The Weirdness of Saint Seiya/Knights of the Zodiac: A Failure in the US, Huge Everywhere Else

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Saint Seiya (Japanese: 聖闘士星矢セイントセイヤ, Hepburn: Seinto Seiya), also known as Saint Seiya: Knights of the Zodiac, Los Caballeros del Zodiaco, Les Chevaliers du Zodiaque or simply Knights of the Zodiac, is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Masami Kurumada.
Saint Seiya was also adapted by Toei Animation into a 114-episode anime television series which was broadcast on TV Asahi from 1986 to 1989, exported around the world as Knights of the Zodiac and then, eventually, to the United States 3 different times with 3 different names to varying success, including a brief run on Cartoon Network.
For more on Saint Seiya and a beginners guide to the series:
landofobscusion.blogspot.com/2...
landofobscusion.blogspot.com/2...
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[@GastonMorales]

Saint Seiya is a religion in Latin America so thanks for doing a fantastic job covering this series.

[@GenOner]

Saint seiya was my first anime along with the og Dragon ball

[@MikeFelix1805]

Funny story, i was an exchange student from Mexico and i took Mythology and it was second nature to me of course saint seiya and actual Greek mythology differ but in a sense it shares a lot, bottom line when i told my Myth teacher about saint seiya, (Knights of the Zodiac) in Mexico my teacher wasn't pleased by the material it didn't matter i still got my A+ in fact i ended up on Top of the class i've even made a Medusa shield for an assignment.

[@InkWarrior]

In the Dominican Republic if it started playing again it would be a national phenomenon. Adults today have fond memories watching the Bronze Knights fighting against the bad guys. The Odin Saga was my favorite.

[@albertopereztoscano1195]

As a 90s born mexican i can confirm that Los caballeros del zodiaco is a part of our culture.

[@luiszuniga2859]

And you, have you felt the power of the Cosmos ??

[@mttrnx]

Saint Seiya was an instant hit when aired in Latin America. It took violence, blood, superpowers and drama to levels almost not seen previously in any other cartoon in open television.

[@anaclaudiagarciacalderon192]

About drama we already got Remi, Heidi, Candy Candy and Sandy Bell, about the rest you are absolutely right.

[@mauriciovillegas7285]

Costa Rican here, can confirm the show's popularity by the fact that movies have been screened in movie theatres

[@mttrnx]

@@anaclaudiagarciacalderon192 You're right, of course. But while those cartoons, like the ultrapopular Candy Candy had their fare quote of drama, I was thinking about something more epic. 😉

[@overdalcy]

about it, they bring saint seiya by a toy store named "sam toys" they make a trailer with only the violence to sell to TV chanels, it almost make the anime didn't shows up! and wasn't the violence that turn the tables! Interesting enough years later pokemon was only showed in a tv here cause they want to say "anime is from devil" waiting for the epileptic event happens again!

[@vergueta_]

Excellent work. Saint Seiya was so popular and competed against Dragon Ball in popularity in all Latin America, Brazil, Europe, Japan and China. Until today is one of the biggest franchise all around the world. I had never understand why it wasn't so popular in US, I guess in that time Saint Seiya looked very violent for kids and TV channels tought that that show was inappropriate for children. And when they try to launch it was 17 years late. Sorry for americans they lost one of the most iconic animes all of times.

[@Uncle_Tijikun]

A very interesting thing about Saint Seiya in Italy is that, for absolutely no reason, the Italian dub is chuck full of incredibly formal language, huge philosophical discussions and quotes from classical literature just because why the heck not. Such an epic series ❤

[@HAGENTYRANNY]

Same thing in latin America

[@lillith3159]

The italian versions of 80´s and 90´s anime were all whacky as hell in the best way possible.

[@sensaiko]

Well, no to shit on the brazilian version, but we had the famous "Celebro" instead o "Cerebro" lol

[@lucianoemmanuelramirez1304]

i neeed to see it now! thanks..only seen the japanese w subs(recently) and spanish dub(as a kid)

[@DioBrando-qr6ye]

The reason is because of the "neoclassical" Greek setting, and because most people in Italy study classical Greek mythology and literature in hight school. However, for as popular this franchise was in Italy, it was definitely outshined by Hokuto no Ken, which was a massive cultural phenomenon at the time, and without the need to sell any toys!

[@titorobot2711]

You are the first American KZbinr I’ve seen who aknowledges how popular this series is around the world, instead of saying it flopped in the West like many others do. The first waves of toys released, the vintage figures, were amazing for a child, although less accurate to the anime than those figures the US got later on. I love the original anime, but I recommend all newcomers to first watch Lost Canvas, although it’s incomplete up to this day.

[@jarosbodytko6462]

Lost Canvas is a phenomenal story and it did an amazing job with the characters, particularly the Gold Saints. I always kinda hated how Aldebaran Taurus (my sign) didn’t get much to do during the Sanctuary Arc, but man, did they do an upgrade on him (or rather his predecessor) in Lost Canvas. He and Virgo Asmita are definitely my favourite Gold Saints in that series.

[@phoenixdouchebag904]

The Anime is unfinished but the Manga is complete.

[@patricioarte]

"The Lost Canvas" is a rare gem!

[@Dragonk116]

Lost canvas is amazing but they never finished the anime 😔

[@PrisonMike196]

Any ideas why?@@Dragonk116

[@tonilarios]

Just hearing any Saint Seiya terminology in English is so exotic and alien it's kind of fascinating.

[@ginogatash4030]

Technically the original terminology is in English (Saint, Cloth etcetera) so it is us non English who have been the exotic ones.

[@whathell6t]

@@ginogatash4030 It’s more than that. Up to this date, Dragon Ball fans still view Knight of the Zodiac-Saint Seiya as the most bizarre and colorful manga/anime they have ever seen despite the fact that both Dragon Ball and Saint Seiya are from the same publication, Shonen Jump; and adapted by the same anime studio, Toei Animations; AND ignoring the fact that Dragon Ball and Saint Seiya are part of the Shonen Nekkatsu Trinity. Although, they’re heavily aggressive against the Saint Seiya power scale. And the Dragon Ball fans have support from Naruto, Bleach, Yu Yu Hakusho, One Piece, One Punch Man, and every mainstream weebdom on being aggressive against Saint Seiya.

[@ginogatash4030]

@@whathell6t we were talking about terminology what the fuck are you talking about?

[@whathell6t]

@@ginogatash4030 First off, Your context implies there’s a dissonance within Westerners that are fretting on a Japanese manga telling a epic fantastical Greek/Latin battle story as being exotic and untranslatable despite the fact that Greek/Latin should be absolutely familiar with Westerners, especially on the English.

[@ginogatash4030]

@@whathell6t no dude you missed the point by a mile, op said it was weird to hear English terminology applied to Saint Seiya and I brought up the fact that the original Japanese version also uses English terminology for things like Saints and Cloths, and thus we (as in the European and Latin American countries that chose to replace the English names with our languages' equivalent of knights and armor instead of keeping the original English names) are actually the ones being odd, hope I made my self clear.

[@Dark.Shingo]

Like the original Dragonball, one of those instances where an anime goes almost unnoticed and flops in USA while it becomes big in Latin America and rest of the world.

[@MentalLiberation]

Sad but true

[@migueldias8546]

Timing has a lot to do with it. At the beginning, Japanese studios never imagine their creations could work in the rest of the world. There are tons of stories of businessmen who bought the rights for entire series for $1000, if not less!!!! Berlusconi, with his TV empire in Italy, played a pivotal role too (I said empire so he extended it very quickly outside Italy). It offered the need for content, the money, the influence and a lot of luck to spray anime in other Latin speaking countries, like France , Spain or Latin America (France is a particular case, Berlusoni's influence was important but another company has a lot to do with anime, before the Berlusconi's era, AB Production, via the TV show it was selling to the most important French TV channel at the time, Le Club Dorothee - The host of that French TV show even did a guess appearance in Bioman!!!!)... I discovered Dragon Ball, like any other French person 8 years before the US public discovered it... And it is why timing is important. Saint Seiya needs to be watched when you are a teen. Again, it was aired in France in 1988 (same year as Dragon Ball actually)!

