Emmy💫

As I mentioned in this post, the GNG anime was heavily edited when it arrived in Finland and the other Nordic countries (+ Hungary). However, three episodes were left off the final tape because the series had to fit onto four tapes. Why exactly four tapes? We don't know for sure. A fifth tape would have easily solved this problem, as many important plot lines were omitted, leaving fans with many questions for a long time prior to the 2003 DVD release. These episodes are:

Episode #17: Now is the Time to Gather! To Serve Under the Supreme Commander!! (今、集結の時! 総大将のもとへ!!, Ima, shūketsu no toki! Sōdaishō no moto e!!)

(For some reason, titled in Finnish as: "Time to Gather! The Leader's Past")

This episode features, for example: the scene with Great and Bemu ("bloody tears"), Hakuro's first appearance, and the reunion with Riki three months after the events of episode 8 (+ the birth of Cross's puppies).

Episode #18: Fight to the Death! The Time when a Male Abandons His Life!! (死闘! 男が命を捨てる時!!, Shitō! Otoko ga inochi o suteru toki!!)

This episode features, for example: the attack on Madara's fortress (during which Smith is wounded and Hakuro takes his place), Ben vs. Sniper (+ Hyena sacrifices himself), and the deaths of Jinnai and Kirikaze.

Episode #19: Sorrow! The Last Moments of Benizakura, Who Bloomed in Crimson (悲愴! 真紅に咲いた紅桜の最期, Hisō! Shinku ni saita Benizakura no saigo)

This episode features, for example: the death of Madara, Riki vs. Gaki (Akakabuto's substitute and son), the appearance of Mosa, and the deaths of Benizakura and Mosa.

And what do you want?

Suselle art yayyyyy 🦌🎄🦖

Haven't had the time to finish playing chapter 5 yet, but these two are so cute 🥹❤️‍🩹

This part covers chapters 1-6 of the manga and episodes 1-3 of the anime. However, first:

The Major Differences

(so that I don't have to go through these separately)

The Wolf Arc has completely omitted from the anime, so this series of posts will cover only the Akakabuto Arc (volumes 1-13 and episodes 1-21).

Some characters speak earlier in the manga (such as Riki, Gin, John...), while others do not speak at all in the anime (bears, Chibi/Tesshin...).

Some scenes in the anime occur in a slightly different order than in the manga.

The manga is much more violent and gory than the anime, because the manga's more detailed violence would not have been suitable for mainstream television anime.

Episode 1

The flashback showing how Gohee lost his left ear and Shiro lost his life is presented in the manga as a story told by Daisuke to his friend Shinji (who is unnamed in the manga), whereas in the anime, it appears as a sort of prologue. The scene is otherwise similar, but much shorter in the manga than in the anime. Furthermore, in the anime, Akakabuto does not hold Shiro in his jaws as he falls into the ravine with the dog, unlike in the manga, but rather Shiro is hanging on by biting into Akakabuto's muzzle.

In the anime, neither Daisuke nor Shinji appears during Gohee's introduction, nor does the mayor (though he does appear a bit later in the episode), and the narrator does not mention Gohee's ability to carry the heavy bear carcass on his shoulders or what he is like when drunk (Gohee's alcohol consumption is referenced less frequently in the anime than in the manga). Regarding the dogs, the narrator introduces only Riki in the anime, but not Aka and Don, they're leaving unnamed. However, Riki's age is not mentioned in the anime.

In the manga, Daisuke calls only his mother to see Fuji's newborn puppies (because his father is not around in the manga), but in the anime, he calls both of his parents.

In the anime, it's Sacchan who praises Daisuke's knowledge of dogs, whereas in the manga, it's an unknown male student wearing glasses.

Daisuke's joke comparing the Akita dogs' legs to his own is missing from the manga.

In the manga, Daisuke does not mention to the others that Riki and Gohee need to see Gin.

The flashback about Genji's death does not appear in the manga, nor does the character himself.

Gohee does not punish Don in the anime.

Everything involving Toshiaki and Kazue does not appear in the anime. Gohee and others find only the body of an unknown skier.

In the manga, Daisuke finds the wounded mayor as well as the dead bodies of Aka and Don, whereas in the anime, he finds only the mayor. Additionally, in the anime, men carry the mayor on a stretcher, while in the manga, Daisuke helps transport him to the hospital.

The brief comical scene in which a man driving a car rages at Daisuke is not in the anime.

Daisuke's nightmare, in which Gohee shoots Riki, is not in the anime.

Episode 2

In the manga, Shinji mentions that nine out of ten puppies die during training. This is missing in the anime.

The anime does not have the flashback of Daisuke where Gohee hits Don after the hunt.

In the manga, Gohee hits Gin with a liquor bottle, whereas in the anime, he uses a log. However, the actual blows are not shown in the manga.

In the manga, Shinji is neither with Daisuke at the shop nor watching Gin's training.

Gin does not bite Daisuke's leg in the anime when returning to him from the training.

