By Sean Aitchison
Have you ever had a watch list full of new shows to check out? Have you ever completely ignored said watch list in order to rewatch a show you’ve already seen at least three times? Hey, we get it—sometimes the allure of a show you already love is more appealing than the risk of starting a new series!
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No judgment here. Rewatching your favorite anime is a great way to find new things to love, share the series with someone who hasn’t seen it, or catch things you missed in previous watch-throughs! It’s the gift that keeps on giving.
Taking into account things like length, unique elements, hidden details and overall quality, here are the five most rewatchable anime in Funimation’s adventure catalog!
Samurai Champloo
First up on the list of rewatchable adventure anime is Samurai Champloo, a series from Cowboy Bebop director Shinchiro Watanabe. Taking place in an alternate version of Edo-period Japan, Samurai Champloo follows Mugen and Jin, two very different samurai who are forced into accompanying Fuu on her search for a samurai who smells of sunflowers. The three travel the land to find this samurai, running into adventures both perilous and odd along the way.
The premise of Samurai Champloo is simple enough, which, paired with its short episode count, already makes it a prime series for rewatching over and over. The other factors that make it a great rewatch are the dynamic energy of it all—each episode has a laid-back but powerful sense of adventure to it—as well as its great uses of tension and a unique hip-hop score.
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Add to this the great oddball humor in episodes (like the one where they play baseball), and the series paints itself as one of the most unique anime of all time. While Samurai Champloo might not be as popular as Cowboy Bebop, it has the same amount of coolness to it that makes it a great go-to adventure anime to rewatch.
Watch Samurai Champloo on Funimation!
ASTRA LOST IN SPACE
If you’re looking for a sci-fi adventure series to watch over and over again, we highly recommend ASTRA LOST IN SPACE. There are quite a few reasons why it works as a great adventure series. The first is its basic setup, which follows a group of high schoolers whose trip to space camp goes very wrong after a wormhole forces them to survive in the vast vacuum of space while they make their way home in a broken spaceship with limited resources.
This big challenge to overcome is a great vehicle for the characters to face danger and adventure while becoming friends along the way, which is exactly what happens.
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But, ASTRA LOST IN SPACE is not that simple—there are several twists and turns along the way that shift this spacefaring adventure into dark sci-fi territory. One might think that knowing the big reveals and outcomes of this anime make it less rewatchable, but that’s part of the appeal—not only does watching this series over and over reward you with a well-done space adventure, you also get to see the master craftwork of the story’s twists and turns.
Plus, you get to look for all the hints of the twists you may have missed the first time. Simply put, ASTRA LOST IN SPACE is a great, self-contained and easily rewatchable sci-fi adventure anime.
Watch ASTRA LOST IN SPACE on Funimation!
Michiko & Hatchin
Michiko & Hatchin might not take place in as fantastical a setting as outer space, but the adventure its titular characters go on is just as big and meaningful. Set in Diamandra, the story follows Michiko Malandro, a recently escaped prisoner looking for her ex-lover Hiroshi, and Hana Morenos, Hiroshi’s daughter and Michiko’s only lead for finding Hiroshi. After Michiko frees Hana, who she nicknames Hatchin, the two set out on a journey to find him.
The two start out as a bickering pair, but eventually come to care for each other, forming a bond that survives the rough, dangerous and sometimes bizarre adventure they find themselves on. The series is relatively simple in premise—two women searching for the person who abandoned them in different ways—but the character arcs of the protagonists; the absolutely beautiful animation, character design and backgrounds; and the sense of adventure on display throughout make it one of the most compelling, unique and grounded anime in recent history.
As for what makes it a great rewatch, the short episode count makes it easy to get through in a few days, and the beautiful visuals of the series are enough to throw it on for a second or third time—and it helps that the story is impactful enough to enjoy more than once too.
Watch Michiko & Hatchin on Funimation!
Outlaw Star
Though Cowboy Bebop is the undeniable king of cool sci-fi anime, Outlaw Star, another space western, is a close second and the king of its own brand of cool.
Following protagonist Gene Starwind, the series centers around the crew of the Outlaw Star, a ragtag gang in search of outlaw riches via the Galactic Leyline. Bathed in a hefty layer of that great ’90s sci-fi anime design flair, Outlaw Star’s strongest trait is the plethora of cool ideas that permeate its world, characters, antagonists and everything in between.
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The actual plot is a great, straightforward sci-fi adventure, but where Outlaw Star really shines is in all the neat stuff going on, from Gene’s caster gun to the unique design of the Outlaw Star and all the characters.
Every idea that goes into it is perfectly executed in visuals and design—even if you’ve watched the series before, getting to see all the cool stuff going on in the world of the series never gets old. Add to this the exciting fights, lovability of the protagonists and easy-to-get-through short episode count, and Outlaw Star is an adventure you’ll want to experience over and over.
Watch Outlaw Star on Funimation!
One Piece
It simply goes without saying that One Piece is the epitome of adventure anime—combining pirate narratives with shounen to make one of the most successful and popular series of all time.
As most know, One Piece follows Monkey D. Luffy, a kid with a dream to be King of the Pirates, a goal he aims for with the help of nakama he acquires along the way. The series eventually branches its way out into a massive, sprawling world of pirates, warriors, the navy, Devil Fruit superhuman powers and everything in between, forming a modern classic of adventure storytelling that is easily one of the best shounen series of all time.
It is also one of the longest, but that doesn’t actually hinder its rewatchability—at the very least, the first few story arcs of the series never fail to entertain when rewatching, since there are so many layers, you’ll always catch new things! Meaning, while you’re free to rewatch the entirety of One Piece all you want (please make sure to sleep), the reason we put it on this list is because the early arcs of the series are great for throwing on any time you want to take part in a great anime adventure.
Watch One Piece on Funimation!
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