[@Dark.Shingo]

@@migueldias8546 of course, timing is everything! In Mexico it was a TV network who saw the potential and seized a good chunk of 90s anime back in the day (Saint Seiya, Sailor Moon, Magic Knight Rayearth, Escaflowne, Samurai Troopers and more. They build a fanbase and a TV show (Caritele) that served as introduction to the shows and succesfully stablished anime into the mainstream. The competing network got into it the fight with Dragonball and later with Dragonball Z, Pokemon, Ranma and they even tried with Utena (which they cancelled by episode 2 due to people not being ready to watch the content, since they believed animated shows were purely for kids). Curiously, in time all the anime shows and Caritele were cancelled in TV Azteca and it remained a mystery for years why happened until recently, when the former TV host revealed on an interview that since Disney made a deal with the TV network one of the conditions was to wipe out anime as they felt it was not family content.

[@migueldias8546]

@@Dark.Shingo I grew up in France but I think I know who you are talking about... She is working for Bandai Mexico now, if my brain is not betraying me?

[@Dark.Shingo]

@@migueldias8546 Yes, Adriana de Castro has been doing some collabs for them!

[@gundambassexe31]

As a Saint seiya fan , this show is definitely a underappreciated gem

[@davidstrader4035]

I still love it to this day

[@bobbybrine6547]

My dad watched it when he was little, I watched it with him sometimes when I was little. I rewatched the entire series like 2 years ago I think and it was cool seeing the context of all the scenes I had remembered

[@marvingodric0]

In the US. And I am glad because I’ve seen how Naruto and DBZ has been “endorsed” to say it politely here. Hell No Saint Saint IS worshiped as a sacred treasure in Latin America.

[@pedropassament4299]

Your comment only applies to the US.

[@gundambassexe31]

@@pedropassament4299 whatever lol

[@juancarlosporras2216]

is still today one of the best OST in all anime history. RIP Master Seiji Yokoyama

[@juanjoseph]

The best***

[@h.c4898]

The reason of the success of the séries.

[@MariaCaligari]

Amen

[@TeoReviews]

If you like this ost you should def check out some of the Italian movie scores like Mexican Dream by Pierro or Mary's Theme by Stelvio Cipriani. There HAS to be a direct correlation between those movies and this show's score.

[@ulisesmantilla9193]

To hear such praise for Pegasus Fantasy nowadays made me scream "hell yeah!" internally.

[@karlamendez5923]

I actually screamed “YESSS!!!!!!!!

[@kusazero]

Shouldn't you be screaming "Saint Seiyaaaa! ~"?

[@AdolfoAvalos]

"One of the best theme songs for any motion picture entertainment ever broadcast." I used to think you are the best, Dan, but now I also love you unrelentlessly.

[@jamesduncan6729]

SAINT SEIYA

[@sassomichela9092]

I am Italian, and Saint Seiya has had a HUGE impact on my life: I started watching it when I was, like, four???, and it made me passionate about greek mythology and constellation stuff - and so here I am, 21, four rewatches later, studying latin and ancient greek language, history and culture at the university. So, yeah, it's not and understatement for me to say that this anime has partially made me who I am now.

[@osez111]

i still remember that day of april 88 when i saw the first episode.

[@nimhard]

This is incredible. The MUSIC was also a huge factor on why this series is so amazing.

[@chamobeatbox]

Sickkk !!! As a kid I read also Greek mythology because of Los Caballeros del Zodiaco, it also started my love for drawing. So yeah it’s one of the reasons it’s one of the best Anime ever in my opinion. Much respect to you amigo !

[@ObniMan]

I live in Italy n just watched it w my 11 year old boy. I liked it watching it in Italian, just didn't like how in the Italian version they didn't use the names of the knights. Like Seiya, Hyoga, Ikki, Shun......

[@salvosalva]

@@ObniMan Yes, Seiya was named Pegasus even before becoming a Knight and the same was for the others. Another curiosity is that the Italian dialogues add sentences taken straight from Dante's Divine Comedy and other important books.

Here in Mexico in September, we're going to have the second biggest symphonic concert about Saint Seiya called "Saint Seiya: Pegasus Fantasy -A Symphonic Experience- Part II" The first concert became such a viral event that even Japan was impressed. Even some worldwide fans were jealous of how big it was. Also, Yumi Matsuzawa and Nobuo Yamada were so amazed by the whole production that both contacted the producer and asked about the possibility to be in the next concert! It is going to be amazing. I'm so excited!

[@teddycarcamo1618]

What a show! Thank you for letting us know, I just saw it on KZbin. Nostalgic to say the least.

[@JP_Wu]

@@teddycarcamo1618 In Peru, there was also a Saint Seiya big symphonic concert just few months ago, look for Animatissimo at the Gran Teatro Nacional.

[@gunsslip]

It was and still is so big in Brazil, named "Cavaleiros do Zodíaco", it started the "anime invasion" there, it became the most desirable toys for every kid in the 90s, had a whole album released with original songs made for the anime, even having whole magazines dedicated to the show's content with also news about other cartoons/anime. It also changed the game for voice actors, making them famous and known to the audience. Cheers to all the fans around the world, especially Latin America.

[@OsvaldoR10]

Seiya... 🙋🏻‍♂️👊🏻😎😤💨

[@josefn738]

Ive heard that in brazil its as big as dragon ball its similar in mexico but it was definitely more popular in brazil

[@GalvanMind]

@@josefn738 its bigger then Dragon Ball and Naruto here in Brazil

[@thaismagalhaes5928]

I remember my dad having a hard time finding the toy figure I wanted when they released it. I also remember everything related to Cavaleiros do Zodíaco flying off the shelfs pretty fast

[@thaismagalhaes5928]

@@josefn738 I think it was bigger, at least till early 00's

[@Slayerthecrow]

This is one of the biggest animes in Latin America (alongside Dragon Ball and Naruto) most people are dragged to this anime because of the epic soundtrack, graphic violence, interesting use of mythology, interesting concepts like cloth and cosmos, iconic latinamerican dub among other reasons.

[@JohnDoe-wq5eu]

It's amazing how off the mark and crappy the US version is. And I'm talking of course about the DIC version not the uncut one. They single-handedly ruined any chance the show had until very recently.

[@manuelguerrero6956]

I discovered this anime during one of my summer trips to visit my grandmother in Mexico, this anime was just as popular as DBZ at the time. Still to this day me and friends of a similar background reference it, it had that much of an impact in Latin American culture.

[@azmodanpc]

In Europe too (fra and ita esp)

[@SilverZeruel]

@@seikou1762 Ese es un verdadero hombre!

[@josejuanandrade4439]

Naruto sucks... It was all Saint Seiya and Dragon Ball back in the day, i guess you could say Ranma too, but Ranma went a tad forgotten with the time.

[@DamadelPuente]

I think the violence of Saint Seiya was a big part of why it was so succesful in my country. With those blood splashes and gruesome fights the stakes were always so very high and everything was so damned tragic, there was nothing like that at the time. These guys were fighting to the death, risking life and limb, having to inflict real damage and taking it too, it was the textbook definition of heroism in full color and motion. It was also a continuous story (something cartoons i was watching then didn't have a lot of at that point), so it kept building up and up and everything got increasingly more serious. Thinking back on it, the narrative had so many plotholes, but omg, it was absolutely epic and extremely dramatic. Like, you showed the scene where an ear is cut off and I don't even remember that, it wasn't that significant on the long run. But I sure remember things like Dragon Shyryu using his fingers to blind himself so that he could defeat the Medusa Silver Saint and save his friends that had turned to stone. There were a lot of those self sacrificing moments that were somewhat gruesome in nature but so very, very meaningful and moved me so much as a little girl. If they edited all that emotion out I can see why it wouldn't do well in the USA.

[@TheZapan99]

Owning a Knights of the Zodiac Myth Cloth action figure was like driving a Ferrari, for French kids in the 1990. Poor kids only had Ninja Turtles and GI Joes, but if your parents were rich enough to buy you just one gold knight, you were the most popular kid on the playground.

[@MSGSlayer1]

"Los Caballeros del Zodiaco" always aired when my mom and I visited my grandparents in the Dominican Republic. I also saw what little of the DIC version aired on CN. It was better in Spanish.

[@MikeFelix1805]

And the irony is that Cartoon Network Latin America also aired it but with the original opening, i grew up with original Spanish (from Spain) opening not a fan of that one in fact we made fun of it when we saw the original opening and compared it to the Spanish (from spain) opening

[@MSGSlayer1]

@@MikeFelix1805 Hey, I remember that. I thought it was fire.

