Anime is so widespread and mainstream today that it's not surprising to see its influence crop up just about everywhere. Thing is, this has been going on for years, especially in the world of Western animation.
Whether it's an old-school Cartoon Network gem or a more recent Netflix hit, these cartoons paid tribute to anime in a variety of ways. But where some successfully captured the spirit of what makes anime great, others missed the point entirely.
10 CAPTURED THE SPIRIT: Megas XLR Is The Most American Mecha Anime Ever
Thanks to titles like Mobile Suit Gundam, mecha anime are known for being dark war stories or self-serious action sagas. Megas XLR, meanwhile, turns this on its head by reinterpreting the mecha anime genre in the most stereotypically American ways possible. Case in point, the titular Megas is basically a bipedal muscle car that's piloted by the Jersey-born goofball Coop.
Megas XLR may be a mecha parody, but it's an affectionate one. Despite his bumbling nature and the collateral damage he always causes, Coop really means well and will defend the Earth no matter what. By its end, Megas XLR arguably reconstructed the genre when Coop saved the day from his evil alternate universe self.
9 DIDN'T CAPTURE THE SPIRIT: RWBY Recreated Flashy Anime Fights & Little Else
In its defense, RWBY is a genuinely admirable passion project from the legendary one-man production team Monty Oum and indie animation studio Rooster Teeth. While RWBY perfectly recreated the energy of high-octane anime fights, it forgot that they're only as great as they are thanks to well-written characters and stories.
At its heart, RWBY is a generic fantasy school-life anime that only stands out in the oversaturated genre because of its eye-catching art style. The fights, while great, don't mesh well with either the characters' arcs or the excessive lore. It's arguably better to watch RWBY's fights on YouTube than to binge the anime.
8 CAPTURED THE SPIRIT: Castlevania Resurrected The Edgy OVAs Of Yesteryear
Based on the hit Capcom games, Castlevania was heralded not just for being one of the best video game adaptations ever made but for being a great throwback to the ultraviolent OVAs of the '90s. With its intense and unashamed adult-oriented content, Castlevania was not for the faint of heart, but its fans wouldn't have it any other way.
Shortly after Trevor Belmont fought Dracula, Netflix and other studios greenlit their own edgy R-rated anime, from original works like Blood Of Zeus or the Blade Runner spin-off Blade Runner: Black Lotus. Not only did Castlevania get its own franchise in the wake of its success, but it revived an entire nostalgic trend as well.
7 DIDN'T CAPTURE THE SPIRIT: Constant Payne Blurred The Line Between Homage & Rip-Off
Constant Payne is one of those animated oddities that's since been lost to time because it never aired on any network. As the story goes, Nickelodeon wanted Angry Beavers writer Micha Wright to make a pilot for a proposed action cartoon. The result was Constant Payne, which can be charitably called a Cowboy Bebop rip-off.
From the jazzy music, the aircrafts' design, and even the opening credits, Constant Payne took more than just inspiration from Spike Spiegel's lonesome road. For unspecified reasons, Nickelodeon didn't pick this pilot up. Some believe this was due to the September 11 attacks and the show's use of aircraft destruction, while others speculate it was Nickelodeon's retaliation against Wright for trying to unionize writers.
6 CAPTURED THE SPIRIT: She-Ra & The Princesses Of Power Is The Magical Girl Anime For The Netflix Age
A common misconception regarding the magical girl anime is that all of its heroines are basically fairies whose powers are exclusively empathic. She-Ra & The Princesses Of Power didn't just disprove that notion, but it also revitalized the long-dormant character by turning her into the magical warrior girl for a new generation.
Using the visual and storytelling language of anime like Magic Knight Rayearth, Netflix's revival remade She-Ra in the best ways imaginable. Gone were her original cartoon's gendered tropes, now replaced with genuinely empowering messages, stories, and characters. Thanks to her anime, She-Ra finally got her time in the spotlight, independent of He-Man's influence.
5 DIDN'T CAPTURE THE SPIRIT: Loonatics Unleashed Chased Anime Trends But Didn't Understand Them
The Looney Tunes have had it rough for decades on end; try as different animators and writers might, they just couldn't seem to properly reboot Bugs Bunny and friends for a new generation. This led to the short-lived Loonatic Unleashed, which reimagined animated the sitcom stars as anime-styled action heroes fighting in a cyberpunk dystopia.
From the teasers alone, it was clear that Loonatic Unleashed only saw the popularity of stuff like Bubblegum Crisis and copied its tropes while ignoring the context. The backlash was immense, and even revamping Season 2 into an action-comedy couldn't save Loonatics Unleashed from cancellation, making it the shortest Looney Tunes show to date.
4 CAPTURED THE SPIRIT: Teen Titans Is A Celebration Of Anime's Unique Quirks & Sensibilities
Teen Titans is known for using almost every trick in the anime book such as comically exaggerated expressions, wild genre mixing, and even a Japanese cover of the theme song to great effect. Thanks to the hit show, Robin, Starfire, Cyborg, Raven, and Beast Boy went from being an obscure DC Comics team to one of the publisher's headliners.
In a meta way, Teen Titans' appreciation of anime extended to its franchise. Not unlike how the grim Fate/Stay Night diverged into the farcical Carnival Phantasm, the Titans got their own madcap spin-off in the polarizing Teen Titans Go! Like Fate's Nasuverse, the Titans are actually part of a multiverse, as seen in Teen Titans Go! Vs. Teen Titans.
3 DIDN'T CAPTURE THE SPIRIT: Kappa Mikey Was A Cheap, Surface Level Spoof
In concept, Kappa Mikey was a clever blend of animation mediums that showed a literal culture clash. The American teen actor Mikey is drawn like a typical Nickelodeon cartoon, while his Japanese co-workers in the in-universe show LilyMu look like they came right out of a more detailed anime. Problem is, the cartoon left a lot to be desired.
A lot has already been said about the show's low-budget animation, but what drew bigger ire were its simplistic satirizing of anime clichés that boiled down to "anime is weird." Not helping was Mikey's insufferable attitude and the show's audacity to proclaim itself as the "first anime to be produced entirely in the United States" despite airing after Avatar and Teen Titans.
2 CAPTURED THE SPIRIT: The Avatar Series Defined An Entire Generation's Childhood
There's no other American cartoon as closely tied to anime as the Avatar franchise, from The Last Airbender to The Legend Of Korra. In fact, the debate as to whether or not Avatar counts as an anime still rages on. What everyone agrees about is that Aang's legend and Korra's succession earned their stellar reputations.
Avatar didn't just take inspiration from anime's stylistic choices, but from its underestimated political commentary as told through flawed yet good-natured teen heroes. The lessons these shows taught positively changed their young audiences forever, as seen in the countless online posts and recaps that have nothing but great things to say about Avatar.
1 DIDN'T CAPTURE THE SPIRIT: Neo Yokio Is An Outdated Joke At Anime's Expense
The best way to describe Neo Yokio is that it's an adaptation of Jaden Smith's odd Twitter persona and a parody of anime as a whole. Problem is, it fails at both. Aside from Jaden's animated self (Kaz Kaan) being more obnoxious than charming, the jokes made about anime were stale when the show aired in 2017.
Neo Yokio's comedic thesis is that anime is weird, hence non-sequiturs like giant Toblerones or Kaz's mecha butler. Not helping was how its randomness was more coldly calculated than truly bizarre. While not mean-spirited, Neo Yokio seemed to imply that anime's existence is the punchline. Unsurprisingly, Neo Yokio was mocked and criticized into obscurity.