It can be hard to imagine big franchises starting as something small, but it’s true. Star Trek didn’t originally feature anyone from the classic series, save for Mr. Spock. When Bruce Banner first turned into the Hulk, it was because of a full moon, and the Hulk was gray and could talk properly. Even Batman didn’t resemble a bat until Bill Finger made some changes.

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The same goes for anime. Its biggest hitters didn’t arrive, ready to print money for its publishing company. They just needed one somewhat-decent pitch pilot, or one-shot, to convince publishers to give it a chance, and those pilots could be very different from their more refined successors. Thus, here are some anime classics that originally started as one-shots.

8 Urusei Yatsura

Urusei Yatsura One-Shot Katte Na Yatsura Kei

Much of this list is going to be a shonen-fest. But there’s still room for more light-hearted fare, and few manga artists are more famous for that than Rumiko Takahashi. Before Inuyasha and Ranma 1 ½, she did a comedy series called Urusei Yatsura. Its story about a boy putting up with Lum, a pretty but testing girl from space, led to a manga that lasted from 1978 to 1987, a 195-episode long anime. It made Takahashi a name to be reckoned with.

Before that, she did a one-shot with a similar title - Katte Na Yatsura, or "Those Selfish Aliens." Only instead of its lead playing tag with an alien girl, its lead – a boy called Kei - has to stop three alien bombs planted within him from exploding. Instead of Lum, there’s a human girl called Akane who joins Kei in his escape from the aliens, which include Urusei’s Dappya Men. While the premise is different, it does share material with its more famous successor.

7 Fist Of The North Star

Fist Of The North Star

With the failure of his previous comic, Tetsuo Hara had one more chance to come up with a manga series. On the advice of his editor, he decided to do a martial arts anime based around striking acupressure points. It sounded like a solid idea, thus Fist of the North Star appeared in the April 1983 edition of Fresh Jump. It told the story of a young boy called Kenshiro Kasumi, who fought against the rival Taizanji Kempo martial arts school with his Hokuto Shinken skills.

Things take a turn when Kenshiro’s girlfriend Yuki is killed by the Taizanji assassin Goda, who frames Kenshiro for the crime. Breaking out, Kenshiro dons his familiar leather jacket and takes the fight to the Taizanji. After the one-shot’s second volume, the setting was switched to a post-apocalyptic world, the Taizanji became the Nanto Seiken, and Kenshiro lost his surname. It would later be used for his foster uncle in the prequel series Fist of the Blue Sky.

6 Death Note

Death Note One-Shot Taro Kagami Ryuk

When Tsugumi Oba came up with the Death Note concept, he had trouble keeping it as a one-shot. It took him over a month to write a story that could be told within one chapter. Likewise, artist Takeshi Obata didn’t initially get the idea but wanted to draw it because it was dark and had Shinigami (death spirits) in it. Luckily the concept caught on, giving Oba the chance to expand upon it, and Obata the opportunity to draw Shinigami all day.

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That initial concept, The Taro Kagami Story, still features a young boy discovering a book that kills whoever’s name is written in it. It even has Ryuk urging Taro to use it for kicks. Unlike the main series, victims of the Death Note could be revived if their name was rubbed out with the Death Eraser. Provided they weren’t dismembered or cremated beforehand. Unlike Light, Taro ends up resisting the temptation, undoing the deaths, and burning the notebook.

5 Gintama

Gintama One-Shot Gintoki Kagura Shinpachi

Hideaki Sorachi’s action-comedy manga about samurai and aliens is unique in that it technically has the DNA of two one-shots in it. Even then, they’re not as apparent as others on this list. Dandelion was part of the same genre and had the same heroes-doing-odd-jobs premise, except it involved two angels from the Dandelion clan taking on spirits.

The other one, Shirokuro, is a little more obvious. In it, hero Tomiko Sakata uses a baseball bat and magic powers to curse those who the law can’t touch. Usually for a price. That is until a white-haired Guardian Spirit comes in and tells her to stop, or she’ll be damned. Sorachi would carry Guardian Spirits over into Gintama while combining Tomiko and her Spirit into its protagonist Gintoki Sakata.

4 Bleach

Bleach

Bleach is thankfully more familiar in its pilot chapter. Ichigo, Rukia, and Orihime are all here, as are the Hollows and the Soul Society. Ichigo even has his soul-slaying sword, the Zanpakutō, here. Though it’s a little shorter than usual. Guess prototype Ichigo didn’t feel the need to compensate. Unlike its official run, it had some curious differences.

When Rukia passes on her Shinigami powers to Ichigo, she shrinks down to the size of "a pack of cigarettes." Instead of performing a ritual, Ichigo has to give the recently deceased tickets to enter the Soul Society. One of these newly-deads is Orihime, who Ichigo has to save from her Hollow father because she didn’t pray enough after he died. Ichigo also has black hair instead of red, which is surely the most shocking change here.

3 Naruto

Naruto One-Shot Naruto Headshots

Like Bleach, the Naruto one-shot is recognizable. It follows Naruto, a young boy who’s shunned by his village. He loves ramen and pranking people with shape-shifting techniques like the Sexy No Jutsu. Yet there’s no Sasuke, Sakura, or Kakashi here. In fact, Naruto isn’t a young boy possessed by a fox spirit either. He IS the fox spirit in the form of a young boy.

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The village hates him because his father, another fox spirit, destroyed the village years ago. Their elder chief took pity on the kid and raised him, teaching him ninja techniques. To keep him from turning out like his dad, the chief sends Naruto to the big city to make friends. He ends up framed for a murder he didn’t commit, avenging said death on the true culprit, and finding the victim’s stolen painting as a result. All in all, not a bad day out.

2 One Piece

One Piece One-Shot Luffy Silk

Arriving in 1996, Romance Dawn would follow Monkey D. Luffy in his quest to become a pirate. He comes across the notorious Captain Gally and his Crescent Moon pirates but defeats them handily before shoring up in a village for food. Unfortunately for him, Gally and his crew break free and go after him. Before he can deal with them, the locals capture Luffy and imprison him, thinking he’s Gally. The village looks doomed unless he can break free and find the real Gally.

It already sounds and looks like the One Piece everyone likes today. It just needed some fleshing out. Thus, Eiichiro Oda retitled it and used its first arc to give Luffy a backstory and a new opening adventure. The original Romance Dawn one-shot would be made part of the anime 12 years later in 2008, complete with Gally and Luffy’s friend Silk. But it would also make room for Nami, Chopper, and the rest of the gang. It just wouldn't be right without them.

1 Dragon Ball

Dragonball One-Shot Dragon Boy Tangtong

Here’s the big one. Before Super, GT, Z, and even the original Dragon Ball, there was Dragon Boy. Running for a few months in 1983, Dragon Boy told the story of Tangtong, a young boy with wings and a tail tasked with protecting the Princess of Flower Country as they search for the Dragon Balls to grant their wishes. The final Dragon Ball series had enough references from the Journey to the West epic, yet they’re actually a touch more diluted in Dragon Boy.

Tangtong’s personality, skills, and banter with the Princess show more of a connection to Akira Toriyama’s other influence: Jackie Chan movies. He can defeat baddies while trading barbs with the Princess, who is a combination of Bulma’s attitude and Chi-Chi’s design. He can even summon the Flying Nimbus, despite already being able to fly. Yet readers could tell it had potential. Potential that would last 40 years and more.

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