One notable classic anime that has a following in Latin America and Europe is Saint Seiya, or Knights of the Zodiac depending on the language. It never really got that same success in the US because it never aired there during its prime. The reason why Saint Seiya was largely exported to those nations is because anime during the 1980s, it was actually cheap to license the anime, and easy to localize, while the higher cost of American produced shows were more expensive to license. As to why Saint Seiya resonated with European and Latin American audiences, other than the explosive action, it’s hard to definitively pinpoint but there are some arguable assumptions. Though the series largely takes influence from Greek mythology but with a samurai spirit spin to it. Some speculate that the Catholic populations of those countries were able to relate to its themes. Saint Seiya is an anime about sacrifice and devotion to your God, and how the hierarchical structure of the saints resembles that of angels.

As to why it never got aired during its prime in the US, Saint Seiya just happens to contain a lot of violence that wouldn’t pass FCC regulations, and if you censored it, it would arguably censor more than 70% of the series. When taking into account that certain European and Latin American nations don’t have such standards with its broadcasting, it was uncensored for fans to enjoy. In addition to the violence that wouldn’t pass the PCC, there’s also the Shun character who could be changed into a woman, as it was for Zoisite in Sailor Moon due to the androgynous design those characters. Also, there’s the bizarre nudity scene with Lizard Misty, one of its villains.

In the end, it was largely thanks to Jerome, a French fan that the Hades arc got an OVA in the early-2000s. He used a drama CD and made his own animated projected based on that drama CD. Lastly, the French love Saint Seiya to the point that one fan tried to get on a singing show by singing Pegasus Fantasy, the theme song to Saint Seiya.

Shortly before Yoshiyuki Tomino premiered with Gundam, he served as a producer to Chodenji Machine Voltes V, which managed to get a very unique following in the Philippines. During the prime of Voltes V, the Philippines was under martial law under Ferdinand Marcos. Shortly before the finale in 1978, Marcos banned the show due to its excessive violence. However, due to the show’s themes of revolution and rebellion, many of those against the Marcos regime claimed that he saw it as a threat to his rule.

After he was ousted as president in 1986, the series returned to the airwaves and the remaining cancelled episodes were compiled as Voltes V: The Liberation, a theatrical movie. Since its comeback, it became a part of Filipino pop culture in ways you couldn’t imagine an anime ever could. Some Filipino fans speculate that Marcos cancelling the show caused kids at the time to rebel against him as they came of age. In recent years, artists in the country have mixed imagery from the anime and the Marcos regime to express what it was like under martial law.

The 1980s hit, Space Cobra, has a large following in France to the point that French director Alexandre Aja wants to make his own take on it. Beyond the series’ influences from Western pop culture from the time, it just happens to be that the design of the Cobra character largely takes influence from one of France’s most famous actors, Jean-Paul Belmondo. Thanks to its popularity in France, Cedric Biscay’s Shibuya Productions plans on co-producing a new Cobra anime!