As a huge anime fan, I’ve noticed things change *fast*. It feels like new animation techniques pop up constantly, studios are always rearranging things, and how we *watch* anime – thanks to streaming – is evolving all the time. A series that feels totally groundbreaking when it first comes out can quickly feel different, especially when remakes, sequels, or just general shifts in the industry change what we expect from it. It’s wild how quickly things can evolve!
As a movie buff, I’ve always been fascinated by series that started strong but then hit some bumps in the road. This list is about those titles – the ones everyone loved at first, but then faced real challenges within a few years. Things like studios switching hands, sudden changes in the story direction, shifts in how they were released, or even just new technology making older choices look different. I’m focusing on the specific things that actually changed how we see these series now.
‘One-Punch Man’ (2015–2019)
The first season of the show was made with a large team of talented animators and focused heavily on impressive action scenes. However, the second season had a new director and animation studio, and a shorter production schedule. This resulted in fewer memorable action sequences being shown.
The second season focused more on building storylines for what was to come, resulting in episodes with a lot of conversation. While home video versions addressed some issues, viewers who watched the seasons consecutively still noticed a difference in quality between them.
‘The Seven Deadly Sins’ (2014–2021)
As a long-time fan, I noticed a real shift in the show’s quality over time. The first seasons felt really solid, but when production moved to Studio Deen, things started to change. They seemed to rely more on outside help for editing and cut back on full animation during action sequences. Honestly, it led to some episodes looking much better than others – the consistency just wasn’t there anymore.
To make action scenes suitable for television, blood was digitally replaced with white flashes. While later DVD and Blu-ray releases included more detail, the censored version was often the first experience many viewers outside of the US had, particularly through streaming services.
‘The Promised Neverland’ (2019–2021)
The first season closely followed the initial escape storyline, maintaining a steady pace and consistent mood. However, the subsequent season combined several story arcs into one block and left out significant parts of the original material, notably a lengthy survival sequence that fans were anticipating.
The episode number was reduced, and important plot points were shown quickly through montages to bring the season to a rapid end. This made it difficult for new viewers to follow the story if they started watching from the beginning.
‘Tokyo Ghoul’ (2014–2018)
The first continuation of the story moved away from the original manga, creating a unique plotline for the anime that changed characters’ reasons for acting and how events would eventually unfold. When the series later returned to adapt the remaining manga story, it had to address those earlier changes while also fitting a lot of content into a limited number of episodes.
The anime version combined several story arcs quickly, with little breathing room between action scenes and important plot points. This meant viewers who only watched the anime noticed inconsistencies that weren’t present in the original books.
‘Psycho-Pass’ (2012–2014)
The first season was created by Production I.G and followed a carefully planned storyline. The second season came from a different studio with a new composer and fewer episodes, which understandably led to a different pace and how storylines were concluded.
The series continued with more films and a second season, but the difference in quality between the first two parts was still noticeable for anyone watching them back-to-back.
‘Kemono Friends’ (2017–2019)
The show’s first season wasn’t flashy, relying on basic 3D graphics and a well-written story to unexpectedly become incredibly popular. However, the original director was suddenly fired, causing public drama and creating problems with the show’s production.
The show’s second season featured a completely new cast and a noticeably different style, emphasizing new characters and a changed mood. Viewers who watched the seasons back-to-back immediately sensed the difference.
‘Fate/stay night’ (2006)
Studio Deen created an anime version of the game’s main storyline, designed for television. Soon after, a movie covered a different storyline, and then Ufotable produced a prequel with stunning animation quality, raising the standard for the series.
More recent projects featured improved visual effects and more carefully planned action sequences. This made the differences between them and the older episodes more noticeable. Viewers discovering the series through these newer installments often went back to watch the originals and realized how much the quality had improved.
‘Hellsing’ (2001–2002)
As a big fan, I was a little disappointed when the TV anime started going its own way and finished with a different story than the manga. Luckily, a few years later, they announced an OVA series. It had much bigger budgets per episode, and thankfully, they promised to stick much closer to the original manga’s plot – which was exactly what I’d been hoping for!
The original video animation (OVA) had longer episodes and more detailed artwork than the weekly TV series could offer. As the OVA continued, it became the main version of the story, while the TV show was seen as a different interpretation.
‘Akame ga Kill!’ (2014)
The anime finished its story, but the manga kept going with more fights and character development. This meant people discovering the manga experienced events that weren’t in the anime’s ending.
