KANLen09

If there is one name that's to be revered in the AniManga industry, it would be Rumiko Takahashi. The famed female mangaka that has brought us classics like Maison Ikkoku, Ranma ½ and Inuyasha to name a few, because they all got their anime adaptations to add to their name. But there is one series that stands above all: the very first work that would help elevate Takahashi to her "Hall of Fame" status that we know of today, and that is Urusei Yatsura. A little story about this incredibly well-known series: In 1977, Rumiko Takahashi created the short story "Those Selfish Aliens", that would serveas the basis for creating Urusei Yatsura, which was first published a year later when Takahashi was 21 years old, with the series being her first major work, having previously only published short stories and is a combination of romantic comedy, science fiction, suburban life, and Japanese folktales. The title of the series is an untranslatable pun on the word urusai (うるさい), meaning "noisy" or "obnoxious", but written with the Chinese character for "planet"; the title can be translated roughly into English as "Those Obnoxious Aliens". This was due to the fact that she had been dreaming about the overall universe of Urusei Yatsura since she was very young, mentioning that the series "really includes everything I ever wanted to do. I love science fiction because sci-fi has tremendous flexibility. I adopted the science fiction-style for the series because then I could write any way I wanted to". To go to great lengths, she wanted the reader to be completely surprised by the next manga panel and used slapstick comedy to create a reaction in the reader and would create new characters when she ran out of ideas. And when it came time to the 1st anime adaptation of her major hit series, it started 41 years to the very day that the modern reboot was also released: October 14, on the very same TV network that it first aired: Fuji TV. This was definitely a long time coming for fans wanting to experience Urusei Yatsura in its modern heyday, but without actually having to view the old-school filter, which don't get me wrong, the 1981 TV series has a charm on its own right. Where the 2022 version separated it from its original 41-year old counterpart, it was announced that within a 2 x 2-cour, 46-episode series, it'll show the best that Rumiko Takahashi's 34 volume long manga series has to offer, essentially defining the 2022 TV series as the "All Stars" treatment of the manga in random, shuffling order. The TL;DR is this: without having to watch the 1981 anime series, the 2022 series is about as close as good as it gets for a modern reboot and refresh, which obviously save for the fact that it's an incomplete, but the adaptation of the best-of-the-best that Urusei Yatsura has to offer. It's pretty safe to say that Rumiko Takahashi also set the record straight for the waifu culture that we have today, all thanks to Urusei Yatsura. It all starts with a simple objective of the Earth's invasion from supernatural aliens, and all that it requires is a game of tag a.k.a the game of the Oni to determine whether Earth gets invaded or not. The challengers: the goofball womanizer Ataru Moroboshi vs. the daughter of the invader aliens, Lum. Immediately, a human and an alien, it's apparent of the winning side being the aliens, but because that Ataru is a selfless womanizer looking for love like the goofball he is to get constant rejections, save for his legit girlfriend in the form of childhood friend-cum-classmate Shinobu Miyake, ultimately won in the end, but at a cost: grabbing the horns of an alien and declaring a win over her, misinterpreting it means a marriage proposal, and this is the story that ensues between Lum, Ataru and the other characters to be seen around the series. The characters are the beating heart of Urusei Yatsura, especially the girls, of which Lum would have the distinction of being the very first waifu character. With her flying capability and electric shocks for more than just controlling Ataru down when he's out and about trying to flirt with any girl or woman he sees, Lum is the series' beloved character who'll come to degy Urusei Yatsura as a whole. With Shinobu, she's the unequivocal girlfriend material, if not for Lum who would steal her place as Ataru's wedded. Character names often carry extra meanings used to describe a character's personality or other traits. For example, the name Ataru Moroboshi refers to being hit by a star, a reference to the aliens and other people who gather around him. The name Shinobu suggests a patient character; however, this in contrast to the character's actual personality. The others from tycoon man Shutaro Mendo and young alien baby Ten, they are all charming in their own right, especially Mendo, who has to live with Ataru's idiosyncrasies on the pursuit of becoming the ladies' man. All of them are iconic characters that have a part of their personality learnt and duplicated with so many series overtime, you'll have Rumiko Takahashi to thank of her genius minds at the time when anything goes for a manga. Being a modern reboot, I was definitely interested to hear which studio would be the choice pick, and lo and behold, it's the veteran studio David Production. Being a studio of venerable quaity that's proven with the Jojo's Bizarre Adventure series, it pretty much is a straight 1-to-1 adaptation of the beloved hit manga series that it's based upon, so no problems since it's just trying to tell some of its greatest unlinked episodes with mini arcs in-between. Colourful, vibrant and impeccable production is what I will give to this show for being consistent all the way through. For the music, it's all a string of artist collaborations through and through. MAISONdes has a hand on all of the OST that is produced for this 4-cour long series, and at the very least for now, I find that the 1st Cour's OST is a lot better than the 2nd Cour's selections. "AIUE" (feat. Minami and SAKURAmoti) and my absolute favourite song of the lot that is "Tokyo Shandy Rendevous" (feat. KAF, Tsumiki) are two catchy banging respective OP and ED songs respectively that kick off the show into high gear, espeically with their accompanying visuals that are a great start to the series, from the manga panels of years gone by to the whimsical ED that's a throwback. The 2nd Cour's "Aiwanamchū" (feat. asmi, Surii) and "Aitarinai" (feat. yama, Nito) are still good songs, but the visuals are disappointing to say the least, or rather, somewhere along the line, the producers got lazy with the OST portion. At the end of the day, a reboot is a reboot, and don't go thinking that Urusei Yatsura will have the attention of something like Fruits Basket, where the reboot will elevate the source material to more greatness. To me, Urusei Yatsura in its own "All Stars" treatment is as good as it comes, packed together with its slapstick comedy moments that the famed mangaka has sucker-punched us time and time again with flawless execution. It's a little bit on the underdone side, but hey, since we're going to have Round 2 of this in the future, why not? The jokes are of more hits and less misses, the atmospheric vibes are there, and this is how I think that this show truly wants to be like. Don't just take the word that we don't need reboots like these to ultimately waste the time and effort that the production staff team have been wanting to spearhead this for the longest time, I highly, HIGHLY recommend giving Urusei Yatsura a go if you don't want to dabble on the 1981 OG TV series. Thank you, Rumiko Takahashi, Urusei Yatsura is an experience to be behold.

