Crunchyroll isn't just one of the best platforms to stream the most popular current anime, its library is one of the best places to discover the best anime from previous decades — going as far back as the 1920s. Although these classic anime include iconic series that every anime fan knows, there are also some series that younger fans may have missed.
The first anime to air in North America debuted in the 1960s. Over the next few decades, there was a slow but steady stream of classic anime making their way outside Japan until anime really exploded in popularity in the 90s and early 2000s thanks to the international releases of classic anime such Dragon Ball Z, Sailor Moon and especially Pokémon. Some the anime released in this period were overshadowed by the most popular series to get popular around the world, but there's never been a better time for anime fans to catch up on them. Thanks to Crunchyroll's decade-spanning streaming library, it's the perfect place for anime fans to discover some of the hidden gems of anime history.
Here's our alphabetical list of five classic anime series from the 1970s through 1990s that every anime fan needs to watch and can easily stream right now on Crunchyroll.
1. Captain Harlock (1978)
Although the Captain Harlock franchise hasn't penetrated as deeply into English-speaking popular culture as other anime series have, it has still become a popular a long-running franchise that still has new entries being released. Following the title character, a Robin Hood-like figure rebelling against corrupt and decadent government, Captain Harlock's most striking feature is its unique visual and conceptual identity.
Despite the series being set in the year 2977, Captain Harlock himself looks like he's straight out of the 1700s, complete with eye patch. Similarly his ship is an idiosyncratic blend of a spaceship and a historical pirate space. Captain Harlock is a great example of classic sci fi and really nails the feel of an old sci fi serial.
2. Dirty Pair (1985)
Kei and Yuri are Trouble Consultants, filling a similar niche in their own universe as bounty hunters do in Star Wars. Although their nickname of the Dirty Pair may make you think you're in for a raunchy, fanservice-oriented series, there really isn't that much focus on fanservice and the series is primarily an action comedy. Kei and Yuri's outfits may not be entirely practical, but they were actually inspired by what Japanese women's professional wrestlers were wearing in the 70s and 80s.
There's a pretty clear influence from pro wrestling on the series overall. It's primarily focused on action, but the action never takes itself too seriously and most the humor comes from Kei and Yuri inevitably causing more problems than they solve. There are also more than a few genuinely emotional and powerful moments sprinkled throughout the series. One of the most surprising things about Dirty Pair, especially considering how irreverent and pulpy the series feels at a first glance, is that there are several moments of incredibly progressive representation — especially for a series from 1985.
3. Dragon Ball (1984)
2024 is the 40th anniversary of the Dragon Ball franchise, with the debut of Dragon Ball DAIMA serving as the highlight of the celebrations. Of course, this also presents the perfect reason to revisit the early days of the franchise by rewatching the original Dragon Ball anime.
Although overshadowed in popularity and influence by its iconic sequel series Dragon Ball Z, the original Dragon Ball is still worth a watch. Focused more on adventure and martial arts than Dragon Ball Z, the original series unfolds on a smaller scale and with lower stakes than what's become common later it the franchise. Fans who haven't watch the original Dragon Ball series in a while may be surprised to remember how raunchy it is — a lot of the suggestive humor in the series hasn't aged very well.
4. Mobile Suit Gundam Wing (1979)
Even getting started with the Gundam frachise can be overwhelming because it's grown so big after almost 50 years and has become a sprawling web of series, sequels, spin-offs and alternate timelines that are or aren't directly connected to each other to various degrees. We've included the video from Crunchyroll above to help the franchise make a bit more sense to newcomers.
However, the best place to start with Gundam is probably the anime series that started it all, the original Mobile Suit Gundam. On the one hand, starting at the very beginning requires no established knowledge of familiarity with other Gundam media. On the other hand, though, the original Gundam is just a fantastic anime series in its own right. It's obvious that animation has come a long way. Just compare the original Gundam to the all Unreal Engine 5 new series Requiem for Vengeance. As much as the technical aspects of the franchise have changed, the original Gundam has laid the foundation of the themes that are still the core of the franchise: the horrors and tragedies of war, the importance of friendship, colonialism, tyranny and heroism.
5. Record of Lodoss War (1990)
If Record of Lodoss War fees like a Dungeons & Dragons campaign, that's because it pretty much is one. The story that eventually Lodoss War started out as the transcript of a tabletop campaign, which was adapted into a series of novels by author Ryo Mizuno.
If you're at all familiar with the high fantasy genre, it's not hard to predict how Lodoss War is going to play out or the plot beats the story is going to hit as it does — but it's the journey that's important, not the destination. Yes, Lodoss War is a fairly familiar fantasy story about the epic clash between good and evil, but it's easily one of the best depictions of that sort of story in anime. Considering how popular it's become for the fantasy genre to subvert the genre or parody the genre or even just be relentlessly bleak and dark — Berserk, for example is a classic for a reason, but it's also so thematically dark that it can be exhausting — enough time has passed for Lodoss War to circle back into feeling refreshingly sincere and straightforward compared to a lot of other fantasy anime.
Fans can stream these five classic anime, as well as an extensive library of current and past anime on Crunchyroll. As always, keep following us right here on Anime Away from more anime news, reviews and lists.