September 29th, 2019 
Charles Solomon 
Like Eddie in The Rocky Horror Picture Show, 14-year-old Yusuke Urameshi (Justin Cook), the hero of the brawling fantasy-adventure Yu Yu Hakusho (1992), is “a low-down cheap little punk.” He boasts that he’s the toughest kid in Sarayashki Junior High. He cuts classes and loves duking it out with other guys, especially with his red-haired rival Kuwabara (Christopher R. Sabat).
Uncharacteristically, Yusuke does a good deed one afternoon: He saves a little boy from a speeding car—but is killed in the rescue. That one virtuous action suggests there’s chance he could be reformed, so Koenma (Sean Teague), the son of the ruler of the Spirit World, decides to give him another chance. Yusuke temporarily gets his life back, but he must carry around a “spirit egg.” If he can properly nurture the egg, it will hatch into a benevolent beast that can help him return to his body permanently. If Yusuke’s egg absorbs too much negative energy from evil deeds and thoughts, it will produce a monster that will devour him.
The transformation from two-bit thug to good guy doesn’t always go smoothly when he returns to his old school and rowdy habits. Yusuke is pleasantly surprised to discover Kuwabara’s rough exterior conceals a kind heart, but is happier to learn that Kayko (Laura Bailey), the girl he secretly nurtures a crush, on likes him. Explaining the presence of Botan (Cynthia Cranz), the pretty pilot of the River Styx, to Kayko proves harder than fighting supernatural foes.
As Koenma has made him a “spirit detective,” Yusuke’s assigned to tracking down evil spirits prowling the human world. He can sense their presence, and begins taking on (and taking out) criminal demons. In Episode #9, he meets the psychic Genkai (Linda Young) who is searching for a student worthy of learning her powerful Spirit Wave Technique.
The eight candidates for the Spirit Wave Technique, including Yusuke, Kuwabara and the evil Rando, are pitted against each other in a tournament conducted entirely in the dark. Yusuke converts Kuwabara and the demons Kurama (John Burgmeier) and Hiei (Chuck Huber) into allies. Yusuke and his teammates battle the four “Saint Beasts” (demons associated with the Chinese directional animals) and rescue a Snow Maiden imprisoned by a corrupt capitalist.
The “Dark Tournament,” which suggests a supernatural WWF tag-team smackdown, continued through Season #2 and into Season #3. It recalls the various tournaments that make up most of Seasons #6, #7 and #9 of Dragon Ball Z. And, like their counterparts in DBZ, Yusuke and his friends and foes command so much power, they punch each other out of the arena, through walls, etc. The animation is very limited but effective enough. Like Goku and many other brawling anime heroes, Yusuke seeks a worthy opponent who challenges him on every level—as Jin the Wind-Tamer does in Season #2.
Yu Yu Hakusho ran for four seasons and spawned two features and three OAV’s. It’s based on a manga by Yoshiro Togashi, who also created the popular “Hunter X Hunter.” Gon, the hero of “Hunter,” also enjoys a good fight, but he’s an upright, enthusiastic and thoughtful kid—pretty much the opposite of the sullen Yusuke. Gon has the outsized boots and spikey hair of many short anime adventurers, while Yusuke sports the slicked back pompadour of a 50’s teen-age bad boy/heartthrob. Togashi’s flair for creating exciting, offbeat adventures and weird foes is evident in both series.
Yusuke’s need to redeem himself and prove his life means something to his friends adds a Frank Capra-esque element to the martial arts mayhem. Like the more popular Dragon Ball, Yu Yu Hakusho offers a mixture of camaraderie, slapstick comedy and no-holds-barred combat will appeal most strongly to adolescent boys.
Yu Yu Hakusho Ghost Files: The Complete First Season
Funimation: $38.68 4 Blu-rays in a steel box
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