Marinate1016

Some may argue the Urusei Yatsura remake was not necessary and that it added nothing to the franchise. I disagree. I believe David Production did an awesome job revitalising a classic and making it accessible for a new generation while still keeping the same charm that made it so popular. As a massive fan of all of Takahashi Rumiko’s works I was really excited to hear we’d be getting more Urusei Yatsura. This series was revolutionary when it first came out and is recognised by many as the origin of many common tropes that we see every season in anime, most notably Lum as thefirst tsundere. I enjoyed the episodic slice of life/monster of the week style of storytelling and found the show to be an excellent way to wind down towards the end of the week. There’s not much of an overarching story going on, but over the course of the season we’re introduced to new characters who pretty much all personify some sort of archetype. While the show leans HEAVY into a lot of what are now considered common tropes, it’s important to remember that at the time these were innovative and new. I found the playful nature of every episode and the antics to be fun. It can be a bit repetitive at times, and Akaru is an idiot as an MC, but it just works for me and I love the characters. It’s important to note that this is not a 1:1 remake of the original either, so it should be a fun watch for fans of the original and newcomers. It’s still got the same general storyline, but they’ve changed some things up and tried to make a new experience. David Production used an art style that feels true to the original while also fitting in perfectly with modern anime. I love the shiny colours, the eyes, just designs in general were really good in this. The animation itself isn’t anything crazy since it’s a gimmick slice of life series, but quality remained top notch and consistent throughout. The OST, OP and ED for both cours were great too with wonderful performances from my favourite singer Minami. Urusei Yatsura is a solid modern interpretation of a classic series that really influenced all modern romance anime. It may not be perfect, but it’s a very enjoyable ride that offers loveable characters, some solid comedy and beautiful art. No complaints from me and I can’t wait to see what the next season brings. Urusei Yatsura remake gets 9 out of 10.