1988 in Anime
There will be two extra individual posts covering two more Anime released this year: DragonMan, the sequel to Dragonboy due to it being a long runner with a very different plot justifying the longer post, and Jump World, a mega crossover Shonen Jump is doing for their 20th Anniversary. It will be done as a sort of Canon-welding crossover where the characters exist in the same universe rather than a "Portals open characters step through". Shonen Jump will essentially keep adding to this every 10 years with a sequel which will add more series that exist in that world. It's been separated as it also was a Video Games OTL and in this case it would be a cross promotion as well as having to combine so many series together.
1988 is widely considered to have been a good year in Anime and Manga. The two most popular series by Rumiko Takahashi which had run throughout the 80’s came to an end on the page and on the screen. Two new action series that would become staples of the genre itself premiered in Animation. One a sequel and one a new franchise. Both revolutionizing how fighting in Anime was portrayed and transcending boundaries and crossing the ocean. The company responsible for both celebrated its 20th Anniversary in style. Miyazaki collaborated with Disney for an adventure under the Sea, and a film came about that would blow everyone’s mind like they were Neo Tokyo.
Compilation Movies:
Aura Battler Dunbine
Hiatari Ryoko
Little Lord Fauntleroy(1988)
Produced by Nippon Animation in 1988 as part of World Masterpiece Theater. Based on Frances Hodgson Burnett’s 1886 book Little Lord Fauntleroy. It was the first World Masterpiece Theater work since 1981’s Heart to feature a male lead. The story follows an American boy named Cedric Errol, who learns he is the sole heir to a British Earldom and leaves New York to return to England with his mother. His grandfather begins forcing him to act more like an aristocrat. The show was a runaway hit in the Philippines. The series also marked the debut of voice actress Ai Orikasa as the lead.
Maison Ikkoku: The Final Chapter(1988)
A theatrical film and finale to the Maison Ikkoku series which ran from 1980 to 1987 in manga form and 1986 to 1988 in Anime form. The film was released concurrently with Urusei Yatsura: The Final Chapter, which fulfilled the same purpose for the more popular series, playing before it in a double feature in theatres. This carried over to DVD and Blu-Ray released where the two films are packaged together.
Urusei Yatsura: The Final Chapter(1988)
The third and final film in the Urusei Yatsura series, adapting the conclusion of the Manga. With Lum’s people threaten to invade, Lum and Ataru must repeat their game of tag from the start of the series to save the Earth. Worse if Ataru loses, Lum will leave Earth forever and everyone’s memories of her will be erased. Lum refuses to allow Ataru to win unless he says the words “I Love You”, which he avoided saying throughout the entire series.
With both of her main series concluding, Both Takahashi and the Studio adapting her works have shifted focus to her latest series: Ranma 1/2.
Legend of the Galactic Heroes(1988-1997)
A series created by science fiction novelist Yoshiki Tanaka. In the distant future of 2801, two nations are at war, a Galactic Empire and a democratic Free Planets Alliance. Two rivals on opposing sides of the conflict are Reinhard von Lohengramm and Yang Wen-li. The novel series which ran from 1982 to 1987. Kitty Films adapted the series into DVAs.
Ultimate Teacher(1988)
Based on the 1981 Manga Series by Atsuji Yamamoto. It was adapted into a DVA directed by Toyoo Ashida and produced y J.C.Staff. Emperor High School does not actually care about education and instead gives the students free rein while the teachers are former convicts just out of prison who keep the violent students in line. A new Teacher named Ganpachi, who was created in a lab, shows up intending to actually to do by the students while also beating up the other students and teachers to take control of the gangs. The DVA is largely criticized for its TV Quality animation, resulting in flat colors with no detail, though animating fighting very well.
Osomatsu-kun(1988-1989)
A remake of the 1966 Anime series based on the manga by Fujio Akatsuka. The remake was produced by Studio Pierrot and instead focused on two individuals, Iyami and Chibita, rather than the sextuplets as a whole. Iyami was likely chosen because a pose by him had become iconic in Anime to the extent where it was imitated by Godzilla in a film and John Lennon and Paul McCartney when they visited Japan in the mid 60’s. While different it proved successful and had a rating of 20%. The opening and ending theme was performed by Takashi Hosokawa.
Sakigake!! Otokojuku(1988)
Based on the manga by Akira Miyashita that ran from 1985 to 1991. The series is set in an all boys school where the students are trained to be as manly as possible, becoming musclebound as a result. The founder is a World War II veteran war hero named Heihachi Edajima, who trains his students to excel in politics, economics and industries so they can be the best at anything they need to be. It was produced by Toei Animation.
Salamander(1988)
Salamander was an adaptation of a video game, which itself was the result of an intense rivalry to surpass side scrolling shooter games. This began with Konami’s Scramble in 1981. Namco assigned Masanobu Endo to create a game to rival it. He came up with a game called Cheyenne based on the Cambodian War(Cheyenne being a type of Helicopter employed in the conflict) which was released in 1982. Since Scramble popularized the genre, Konami fought back with Scramble 2 in 1985, which took a long time to make due to refining the gameplay. Salamander was adapted into a DVA series by Studio Pierrot and directed by Hisayuki Toriumi. The plot of the game was expanded to concern the Bacterians, which captured sentient life and mutated them to serve in their space armada using a dark fog with the Lord British Space Destroyer fighting back the invasion. Noriko Hidaka voiced the protagonist[1].
Tsurupika Hagemaru(1988-1989)
Translated to “Little Baldy Hagemaru”. Based on the manga by Shinbo Nomura that ran from 1985 to 1995. It was published in CoroCoro Comic and won the Shogakukan Manga Award in 1987. It follows a young boy named Hagemaru and his efforts to save money. It is a slice of life series. It was produced by Shin-Ei Animation
F(1988-1989)
Based on the manga by Noboru Rokuda that ran from 1985 to 1992. The series is about a country boy who achieves his dream of being a Formula One racer. The adaptation was done by Fuji TV and Kitty Film. Atsuko Nakajima worked as animation director.
Harbor Light Story Fashion Lala Yori(1988)
This series acted as a magical girl retelling of Cinderella while based on Creamy Mami. Miho dreams of becoming a fashion designer She lives with her aunt and three cousins who exploit her, though the youngest cousin is nice to her. A local disco holds a contest to find the Disco Queen. Miho is too young but designs a dress for her cousin. When her aunt finds out, she tears up the dress. A crying Miho is approached by Fairies who transform her into Fashion Lala, a sixteen year old and she enters with the repaired dress. Now she can transform into a magical girl but only at night[2].
