Sources: Wikidata. The record of the motion picture, not an assessment of this cell.
FILM NOTES
FILM NOTES
Saint Seiya arrived in 1988 as Toei Animation's expansion of the wildly popular manga by Masami Kurumada, part of a run of theatrical features released alongside the ongoing television series. These films gave the Bronze Saints grander stages than weekly episodes allowed, condensing myth, brotherhood, and cosmic-scale combat into compact adventures aimed squarely at the franchise's devoted fanbase. For collectors, these theatrical prints represent a snapshot of a series that helped define the shonen action genre for a generation, exporting its ethos of loyalty and sacrifice across Japan and eventually the world.
This cell preserves a moment featuring Dragon Shiryū, one of the five principal Bronze Saints and among the most beloved figures in the franchise for his stoic discipline and unwavering devotion to his companions. Shiryū's presence in any surviving frame carries weight for enthusiasts, as he embodies the series' recurring themes of endurance and quiet strength. Whether drawn from a trailer, title card, or credits sequence, a 35mm cell bearing his name and likeness stands as a tangible fragment of the character's theatrical legacy.
Authentication Findings8 checks
Consistent with a 35mm theatrical release print of Saint Seiya: Legend of Crimson Youth (1988)
Gauge
35mm, four perforations per frame on both edges; the strip holds three frames
Perforations
Four per frame on both edges, evenly spaced, cleanly punched with no torn or deformed holes visible
Soundtrack
A variable-area optical track, appearing as two bilateral tracks, runs along one edge below the picture area
Edge print
Not visible in this capture
Base & colour
Base shows a warm amber-brown tint on the lower edge strip; the image dye layer presents strong blue and yellow-gold saturation with no visible fading
Projection history
No scratches, splice marks, or cue marks are visible in this capture
Picture
Positive colour image; all three frames appear to be the same or near-identical consecutive frames from a single shot, consistent with an animated theatrical release print
Era check
The bilateral variable-area optical soundtrack and warm amber base stock are consistent with a late-1980s Japanese theatrical release print, matching the 1988 record date
Read from the original intake capture shown below. Observations only — film is authenticated, not graded.
This original motion picture film element has been examined and authenticated by Crown Grading in partnership with National Film Vault, and encapsulated for archival preservation.
Why so little survivesRelease prints were leased to theaters, not sold. When the run ended they went back to the distributor to be destroyed, and most were. What collectors hold today came from the prints that escaped that order, and no new 35mm prints of these films are being struck.
CROWN SERIAL 000063010
Original Film CaptureAs received
Photographed on the light panel at intake, before encapsulation — tap to open full size
Tap to enlarge
