Kara Dennison
December 24, 2021 
The Marvel multiverse is getting maddeningly close, and it feels good. With so many different versions of our comic book faves depicted over the years, this is vindication for everyone. Whichever one you like best? It’s real. It’s delightful.
We don’t have a Cinematic Universe keeping our faves organized. Even so, there are several long-running series with adaptations fairly different to each other. Different enough that mashing up their varied versions would (we think) be pretty entertaining. What do you think?
Sailor Moon
Naoko Takeuchi’s groundbreaking manga changed the face of shoujo — specifically the magical girl genre — forever. Sailor Moon has stakes in almost every medium that matters. Different adaptations mean differing canons. And we’d love to see what the Sailor Guardians of different parts of the multiverse would think of each other.
The 2003 live-action series in particular put some interesting twists on the formula. Minako was an actual pop star (balanced out by some less fun issues). Beryl’s Generals were a bit different. Ami had an evil streak. There was a frillier, deadlier version of Sailor Moon in the wings. Oh, and there was that other idol singer who was kind of a Beryl clone but also kind of not? In other words, a lot to deal with.
Devilman
Go Nagai was pretty unambiguous about his concept of a personal multiverse in CB Go Nagai World. The short series noted his personal awareness that, in his mind, there are many unused versions of his characters. Of all of them, though, Devilman would be a hell of a series to have face itself down.
A slightly less aggressive take on Nagai’s Demon Lord Dante, the series centers on good boy Akira Fudo. He’s been merged with a demon, but is so kind that he and that demon together become something else. Or, according to the first anime series, the real Akira is dead, and there’s a jackass demon walking around in his body and learning how to love. Now, if only we could get those two Akiras to work together…
Cowboy Bebop
Wait, come back.
Whatever your opinions of Netflix’s Cowboy Bebop, the fact remains: seeing the two crews trying to suss each other out would be interesting. Their back stories are similar enough that they could recognize themselves, but different enough to shake things up. Anime Spike and “Fearless” Spike probably have plenty in common, but where would they clash when bounties came ’round? The same goes for Faye — how would each perceive the other’s coping mechanisms?
Jet, though? Jet and Jet would just grab a beer and have a chat about how they’re the only grownups in the room. Some things are canonical across the multiverse.
What other anime adaptations would you like to see meet themselves?
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