Doraemon: The Record of Nobita’s Parallel visit to the West(1988)
The 9th Doraemon film. Based on Journey to the West. The last of the Showa Era. The film begins with Nobita waking up from a dream where he impersonates a stone monkey and Doraemon as a traveller from another land. This turns out to be because he fell asleep during a school play performing Journey to the West. Nobita wants to travel back in time and see the real Sun Wukong. He does so but they accidentally bring monsters back with them, one of which impersonates the school teacher to rewrite the Journey to the West play so that the. Main characters die and are eaten. The group tries to get Sun Wukong to help but he is easily distracted, leading them to largely stop the monsters themselves. They then learn that some of the monsters stayed behind to attack Tang Seng and the group goes to the past, impersonating the story’s regular cast to help protect Tang Seng so he can reach India and spread Buddhism(The film frequently pokes fun at the original story and how often Tang Seng gets tricked by monsters and needs to be rescued, with the main characters complaining as they keep having to rescue him and that the original story is so long that the main characters don’t remember all of it and forget about certain parts, and the play greatly condensed and changed the story). In the present, Sun Wukong, after being distracted by modern day things, finally begins to fight the Demons. Nobita and Doraemon’s group succeed in overthrowing the Demon King while Wukong wins in the present and is returned to his own time.
Mobile Suit Gundam: Char's Counterattack(1988)
Char's Counterattack was based on the original idea pitched by Tomino titled
Beltorchika's Children[3]. In UC 0093, Char Aznable has returned as the leader of Neo Zeon with a new Mobilt Suit known as the Nightengale.
The Nightengale
Despite the efforts of the task force Londo Bell, including Amuro Ray, Kamille Bidan and Bright Noa, Char succeeds in causing an asteroid to crash into Tibet. Federation Prime Minister Adenaur Paraya and his daughter Quess barely survive. Amuro is given a new mobile suit known as the HC-Gundam or the "Hi-C-Gundam”[4], which amplifies his psychic abilities, to combat Char and begins a romantic relationship with Beltorchika Irma[5] Bright reunites with his son Hathaway. Quess begins to fall in love with Amuro while Hathaway develops a crush on Quess. Quess ends up leaving with Amuro. Adenaur secretly meets with Char to sign a treaty which would hand over the asteroid axis. Amuro recognizes Char. Quess is discovered to be a psychic new type and mobile suit pilot, with Char manipulating her into becoming a weapon. Neo Zeon ambushes the Federation during the treaty and the Asteroid Axis is sent towards Earth. A nuclear strike on the Asteroid only splits it in half. A battle begins while Quess goes insane piloting a Mobile Suit. Hathaway confronts her in a mobile suit to try to calm her down only to accidentally kill her. Amuro and Char have their final battle, in which Amuro finally wins. He then attempts to stop the Asteroid while having captured Char. The Federation and Zeon work together to try and save Earth. The HC Gundam Amuro was using pushes his psychic abilities far beyond anything he used before. While the Asteroid is pushed away, Amuro and Char both vanish into a white light.
The Burning Wild Man(1988)
Based on the Manga by Takashi Sato that ran from 1987 to 1991. It was adapted by Studio Pierrot and aired on Nippon Television. The series follows Kenichi Kokuho, who as a child was lost in the mountains and raised by a foster father before leaving to return to civilization at age 15.
Armored Trooper VOTOMS: Origin of Ambition(1988)
A Prequel in the VOTOMS series which covers Chirico’s time in the Red Shoulder and history with General Pailsen.
Treasure Island(1988)
A Joint-Soviet(Ukrainian) Japanese production. It is an adaptation of Robert Louis Stevenson’s novel and was ordered by the USSR and it was created by the studio Kievnauchfilm. It combines Animation with live action segments used in flashbacks. The film was a cult classic immediately upon its release and continues to be until this day, so much so that an attempt to ban the film in Russia on the basis of it depicting alcohol and tobacco was fought back, with many pointing out the main characters never drank or smoke, only the villains did. The film’s joint Japanese production became the subject of memes. One meme pointed out that 1988 is a good year of Anime followed by shots of Anime such as Nadia, Kiki, Akira, Dragonboy, Jojo’s, and finally Treasure Island, usually represented by Treasure Island. There are also memes alluding to The 1988 Treasure Island being an Anime[6].
Kiteretsu Daihyakka(1988-1996)
Translated to Kiteretsu Large Encyclopedia. Based on the Manga by Fujiko Fujio, creators of Doraemon, which ran from 1974 to 1977. It was adapted by Fuji TV. The series was licensed in Spain under the title “Kiteretsu, Nobita’s Smarter Cousin.” The creators liked this idea and eventually incorporated this into the series proper. Eiichi Kite aka Kiteretsu is the descendant of a great inventor who built a companion robot named Korosuke. He has friends such as a girl named Miyoko Nonohana and a bully named But a Gorira. Korosuke is revealed to built a time machine.
Dragonboy(1988)
A Live action film starring Jackie Chan, a fan of the series. Chan has expressed interest in adapting Dragonboy into live action, but admitted it would require a great deal of special effects. When interviewed about this Akira Toriyama expressed his support that nobody could play Tangtong but him. Chan was further motivated by his idol Bruce Lee playing Kenshiro in 1986’s adaptation of Fist of the North Star. In an interview, Chan revealed he was approached to appear in an adaptation of City Hunter in 1987 but declined due to clashing with the director. It is theorized that most of the film productions of live action films began because the Gundam film was expected to be a success. When it wasn’t the films were already in production and so were not cancelled, causing a mini boom. The Dragonboy film condensed the plot, something easily done by instead having it be that Demon King Piccolo had resided in the former castle of the Princess, removing much of the other figures and killing him off in this film. This means that Tangtong, Bulma and Pingyao are ambushed when they arrive and Tangtong is injured, being trained by Muten Roshi to defeat Demon King Piccolo. Roshi is killed in a Surprise attack, leading Tangtong to fight Demon King Piccolo and defeat him[7].
Cubitus(1988-1989)
An Anime based on the Belgian comic strip of the same name. It was the first work created by J.C.Staff, a new company formed from the remains of Tatsunuko. The show aired on the Family Channel in 1989 and was produced by Saban Entertainment. Cubitus lives with his masters sailor named Semaphone and next door to Senechal, a black and white cat who is Cubitus’s nemesis.
Sonic Soldier Borgman(1988)
A science fiction anime airing on Nippon TV. Set in 1999, the series follows a Super Sentai style three member team fighting against the GIL Crime organization from the Demon World, which destroyed Tokyo in 1999. The three leads, Chuck, Ryo and Anime are teachers as their day job fighting against the villains in 2030.
