Mio Kuroki
| Name: | Mio Kuroki |
|---|---|
| Name (kanji/kana): | 黒木ミオ |
| Alignment: | Dark Kingdom |
| Species: | Humanoid |
| Gender: | Female |
| Lives: | D Point |
| Occupation: | Dark Kingdom double agent |
| Family: | Unknown |
| Associates: | Queen Metalia, Mamoru Chiba, Queen Beryl, Jadeite, Minako Aino, Rei Hino,Usagi Tsukino |
| Aliases: | Queen Mio |
| First Anime Appearance: | N/A |
| First Manga Appearance: | N/A |
| First PGSM Appearance: | Act 29 - Minako's Rival, Mio Kuroki, is a Transfer Student? |
| English Name: | N/A |
| Actors: | Alisa Yuriko Durbrow |
In the live action series, Mio Kuroki is an idol who transfers into Usagi Tsukino's class and tries to become her friend, but in reality is an enemy out to destroy her.
Information
Mio Kuroki, on the outside, is a new teenage idol whose signature song, Change of Pace, has a following comparable to that of Minako Aino's C'est la Vie. Also like Minako, she is good at volleyball, and claims to be a good friend of Usagi's. The truth, however, is much more sinister.
Mio is a clone of Queen Beryl, created by her and Jadeite some time during Act 25 and Act 28. Her objectives in life are: to be Beryl's eyes and ears in the human world, to give Mamoru Chiba to Queen Beryl, and to generally make the lives of the sailor senshi as miserable as possible - especially Usagi's. To do this, Mio does her best to be Usagi's friend (and always calls her "Usagi-chan"), while simultaneously humiliating her at every turn. She also harms people who see through her, such as Naru Osaka, and constantly tries to upstage Minako whenever she can, with mixed results.
Mio is principal in getting Mamoru Chiba into Beryl's grasp; she also generally watches Mamoru during his time in the Dark Kingdom and provides him with outside "encouragement" from Rei Hino when he is cursed. However, her treatment of Mamoru inadvertently comes back to haunt her when Prince Endymion is possessed by Queen Metalia, who seemingly blasts her out of existance.
Unfortunately, it turned out that the attack didn't completely destroy her, though it took her four years to completely recover without Beryl's power to help her. Nevertheless, she returned in the Special Act and attempted to recreate the Dark Kingdom with her as its queen - and Mamoru as the king. After realizing that Mamoru would always love Usagi even when brainwashed, she transforms into her true form: a terrifying, giant black flower with sharp vines. She is finally destroyed when the sailor soldiers perform the Sailor Planet Attack.
It is noticeable that the Japanese kanji characters "Kuroki" in her family name mean black wood, hence her true form as a monstrous plant.
Powers
Before the Special Act, Mio exhibits some mind control powers, as well as the ability to injure people telepathically; the Special Act reveals her true form, as well as her ability to call up youma on her own. When teleporting, Mio is symbolized by black flower petals.
Speculation on Mio's Nature
There is a question as to how much Mio is Beryl and how much Mio is her own person. It is likely that Mio is her own, independent entity that is controlled by Beryl when necessary, such as in Act 35 and Act 36. While Mio shares many of Beryl's beliefs and feelings, Mio does have some free will of her own, as she does many things independent of Queen Beryl, most notably in the Special Act, after Queen Beryl has been dead for some time.
Mio can be understood as an alternate conscious splitted from Queen Beryl's mind and materialized in a human form, hence being described as Beryl's "shadow".
