dominicanphenom
Saint Seiya (also known as Los Caballeros del Zodiaco in Spanish, Knights of Zodiac in English and Les Chevaliers du Zodiaque in French) is one of the best series ever created. First aired in 1986, the series was not as outstandingly popular as your DBZ's or your Sailor Moon's in Japan but strangely it contains/contained an almost religious following in Hispanic (Argentina, Chile, Dominican Republic, etc) and Europ(France and Spain). Based around the idea that our modern world coexists with warriors wearing cloth/armors which are associated with constellations, the series dwells with the adventures of the saints/knights of the goddess Athena. Swearing to protect her, the Bronze saints (the main characters of the story) go to any length and fight anyone who threatens Athena or the well-being of mankind.The series aired in Adult Swim for a while in a crappy time slot and has never really developed an American audience, which is a shame.I can not stress enough how good the series is.
adioz7903
Look I have seen saint seiya in the dominican republic, too, although I didn't see the Asgard and Poseidon series. I have bought saint seiya in English and I like it better, it sounds more manly. Saint seiya is definitely the "best show" but that is just some people's opinions. You can't say saint seiya is the best, because compare to the many animes that are out there right now it doesn't hang too well. I will say that it is worth watching it has many good themes, but the graphics make a little less than mere crap, except for the volumes 8-12 which spice things up a bit, for the better. However, the Hades and Heaven chapter really bring saint seiya into what it originally was supposed to be: a wholesome, kick-ass anime.
gdeangel
With the recent release of this series on Cartoon Network, a disappointing translation has been revealed. Who ever heard of knights wearing cloth instead of armor? Why don't the knights use their zodiac constellation names, instead of the common animal names? Is it because this US release presumes that Americans neither know nor care about the accuracy of anachronism nor the Latin proper names of constellations? Having watched foreign language versions of this series before, I must say that the bad translation seems to sap much of the richness of the original fantasy world.
vkn
There'll never be enough space to describe how special this series really is here, but maybe it can't be said with words as it is. Saint Seiya is very much a visual experience, after all.The story, in a nutshell, is about five young boys who's task it is to defend the modern-day reincarnation of Athena against several threats. This translates into loads of very theatrical duels between these five Bronze Saints and their rivals, who happen to all be pretty boys with groovy armors and hairstyles. At a glance, it sounds terribly daft, but there's so much -more- in here than in your average boys-oriented battle series.
For starters, the overall quality of the presentation is quite a surprise. Of course, for such a long TV series there are always one or two episodes that look a bit drab. But taking in the big picture, Saint Seiya has an immediately recogniseable visual style of it's own that really leaves an impression. Long, fluttering strands of hair (in some very groovy colors) surround faces with dreamy eyes, and the fine, stylised bodies of the characters are shot from many inventive angles and animated with lots of flair. Kudos also to the one behind the backdrops; Saint Seiya sports some of the most gorgeous background paintings I've ever seen. From ruins of Greek temples to snowy wastelands, every setting is painted with rich and exquisite detail.The music would really deserve a full review of it's own, as composer Seiji Yokoyama has done a marvellous job. Rousing, dramatic themes are the order of the day, who fit the scenes wonderfully and amplify the impact of the series no end. They also stick in your head forever, as do the punchy rock songs in the opening credits (it's the music that drew me into this series to begin with, actually. One listen of "Soldier Dream" and you're marked for life).The plots and structure of the battles have their own "typically Saint Seiya" style as well. What is remarkable is how much cruelty and sadness shows through here. Not just meaning that the fights get rather bloody at some points (Hyoga's duel against Milo of Scorpio), but also that a lot of the characters have painful pasts and deep traumas. This makes for a rich, and very interesting cast. The opponents of our heroes aren't plain "nasties", they usually have their own ways of thinking which pushes them to fight for their cause. They're often misguided, or being used for someone's other dark means, which makes it all the more tragic to see them bravely dying in a battle to the limits, after they've shown such rich and fascinating personalities. There are only one or two truly "evil" characters among the enemies (and even they are very captivating to watch).The five young heroes have equally likeable and deep personalities (with the exception of mister big hero Seiya, perhaps), and develop distinct styles of thinking and of fighting throughout the series. It makes for a gripping experience, full of rich and very dramatic moments.Another interesting touch is the clever use of mythologic references. Each character is affiliated to a constellation, and often to a mythological figure as well. These are usually well-researched and very clever references, and it's probably the best job I've ever seen of bringing ancient myths up to date again, all while respecting the tone of the original myth.With such a long series (114 episodes), there are ups and downs, inevitably. Particularly during the first "Sanctuary" series, Toei larded on a big dose of filler episodes and soulless extra characters, purely for marketing purposes, who just hamper the series as a whole. The later "Poseidon" episodes are also rather dull and empty. The best of the series is concentrated in the latter Sanctuary episodes, and the tremendous Asgard series. Next to the TV series, there are also 4 short movies, worth watching just for the eye candy (the Abel movie is really wonderful to look at).All in all, Saint Seiya is and always will be one of the greatest works Japan has produced. It has gathered a huge lot of very faithful fans, simply because once you've gotten into the flavor of Saint Seiya, you'll never be able to forget it again. Some may be put off by it's delicate visual style and baroque touches, but this was never intended for those who can't appreciate beautiful stories in the first place. Just a shame this is hardly known on the English-language market.