T5W#299-Top 5 Manga/Anime Comparisons I’d Like to Tackle

Last year on the Gundam Anime Corner, I decided to undertake one of my most ambitious projects to date.  By early 2020 I had finally finished acquiring the most recent Gundam Wing Manga-Mobile Suit Gundam Wing: Endless Waltz-Glory of the Losers, and set about comparing it to the Anime that changed my life forever.  Across 14 Volumes, I covered where each chapter fell within the Anime itself and noted all the little changes that either enhanced the overall Gundam Wing experience or even hampered it a little bit.  As a life long fan of Gundam Wing, it was probably one of the most fun project I’ve ever worked on here at this blog.  So…why not plan to do it again?  I’ve got plenty of Manga on my shelf and most of them have been adapted into Anime or other features.  While I had planned to maybe try this in 2021, the way the year started out kind of threw things out of wack…but hey something could still happen.  In the meantime, for todays Top 5 Wednesday im counting down the Top 5 Manga/Anime Comparisons I’d Like to Tackle.  Like I said, we might see at least one of these in 2021, there’s still plenty of year to go.  But let’s list all of these options under “tentative”.

#5-Hellsing

Hmmmm…like another selection in this list, I have two options.  The obvious route to take is looking at Hellsing Ultimate, which is a direct adaptation of Kouta Hirano’s supernatural action Manga.  What about the original TV Series though.  Yeah it only runs through the first couple of volumes but the latter half does have whispers of possible ties to the Manga…not many but theyre there.  Each episode of Hellsing Ultimate covers roughly one volume of the Manga each, 10 Volumes 10 Episodes.  It might be too direct an adaptation to spot any differences, probably why it’s at the bottom of my list, but we’ll see what I can dig up if I attempt it.  Maybe I could cross pollinate and do all three versions (Manga, TV, OVA) together…oh I like that.

 

#4-Fullmetal Alchemist

I’ve officially penciled in Fullmetal Alchemist and Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood for 2022 (the former opens the year in January and the latter will be my Extended Summer Series Review in July). Two 60+ Episode Anime is challenge enough.  So why throw the Manga into the mix?  Maybe I love a challenge.  But, like Hellsing, there’s also the matter of which show to compare to the Manga.  Again, the obvious choice is Brotherhood since it’s the most direct adaptation.  However, unlike Hellsing TV, the original Fullmetal Alchemist TV Series’ deviations from the Manga resulted in a much more well received story.  I’m review both shows in 2022 to finally weigh in on which show is better (I think most lean towards Brotherhood).  So yeah, like Hellsing, maybe tackling a Manga to Anime cross check of the original TV Series could merit some fun critiques.

 

#3-Ghost in the Shell

Whew, the options with this one are staggering.  Anime vs. Manga, the combinations are vast and infinite…ok maybe not quite how the Major puts it but you can do a lot with Ghost in the Shell here.  The Manga has been released stateside in 3 Volumes: Ghost in the Shell, Human Error Processor and Man Machine Interface.  As for Anime adaptations…well: There’s the two movies (Ghost in the Shell and Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence); the TV Series (Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex, Stand Alone Complex 2^nd Gig and follow up movie Ghost in the Shell: SAC-Solid State Society); and the OVA (Ghost in the Shell: Arise and it’s follow up film Ghost in the Shell: The New Movie).  Maybe the best move would be to look at each volume of the Manga and see which parts have been used continuously throughout the Anime franchises existence.  And trust me, there are a lot of reused scenes and story beats across every Anime interation. 

 

#2-Neon Genesis Evangelion

After sitting on this forever, I’m finally getting off my butt and getting to gathering all of the original Neon Genesis Evangelion Manga, the one that focuses on the main plot of the original Anime…with it’s own spin on things.  I think this option would be the closest to my Gundam Wing Comparison as the NGE Manga finished well after the TV Series ended and thus has time to tweak things, amend plot points, and even show the intended finale that would end up being The End of Evangelion.  When it comes to how to structure this kind of comparison out, the Evangelion Manga also sits at 14 Volumes, same as Glory of the Losers, so a 14 week timeline doesn’t look too bad.  And just so we’re clear, this little endeavor would only cover the Manga based on the TV Series, no looking at any of the alternate reality spin offs like Angel Days or The Shinji Ikari Raising Project (I have all of the former and I don’t even know if the latter even finished…I should look that up actually).

 

#1-Rurouni Kenshin

Ah, now here’s what got me thinking about doing more of these little projects.  When I did my Top 5 Things To Know Going into Rurouni Kenshin: The Final (check it out if you missed it: http://gundamanimeblog.blogspot.com/2021/03/t5w292-top-5-things-to-know-going-into.html ) I noted that this would be the first proper time that the final arc of the Rurouni Kenshin Manga: The Jinchu Arc, would be adapted for the screen (Rurouni Kenshin: Reflection doesn’t count).  Which brings me to a more radical idea.  Instead of comparing the Manga to the Rurouni Kenshin TV Anime, since it only covers the first two major arcs of the Manga…what about comparing the Manga to the Rurouni Kenshin movies?  I could tackle one movie in multiple parts (probably 2 a piece), covering where they span the Manga and what changes are made.  This could be a 2022 project depending on how fast we get the last two movies (The Final and The Beginning) here in the States.  Seeing what the turn around for Anime and Anime inspired titles is nowadays, I think this could be possible…also Demon Slayer: The Movie-Mugen Train topped the US Box Office this weekend and that’s gonna change some things, I know.  But yeah, Rurouni Kenshin Manga to Movie Comparison…you in?