Just because your favorite anime finally aired on television, that doesn't mean you've seen the final product. There's still room to get better.
When anime get DVD or Blu-ray releases, certain scenes or characters are tweaked—or even completely redrawn. There's a variety of reasons for this, such as having more time to get everything just right or the original art not being up to snuff.
Then there are movie versions, such as Evangelion: 1.0 You Are (Not) Alone, which can redo the original broadcast anime, but with bigger budgets, more staff, and, as with the home releases, more time.
But there are other reasons for the DVD and Blu-ray changes. The home release makes it possible to add content that might not be possible on network television, such as extreme violence or a heavy dose of adult content.
Then, there are the changes made when the shows are shown on different networks—or when they make the jump to cable.
In a way, these changes make the home video releases the final cut—which makes owning them more enticing for fans. Yes, the tweaks are a way to whip up sales. But they're more than that: They're a window into the process of making anime.
Below you can find an array of examples from over the years. Some of the changes are easy to spot. Others are not.
Note: The images on the left or on the top of another are typically the original broadcast ones, while the images on the right or on the bottom are the tweaked or corrected ones.
Photos: まっち部屋, 週刊ネタバレちゃんねる, Ciao, Biglobe, Komopse, Maipote, Nanohass, himarin, Teleani, Chiqjin_News, Tntakr11, Nanoha, Zakki, Yaraon, Yaraon, Youkouissen, Caviglia, Azure, Kazu Mugen, Xuite, Milky
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