20 Most Powerful Sailor Moon Characters Ranked Worst To Best
The world of "Sailor Moon" might be glittery, pastel, and chock-full of princesses, but it's also home to plenty of powerhouse fighters. In fact, many of this beloved franchise's most fearsome warriors channel their raw strength into all things ultra-cute. Enemies squaring off against the Sailor Guardians are bound to go down eventually, but once a cry of "Starlight Honeymoon Therapy Kiss!" or "Moon Gorgeous Meditation!" has been sounded, defeat is truly imminent. They're going down in a blaze of pink light, and they might even be shouting "beautiful" while they do it.
This adorable aesthetic is one of the most defining features of "Sailor Moon." Another is its gargantuan scope. From the beginning, "Sailor Moon" operates on a literally astronomical scale by granting each planet in our solar system its own heroine. As the series expands, it explores the farther reaches of the galaxy and, eventually, the universe. By the end of the story, fighters born millions of lightyears apart are doing battle for Sailor supremacy. Which miniskirted denizens of the cosmos reign supreme? We're here to find out by ranking the 20 most powerful "Sailor Moon" characters from least mighty to heaviest-hitting.
20. Xenian Flower
The Xenian Flower has wreaked havoc upon the universe for centuries. A parasitic blossom with the torso of a long-haired woman, it latches onto a host, amplifies their darkest instincts, and drains them of energy. It proceeds to spread its seeds far and wide with astonishing speed: An entire planet can be controlled by Xenian Flowers in the blink of an eye. When every ounce of energy has been drained from the unfortunate world, the Xenian Flower moves on, ready to start the cycle anew.
Poor, lonely Fiore — an orphan alien that Mamoru knew as a boy — falls prey to a Xenian Flower in "Sailor Moon R: The Promise of the Rose." Yet his tragic fate is also proof of just how vulnerable this deadly organism truly is. When Usagi meets Fiore's violent anger with altruistic love, his entire worldview is shattered. The Xenian Flower, clearly panicked, begs Fiore not to listen. But it's in vain: Fiore's eyes fill with tears, and the blooming baddie goes up in smoke. The Xenian Flower might be powerful, but it depends entirely upon its host's emotions. All it takes is one kind heart to upset their planet-sapping plans for good.
19. Queen Beryl
As the most prominent antagonist of the first "Sailor Moon" arc, Queen Beryl is one of the franchise's most visible villains. But her popularity isn't entirely down to her early bird status — Beryl gets things done. It was she who led Earth's armies against the Moon Kingdom, after all, bringing an end to the Silver Millennium. This act is even more impressive in the manga: There, Beryl manages to turn Prince Endymion's own generals against him and, eventually, slay him herself. It's an act that so horrifies Princess Serenity that she takes her own life. Centuries later, Beryl's Dark Kingdom presents another major threat, which Sailor Moon only barely averts.
But for all Beryl's sinister grandeur, she's not actually the Dark Kingdom's true ruler. In both timelines, Beryl's power comes from Queen Metalia, a mysterious entity of pure evil even Queen Serenity cannot seal away forever. Though Metalia does need Beryl for the sort of human-centric things that amorphous energy beings struggle with, Beryl needs Metalia far more deeply. Without the powers she grants, Beryl's just a sorceress with charisma and a great wardrobe — and those are basically a dime a dozen in the "Sailor Moon" universe.
18. Sailor Venus
Sailor Venus is the first Sailor Guardian to awaken. This isn't a fluke — she's the leader of the bunch, a position she's occupied since the Silver Millennium. Back then, of course, there was no Sailor Moon, which gave her leadership more weight. But even with Usagi on the battlefield beside her in the modern day, Sailor Venus remains the boss. This imbues her with uniquely potent powers and significant responsibilities. Most prominently, she's the only guardian who can wield a mysterious and holy sword capable of killing Queen Beryl — a fact we know because Venus did, in fact, slay Beryl with this blade in her past life.
Yet Sailor Venus is still relatively limited in terms of raw power. Like most of the Sailor Guardians, she's largely incapable of taking down enemies on her own — especially in the anime. Her attacks can stun, incapacitate, and damage a bad guy, but only Sailor Moon can swoop in and deliver the final blow. Moreover, she lacks the "extra" powers other guardians enjoy, like Sailor Jupiter's martial prowess or Sailor Mars' psychic abilities. Leadership might come with a magical sword, but it doesn't ensure day-to-day supremacy.