Mashin Hero Wataru(1988)
A series created by Sunrise and Red Entertainment, which took the 17:00-17:30 timeslot. “Hajime Yatate” is credited but this is a pseudonym given to the Sunrise animation staff. Shuji Iuchi directed the series.The series is fairly comedic in tone. It follows a 9 year old boy named Wataru Ikusabe who is transported to a magical land by a dragon named Ryuijinmaru, known as Soukaizan. The series includes RPG Elements such as dungeons, levels and magical objects and the land is made up of platforms floating above each other where the “boss” of each floor must be defeated before fighting the final villain. With each level beaten, the color of the Soukaizan rainbow is restored. Along the way, he recruits allies. The series became a huge hit in Japan and in Asia, including being popular in China.
Nadia and the Secret of Blue Water(1988)
Originally pitched to Miyazaki by Toho in the mid 1970’s as a television series. Miyazaki refused as he preferred to adapt it into a film, but the idea never left him, though elements entered Castle in the Sky. After their collaboration on Lupin the Third: Green vs Red, Daicon became involved along with NHK and Group TAC. Involved in the pitch were Yoshiyuki Sadamoto and Mahiro Maeda, who had done concept art for Studio Ghibli films before. Had it not been for Ghibli, used to Miyazaki’s productions constantly breaking records for production costs every year, Daicon would not have been able to handle the workload and would have collapsed under the weight. Then partly through a third party, the English distributor Disney became interested and threw out ideas, namely a desire to explore Atlantis in a Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea adaptation, an alive Atlantis rather than the ruins depicted in the original story. Disney’s research brought in the ideas of clairvoyant Edgar Cayce such as healing crystals. They also paid for trips to New Mexico’s Carlsbad Caverns for inspirations, which Miyazaki sketched. Disney and Miyazaki both wished to avoid the stereotypical depiction of a crumbled greek city. Mayan architecture was looked at as well as Southeast Asian. Marc Okrand, known for turning the fictional Klingon language into an actual learnable language, was brought in to create the Atlantean language.
The film is set in 1889, Nadia, a 14 year old girl meets a boy named Milo(originally named Jean), a young French inventor, who becomes fascinated with studying Atlantis and its technology. Nadia does not remember her origins. The two are chased by jewel thieves, due to Nadia having a blue gem around her neck. They are rescued by Captain Nemo and his ship the Nautilus when the boat they are on sinks. Here it is explained that, there was once one Earth Civilization but that it collapsed(implied by the visuals that Laputa from Castle in the Sky was a remnant of this same civilization). The Nautilus heads under the sea to find Atlantis. They are followed by an American General Lyle Rourke and his mercenary group, who intend to take control of the Atlantean technology and use it to conquer the world. Nadia is revealed to be the Princess of Atlantis.
The Film was released alongside Takahata’s
Kiki’s Delivery Service and the two were often grouped together as
Nadia & Kiki with the two appearing side by side on covers, leading to fan art depicting them as friends for this reason, despite the two never meeting.
The success of the film led to demand for a sequel in some form. If the three chefs of Ghibli, Daicon and Disney had barely kept together during production, this was where they bickered. Miyazaki had no desire for a sequel and already had mixed feelings on Studio Daicon, seeing Royal Space Air Force as heavily flawed. Daicon were mostly interested in the backstory of the “Adams”, or large robots which arrives on Earth long ago and devastated Atlantis to the extent it splintered and specifically what if these “Adams” returned in the present. Fans already theorized that the Adams would return and devastate the world, resulting in the world seen in Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind. Fortunately, this idea, which was set in the future, could be fairly largely divorced from the initial concept. Daicon would turn this idea into
Alcion. Disney would reap several rewards from this partnership, which included a retheming of the theme park ride Captain Nemo’s Submarine voyage to reflect the film instead, and also a sequel series called
Team: Atlantis, which was used to feature both Victorian Era figures, from other Jules Verne stories especially, it also included a mystery about the Society of Explorers and Adventures, a group with stories running through most Disney theme park rides. The characters from the show even crossed over with the later show
Gargoyles. Also in case you’re wondering this film takes the place of Oliver and Company in Disney Canon.
While Miyazaki disliked Daicon, he did like Disney, so much so that he was approached with an interesting idea soon after two individuals at the company had which most of the company had been putting off. An idea they summed up as “Treasure Island in Space”[8].
Kiki’s Delivery Service(1988)
Based on the 1985 novel by Eiko Kadono. The rights to adapt were bought in 1987 with the intent of either Miyazaki or Takahata directing. Miyazaki was busy at the time on Nadia and Takahata was working on Border 1939 with the intent of 1989 release date, and so was more free. Katsuya Kondo did the character design. The Film was a success and was released alongside
Nadia and the Secret of Blue Water in a double feature and enjoyed success. There would many years in 2014, be a sequel depicting the characters as teenagers and in a different art style[9].
Appleseed(1988)
A Cyberpunk DVA series adapting the manga of the same name by Masaune Shirow, best known for Ghost in the Shell. It was produced by Studio Daicon. The plot is set in the 22nd Century after a Third World War with several governments like the US, Great Britain and China weakened but surviving. Deunan Knute and Briareos Hecatonchires are former LAPD SWAT Members are found in the ruins of a city and invited to join the ESWAT(extra Special Weapons and tactics), organization in the Utopian city of Olympus.
Patlabor: The Early Days(1988-1989)
Mobile Police Patlabor(a portmanteau of “Patrol” and “Labor”) is a franchise created by Headgear, a group which included manga artist Masami Yuki, director Mamoru Oshii, screenwriter Kazunori Ito, mecha designer Yutaka Izubuchi, and character designer Akemi Takada. The series is set from 1998-2002. Robots are used in everyday work as “Labors”. The Tokyo Police use a fleet of Patrol Labors or “Patlabors”. Noa Izumi is the main character and works in Division 2. The Manga ran from 1988 to 1994. Notably, because the Anime was made by the same group as the mangas, The Anime is essentially a prequel to the manga, set before the adventures depicted there without contradictions.
Hello!Lady Lynn(1988-1989)
The Sequel to 1987’s
Lady!! The series was produced by Toei Animation for 36 episodes. Lynn has started a new life separate from her family. Her sister Sarah lives with her grandfather while her father works to earn money to buy back the Marble Mansion. Lynn studies at Saint Patrick Academy, a school for horseback riding. While there she makes friends and rivals and gains the title of The Lady Crest.
Mahjong Hisho-den: Naki no Ryu(1988-1990)
Translated to “Mahjong Soaring Tale: Sobbing Ryu:. A Mahjong themed Manga and Anime by Junichi Nojo. The manga ran in Takeshobo’s Bessatsu Kindai Mahjong, which is itself a magazine focused on Mahjong. It was released as a series of DVAs.