[@jfmg64]

@@MikeFelix1805 "LOS CABALLEROS DEL ZODIAaaAaaAco! CUANDO LANZAN SUS ATAaaAAaQues" Yeah... Not even close to the masterpiece of Pegasus Fantasy xD But I laugh every time I sing it for a friend fan of the series. I just recently started watching the anime for the story, I knew so little I remembered as a kid. I love it now, been playing the gacha game on cellphone too, is pretty forgiving (gacha aspect) and fun.

[@defstonernetwork7950]

Brazil aired all episodes on CN

[@bluebaron6858]

@@MikeFelix1805 not all cartoon networks are the same. That show PPGZ aired in Spanish CN but no trace of it on US CN at all...

[@wstine79]

"GET THE PLUSH! GET THE MANGA! GET THE GAME!" The marketing blueprint of a successful anime series.

[@Maverynthia]

I want the plus and the game!! Where-- Oh.. I can't T_ T

[@munstrumridcully]

I prefer the dolls-- er, action figures, yes that's what I mean! Super-cool _action figures_ not girly _dolls_ ! ;) Seriously, though, I don't even know how much I've spent on SH Figuarts DBZ figures... But they ate so cool, Brewster! (1,000 internet points to everyone who gets that) ;:)

[@MuTheGuardian]

@@Maverynthia are you interested in getting the game for PC?

[@shaider1982]

Master Yogurt from Spaceballs would be proud✌🤣

[@munstrumridcully]

@@shaider1982 Spaceballs the flamethrower! I always wanted one of those...

[@vergueta_]

Excellent work. Saint Seiya was so popular and competed against Dragon Ball in popularity in all Latin America, Brazil, Europe, Japan and China. Until today is one of the biggest franchise all around the world. I had never understand why it wasn't so popular in US, I guess in that time Saint Seiya looked very violent for kids and TV channels tought that that show was inappropriate for children. And when they try to launch it was 17 years late. Sorry for americans they lost one of the most iconic animes all of times.

[@youredelicious9945]

they didnt compete. Saint seoya was broadcasted at first and was the first introduction to anime for most of 90's public audiences, once it was over, Sailor Moon and Dragon Ball Z appeared along with Re- runs of Saint seiya

[@thelightbearer7769]

Too violent can't be true lol dragon ball is violent and it was extremely popular in the US

[@vergueta_]

@@thelightbearer7769 the quantity of blood that it was shown can be the cause. In Dragon Ball Z is not so exaggerate it.

[@carlosluismendez7392]

@@thelightbearer7769 USA censored the show a lot and changed the iconic original OST for a generic one.

[@marcosdheleno]

@@thelightbearer7769 dude, one of the main characters literaly rips the ear of someone of, and another rips his own eyes out. saint seiya is brutal. also there's nude scenes as well.

[@christopherwalsh2368]

Absolutely livid about what Netflix did to my gorgeous boy Shun. They can claim it was to have more female representation but it's a classic case of queer erasure pure and simple 😡

[@gespenst1329]

It’s propaganda.

[@time4manmode945]

Shun showed us that it’s okay to show your emotions If your a man, it’s true that men are seen as reliable pillars but men are also human and have vulnerabilities, and not being afraid to show said emotions and seek aid just like you aid others can also be seen as manly, by making shun into a female it betrays that important concept😢

[@robertseeley1808]

Sure, that's what Netflix does. It clearly hates queer ideology..... get real.

[@PaisaPK916]

For real though. Shaina and Marin are one of the most badass females in anime. Guess they forgot about them.

[@mercuropheliac]

If they wanted more female representation in the show, they should’ve taken one of the more macho characters and genderswapped them. Maybe Ikki or Shiryu? I can easily see them as boss, butch babes. “Shaun” was the most regressive executive decision ever made for a franchise that was already progressive to begin with. I’m totally fine with the idea of Shun being queer or even full on gay, but to me, that headcanon still seems a little too predictable and cliche, just as making him a girl, simply because he’s kind, sensitive, and a little feminine. Straight dudes can be all of those things too. Mercy and Compassion have no gender or orientation.

[@mdmagnusson]

Fell in love with the show as a kid when it came out in France in '88. Love the ideology and the visual style. That said the 2019 Netflix adaptation can suck it.

[@dariuszrutkowski420]

In Poland in 99-2000's I ran back home from school to watch it. It was a French language version that had it's french lines made quiet ( still you could hear them) and a Polish lector spoke all the lines. Funn fact: Dragon ball the french language version had the same treatment so those 2 Anime came to Poland as french versions - since it's less problematic to translate from French, cuz you know ... more translators.

[@jion7242]

So sad that all of it's remakes/spin off were shit. Lost canvas, the only good one, cancelled.

[@makavelikilluminati7441]

I loved the French intro lol! Born in the mid 90s and it's the Anime I can remember growing up on.

[@jayster900able]

Yeah bro netflix adaptation was an embarassment had to stop watching after a couple of episodes..

[@waylon2046]

@@jion7242LC is the best version of all. Unfortunately it"s not welcome in Japan.

[@Vesperitis]

Fun fact: The original Japanese voice actor for Seiya is the same one for Amuro Ray, the first protagonist of the Gundam franchise.

[@crisgadelhart]

Toru Furuya also dubbed Mewtwo and Super Mario in an OVA. He's fantastic!

[@AusSP]

@@crisgadelhart And Sailor Moon's famous Guy-Who-Does-Nothing.

[@migovas1483]

Fun fact, he is probably the main character ( or at least an important one ) in 40% of all Robot Animes from the 80's 90's. He even reprise his role on the new adaptation, like Hiroshi Shiba for Steel Jeeg, or Laserion, and / or on the games for Bandai in SRW.

[@SanDiegosGreatest]

Fun fact is the Japanese voice actor for shun is also Vegeta , and seiya is Yamcha and Shiryu is tien

[@forestgrumpy119]

I love the first gundams aswell lmao

[@ChaotixBR]

2- I'm a fan since the 90s. it was a hit here in Brazil.

[@PegasusPablo]

Os guardiões do universo hão de vencer o mal!♪

[@dimitreze]

since you are talking about cartoons that weren't so big on the US, you could talk about the 80's Dungeons & Dragons cartoon it was amazing and it's huge here on Brazil

[@SecretGalaxyTV]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/gH7biatuo8plb6c

[@dimitreze]

@@SecretGalaxyTV oh, nice! I'm going to check it out! thanks

[@dimitreze]

@@SecretGalaxyTV I just saw my comment there from 2 years ago. Hahaha. I already watched!

[@jufialio6287]

Oh yeh, USA sometimes lose somethings because their bubble. We in Brazil get a lot shows direct from Japan that was massive here, but they (USA) never give atention or never heard about. Saint Seiya and Jaspion was important like Avengers here.

[@TheDrokz]

@@jufialio6287 shurato... the original dragon ball... yeah rede manchete molded a lot of ppl even after they closed off

[@alienduck6176]

First thing that impressed kids of my age in the 90's when we watched Saint Seiya for the first time was the incredible fights, armors (clothes) designs, the music, of course the gore and violence. However even for kids of 9 or 10 years it took a few episodes before noticing how deep and philosophical this show is. After several episodes it wasn't the battles or the blood what impressed us but the powerful message of loyalty, bravery, self confidence and above all the love for the people we consider our family. When I was 10 years old I was so impressed by the episode when Shiryu had to destroy his own eyes in order to save his friends, I wondered then if I (or anyone else) would be so brave in real life to the extreme of mutilate your own eyes using your bare fingers in order to save your brothers, it is a questions I still ask myself in my late 30's. No other anime, or entertainment product for that matter, has ever made me think about something like that

[@darrylwilliams4457]

Man this shit was trash still is

[@alienduck6176]

@@darrylwilliams4457 Explain why. What can you say against the music, character design and action sequences that support your statement? The only thing that you've shown here is your poor taste in anime and art in general

[@darrylwilliams4457]

Y'all just mad that shit trash nobody talks about saint seeya later

[@alienduck6176]

@@darrylwilliams4457 Nobody talks about one of the most popular animes of all time? I'm guessing you're a troll, a very bad one. The other option is that you are r*t*rd which would be the worst case scenario for you, so I'll make you a favor and will think of the first option. And since I am not feeding the troll... good night sir

[@jarosbodytko6462]

The first episode that hooked me and I actually remember watching as a kid was the episode where Seiya and Shiryu fight in the Galaxian Wars and Shiryu’s heart stops beating after Seiya’s attack. And then Seiya, who desperately needs medical care and is about to die, risks his own life to safe Shiryu. That image of the dragon fading on Shiryu’s back as he’s dying only to come back as his heart starts beating again was seared on my retina and brain. Even though I didn’t understand much French then, I knew that was special and it hooked me on the show. That moment, the sacrifices he made for his friends and of course the dragon that appears with his attacks made Shiryu my favourite Bronze Saint.

