The Best Anime From Science SARU, Ranked
This list has nothing to do with the upcoming Scott Pilgrim vs. The World anime adaptation. Not a damn thing.
That’s right. I am writing this article COMPLETELY INDEPENDENT of the fact that one of the greatest action/rom-com/band/video-game flick/sci-fi/rock opera movies ever made is getting adapted into my ABSOLUTE FAVORITE MEDIUM. And this is CERTAINLY not me getting my hopes up for what I hope will be the greatest anime soundtrack EVER MADE. WHAT GAVE YOU THAT IDEA?
No no no no no, I’m just writing this article because I like OTHER anime that Science SARU made, and I am certainly NOT building this list to use it as a virtual pillow to scream-cry into in case the SPvTW anime adaptation sucks eggs and I have an existential crisis. THE VERY IDEA!
Whew. Here are the 10 best anime from Science SARU, one of the greatest anime studios ever.
10. Super Shiro
Take this one with a grain of salt. Super Shiro is a kid’s show. A really adorable kids show. It’s about a dog with super powers who has to save the world from all sorts of existential threats—like the armed coup that I will attempt at Netflix headquarters if the Scott Pilgrim anime isn’t any good. That’s not a threat, mind you! More like a pinky promise ;)
9. Japan Sinks 2020
This movie is NOT for children. I don’t even think Super Shiro would be able to save the world this time. Japan Sinks 2020 is a disaster flick from the director of Devilman Crybaby (if you don’t know it, we’ll get there). It’s about a family struggling to survive a series of catastrophic earthquakes that are laying waste to Japan. The destruction of these earthquakes pales in comparison to the devastation I intend to inflict on Netflix headquarters if Scott Pilgrim is trash, but they’re still REALLY BAD.
8. The Heike Story
The Heike Story is a little number about an angsty musician, too! This character’s father was murdered. Way worse problems than Scott Pilgrim’s “oh no! I’m dating a highschooler” conundrum. Biwa is a young lute priest with psychic powers, and she is taken in by a man named Taira no Shigemori. Shigemori is attempting to save his clan from the bloodshed and violence that plagues the nation. It doesn’t all go as planned. Be warned, dear viewer, The Heike Story is quite tragic. But not quite as tragic as a bad Scott Pilgrim anime adaptation.
7. Lu Over the Wall
Lu Over the Wall is a cute little rom-com about a sensitive young musician who meets a mysterious girl who can help him on his quest for stardom! Hey, that sounds like Scott Pilgrim. Except the mysterious girl isn’t just some blue-haired Canadian; she’s a mermaid. The mermaid Lu is drawn to young Kai because of the music he plays in his seaside town, and she decides to join his band! The only problem is that the townspeople are prejudiced against mermaid-kind, and Kai and Lu have to keep their bond a secret. It’s like Romeo and Juliet with gills!
6. Ride Your Wave
Yay! More love stories! I think Science SARU might just have Scott Pilgrim in the bag after all. Ride Your Wave is about Hinako Mukaimizu, a young woman who moves to a small town by the sea to go to school and follow her dream of becoming a firefighter. While not studying, she enjoys surfing in the ocean. One day, while riding the waves, Hinako meets a handsome young firefighter and the two fall in love. But then he tragically dies in a fire. Didn’t expect that, did you? However, Hinako learns that she can see visions of her lost love in the waves if she sings a certain song while surfing. She uses this to get over her grief. If the Netflix adaptation of Scott Pilgrim is bad, I will fill up my bathtub while singing “Black Sheep” by Metric—and hope I see visions of a GOOD Scott Pilgrim anime.
5. The Tatami Time Machine Blues
The Tatami Time Machine Blues is about a bunch of knuckle-headed 20-year-olds! Sounds promising! But instead of starting a band, they travel through time using a mysterious time machine that one of them found hidden in their apartment! But screwing around with time always has consequences, and they soon realize that they have altered the future for the worse. Now they have to go back in time to right their past wrongs!
4. Inu-Oh
More musician movies! Inu-Oh follows a blind musician named Inu-oh who becomes a famous performer during Japan’s Heian period. That’s a long time ago, if you didn’t guess. Because of his vision impairment, Inu-oh is treated as an outcast. However, he soon meets a young woman named Tomona who is also a musician, and the two share a bond. They then embark on a quest to become famous musicians! Hey, just like Scott Pilgrim!
3. Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken!
Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken! follows two high school girls (who Scott Pilgrim thankfully isn’t around to date) who decide to form their own animation club and follow their dream of creating anime. The shy Midori and the brilliant Tsubame soon realize that getting the Eizouken Animation Club off the ground is going to be more difficult than they thought. This flick shows the joys and struggles of creating an anime from start to finish. If the Scott Pilgrim anime sucks, we should give it to these girls to redo it.
2. Devilman Crybaby
This series is perhaps science SARU’s most infamous creation. Devilman Crybaby is a gritty reboot of the original Devilman series from the 20th century. And when I say “gritty,” I mean “soaked in yellow-blooded demon gore.” This series follows two childhood friends, Akira and Ryo. One day, after attending a wild party where some unfortunate coeds summon demons, Akira is possessed by a powerful demon and becomes a human/devil hybrid. Now Akira has to slay demons across the world in order to protect the ones he loves. Be warned, this series is violent as all hell (literally) and is a tragedy in the most Shakespearean sense of the word. It’s also one of the best anime ever.
1. Ping Pong the Animation
Seriously? A ping pong anime? How did this beat Crybaby? I’LL TELL YOU HOW. Ping Pong the Animation HAS VISUALLY STUNNING ANIMATION AND A GORGEOUS AND EMOTIONALLY COMPLEX STORY ABOUT SOME PEOPLE WHO JUST HAPPEN TO REALLY LOVE PING PONG. The story follows the introverted Smile and the outgoing Peco in their quest to become ping pong champions. As they compete against other players and each other, they both have to confront their own demons. But unlike Devilman, these demons are emotional. Doubt. Fear. And the pressure to succeed. Ping Pong the Animation is a beautiful character study of athletes, and an anime for the ages. Scotty P. has some big sneakers to fill.
(featured image: Science SARU)
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