Our Beautiful Queen Nehellenia-sama
By: Brian Bork, Owner of Ginzuishou Plus!
Nehellenia-sama-sama is often neglected and rubbed out as a Sailormoon villain or character in general. I find this a shame. Some also suggest that the reasons for her actions are rather random and purely based on the impulse of basic evil. I disagree strongly, Sama-sama is, in my opinion, the most well developed villain in all of Sailormoon. She's given a somewhat detailed background and deep physiological motives for her vain reasoning and evil plots. I wish to address that background and hopefully departed some kind of new insight about Nehellenia-sama as a flesh and blood person to you the reader.
First off, the theme of SuperS was beautiful dreams or beautiful dreams for the future. Each character expressed their dreams in this season (Chibiusa wants to be an adult, Usagi a bride, Makoto a florist or chief, Rei wants an "international, successful life", Minako wants to be an idol, and Ami a doctor). According to Nehellenia-sama, her dream is to remain youthful and beautiful forever
In the flashbacks during the concluding episode of SuperS, we learn about Nehellenia-sama's past and how she became evil. It seems that when she asked her mirror what the future of her beautiful dream was, it turned black and reflected an image of an old, decrepit women who of course was her. Nehellenia-sama was horrified by this image and couldn't believe that her dream had no future. After this, she became controlled by her false dream and began to eat the dream mirrors of her kingdom's citizens. This seems to be the point of no return, and she becomes evil and somewhat unstable.
It comes to be known that in the past during the Silver Millennium, Nehellenia tried to take the Golden Crystal but was rebuked by it's sacred flames. Queen Serenity also sealed her within the fringes of the New Moon and into the darkness on the other side of her mirror. When the seal is reactivated during the last episode of SuperS after being broken a few episodes before, she accepts her fate because she knows she can remain beautiful inside her dark mirror. It seems that when she confronted her broken mirror, she became what she saw in the past, an old withered woman. As she was lifted towards the eclipse, she restated her association with loneliness and solitude and was sealed into the fringes of the New Moon once more.
In Sailor Stars she returns. Nehellenia-sama believed that Sailormoon and Chibimoon had been ground into the earth by their fall but what she didn't know was that the power of Usagi and Chibiusa's dreams had saved them when they, again, called on the golden crystal and Pegasus. Nehellenia-sama wanted her revenge on the people of the white moon so she attacked Tokyo once more. This time, she wanted to make Princess Serenity suffer the same loneliness and solitude that she faced when she was sealed away without her mirror. She lured all the senshi to her dark world and trapped the them behind mirrors. Nehellenia-sama also had a hold over Mamoru and as a result of her curse, Chibiusa disappeared leaving Usagi isolated and alone.
Nehellenia-sama confronted Usagi at her Palace and began to explain in greater detail about her past. She told Usagi that she was very alone as a queen, when she was young she didn't have any friends or those she could be intimate with. As a result she became her own friend, she confided in herself and relied only on what she could do. This works contrary to the theme's of Sailormoon which state that know one can or should be alone or lonely. Nehellenia-sama longed for the things Usagi had, friendship, a companion and a bright future filled with love and light.
When Usagi gave Nehellenia-sama the chance to take her revenge, she begged for her friends release and said that they understand and will become her friends. It seems that once again Sailormoon's empathy and love saved the situation because the senshi did understand and quietly joined their powers. Mamoru broke free of her curse and so did the trapped senshi. Nehellenia-sama's power had been broken. Then the senshi channeled their power through Sailormoon and healed Nehellenia-sama, washing away her false dream born from loneliness, solitude and anger. Eternal Sailormoon asked Nehellenia-sama to remember her true dream. At that point, Nehellenia-sama remembered that all she ever wanted where friends and a companion who understood each other.
Nehellenia-sama is a wonderful example of truth and it's consequences. Her life, from an early age, had been built upon her beauty and the trust she placed in herself, however she betrays that trust by perusing a false dream. It seems that as long as she remained beautiful, she would never have to face the lies and falsehoods that she's embraced for herself. When her mirror reveals the truth of her false dream (to remain beautiful forever), it's merely reflecting the truth that she will one day grow old and lose her beauty. There's more to this symbolism than age however, the "old Nehellenia-sama" represents the false dream of eternal beauty. To be confronted with this truth was to destroy her future because if she relied on something that wasn't stable, it would unfold eventually and leave her with nothing. It's important to remember that Nehellenia-sama's fixation with her appearance is derived from her loneliness and the idea that she became her own friend and companion because she didn't have any. The truth of the "old Nehellenia-sama" also reveals the falsehood of this concept as well, if she can't bare to look at herself in the mirror, than she knows that she can't rely on herself solely.
To me, Nehellenia-sama is a very contemporary character. She imbues a lot of the negative aspects of our culture, that of isolation and loneliness. Nehellenia-sama seemed to be aware of some of these things as well, at one point she casually remarked to Usagi, "The nightmare never ends". It's almost telling of her long, "nightmare" with solitude and a false dream. She is redeemed in the end by the power of friendship and love, the two very things she sought after all that time through her bitterness and anger. With her nightmare over Nehellenia-sama appeared in the past asleep on her throne as a child once more. She wakes up and, upon the suggestion of one of her citizens, decides to retire to bed because she's sleepy. Just as she was about to leave, she turned around and asked if someone would sing her a nursery rhyme. The same citizen says it would be her pleasure, Nehellenia-sama smiles. Her nightmare had ended...remember, a dream is just for the night, in the morning a new day begins ^_~.
Pocket_Demon's Comments: No comment. I just thought it was a good article to request to post.