Anime from the 1990s

Anime began as an art form far longer ago than you think it might have. The first Japanese animated films were released in 1917; to begin with they were very rudimentary, made only with chalk or paper cutouts and lasting only a few minutes. In 1933, the first anime with synced voices was released, and in 1934 the first anime created with “cels”, i.e. colored-in images atop a background, was released. In World War 2, a few notable titles were created as propaganda films, and in the 1950s the first feature-length anime films made their way into public consumption.

The 1960s, with the advent of TV, saw anime expand into TV programming. In 1963, the series that was arguably the advent of modern anime, Astro Boy, premiered. Previously, most anime series had been episodes of only a few minutes, due to budgetary constraints—however, animation techniques that reduced the number of frames necessary were pioneered with Astro Boy, leading to the ability to have a half-hour-format animated show within a reasonable budget. The iconic show also set the standards for an art style that exists in anime even today, including big eyes and impossible hairstyles.

In the 1970s, anime continued to develop, particularly thematically, creating its own unique subgenres not shared by other animation, particularly western animation. The most notable of these is mecha, although other sci-fi subgenres have also been highly influential. In the 1980s, anime came fully into the mainstream with hit series such as Gundam, Dragonball, and Macross, as well as movies such as Akira and Kiki’s Delivery Service.

And then that brings us to the 90s. The 90s in anime were a period of experimentation and change. At the beginning of the 1990s, the anime industry was financially declining, leading to experimental series such as Neon Genesis Evangelion that aimed to revive public interest in anime; these tended to be “deconstructions” of the mecha or super robot genres that aimed to ask complex psychological questions within the frame of a well-known genre. In the 1990s, it is important to remember, Japan was going through significant financial distress following their economic highs of the 1980s. As such, anime from that period often reflects that confusion, disillusionment, and reconsidering of previously held cultural norms. At the same time, Neon Genesis Evangelion also brought us the “moe” and “tsundere” character tropes still seen in anime today—so even in deconstruction of old tropes, it set the stage for development of new tropes.

The 1990s also, notably, saw the advent of “magical girl” anime with the explosive popularity of Sailor Moon, as well as Hayao Miyazaki’s dark masterpiece Princess Mononoke. All in all, the 1990s in anime saw the industry begin to diversify in content and tone, creating more shows for many different audiences and tastes. The decade also set the stage for future development in anime, including new standards and tropes, as well as paving the way for reconstructions and reimaginings of well-known genres that still continue today with series such as Madoka Magica and Kill La Kill.

To view, a full list of all anime tv shows and movies scroll below. Keep in mind that this list does not include Anime OVA’s. Each listed item in the list below links to a unique Wikipedia page where you can learn more.

Anime Tv Shows 1990

Anime Movies 1990

Anime Tv Shows 1991

Anime Movies 1991

Anime Tv Shows 1992

Anime Movies 1992

Anime Tv Shows 1993

Anime Movies 1993

Anime Tv Shows 1994

Anime Movies 1994

Anime Tv Shows 1995

Anime Movies 1995

Anime Tv Shows 1996

Anime Movies 1996

Anime Tv Shows 1997

Anime Movies 1997

Anime Tv Shows 1998

Anime Movies 1998

Anime Tv Shows 1999

Anime Movies 1999

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