17. Sailor Chibi Moon
Sailor Chibi Moon, aka Chibiusa, is probably hugely powerful. As Sailor Moon's daughter, she's in line for the throne of Crystal Tokyo, imbued with the powers of the Moon Kingdom, and destined to inherit her mother's heroic responsibilities. We even glimpse the teammates who will one day fight alongside her in the Amazoness Quartet, indicating her glorious future as Sailor Moon's successor. Heck, she's already nearly 1,000 years old when we first meet her! An immortal princess who will one day come into godlike superpowers is strong by any definition.
Within the confines of the "Sailor Moon" story, however, all of these fabulous abilities are only probable, rather than actual. While Chibiusa does do quite a lot of growing up over the course of the series, she spends all of it being a kid who lacks grown-up faculties. She's even bullied by her 30th-century peers for her apparent powerlessness. A fantastic destiny awaits her, but it's only theoretical — and in the "Sailor Moon" universe, destiny is very much subject to change.
16. Helios
Helios is the high priest of Elysion, capital of the Golden Kingdom that Mamoru once ruled as Prince Endymion. He's also the protector of the Golden Crystal, an incredibly powerful artifact deeply tied to the Earth (and, by extension, Mamoru). This makes him a major threat to Queen Nehelenia, who keeps him under lock and key. Yet even the full force of her witchy might cannot stop Helios for long. In the form of the mysterious Pegasus, he manages to contact Chibiusa, which leads to Nehelenia's downfall.
This all adds up to a pretty powerful figure — but also a completely dependent one. The exact nature of the relationship between Helios, Elysion, the Golden Crystal, and Mamoru is murky and varies across different incarnations of the story. What's clear is that it's potent ... and that it makes Helios vulnerable on multiple fronts. When Mamoru is under attack, Helios suffers, Elysion crumbles, and the Golden Crystal is in peril. Helios is able to defend himself independently but only slightly — were Chibiusa even a little bit less competent, he'd be toast. There are major benefits to his position, but they don't always outweigh the costs.
15. Mistress 9
It's easy to forget that Mistress 9 isn't actually the ultimate villain of "Sailor Moon S." That honor goes to Pharaoh 90, a malevolent being from a far-off galaxy. But Pharaoh 90 barely shows up, barring an appearance at the end of the arc, meaning Mistress 9 is far more present. Moreover, she's able to possess Hotaru Tomoe, the dormant Sailor Saturn. Though Hotaru hasn't come into her powers at this point, she's still one of the most massively destructive forces in the "Sailor Moon" universe. The fact that Mistress 9 is able to hijack her body is a significant testament to her strength.
Mistress 9 is still a servant, of course — but she isn't entirely dominated by her master. As she prepares Earth for Pharaoh 90's arrival, she displays a high degree of autonomy and control over her powers, unlike similar underlings in other arcs. In fact, Pharaoh 90 seems to be more dependent upon her than she is upon him. It's clear Mistress 9 is under his yoke somehow, but her dark deeds speak for themselves. If she were able to slip his shackles, who knows what she could accomplish?
14. Sailor Mars
Sailor Mars enjoys a solid suite of fire-based superpowers. But what truly sets her apart are the abilities she possesses as Rei Hino, Shinto priestess of the Hikawa Shrine. Long before she awoke as Sailor Mars, Rei was known for her psychic abilities. And once she takes her place as a Sailor Guardian, they seem to become even stronger. Rei can peer into the future, detect the presence of evil, and divine the location of lost objects. She can also wield ofuda with wicked precision. Many a bad guy is stopped in their tracks by her skill with this sacred talisman.
All of these abilities make Rei a force to be reckoned with, but they're still at their most powerful when used as part of a team. Purifying an evil spirit here and there is pretty impressive unto itself, but Rei can take on hordes of bad guys when someone's watching her back. Preventing a troubling future is also a lot more doable when she has her teammates by her side. One priestess can only do so much, but a Sailor Guardian has options.
