Best Sci-Fi Anime of 1990

An unknown object crashes on Earth, sparking a huge wildfire near the campsite of Gohan Son, Kuririn, Bulma, and Oolong. Even after their attempts, they cannot fully save the forest and decide to use the Dragon Balls to restore it. Several days later, a group of unidentified warriors plants a seed at the crash site; it rapidly grows into a massive tree that devastates the forest and nearby cities. North Kaio informs Gokuu Son that the tree, called the "Shinseiju," drains all the planet's nutrients, leaving the land barren. The tree also yields a powerful fruit that grants great strength to anyone who eats it. Armed with this information, Gokuu and his allies try to destroy the tree before it's too late, but soon discover the task is far harder than anticipated.

In this installment of Dragon Ball Z, Dr. Kochin, a celebrated expert in biotechnology, collects the Dragon Balls within his laboratory to free his mentor, Dr. Uirou—a deranged scientist aiming for world domination—who has been sealed in the eternal ice of the Tsurumai-Tsuburi Mountains. While Son Gohan and Oolong search for the Dragon Balls, they fall into a trap set by Dr. Kochin's creations, called Bio-Men. Piccolo, nearby, tries to rescue Gohan and Oolong but is interrupted by three mysterious fighters. The fight is cut short when the ice below collapses, burying Gohan and Oolong. After waking up, they return to Kame House, where they are again confronted by Bio-Men demanding that Muten Roshi join them. Roshi refuses and quickly defeats the attackers, drawing Dr. Kochin's attention. Convinced that Muten Roshi is the strongest fighter in the world, Dr. Kochin kidnaps Bulma to force Roshi into participating in his hidden plan to release his master. The mystery grows: who exactly are Dr. Kochin and Dr. Uirou, and what sinister schemes do they have in store?

In "Dragon Ball Z: Bardock, The Father of Goku," Bardock, a low-class Saiyan warrior, destroys a planet only to receive visions of the future from the last surviving alien. These glimpses reveal that Frieza will soon destroy the Saiyan race. Bardock must race against time to avert this catastrophic fate.

In 1889, humanity is being driven into a new era of discovery by swift advancements in technology. A mysterious villain named Gargoyle, driven by a desire to resurrect the fallen Atlantean empire and bring back its former glory, sets in motion a scheme to conquer the world. Nadia teams up with Jean Roque Lartigue, a young inventor, and Captain Nemo, the commander of the submarine Nautilus, to defend the planet from Gargoyle and the forces of Neo-Atlantis.

In the year 2808, three convicts are enlisted into the Cyber Police to fight major crime in Oedo, formerly known as Tokyo. Each successful mission reduces their life sentences by a few years. To guarantee compliance, the authorities place special collars around the prisoners' necks. These collars are programmed to detonate if the prisoners attempt to remove them or exceed the time limits set for their assignments.

Demons are real, and their strength is far beyond human comprehension. In fact, they are so formidable that humans have no chance of defeating them in combat. The only force capable of overcoming a demon is another demon, and based on this reasoning, Ryo Asuka devises a plan to have his kind-hearted friend, Akira Fudo, taken over by a demon. If a person has a pure enough heart, they might be able to control the demon that possesses them, thus gaining power equal to that of a demon. After causing some chaos in a nightclub, the plan succeeds, and Akira is taken over by the mighty demon named Amon. Now, Akira stands as humanity's sole champion of justice against the hidden demon threat that has plagued mankind since the beginning of time.

A mysterious gust of wind sweeps across the world, erasing everyone's memories. Cars crash, planes plummet, and society collapses into chaos. Amid this turmoil, a young man wanders until he enters a military research center. There, he meets Johnny, a boy whose memories were preserved due to an experimental procedure. Johnny names him Wataru, shares all the information he has, and then succumbs to his failing health. Motivated to find others with intact memories, Wataru ventures through the desolate landscape. In San Francisco, he encounters a mysterious silver-haired woman named Sophia, whose past she keeps hidden. She reveals her destination as New York and opts to travel alongside Wataru. As they journey across America, they uncover the remnants of fallen society and explore the essence of humanity.

The year is 2027 in MegaTokyo, six years before the Knight Sabers will make their debut. Boomers (artificial humans) are still a relatively new advancement, and the implementation and integration of boomers into society is still a bit buggy -- sometimes fatally so. Whenever a boomer incident occurs, though, there is the Advanced Police, a special force trained to deal with boomer crimes. Leon McNichol is a rookie in the AD Police, and is just starting to become exposed to the horrors and tragedies one finds every day in MegaTokyo. He and his veteran partner, Gina Marceau, slowly learn about the ever-fading line that separates man from machine.

