Ask John: Are There Any Anime “Spin-Offs?”

Question:
Are their any spin-off shows in anime? For example, taking popular secondary character and giving them their own show as a main characters like “The Jeffersons” being a spin off of “All in the Family.”

Answer:
Perhaps because of licensing difficulties, or because of the nature of the anime industry, in which most series can be traced back to a single creator, it’s actually quite rare for anime series to get genuine “spin-offs.” Possibly because anime is such a niche market, it’s natural for anime production companies and studios to want to keep existing fans, so spin-offs usually aren’t marketed as entirely different shows. The Puni Puni Poemi OAV series is a genuine example of an anime spin-off since it doesn’t directly refer to Excel Saga, but does feature the Nabeshin cameo character from Excel Saga. Sailor Victory is also a genuine spin-off of Graduation, as it places the Graduation girls in a totally new Giant robot parody story without mentioning their roots in the life-sim Graduation drama series. The Ami Sorekara OAV series is arguably a spin-off of Ami’s appearances in the Cream Lemon hentai OAV series.

Much more common are parallel or “gaiden” side stories for established series. These sort of side stories allow for the exploration of other characters and stories, but still retain the marketing power of the franchise name. The Initial D Extra Stage OAV took the supporting characters Mako and Sayuki from the first TV series and made them main characters for their own two part story. The Tenchi Muyo Galaxy Police Mihoshi Special & Pretty Samy OAV & TV series allowed for alternate universe stories and new characterizations with the established Tenchi characters.

Also more common that genuine “spin-offs” are side-stories set in similar or related universes. Lost Universe makes reference to the same evil energy present in Slayers Try. The Mezzo Forte OAVs occur in the same city, during the same time as Kite. Angel Links is set in the same universe and time period as Outlaw Star.

Anime adaptations may also be thought of as a type of “spin-off,” but they too generally include direct reference to the source series, making them more like continuations or new series than alternate, “spin-off” shows. The Iria: Zeiram the Animation OAV series and Yamato Takeru TV series are based on their preceding live-action movies. Giant Robo: The Animation and Gozonji! Gekko Kamen-kun are both based on classic black & white TV series from the 1960s. Likewise, Jinzo Ningen Kikaider is based on the live-action TV series from 1972. The Space Travelers anime movie and Boogiepop Phantom TV series were created for simultaneous release with their respective live-action theatrical movie and TV series releases. The Gakkou no Kaiden TV series is an anime version of the popular live-action haunted school film series.