13. Prince Demande
Like so many charismatic villains in the "Sailor Moon" saga, Prince Demande is technically an underling. Wiseman, an enigmatic figure obscured by a dark cloak, manipulates Demande and the Black Moon Clan for his own ends. He's definitely the power behind the throne, but Demande's no slouch. His attack incapacitates Neo-Queen Serenity, King Endymion, and the Sailor Guardians of the 30th century. In the anime, he's also able to hypnotize people into doing his bidding — a power he uses with brutal efficiency.
Ultimately, Demande is defeated. But his successes still establish him as one of the most accomplished villains in "Sailor Moon." Demande manages to (temporarily) topple Sailor Moon centuries into her reign as Neo-Queen Serenity — most bad guys struggle against the version of her that has a whole lot less experience. Significant help from Wiseman (and Chibiusa, whose theft of the Silver Crystal weakens our heroes' defenses) is needed to pull this off, but bringing Crystal Tokyo to a screeching halt is an act that speaks for itself.
12. Sailor Pluto
As superpowers go, time manipulation is a pretty gigantic one. Sailor Pluto, guardian of the Space-Time Door, is well aware of this. When she's introduced, she's a solemn loner strictly bound by three taboos: She cannot leave her post, allow anyone to travel through time, or disrupt time's flow. Despite her reluctance, she ends up breaking each rule in grand displays of universe-shaping might. This results in her death in the manga, which is one of the most tragic moments in the series. It's also one of the most jaw-droppingly powerful.
Once she's resurrected, Pluto is granted way more freedom. Does she still hold mastery over time? The answer is unclear. Her powers seem to shrink from this point on. Instead of stopping time, she now uses her Garnet Rod to summon energy blasts comparable to the other Sailor Guardians' attacks. The taboos also go largely unmentioned. This might imply a reduced role, but it also might not — in the manga, she remains able to close the Space-Time Door from afar, which implies she's still its guardian. The truth is, we'll never know exactly how powerful Sailor Pluto is, only that she's not to be messed with.
11. Queen Badiane
It's easy to underestimate Queen Badiane. Her seat of power is called Marzipan Castle, her minions are goofy-looking fairies with a dessert theme, and her name is French for star anise. But just because her shtick is "evil pastry" doesn't mean she's not capable of serious mayhem. Every night, Badiane's fairies kidnap children by playing a trance-inducing tune on their magical flutes. Thus ensorcelled, they are led to her fortress in the sky, where they are trapped in "dream coffins" and drained of energy.
Once Badiane earns Sailor Moon's ire by kidnapping Chibiusa, she's toast. She also only menaces our heroines for a little over an hour, as she's confined to "Sailor Moon SuperS: The Movie." But in some ways, her brief screen time only makes her more impressive. Most "Sailor Moon" villains need an entire season's worth of episodes and an army of evildoers to get anything done. With just four flunkeys and a couple of nights, Badiane kidnaps hundreds of children, uses their energy to create a massive black hole, and, presumably, mind-controls the public into not panicking or noticing her giant floating castle. She might fail, but so does every "Sailor Moon" baddie — and most get there with way more help.
10. Wiseman
Wiseman's shadowy powers seem to know no limits. He's capable of brainwashing vast numbers of people, bestowing fantastic abilities upon others, perceiving the future, and even corrupting Chibiusa — an inherently powerful descendant of the Moon Kingdom — into a wily villainess. In the final arc of the manga, the fearsome Sailor Galaxia recalls encountering him in a distant galaxy, where he shared arcane knowledge of the universe's origin point with her. The depth of experience and knowledge this implies surpasses virtually any other "Sailor Moon" villain. No wonder it takes two Silver Crystals to destroy him.
Wiseman is clearly an immense threat. Unfortunately, he overlooks an essential aspect of any decent evil empire: human resources. In relying upon the fractious Black Moon Clan — who are constantly sniping, smooching, and smirking at each other — he dooms his plans. Still, one shudders to think what he might have accomplished with competent henchmen.
9. Queen Metalia
Queen Beryl might be the face people picture when they think of the Dark Kingdom, but Queen Metalia is its true ruler. An entity of pure malice, she seeks more power and energy at all costs. This often makes her seem more like a fundamental force than an independent being, especially given her nebulous body. But Metalia isn't mindless — and that's precisely what makes her so dangerous. In the manga, she selects Beryl to manipulate because she senses the young witch's exploitable love for Prince Endymion. Through her, Metalia whips the public into a hateful frenzy against the Moon Kingdom that brings the Silver Millennium to an end.
