10 Best Anime Remakes You Cannot Miss
- A few stories are so well-written that they are remade for the younger generations to watch and enjoy.
- But remaking an anime is not simple. One must strive to preserve its good qualities while making it better.
- Here are 10 such anime remakes that we consider to be the best.
Once in a blue moon comes an anime that ends up being so iconic that a studio chooses to remake it, adding their changes while preserving its soul so that newer generations can enjoy it as well.
But remaking an anime ain’t just about retelling the story. It’s about building a bridge between two separate generations and few remakes have succeeded at this. Here are the 10 best anime remakes that you must watch.
1. Rurouni Kenshin brings back the wandering swordsman
The tale of Himura Kenshin is a timeless one. The wandering samurai with a violent past tries to atone by choosing a pacifistic way. The original Rurouni Kenshin anime was a hit, with fans loving the cool protagonist, Kenshin. The anime was so popular that it received some of the best live-action movies and a great remake.
The remake, other than giving the story a better animation, cuts out a lot of fillers, giving a much clearer story to the viewer. It also focuses on realism, choosing to dilute light-heartedness, and amplifying the raw action of the show, while still preserving the emotions.
The remake is a great watch and carries on the legacy of Kenshin Himura.
2. Jojo is just as bizarre
The 2012 remake of JoJo’s Bizarre Adventures was what every fan wanted. An adaptation that could reflect the surreal and “bizarre” art style of Hirohiko Araki.
The remake is just as amazing as the original, choosing to lean into its unique art and over-the-top storytelling. In many ways, the remake had an even larger impact, creating waves in the anime fanbase and becoming a cultural phenomenon for the ages.
3. The remake may be better in the case of Ranma 1/2
Few anime can boast of being both quirky and intense, and Ranma 1/2 is one of them. The original anime was loved by the audience for balancing its core of martial arts with its humor, and the remake took it a step further.
The remake does several things right. It builds up on the quirky humor of the original while taking out most of the fillers, letting the viewers get a much clearer view of the story. Fans have even claimed that it is a much more faithful adaptation of the source material and it was one of Netflix’s most-watched anime in 2024.
4. Didn’t expect to see Horimiya here, did you?
While everyone enjoyed the heart-warming and lovely anime, Horimiya which came out in 2021, very few people know that it was a remake. The original Horimiya was an OVA that released its episodes in 2012, 2014, and 2018.
The difference between these two is that while the OVA only adapted the webcomic, the anime adapted both the manga and the webcomic, combining stories from both sources. This led to a much better and more faithful adaptation that developed characters more and became iconic.
The 2021 remake is also much more pleasing to watch, with its art style reflecting the vibes of the story, and the music making one feel at peace.
5. The Ultimate Undead has returned with Hellsing
The Hound is back with a new adaptation and is ready to kill some vampires. Alucard (reverse his name and be surprised) is the protagonist of the Hellsing series and he is back with a much-needed adaptation.
While 2002’s Hellsing was initially based on the work of Kouta Hirano, it started to diverge farther and farther away from the original story, losing the spirit of the manga. The remake however is not only the much more iconic version, but also a much more faithful version.
Fans prefer it not only for its adaptation but also for the much better animation, which allows them to dive deeper into the gory world of Hellsing.
6. This Fruits Basket is faithful
While the original 2001 adaptation of Fruits Basket was incredibly successful, with it becoming the most popular Shoujo anime at one point, it sadly never ended. Well, it did, but since the manga was still being published, the anime had to choose a non-canonical ending.
The dream of fans wanting to see the anime adapt the canonical ending of the story would be fulfilled with the 2019 remake. Not only did the remake give the fans better animation, and the canon ending, but it also brought back the original voice actors, making the remake much better.
7. The Remake x Remake of Hunter x Hunter
In the case of Hunter x Hunter, watching the remake is the best and most obvious choice, since it’s better than the original. The purpose of that statement was not to dismiss the original anime, since it perfectly captured the 90’s aesthetic and the remake can never do that.
No, the reason for the statement is the irregular serialization of Hunter x Hunter. The 1999 adaptation stops before the Chimera Ant Arc while the 2011 remake continues the story till the Election Arc, making it the obvious watching choice not only because of its better animation but also because of the amount of story it covers.
Jokes aside, with the serialization of the manga being irregular, who knows when we will get a complete anime adaptation?
8. Fate/Stay Night..or is it Fate/Night Stay?
One remake that is the most discussed among the community of the Fate series is the remake of Fate/Stay Night. The series, as suggested by its name, is a remake of Studio Deen’s adaptation of Fate/Stay Night, which was released in 2006.
The fanbase is divided about the status of Ufotable’s remake, with some saying that the remake is much closer to the original novel, while others argue that the remake deviated too much from the Fate route.
While the topic of accuracy of the Fate Route is debatable, everyone can agree that Ufotable’s remake is much better in animation and the storytelling feels more direct in it.
9. Devilman Crybaby in a modern setting is pretty cool
The validity of the Devilman anime that was made in the year 1972 is a topic of debate in the community, with fans of the original manga written by Nagai, saying that the anime had little to no influence from the author and that the difference between it and the manga was like day and night.
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When Netflix came forward with Devilman: Crybaby, the entire fanbase rejoiced, because the adaptation was faithful to the source material, and makers of the anime also made sure to adapt the anime in a way that could be relatable to the modern audience.
The new adaptation also encouraged newer audiences to take up the series, thus reigniting the series’ popularity.
10. Stampede is a faithful reimagination
Trigum Stampede, a reboot of a classic hit series, takes inspiration from both the anime adaptation and the manga for its story. The reboot gets a lot of things right by focusing more on the Trigun mythos and characters.
The reboot also has been praised by fans of the OG series for getting its pacing right, unlike its predecessor.
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While the change to Vash’s design has disappointed a few fans, the way the interpretation chooses to center itself around the conflict of Vash and his brothers impressed audience.
All these examples just go on to prove that to remake a loved classic, understanding what made the anime great and preserving those qualities while improving upon a few others is very important. These are also a testament to the fact that stories never die.