Dominion(1988)
Based on a manga by Masamune Shirow that ran from 1985 to 1986. In the future, a bacteria has polluted the air so badly people must wear gas masks to survive outside. The protagonists are a police squad who use Tanks. It was released as an animated miniseries.
Ironfist Chinmi(1988)
Based on the manga by Takeshi Maekawa published by Kodansha. The plot follows a young Chinese Martial artist. Due to the popularity of the similar “Seiya.” Series. This show was seen largely as a cheaper copy of that much better series.
Akira(1988)
Akira began life when Kodansha asked Katsuhiro Otomo to write a series for Young Magazine He did several series for them. Two works essentially served as “Prototype Akiras”. The first was 1978’s Fireball, which concerned a futuristic society under the control a supercomputer called ATOM. A resistance fighter is kidnapped by the government when he is discovered to have latent psychic abilities. His brother, another freedom fighter, attempts to save him and the psychic abilities of the abducted activate to save his brother and becomes a destructive sunlike orb, the titular Fireball[10]. Otomo then worked on a new series called Domu in 1980. Otomo has seen the Exorcist and wished to add horror to one of his stories. He combined this with an apartment complex in Tokyo known for a high number of suicides. The result was the Manga Domu: A Child’s Dream, which included a psychic named Old Cho using his powers to cause people to commit suicide and a young girl discovering she has psychic powers as well and facing him. In the 1990’s Following the success of Akira, Bandai would work to adapting this story and get Otomo to approve the film script and David Lynch to direct. It was released in 1999[11]. After the Domu manga concluded Otomo began work on Akira, intended to be his most ambitious work to date. The names came from Tetsujin028-go, which was homaged in the idea of a weapon developed during wartime. Elements of the Showa Era also influenced the story such as the preparations for the Olympics and the student protests of the 1960’s. Otomo also found that while there are a post apocalyptic stories, there aren’t many stories which have the apocalypse occur in the middle. When writing the title with the story Otomo kept disliking how the title appeared and it would change fonts per chapter, such as appearing as a Neon sign or made out of rubble. Archie Goodwin of Marvel Comics handled the translation into English, but this was much harder than normal due to elements such as sound effects and word balloons being used with elements like words made out of objects that needed to be changed as well as the story structure of left to right instead of right to left. Otomo made adjustments and retouches for the English version. The American version also colorized the work with Otomo approving and sending he own colored drawings, they were then colored by Steve Oliff, who was handpicked by Goodwin with Otomo’s approval. Marvel used computer coloring, given it a much different look beyond the capabilities of Japanese technology at the time, revolutionizing how comics were colorized. Because Otomo began working on Steamboy, another project, it took until 1994 for the coloring and the comic to be released.
Otomo did not intend to adapt the series but as it went on he saw the potential. He negotiated to retain creative control due to his experience on Genma Wars. Bringing it to screen was a huge endeavor and required multiple companies, making it one of the highest budgets for a film at the time 700 Million yen or 5.5 Million Dollars. Companies involved included Kodansha, Mainichi Broadcasting System, Bandai, Hakuhodo, Toho, LaserDisc Corporation, Sumitomi Corporation, and Tokyo Movie Shinsha. Makiko Futaki was one of the key animators, having worked on many Studio Ghibli films. The film’s dialogue was recorded and the animation made to match, something rare eve now. The Voice actors had Animatics in front of them as they recorded their lines. One problem stemmed from the Manga not yet being finished and it would end in 1990. After a conversation with Alexander Jodorowsky, Otomo knew how the film would end.
In 1988 in the film’s world, the Third World War is triggered by a nuke suddenly destroying Tokyo. It is eventually rebuilt as Neo Tokyo by 2019. It is a city plagued with corruption, terrorism and gang violence. Shotaro Kaneda leads a biker gang. During a battle with a rival gang, Kaneda’s best friend Tetsuo Shima sees a kid on the street and swerves to avoid him, crashing. The child is shown to be an Esper, possessing psychic abilities and is on the run from the government. He is recaptured by Colonel Shikishima, who also takes Tetsuo. Government experimenting on Tetsuo reveals he is gaining psychic abilities as well. Kaneda meets a girl names Kei, who is a member of the resistance that tried to free the child. He also learns that the first Esper created: Akira, destroyed Tokyo in 1988. Tetsuo breaks himself out, killing many with his new psychic powers as he escapes just as Tetsuo and his gang are fighting to save him. Tetsuo attempts to flee with Kaneda’s girlfriend Kaori but an ambush by a rival gang injures him and he returns to custody. After this, Tetsuo is forced to work with the resistance to try again. Fearing Tetsuo’s power, the Espers working with the government try to kill him with a psychic attack but being much older than the children, his more fearsome mind scares them away with terrifying images and he learns about Akira and how he is buried under the Olympic Stadium. Breaking out of the hospital he goes on a rampage heading to where Akira is.
In order to stop Tetsuo, Kaneda and Kei meet with Colonel Shikishima and an older Esper called Lady Mariko, who believes Kei has Esper potential while Kaneda refuses to even learn if he does out of fear of becoming like Tetsuo. Shikishima stages a coup and takes control of the government to stop Tetsuo, who begins taking drugs due to the pain of his abilities. Kei and Kaneda fight Tetsuo before he can reach Akira. They are defeated but not killed as Tetsuo still cares for Kaneda. As one last final attempt to stop Tetsuo, Colonel Shikishima fired an orbital space laster, which Tetsuo destroys at the cost of his own arm, which he then quickly created a metal replacement. Tetsuo then lifts a Chamber from the ground and opens it. Inside is…Akira….He is alive[12].
The Film ends there, but a trailer plays for the second part, showing several devastating scenes and ending with the name TETSUO in bold font over the sound of Kaneda screaming the name. The second part would be released in 1990 at the same time as the manga. The first part however, was the big event of the year and a massive success, considered one of the greatest works in animation ever made. Its legacy persists into the present day with it continuing to be praised for its effects. It receives homages in animation fairly commonly with several works of animation replicating what has become known as the “Akira Slide” mimicking a motion Kaneda makes on his bike.
Vampire Princess Miyu(1988-1989)
A Horror series of the manga by the same creators of Narumi Kakinouchi and Toshiki Hirano. It was licensed by AnimEigo as a DVA series. A human world and a Demon Underworld exist with a space between them. A young irl named Miyu is the daughter of a human and a demon and is born as a vampire that becomes the guardian tasked with keeping balance and slaying evil demons.
Fair, then Partly Piggy(1988-1989)
Based on the picture book series by Shiro Yadama. The book focus on a boy named Noriyasu Katakeyama, who decides to write his journal entries on what will happen tomorrow instead of what has happened and finds that what they wrote comes true(though sometimes in a twisted way like saying that he gets the power to fly resulting in him getting plane tickets). It was adapted into a series by Oh!Production and Gakken.
