It is a legend of Anime, a title without boundaries. You know it’s name…and you know…what it’s
capable of. Ok, that dramatic
reenactment of one of my favorite trailer bits from Rambo 4 not withstanding:
AKIRA. The name, the myth, the
legend. What can be said about it that hasn’t
been said thousands of times over in the last 38 years…holy s*** I just
realized Akira turns 40 in two years. It’s
the title that is still one of the most synonymous with Anime as a whole: a
film that broke boundaries at the right time and shouted to the world that
Animation isn’t just a Disney kids game.
And like so many other films in 2026, it got a 4K restoration that had a
brief theatrical release. I didn’t get a
chance to see it personally, though I did sneak in a teeny bit after seeing Transformers:
The Movie in the neighboring theater, and man did it look as gorgeous as you’d
expect cause it’s one of the most incredible looking pieces of Animation in the
history of the medium. So what the hey,
for todays Top 5 Wednesday I’m citing the scenes that make this movie stand the
test of time and keep us long time Anime fans coming back for more, equally
eager to introduce it to a new age of Anime newcomers. There are the Top 5 Legendary Moments from
Akira.
Since awakening to his destructive psychic abilities,
Tetsuo has shown he can handle just about anything anyone can throw at him,
even a tank.
And while he does some
truly crazy things throughout the movie with these powers, few are as
monumental as when he collapses an entire, miles long bridge in a fit of rage
after the military tries to use their lasers on him.
Block by block, the structure collapses under
the weight of Tetsuo’s might, sending any poor soul, military or civilian, down
into the water, along with all the heavy military machinery as well.
Check this one part out and you’ll see why it’s
one of the most iconic scenes in the whole movie.
#4-The Second Big Bang
As if to say “it’s like poetry, it rhymes,” Akira begins
with a bang and concludes with one as Neo Tokyo is engulfed in another
psychically set off explosion.
There’s a
lot to unpack with this scene aside from the artistic side of the slow
destruction of the city.
There’s a lot of
emotion thanks to the music, the performances of the characters and the imagery
Kaneda experiences in the heart of the chaos itself.
And again, the music does a lot of the heavy lifting
with a hauntingly calm melody before eventually exploding into an organ piano crescendo
that is pure nightmare fuel.
Not bad an
ending for a movie based on a Manga whose own ending hadn’t been written just
yet.
#3-Kandea vs. Tetsuo
It’s all been building to this.
Throughout the entire movie, we’d been seeing
the resentment, the jealousy, the sheer pig headenedess that was the downfall
of Kaneda and Testuo’s lifelong friendship.
Now, standing in the ruins of the Akira Research Lab, Kaneda and Testuo
have a proper face off.
While Tetsuo
obviously has his powerful psychic abilities, Kaneda didn’t come unprepared,
unleashing a military laser he swiped on his way to the battlefield.
The two former besties exchange insults,
psychic attacks, laser blasts and a ton of “KANEDA!!!!”, “TETSUO!!!” along the
way.
#2-The Mutation
You might’ve guessed by now what my #1 choice might be
but THIS scene is a very, very close contender, a #1.5 if you will.
Tetsuo finally realizes too late that his
powers are growing beyond his control.
As he lashes out in pain and anger, he suddenly begins to morph into…well
it’s kind of hard to describe and “giant blob” doesn’t do it enough justice.
It’s an absolutely grotesque sight, the stuff
of pure nightmares that is grabbing, absorbing and killing anything in its path.
Given how all of this is hand drawn animation,
I cannot fathom the weeks of time and effort it took to create every single
frame of this horrifically amazing sequence.
For many, it’s the crowning centerpiece of all Akira.
But like I said, one stands just slightly
above it…
#1-The First Five Minutes
You know how most Anime have a “Three Episode Rule”:
where you determine by Episode 3 if you’re willing to stick with a show or
not?
For Akira, it’s the first five
minutes.
From the big bang that destroys
Tokyo to the jaw dropping and heartstopping bike chase through Neo Tokyo,
culminating in that infamous chicken duel that ends with Kaneda slaying with
the bike stop that is still being imitated and homaged today, Akira makes one
helluva first impression right out the gate and barely gives you a moment to
breathe before the movie continues.
Also
helps that the freaking amazing soundtrack is getting you pumped with each new
frame it plays against.
Seriously, this
opening is the stuff of legends and a masterclass of Animation as a whole, not
just Anime.
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