.jpg)
Right now, the news that Netflix is funding and distributing a live-action adaptation of a beloved manga or anime is stirring more frustration than excitement. Every project is different, but does the failure of several previous hit series attempts mean fans shouldn’t even tune in, or is there something about the new recipe that could elevate the material?
Everyone knows the tragedy of Netflix’s past attempts to adapt anime to live-action series. Cowboy Bebop is one of the biggest streaming disasters of the previous year, and its failure was compounded by the salable name that should have made it a success. It’s hard to say if anyone has learned anything, but it’s easy to see that more attempts are on the way.
Yoshihiro Togashi’s 1990 Manga Series Yu Yu Hakusho is one of the most beloved and influential works of art in the medium. The story of Yusuke Urameshi, a high school student and Underworld Detective, gradually shifts from supernatural horror to a martial arts tournament, while doing both well. Unlike many other extremely popular shonen anime series, Yu Yu Hakusho has the courtesy to tell a complete story and come to a satisfying conclusion. 19 manga volumes or 112 anime episodes tell a great thrilling story of power, responsibility and friendship. Younger anime fans who started with things like Bleach, Narutoor even My Hero Academia much of the DNA from those series originated or evolved in Togashi’s first hit series. Anime fans may also know Togashi’s name because he is also the ghost behind it Hunter x Hunter, making him one of the greatest figures in the genre. And now, nearly 30 years after the original series’ run ended, Netflix unveils a live-action adaptation and is greeted with a defeated sigh.
While anime fans still fear Netflix’s eventual release A piecethe company stepped up to announce that Yu Yu Hakusho is next to try the jump to live-action. On the list of anime that are hard to translate to Netflix’s streaming series format, A piece scores quite high. Yu Yu Hakusho definitely comes across as a shorter row to hoe, but it still won’t be particularly easy. Togashi’s series is a bit more grounded when it comes to most of its character designs and more simplistic in its portrayal of superpowers, both of which will lighten the load on the VFX team. While not the hardest anime to adapt, Netflix has done less with more.
Compared to some of the other topics, Yu Yu Hakusho offers several benefits to the team that wants to customize it. The show takes a lot of inspiration from other works of fiction that a live-action adaptation would do better. The early arcs of the series are heavily inspired by horror movies of the time. The chance to create a horror series that gradually evolves into a martial arts epic would be an inspired slice of filmmaking. A lot of anime adaptations suffer from the inability of their adapters to find the spirit of the original work. If the new team can’t figure out what made the source material so beloved, they’re stuck either pointlessly recreating popular moments or giving a salable name to an unrelated product. Where many live-action adaptations fail to translate the material from the medium in which they worked, Yu Yu Hakusho feels like it could work as a live-action series.
It is also worth looking at the team in charge of this adaptation. The director who will take over this project is Sho Tsukikawa. The director is probably best known for another anime adaptation, the 2017 film Let me eat your pancreas. Despite its unnerving title, the film tells a beautiful story of a girl’s magical final months after a tragic cancer diagnosis. Tsukikawa also adjusted My little monster, which didn’t go so well. Tsukikawa has a history of anime adaptations, but no significant experience in the action or horror genres. Some of the cast has also been revealed, and it’s mostly made up of anime adaptation veterans, including Takumi Kitamura, Kanata Hongo, and Jun Shison.
It is worth noting the cultural discrepancy between this work and the other Netflix items in this medium. Cowboy Bebop and Obituary are American adaptations, made by mostly American showrunners, crew and artists. Adjustments from Asia generally have a better history. Netflix’s adaptations of Rurouni Kenshin, bleachor Fullmetal Alchemist are not exactly transcendent, but they are perfectly usable as both adaptations and standalone films. Netflix isn’t the only supplier of horrible live-action anime, Dragonball Evolution predates the streaming service. With a few exceptions, the American view of anime is typically terrible from every angle. The fact that a Japanese director and a majority of the Japanese cast will be taking on this material should give fans some hope.
Anime adaptation is always a shaky business, but having a culturally appropriate team of seasoned professionals working with good material should offer some hope. Yu Yu Hakusho doesn’t come out until next year, so fans will have to wait and see.
0 Comments