Novel adaptation by The Answer Studio
Streaming on Crunchyroll

Premise

A retelling of L. M. Montgomery’s 1908 Canadian children’s novel, Anne of Green Gables, the series follows Anne, an 11-year-old orphan sent to live with the elderly Cuthbert siblings on Prince Edward Island. While initially expecting a boy rather than a girl, the Cuthberts take Anne in, where she comes of age in the fictional town of Avonlea.

Artemis’s verdict: Fine

I can see how this might have plenty of appeal to Japanese audiences. To someone who may not have read the novel or possibly even be particularly aware of its existence (I’m assuming Anne of Green Gables is not required reading for most), Anne Shirley’s very slice-of-life bent and relatively low-key drama will likely make for a relaxed watch – maybe even vaguely reminiscent of a non-fantastical Studio Ghibli film, given its rural setting and nature-filled backgrounds. I’d assume an element of the exotic would be here as well for many viewers, with the story’s late 19^th-century and largely real-world Canadian backdrop being a world away from modern-day Tokyo or what have you.

While I personally don’t see anything at all wrong with this series though, it also does nothing in particular to draw me in. It’s been quite a few years since I’ve read Anne of Green Gables, but from what I recall, episode 1 of Anne Shirley follows the book basically to the letter – not just the same general premise or characters, but also echoing the dialogue extremely closely. Which is… fine, I guess, but it also takes away the point as far as my own viewing experience is concerned. If, like me, you’re not a major Green Gables fan but do at least know the book, the anime does nothing new whatsoever and just ends up being pleasant enough but highly predictable. And if you haven’t read the book, why not just go do that if the anime’s going to be nothing more or less than a straight copy, with animation and music that’s equally just… fine?

Zigg’s verdict: Overshadowed

Unlike Artemis, I don’t really have any experience with the source material beyond what I’ve picked up through cultural osmosis. What I do have though is a decent grasp of anime history, and that tells me that this is actually the second major adaptation of the original book, being preceded by a 50 episode version from 1979. That version, produced by Nippon Animation as part of the famous World Masterpiece Theater block, has ascended to legendary status in Japan, being a significant contributor to the story’s place as a beloved cultural icon. It’s also notable for boasting a murderers row of talent at the helm, most of it going on to form the core of Studio Ghibli. Directed by Isao Takahata, with character designs and animation direction by Yoshifumi Kondo, layouts by Hayao Miyazaki (for the first 15 episodes at least) – it’s hard to imagine a more glittering production crew. 5 episodes were even storyboarded by Yoshiyuki Tomino!

All that is to say that Anne Shirley has a weirdly weighty legacy for a show adapted from an old novel and aimed squarely at children. I’ll echo Artemis’s verdict here – this new version is completely fine. It’s got some lovely background work, and a fine lead vocal performance from Honoka Inoue, who does a great job imbuing Anne with the kind of quirky energy and joie de vivre the character demands. As an introduction to the material this seems like a solid way to do it. But, to bring the experiment full circle, I also watched the first episode of the 1979 show, and while it’s dated in all the ways you would expect (slow, frequently off model animation etc), it undoubtedly possess a flair and artistry that the newer production can’t match. Particularly striking is a brief dream sequence that displays Takahata and Miyazaki’s incredible visual imagination, and which the 2025 production simply has no equivalent to. So while Anne Shirley is cute, charming, and eminently watchable, I’m not sure that’s going to be enough to usurp the long shadow it finds itself under.