The manga mentions that Gin was already four months old, but in the anime, he still looks one month old in the latter part of the episode and in the following one. It's not until episode 4 that Gin appears a bit older.

Episode 3

This is the only episode in the anime where Gohee’s alcohol consumption is referenced when we see him pouring sake into a cup, and when Daisuke’s father speculates that Gohee will come back for more when Fuji senses someone outside the door. Both scenes are missing from the manga. Instead, we learn more about Hidetoshi, who was a classmate of Daisuke’s mother, this detail, in turn, is missing from the anime.

The two hunters killed by "Onikubi" in the cabin are father and son in the manga, this is not mentioned in the anime.

Gohee attempts to shoot "Onikubi" in the manga, but not in the anime.

In the manga, Hidetoshi mentions a time when a cougar attacked John, which the dog killed, comparing the situation to how John now trembled with fear upon seeing Akakabuto.

This part covers chapters 6-9 of the manga and episodes 4-6 of the anime.

Episode 4

The scene where Gohee sees Gin falling into a ravine in his dream is not in the manga.

In the anime, Gohee is hospitalized after fainting while training Gin, whereas in the manga, he was hospitalized after fainting in the mountains. Also, significantly more time has clearly passed in the anime than in the manga, as Gin looks noticeably older compared to the previous episode. However, that does not explain why Daisuke still has a bandage on his head.

The scene with the arms dealer is not in the anime. However, this scene is loosely adapted in episode 6, when the arms dealer remarks that Daisuke's bow cannot be drawn with the strength of a child.

In the anime, Hidetoshi is not present when Daisuke decides to become Gin's hunting partner, in the manga, he sees everything.

In the manga, Daisuke says he ate six bowls of rice, in the anime, eight.

In the anime, Daisuke's father is not angry about Gin climbing on the roof, and Gin's siblings don't try to climb up after him.

In the manga, Shinji is with Daisuke when Gohee falls, and two villagers, Yoshio and his friend, notice Gin running to Hidetoshi's hospital, in the anime there's only Daisuke and Gin with Gohee.

The manga does not have a (honestly weird) scene where Daisuke and Gin jump across the ravine.

The manga mentions a man named Kume who saw a bear eating crabs, whereas in the anime, it was a man named Umezou (not mentioned in the subtitles) whose horse was attacked by the same bear.

Episode 5

In the manga, only one of the men accompanying Hidetoshi is named, Heisuke. In the anime, however, their names are Gonza, Matsuji, and Kinichi, according to the end credits.

In the anime, Hidetoshi and the others don't notice the dead bear cubs or take their bodies with them.

The end scene with Gin on the roof is not in the manga

Episode 6

The scene at the beginning, in which Daisuke tries to ask Hidetoshi why he won't lend him his bow, is not in the manga.

In the manga, there's more hunters with Hidetoshi, Gonza, Matsuji/Heisuke and Kinichi.

There is no scene in the manga where Daisuke tells Gin he intends to ask his father to buy him a bow.

In the anime, Hidetoshi is not present at the hunters' meeting.

In the manga, Gohee does not fall, unlike in the anime.

The scene where Gin and Daisuke are fishing and then fleeing from Mosa is not in the anime.

The anime adds a lot of "filler" to the latter part of the episode: in the manga, Gin and Daisuke don't visit Gohee in the hospital, nor is there a scene where Daisuke sell his snowmobile for a bow (it's only mentioned). The latter scene is loosely adapted from chapter 6.

This part covers chapters 10-13 of the manga and episodes 7-9 of the anime.

Episode 7

In the manga, Great is not present in the beginning scene, unlike in the anime.

There is no scene in the manga where Gin thinks Cross's words while looking at the moon.

In the anime, Daisuke lies about not having been in the mountains, and his father (whose name is possibly Kousaku btw, according to chapter 6 of the manga) mentions that Hidetoshi saw wild dogs there, in the manga, however, Daisuke himself says he saw the wild dogs and his father beats him in response.

In the manga, the spotted, unnamed background dog and the Basset (that dog killed by Madara) are clearly distinct characters because Basset is spotless in the manga, but in the anime, he has replaced Basset's role.

In the anime, Gin hesitates for a moment before crossing the ravine, but not in the manga.

In the manga, Cross does not intend to test who is stronger, she or Smith, instead, the scene is much more comical, with Smith biting Cross's paw while the others laugh (Ben certainly doesn't break up their arguing, as he does in the anime).

The anime adds a bit of padding to the end.

Episode 8

In the manga, the background dogs discuss how Sniper fears losing his position to Ben, in the anime, they're Smith and Cross.

The short fight between Gin and Sniper is not in the manga.

In the anime, Riki lost his collar after falling into a ravine, in the manga, he still has it.

In the manga, Smith and Great are not there to comment on the "arguing" between Ben and Cross.

Cross's pups are only mentioned in the manga, but they are actually shown in the anime.

In the same flashback, we see four dogs in addition to Cross in the manga, five in the anime.

Cross standing on the cliff waiting for Gin does not appear in the manga.

