Spring 2002 (April - June) brought a stacked slate of anime. We've ranked them all by community score so you can find the best TV series, movies, OVAs, and hidden gems from this season.
The latest innovation in virtual reality gaming is set for a private showcase, with the children of Japan's elite given the opportunity to playtest it. Unfortunately, their carefree fun is cut short when a company employee is found murdered, his dying message pointing to a clue...
Chiyo Mihama begins her high school career as one of the strangest students in her freshman class—a tiny, 10-year-old academic prodigy with a fondness for plush dolls and homemade cooking. But her homeroom teacher, Yukari Tanizaki, is the kind of person who would hijack a...
Youko Nakajima has only ever wanted to be normal. She does what she is asked, gets good grades, is the class president, and even helps her classmates whenever she can—but because of her red hair, she has never fit in. With her pushover attitude, Youko lets classmates take...
Two years ago, Mitsuki Kouyama's friend, Eichi Sakurai, moved to America before she could confess her feelings to him. Though she cannot contact him, they made a promise to fulfill their respective dreams: Mitsuki wants to become a professional singer, and Eichi an astronomer....
There are many street races in the Initial D Series. This OVA has no plot other than to collect all the street races into one stage. The dialog during the original races is left in.
A full-scale historical drama set in the last days (the year 1574) of the Sengoku Era of feudal Japan. It is the story of the Nohara family, who has been transferred into the Sengoku Era by time warp, and a tragic love between a princess Ren Kasuga (a daughter of the feudal lord...
Outrageous misadventures of an almost normal family with a housewife, her husband, and their two kids Yuzuhiko and Mikan. Wacky humor about this weird family's daily life. (Source: AniDB)
Megumi-chan is a girl with a secret past. She used to be a boy until she met a person she thought was a magic user. This person gave him/her a magical book from which a genie appears to grant one wish when blood is applied to it. Megumi made the wish to be a man in a man's body...
Kazamatsuri Shou's dream has always been to become a professional soccer player, but he has one problem: he's not very good at the game. He was accepted to the prestigious Musashi no Mori Junior High, known for its top rate soccer team, but he was never able to rise beyond the...
When computers start to look like humans, can love remain the same? Hideki Motosuwa is a young country boy who is studying hard to get into college. Coming from a poor background, he can barely afford the expenses, let alone the newest fad: Persocoms, personal computers that...
Kaede is a cheerful and energetic eighth grader. When it comes to boys, however, she is hopelessly shy. One day, on her way home from school, Kaede walks into a mysterious shop and buys a colorful cocoa mug. When she reaches home, she casually peeks into the bottom of the mug...
Jing may appear to be a young boy, but his remarkable skills make him one of the most feared thieves on the planet. Along with his feathered partner Kir, Jing travels from town to town, stealing anything of value regardless of the amount of security. But when he's in a pinch, he...
With five new kids and an exciting new mission in the Digital World, Digimon Frontier brings back all the great action and adventure of the last three seasons. Takuya, Kouji, Izumi, Junpei. and Tomoki meet each other in a train that takes them to the Digital World where a war...
From crashing his bike to falling in lakes, Seina Yamada just cannot shake the bad luck that follows him. But his fortune begins to change when he is forcibly recruited into the Galaxy Police and ends up capturing the most pirates in the force. Now, Seina is no longer just the...
Ichigo Momomiya expected her date with her crush, Masaya Aoyama, to have a more romantic ending than her falling asleep after she sees a vision of a cat entering her body. Things get even stranger when, the next day, she begins displaying cat-like behaviors such as an intense...
Kaoru Hanabishi, a college student who lives alone, met a beautiful but bewildered girl dressed in a kimono at a train station. He volunteered to guide her way to the address she was looking for, which happened to be in his neighborhood, but turned out to be an empty lot. Not...
Kotarou was pretty much supposed to be your average boy, worried about the pressures of education while enjoying a simple life with his friends. Much to his despair, he one day finds the overly cheerful Misha at his door, asking to be friends out of nowhere. Even more shocking...
A young wavemaster, only known by the alias of Tsukasa, wakes up in an MMORPG called The World, with slight amnesia. He does not know what he has previously done before he woke up. In The World, the Crimson Knights suspects him of being a hacker, as he was seen accompanying a...
Akira Akebono, a young boy who is competing in a robot tournament where many of the robots are capable of transforming into animal forms. Akira wants to win the ultimate prize, the Titan Belt, with the help of his group of robots, all of which are capable of forming into the...
In the year of 20XX, a young boy by the name of Netto Hikari receives a very special gift as he enters the 5th grade. His very own customized net navi, Rockman! Despite Rockman's small size and far more responsible personality, the two boys quickly become the best of friends. A...
Forte suddenly asks for leave for the day, leaving the Angels, Ranpha in particular, thinking she's off for a date. Meanwhile, Forte meets up with an old acquaintance who wants to ask her opinion on a rather pressing matter of life and death. (Source: Wikipedia)
Thirty-two years have passed since the initial defeat of the Invaders. A.E.G.I.S is all but dismantled now and has become an underground organization consisting of only a few Gate Keepers left to save humanity. One of the members, Ayane Isuzu, is sick of society as a whole,...
Hitotose Chitose was always alone and untrusting of people but when 5 female teachers appear and started living together with him in his family's house as his mothers, things started to change and pick up, together with Hazuki-nee and Minazuki (his 2 sisters) everyday is a...
After winning domestic preliminary round, Lisa, Lorna, and Soichi advance to ex-Driver world race competition held in Los Angeles as representative team from Japan. Like a bad omen, they encountered a reckless AI car the first night they arrived at Los Angeles. Although they...
