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The following contains spoilers for Episode 1 of Urusei Yatsura, "Young Love on the Run" now streaming on HiDive.

Urusei Yatsura is an iconic anime and manga series from the 80s that defined the romantic comedy genre for many anime fans. It launched Rumiko Takahashi's career into the stratosphere, and its main character Lum remains one of the most recognizable anime characters of all time. It was a beloved series for many older fans, and the news of a remake releasing in 2022 surely excited many of them. The new series showcases a style that evokes nostalgic feelings while still having a very modern aesthetic.

The first episode of Urusei Yatsura just released, and it demonstrates a new rendition of the series for the modern world that nevertheless pays homage to the original. The episode centers on two stories which introduces the main characters, a few supporting characters, and the general premise of the series. New fans should prepare for a variety of supernatural sci-fi hijinks and intense rom-com shenanigans, and fans of Rumiko Takahashi's works already know that they're in for a wild roller coaster ride.

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"Young Love On The Run"

E1 Chase Montage of Ataru trying to catch Lum

Ataru Moroboshi is an unrepentant lecher with a penchant for bad luck. One day, after failing to convince his girlfriend Shinobu of his faithfulness, Ataru is told that he has been picked to compete against alien invaders. If he can catch Lum, the daughter of the invaders' king, and touch both of her horns within 10 days, the invaders will leave. If not, they will invade Earth. Ataru is reluctant, but upon seeing the beautiful Lum, he immediately accepts the challenge. However, he soon finds that the challenge is harder than expected, especially since Lum can fly.

Soon, there is only 1 day left to catch Lum, and Ataru is despondent. In order to motivate him, Shinobu tells him that she will marry him if he catches Lum, which stokes his spirit once again. On the final day, Ataru finally catches Lum only to receive an electric shock in return. Nevertheless, the promise of marriage pushes him to keep trying, and he eventually grabs her again, pulling off her bra accidentally in the process. Realizing that he now has a way to catch Lum, Ataru goads her with the bra, then touches her horns when her guard is down. Ataru celebrates that he can now get married, and Lum, believing that he was proposing to her, accepts becoming his wife as an enraged Shinobu leaves in a huff. Later, Lum moves into Ataru's house, despite his furious protests.

"Between A Rock And A Hard Place"

E1 Ataru crawling towards the phone

Some time has passed, and Ataru is being shocked by Lum for trying to call Shinobu. Fed up with her antics, Ataru throws Lum out of her house, and she leaves in a rage. Ataru tries to call Shinobu, believing that Lum is finally out of his life, but while on a call with her, Lum interrupts the call from her ship, intent on ruining the relationship between Ataru and Shinobu. Ataru persists nevertheless, pushing Lum to continue interfering. Their shenanigans end up creating a triangular field that causes aircraft to disappear if they are within the area.

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Ataru gives up on calling Shinobu and decides to see her in person instead. Lum, in retaliation, creates an artificial thunderstorm all throughout the city in an attempt to dissuade him. Nevertheless, Ataru heads out, and after a bit of trouble finally meets with Shinobu. In a rage, Lum decides to send her ship crashing down onto the two of them, but misses narrowly. In the confusion, Ataru searches for Shinobu, but ends up finding Lum instead. Lum is overjoyed as she believes Ataru was worried about her, while Shinobu leaves in a huff after throwing a telephone pole at him.

Starting Off At 100

E1 Shinobu leaving Ataru with Lum

The first episode shows Urusei Yatsura firing off at all cylinders, with the love triangle of Ataru, Shinobu, and Lum at the center. The updated artstyle is more aesthetically familiar to modern anime fans, but it still retains elements of Takahashi's classic artstyle that older fans will certainly appreciate. The anime sports an almost obnoxiously colorful 80s-era aesthetic that looks great and shows that there's a lot of heart and spirit that David Productions is putting into the series.

The anime appears to be splitting each episode into two-parts, which is a great way to showcase as many of the different stories that come up in this long-running series. It's also showing that the series isn't shy about changing a few things around compared to the original series. While time will tell if the new series will stand up to the original in terms of quality and hijinks, it's clear that this new series is surely going to birth a slew of fans for this classic anime series.

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