Crying Freeman(1988-1994)
Based on the Manga by Kazuo Koike(known for Lone Wolf and Cub and Lady Snowblood), and illustrator Ryoichi Ikegami. The series follows a Japanese assassin named Yo Hinomura, who is captured and hypnotized by the Chinese Mafia called the 108 Dragons. He sheds a tear after every kill as a sign of regret and fighting against his programing. When he is sent to kill a woman named Emu Hino, who witnessed the murder of a Yakuza boss, she continue to asks for last requests which he resists enough to gain more control, finally ending in the two making love. Since the Yakuza is after Emu, Yo takes her to the 108 Dragons for protection and she becomes a member. The leader of the 108 Dragons wants to make Yo his successor, but his granddaughter Bai-Ya-Shan plots against him. It was adapted into a DVA Series.
Bride of Deimos(1988)
A DVA by Rintaro and “The Madhouse”. A Fantasy horror manga by Etsuko Ikeda and Yuuho Ashibe that ran from 1974 to 1997. It premiered in the magazine Princess. ComicsOne distributed the series in North America. The series follows high school girl Minako Ifu. Minako appears to be the reincarnation of Deimos’s lover the Goddess Venus. Deimos tries to take Minako to the underworld so Venus can possess her body while Minako herself opposes this idea and uses her magical abilities to fight Deimos[13].
Gunbuster(1988-1989)
A DVA Series produced by Bandai, Victor, and Daicon. It was the directorial debut of Hideaki Anno, later known as the creator of Neon Genesis Evangelion. The series deals with an alien invasion by an insect race, leading humanity to develop fighting robots piloted by teenagers to fight in the war. The protagonist is Noriko Takaya, son of a famous admiral who went missing. She has a father figure in instructor Koichiro Ota. She is clumsy and is nicknamed “The Daughter of defeat.” Noriko admires another pilot Kazumi Amano. Both, being the best students in the class, are selected for a special mission and enter a program with the advanced students. Noriko is bullied into a deadly exercise with live fire but Ota its secretly there watching in case someone is hurt. Noriko realizes her problem was sensory overload from the many devices and turns off her targeting computers, which is seen as an insult and a rival student attempts to kill her only for her to demonstrate a difficult maneuver she was not taught to win. Noriko and Amano engage in the aliens in a battle in which the Earth fleet is devastated and they are traumatized while barely surviving. The pilots return after a battle to discover time dilation means 10 years have passed on Earth and many of their old friends have changed. They try to readjust but are forced to go back into space when an alien threat of unprecedented size is detected approaching Earth. They prepare to make a jump to drop a massive bomb on the fleet. Amano, having a crush on Ota is saddened to learn he is dying of radiation and is reluctant to jump again but is convinced by Noriko to keep going and complete the mission while returning after only half a year in Earth Time where Amano marries Ota. The aliens return 15 years later and Earth is prepared with a black hole bomb, which will create a black hole that will head towards the location the aliens have been approaching. Noriko and Amano carry out one last mission, Ota having died. This last mission destroys the aliens and their homeworld but the jump home and the time dilation means they arrive 12,000 years into the future and see signs of there being no life on Earth. They then spot a message saying "WELCOME HOMƎ!" Written in simplified Japanese with the last letter reversed, implying that the current civilization has not perfectly recreated what is it them an ancient language.
Oishinbo(1988-1992)
Based on the manga that has been running since 1983. Translated as “The Gourmet”. The name is a portmanteau of Oishii, the Japanese word for delicious, and Kuishinbo, which means someone who loves to eat. The series follows culinary journalist Shiro Yamaoka and his partner and later wife Yuko Kurita. Shiro dreams of making the ultimate menu while he father Yuzan Kaibara tries to sabotage his dream. Published by Shogakukan. It is the 10th longest manga and 11th best selling manga in history. It won the Shogakukan Manga Award[14].
Demon City Shinjuku(1988)
A DVA Based on the 1982 novel by Hideyuki Kikuchi(Vampire Hunter D, Wicked City). It was directed by Yoshiaki Kawajiri. The film depicts a battle between former friends the evil Rabi Ra and the hero Genichirou. Remi Ra plans to summon a demon army and defeats Shinjuku, turning it into a Demon land. Ten years later, the World President is attacked by Rebi Ra. Genichirou had a son who inherited his powers named Kyoya Izayoi who hears the pleas of the President’s daughter and jumps in to save the President when he is abducted and taken to Shinjuku to be sacrificed to bring back the Demons to Earth. Basically its Escape from New York with Demons.
Starship Troopers(1988)
A film based on the 1961 novel by Robert A.Heinlein and dedicated to him as he died before the first part was released but saw a rough version of it and loved it. The series is fairly faithful to the novel including the use of Mecham which Daicon, the makers of the DVA, had previously depicted their version of in the Daicon Openings, and the protagonist being part Filipino and being named Juan “Johnny” Rico[15].
Dragon Century(1988)
A two episode DVA Animated by the Anime International Company, also released on VHS and Laserdisc and subtitled in English by U.S. Renditions. Set in the near-future of Hokkaido in 1990. A series of murders take place around the world and a dragon appears in the sky each time. The Dragon is believed responsible and the Japanese Self-Defense Force shoots and kills it. A young girl named Riko finds and raises the dragon’s egg. She names the Dragon Carmine. The second part is set 300 years later where Dragons are now more common. Carmine is fully grown and a young girl similar to Riko named Rulishia finds him and becomes his master, using him to e enter a dragon fighting tournament to get revenge on the team that killed her father and his dragon. To complicate things, the demons truly responsible for the murders 300 years ago return.
Tama and Friends(1988-1990)
Produced by Sony Music Entertainment Japan and animated by Group TAC. Based a cute animal franchise created by Sony Creative Products in 1983.
