Helios (エリオス, Eriosu) is the guardian priest of Prince Endymion and lives in Elysion where he prays alongside the Maenads. He is cursed by the Dead Moon into the form of a Pegasus (ペガサス, Pegasasu). He is one of the main characters of the Dream arc in the manga and crystal.
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What role does Helios play in the Dream arc of the Sailor Moon manga and crystal?
How does Helios become cursed into the form of a Pegasus in Sailor Moon?
What is the relationship between Chibi Moon and Helios in Sailor Moon?
Who is Helios the guardian priest for in the Sailor Moon series?
How is Helios connected to Greek mythology in Sailor Moon?
Etymology[]
Helios is the personification of the Sun in Greek mythology. He is sometimes identified as the sun god, however, that role is also associated with Apollo, depending on the sources. Other sources claim that they are one and the same.
Pegasus is a white winged horse in Greek Mythology.
Appearance[]
Helios[]
Helios appears as a young man with golden eyes and short light-blue hair. He has a red, teardrop-shaped protector gem on his forehead with a silver outline and has a golden horn on the top of his head. He has pale skin and wears a white robe, white pants, and white shoes. His sleeves are slightly transparent with their ends rimmed navy-blue and their tops are light blue. He has a navy-blue belt and a light blue collar.
He has five gold crystal ball ornaments with navy-blue tassels hanging from them at his chest. He also wears silver crystal earrings, and two white chokers and the bottom one has an oval shaped and golden ornament on it.
Pegasus[]
As Pegasus, he has the appearance of a white horse with large white wings, white hooves, and a long, golden horn on his head. His mane and tail are light-blue. He has a red, teardrop-shaped jewel on his forehead with a silver outline and his eyes are golden.
His pet Pegasus looks the same as his cursed form except it wears reins with small wings on them.
Information[]
Background[]
Helios is the high-priest of Elysion during the era of the first Silver Millennium when Prince Endymion ruled the Golden Kingdom of Earth. Helios remained in Elysion at the shrine along with the priestesses, the Maenads, when Endymion left for the surface. He is the Prince's guardian priest and this connection to Prince Endymion and the Earth and his own connection to Elysion makes all four entities connected.
Before the start of the Dream Arc, Helios receives a vision from Princess Lady Serenity telling him it’s time to awaken the Golden Crystal and describes a maiden protected by moonlight who can help do so. She also warns him of a great trial awaiting him and Elysion. Over a long period of time, the Dead Moon Circus slowly conquers Elysion. Helios is captured by the Dead Moon, turned into the form of a pegasus, and cursed along with the land. Helios is locked in a cage by the Dead Moon and has a black rose growing in his lungs from the curse. His connection to Endymion makes this curse pass to him as well. The Maenads are protected from the curse by the purifying crystals of Elysion that they sleep inside. They and Helios are the only survivors.
Infinity Arc[]
Just before the Dead Moon Circus invades Earth on April 1st, Helios briefly appears as a Pegasus before Chibiusa, Usagi, and Mamoru looking for help from the maiden he is told about.
Dream Arc[]
That night he appears in Chibiusa's dream and lets her ride him in the sky above Azabu-Juban. He shows her the effects of the Dead Moon Circus' invasion of Earth, asks for her help, and gives her a bell, the Crystal Carillon, that she can use to call him if she needs him. He introduces himself as a Pegasus, Helios, and says he needs the Golden Crystal before he fades away and she wakes up.
Later when Super Sailor Chibi Moon and Super Sailor Moon are attacked by PallaPalla, VesVes, and their Lemures they find themselves needing weapons and Helios appears before Sailor Chibi Moon and tells her to call out Twinkle Yell with the bell he gave her. Helios uses his power to help their kaleidoscopes become the Moon Kaleido Scope and Chibi Moon Kaleido Scope which allows them to use Moon Gorgeous Meditation to defend themselves. This confirms to Helios they have the power he’s looking for as he disappears again.
After Chibiusa is turned into an adult by PallaPalla, she drops the Crystal Carillon and Helios appears again. He suggests the enemy is behind her transformation but still refuses to elaborate on them or give her his real name but he does tell her he thinks she is the maiden he seeks and repeats the description the vision gave him before disappearing again. That night, he appears in Mamoru's dream to apologize for failing Elysion, passing the curse to him, and begs him to find the Golden Crystal.
After Fish Eye is destroyed, Sailor Chibi Moon is feeling inadequate and uses Twinkle Yell to call Helios and tells him she isn't the maiden he seeks - it's Sailor Moon. After he latches onto Sailor Mercury calling Usagi Princess Serenity she runs away upset that she isn't the maiden he needs. Helios follows after her and reassures her that she is deeply needed and loved. He kisses her and briefly takes his human form before he returns to his cage in Elysion. Queen Nehelenia notices his return and tortures him for his defiance. Helios holds on knowing if he succumbs it will hurt Mamoru.
