Life was difficult for American anime fans back then. A few notable series were broadcast on television, but US studios tampered with the editing and frequently produced substandard dubs. By the early 2000s, fans in the United States were trading illegally duplicated VHS tapes or, if they were lucky, tiny RealPlayer files of their favorite shows on CD-R. With the introduction of legal, subscription-based video streaming services, all of that changed. Anime streaming services provide fans with access to massive libraries and, for the first time, subtitled or dubbed releases within hours of an episode’s international premiere.
Pricing and Options
Anime viewers have been at the mercy of gatekeepers for a long time. The first were media importers, who only brought over series they thought would appeal to American audiences. Later, it was the fansubbing community that worked to bring their favorite episodes to their peers using questionable legal file-sharing platforms.
All of that has altered thanks to video streaming services. Crunchyroll, Funimation, and Hidive, for example, offer all-you-can-watch viewing for a single monthly fee that is completely legal. These possibilities are also a lot less expensive than physical media, which has been outrageously expensive for imported shows and movies for decades. Furthermore, there is no artificial scarcity, shipping fees, or physical expense for the provider with digital distribution.
In terms of cost, anime streaming services aren’t prohibitively expensive. In reality, the majority of services are around $10. Crunchyroll and Funimation, for example, both provide a free tier. The paid tiers, of course, come with additional features and better quality of life. The paid editions of Crunchyroll and Funimation, for example, remove commercials from the experience. Except for a few select programs, Hulu’s premium tier offers offline downloading and removes most of the service’s advertisements. VRV (pronounced verve) also has a free version, but you must pay $9.99 a month to remove ads and gain access to the whole library of channels. At $4.99 per month, a Hidive subscription is less expensive.
There may be some anime worth watching on some entirely free streaming services as well. RetroCrush’s handpicked inventory of fascinating and primarily rare classic anime is completely free, with surprisingly few commercials, and there are no premium features available. Even so, nostalgia is difficult to resist when it comes at no cost. Yes, there are a slew of websites that offer free anime and cartoon streaming. We don’t suggest them due to their shady legal status. At the very least, use the Tor browser or a VPN if you chose to take your chances anyhow.
Content Is King
The size of the catalog is one of the most important differentiators between providers. Crunchyroll presently leads the pack among standalone providers, with over 1,200 anime programs. Funimation also has a sizable library, with around 600 titles. Hulu, according to ReelGood, is far behind those two platforms, with only roughly 230 anime series and movies combined. Hidive features almost 500 TV shows and movies in its library. There are 100 episodes and 40 films on RetroCrush. According to ReelGood, Netflix is falling further behind those options, with just over 100 movies. At last count, VRV has around 2,600 titles, although that number is inflated because it is an aggregator platform with numerous channels, including Crunchyroll and Hidive.
Of course, it’s not just about the number of shows available. Despite the fact that many famous shows are available on many platforms, each service we looked at has its own niche.
Crunchyroll and Funimation, for example, have a monopoly on current, popular, and critically acclaimed shows. Original programming, such as the remake of the Japanese collaboration Voltron and The Seven Deadly Sins, distinguishes Netflix. Netflix has announced an agreement with six Japanese producers for new anime programs. Even the crown gem, Neon Genesis Evangelion, has a fresh dub on Netflix.
RetroCrush has a modest repertoire, but it’s the only place where you can find Golgo 13: The Movie, Urusei Yatsura, and other classic films from the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s. Cowboy Bebop, FLCL, Ranma 1/2, Slayers, and Trigun are among the older anime available on Hulu. Hidive allows you to watch uncensored mature exclusives such as Darwin’s Game, Food Wars!, and Made in Abyss.
VRV provides an enticing broader mix of indie and retro cartoons, from Axe Cop to Scooby-Doo, with channels like Boomerang, Cartoon Hangover, Mondo, and Nickelodeon, in addition to Crunchyroll and Hidive’s whole libraries.