Netflix is remaking another anime in live-action: Yu Yu Hakusho

Between Cowboy Bebop, One Piece, and now this, Netflix is pouring a lot of energy into remaking anime classics in live action. But will it pay off?

Netflix made the decision to go hard on anime a couple of years back, hosting popular shows like One Punch Man and Attack on Titan while making original fare like Dragon’s Dogma. It’s also readying a string of live-action remakes of older anime, including re-dos of classics like Cowboy Bebop and One Piece. And it’s not done.

The streamer’s latest project is a remake of Yu Yu Hakusho, another ’90s joint. Yu Yu Hakusho tells the story of Yusuke, a teenager who dies after getting hit by a car when he’s trying to save a kid. Since he died early, the folks who run the afterlife aren’t ready for him and offer him a chance to return to his old life by hunting down troublesome demons in the real world.

We have yet to see any of these anime remakes in action yet, but clearly Netflix thinks it’s on to a good enough thing to keep ordering more. Cowboy Bebop probably makes the most sense for a live-action show, since none of its characters have magical powers and the whole thing is a little more “realistic” to start. Both One Piece and Yu Yu Hakusho are more fanciful, and I’ll be curious to see if what made the shows work in animated form can translate to live-action.

Traditionally, live-action movie versions of anime haven’t fared that well. Remakes of Attack on Titan and Fullmetal Alchemist were both panned, and the less we say about 2009’s Dragonball Evolution the better.

But hey, maybe things can turn around? None of these series have release dates yet, but the Cowboy Bebop remake seems like it’s the farthest along:

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h/t The A.V. Club