The Final Fantasy Anime You Never Knew Existed Is Impossible To Watch Today
Final Fantasy is one of the biggest RPG franchises ever, with dozens of games, multiple movies, and several anime adaptations. It seems impossible that one of the series’ earliest adaptations is virtually unknown and almost impossible to watch now. Yet, Final Fantasy: Legend of the Crystals is an obscure anime sequel to Final Fantasy V, with only a VHS release.
Despite featuring a new main cast, characters from Finaly Fantasy V like Mid and Leena appear and there are numerous references to the game’s plot.
The anime series consists of four 30-minute OVAs and was released in two parts in March and July of 1994 on VHS. Produced by Madhouse the anime was Final Fantasy’s first animated adaptation and the first narrative sequel to one of the games. Given the franchise’s immense popularity, it’s strange that this series has had such a minimal imprint on the public consciousness.
Final Fantasy: Legend of the Crystals takes place two hundred years after the events of Final Fantasy V following a new group of heroes and a new threat. Despite featuring a new main cast, characters from the game like Mid and Leena appear and there are numerous references to the game’s plot. Legend of the Crystals also has a similar plot to the game with a malevolent force trying to utilize the elemental crystals to seize control of the world.
It might be the connections to Final Fantasy V that ensured the anime would remain obscure in the West. After all, it’s one of the games that Square Soft didn’t originally release internationally, meaning it never gained the nostalgic following other games have. By the time Final Fantasy V was released in the West in 1999, as part of Final Fantasy Anthology, any potential hype for the anime sequel was long gone.
Produced by Madhouse the anime was Final Fantasy’s first animated adaptation and the first narrative sequel to one of the games.
Oddly enough, Final Fantasy: Legend of the Crystals was released in the United States before Final Fantasy V. Part one of the anime was released in the United States in 1997 with part two following the next year. The problem with that, of course, is that any American fans watching the anime likely wouldn’t have understood the connections to Final Fantasy V, killing its main selling point.
Another factor that may have worked against the anime becoming more than a footnote for Western audiences, is that anime itself was still fairly niche when it was released. While anime is massively popular in the West today, it was just gaining that popularity in the United States in the late 90s, with Toonami’s 1997 launch being the medium’s introduction to the mainstream. Final Fantasy: Legend of the Crystals would have struggled to find an audience in that environment.
While there were circumstances around the release of Final Fantasy: Legend of the Crystals the anime itself made some questionable choices that kept it from becoming a classic. One of the biggest departures from the games was how heavily it leaned into modern and sci-fi aesthetics, which was seen as clashing with the fantasy influences of the games, though the games would embrace those elements a few years later with Final Fantasy VII. Its attempts at adapting iconic designs also fall flat, namely the anime’s odd pink Chocobo.
Oddly enough, Final Fantasy: Legend of the Crystals was released in the United States before Final Fantasy V.
Sadly, Square Enix hasn’t given fans the ability to experience one of the oddest Final Fantasy properties to ever exist. A streaming release could help elevate the forgotten anime to cult status among Final Fantasy fans. While it’s far from the production value of Advent Children fans who can track the anime down can look forward to a distinct take on chocobos and motorcycle action years ahead of Cloud’s famous bike chase.
