Knights of the Zodiac anime is a Japanese/American animation that has been adapted from the original manga by name ‘Saint Seiyan‘ written by Masami Kurumada. The manga was adapted into an anime which came to be known as Knights of the Zodiac.
The original anime was first released in 1986, however, a remake of the classic titled Knights of the Zodiac: Saint Seiya was released on Netflix in 2019 and the second season was released on Crunchyroll thereafter. The remake has a total of 24 episodes and follows a fantastical storyline which quickly amassed a huge critical commentary immediately after its release.
Knight of the Zodiac anime – a glimpse of the plot
Knights of the Zodiac anime explores the life of Seiyan, who is an orphan and is sent to the sanctuary of Athena in Greece. There he undergoes intensive training to become one of the Saints of Athena. Seiya was separated from his sister Seika when he was sent to Greece and years later after attaining the Pegasus Cloth, he returns to Japan to find her.
But, as fate would have it, Seiyan had to participate in the Galaxian Wars and defeat other bronze saints like him to gain possession of the Sagittarius Gold Cloth, something which would help him find Seika. But the Gold Cloth gets stolen and Seiya has to now chase after this mysterious element with other saints to recover it.
He and the saints embark on a mission to save Athena, who reincarnates on Earth. The series is filled with mythological references and the vintage aesthetic of the 1980s fills up the heart with an old charm. Moreover, the musical score is in itself a splendid work of art and the deliverance of action and mythology infused together gives it the thing of beauty.
What is Knights of the Zodiac Saint Seiyan + where to watch it?
Knights of the Zodiac Saint Seiyan is the digital remake of the classic Knight of the Zodiac anime from 1986. It has a total of 24 episodes and 2 seasons. The first season can be streamed on Netflix and the second season is available on Crunchyroll.
However, the Knights of the Zodiac anime remake is nothing but an exaggerated piece of comedy according to user reviews of IMDb and other platforms. It has left fans quite disappointed due to the lack of understanding and also the estrangement from the original storyline and form. The remake is somewhat devoid of the elements of mystery, elements of anticipation, and elements of tension.
Is Knights of the Zodiac anime similar to the live-action remake?
The recently released Knights of the Zodiac movie of 2023 has been directed by Tomasz Baginski and was written by Josh Campbell, Matt Stuecken, and Kiel Murray. It is produced by Toei Animation and Sony Pictures. It follows the story of a young boy who is destined to protect the reincarnated Athena but at the same time has to face his own past and become a Knight of the Zodiac.
- Knights of the Zodiac anime follows a rich fantastical storyline, but the recently released live-action movie fails to do justice to the richness of the classic.
- Moreover, the work is more inclined to the Netflix reboot and therefore gets the whole story wrong from the very beginning.
- The soundtrack is also average and the CGI at times were faulty and lacking in their charm.
Conclusion
Knights of the Zodiac anime remains a classical masterpiece and unlike most action-based anime series of the 20th century, it deviated from the traditional norms to infuse and introduce a different form of animated reality.
It is however only the original piece that was able to do justice to the plot and all other remakes and adaptations so far have been lacking in their basic approach to the same. One therefore would prefer to identify with the original work, rather than the reboots and this makes Knights of the Zodiac an all-time classic anime.