After Hawk's Eye falls, Pegasus protects Mamoru from Lemures with his body and calls Chibiusa with the Crystal Carillon. When she arrives with Sailor Moon and Super Sailor Jupiter they destroy them and see Helios injured. He takes his human form and tells them about himself and his connection to Earth, Elysion, and Mamoru. He also tells them about the curse and how Elysion is taken by Queen Nehelenia. He asks Sailor Moon to find the Golden Crystal as it is needed alongside the Silver Crystal to break the curse of the Dead Moon Circus. She; however, is infected by the curse herself.
Zirconia uses it to attack Super Sailor Moon and Tuxedo Mask to turn them into children and suffer. Helios teleports them to Elysion where what remains of its power reverts them and he guides them to the shrine. He introduces them to the sleeping Maenads and helps Mamoru remember Prince Endymion's connection to the land and how he and Princess Serenity protect the Earth with the Silver Crystal and Golden Crystal. He wants Usagi to find and release the Golden Crystal but doesn't know where it is located but she realizes it's sealed inside Mamoru. Usagi spots Helios' cursed form inside a cage and tries to help him but is hurt which notifies Queen Nehelenia of their presence and he whisks them off to the surface to save the surface as his torture begins anew.
He sends the crystals of Elysion to help the Sailor Guardians against Zirconia which awakens the Maenads and saps the last of his strength as he falls to the Dead Moon.
The defeat of Queen Nehelenia and release of the Golden Crystal breaks the curse and Helios' body returns to his human form. Eternal Sailor Chibi Moon refuses to believe he’s dead because of his connection to Mamoru. She kisses him and the power of her Pink Moon Crystal revives him. He’s confused to find tears in her eyes but realizes she’s the maiden from his vision all along.
He sees the restored Elysion and the released Golden Crystal. He puts the crystal on a staff which causes Mamoru to take his King Endymion form and Usagi her Neo Queen Serenity form. During their coronation ceremony Helios kneels alongside the Maenads. Afterwards, he calls upon his own Pegasus and takes everyone back to the surface as he rides it. On the surface he bids farewell to everyone and tells Chibiusa he will see her again before returning to Elysion to pray alongside the Maenads.
After he leaves, Chibiusa hopes he can, when she is a true lady, be her future prince.
Stars Arc[]
He only appears in the Stars arc as a memory when Chibiusa speaks of how she should tell her mother about him and the Sailor Quartet when deciding to return to the 30th century. He possibly shares Mamoru's fate due to their connection.
Differences in Crystal[]
- He appears at the very end of the Infinity arc in the manga while Crystal Season 3 ends just before that meeting it is shown in the Dream arc instead.
- He first meets Adult-sized Chibiusa in Usagi’s room in the manga after she accidentally drops the Crystal Carillon and then soon after she speaks to Diana in a playground. In Crystal these two conversations happen back to back in the playground where she speaks to Diana first and then Helios appears.
- When he is telling everyone his background after Mamoru is attacked by Lemures, the conversation is longer and he gives more details about himself, Elysion, the Dead Moon, and their invasion in the manga.
- Chibiusa is much shorter than him in Sailor Moon Eternal. In his final scene Chibiusa is as tall as his collar in the manga while she is up to his belt in Eternal. In both he is around Usagi’s height.
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- His golden horn disappears after the curse is lifted. The Materials Collection notes it is a sign of the curse on his captured body and not something he normally has.
- Although he is called a pegasus, he bears more similarities to an alicorn.
- The Materials Collection states he has the appearance of a "seventh-grade boy."[1]
- Helios does not use the speech patterns of a middle-aged Japanese man (for example, using "washi" as a pronoun). This would typically place him, to a Japanese reader, firmly pre-middle aged.
- Despite this, he is quite old. He says he prayed against the Dead Moon's invasion of Elysion for thousands of years before their subsequent invasion of Earth. It's also implied he will see Chibiusa again in the future which means he will live for another thousand years. He either ages very slowly or his age is stuck in place like Chibiusa's was.
- As Pegasus, he uses the same sound effects for his whinnying in Sailor Moon Eternal as in Pretty Soldier Sailor Moon SuperS.
- In the English dub of Sailor Moon Eternal, he shares his voice actor with Ail from the Viz English dub of Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon R. Helios is one of the few characters whose Viz dub voice actor did not reprise their role in the Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon Crystal franchise.
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Materials Collection - Helios' page says he has the appearance of a "seventh-grade boy." In Japan, that would mean he looks 12 or 13 years old.
