Created By: Yoshihiro Togashi
Directed By: Abi Noriyuki
Studio: Pierrot
Audio: Japanese, English
Subtitles: English
Format: BluRay + Digital Copy
Number of Discs: 4
Episode Count: Complete First Season (eps 1 – 28)
Licensed By: Manga Entertainment UK
Release Date: Out Now
Yusuke Urameshi is a 14 year old teenage delinquent, known for skipping school days on end, has a talent for getting into trouble and for brawling in the streets. It’s no wonder everyone of his schoolmates stays well clear of the boy, all except his childhood friend: the beautiful Keiko. Unfortunately for Yusuke, his own good deed of looking out for a young boy playing by a busy road – ends up killing him! Instead of landing up in heaven, he is given a second chance of life by the Spirit World. All he has to do is become the Underworld Detective and solve the many cases involving demons and apparitions that appear in the human world. However the first thing he has to do is try and stop his funeral, so he can get back in his body again!
Yu Yu Hakusho was already a fairly old series by the time I properly got into watching anime. Having debuted as a manga back in 1990, it was soon adapted into a 112 episode anime series by Studio Pierrot in 1992. Having gained popularity as a Shonen Jump series, fans of the ever popular Bleach series by Tite Kubo can easily spot where he got the influence for the franchise from. Yu Yu Hakusho follows a young teen named Yusuke, who ends up ‘working’ for the Spirit World after they restored his life following what should have been a fatal car crash. He is guided along the way by the grim reaper Botan, a young woman who resembles more of a pretty looking witch than the collector of souls. Over the space of season one we encounter many demons, some that even change their ways and work alongside Yusuke on some cases. With numerous brawls between human and demon opponents, Yusuke also gains some spiritual powers to help him out.
As I mentioned above, Yusuke also gains some demon allies in the form of Kurama and Hiei. Both of which are incredibly strong opponents in their own right, with surprising backstories. Joining them will also be Botan and Yusuke’s rival from school – Kazuma Kuwabara. A human born with some spiritual connection, in which he was able to even sense Yusuke’s spirit when everyone believed he was dead. Now the character development in the show thus far in just Season One has been fantastic. I mean just within the first few episodes we see a kinder side to Yusuke, a teen who mostly everyone else has written off as just a delinquent. Even as he observes his wake at home, he is overcome by how much the few close people in his life are hurting. This show not only hits you square in the face with some powerful right hooks, but man it certainly doesn’t hold any punches when it comes to those emotional scenes!
Bonus Features:
2x artcards packaged in a collector’s slip case.
Looking Back at a Legacy is a 17 minute special feature, including some of the English Dub voice actors.
So as I mentioned before, Yu Yu Hakusho began as a manga series back in 1990. Created by Yoshihiro Togashi, the same man behind Level E and Hunter x Hunter. Yu Yu Hakusho however ran for 19 volumes and was serialized in Weekly Shónen Jump, it is also available to read in full over on the Shonen Jump app. The anime adaptation was handled by Studio Pierrot, who also handled Naruto, Boruto, Tokyo Ghoul and Black Clover. Which ran for a whopping 112 episodes, followed by a 6 episode OVA in 1994 called Eizou Hakusho. Years later it was followed up with another 2 episode OVA called Two Shot & All or Nothing in 2018! There were also two anime films that came out in ‘93 and ‘94.
Yu Yu Hakusho: Season One was full of action from start to finish. This is a must watch for Bleach fans and is a show full of nostalgia for 90’s anime fans.
Overall: 8/10