Project Zeorymer(1988-1990)
Based on the manga series that ran from 1983 to 1985, written by Yoshiki Takaya under the pen name Chimi Moriwo(which he used when writing Hentai). It was published in the manga Lemon People that published adult material. The series was released as a DVA. In the near future, a secret society named Nematoda hires three men, Professor Akitsu, Professor Himuro and Professor Wakatsuki to build a G Class Giant Robot called Zeorymer to conquer the world. On his deathbed, Professor Akitsu tells his son that Zeorymer must not awaken. Soon after, a new student transfers to Masaki’s school named Miku Himuro. She introduces him to her adopted father Professor Himuro and Masaki begins to investigate his late father’s project. To silence him Nematoda’s General Golshid sends a G Robot to kill them but Himuro, his daughter and Masaki escape and infiltrate the base to steal Zeorymer. Masaki and Mike pilot the robot while Himuro guides them. The city is devastated and General Golshid sends other G Class robots. Himuro dies of a disease. Masaki learns he is a clone of the dead evil Professor Wakatsuki taken by Professor Professor Akitsu. Miku is a clone of Himuro’s dead wife. Wakatsuki’s personality begins to take over and plans to destroy Nematoda but take over the world himself. Masaki is forced to fight Nematoda, finally destroying their base and their minions as well as their own Zeorymers prototypes but when a bomb capable of destroying the world is about to go off, the Zeorymer is destroyed stopping it but Miku and Masaki survive. The spirit of Wakatsuki fades away both due to Masaki’s will and Zeorymer’s destruction depriving him of his chance at world domination. The Four episode DVA by AIC toned down the hentai elements(which there was very few of anyway).
One Pound Gospel(1988)
A DVA based on the manga by Rumiko Takahashi that ran sporadically from 1987 to 2007. The series is a mix of a boxing and romantic comedy series. The series follows boxer Kosaku Hatanaka, who struggles with gluttony, leading him to change weight class. A nun named Sister Angela helps him deal with his eating habits and stay in shape and the two begin to fall in love.
Metal Skin Panic MADOX-01(1988)
A DVA produced by AIC and Pony Canon, directed by Shin Aramaki and distributed by AnimEigo. The plot follows a young man named Koji Sugimoto, a young man who works as a mechanic. He accidentally gets stuck in a power suit called MADOX-01 which he can’t get out of due to a software bug. He goes to his girlfriend for help while the Military tries to kill him in the process of getting back the suit. An American soldier with a grudge against MADOX-01 tries to kill him and he finds the developer of MADOX-01, who helps him defeat Kilgore in battle before helping him get out.
Machine Robo: Wolf Sword Legend(1988)
At the conclusion of Machine Robo: revenge of Chronos. The protagonists are pulled into an alternate universe where they go form being robots to being humans and are separated. The characters eventually meet each other and find they must fight the villains, who have safely passed through as robots.
Peacock King(1988)
Based on the Manga by Makoto Ogino that ran from 1985 to 1989. Kujaku is a buddhist monk who carries out exorcism and devil hunting as part of the Ura-Koya secret organization that hunts demons while fighting an evil organization called Rikudoshu seeking to revive the deity known as the Peacock King(Mahamayuri in Chinese mythology). Kujaku and his allies defeat the organization and thwart their plans. It was adapted into a film by Lam Ngai Kai, a Hong Kong filmmaker, starring Japanese actor Hiroshi Mikami as Kujaku and Hong Kong actor Yuen Biao as Kongque. Gloria Yip plays Ashura and Gordon Liu and Philip Kwok in supporting roles.
Space Family Carlvinson(1988)
Based on the Manga that ran from 1986 to 1997. The Series is set in 4001 and follows a group of aliens who's ship crashes onto an asteroid, killing a couple but their daughter survives. The Aliens decide to raise their infant daughter despite not knowing anything about humans. It was adapted into a 45 minute animation.
Phantom Blood(1988)
An adaptation of the 1987 manga series created by Hirohiko Araki with the assistance of Fist of the North Star creators Yoshiyuki Okamura and Tetsuo Hara. Both were assigned to help Araki as Shonen saw potential in the mangaka but found thought his style was not quite refined and it was “not quite”on the level of Dragonboy and Fist of the North Star. Araki was reluctant with this set up but Fist of the North Star had been an inspiration to him so working with the creators was an honor. Despite Tatsuo’s presence, Araki insisted on drawing himself(though Tetsuo provided some covers), this was one of the elements that didn’t work for Shonen as his style borrowed heavily from Hisashi Eguchi(known for Stop!!Hibari-kun!) and Shonen called it derivative, because of this a compromise was reached, the female characters in Araki’s world resembled Eguchi’s female characters while thanks to assistance from Tetsuo in teaching his style, the male characters resembled Tetsuo Hara’s. It was a strange blend, as if characters from two different mangas were dating. Araki after some time reached an in between style that served as a homage to both.
The series was largely inspired by the popularity of action film stars like Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sylvester Stallone at the time, leading to male characters with muscular body types and inspired by a trip to Rome Araki took to study the Greco-Roman sculptures in great detail. The plot follows the Ji-Sho-Ten-Ketsu structure, essentially the Japanese equivalent to the Hero’s Journey which follows Introduction(Ki), Development(Sho), twist(ten) and Resolution(Ketsu), however Araki turned this around as it is the villain Dix who goes through the structure of the Hero’s Journey in
Phantom Blood and not the main character of Jonathan Joestar. One complaint in the early manga was Jonathan always lost, making him seem pathetic. To rectify this, Yoshiyuki and Tetsuo wrote in some scenes to give him some wins. Araki always had a plan to end the series with a death and the Joestar line continuing. Araki also needed a power for his series. He wanted to draw something “Invisible” to human eyes yet still conceive it. Sitting down with Yoshiyuki and Tetsuo, the three came up with the concept of “Stands” or invisible beings which fought on their wielders behalf. All three have insisted it was Araki’s idea and he just needed some pushing before he came up with it. It was also Araki’s idea to have each stand be named after music somehow, be it an artist or a song. This also applied to some of the characters.
The story begins in 19th Century England, George Joestar is in a carriage accident. Dario Brando stops to try and loot Joestar, believing him to be dead when George wakes up, he falsely believes Dario was trying to save his life and promises him a favor. Dario goes home to tell his son Dio about this so they can rob the place. Did instead poisons Dario and arranges to be adopted by the Joestars, becoming a step brother to Jonathan Joestar, George’s son. Did intends to kill George and Jonathan and take the fortune for himself. Jonathan beats Dio in a fist fight and Dio gets revenge by burning Jonathan’s pet dog Danny alive after wiring his mouth shut in one of the most horrific scenes in both the manga and Anime. Their rivalry continues into adulthood when George Joestar reveals a Stone Mask in his presence belonging to the the Aztecs said to grant great power. In 1888, now of age to take the Joestar Fortune, Dio begins to slowly poison George Joestar so that the poison wouldn’t be detected. Jonathan follows Dio. Did decides to test the Stone Mask on a random bystander. This causes the man to gain powers but be unable to control them and be crushed by them. The man in question was a friend of street thug named Robert Speedwagon. Speedwagon then begins to seek Dio out for revenge, attacking Jonathan due to believing he and Dio are working together before learning the truth. With Speedwagon’s help, Jonathan finds the antidote to Dio’s poison and cures his father. When Did returns, believing George to be dead, Dip brags about his victory and is about to kill Jonathan before it is revealed to be a ruse. With nothing left to lose, Dio attempts to stab Jonathan with George taking the knife instead. Did then takes the stone mask before being shot at by police and begins to brutally kill them. Jonathan pushes him out of a window and onto the metal spikes of a fence but when he looks again, Dio’s body has disappeared. The battle started a fire which burns the mansion down.
