Naruto And One piece were the two biggest anime series to come out in the 2000s, and for good reason, but another anime that also garnered significant attention during that time was the hit series Zatch Bell! The series premiered near the end of Toonami's original run, and as the series began to lose popularity, it quickly became one of their biggest shows after Naruto and One Piece.
Zatch Bell! doesn't get mentioned much when talking about anime from the 2000s, and that greatly reduces how good an anime it is. Between the great story and animation that makes a simple premise as strong and engaging as possible, Zatch Bell! is one of the best anime to come out in the 2000s and can be considered as good as Naruto and One Pieceif not better. The series has faded into obscurity over the years, but is still an anime that anyone looking for a good shonen anime should check out.
Zatch Bell Is The Criminally Underrated Masterpiece You Didn't Know You Needed
Why you should watch Zatch Bell!
A big part of why Zatch Bell! can be considered an underrated masterpiece stems from its fantastic action. Befitting its nature as a story about demons and magic, Each battle in Zatch Bell! features a variety of amazing magical abilities for the characters.There's even a defined nomenclature to add an extra layer of rules to the magic that are rarely directly acknowledged, but are still easy enough to understand. The action is always equally creative and evolving, and as such, always fun to watch.
Adding to the great action is the art and animation that often accompanies it. While Zatch Bell! doesn't always have the best visuals, as was often the case with many long-running anime of the 2000s, whenever there's time for the staff to put their talents to good use for an episode, Zatch Bell! will feature some great art and animation to help make the flashy spells and overall action pop as much as possible.. Whenever Zatch Bell! looks good, it's one of the best looking anime, and that hasn't changed 20 years later.
Zatch Bell's new story and characters help it stand out in a time when Shonen is bigger than ever.
Zatch Bell! Has One of the Best Casts in Anime & Manga
However, Zatch Bell!'s biggest selling point is its characters and overall plot. While the plot of characters fighting each other in a worldwide conflict for some grand prize is pretty standard, thanks to the extent to which the story commits to changing the countries everyone goes to and the nationalities of both heroes and villains, Zatch Bell!'s plot is always executed in a way that makes the most of its fairly standard premise.. Those aspects always keep the plot from getting too boring and each new development is interesting to follow.
The characters of Zatch Bell! are also a big part of why this series is so good. Aside from always having great character designs for humans and demons, Zatch Bell! always succeeds in making its characters work in both serious and comedic situations.especially with how they both tend to show up nicely in serious battles without ever feeling too out of place. The balance between comedy and drama always lets the characters shine, and it perfectly sums up why the writing in Zatch Bell! is so good.
Zatch Bell! has always been great at conveying the emotional weight of the story, and sure, it's still great to watch, because of that.
What makes Zatch Bell!'s characters so appealing is the genuine heart that surrounds their writing. Zatch Bell!'s magic system is based on the power of the heart and the bond between humans and demons, and as such, Zatch Bell!'s characters have always been written to be emotionally charged and dynamic characters who add a much stronger emotional core to the story, which is especially true of the relationship between Zatch and Kiyomaro. Zatch Bell! has always been great at conveying the emotional weight of the story, and it's still great to watch, for sure, because of that.
Zatch Bell was an incredible show… Which makes its untimely ending all the more tragic.
How Zatch Bell Ended
With great action, a great plot, and a strong script that effortlessly balances comedy and emotion, Zatch Bell! is easily one of the best anime to come out in the 2000s, which makes the way it ends in both English and Japanese all the more tragic. Despite having a long run in Japan, Zatch Bell!The anime was canceled in 2006 after three seasons.This not only prevented the final season from being adapted, but also forced the penultimate Faudo season to change its plot midway into a version that was far inferior to the manga.
Things got even worse for fans of the series in English. Not only did the anime abruptly stop airing on Toonami in season 2 to air exclusively in Canada, but when Shogakukan, Viz Media's parent company, lost the rights to Zatch Bell! after series creator Makoto Raiku filed a lawsuit over some missing illustrations, the season 3 dub was canceled after just four episodes. The manga was also never completed in English due to the same lawsuit, so Zatch Bell! fans in the UK have no legal means to complete the seriesmaking it even harder for people to experience such a remarkable series.
Will Zatch Bell! ever get the respect it deserves?
How Zatch Bell! Can Find a Place in Modern Times
The way Zatch Bell!'s history unfolded is unfortunate, but things can still change. The most recent reprint of the manga by Kraken Comics, along with the recent sequel series, Zatch Bell! 2, have been huge successes in Japan and elsewhere around the world, with Zatch Bell! 2 selling over 900,000 copies worldwide at the time of writing. The recent success of the Zatch Bell! manga may lead to a new English publisher licensing it for re-release.and even though it's just a theory, it would still be cool to see.
There's also a chance for anime to return. Birgdin Board Corp., Makoto Raiku's publishing company, has opened the door to licensing by a new studio, meaning Zatch Bell Anime! could be rebooted by a new anime studio and gain a foothold in modern anime culture. through streaming and hopefully more consistent adaptation. Something like that would do wonders to help Zatch Bell! get more respect, and in doing so, more people will understand why this is an anime that can stand up to Naruto, One pieceand many other great anime of the 2000s.
Source: CBR, @MangaMoguraRe on X, @BirgdinBoard on X.