Taking down the Moon Kingdom is a gigantic feat, but Metalia's lack of flexibility dooms her to eventual failure at the hands of its reincarnated princess. Rather than updating her strategy for a brand new era, Metalia simply bets on Beryl and her dark army once again — and, once again, they ultimately crumble before the Silver Crystal. Metalia is powerful enough to survive centuries of imprisonment, but apparently she didn't use that time to come up with thrilling new tactics.
8. Queen Nehelenia
In every incarnation, Queen Nehelenia is one of the heaviest-hitting bad guys Sailor Moon ever faces. In the manga, however, she might just be one of the most powerful figures in the entire universe. When she intrudes upon a celebration of Princess Serenity's birth during the Silver Millennium, she claims to be Queen Serenity's dark counterpart, complete with her own shadowy realm in the moon's center. After she's sealed away within a mirror, she curses the Moon Kingdom: It will fall to ashes, she declares, and its infant princess will never sit upon its alabaster throne.
This is, in fact, what happens. Does that mean Nehelenia is the true power behind Beryl and Metalia's Silver Millennium-ending attack? It seems possible, in a roundabout way. Nehelenia probably doesn't directly mind-control the thousands of people involved in that assault, but anyone as powerful as Queen Serenity is likely able to shift destiny in significant ways. Though she ultimately falls to Sailor Moon, this means Nehelenia actually creates Sailor Moon: The fall of the Silver Millennium is what forces Princess Serenity turned Usagi Tsukino to become a Sailor Guardian thousands of years later. Talk about leaving a mark on history.
7. Guardian Cosmos
Guardian Cosmos only appears in a handful of pages of the manga's final chapter. A miniscule fairy, she dwells within the Galaxy Cauldron, where all things emerge and eventually die. Her eternal duty is to protect the Cosmos Crystal, which is essentially the Cauldron's soul. After Sailor Moon sacrifices herself to protect the Cauldron from Chaos, Guardian Cosmos grants her wish to return her and her loved ones to life.
Crucially, Guardian Cosmos is only able to resurrect the dead because Sailor Moon's fatal bravery unleashes the Cosmos Crystal's full power. But Guardian Cosmos is clearly the only being capable of directing that phenomenal force. As a celestial arbiter of life and death who's probably as old as existence itself, she might be the closest thing "Sailor Moon" has to a monotheistic god. However, this isn't a conventionally monotheistic universe. Guardian Cosmos is powerful, but she's also subject to others beings' actions — especially ones as mighty as Sailor Moon's.
6. Tuxedo Mask
Debate has raged for decades over the precise nature of Tuxedo Mask, aka Mamoru Chiba, aka Prince Endymion. Mostly, it's centered around a single question: Is he basically Sailor Earth? Yes and no. He does have Earth's Sailor Crystal, which only a Sailor Guardian can possess. But series creator Naoko Takeuchi has also made it very clear that only girls can be Sailor Guardians.
This leaves Mamoru in an ambiguous place, power-wise, but an undoubtedly high-up one. Mamoru's connection to the Earth is incredibly strong. When he's sick, the land suffers, and when he's well, as he was throughout much of the Silver Millennium, it enjoys peace and prosperity. He also boasts mysterious psychic abilities like psychometry, telepathy, and healing. And then, of course, there's his bond with Sailor Moon, which allows them to perform outright miracles. Sure, she's the stronger of the two, and yeah, it's hard to tease apart where her powers end and his begin. But Mamoru is clearly an integral part of keeping the celestial peace. And hey — who can argue with the efficacy of those roses?
5. Queen Serenity
We don't know much about Queen Serenity, but what's there suggests she's a being of mind-boggling power. First off, she was the supreme ruler of the Moon Kingdom and bearer of the Silver Crystal during the Silver Millennium, which means she basically served as the solar system's unconquerable empress for many happy centuries. She's also capable of single-handedly sealing away big-time evildoers like Metalia and Nehelenia, and she appears to have a major influence on Earth culture. According to her hologram, humanity sees her as Selene, Greek goddess of the moon.