Sometime later Jonathan is walking with his love Erina Pendleton and approached by a man named Will A. Zeppeli, who reveals that Dio Brando is alive and creating superpowers minions with the Stone Mask. Zeppeli demonstrates his own ability, called a Stand. Zeppeli explains that one must be physically strong enough to survive the stand or be destroyed by it and believes that Jonathan could survive but begins training him to be certain. Zeppeli refuses to use his Stand “Stairway to Heaven.” As its ability is to open a portal to the afterlife which threatens to hypnotize the user and individual into enter the afterlife, including Zeppeli’s. Dio had a plan to weaponize Stairway to Heaven and killed Zeppeli’s wife so that he would attempt to use it, leading Zeppeli to escape and plot against him. Speedwagon steals the Stone Mask at the cost of his life and Jonathan uses it, nearly dying but gaining a Stand, called Hermit Purple that activates just in time to save Jonathan from a bullet. Jonathan then begins to take on Dio’s followers including a transformed Jack the Ripper, using a Stand called Mack the Knife. When Jonathan nearly dies, Zeppeli goes on his own to face Dio but oddly keeps finding himself at the bottom of the same flight of stairs. He realizes too late that Dio’s Stand, which he kept hidden, is to stop time. Dio mortally wounds Zeppeli just as Jonathan arrives, though Zeppeli reveals Dio’s ability. A battle ensues between Jonathan and Dio where it is revealed Jonathan’s stand can resist duo’s time manipulation as Hermit Purple can shoot out vines that can manipulate anything including tear at time itself. Jonathan uses this to stop his own heart and wound Dio in an ambush when he thinks he is dead but is wounded himself. The two crash into the River Thames and descend into the water, with Jonathan holding Dio down with Hermit Purple's vines. Both appear to drown. Erina finds a dying Zeppeli, who uses his stand to show both his spirit and that of Jonathan Joestar going into Heaven. In the epilogue, Erina is revealed to be pregnant with Jonathan’s son, who is born and named Jorge Joestar. Jorge keeps reaching for something revealed to be a stand's hand, which Erina cannot see.
And of course, we move onto Jorge Joestar's own adventure where he fights Vampires in World War I…[16]
<—To be Continued
The Delayed:
Himitsu no Akko-Chan. A Remake of the magical girl series released in 1988. ITTL it will be released in 1989 instead. Closer to the character’s 20 year anniversary. Ironically an adaptation of Sally the Witch will follow as per the two magical girl’s long history(Akko-Chan was released before Sally the Witch but Sally the Witch was adapted into Anime before Akko-Chan and used to promote that show when it came out with Sally the Witch calling Akko-Chan a friend of hers in ads. The rivalry continues as Akko-Chan is now first to get a remake with Sally the Witch not far behind.
Butterflied Away:
Mobile Suit SD Gundam. Due to Tomino having more control of the franchise and its greater popularity making this idea more of a risk. It is butterflied away.
Robotech II: The Sentinels. The Robotech series itself was a reworking of other series which ITTL were adapted faithfully and The Sentinels was an attempt at creating an original series which was never released. Since the original series were adapted faithfully there is no Robotech.
Ronin Warriors. Created by Sunrise OTL to capitalize on the popularity of Saint Seiya, a series which is a martial arts series ITTL, butterflying this away.
Transformers: Super-God Masterforce. Butterflied away due to the distributors of Transformers choosing to dub the rest of the series rather than make their own.
Topo Gigio. An Italian mouse character usually depicted as a puppet. He received an Anime series OTL but ITTL the character remains A puppet.
Project A-ko 3: Cinderella Rhapsody. The original A-ko started off as part of a hentai series and it remained so, butterflying away the sequel.
Anpanman. Sort of…A 1988 Anpanman series was created OTL and continues to run to this day, but ITTL Anpanman was created in 1970, three years earlier as the creator had to write a story for Mushi Productions and the story he wrote OTL was too close to Tezuka’s Jungle Emperor Leo, so he created Anpanman instead. Not impossible as the character was based on his childhood experiences.
Ten Little Gall Force. A Mockumentary style recapping of the Gall Force series. Butterflied away due to its odd tone seen as ill fitting in this context.
Armor Hunter Mellowlink. A part of the Armored Trooper VOTOMS. Butterflied away as the plot is essentially very similar to the original story but with a different person. A Soldier who’s united is sacrificed on the battlefield for reasons unknown and he becomes a target of a conspiracy while seeking revenge.
Violence Jack: Evil Town. Due to Violence Jack returning to villainy as Demon Lord Dante and a Great Energer crossover. No sequels to Violence Jack ensue.
Notes
[1] Ok a few things. First there is Cheyenne. OTL the game was known as Xevious and the game started off as Cheyenne, a Vietnam set shooter before becoming a space set shooter game. ITTL it stays a War shooter, though the fact that its set in Cambodia and not in Vietnam gives a pretty clear hint at how one event went down. Blue Skies Over Camelot gets credit for that idea. The US does not get involved in Vietnam, and actually win in Cambodia but the shellshocked war veterans and television coverage paint a dark picture of the war. Back to games, Namco released Gradius to compete against Xevious OTL while ITTL Gradius keeps its original title of Scramble 2.
[2]Fancy Lala began as an 1888 OVA before it was rewritten into a 1998 series. ITTL it is made into a TV Series instead from the beginning.
[3]
Beltorchika's Children was Tomino’s original pitch for
Char’s Counterattack. ITTL it was chosen rather than being rejected with Tomino rewriting it, due largely to Gundam’s bigger overseas success.
[4] The Hi-C-Gundam is TTL's name for the Nu-Gundam, it's name means "The Gundam that surpasses Char", the second name of Hi-C Gundam is mocked ITTL largley due to an ill thought out cross promotion with the Hi-C juice drink.
[5] Due to Beltorchika’s Children being use, Beltorchika takes the role of Chan Agi ITTL.
[6]Replaces The Adventures of Lolo the Penguin, an OTL Japanese-Soviet co production. Yes I am evoking a meme. I imagine a “Dr.Livesey best Anime character” or “Treasure Island is best Anime” meme similar to the Cory in the House is an Anime meme.
