Ask John: What Sequels Are Better Than Their Predecessors?

Question:
On a previous answer, you wrote that Jubei-chan 2: The Counterattack of Siberia Yagyuu “fulfilled the unspoken and undelivered promise of the first series.” You also wrote that Initial D Fourth Stage was “the best, most exhilarating Initial D anime so far.” What other anime titles are surpassed by their sequels? Do you see this as something normal or rare?

Answer:
Experience proves that in most cases sequels usually don’t live up to or surpass their predecessors. The rule applies just as much to anime as it does to every other entertainment medium. I would say that anime sequels that surpass the quality of their predecessors are rare also because responsible classification severely limits the number of sequels that may even be considered. For example, it’s a bit unfair to compare the 1986 St. Seiya television series to its 2002 sequel OAV series, or the 1963 Astro Boy television series with its 2003 remake. Advances in cinematic technology alone create disparities between shows that were produced more than a few short years apart. Furthermore, I don’t think it’s enlightening to compare examples that are intentionally very different, for example the children’s anime series VS Knight Lamune & 40 Fire and the mature audience VS Knight Lamune & 40 Fresh OAV series that came directly after it.

In order to fairly compare entries in a franchise, both have to exist in the same format (for this discussion we’ll limit ourselves to television anime) and both have to be contemporary with each other. Those two criteria reduce the number of potential candidates significantly. Besides the already mentioned Jubei-chan 2 and Initial D Fourth Stage television series, the only other example I can think of is Full Metal Panic. The Full Metal Panic! Fumoffu? series eliminated the schizophrenic, uneven tension between comedy and drama that characterized the Full Metal Panic series. Fumoffu chose to be a straightforward comedy, and as a result was able to focus all of its attention on being an excellent comedy.

Most anime TV series that get sequel TV series either maintain their quality or decline in their second series. Two exceptions that come to mind are the Sailor Moon and Pretty Cure television series. The Sailor Moon anime exhibited marked improvements in its animation quality and art design in its later series/seasons compared to its debut series. Pretty Cure Max Heart literally amplifies the characteristics of its first series. But in both of these cases, I’m hesitant to call the sequels major improvements over the earlier series. In the case of both Sailor Moon and Pretty Cure, the better later series are the result of evolving, continuing changes, not major, sudden leaps in quality.

I feel obligated to cite the differences between the Weiss Kreuz and Weiss Kreuz Gluhen television series. The Weiss Kreuz Gluhen series seems to be a significant improvement over the poorly animation and terribly written original television series, but the Gluhen TV series is not a direct sequel because the two episode Weiss Kreuz OAV series separated the two television series, and I honestly haven’t watched enough of the Gluhen series to confidently say that it is a significant improvement over the original series.