[@Baronsunday]

I didn't know that France was the first country to have it after Japan, growing up in the 80's it has to be a 1 for me. I still remember the very day the first episode aired in 88, the next day in the courtyard every boy was shouting the name of the attacks. To this very day, I still love and watch that show.

[@alfje5492]

TF1, A2 and Fr3 bought basically every Japanese series they could get in the late 70s and 80s: Capt Future (Capt Flamme) was the first one I saw and Saint Seiya was definitely my favourite!

[@GHOST5691.]

Although I know much of this series basically studied it, that's great info, I thought south America had it after Japan

[@stephanclemens2348]

@@GHOST5691. It's actually France that created the initial spark for Anime as a whole to spread. And Saint Seiya was the main reason. But nowadys the South American Fanbase is far larger and more active than anywhere else.

[@GHOST5691.]

@@stephanclemens2348 I don't know about the France part though. I do know kurumada had an anime before saint seiya in the early 80s. Yep I know the south Americans languages and french aside form Japanese were the only mangas available, but that France part got me interested

[@fbomb7184]

As an American visiting France I was blown away by all the anime, especially Les Chevallier du Zodiac. It was like watching He Man on steroids. So good until you realize no matter how bad the good guys got beat, they’d always find a way to win. I’m like bro, you should be dead or paralyzed, but then they come back and win. It’s literally like a Hulk Hogan match every episode.

[@M4G1K163]

Is athena, their goddess helping them that makes the difference, it's a reference to divinity, if you keep going beyond your limits, the divine will then and only then support you

[@puyolramirez4477]

It was every child's dream in Mexico to wake up to a Caballero del Zodiaco action figure for dia de reyes! To this day best action figures in the market. So sad they didn't get popular here in the states. 😭

[@clawofthefallen]

3:49 technically, by this time, the Pope had already been replaced by Gemini Saga, which would explain people's worries that the "kind" pope had suddenly become more aggressive (to even adopt a more evil-looking outfit). Saga had murdered Pope Shion over the favoring Aiolos as his successor and attempted to murder baby Athena. Saga, while wise and just, has split personality and would have a radical opposite personality that was ruthless and violent that was overthrowing his wise personality as years went by.

[@christianenireb9713]

Dont spoiled, lol

[@Renedoc82]

Yes, like they told you, don't spoil a twist that have like 25 years (to me)...i feel old (still waiting for next dimension anime)

[@clawofthefallen]

@@christianenireb9713 Spoiler??? It was a MEME even when I was a kid and memes weren't even a thing! XD Btw, the video is already spoilerific and the entire world (except for the north americans) knows the plot by heart since the 90's. I bet most of that generation has kids and some of them NAMED after stuff from this anime.

[@Megrez-Alberich]

That's only in the manga. In the official canon of the anime, there are 3 Popes : the real one with the brown hair and the golden helmet (Aries Sion), his young assistant Ares with the blue mask and a red helmet, and then an imposter (Saga) who killed the real Ares 13 years ago and took his identity. Saga/Ares killed Sion only once Seiya had returned to Japan, after hearing about the Galaxian Wars and finding out that Athena was still alive.

[@cayun6]

@@Megrez-Alberich there's no "official canon of the anime". The anime is a mess, non-sense. TOEI's gone nuts. The official canon is the manga. The others works are just spin-offs, YES, INCLUDING THE ANIME. Best case you can considerer them to be other timelines, since Next Dimension's Chronos opened doors for that to be possible when speaking of parallel timelines to Athena.

[@freakmagnet2737]

I grew up watching Caballeros del Zodiaco, the bloody version, it was gory but still a work of fiction easy to understand even for a kid. My mom was also into it.

[@JohnDoe-wq5eu]

I love how confident DIC was bringing it to the US and clearly they had no clue what made it popular. The music the violence everything that made it cool they pretty much butchered it completely. You guys are lucky you got the real deal.

[@freakmagnet2737]

@@JohnDoe-wq5eu what about the homoerotic scenes between Andromeda and Swan or Piscis? Did they cut that too?

[@JohnDoe-wq5eu]

@@freakmagnet2737 The DIC dubis absolutely horrible, the mere fact they took 114 episodes and whittled it down to 40 should tell you a lot was cut. I didn't watch that much I found it unbearable to watch. They changed the blood to numerous colors mud brown, blue green it was just a mess.

[@youredelicious9945]

@@freakmagnet2737 they turned piscis intro female character, just like Sailor moon they censored all the LGBT+ innuendos and relationships

[@ricardobalcazar1227]

I always love that the constellation appears behind, when they about to used their signature attack. To this day I still want an original cell from the show.

[@CallMeAuranna]

Seeing that everyone's telling their Saint Seiya stories, I'll go ahead and add mine ^^. I discovered the franchise somewhere in 2014. Thanks to the Percy Jackson books I was really passionate about greek and roman mythology and culture, so when a friend recommended me an anime that had something of the zodiac I searched for it and found the spin-off Saint Seiya The Lost Canvas. The premise seemed really interesting so I watched the first episode, and then another, and then the entire two seasons. I was completely hooked. The animation, the characters, the fights and the really deep value of friendship it showed was something I hadn't seen in any other piece of media. I later found out that the anime my friend was talking about was actually Fairy Tail (also watched it) but I'm grateful that I found The Lost Canvas first. Well, after that I found out season 3 was cancelled so I read the mangas and finished it. And almost by mistake I found out it was actually a spin-off of the original 80s anime. So I got the collection box (the three main arcs) and watched it completely. And here I am, seven or so years later still completely obsessed with it. Its a wonderful anime with a great plot and message and I really hope more people can discover it. Also, thanks to Saint Seiya and Percy Jackson I'm studying Classic History, because they opened my eyes to a subject I absolutely ADORE that is history and mythology. So yeah, thank you Masami Kurumada and thank you Shiori Teshigori, you created something incredible.

[@DiestroCorleone]

Luckily we got Saint Seiya in Argentina back in the '90s. Uncensored. One of the first anime series I saw.

[@wea69420]

Man, the entirety of Saint Seiya's OST is so good. There's pretty much an album's worth of Make-up songs in it too, all about as good as Pegasus Fantasy.

[@nataliespada2721]

Everytime I listen to a Saint Seiya OST, I feel the urge to go back watching the anime all over again!

[@pliniomsann]

This is my favorite animation ever. Made me cry a couple times and taught many many principles on each episode

[@con2mms2000]

This Anime is a masterpiece. The Storytelling is amazing. The idea of the Greek mythology, combined with an unique storyline makes it the best Anime I've seen. And the cloths and how they are alive and how they evolve 😱😱 it's so original. The best thing is that there's no finale yet. They're still writing the ending. In Latinamerica is a cult. Oh... And the soundtrack OMG. Is another masterpiece. If you liked Dragon Ball, this Anime will blow your mind. In the end, Dragon Ball's storyline is pointless cause it doesn't take you anywhere. Saint Seiya Is only one storyline and it's amazing. Focus on the original anime. The Netflix adaptation and all the B-sides are pointless. Then read the Next Dimension Manga. Is the continuation of the original story. And please, watch it with subtitles with the Japanese audio. Please.

[@apoc9ify]

Yes. Dragon Ball series is enjoyable, but it's very childish superficial story compared to Saint Seiya which deals with some more fundamental questions concerning right and wrong and even bit of religion.

[@heylookitscesco8698]

I agree, the soundtrack is majestic. By far the best part of the show, and everything else about it is already great

[@djantouahmed7319]

So you never watched dragon ball.

