THE PAST. A thousand years ago, peace reigned over all the universe. It's either this era or the interplanetary alliance that is called the Silver Millenium. The moon is ruled by Queen Serenity, mother of Princess Serenity. The moon seems to be a power base in this Solar System, as they hold a powerful object... the Ginzuishou (Silver Crystal). This is why each planet sends a representative to serve in the Moon Kingdom's Court. Princess Serenity, we find out, is in love with the heir apparent to the Terran throne, Prince Endymion. Their feelings for each other are not regarded well, as a certain Queen Beryl, also of Earth, wants to have domination over all beings. She wreaks havoc as she allies herself with the Negaverse, and corrupts Prince Endymion's four closest friends, Jadeite, Neflyte, Zoicite, and Kunzite (Malachite).

ONE FATEFUL NIGHT... The Moon Kingdom was having a ball, and Princess Serenity is upset that Prince Endymion cannot come because of his, shall we say, citizenship. The Negaverse just happens to attack, then, and the Moon Kingdom is flattened. Leveled. Kaput. Queen Serenity defeats them by using the Ginzuishou and sending them to another time. The only survivors are Queen Serenity and her two cat advisors, Luna (black female) and Artemis (white male). She is heartbroken over her daughter's death and decides to rescue her by sending her to another time with the rest of the people who were unfortunate enough to be on the Moon. The exertion of power takes its toll and kills her. For you see, the Guinzuishou only reflects a person's will and magnifies their strength. She sends the two cat advisors to her daughter's future.

THE PRESENT. Princess Serenity of the Moon Kingdom is reborn as Tsukino Usagi... a very clumsy girl. She eats too much. She sleeps too much. She's always tardy for school. She cries too much. But she's also very kind. She's very sweet. And she's loveable. She makes friends easily. Her best friend is Osaka Naru (Molly Osaka). There's a computer geek called Umino Gurio (Melvin) who had the biggest crush on her. She makes friends with the people who turn out to be the Sailor Scouts. They help her to mature. One evidence is that she actually passes the exams to get to high school later on! In the beginning, there is a young man by the name of Chiba Mamoru (Darien) who teases her a lot (calls her Meatball Head) and earns Usagi's most passionate hatred. With the advent of the Moon Princess, they learn of their past (Mamoru is actually Endymion.. like we couldn't figure it out ourselves) and rekindle their romance, after overcoming several obstacles.

AS SAILOR MOON. Sailor Moon is a klutz, a whiner, and a crybaby, but she is the leader and most powerful of the scouts. Though she tries to run away from her enemies, she ends up defeating the bad guys to protect her friends. She goes through several transformations: her powers as Sailor Moon is redefined twice; she receives the power to be Super Sailor Moon first from the Holy Grail, and more permanently from the Pegasus; Eternal Sailor Moon as foreseen by Hotaru-chan, from everyone's love; Sailor Cosmos in the distant future.

<-- That is Eternal Sailormoon. She's got wings. Obviously. She can't fly, though. At least not in the anime. She does get to fly in the last acts of the manga. Otherwise how would she ever get off-world? Tell a bunch of astronauts that if she doesn't get to the center of the universe, life will cease to exist? Face the facts, no human has ever been past Mars. This transformation was foreseen by baby Hotaru where Neo-Queen Serenity tells her that Sailor Moon's final transformation is a result of everyone's love [energy].

THE FUTURE. Usagi, of course, marries Mamoru. She becomes the Queen of a new era of peace, in Crystal Tokyo. She has a daughter named Usagi Small Lady Serenity (long name, huh?), who wears the traditional hairstyle for a moon princess. Neo-Queen Serenity is a regal and graceful figure. Her personality reflects her name.
ANIME: Sometime in the future, the world will undergo a frozen sleep. Neo-Queen Serenity used her power to awaken it, and then created the Utopia known as Crystal Tokyo. However, in order to do this, the people of Earth had to undergo a type of purification by her crystal. Those who refused such cleansing rebelled, but were defeated by the monarchs. They left earth for Dark Nemesis, never to be heard of until the attack on Crystal Tokyo, a thousand years from the present. What is this about events a thousand years ago, or in the future, or whenever? (Source: Hitoshi Doi: Bishoujo Senshi Sailormoon R, episode 83)
MANGA: King Endymion: "The lifespan of people in the Silver Millennium is about one thousand years. After adulthood is reached, the aging process is stopped. When Selenity was 22, she ascended to the throne and gave birth to the first princess. After that, she maintained the same figure. It's all because of the power of the Mystical Silver Crystal. I have also become a member of the Silver Millennium, and so have the same longevity. Crystal Tokyo, like the Silver Millennium, entered the age of long life, twenty-one hundred years after we ascended to the throne. Now most of the people on Earth enjoy long lives from the power of the crystal. We lived on Earth in peace. That is, for a time. Now Crystal Tokyo is in ruin. Only the Mystical Silver Crystal can save the world. But Neo-Queen Selenity is the only one who can use it, and she won't wake up. So there's nothing we can do..." (Source: Nakayoshi Volume 5, Act 19) In the manga, though, it was the criminals who were exiled to Dark Nemesis.