These gems didn't deserve to be discarded! Join Ashley as we look over amazing anime that haven't been further developed since their debut
Category
🗞
NewsTranscript
00:00Welcome to WatchMojo and today we're counting down our picks for the anime series that were
00:15dropped despite the potential for more story or with more material to adapt.
00:21We won't be including any shows that got proper reboots.
00:35In a time when isekai anime are everywhere, it's shocking that one as original as this
00:41never got a season 2.
00:50Step-siblings Sora and Shiro are an unbeatable gaming team who are transported to a world
00:57where everything is decided by games.
01:00With nothing but their wits, this duo plan to climb to the top of their New World's
01:06despite humans being regarded as the weakest of the world's races.
01:19The mind games and unexpected reversals at play are incredibly entertaining.
01:25Some of these games still live in our heads rent-free over a decade later, not to mention
01:30that killer soundtrack.
01:38Sure we got a prequel film, but a life with no game, no life is no life at all.
01:48Sports anime often have trouble maintaining their popularity, particularly if they're
01:52anime originals.
01:54Yuri on Ice sees a young Japanese figure skater competing with a Russian skater who shares
02:00his eponymous name, while at the same time deepening his relationship with his coach,
02:05Victor.
02:14The series made a big mark when it debuted, thanks to its beautiful animation and depiction
02:20of gay romance, both of which everyone was happy to see more of.
02:27However, the planned film never materialized, nor did a season two.
02:35Yuri on Ice was born to make history, and while it already has, we'd love to see it
02:40make more.
02:498.
02:50Reborn
02:51It may not have been one of the big three, but Reborn was still one of the most popular
02:56shounen series of the 2000s.
03:08The story follows Tsuna Sawada, a Japanese high schooler told that he's the heir to
03:13an Italian mafia gang.
03:15Initially hesitant and cowardly, Tsuna, under the guidance of the infant hitman Reborn,
03:22creates a crew of his own that battles against powerful rivals with supernatural abilities.
03:32Unfortunately, the anime ended without adapting the manga's last two arcs that would have
03:40given fans some much-needed closure and answers.
03:44But Reborn fans' dying will-modes weren't enough to save it.
03:527.
03:55iShield 21
03:58Another sports anime that ended before its time, iShield 21 is about Sena, a high school
04:03boy who reluctantly joins his school's American football team, the Devil Bats.
04:15Despite his initial reservations, he soon becomes the team's star running back.
04:20He even has to protect his identity with the titular iShield, pretending to be the team's
04:25assistant so other teams won't try to recruit him.
04:35Although the series did increase the popularity of the sport in Japan, it wasn't enough
04:39to stop the show from being cancelled.
04:42And the Devil Bats never even made it to the Christmas bowl.
04:496.
04:52Drifters
04:54What if various historical figures were dropped into a fantasy world and forced to battle
04:58to save it?
05:00Such is the fantastic premise devised by Hellsing creator, Hirano Kota.
05:11The mash-up of larger-than-life figures from history makes for some surprising, bloody
05:16and often hilarious interactions, both among the famous faces and with the fantasy races
05:22they meet.
05:30While a second season was promised, and a few OVAs were released on DVD, a full-blown
05:35season two seems unlikely, given the manga's sporadic release schedule.
05:39We have our fingers crossed for more OVAs, though.
05:495.
05:50Hajime no Ippo
05:52When it comes to boxing anime, Hajime no Ippo is easily the champion.
06:08The series follows the titular Ippo, a teenage boxer, on his journey to become the best.
06:14Along the way, Ippo's peers and rivals get plenty of development too, with their fights
06:19getting equal attention.
06:29And yet, despite the show's quality, only about half of Hajime no Ippo has been adapted
06:35on screen.
06:36To put that into perspective, when the manga started, the Berlin Wall was still standing.
06:41While some deaths among the main cast and some poor sales may have hurt chances of the
06:46anime continuing, we're hoping it can punch above its weight class to get a continuation.
06:594.
07:03Kaiji
07:04When the eponymous Kaiji finds himself saddled with a debt, he finds himself embroiled in
07:09the world of high-stakes gambling.
07:21Each game he gets involved with masterfully ratchets up the tension and stakes to the
07:26point where you'll be chewing your fingernails with worry yourself.
07:40Kaiji is another anime whose source material has been running for a long time.
07:44Yet, despite the ample material available, and a few spin-offs getting anime of their
07:49own, the series has yet to get another season.
07:52Who do we have to make a wager with to ensure it does?
08:013.
08:07Outlaw Star
08:08This underrated space western classic may not have achieved the same success as contemporaries
08:13like Cowboy Bebop or even Trigun, but it's still a quality show.
08:26The adventures of Gene Starwind and the rest of the crew of The Outlaw Star featured plenty
08:31of humour and flair.
08:42Despite the manga continuing, and there even being a spin-off anime, Outlaw Star tragically
08:47wasn't popular enough in Japan to earn a follow-up.
08:51So despite that tease at the end of the series, we'll probably never see any more adventures.
09:012.
09:04Bakuno
09:05Why this absolute gem of an anime wasn't a bigger hit, we'll never know.
09:21The series follows simultaneous plots of a group of criminals, ne'er-do-wells, and immortals
09:27aboard a train bound for New York City, and flashbacks to a mafia conflict with more immortals
09:33in the Big Apple.
09:38Sure the non-linear narrative can take some getting used to, but each and every character
09:43in this ensemble is entertaining in their own way, and they all bounce off each other
09:49like they're from the films of Quentin Tarantino or Guy Ritchie.
09:53Even the dub is great.
09:55And with the light novels and manga still running, it's not like there isn't more
09:59material.
10:20If you're on your phone, make sure to go into your settings and switch on notifications.
10:251.
10:26Berserk
10:28Look, we know there's been Berserk anime after this one, but let's be honest, they
10:32don't measure up.
10:33They don't even feel like the same show.
10:42A few skipped elements aside, this is still the best adaptation of the dark fantasy masterpiece
10:48we've gotten so far, and it only covers the first two arcs.
11:03It may be decades old at this point, but it perfectly captures the tragic, grim atmosphere
11:09of the life of Guts.
11:10The battles are epic, the music is profoundly moving, and the ending still gives us nightmares.
11:17We can only envy the world where the anime continued with this production team, and hope
11:32that our world gets the continuation or reboot Berserk deserves someday.
11:48Is there an anime deserted by its creators that we left out?
11:52Don't forsake us.
11:53Share your favourites in the comments below.