[@mira55x-planetnalzena15]

ye I stopped watching the Netflix adaptation after watching the original classic anime of Saint Seiya... (no I dont want to watch it in sub because I cant deal with subtitles or have what it takes to learn Japanese... but the dub I was watching wasnt the American version because that big guy did lose his ear!) because making the one guy who just so happens to be wearing pink armour a girl because the director decided to bitch about there being "too many male characters", feels way too fishy and sexist imo... it literally feels like "pink isnt for guys" BS that I cant believe is still happening in this day and age... not to mention Shun was an amazing character that they ruined! he used kindness as a strength and grown to be the man he is, but Netflix ruined that character development which I doubt they'll fix anytime soon thats what I loved about Saint Seiya because of the diversity in the characters in terms of individuality! like there are a lot of feminine looking guys in the show that I feel would cater to people who could relate to characters like that, ya know? I may not be a feminine guy, or even trans... but I definitely dont fit in with the other females in terms of being girly girl (I dont feel like a tomboy either but my interests and hobbies werent considered "normal" for a girl when I was at school)

[@jarosbodytko6462]

@@mira55x-planetnalzena15 Shun was one of my favourite characters. Yeah, he looked like a girl (and in French was actually voiced by a woman for the first few episodes until Phoenix Ikki showed up), and his armour was pink, but the character and armour design with the huge curved shoulder armour and his freaking chains was so effing cool.

[@ftcnstuff]

The first time I saw this was in Mexico when I was 5-7 years old visiting family in Mexico. God I love this show. It was also called Knights of The Zodiac in Latin America, "Caballeros Del Zodiaco"

[@iwynseiya7699]

Este Opening es genial 🇲🇽👇🏻 kzbin.info/www/bejne/nmXQoWumlruGock

[@xsanguine8]

Yeah, same here, and I was a big fan for a couple weeks after getting back from Mexico, even though I only managed to watch a couple episodes each visit.

[@LordPachotron82]

I´ve always found curious how Saint Seiya didn´t stick on the USA market. Here in Latin America, it was one of the Big 3 animes from the 90s, the others being Dragon Ball and Sailor Moon.

[@youredelicious9945]

I still don't get it, spoecially because Dragon Ball and Sailor moon were huge in The US even when they were censored heavily and suffered of bad dubs as well.

[@joaquinmuniz3055]

@@youredelicious9945 but no where near as bad as saint seiya but then again they basically sweat blood and violent compared to dbz and dbz can hide behind the fact they kill nameless ALIENS so they got a pass but in saint seiya they kill other humans

[@Haibing22]

They are the reverse Simpsons, huge everywhere but Japan.

[@GardevoirBoy1991]

@@youredelicious9945 I blame Optimum Productions for the heavy censorship and bad dubbing for Sailor Moon. Despite this, it gained a cult following thanks to the fans wanting a true uncut dub of Sailor Moon. Localization was hard for Americans back in the day, and I feel bad for the American children getting anime and video games staying true to social norms. American parents were led to believe that all content in the Japanese version was bad for children and I find that find bullspit. Christian groups were misguided in their beliefs back in the day and I was mad the weird content had to get censored when localized to American children back in the day. I didn't what TV channels thought about anime shows for kids, it was all lies! Lies! None of the content outside of violence was bad for children. All content in the Japanese version was inappropriate for children? Bullshit!

[@jacksonteller3973]

@@GardevoirBoy1991 Don't feel bad for us, I'll defend the Optimum dub of Sailor Moon on my goddamn deathbed, I actually much prefer its voice-acting over that of the Studiopolis dub, where the voice-actors all sound very bored and listless, it's like they were so focused on being true to the original that they sucked out all of the personality of the VAs.

[@teegees]

The Bandai toys for Saint Seiya are some of the most poseable, intricate and beautiful in the toy collecting world, with die cast metal, articulated joints, and multiple accessories to vary the poses. And also some of the most expensive. The multitude of beautifully designed armors in the series lent themselves perfectly for a toy collectible. Also the Bandai PlayStation games were excellent 3D fighting games for their times , with moves and fight mechanics that were well thought out and incredibly engaging.

[@XxLIVRAxX]

As for merchandising, the Paninni album with colectible stickers of Knights of the Zodiac was very popular, the golden knight stickers were coveted, often hard to find and trafficked in every school yard all over the continent.

[@tezkatepuka]

2. Here in México it was aired in the early 90s, the only other anime aired around the same time was sailor moon, so it didnt had big competition. Still holds strong to this days. And still has one of the best OST of all anime.

[@kabutogouki]

los tres grandes pilares del anime en los 90: seiya, sailor moon y dragon ball! la segunda oleada japonesa de latino america (yo soy de argentina)

[@mar10ssj1]

@@kabutogouki fuck YEAH!

[@MikeFelix1805]

Asi es

[@TrainedOldSkool]

Man Mexico and Latin America where drowning with anime for years before it was more main stream in the US, Saint seiya, Sailor moon, Candy Candy, Captain Tsubasa, Mazinger z, Dragon warrior, Magic Knight Ray Earth, Ranma 1/2, the original Dragonball and DBZ, DBGT, and those are just the ones I remember at the top of my head. I remember watching Dragon ball and DBZ on tv early in the mornings as a kid in the US and the episodes just stopped at a certain point while on the Spanish channels they had the whole series, I watched DB, DBZ and GT and finished the series in Spanish years before it got to cartoon network.

[@SageX85]

It aired in 1992, in september if i remember right. I was in 2nd year of elementary, Sailor moon must have began airing in 1994, because i was in 1st grade of secondary when they finally aired the last episode. The saturday morning cartoon block at first lasted till 9am at first , long before it exploded in popularity an went into full morning programming. It showed first in channel 13, then Adriana de Castro began presenting it in caritrece, and then when they moved the block to the channel 7 they renamed the program to caritele. Ahhh good times.

[@TrainedOldSkool]

Saint Seiya was never going to be a hit in the US because it was always going to be butchered to be suitable for airing on American tv, the series was a complete 180 when comparing it to dragonball, while dragonball was more fast paced action, the character where more light hearted and you had comedy thrown in along with some dramatic moments here and there, Saint Seiya was super dramatic, comedic moments where miniscule, the action was slower paced and the fights where more violent, bloody and darker. Hell the Dragon Shiryu vs Gold Saint of Cancer and the Phoenix Ikki vs Gold Saint of Virgo fights would have given American parents nightmares.

[@SageX85]

How to forget the scenes of the tests to gain the cloths in the sanctuary, the one that didnt died got it. Yeah, its not a series that had any chance in the US

[@dcb99filmz]

@@SageX85 Not even if they dubbed it in the late 80s or early 90s with the likes of Rob Paulsen and Peter Cullen?

[@TrainedOldSkool]

​@@dcb99filmz The issue with Saint Seiya was the violence it contained, it was more PG-13/14 as they would say now then for little kids. In the first episode you have Seiya the main character chop his rivals ear off to win the cloth/armor of Pegasus, in another episode down the line one of the main characters has to blind himself by poking his eyes out with his two fingers to be able to defeat an enemy saint who can turn others to stone with his medusa shield and those are two of the tamer fights, they get darker as the series goes on and introduce stronger enemies, no way in hell would they put that on TV in the 80s and 90s on US TV, it would need some major censoring which would destroy the essence of the series, like the version on cartoon network did. Back in the 80s they thought Filmations He-man cartoon was violent and just look at the way congress acted with Mortal Kombat and Night Trap in the 90s, hell power rangers was thought too violent, freaking cartoony power rangers lol. An uncensored Saint Seiya in the USA marketed toward kids would have been burned at the stake lol.

[@dcb99filmz]

@@TrainedOldSkool I've seen where Seiya chops off Cassios's ear and where Shiryu intentionally blinds himself...but if I was an exec trying to pitch it back then, butchering it but keeping the music and getting Paulsen, Cullen, MacNeille, Welker, etc. is a risk I'd be willing to take. Remember how Gatchaman got botched twice before being released uncut in 2004? I could see that happening for this if it happened earlier...but alas, it didn't. It too was botched twice before getting an uncut release 15 years too late. But seriously, could you hear someone like Tress MacNeille playing Shaina or Peter Cullen playing Ikki?

