Sailor Venus - Development

Development

In the transition between the Sailor V and Sailor Moon series, Minako's basic character design did not change—in fact, creator Naoko Takeuchi has written that the concept of Minako has barely changed at all from the first moment she was created. The magazine that serialized Sailor V, Run-Run, intended to produce an OVA based on the character, but went bankrupt before it could happen, so Minako was relegated to the sidelines as one of Sailor Moon's costars, to Takeuchi's regret.

In Minako's new form as Sailor Venus, she would have a new uniform, and this went through many changes before settling to the one used in publication. Early on, each of the Senshi had a fully unique costume, and Venus's was inspired largely by the Sailor V outfit. It was colored mostly in dark blue, with orange used only for the chest-ribbon (which was not bow-shaped), and included a crescent moon motif, prominent armor, and white- and red-stripes. Her red hair-ribbon and trademark Sailor V mask were present as well. Later, Takeuchi was surprised by these sketches and stated that she did not remember drawing them.

The kanji in Minako's name translate as "love" (愛, ai?), "field" or "civilian" (野, no?), "beauty" (美, mi?), "what" or "how" (奈, na?), and "child" (子, ko?). It is structured as a pun, as the syllable "no" indicates a possessive, so that her name can also be understood as "Minako of Love." As Minako was "transplanted" from her previous series, unlike the other Senshi, her family name does not begin with the same kanji as her planet, which would have been "gold" (金, kin?). However, like them it is still a representation of her primary element, the "inevitable" connection with Venus, the Roman goddess of love. The characters of her given name can also, using unconventional but extant readings, be read as Binasu—a Japanese approximation of the name "Venus".