When Netflix announces the live action adaptation of an anime, the whole otaku community trembles. As well-received as the One Piece adaptation was, we still can't forget the disaster that was the pseudo-adaptation of Death Note, not to mention Cowboy Bebop. So when I saw the announcement of the live action of Yu Yu Hakusho, I honestly didn't know what to expect. Many aspects of the previews seemed questionable to me; however, I decided to give it the benefit of the doubt and ended up with mixed feelings about the series, although I don't regret watching it.
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Yu Yu Hakusho tells the story of Yusuke Urameshi, a teenager of dubious reputation who dies while saving a child. After his demise, he is granted the opportunity to return to life as a spirit detective, one charged with maintaining the balance between the human and spirit worlds. This job leads him to confront supernatural creatures to protect the Earth, while discovering new friendships and developing powers that will be useful in his work.
This adaptation consists of five episodes, each lasting approximately 48 minutes, and is "loosely" based on the first arcs of the series, leading up to the final confrontation with the Toguro brothers. Overall, my impression was positive; it's an entertaining series that tries to cover the most important points of those arcs from the original anime/manga. However, I feel that the production made a rather questionable decision in trying to condense so much story into just five episodes. This caused everything to feel too rushed, with significant omissions in the story, and a strange mix of all the events of the tournament in which the Toguro brothers are pitted against each other.
What I liked
Without a doubt, my favorite aspect of this adaptation was the fights. I'm not sure if it was because my expectations were low, but I honestly found them to be quite good. They were eye-catching, exciting and well choreographed, some parts even seemed like an homage to classic martial arts movies. I was surprised to see the true form of Kurama and the special powers of each main character so quickly. However, considering the part of the story it covers, I'm glad they didn't leave these elements out because of budget issues. Definitely, the fights were the aspect I enjoyed most about the adaptation, even the ones with less transcendental characters, such as the first ones Yusuke faces, I found interesting.
Another aspect that pleased me were the characters. While there were some questionable choices, for the most part I felt they were well portrayed. The limitations I observed were probably due to the small budget of the series. There was a clear attempt to maintain the essence of the characters in both the characterization and the acting of the cast, and while this was not fully achieved for everyone, for the most part I think they delivered. I want to make a special mention at this point for Genkai, who simply fascinated me, although I would have liked to see more screen time.
One detail I loved that they included was the brief appearance of a fragment of the opening of the anime series as part of the music that a secondary character listened to on a radio. It was a nod to all the fans of the classic series that reminded me how great that song is.
What I didn't like
The worst thing for me was definitely the attempt to condense so many episodes into less than 5 hours. As I mentioned, there was a lot left untold and too many fights to show. All this meant that the characters had little development and the camaraderie between the main characters was not properly established. The tournament where they face the Toguro brothers changed completely and, although the fights against the Toguro team were shown, everything was left there, which is a pity because there were many more interesting things besides what was already mentioned.
I could also mention the lack of quality in some costumes or wigs (Shuichi's, please), but I think that was simply lack of budget. I even think that the very reduced amount of episodes was due to the same thing, which is a real shame, because the intentions to make a product that would please the fans and honor the anime were present; there just wasn't enough budget to bring all the ideas to fruition.
Despite its shortcomings, I found the series entertaining. I can't claim that it lived up to all my expectations, but I consider it an adequate introduction to the world of Yu Yu Hakusho, especially for those who haven't seen the original series. For those of us who watched it as kids, it's simply a rather enjoyable nostalgia trip. So, whatever your case, it's worth giving this live action a chance.
Technical Data Filmaffinity
Original title: Yu Yu Yu Hakusho
Year: 2023
Length: 48 min.
Country: Japan
Director: Shô Tsukikawa
Screenplay: Tatsurō Mishima, Yoshihiro Togashi
Manga: Yoshihiro Togashi
¿El Renacer de Yusuke? | Yu Yu Hakusho Live Action
Cuando Netflix anuncia la adaptación live action de un anime, toda la comunidad otaku tiembla. A pesar de lo bien recibida que fue la adaptación de One Piece, aún no podemos olvidar el desastre que fue la pseudo-adaptación de Death Note, y ni mencionar la de Cowboy Bebop. Por lo tanto, cuando vi el anuncio del live action de Yu Yu Hakusho, sinceramente, no sabía qué esperar. Muchos aspectos de los avances me parecieron cuestionables; sin embargo, decidí darle el beneficio de la duda y terminé con sentimientos encontrados respecto a la serie, aunque no me arrepiento de haberla visto.
Yu Yu Hakusho narra la historia de Yusuke Urameshi, un adolescente de reputación dudosa que muere al salvar a un niño. Tras su fallecimiento, se le otorga la oportunidad de regresar a la vida como detective espiritual, un encargado de mantener el equilibrio entre el mundo humano y espiritual. Este trabajo lo lleva a enfrentarse a criaturas sobrenaturales para proteger la Tierra, al mismo tiempo que descubre nuevas amistades y desarrolla poderes que le serán útiles en su labor.
Esta adaptación consta de cinco episodios, cada uno con una duración aproximada de 48 minutos, y está basada "libremente" en los primeros arcos de la serie, llegando hasta el enfrentamiento final con los hermanos Toguro. En general, mi impresión fue positiva; es una serie entretenida que intenta abarcar los puntos más importantes de esos arcos del anime/manga original. Sin embargo, siento que la producción tomó una decisión bastante cuestionable al intentar condensar tanta historia en solo cinco episodios. Esto provocó que todo se sintiera demasiado apresurado, con omisiones significativas en la historia, y una extraña mezcla de todos los acontecimientos del torneo en el que se enfrentan a los hermanos Toguro.