[@SageX85]

@@dcb99filmz Have no idea who they are/were, since im mexican, but the series has too much blood and gore for US standards for kids shows in the 80s-90s. Only as direct to video would have been possible to market it, but is not as gory as Akira or Fist of the North Star, and those are movies. A 114 unknown series as a direct to video? I dont think is a very lucrative bussiness, maybe if there was a cable network that also broadcasted anime "for adults".

[@segare-trop-vieux3932]

We had Saint Seiya in 1988 in Europe ( France, Switzerland and many other countries). It was huge and the figures are still something special. My favorite anime for sure.

[@fbomb7184]

The theme song is a banger. Best theme for an animated show rivaled only by the theme for the 86’ Transformers, The Movie theme.

[@mattkeflowers]

I first heard about the series from my best friend, who would spend a month or more each summer with his family in Mexico. He came back with tales of this wild show that had characters with magical armor that was taken from a swan and a pegasus (among others). It took us years to believe him about it.

[@karlamendez5923]

There’s also a mural in Mexico that has the characters of Saint Seiya on them. I plan to see it soon:3

[@jayti6660]

I grew up in Taiwan and Saint Seiya was my childhood. I love that series even to this day. I really hope a box set blu ray of the entire series including Hades chapter will come out one day.

[@3rd-Wave_Rebel]

Then you need to import them from Latino countries which subs are definitely only latinos and no English and region locked or free. The point is NA will never release a complete blu ray box set of saint seiya since it didn’t do well…

[@javiles2331]

As Colombian I can confirm that Los Caballeros Del Zodiaco marked my life forever, every time that I hear the opening song my eyes glaze over 😢😊, I can’t wait for the movie!

[@keldrith1]

So I was born and raised in the US for the last 22 years and some change. When I was a little kid my mother had one of those cars with the TV in the back. She randomly picked up the Saint Seiya DVD set from a blockbuster and my brother and I have never forgotten the show since. But I've yet to meet one other person who's seen it.

[@benjaminmuratore9341]

I actually met someone in my later years of high school who was a pretty big Saint Seiya fan. I saw multiple colored drawings of the characters he made, and he even had a binder or notebook with images placed on the cover.

[@nicoleseraphita7613]

I don't know much about Saint Seiya, but the theme song Pegasus Fantasy was a hell of a opening.

[@conchobar]

It's aged incredibly well.

[@migovas1483]

@@conchobar Like Wine,

[@rafaferreira6937]

Watch Bonsai Pop's video on Saint Seiya. He did a really good job, so you'll learn a thing or two😃

[@Akkise]

If you like Pegasus Fantasy you should listen to the second opening, Soldier dream.

[@mestrepidu2023]

I don't know if the serie is still on Netflix, but you should watch. It's great, amazing when you understand the essence of this story.

[@P4NCH1]

Maaan, didn't know that Saint Seiya got so late to USA and with all that disgusting edited ontop. Luckily in Argentina we got the OG series dubbed with only the title changed. Today is remembered like one of the OG biggest 3: Dragon Ball, Saint Seiya and Sailor Moon.

[@adrianovieiramiranda6528]

I am from Brasil , and Saint Seiya under the the name of " Cavaleiros do Zodíaco" is just the biggest anime hit , came to here on 1994 and changed the game, to this day still big, and is responsible for the boom of anime and manga here

[@camila_costa12]

Tb conheci outros animes e mangás por causa de cdz. Foi o anime que me apresentou ao mundo dos mangás e animes.

[@ferelpuma]

"Blessed are those who grew up with Saint Seiya. Even more blessed are those who grew up with the Latin American dub." - The bible, idk exactly where, somewhere in there

[@GOGOAKUMAN]

Then the devil took some to hell on Netflix.

[@djantouahmed7319]

You should stop the blasphemy.

[@aldusxenon]

I think I mentioned this before, growing up in the Bronx my friends and I would head to Manhattan in the mid to late 80's to get unofficial subbed VHS tapes of popular anime. Saint Seyia was one of these, including others like Galaxy Express 999 and Space Battleship Yamoto. Those were great times.

[@gonzalotorres5282]

An Otaku from the Bronx, very nice anecdotes.

[@p3ngu772]

What a wonderful video, would have loved to hear you talk about Saint Seiya for an entire hour!! I've loved SS since I was a child, my brother and I used to sing the op every day when it aired on cartoon network after lunch (in Spain), and seeing the series still be so loved and getting new content warms my heart. While live actions have quite the reputation, I'm very excited to see the final result. Whether it's good, bad or simply mediocre, I'm ready to have a laugh and see fun fights 🥺

[@AAron-gr3jk]

Can confirm, as a young boy in the 80-90s, this was HUUUUUUUUUUUUUGE in Europe. It was the hit before Dragon Ball, and for a while, you'd be as likely to see one poster for one as the other.

[@det.bullock4461]

Ooh, I grew up with this one! The Italian dubbing was famous for being filled with poetic quotes, mostly because the translations the localizers had to work with were only partial for some reason, also every character was named the same as their cloth because of the local toy licensee insistence (hence Seya was named Pegasus in the dub for example and so on) and of course they censored any reference to any non European culture or religion lest good catholic kids might learn or the existence of buddhism or stuff like that. I even had several of the Saints action figures (still have them in a proverbial box in the garage), the armors of the action figures had several die cast pieces and I remember they were much nicer than those they apparently tried to peddle later to the US audience (though some of the plastic pieces like Seya's chest piece were already starting to discolor when I put them in storage in the late 90s) .

[@azmodanpc]

This and Hokuto no Ken were mainstays of my childhood too. Read the Hades comics and enjoyed them a lot.

[@rodri11tube]

are you saying that the Budha/Budhism connected to Shaka was erased in Italy ?

[@det.bullock4461]

@@rodri11tube Possibly, I don't remember a lot of details myself (I was very young when I watched the series) and Italian wikis only say they censored the Buddhist parts without going into details.

[@apoc9ify]

It's funny because the anime disapproves of Buddhism if you watch exchanges between Shaka and Ikki.

[@RoanAkayume]

Here in France (Nice pronunciation by the way) Saint Seya was pretty huge. The rights for broadcast it were bought alongside a bunch of other anime (Dragon Ball, City Hunter, Hokuto No Ken among many, many others). But like City Hunter (Nicky Larson in France) and Hokuto No Ken (Ken le Survivant in France) it was deemed way too violent and it was heavily censored : parts where cut and dubbers modified their lines to add humour and puns to lighten the show's tone (somes lines from Hokuto No Ken or City Hunter are hilarious). Some politics even went on a crusade against violence on television because of those animes. But we still loved it and argued about our personnal Gold Saint ("My Gold Saint kick your Gold Saint's ass")

[@RodericPerez]

I didn't realize how popular these were until I brought my collection to a toy store owned by my friend who is Mexican and I never saw anyone's eyes light up like that before and he gave me quite a bit of cheddar for them. I saw how much he was selling them for and was stunned.

[@Lou-oc3jv]

Saint Seiya was the biggest thing I have ever seen in pop culture in Brazil during the 90s. It was on TV all the time, everywhere you could find those little dolls, they make songs and sold records about it. That was insane

[@mellowgeekstudio]

Not dolls, action figures. ;)

[@camila_costa12]

It's called cloth myth, in other words, action figures, not dolls.

[@Lou-oc3jv]

@Camila Costa Thanks!! I will keep my original comment with no correction, then the others that did not know the right vocabulary like me can get it here! I appreciate that guys

[@mellowgeekstudio]

No problem. @@camila_costa12 Nice, I didn't know about that line. Mine were the ones that came before. :)

[@DAGGyt]

Hello! I’m a Saint Seiya KZbinr myself, love the series. It is my favorite anime of all time, and I really liked your video. Very well edited, clearly explained, and even I discovered a few things I didn’t know about, like the Saint Seiya second DVDs. My only point is that Pope Shion wasn’t the one who tried to kill Athena/Saori, that was Gemini Saga, but that’s my only point. I live in Mexico and Saint Seiya is huuuuge here. Really a hidden gem, I myself do my videos in English to try to spread the word of he series, but wow, you did a great job, congratulations 👏👏👏

[@nataliespada2721]

Woa!!! Good job! I just subscribed!!

[@DAGGyt]

@@nataliespada2721 whoa! Thank you!

