faster due to the quicker pace of the story. The two discover each other's identities when Mamoru takes an unconscious Usagi back to his apartment to heal after a battle. Their feelings for each other grow from there. In the 90s anime, though, it takes until the last episodes of the anime-exclusive Rainbow Crystals arc for them to warm up to each other, discover their past feelings for each other, and Usagi to spend the rest of the first season trying to save Mamoru from the Dark Kingdom.
The R season of the manga has them a couple from the start, while the 90s anime added an arc of Usagi trying to make the amnesiac Mamoru remember their romance.
In the future, the two marry and have a daughter, ChibiUsa.
Fandom
Usagi/Mamoru had a devoted fan following in the heyday of Sailor Moon, but faced fierce competition from other Usagi pairings (Rei Hino and Seiya Kou among them). There's no clear-cut way of knowing which incarnation brought in the majority of the fandom: many shippers found their relationship much more romantic and endearing in the manga, while others were captivated by "Darien/Serena" in the DiC dub due to it being their first exposure to anime and shoujo-style romance.
Whatever the case, Usagi/Mamoru was one of the most written ships in fandom to the point where UsaMamo fic formed its own list of cliches, tropes, and plot devices[3] readers could expect upon clicking the link for any given story. One particular group of writers focused heavily on romantic smut fics starring the pair, referred to as Sekkushiaru Roman.
Modern fandom tends to look at the pairing through a more critical lens due to its use of tropes that flew under the radar in the 90s, but would not fly today. The age gap in the first anime rubs a lot of people the wrong way, and many bring up the scene where Tuxedo Mask kisses a drunk (90s anime) or unconscious (manga/Crystal) Usagi, which the DiC dub of the former changed to have the kiss just be a dream of Serena's to avoid the dicey implications.
Notable UsaMamo authors
- Sailor Mac, one of the pioneers of the Sakkushiaru Roman who used dub names
- Mark Berger, Sailor Mac's close friend
- The Yarnspinner
- Lady M. Harris, a UsaMamo writer who would publish two of her stories as original fiction
- Kiyoshi Dot
- FloraOne, whose stories take many well-worn tropes associated with the pairing and give them a feminist spin
Fanworks
Fanfiction
Fanart
Fanvids
Mailing Lists
Archives & Fannish Links
- Usagi and Mamoru's Universe, a UsaMamo fanlisting
- Hentai Usagi and Mamoru [NSFW]
- UsagiAndMamoru Dot Com [archived link]
- First Love: A Sailormoon Story Archive