Lo que me gustó
Sin duda, mi aspecto favorito de esta adaptación fueron las peleas. No estoy segura si fue porque mis expectativas estaban bajas, pero sinceramente las encontré bastante buenas. Fueron vistosas, emocionantes y estuvieron bien coreografiadas, algunas partes incluso parecían un homenaje a las películas clásicas de artes marciales. Me sorprendió ver la verdadera forma de Kurama y los poderes especiales de cada personaje principal tan rápidamente. Sin embargo, teniendo en cuenta la parte de la historia que abarca, estoy contenta de que no hayan dejado de lado estos elementos por cuestiones de presupuesto. Definitivamente, las peleas fueron el aspecto que más disfruté de la adaptación, incluso las de personajes menos trascendentales, como los primeros con los que se enfrenta Yusuke, me parecieron interesantes.
Otro aspecto que me agradó fueron los personajes. Aunque hubo algunas elecciones cuestionables, en su mayoría considero que fueron bien representados. Las limitaciones que observé probablemente se debieron al presupuesto reducido de la serie. Hubo un intento claro de mantener la esencia de los personajes tanto en la caracterización como en la actuación del elenco, y aunque no se logró completamente para todos, en su mayoría creo que cumplieron con el cometido. Quiero hacer una mención especial en este punto para Genkai, quien simplemente me fascinó, aunque me hubiera gustado verla más tiempo en pantalla.
Un detalle que me encantó que incluyeran fue la breve aparición de un fragmento del opening de la serie de anime como parte de la música que escuchaba un personaje secundario en una radio. Fue un guiño para todos los fanáticos de la serie clásica que me hizo recordar lo genial que es esa canción.
Lo que no me gustó
Lo peor para mí fue definitivamente el intento de condensar tantos episodios en menos de 5 horas. Como ya mencioné, hubo mucho que se quedó sin contar y demasiadas peleas por mostrar. Todo esto hizo que los personajes tuvieran poco desarrollo y que la relación de camaradería entre los principales no se estableciera correctamente. El torneo donde enfrentan a los hermanos Toguro cambió por completo y, aunque se mostraron las peleas contra el equipo Toguro, todo quedó ahí, lo cual es una lástima porque había muchas más cosas interesantes además de lo ya mencionado.
Podría mencionar también la falta de calidad en algunos vestuarios o pelucas (la de Shuichi, por favor), pero creo que eso fue simplemente falta de presupuesto. Incluso creo que la cantidad tan reducida de episodios se debió a lo mismo, lo cual es una verdadera pena, porque las intenciones de hacer un producto que agradara a los fans y le hiciera honor al anime estaban presentes; simplemente no hubo suficiente presupuesto para llevar todas las ideas a cabo.
A pesar de sus deficiencias, la serie me pareció entretenida. No puedo afirmar que cumplió con todas mis expectativas, pero la considero una introducción adecuada al mundo de Yu Yu Hakusho, especialmente para aquellos que no han visto la serie original. Para quienes la vimos de niños, es simplemente un viaje a la nostalgia bastante agradable. Así que, sea cual sea su caso, vale la pena darle una oportunidad a este live action.
Ficha Técnica Filmaffinity
Título original: Yu Yu Hakusho
Año: 2023
Duración: 48 min.
País: Japón
Dirección: Shô Tsukikawa
Guion: Tatsurō Mishima, Yoshihiro Togashi
Manga: Yoshihiro Togashi
Thank you very much for reading me, see you in comments
Muchas gracias por leerme, nos vemos en comentarios
Cover and banner made in Canva - Cartoons made in bitmoji
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I think this is a live action anime released by Netflix which was done properly and maturely after One Piece live action some time ago, I was a little interested when I saw the trailer and plan to add it to my watchlist next weekend.
It's not the best adaptation of the universe, but I enjoyed it and it brought back good memories. If you feel like watching it share your opinion with us to exchange ideas.
Cheers ✌️
This was hyped by my colleagues recently so it made me check out the trailer. True to the cinema magic, they managed to fulfill some expectations on the live action where most productions fail at. I wasn't a fan of the anime, just watched a few episodes to get what the plot was about and then dropped it. I might give it a shot again.
!discovery 30
The anime is fantastic, I like it a lot, even a few years ago I watched it in its entirety, and I liked it, even though I'm an adult now. Hopefully you will watch it, it is a classic and fans even say that it influenced many other shonen.
The live action is ok, you can tell they wanted to make something that would deliver, I wish there had been more budget to make it longer, but hey, it is what it is and it's still decent, hahaha.
Thanks for stopping by, and commenting ✌️
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I agree with you it was very fast indeed but it was fun to remember the story
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Exactly, It brought back such good memories that I enjoyed it very much. Although it is also appreciated that they didn't change the essence of anything, neither the characters nor the story, that was it.
agree with you so much! While the attempt was good in terms of CGI and fight scenes (quite amazing fight scenes) and acting ofc, only 5 episodes just seemed like a joke. The whole tournament one of the most amazing arcs went to garbage. The same applies to the relationships between each character along with their development.
The fight scenes, can you imagine the whole tournament with that quality of fights? We can only dream 😢
i can't agree more!
Honestly my only hope is that after the series and the new fame that came along maybe togashi will continue Hunter X Hunter :p
There have been several live action movies out there, but I've never gotten around to watching these anime-based movies. One Piece is one that I've been on the verge of. I was also planning on watching Death Note, but from what you mention it's a disappointment. I'll still give it a chance to have a personal opinion. I'm not really interested in live action anime movies, but I have it in mind because I'm a fan of these productions.
Excellent review, a pleasure to read you.
Best regards.
This seems an interesting anime to movie/tv show adoption will check it out as usually I do not like these types of products but this one seems different to me.