Anime reboots in the past decade have been common. Some of the most successful anime series among Western audiences have been remakes of older series: Fullmetal Alchemist was notoriously remade into Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood by Studio Bones and experienced substantial commercial success. Hunter x Hunter was remade in 2011 and brought a new generation to love the series. Devilman Crybaby by studio Science Saru remade the 1972 cult hit Devilman and became a critical success and quickly a cult fan hit on Netflix. Dragon Ball Z Kai, a remake of the immensely popular Dragon Ball Z, experienced popularity domestically and abroad. But others have suffered: Basilisk: The Ōka Ninja Scrolls, and Berserk (2016) were critically panned. Mixed critical and fan reviews met Sailor Moon Crystal. This year, shoujo series Fruits Basket is due for an entire series reboot that promises to capture the nostalgia of the older series. What makes an anime reboot successful–is it the popularity of the source material, the production studio, or just passionate fans? This article will examine the history of full-series anime remakes, their popularity, and their critical reception, to show that not every series should be remade. For those that have been deemed successful, this article will look at common elements that contributed to their success and how they might be applied to future reboots.
Think about any beloved property from the past from any medium. Can that beloved property be revisited with new and fresh ideas brought to the table? If the answer is yes, then a remake shouldn't be out of the question. If the answer is no, then it should be left alone. That's pretty how I think about remakes or reboots and the same can be applied to anime. Maybe some aspects of an older anime are outdated or could be improved upon, while unsuccessful remakes don't quite capture what fans liked about the original in the first place and don't really introduce interesting ideas. – cbo10945 years ago
Remakes and reboots really need to capture the spirit of the original work if they are to be seen as doing anything other than riding the coattails of the original: otherwise, they may as well be a completely new series. As an example of a bad reboot, Nurse Witch Komugi R took what made the original special and exchanged it for generic magical girl tropes. Such moves are likely to both offend fans of the original and fail at standing out among the ample competition from past and present – LaPlant05 years ago