Anime has changed significantly since its explosion into popularity in the late 1900s. Current adaptations are a far cry from the black-and-white, hand-drawn animations of the past. Reboots have also become more prevalent, as evidenced by the recent Fruits Basket and Kino’s Journey: The Beautiful World adaptations.
However, remaking an old anime comes with its own set of difficulties because the nostalgia factor comes into play. Studios must strike a balance between honoring the original work and taking creative liberties to transform the story into something that satisfies the modern audience. Dororo is a prime example of a remake that managed to achieve just that with a combination of clever storytelling, stunning visuals and a reworked ending.
Dororo's 2019 Reboot Is a Clever Mix of Old and New
The story of Dororo deviates quite a bit from its original source material. However, it does share the core premise of a wandering ronin called Hyakkimaru going on a journey to fight demons to get back his lost body parts. He is accompanied by Dororo, a child struggling to survive on the streets in the Sengoku period. The mangaka originally intended to center the story around Dororo's adventures in the Sengoku period, while Hyakkimaru's narrative was going to be just one of the arcs on the boy's journey. Unfortunately, the manga was cancelled so its ending was rushed to a close at the end of Hyakkimaru’s story, thus changing the protagonist from Dororo to Hyakkimaru.
The 2019 reboot of Dororo's anime worked with the original concept but cleverly transformed the story's focus. Instead of centering around Hyakkimaru’s battle with 48 demons, it shifted the focus to the dynamic between the main characters. In the remake, Hyakkimaru is unable to speak or hear when he first meets Dororo -- a vast diversion from the original where he is able to do both from the very beginning. As such, the entire series feels like watching a child learn how to navigate the world again as he gradually regains each of his sensations. Young Dororo almost plays a role of a human teacher to Hyakkimaru as he gradually becomes more human with every lost body part he regains.
Rather than being portrayed as a strong warrior character, Hyakkimaru displays a sense of vulnerability and innocence. In one instance, he sticks his newly regained foot into the fire. Like a child, he only learns that fire is hot when he personally experiences it, having not experienced such sensations before.
Dororo 2019's Breathtaking Visuals and Flawless Fight Scenes
The art and animation style in the 2019 Dororo remake is, naturally, very different from its 1969 counterpart. The original version's art style was more cartoonish and simplistic, reminiscent of the animation in that time period which still had its roots in children’s cartoons. However, the reboot completely deviated from that style and redrew the characters and setting with simple lines and colors that are much more in line with modern tastes.
If there is one example of how beautifully the fight scenes are done in 2019's Dororo, it would be the scene where Hyakkimaru feels true anger for the first time in Episode 6. Upon returning to Mio’s temple and discovering all the children and Mio herself slaughtered, Hyakkimaru flies into a rage.
What comes next is a beautifully choreographed and animated scene of him flying around the place, slaughtering all the samurai indiscriminately. The reboot's animation accurately captures the poignant yet brutal scene of this bloodbath. Combined with the more fleshed-out buildup of emotions between Mio and Hyakkimaru leading up to this event, it results in an epic yet tragic display of the latter's explosion of emotions.
Dororo has proved to be one of the most well-done anime remakes in recent times. The changes Studio Mappa made to the storyline, character designs, and animation styles proved successful in conveying a modernized and complex story that still draws its roots from the 1968 manga. It’ll be great if the anime community could see more remakes like this in the future.
