Ikuko Tsukino
| |
| Name: | Ikuko Tsukino |
|---|---|
| Name (kanji/kana): | 月野育子 |
| Alignment: | Civilian |
| Species: | Human |
| Gender: | Female |
| Lives: | The Tsukino Residence, Azabu-Juuban, Minato-ku, Tokyo |
| Occupation: | Housewife |
| Family: | Kenji Tsukino (husband), Usagi Tsukino (daughter), Shingo Tsukino (son), Chibiusa (future granddaughter), Kousagi Tsukino (future granddaughter; "Parallel Sailor Moon" only), Mamoru Chiba (future son-in-law) |
| Associates: | Her family, Chibi Chibi; Naru's mother, Umino's mother (anime); Sugao Saitou, Luna Tsukino (PGSM) |
| Aliases: | Ikuko-mama |
| First Anime Appearance: | Crybaby Usagi's Magnificent Transformation |
| First Manga Appearance: | Act 1 Usagi SAILORMOON |
| First PGSM Appearance: | Act 1 - I am Sailor Moon! |
| English Name: | Serena's Mom (DiC dub), Ikuko (CWi dub), Ikuko Mama (Mixx manga), Ikuko Tsukino (Kodansha manga, Viz dub) |
| Actors: | Sanae Takagi (anime); Yuko Mizutani (Crystal seasons 1-3), Wakana Yamazaki (Cosmos); Kaori Moriwaka (PGSM); Barbara Radecki (dub); Tara Platt (Viz dub) |
Ikuko Tsukino was Usagi's mother in present-day Tokyo. She was married to Kenji Tsukino, and cared deeply for her two children.
Anime and Manga[edit]
Ikuko's role was almost identical in the anime and manga. She was a kind woman with a motherly nature, though she could be strict concerning Usagi's and Shingo's academic performance. One of her first actions in both versions of the series was to scold Usagi for her poor performance on a test at school and literally throw her out of the house.
In the Black Moon arc of the manga, Chibiusa lived with the Tsukinos and referred to Ikuko as "Ikuko-mama." Ikuko cared for Chibiusa like a daughter, and treated her as she did Usagi and Shingo. Likewise, in the Stars season of the anime, Chibi Chibi lived with the Tsukinos and Ikuko again treated her like a daughter.
In the SuperS season, Hawk's Eye targeted Ikuko because of his love of older women and the belief that Pegasus could be hiding in her beautiful dream. This was proven to be wrong, and Ikuko was rescued by Super Sailor Moon and Super Sailor Chibi Moon.
Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon[edit]
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| Ikuko in PGSM |
In the live-action series, Ikuko was a much younger and trendier character who, however, still displayed the attitude of a kind and caring mother. As in all of the different incarnations of Sailor Moon, Ikuko and Usagi shared a close relationship. In the Special Act, Luna in human form shared a relationship with Ikuko, though it did not seem to be as close as her relationship with Chibiusa in the anime and manga.
Musicals[edit]
Although Ikuko never appeared in person in the musicals, Usagi mentioned her frequently, often speaking of her mother's kindness or love. In the Mugen Gakuen - Mistress Labyrinth kaiteiban, Usagi stole her mother's wedding dress and wore it to the park thinking that Mamoru was going to propose to her.
Trivia[edit]
- Ikuko is named after the real-life mother of Naoko Takeuchi.
- Ikuko's hair was predominantly blue in artbook illustrations, but has also been colored pink and brown in official manga art.
- Ikuko's hair was a darker shade of blue in the third season of Crystal, similar to what it was in the anime, while in the first two seasons and Sailor Moon Cosmos it was a similar color to her manga incarnation.
- Ikuko admitted in episode 16 that she lacked proficiency at sewing, just like her daughter.
- In the first English dub her birthday was on October 10.
- On Toonami broadcasts of the Viz English dub, she was referred to in the credits only as "Usagi's Mother."