What truly sets Queen Serenity apart, however, is her most famous feat — sending the souls of her slain daughter and loved ones into the far future to be reborn for a second chance at happiness. This is an unparalleled event in the "Sailor Moon" story — only Guardian Cosmos' act comes close, and it involves no time travel. The effort kills Queen Serenity, granted, but its magnitude speaks for itself. Without her, the story of "Sailor Moon" simply does not exist.
4. Sailor Saturn
When a Sailor Guardian is known as the "Messiah of Silence," you know she packs a wallop. Sailor Saturn very much lives up to this hype as the grim reaper of the "Sailor Moon" universe. Her duty is to bring destruction whenever and wherever it is needed, most infamously in the form of unstoppable, world-ending apocalypses. It is she who brings the Silver Millennium to a formal close, and it is her rebirth that Sailors Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto seek to avert by killing her civilian form, Hotaru Tomoe.
Fascinatingly, Sailor Saturn seems to answer to a higher authority than the other Sailor Guardians do. She isn't intentionally summoned by any of our heroines — the universe itself seems to call upon her aid. Historically, she isn't even conscious when there isn't a world in need of ending. This cryptic nature, combined with the jaw-dropping scope of her powers, makes Saturn more like a goddess of death than a spunky heroine. Only her human body's weakness (thanks to Mistress 9's possession) and the dormancy that's taken up most of her ancient life keeps her from earning an even more impressive spot on this list.
3. Sailor Galaxia
In every version of the "Sailor Moon" story, Sailor Galaxia is explicitly identified as the most powerful Sailor Guardian is existence, save Sailor Moon. She puts her immense talents and ruthless nature towards conquest, eventually amassing the empire known as Shadow Galactica. By the time she confronts Sailor Moon, she's ravaged thousands of worlds and killed every other Sailor Guardian of the solar system, plus Tuxedo Mask.
Perhaps Galaxia's most impressive quality, however, is her relationship with Chaos. In the anime, Galaxia's evil is revealed to spring from altruism: Long ago, she was the only guardian strong enough to seal the ancient force of Chaos within her own soul. In the manga, she specifically allies herself with Chaos while simultaneously planning its eventual destruction. What unites these incarnations is the reality-shaping level of power at play. You need to be a being of universe-sized might to tangle with such an elemental force — and that's exactly the kind of being Galaxia is.
2. Chaos
If there was ever a villain who needed no introduction, it would be Chaos. This ultimate baddie is the metaphysical concept of chaos itself, given (incredibly vague) form. Chaos has existed since the dawn of time, and it reveals itself to be the source of every single enemy Sailor Moon has fought. By the time she faces it in the manga, it's also merged with the Galaxy Cauldron, from which all life springs. To destroy Chaos, she must destroy the Cauldron — and herself.
Sailor Moon's sacrifice temporarily melts Chaos into the Cauldron's sea of pure possibility, but Guardian Cosmos makes it clear that it will be reborn someday. This doesn't constitute defeat, however, as Sailor Moon herself makes clear. "There should be light and darkness," she muses, "battles, hopes, life and death." This means that Chaos is fundamentally undefeatable — and thus the most powerful enemy in "Sailor Moon." But it's also a necessary component of its heroine's goodness. Without despair and disorder, there can be no love or justice and definitely no champion of both.
1. Sailor Moon
Many characters in the "Sailor Moon" saga wield godlike powers. Chaos itself is a bad guy. Immortality is everywhere. Teenage girls control the flow of time, peer into the future, and occasionally bring about the apocalypse. And yet, even among this storied crowd, Sailor Moon herself still stands out as being this universe's most powerful character — by far. This is because the world of "Sailor Moon" runs on love, and no one in it is more defined by love than the girl variously known as Princess Serenity, Usagi Tsukino, and Sailor Moon. Whether she's a bumbling schoolgirl or an immortal ruler, she loves hard — and by the end of the series, she loves just about everyone.
Over and over again, Sailor Moon conquers evil through warm-hearted empathy. Sometimes, as with Fiore and Galaxia, the altruistic hand she extends is what saves the day. Other times, as with Queen Beryl and Chaos, it's the radiant power of her relationships. Always, she succeeds by placing her faith in love. This allows her to, among other feats, transform the Earth into a utopia, conquer a primordial force of evil at the origin point of all existence, resurrect the dead many times over, and squash an Armageddon-in-progress. The only limit on Sailor Moon's power is her ability to love — so basically, it's limitless.