Netflix Is About to Lose Its Best Anime Series Very Soon

It looks like Netflix is about to lose one of the best anime now streaming on its service by the end of the month. It’s been a great time to be a fan of anime as Netflix has not only locked down the exclusive licenses for some of the biggest new releases of the year, but there are also more anime streaming on the service than ever before. This includes some of the more newer hits, of course, but the big draws are the classic anime on the service. These classics are the kind of anime that fans like to rewatch over and over again.

The only unfortunate element of licensing these classic anime shows, however, is the fact that those licenses don’t last forever. Such is the case with Yu Yu Hakusho, which continues to be one of the major standout hits of the 1990s and one of the best anime releases of all time. Fans can still stream the classic anime with Netflix, but there’s a major ticking clock to do so as the listing for the series now reveals that Yu Yu Hakusho will be leaving its service on March 31st. So it’s time to get your rewatch in as soon as possible.

Why You Should Watch Yu Yu Hakusho

It’s really important to go back and check out Yu Yu Hakusho if you have never seen the series before. It’s one of the rare cases where the anime adaptation ended up having a more adept run than the original manga series, and an even rare case of being enjoyable no matter what language you decide to watch it in. Yoshihiro Togashi’s original series has aged better than most of the anime that released in that era, and it really fits well into the modern landscape that has been inspired by it with shows like Jujutsu Kaisen shouting it out specifically.

Yu Yu Hakusho was such a success that even 30 years after the anime’s original debut, the franchise has lived on with new releases. This included a new OVA special that brought back the original anime cast for another adventure, but also included Netflix themselves adapting the series into a five episode live-action adaptation. This ended up being such a hit in its own right that fans are still hoping to see it return with a Season 2 someday.

RELATED: Yu Yu Hakusho: Justin Cook Talks Returning to Yusuke for 30th Anniversary, the Best Scenes, and More

Yu Yu Hakusho Leaves Netflix Later This Month

It’s a shame that Yu Yu Hakusho will be leaving Netflix later this month as the anime was only added to the streaming service last year. It’s one of the big classics that every anime fan should watch at least once to not only see how it has influenced other creators, but how it’s also influenced Yoshihiro Togashi himself. Some of the events here were later refined in new ways for Hunter x Hunter, which has gone on to reach legendary status. But it wouldn’t be possible without Yu Yu Hakusho laying the groundwork first.

Netflix is the widest reaching platform for anime at the moment, so while you can still stream Yu Yu Hakusho with services like Crunchyroll and Hulu, the Netflix audience is undoubtedly the largest. It’s the biggest opportunity for this classic to get the attention it deserves in the currently highly competitive anime landscape, and fans should knock it off their lists as soon as they can before the series is removed.

Where does Yu Yu Hakusho rank among your favorite anime series of all time? Let us know all of your thoughts about it and everything anime in the comments!