[@alemartin444]

I first watched Knights of the Zodiac on 1996. 25 years later, I'm still collecting those toys. They're a LOT. But also there's a lot to love on the series. Thanks Dan, I secretly waited for this day to come.

[@MlGHTY1]

Saint Seiya toys in the 80s were extremely popular, so that they sold out so fast that you couldn't put your hands on them

[@rogeriowerneck4112]

I am rewatching all of the seasons now with my sons. They absolutely love it too! Thanks for posting this video

[@euterpe131]

I came across Saint Seiya in 1990 in México. Completely fell for it...the Music, the drama, the violence, the Greek Mythology, the character design, the variety and extensive number of characters...just an amazing anime. Saint Seiya became the reason I love anime, and picked up a pencil to draw in the first place and became an artist.. I am forever grateful to Masami Kurumada, Shingo Araki and Seiji Yokoyama. Thank you...Saint Seiya forever!!! Pegasus Ryusei Ken!!!

[@hey_keith]

My life is complete, you finally covered Saint Seiya! HUGE fan of this anime since the 90s. Thanks Dan!

[@Mindcrime80]

“I Cavalieri dello Zodiaco “, i remember the countless arguments at School about who was the most powerful. Phoenix was the only Bronze saint that really kicked ass and,, of course, The Gold Saints. Here in Italy The show was first aired on local Tv stations but it ended at the Lion’s House of the Sanctuary Arc because..they didn’t buy all the episodes! Then was aired on Italia 7 with no cuts or editing and great dubs with dialogues in some old fashioned grammar to add gravitas. It worked!

[@kaizermagi1949]

Italia 7 saved the day multiple times airing some of the best anime of that era, like Hokuto No Ken and, obviously, Saint Seiya! So, Italia 7, we are always in your debt!!!

[@coveofpentagrams2671]

Amazing video! so many memories...gave me the push to rewatch the show and hopefully read the manga, thank you!

[@androyus]

Fun Fact: Saint Seiya actually predates Dragon Ball when it comes to shonen super-powered fights. During the manga publication, Seiya & friends were already fighting powerful enemies when Goku was still a kid on a journey to search for dragon balls & battling Red Ribbon army.

[@carlosaugustodinizgarcia3526]

Hokuto no Ken predates both Dragon Ball and Saint Seiya. And Ring ni Kakero (by Saint Seiya creator) predates Hokuto no Ken by half a decade.That was the first battle shonen with tournaments,ridiculous power levels and crazy secret moves.

[@f2pkujousara486]

@@carlosaugustodinizgarcia3526 Ring ni Kakero is soo good 😤😤 hi person of the past ;-;

[@gespenst1329]

Yea, and even powerful golden form.

[@gespenst1329]

@@carlosaugustodinizgarcia3526That last one is Kurumada as well.

[@typhoontim3378]

As a long time US fan, it's great to see people talking about it and see the history of it. I hope the movie ends up being good.

[@joselao9]

My friend, we die-hard fans of this franchise, will completely ignore this movie, because it reeks of heLLyWeird's incompetence and stupidity

[@gustavocve1779]

Here in Brazil Knights of the Zodiac was Dragon Ball Z before Dragon Ball Z. That's how big it was here. Every kid had the toys and even till this day people still talk about the show.

[@RevengerPhoenix]

What the series truly needs to finally shine in the US, is a real anime remake. No CGI. Take Dragon Quest Dai for example. The original anime ended abruptly in the early 90s, and now Toei remade it and it is pretty much complete. Saint Seiya would benefit from a full anime remake. Keep the Shingo Araki designs and color schemes (the Kurumada colors are awful), take away the filler (Asgard is beautiful, but it needs to go), focus it more on the manga. I bet they can adapt all the way to the Hades Arc in 100 episodes. With newer animation, it will win over new fans. And for the Latin Americans, get a new voice cast. Rene and Marcos sound too old to be voicing 18 year old looking dudes. Fans will be angry, but this series needs new blood injected into it in every way possible. And the classic series, only appeals to us hardcore 30-40 year olds. It’s impossible to get younger people to watch the old anime. Remake is the way to go.

[@karloavera]

Thanks for the Paraguay shout-out! Los Caballeros del Zodiaco was HUGE there!

[@geardog24]

Every other kid growing up: *KAMEHAMEHA!* Me growing up: *METEOR OF PEGASUS!*

[@twomuch77]

I grew up with it in Italy Me: Colpo segreto del drago nasciente

[@Renedoc82]

@AT Productions You have to say it bro... DAME TU FUERZA...

[@Wreckur4203]

@AT Productions Me: Golpe Fantasma de Fénix Also Me: Cadena de Andrómeda!!!

[@BarronVonSchnoot]

For you are a beautiful snowflake.

[@MikeFelix1805]

Or "dame tú fuerza pegaso" "give me Strenght pegasus"

[@Mirage009]

I'm glad you mentioned that opening song. Nothing can compare to it till this day.

[@MoroniSorroche]

Great job covering this! Ps: the Saint Seiya original soundtrack is some of the most amazing music you'll EVER hear!

[@mr.goblin6039]

I love Saint Seiya. It sucks that it never got big in the US, because it has literally everything that would've made it a hit: Greek mythology, cool and likable characters, lots of drama and LOTS of action.

[@anonimonn9775]

In Argentina, Saint Seiya or Caballeros del Zodíaco as we know it here, was an instant success in the mid nineties and it's perhaps one of the most popular anime here, along with Dragon Ball Z and Captain Tsubasa

[@munstrumridcully]

Imo, DBZ is in a class of its own in the world of anime. After DBZ my personal favs are the Helsing OVAs, Outlaw Star, snd Cowboy Bebop :)

[@pranitmishra199]

It's my fav anime but ain't that popular

[@818Vallero]

Same in Mexico

[@julioagua]

and Sailor Moon... why everyone is ignoring Sailor Moon???

[@818Vallero]

@@julioagua yeah sailor moon too but let's be real most kids didn't watch that..maybe the girls did

[@vaiyt]

I grew up on uncensored Saint Seiya. It kickstarted the anime boom in Brazil half a decade before Pokémon and DBZ.

[@darrellwallace4182]

Completely FASCINATING! Now I have to see all of this! You guy's do an AMAZING job revealing all the intricate storylines involved in these properties. I loved everything about this! Once again a great review and PLEASE keep up the great work!

[@drillerdev4624]

In Spain it was almost as big a hit as Dragon Ball, and even came out a bit earlier nationwide. We have a series of regional networks which brought a lot of anime before the national ones did, which meant that depending of which part of the country you were born, you were raised with things like Doctor Slump, Voltron or Kunnikoman, or never heard about them.

[@youredelicious9945]

yes but there are worlwide animes that were broadcasted succesfully across the globe. Being Saint seoya one of the first ones and that success along with sailor moon and dragon ball Z paved the way for other global cultural phenomenos such as Pokemon or Naruto

[@drillerdev4624]

@@youredelicious9945 But that's here in Spain. Dragon Ball came MUCH later to the US, for example.

[@GHOST5691.]

Voltron😱 my man, I grew up on this

[@GHOST5691.]

Voltron😱 my man, I grew up on this

[@stephanclemens2348]

@@drillerdev4624 I seriously have trouble to believe that original Dragonball was more successful in Spain than Saint Seiya. You mean DBZ, right?

[@RandomNPC001]

I still remember when this first came out, I was about 10 to 11 years old living in Brazil at the time and I can tell you this was not an anime it was a religion! Thanks toy galaxy you just made my day!

[@diosnelfrica590]

Mitsumasa Kido not only recruits them but he is their biological father. He is literally the parents of all the Saints except the golden ones.

[@Luis-de5jw]

He was the father of the bronze saints only, he had 100 children, but only 10 returned alive, these 10 are the bronze saints that we see in the show. He has no connection with the silver saints.

[@mellowgeekstudio]

The first Brazilian channel to broadcast Saint Seiya would always stop at a major clifhanger, when the Lion Golden Saint supposedly kills Seiya, then they would reset it to the first episode and rerun it all over again. They did that countless times. It was always a great moment of tension followed by frustation and disapointment while we waited to see if we would get a new episode or a reset. I remember when we finally manage dto get the new episode, it was one of the most magical and surreal feelings I ever got in my childhood.

[@Optyseiken]

You did it.... You actually did it Dan... THANK YOU man, thank you.