Sources like home media and guidebooks explained when the show started to differ from the books, but the two versions still followed separate paths. Many viewers who discovered the series later were surprised to learn that some of the most talked-about storylines from the books weren’t actually included in the animated show.
‘Erased’ (2016)
The anime adapted a mystery manga with a lot of twists, but it shortened the 12-episode story to fit a single season. To do this, the anime sped up the investigations and changed how the story ended.
Shortly after the book’s release, a live-action adaptation showed the complete ending in more detail. This resulted in two popular interpretations, altering conversations about how the anime concluded, especially for new viewers.
‘Sword Art Online’ (2012–2014)
The show’s initial seasons popularized the idea of virtual worlds and inspired many other programs. However, as the series continued, some storylines featured scenes of sexual violence, leading to content warnings in various countries.
As the genre evolved with more complex world-building, the surge in popularity of isekai stories made the simple, original approaches to these shows even more noticeable for those discovering them.
‘The Rising of the Shield Hero’ (2019–2023)
The first season introduced a sprawling storyline where the main character was publicly accused of something and then assembled a team in unconventional ways. Discussions about these plot points started right away and continued as the show was released internationally.
Later seasons were released on varying schedules, with the second season being a co-production and production resources changing over time. These shifts were noticeable when watching the show from beginning to end.
‘The God of High School’ (2020)
This anime season covered a lengthy webcomic in just one part. The creators focused on exciting tournament battles and significant power-ups, streamlining the slower, introductory story from the beginning.
The series quickly moved through many storylines with minimal time spent developing the setting. While this made it exciting and easy to jump into, viewers who discovered it later realized how much of the original story had been condensed.
‘Aldnoah.Zero’ (2014–2015)
This mecha series started with a talented team and was split into two parts with a short break between them. Because the second part aired quickly after the first, the team had to work very quickly on planning and making changes.
Story twists that could have been developed more gradually happened very quickly. Viewers watching both parts back-to-back noticed the show seemed rushed in how it unfolded.
‘Tales of Zestiria the X’ (2016–2017)
Ufotable created an anime based on a role-playing game, borrowing ideas from another similar game. The animation is visually stunning, featuring the impressive effects and detailed backgrounds the studio is famous for.
The story differed from the game by shifting the focus between characters and including advertising for a related product. This resulted in a unique experience for players who were anticipating a faithful, scene-for-scene adaptation.
‘Sailor Moon Crystal’ (2014–2016)
The show returned as a streaming series, releasing new episodes every two weeks, and stayed true to the original manga’s artwork. The initial episodes had some animation that was later updated for the home video release to align more closely with the promotional images.
The show moved to a weekly release schedule later on, with a new director and a less rigid structure. Viewers who start with the first episodes often comment on the improvement in quality after these changes to the team and production schedule.
‘Knights of Sidonia’ (2014–2015)
Polygon Pictures pioneered 3D character animation in television with a space opera series. Their animation style differed from traditional hand-drawn shows of the time, using fewer frames per second and a unique shading technique to create a distinctive look for movement.
Not long after, other animated series improved how 3D characters were created and made visuals smoother. If you watch several computer-generated titles, you’ll notice how rapidly the technology developed and how the techniques used in older shows now appear different.
‘Durarara!!’ (2010–2016)
The initial anime adaptation of Ikebukuro was produced by Brain’s Base as a single season. Years later, Shuka studio created a three-part sequel, released in two parts with a completely new production team.
The story was released in three parts over four seasons, with different release windows for each. While home video versions fixed some editing issues, the overall shift in pacing and visual style was still noticeable throughout the entire series.
‘Dragon Ball Super’ (2015–2018)
The series started by revisiting stories from two existing movies before introducing completely original plotlines. Some of the initial TV episodes featured animation errors that fans noticed and shared online, but these were corrected for the home video release.
As the game went on, preparations for bigger battles improved, with more reliable and polished gameplay elements. This change was noticeable, creating a clear contrast between the beginning and the most important parts of the story.
‘Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress’ (2016–2019)
The series began with impressive visuals and lots of action, but production slowed down while they planned what would happen next. A later movie then wrapped up a local storyline and helped some of the characters grow.
A mobile game was released, but its service was discontinued after a short time. As new games became popular, merchandise for this one decreased. This resulted in a concise story that new players can finish rapidly before exploring other games.
Let us know in the comments what shows you think should be on this list, and tell us what differences you spotted!
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2025-09-15 05:17