In the 1980s, Japanese anime began to reach mainstream international audience for the first time. The movies and TV shows from this time period ranged from sweet stories that captured the magic of childhood innocence to macabre spectacles of blood and hyperviolence. Whatever their nature, there is a good reason for their widespread appeal.

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Many anime fans are nostalgic about the classic series they grew up with from this period. Of course, anime from the 80s are very much products of their time. These reflect the very best and worst trends of the decade. Here are ten nostalgic anime from the 80s  that would not fly today:

10 Fist of the North Star (1984)

Fist of the North Star is perhaps the best example of a definitive shonen anime from the 80s. The protagonist, Ken, a musclebound warrior who wanders the blasted wastelands of a world devastated by nuclear war. The intense fight scenes spawned many successful copycat series and almost always ended with Ken striking an opponent in a pressure point and causing them to die moments later.

Unfortunately, a lot of what was groundbreaking or stylistically exhilarating at the time has since been emulated so much that Fist of the North Star couldn't come out today. But at the time of its release, it was revolutionary.

9 Akira (1988)

More than thirty years after its debut, Akira is still one of the most beloved anime films of all time. Its dystopian story is set in the near future and weaves together narrative threads about motorcycle gangs, political unrest, psychic children, and a totalitarian government.

While the film has a live-action adaptation planned, the story is a product of the 80s. From the prevalence of nuclear fears to the battling motorcycle gangs, many of the elements of Akira are relics of an older worldview, making them seem jarring in a movie meant to depict the future.

8 My Neighbor Totoro (1988)

My Neighbor Tattoo (or just Totoro in the original Japanese) is loved by children and adults alike. This Studio Ghibli film was created by visionary director Hayao Miyazaki whose name has become synonymous with the high-quality anime movies which he's spent his life developing.

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Throughout My Neighbor Totoro there is a wholesomeness that can be is heartwarming and pure. Its characters and their outlooks seem to reflect a pre-digital relationship to the world around them. The movie would be very different if it included smartphones or if the catbus was replaced by a magical rideshare experience.

7 Vampire Hunter D (1985)

Horror, fantasy, and science fiction blend seamlessly in this post-apocalyptic gothic film. The title character, a vampire hunter known as D who is himself half-vampire, who is hired by a girl named Doris Lang who wants D to kill a vampire nobleman who bit her.

This movie is set in the year 12,000 AD but has a sword and sorcery feel to it. Many characters dress in Victorian clothing while riding robotic horses. Fights feature swords, whips, laser guns, and supernatural magic. While the film remains a cult classic, its attitudes toward women make it uncomfortable by today's standards.

6 Super Dimension Fortress Macross (1982)

An image from Super Dimension Fortress Macross.

Humanity first makes contact when an alien space ship crashes into the Earth. After years working to restore this advanced alien ship, called the Macross, humanity finally is able to the ship enough to relaunch it into space, kickstarting the story.

Super Dimension Fortress Macross has amazing fight scenes and its characters evolve throughout the series in a way that feels at once organic and emotionally compelling. However, seeing characters in the future wearing 80s fashion choices in space is more than a little jarring, while some of the science is suspect.

5 Dragon Ball (1984)

Anime kid-goku Cropped

Not to be presumptuous, but it usually goes without Saiyan that every anime fan knows about Dragon Ball and its various spinoffs, sequels, and energy attacks. While the martial arts moves and Kamehameha energy blasts of the Dragon Ball Z series earned the franchise its staying power, everything got started with the story of Bulma and Son-Goku as children in the original Dragon Ball anime that aired in 1984.

This is a show about children going out into the world. While Bulma is sixteen when the series starts, Goku is still prepubescent. In an early episode, there is an extended shot of a certain protrusion between Goku's legs - and no, this is not a reference to his tail.

4 Wicked City (1987)

Wicked City is an urban fantasy movie about a demoness and seedy secret agent working in Tokyo to keep the peace between humanity and the evil dimension called the Black World. The movie is the first film created by director Yoshiaki Kawajiri, who would later go on to direct Ninja Scroll, an ultraviolet bloodbath of samurai fantasy. But Ninja Scroll looks tame when compared to Wicked City.

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This twisted anime is visually stunning and has some truly creative monsters. There are so many acts of sexual horror that it might as well just be nightmare hentai. In an ongoing theme, the movie objectifies female bodies while inverting this objectification by giving agency to demon women and making them into dangerous beings to be feared.

3 Demon City Shinjuku (1988)

While nowhere near as dark or sexually explicit as Wicked City, there are a number of similarities between it and Demon City Shinjuku (and not just the fact that both films are about demons occupying Tokyo). The male protagonist of each film is a womanizer while the objectivization of women is central to the plot of both movies.

The protagonist Kyoya is selfish and lewd, but ultimately proves himself a hero in the film's epic climax. While the story and dialogue do not live up to modern standards, the art is fantastic and this movie stands out as far better than many other anime that came out at the same time.

2 Ranma 1/2 (1989)

Ranma 1/2 is a gender-bending comedy about Ranma Soutome, a teenage boy who magically turns into a girl every time he enters water. Meanwhile, his father also is cursed to turn into a panda when wet. To further complicate matters, Ranma's father set up an arranged marriage for him. In fact, his father promised his hand in marriage to multiple young women.

Much of the humor comes from dated clichés about gender, sexuality, and relationships. The show is still enjoyable and maintains a loyal fanbase but the sheer ecchi tropes alone can make it quite cringe-inducing.

1 Project A-Ko (1986)

Project A-Ko is a sci-fi anime film about three girls living in the fiction Graviton City when an alien spaceship crashes down. The main characters named A-ko, B-k0, and C-ko, which literally translates as "Child A," "Child B," and "Child C."

If the title did not make it obvious, the protagonist is A-ko, is a red-headed school girl with superhuman strength, invulnerability, and a pair of magical armbands. Part of what makes the movie so fun is that it is full of weird references to all sorts of the iconic characters from other media. There is nothing inherently wrong with this light-hearted movie but it is just a little too surreal for modern tastes.

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