The manga doesn't have that "cheesy" scene where John says how Gin's gaze wins others over, even him.

Gin's departure scene is much more emotional (and, IMO, better) in the anime than in the manga. In the manga, Fuji says nothing about how Gin's gaze reminds her of his father, nor does she seem quite as sad about Gin leaving.

Episode 9

The anime adds several scenes at the beginning that are not in the manga, such as Gin’s desire to run apart from the pack (which Ben dislikes), Cross’s advice, and Hyena complaining to Great. Conversely, the manga don't have the scene where Ben asks Gin to hunt food for the pack, meanwhile, the anime omits the scene where random dogs wait for Gin and Cross to return, hungry and bored (in the manga, this moment actually highlights Cross’s reputation as the pack’s best hunter, whereas in the anime, Great points this out in the previous episode).

A random dog doesn't flirt to Cross in the anime.

In the manga, Kai Brothers are first referred to as "Akatorage," "Chutorage," and "Kurotorage" before their names are shortened to the ones we all know (although in the Finnish edition, the shortened names are used from the very beginning, just as in the anime).

In the manga, Kurotora attacks Smith, in the anime, he attacks Hyena.

In the manga, Chutora flies into a massive rage upon learning that Cross is female and attacks the other dogs, but this does not happen in the anime.

This part covers chapters 13-21 of the manga and episodes 10-12 of the anime.

Episode 10

The anime does not have the sweet scene where Ben cleans Cross's fur. Smith seems well aware of what is going on between the two of them... Speaking of which, the Ben-Cross-Smith love triangle is completely missing from the anime.

In the anime, Akatora don't mention anything about killing Moss.

The manga does not contain the scene where Cross tells the brothers that Ben is right about everything he says, nor the subsequent scene where Gin bites Kurotora's paw after the latter becomes annoyed by that Gin is laughing to him.

In the anime, Sniper is not present to watch Hyena when he goes to speak to Moss.

The anime omits many scenes showing what happens in the village after Gin leaves: Hidetoshi heads to a meeting in Tokyo, leaving Gohee in the care of an assistant named Makino, a departure preceded by a comical moment where Hidetoshi locks Gohee’s door, leaving the man shouting angrily at him. Meanwhile, Daisuke is saddened by his inability to find Gin, and Hidetoshi vows to exact revenge if the dog has died. Daisuke, however, insists that cannot be the case. He heads into the forest to search for Gin, with John following him, having promised Gin he would look after Daisuke. An unknown bear attacks the boy from behind a rock and wounds him on the head, but John rushes to his aid in time and attacks the bear. Then, another dog appears. It's Riki! Upon seeing him, Daisuke faints, believing him to be dead. This marks the beginning of the battle between Riki and John, the scene only referenced to in the anime, I will reveal more when we'll approach the episode 13.

The anime does not have a short scene where Jaguar and Lloyd go to Ben's pack to deliver Moss's message to them.

In the manga, Gin saves Jaguar from Hyena, in the anime, from Sniper.

In the manga, Gin and Smith don't fall into the waterfall as they do in the anime, instead, they are left hanging from a branch above it, where Smith makes a homophobic remark about preferring to die alone rather than with another male. Gin, however, nimbly throws them both on the cliff. It's also worth noting at this point that the toilet humor characteristic of Takahashi’s series has been omitted from the anime, such as when Gin jokes that Smith wet himself out of fear, or earlier in the cave when Smith wonders how long it takes Hyena to relieve himself (which he had cited as his reason for leaving), prompting Cross to tell Smith he shouldn't talk such things in public.

In the manga, only Moss's subordinate and Ben's pack find Lloyd's body, in the anime, Moss is also present and Ben's pack does not.

The fight scene goes the same way, but there are a few differences: Ben does not save Cross but immediately gets stuck under a rock, Mark and Jack are not mentioned as missing/dead; only an unknown dog is crushed to death by rock, and Akatora does not throw one of Moss's subordinates in front of him to be killed.

Gin and Smith don't visit Great and Jaguar in the anime.

Episode 11

After Ben's "resurrection" in the anime, Akatora does not declare to Moss and his subordinates that Kasumi Peak now belongs to Ben. In fact, Jaguar (with Great) shows up and interrupts the fight at this point in the manga.

Ben's joke about it wasn't pleasant to being in Hell (or something like that) while dogs eat the boar isn't in the manga.

In the manga, Great isn't preparing to kill Hyena, instead Akatora says Cross is right that Hyena isn't worth killing.

Maya's name is not mentioned in the anime (except in the ending credits).

Episode 12

In the manga, Kirikaze does not see Ben's group dragging the body of the Iga dog which had previously been eaten by the Koga dogs.

In the anime, Smith digs up Kirikaze, who is pretending to be dead, in the manga, it's Gin.

There are no mystical spears falling from the ceiling in the Iga dogs' mansion in the manga.

In the manga, Kurotora injures his paw after stepping into the poisoned water plant seed, in the anime, it's Akatora.

There is no scene in the anime where Maya throws the severed head of an Iga dog in front of them and Gin.