After Wit Studio’s “The One Piece”, What Other Classic Anime Deserve a Remake?

With the announcement that Wit Studio will be remaking One Piece, starting with the East Blue Saga with the potential to adapt more, there is increasing discussion around what other series might deserve a similar treatment. One Piece started airing over 20 years ago, and has been running nearly non-stop since, so it is in a unique position to be able to “remake” a show that is still running.

With so many other classic anime from the same period that have long since stopped airing, there are many potential candidates that deserve the opportunity for a remake. However, without careful consideration, there is the potential to disturb the reputation of some classic series.

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Making the Case for One Piece

Does One Piece Really Need This New Adaptation?

Some people might think that the Wit Studio remake is already an unnecessary breach against a classic series. After all, the show it’s remaking is still running and some people even prefer the esthetics of the show in its classic era. But the Wit Studio adaptation may reveal itself to be more of an inspired approach than it appears at first glance. With One Piece being around so long, there is a lot more that the animation team will know about the story, and how it will progress. There is more funding and hype around the series than ever, and presumably they will be given as much time as they need. This means that they will be able to make the most of this classic One Piece arc. Whether it be offering new moments of foreshadowing for characters, expanding fights and cinematic moments, or even giving characters that have become beloved over time a renewed chance to shine even earlier on.

One Piece’s success is an incredible feat, and perhaps in no small part due to the fact that it has been running so consistently for decades. But the weekly schedule can also weigh heavily on the adaptation of a story in order to keep it running smoothly. With this new approach from Wit Studio, they have the opportunity to let early One Piece shine like never before.

What Series Should Not Be Remade?

There Are Some Classics That Don’t Need the Remake Treatment Just Yet

While the East Blue Saga is a good experiment in remaking One Piece, there are a lot of other classic anime that should not look forward to a remake, at least for the time being. But finding that perfect candidate for a new adaptation can be tricky. Most anime fans can probably list on one-hand the remakes that they actually appreciate, if any at all, and what exactly makes them successful can be hard to nail down.

That being said, most adaptations appear to try and address a few common things:

• Updating animation
• Restrategizing content with the context of the whole series in mind
• Cutting down on filler
• Expanding upon notable moments

With these goals in mind, there are a few classic series that should probably be taken off of the remake list for the time being: Naruto and Dragon Ball.

For Naruto, while a long time has passed since the series first aired, it really only recently ended in the grand scheme of things (the last episode of “Shippuden” aired in 2017). But even beyond that, a remake should look to provide something new, different, or offer an improvement over the original. While people may lament the filler-heavy portions of Naruto, the anime is still absolutely a classic. The animation has aged well, with a style that not only embodied the time period in which it began, but also managed to keep pace with its contemporaries as it aged. The vocal performances are great, and fights stand out as much as they need to. While there has been talk of remaking earlier portions, ultimately it is not as necessary as it could be for other series.

Dragon Ball is another series that often receives whispers of a remake. While there are obviously tons of spin-offs and extensions of the original Dragon Ball story, with new stories being produced regularly, for many fans nothing will reach the original highs of the “Saiyan Saga”. But does this mean that a remake would recapture or even improve upon that original experience? One major issue is that Dragon Ball is popular arguably because of its artifacts from the golden age of anime. With all of its audio and animation quirks, early Dragon Ball appears as a sort of time capsule of its period, and it really adds to the charm of the series. Trying to “update” the series for modern times may actually take away from the elements that made it so popular in the first place.

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What Series Would Benefit From a Remake The Most?

There Is One Classic Series That Stands Out

Anime and manga fans who ponder the question of ”remakes” will probably know off the top of their head what series is most requested for a modern remake, and it is hard to argue with. In terms of stories that have yet to reach their full potential on screen, even after achieving legendary status, there is one that stands out the most: Berserk.
Berserk is an incredibly popular manga series by author Kentaro Miura. While hailing from the same “Golden” era of manga and anime, it has not achieved the same success on screen. But this is not for lack of attempts. Berserk has received numerous adaptations since its original (and arguably the most successful) in the 90s, but they have yet to land as strongly as the other popular series of its time. Poorly regarded CGI, questionable pacing, audio and even decisions on what to adapt have left fans of the series very disappointed with their options for watching Berserk in the anime format. But now may be a better time than any to reignite that fervor.
With anime adaptions of stories like Castlevania popular on Netflix, and games like Elden Ring which take inspiration from Berserk achieving massive acclaim and success, Berserk could be primed for major success with a proper adaptation. But how could they avoid mistakes from the past in order to ensure it would be a hit? Well, the first thing would be to address what difficulties they may face. Anime is more popular than ever, but it is also arguably more toned down and palatable than ever. While there may be graphic moments in popular anime, they don’t really get as dark or disturbing as the depths of Berserk. This might lead to questions of financial viability as studios look to make series that would be approachable to as many viewers as possible. Other than that, it’s important that the team adapting the story can really capture the ambiance, atmosphere and emotion of the series. The Berserk adaptation from the 90s offers an amazing soundtrack, and the 90s animation and art style really complement Miura’s art and story. But with modern sensibilities, they’ll have to rethink how they approach the story in the current anime ecosystem.
One Piece is available to watch on Crunchyroll, Netflix, Hulu and more. Berserk (1997) is not available for streaming, but can be purchased on Blu-Ray.

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  One Piece is a Japanese manga written and illustrated by Eiichiro Oda. The series follows protagonist Monkey D. Luffy and his Straw Hat Pirate crew as they explore the Grand Line to find the King of the Pirates’ ultimate treasure, the One Piece, in order to become the next king. The manga’s popularity helped it spin off into a larger media franchise, including an anime with more than 1,000 episodes.

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  Berserk