[@Optyseiken]

I started watching it in the early 90's 1992 on a local tv channel, on saturday mornings, me and my brothers were fascinating with animation, the awesome designs by shingo araki and (in my consideration) the best OST in any product, in tv, games and movies ever made, i totally recommend it.

[@VisperaInfernal]

"The Lost Canvas" is the best modern interpretation of Saint Seiya.

[@aderitomachado1754]

It is. The story arc is great and the art was beautiful but they canceled it to do Omega...

[@Renedoc82]

En serio YA, déjen morir Lost Canvas, no sigan hurgando más la herida ☹️, disfrutemos lo que dieron. Omega medio levantó en la segunda temporada

[@lordxmugen]

NO FUCKING WAY!! REALLY?! That shit was great! Even though it felt like something you would watch after understanding the initial series run, i really dug the fights and the characters. Maaaaaan. Never get anything good. X(

[@albertorodrigomolinasortiz471]

@@aderitomachado1754 That sounds wrong. TMS did Lost Canvas and Toei did Omega, they were separate things. The official story is more believable, that Lost Canvas being direct to dvd, depended on sales to continue and just weren't selling enough.

[@aderitomachado1754]

@@albertorodrigomolinasortiz471 True, different studios making the series but Lost Canvas aired last in June 2011, Omega started April 2012 instead of season 3 of Lost Canvas. Omega is more kid (toy) friendly especially with the storyline they took. Wasn't this an investment shift from HQ?

[@LynnHermione]

I am so glad this exists. Most Americans seem unable to understand "anime in the west" is NOT the same as "anime in north america". The path of anime in Latin America was separate as USA until the late 2000s - I know, I was there to see it. The popularity of Saint Seiya and og uncensored non Z Dragon Ball are the main examples

[@nonstopper1410]

thanks for covering Saint Seiya! and you should do "Space Adventure Cobra"

[@Antropologopt]

The soundtrack of this anime is amazing!

[@Maioly]

A fun fact I am really fond of when it comes to it is that its often credited as being the first anime soundtrack NOT focused on pop or licensed songs to get a release.

[@dcb99filmz]

fuck yeah, combining power metal with classical music and Alien/Terminator-esque analog synths is a recipe for a great score

[@albineigengrau3212]

The french version should be applauded for being one of the first anime localizations to maintain most of the original Japanese names of the characters, which was pretty unheard of at the time (unless it was a series already set in the west like Heidi or Lady Oscar).

[@GHOST5691.]

Heidi was translated to Afrikaans in my country, which is south Africa around the mid to late 80s, Early 90s

[@titorobot2711]

I heard France used to import a lot of shows in the early 80s

[@XH13]

@@titorobot2711 Importing Japanese anime was cheap, especially since it was imported in bulk, tens of series at a time, and the localization was not always very good. It created some problems when some genius at the TF1 TV channel decided it was appropriate to air Fist of the North Star as part of kid show (spoiler, it's not) Anime is very popular in France since the 80s, it even led to some French/Japan productions like Ulysses 31 or The Mysterious Cities of Gold. Manga is way more popular than US comics, and on par with the local Franco-Belgian comics in revenue.

[@demgreens]

I have a good feeling Saint Seiya would have taken off in the US if it was aired the late 80's or early 90's. 2003 was just way too late. And Pegasus Fantasy is an incredible song. I'm hard pressed to think of a more awesome opening theme for a TV series.

[@dcb99filmz]

imagine if it did air in the late 80s or early 90s...although it would've been butchered to hell and back even back then, it would probably still stick out...and the dub would be better than any of the three that exist now...I imagine it'd be full of TMNT, Voltron and Transformers alums, not unlike the leaked US test dub for TUGS (a British TV show from the TttE crew)

[@Epsilonsama]

@@dcb99filmz Saint Seiya even with its Violence is akin to TMNT, Transformers or other shows of the era cause its full of Characters that can be sold as toys. There's tons and tons of characters, Armors, etc.

[@dcb99filmz]

@@Epsilonsama for sure, it's a toy company's wet dream!

[@dwainsimmons3447]

2003 was the end for hack dubs

[@KicknNmesTaknAss]

I was introduced with Omega and didn't watch the original until after the Seiya reveal in that show. It was really cool to watch it that way because he's a very mysterious character in Omega and then being able to go back and watch his story was awesome. However The Lost Canvas is hands down my favorite.

[@vladimirlagos2688]

The series marked an era of my youth. The extreme blood, gore, and deep mythos of the battles were on another level to anything I had seen on TV back then. The duels in the Twelve Houses of the Sanctuary or at the Seven Pillars of the Sea were especially gruesome and satisfying. The opponents were meticulously fleshed out and every time anyone fell to their deaths you felt it (and tons of brave warriors fell). Americans really missed out on a jewel.

[@vladimirlagos2688]

By the way, I saw some of the censored American version. No wonder it failed. They butchered it. And then Netflix butchered it gain with their unnecessary gender identity politics in their CG remake.

[@andrewsuryali8540]

@@vladimirlagos2688 The funny thing is that originally it was adaptations in more conservative countries that turned Shun into a girl because he looks like one. Here in Indonesia we didn't figure this out until the original Japanese version came out.

[@dcb99filmz]

Imagine if they dubbed this in America with TMNT and Transformers alums...

[@HappyBirthdayRoboto]

I discovered the show when I was living in France in the '90s. I searched like crazy for anything that was called "Knights of the Zodiac" which was "Les Chevaliers du Zodiaque" in English but never found anything. I'm glad the show is out there and I'm glad after all these years I have the opportunity to revisit it, thanks Toy Galaxy. :)

[@miguelagurto353]

Thank you for the video. I love your narration style and humour!

[@Godiekgaming]

In Brazil Saint Seya is as big as DBZ right along side Pokemon

[@chinaski6593]

As a teenager growing up in the 90's in Chile i can confirm, Saint Seiya (Caballeros del Zodíaco) was a monumental hit. We recieved the version first aired in Spain and the dubbing was made in México. Those voices became instant legends in all latinamerica and to this day are loved and respected. And yes, the opening theme is the greatest opening of all times (sadly, we got the spanish version that was awfull)

[@PaulNBlack]

Los guardianes del uuuuuuuniverso 🎵 I LOVE Pegasus Fantasy, definitely one of the best openings ever made, but La Canción de los Héroes will always keep a small special place in my heart. And this is something I've discussed with plenty of fans, and most of them agree that while not great, it's so nostalgic we always have fond memories of it.

[@jonathanward8967]

I've added and removed this show so many times from my Netflix queue, never even starting it. This is definitely something I'm gonna have to give a shot for sure

[@christianenireb9713]

Pls, hold it there until you get to the 12 houses, and pls watch it sub

[@pcmk1843]

@@christianenireb9713 The dub on Netflix though is actually really good, I’d recommend giving it a watch as it probably the most accurate dub of the series not just in English but in any language. Don’t confuse it for the much lower quality dubs from the 2000s.

[@jonathanward8967]

@@pcmk1843 thanks. I added back to my Netflix queue after this video was uploaded

[@RevengerPhoenix]

@@jonathanward8967 it’s leaving Netflix on December 14, so you might wanna start watching soon.

[@user-ve7nh5if3n]

@@jonathanward8967 been couple of days So have you watched it yet?

[@franciscopartida2737]

What a FANTASTIC video!!! So well made and so organized given the messy history it's had (in the US).

[@420Flea420]

My introduction to this series happened when I was visiting family in Mexico during the mid 90s. I had just started watching dragon ball in Canada on YTV, and at the time it was just being aired or the story arc was starting over from the beginning so I was really just getting used to the crazy world of anime until I visited Mexico and was so hyped up to see that I could still watch dragon ball in Mexico but it was so far in the storyline I felt like I was getting a sneak peak into things my friends could only wait for. But amongst the uncensored version that would air on Mexican television, I also watched los caballeros del zodiaco, and was absolutely amazed at how much more violent and bloody it was and couldn’t wait for my friends to see this as no doubt they would bring this to Canada right?…right? Lol well you all know that story now and yeah it was a real shame because that show was always in my mind as this fantastic show that no one here was really into. Even when people started to get into anime. So it is nice to know there are people who appreciated this series along with me because I really felt like I was the only one on this