While playing the newly released MMORPG "The World," Minase Mai and Tomonari Kasumi collapse in the real world and are sent to the hospital after hearing a mysterious sound. Only Mai recovers, while her friend Kasumi slips into a mysterious coma. Mai is later approached by the...
Under the capital city of Tokyo, Japan, there exists a large, vast, and unknown world known as Underground. There, people known as Elemental Users exist; people who have the ability to control the elements: Fire, Water, Lightning, Magnetism, Freeze, etc. Meet Rumina Asagi and...
It is a harsh and barren wasteland, where the weak aren't allowed to dream. It is also a sacred land for true men, for there is no place a man can feel more alive. This is the Gun Frontier. Sea Pirate Captain Harlock and the errant samurai, Tochiro arrive in the United States on...
Kazuki Mai, an elementary schoolgirl, wanted to be a magician but her skills weren't good enough for here to join her grandparents' Magiccarat troupe. One day she sees a light enter a strange heart-shaped mirror. The light is actually a mirror fairy named Topo, who takes over...
Amika is a elementary school student who dreams of becoming an idol. Her grandmother is a harsh yet wealthy woman who lives on a remote island that she owns. When her grandmother passed away, Amika's life begins to appear subtle changes. Not long after the passing of her...
The movie was screened in several Planetariums in Japan and followed the adventures of Tetsuro, Maetel and a bunch of new characters like Nanami Yuma.
Recap TV Special for the series RahXephon.
The second season of Chou Tokkyuu Hikarian.
Space captain Warrius Zero, who lost his family to evil cyborgs, wages battle against Captain Harlock, a space rebel defending the Machine Men. (Source: Amazon Prime Video)
A retelling of the TV series from the point of view of one of the Goddess Pilots. (Source: ANN)
Insecure Ai Shiomi begins attending the prestigous Psychic Academy for psychically gifted students, following in the footsteps of his legendary older brother. (Source: ANN)
A soccer anime with a cast of wacky animals in sports getup seems far out of its time in the early 21st century, but it was the year of the World Cup in Japan and South Korea, and the very young audience sees these tropes with fresh eyes. Hidemaru is a feisty fox; his friends...
Station IDs featuring the Popee The Performer characters that aired as bumpers between programs on the Japanese Kids Station satellite station sometime during the early 2000s. Released on the Popee the Performer Vol.1 DVD.
Mecha series based on Takara's videogames.
The monkeys are up to no good again, but this time they're on the "heroes" side. Performing no good magic shows, cloning themselves with a ninja Jutsu and filling UFO catchers with themselves are just a few of the tricks they're pulling, while at the same time trying to adapt...
Black-and-white music video for the song "Densha Kamo Shirenai" by a Japanese folk band Tama (たま). Directed by Akino Kondoh.
The theatrical anime film is a full digital (3-D) action/horror film based on a manga by Tamaki Hisao, best known to Western fans for his manga adaptation of Star Wars: A New Hope. Characters were designed by Yasushi Nirasawa, a well acclaimed maker of creature action figures....
In the 26th century, Rion Steiner awakens in a hospital to the sound of a girl's voice in his head. Unable to remember who he is, he uses psychic powers to break out and sets out to discover himself, and the truth behind those who are after him - the Galerians. Their mother...
A young girl sings about her mother's re-marriage and how happy she feels that her mom found love.
A song about preserving ecology. Kenjiro Imawano created this song along with a picture book to reach out to the hearts of children so that they can grow up knowing that they are in charge of environmental protection.
Far away from our solar system there is a 3rd planet of another called Mangana. A Queen rules it with an iron fist. The first Prince, A-kun, is nothing but naughty kid and so the Queen gives him the task of invading Earth to prove his worth. A-kun comes in tow with his...
A big transatlantic ship, full of rich and important people for international business, has been taken by a group of terrorists. The only hope for their rescue is in the hands of a Japanese man known as Japa, but first, he must hire seven companions to help him, and together...
A music video for the song by Konishiki that was featured on NHK's Minna no Uta program.
A happy husband and wife enjoy eachother's company and go for scenic drives in their car.
A music video for the song 2002-nen Halmeoni Ondo by Mika Shinno that was featured on NHK's Minna no Uta program.
Prologue to the second game in the Generation of Chaos RPG series. Ellile is a knight-in-training in the Kingdom of Fredbarn in the Neverland World. He and Princess Roji are secretly in love, and plan to marry. Lifile, the head of the knights, finds out, and tells Ellile that...
A flash-animated anime series following the strange character Gerotan.
Naccio and Pomm have come to Earth from a far-away planet. What they discover, and what viewers of all ages delight in, is fun, fun, fun! Italian-based, Japanese master animator Fusako Yusaki uses mere clay (plasticine), plus a great deal of off-the-wall imagination, to create a...
Music video for the song Shiawase Kyou Ryuu Ondo by Odoru♥11, a shuffle idol unit under the Hello! Project collective that was created in 2002 for their "shiawase" theme. The song was featured on NHK's Minna no Uta program and the accompanying video features animation by Youko...
Music video for the song Natsu Koibana by Japanese choral unit Kira that was featured on NHK's Minna no Uta program. The video was made by the Kageboushi Theater Company.
Based on community ratings, Case Closed Movie 06: The Phantom of Baker Street is the highest-rated anime from Spring 2002 with a score of 8.30. Other top picks include Azumanga Daioh: The Animation and The Twelve Kingdoms.
There are 61 anime from the Spring 2002 season tracked on MyAnimePulse, including 26 TV series, 6 movies, and 13 OVA/ONAs.
The spring anime season covers April - June. Most new anime in this season begin airing in April.
