We live in a world of endless remakes, reboots, prequels, and sequels. This is because there is are so many films, TV shows, Netflix dramas, video games, and other forms of entertainment constantly vying for our collective attention, that it’s become safer for a Hollywood studio to remake successful films from the past like Total Recall or Robocop than take a risk on creating something completely new. The seeming lack of new ideas is one reason why many of us are attracted to anime, which always has something completely fresh for us to watch each season.
And yet, anime remakes are quite common, and the best remakes can be downright glorious, providing fans with the definitive animated versions of beloved stories, or let us become re-acquainted with old friends we haven’t seen in decades.
What We Want from Anime Remakes
Fans naturally want a few things from a good anime remake. Some features might include:
- We want it to be a serious effort, not just a 1-season attempt at capitalizing on nostalgia and popularity with fans.
- If there’s a problem with the original version, such as a story that cuts too much material out of the original story, fixing these issues is always welcome.
- For series going back decades, updating the animation and art style so new generations can enjoy the stories is great.
- While Hollywood often takes steps to fix “problematic” content when updating a beloved classic, this is not a part of the experience of anime, and most fans want it to stay that way.
The Best 11 Anime Remakes!
Kanon 2006
When Fuji TV commissioned a short anime series based on the hit Key visual novel in 2002, fans were livid at the amount of story that was cut out of the game. Kyoto Animation remade the series from scratch in a proper 24-episode anime remake which fans greatly prefer.
Full Metal Alchemist: Brotherhood
Another anime that fans felt didn’t quite live up to the potential of the manga was FMA, due to story pacing and other issues. The 2009 remake is intended to be the “perfect edition,” following the manga much more closely. According to the MAL community, it’s considered the best anime ever made.
Sailor Moon Crystal
After 20 years, the beloved Sailor Moon got rebooted into Sailor Moon Crystal, which tried to follow the original much more closely. While not all fans were on board with the new character designs — Bandai switched all merchandise back to the original style a few months after Crystal began airing, presumably due to fan preferences — it was a nice updating of an anime classic.
Area 88 (TV)
The first three manga to be translated into English were Mai the Psychic Girl, Crying Freeman, and Area 88, the latter being the story of a Japanese pilot who’s kidnapped and forced to fight as a mercenary combat pilot in a fictional North African country. The original OAVs from the 80s were fun but maddeningly incomplete. When the series got a 1-cour reboot in 2004, the creators were kind enough to wrap up the story for fans this time.
Higurashi When They Cry 2020
The new Higurashi is a remake, but is a sequel to the 2006 original, starting at the same point and moving very quickly into new territory. While some fans seem negative on the show, I’m loving every episode, especially as it seems to be tying itself to the Umineko series, too.
Cutey Honey 2018
The groundbreaking ecchi series created by the Father of Hentai Go Nagai from 1973 has received many anime remakes over the years, and an outstanding live-action tokusatsu film by Hideki Anno. The most recent remake was Cutey Honey Universe, which tried to capture the look and feel of the original, right down to keeping the ridiculously perverted side characters. Sadly, Pony Canyon pulled their punches in the most important area, fanservice and nudity, and it was painfully obvious that the remake wasn’t going to be as bold as the original was.
Dororo
Tezuka Osamu made manga as we know it today, and he was an incredibly prolific creator — the full list of his works is pretty much over 9000. One of his most popular series was Dororo, about a baby who is sacrificed to demons by his father, with his eyes, arms, legs, and all other parts stolen from him. But he doesn’t die, and eventually returns to reclaim his body parts. The 1998 anime remake was superb, smartly updating the original after 50 years, proving that anime never dies.
Read my blog post about the Dororo reboot here.
Gegege no Kitaro
Another legendary anime that’s been rebooted several times, Gegege no Kitaro is the story that popularized youkai (traditional Japanese folk ghosts and related monsters) in popular culture. The 2018 reboot was outstanding, taking everything great about the original and making it more modern and enjoyable for fans.
Rebuild of Evangelion
Japan is currently buzzing about the final release of the fourth and final Rebuild of Evangelion film, and I’ve got plans to see it with my son this weekend. While the new films are all great, a fun way to experience Eva in a modern way, I’ll never stop loving the grit of the 1995 original.
Fruits Basket
An anime reboot that took us all by surprise, this surpassed all fans’ expectations, updating the original with gorgeous animation and taking the time needed to tell the story properly. I can’t wait for the third and final season, which starts in April!
Space Battleship 2199
Finally, my favorite anime growing up, and the show responsible for calling me to Japan. The Space Battleship Yamato 2199 reboot is nearly perfect, keeping everything that was glorious about the 1974 original by Leiji Matsumoto while updating a few things that only improve the story.
Read my blog post about Yamato 2199 and 2202 here. Also, read my post about the recent passing of Nova voice actress Amy Howard Wilson here.
Thanks for reading this post about what makes a good anime reboot, and what the best anime remakes in history were. Did we miss any important series that should have been included? Tell us in the comments below, or on Twitter!
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