[7] OTL Jackie Chan expressed interest in 1995 when Dragonball Z had concluded in starring in an adaptation but admitted it would take a huge budget for special effects. Toriyama was later asked who’d he want to play Goku in a live action movie and said he wasn’t Sure but “Maybe Jackie Chan when he was younger.” Chan did star in a city Hunter film in 1993 which was a bad adaptation but a good action flick. It contains an odd scene in which a Street Fighter arcade game is destroyed and the characters turn into Street Fighter characters with Jackie Chan appearing as Chun Li. See here.
However, this is butterflied away. Chan and the director of the OTL film Wong Jing hated each other and Jing went onto make
High Risk in 1995, which involved Jet li playing bodyguard to an actor parodying Jackie Chan due to his dislike of him during
City Hunter. Neither
City Hunter nor
High Risk exist ITTL.
[8]
Nadia and the Secret of Blue Water was pitched to Miyazaki as a tv show in the early 70’s OTL before Ghibli was formed. After Ghibli was formed, Miyazaki only did movies and never did shows again. It was passed to Studio Gainax, who released it in 1991. Its production and failure nearly bankrupted the studio until the success of
Evangelion saved them. The film’s success ITTL thanks to Miyazaki’s involvement averts this, which also means Royal Space Air Force is getting a sequel in 1992 which was cancelled OTL.
Evangelion was actually conceived as a sequel to
Nadia, and will loosely be that ITTL. As for Disney’s involvement we that came about as a nod to the controversy when Atlantis: The Lost Empire came out and people compared it to
Nadia. Despite fan pressure, Gainax wasn’t crazy enough to sue Disney. ITTL with Anime being more popular and Miyazaki involved, they wouldn’t have that excuse so they become involved sooner for the sake of it and Ghibli and Disney being distribution partners. There were many cancelled plans for an Atlantis sequel, a film called Shards fo Chaos with an unknown plot, and a TV Show with some episodes released as a film called Milo’s Return as well as Team Atlantis.The Gargoyles crossover was also planned as was rebranding the Captain Nemo Submarine Voyage around
Atlantis: The Lost Empire, which ironically makes more sense given Nemo’s involvement in the plot.
[9]
Kiki’s Delivery Service really only became a Miyazaki film unintentionally, he began to intervene on the project to the extent where he finally shrugged and decided “might as well direct it”, before that it was a toss up between Miyazaki and Takahata, both busy on
My Neighbor Totoro and
Grave of the Fireflies, both of which came out in 1984 ITTL. As a result of Takahata instead of Miyazaki the film is more slice of life as Miyazaki added stakes like crows making Kiki fall and break her broom, losing her powers and the airship, with some of these elements like the power loss being used in Miyazaki’s Pippi Longstocking film. The bit about the sequel is a nod to a Cup O’ Noodles commercial for April fools featuring Kiki in a new art style, making it appear to be a sequel. ITTL it is its own film, replacing a live action
Kiki’s Delivery Service Film released in 2014 OTL. Japan has a history of excelling in April Fool's Jokes. ITTL this is likely a cross promotional ad for the existing animated sequel
[10]Otomo would regret ending Fireball early as he couldn’t use the Finale he wanted. ITTL he does. While Akira was born from his frustration for not finishing Fireball how he wished, he also insists it was going to be its own work regardless, and the fact that Otomo made
Domu: A Child’s Dream as a similar concept supports this idea. so Akira is not butterflied.
[11] OTL the attempt to adapt
Domu: A Child’s Dream fell through due to the producer Propaganda films not wanting to work with Lynch. It went to Guillermo Del Toro who was prevented from making it by lawyer problems such as negotiating the rights with Japanese Lawyers. Del Toro has a lot of cancelled films while Lynch only has a few so I’m giving him this one.
[12] OTL the Manga and Anime diverge at this point. In the Manga Akira is alive but dissected in the film. What determined this was the conversation with Jodorowsky. ITTL Jodorowsky made his version of
Dune. It was a bomb. So instead of changing the ending, Otomo sticks to his original hesitance and doesn’t end the Anime before finishing the Manga, making this a stealth sequel in the vain of IT: Chapters One and Two and Denis Vileneuve’s Dune. As for if a Live Action Akira is coming…well we’d have to wait and see on that one but at some point, though Taika Waititi might not be the one to make it since it was in development hell for so long.
[13] Bride of Deimos ran in Princess Magazine until it went defunct in 1990. ITTL it does not. It did come back later but went on a long hiatus in 2014. So the run date is an additional 7 years.
[14] OTL Ishinbo was put on hiatus after the author wrote a story in the series criticizing the Fukushima Nuclear Disaster in 2014. ITTL the disaster never happens and so neither does the controversy forcing the series to enter permanent hiatus in 2014.
[15] Robert A.Heinlein put Strange in a Strangeland on Hold to make Starship Troopers which was intended as a young adult novel, known as the time as a Juvenile Novel but it was rejected and he rewrote it. ITTL Heinlein finishes Stranger in a Strangeland first under its original title
The Heretic and makes Starship Troopers in 1961. Partly because his OTL motivation was his anger at Eisenhower for stopping production of nuclear weapons while the USSR continued to increase their own. ITTL a Democrat George Patton became President and occupied Eisenhower’s OTL Term. Naturally he increased the US stock pile out of his hatred for the USSR and in 1960, Richard Nixon became President, decreasing the nuclear weapons, which led to Heinlein writing the novel. OTL he wrote the original version of the story fairly quickly and does so here, hence its release the same year Nixon becomes President in 1961.
ITTL the film
Bug Hunt at Outpost 7 is realized as its own film and isn’t composited with Starship Troopers to better sell the idea, which OTL resulted in a divisive film. A Great film but a bad adaptation which added additional themes relating to fascism and propaganda. Because of this, the Starship Troopers DVA enjoys greater popularity than OTL among fans of the book.
[16] The Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure Manga is far gorier than the Anime, which tones it down. ITTL thanks to the crew from Fist of the North Star being involved, the Anime is far closer to depicting its Manga counterpart in this regard. Zeppeli's stand is based on a Led Zeppelin's most iconic song as he is named after the band and Jonathan's Stand is actually used by Dio in the OTL series but implied to have been Jonathan's and Dio got it when he took over his body. Hermit Purple basically works by summoning vines that can tear up anything, even the Time that Dio's Stand freezes like its paper. The sequel will be very different, following Jonathan’s son Jorge Joestar. It will change two criticisms of the OTL series. The first is that Jonathan’s son despite his symbolic survival was not important and killed offscreen, making him unremarkable in an otherwise remarkable family while ITTL he is a protagonist. The second part will also feature Rudol Von Stroheim. One of the more off-putting elements of Part 2 is how Stroheim is depicted extremely positive for a Nazi. Due to the period changing, Stroheim is now a World War I old Prussian style German and not a World War II Nazi.