Over two years after the Urusei Yatsura manga was first published, an animated television series based upon the manga was developed by Kitty Animation and made its network television debut on Fuji TV at 7:30pm on October 14, 1981. So influential did the show become, that it helped change the face of anime.

1981-1983
Humble Beginnings

With the popularity of the manga behind it, the show became an instant success. It was brought to life by a staff who would later go on to become some of the most respected names in the anime industry. Most notably of this group was director Mamoru Oshii (Ghost in the Shell, Patlabor 2, Jin-Roh) whose special touch transformed the familiar world of UY manga into something uniquely his own. This is the series that would cement his standing as one of the top directors (animation or otherwise) in Japan.

Under Oshii and his talented staff at Studio Pierrot, the anime became a very different experience than the gag and slapstick style of the manga. For the first season, each show featured two frantic 12 minute episodes back to back. Soon after they changed the format to one single episode that lasted for the full half hour. With this change the creators were given liberty to expand episodic nature of the manga into something less hectic and more story-oriented. Eventually this lead to a style that was more moody and dramatic. They also focused on characters that previously weren't central to the original stories. The show used a striking visual comedy style that bore little resemblance to Takahashi's style but rather the comedy instincts of the animators (less slapstick, more intellectual topical humor). However, unlike other adaptations where the animators have the gall to butcher the original source to satisfy their own egos, Oshii's Urusei Yatsura was actually equally as good as the manga, but in its own unique way. While there were plenty of misfires, in many cases the animators had even improved upon the original.

At the start of the TV series, there was a distinct kiddie-show feel to it. With bright colours, simple animation, cute character designs and a bouncy, silly musical score it belied its subversive nature. The subversiveness of the show was that it had very adult, sophisticated humor and complex scripts yet retained a child-like feel that might suggest a kids show. But watch one of the early episodes and you'll see how strangely grown-up it is, despite appearances. Partly because of this, the series immediately gained a massive following in both kids, and young adults. During this time the popularity of the TV series lead to the production of the first Urusei Yatsura movie titled "Only You." An old-Hollywood big production style sci-fi romance extravaganza, the movie was an extraordinary success and cemented Urusei Yatsura's place in Japanese pop culture.

1983-1984
The Clever Artistry of Oshii

This child-like style of the early episodes eventually faded part way trough the second year when a more mature and expressive style gradually emerged. It was at this point when we can see that Mamoru Oshii's trademark style began to show itself. At this point, the animators were so familiar with these characters that they would often create entirely new stories for the show that still managed to be faithful to the characters and the spirit of the manga. Some of the best episodes from this time which included episode 75 "And Then There Were None" and episodes 105 & 106 "Scramble! To the Rescue of Lum!" and "Fight to the Death! Ataru vs. The Mendo Brigade!" were original creations from the animators. Far more dramatic and less comedic than Takahashi's usual fare, but compelling television nonetheless.

The halfway point of the show was in my opinion where Urusei Yatsura really hit the mark of excellence. It was highlighted by the release of the second movie, Beautiful Dreamer. Considered by most to be the best movie of the series, and perhaps even one of the best anime films of the 80's.

The TV series also matched the same powerful presence of the movie and Urusei Yatsura was at the height of popularity. But soon Mamoru Oshii left the staff of the show to persue other endevors, and Kazuo Yamazaki (Maison Ikkoku, City Hunter) took the helm as director.

1984-1986
The Yamazaki Years

Oshii leaving the show may have worried many, but it turned out to be a blessing in disguise. Yamazaki's directional style combined with advances in animation of the time made Urusei Yatsura one of the most well animated programs of the era. To be honest, Oshii's style was weighing down the series and getting too arty for its own good. It was supposed to be a comedy series, but it often delved too far into the area of the existential or social commentary. Yamazaki brought it back to its roots and made a show that was pure enjoyment.

Yamazaki's Urusei Yatsura turned out to be far more faithful to the manga with stories that focused on the comedy that made the manga so beloved. While Oshii's Urusei Yatsura had begun to become detached from the manga, Yamazaki's Urusei Yatsura brought it back to basics. It was also by far more visually appealing than the earlier seasons had ever been. Yamazaki and his staff had updated the look of Urusei Yatsura to something that was pure eye-candy. Sharp, rich with colour and full of detail. This would later become the animation style of anime like Maison Ikkoku and Project A-ko. Yamazaki's Urusei Yatsura was certainly some of the most beautiful TV animation of the time. So much so, that the early episodes of Urusei Yatsura are almost embarrasingly poor in retrospect.

At the height of Urusei Yatsura's virtuosity, the 3rd movie was released and served to show how far the series had advanced visually. Not as artistically ambitious as the previous movies, but still a big box office success. The TV show continued to air on Fuji TV every Wednesday evening at 7:30 as it always had and its fan base was as strong as ever.

This lasted until March 19th, 1986 when the last episode of Urusei Yatsura aired to make way for Takahashi's other series, Maison Ikkoku, the following week. While no longer the zietgeist it once was, Urusei Yatsura was still very popular with legions of fans. But since the staff of Urusei Yatsura were going to be switching over to producing Maison Ikkoku, they decided it was as good a time as any to end the show.

To mark the end of the show, and Yamazaki's last treatment of Urusei Yatsura, he directed and co-wrote the screenplay for the 4th Urusei Yatsura movie "Lum the Forever". An artistically ambitious movie, the meanings behind this dream-like movie are known only to Yamazaki and Toshiki Inoue (co-writer). However Yamazaki has gone on record to explain how he was exausted and disillusioned at that time and the movie became a commentary to otaku, that he wanted to tell them that life was too precious to be obsessing over some stupid animated show. It was a rather harsh way to say goodbye to the show, but it was a very well produced one at least.

1987-1991
Life After the Television Show

After some time out of the spotlight the following year, an hour-long Urusei Yatsura TV special based upon one of Takahashi's longer story arcs, Inaba the Dreammaker. This show featured a very different style of animation from the TV show, yet a style that more closely resembled Takahashi's own drawings.

Soon the Urusei Yatsura manga was concluded and thus an animated version of the final storyline was put into production. This 5th movie was released in 1988 under the title Urusei Yatsura: Kanketsuhen (translation: The Final Chapter) and was shown in theaters as a double-bill along with the Maison Ikkoku Kanketsuhen. This movie proved the most faithful adaptation ever of Takahashi's Urusei Yatsura and a fitting good-bye to one of the most popular anime of the 80's.

UY was officially over by this point and if they left it as is, Urusei Yatsura would stand as a near perfect animated series. Even so, in the years after the Final Chapter, it lived on in direct-to-video OVA releases. The early OVAs were all quite good, but after a few years they began to decline in quality and went through so many sets of hands that the animation style differs drastically from video to video. This was around the same time that the 6th Urusei Yatsura movie was produced and released along with the first Ranma ½ movie in 1991. Somtime after that, Takahashi pulled the plug on any more animated adaptations of Urusei Yatsura. But with 195 TV episodes, 6 movies, 2 TV specials, 8 OVAs, and various video releases, Urusei Yatsura had an exceptionally good run. It still reigns as one of the pinnacles of 80's animation and a favorite among anime connoisseurs.