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I recently read in Asahi Shinbun about the new CG film that will be a rehashed version of the old anime series -- Saint Seiya. The film, which will be released later this year, will mark the 25th anniversary of the Saint Seiya manga.
Being part of a now older generation of anime lovers, as sad as it is to say, brings back memories of better and younger days -- back in a time where anime wasn’t so readily available. All it takes now a day is a quick Google search and your flavor of the week anime is downloading via torrent. Or for the even lazier anime fan, there are tons of sites that stream multiple series for free and require no registration. Saint Seiya existed in a time where the anime available outside of Japan was scarce. People collected, dun, dun, dun, VHS TAPES!!!!! Crazy!! I know right?!?! If it was lucky enough to be broadcasted you had to tune-in at the same time everyday to catch it.
Saint Seiya was part of a group of anime shows that were very popular in my native country, Dominican Republic, and other Hispanic countries of the Carribbean and Latin America; however, they were virtually unknown in the US. While American children watched the power rangers and Nickelodeon (which is in no way a bad thing) their Latin American counter parts where watching Saint Seiya, Dragon Ball, Dragonball Z and GT, Sailor Moon and many other shows in their entireties far before Americans knew what a kamehameha was. Though I was lucky enough to travel between both countries and enjoy the best of both worlds some kids had to remain oblivious about these until the later years. Back when Toonami and the original adult swim started bringing anime to the American audience.
Saint Seiya did eventually make its way over to the US in 2003 on Toonami. It failed, however, to gain popularity and did not continue beyond its first season. I believe the main reason it never took was the extensive cuts that occurred to the show so it’d be “suitable” for the American audience. Unlike some series that at most have to deal with horrible dubbing and minor scene extraction, Saint Seiya underwent script rewriting and scene replacement do to the “violent” and “suggestive” themes of its time. Heavy animation editing and also a notoriously bad dubbing cast almost doomed it in the states. Now we would probably laugh it off if compared to a Seth Macfarlane cartoon, but we should take into account that the anime was made in the late 80’s early 90’s. So standards have changed a bit, or the jobless soccer moms who complain about said themes are preoccupied with other matters.
One of the things I find most exciting about the new CG in the works is that it’s only a film, which I believe is the right route to go. I’ve lived past the days of staring at a screen or monitor for hours trying to catch up on episodes of a series.
Animes, like Naruto and Bleach that seem never-ending in their countless seasons, have become a turn off. Work, family and life play much bigger roles in most of our lives, committing to watch a anime series could be time consuming and inconvenient, unlike in our lazy middle school and high school days. Instead offering something a bit longer then an episode but short enough to be enjoyed in one sitting could entice new anime fans and the schedule of anime lovers of days past. It’s an awesome opportunity to draw a younger generation of anime fans to a classic series. It’s win/win situation, provided it’s not a half assed attempt. For the time being all we have to go on is a very short sample of what is to come.
Being part of a now older generation of anime lovers, as sad as it is to say, brings back memories of better and younger days -- back in a time where anime wasn’t so readily available. All it takes now a day is a quick Google search and your flavor of the week anime is downloading via torrent. Or for the even lazier anime fan, there are tons of sites that stream multiple series for free and require no registration. Saint Seiya existed in a time where the anime available outside of Japan was scarce. People collected, dun, dun, dun, VHS TAPES!!!!! Crazy!! I know right?!?! If it was lucky enough to be broadcasted you had to tune-in at the same time everyday to catch it.
Saint Seiya was part of a group of anime shows that were very popular in my native country, Dominican Republic, and other Hispanic countries of the Carribbean and Latin America; however, they were virtually unknown in the US. While American children watched the power rangers and Nickelodeon (which is in no way a bad thing) their Latin American counter parts where watching Saint Seiya, Dragon Ball, Dragonball Z and GT, Sailor Moon and many other shows in their entireties far before Americans knew what a kamehameha was. Though I was lucky enough to travel between both countries and enjoy the best of both worlds some kids had to remain oblivious about these until the later years. Back when Toonami and the original adult swim started bringing anime to the American audience.
Saint Seiya did eventually make its way over to the US in 2003 on Toonami. It failed, however, to gain popularity and did not continue beyond its first season. I believe the main reason it never took was the extensive cuts that occurred to the show so it’d be “suitable” for the American audience. Unlike some series that at most have to deal with horrible dubbing and minor scene extraction, Saint Seiya underwent script rewriting and scene replacement do to the “violent” and “suggestive” themes of its time. Heavy animation editing and also a notoriously bad dubbing cast almost doomed it in the states. Now we would probably laugh it off if compared to a Seth Macfarlane cartoon, but we should take into account that the anime was made in the late 80’s early 90’s. So standards have changed a bit, or the jobless soccer moms who complain about said themes are preoccupied with other matters.
One of the things I find most exciting about the new CG in the works is that it’s only a film, which I believe is the right route to go. I’ve lived past the days of staring at a screen or monitor for hours trying to catch up on episodes of a series.
Animes, like Naruto and Bleach that seem never-ending in their countless seasons, have become a turn off. Work, family and life play much bigger roles in most of our lives, committing to watch a anime series could be time consuming and inconvenient, unlike in our lazy middle school and high school days. Instead offering something a bit longer then an episode but short enough to be enjoyed in one sitting could entice new anime fans and the schedule of anime lovers of days past. It’s an awesome opportunity to draw a younger generation of anime fans to a classic series. It’s win/win situation, provided it’s not a half assed attempt. For the time being all we have to go on is a very short sample of what is to come.
Great post! Definitely gave me a new perspective on anime.
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