In a Japanese-style town called Little Tokyo, the Pizza Cats run a pizza delivery shop. The village is home to all sorts of animals. Though the Emperor is officially in charge, he has lost his mind, so a council looks after the town. One council member, Seymour "Big" Cheese, secretly hopes to seize power. The pizza restaurant is just a front for their real work... Whenever evil shows up, the Pizza Cats are fired toward the trouble from a gun-shaped clock tower that rises out of the top of their shop.

In the follow-up to Mobile Police Patlabor, Special Vehicles Division 2 once more deploys their Ingram Patrol Labor (Patlabor) mecha to fight crime throughout Tokyo. Under the command of Captain Goto, the eclectic crew handles everything from standard police duties to eerie supernatural incidents, while also dealing with their own personal dilemmas.

In "Doraemon the Movie: Nobita and the Animal Planet," Nobita uses the "Wherever Gas," a mysterious substance similar to Doraemon's Anywhere Door that can take you anywhere, and arrives in a world of animals. There, they meet Chippo, a highly adventurous boy with a dog-like appearance. A group called Numiges plans to take over this animal planet. Doraemon and his friends intend to stop their plot with the help of the animals.

A crew of five female pirates commands the advanced starship Sol Bianca, which possesses technology far beyond any other vessel in existence. They search for treasures like the Gnosis—a legendary artifact of immense power—and pasha, the most precious mineral across the galaxy. During their journey, they must address the plea of a stowaway who seeks to rescue his beloved, while also pursuing vengeance against those who have harmed them.

Chief Gooley faces his worst nightmare when the Lovely Angels return to duty, only for the 3WA's Central Computer to burden them with two simultaneous cases: probing a space liner explosion that killed three hundred people, with no one stepping forward to claim insurance money, and locating a missing scientist along with his family. Are these two cases linked? Only the Central Computer holds the answer, and it refuses to share. So the Dirty Pair must get down and dirty to crack the mystery before time expires for a grieving grandfather, his loved ones, and the entire universe.

The SD Gundams in Warring States Era Japan.

The Space Travel Dream Malon Company, a tour arranged by Acguy and Qubeley, draws in travelers for a journey through space. Among the passengers are Nu Gundam-San, Gouf, Sazabi-San, Zaku I, and Alpha Azieru. When they encounter strange turbulence, they discover they have been pulled into the Universal Century 79 timeline. The SD Gundam Crazy Races push competitors to drive custom vehicles, vying for a golden trophy along with prizes such as a television and an electric piano.

In deep space, a conflict rages between the forces of good and evil, with the fate of Earth hanging in the balance. The villainous Neos Gold dispatches her invading armada toward Earth with a single goal: the complete annihilation of all humanity. It falls to Iczer 3—the younger sister of Iczer 1—to defend Earth against Neos Gold's deadly fleet, supported only by the planet's last remaining battle cruiser. However, do not underestimate her; what Iczer 3 lacks in experience, she compensates for with boundless enthusiasm.

When extraterrestrials scheme to invade Earth, the youth Kouta and a colossal robot from outer space named Exkaizer must join forces to protect the planet and his companions.

In the second episode, titled "Mononoke Chapter," the Musha Gundams work to uncover the truth behind a ghost that is haunting the town of Jaburo. Daishogun has a treasure hidden there as well. The third episode—which is divided into three segments (sometimes regarded as episodes 3 through 5)—is called "Gundam Book of Genesis" (ガンダム創世記, Gundam Sōseiki). It centers on a species of small, flexible Gundams and Zakus whose designs are inspired by haniwa, the clay figurines from Japan's Kofun period (roughly 300–538 AD). These beings communicate using a completely made-up language, and the narrative follows their miniature community's efforts to create new life.

Three malevolent dragons awaken after countless millennia buried beneath the earth. Bursting to the surface, they unleash a brutal assault on humankind, devouring the defenseless and drawing power from the souls of their unfortunate victims. Only the might of the ancient deity Takegami, known as the Guardian of Darkness, can defeat the wicked serpentine horde. However, the mortal vessel that Takegami occupies is a host who is unwilling to engage in battle.

Apulo, a feline alien from space with the power to seal away a human's emotions, and Latell are agents of the Division of Space Piracy, known as DSP for short. The pair's approach to solving DSP cases leads to tremendous destruction. Their current objective is to foil the space pirate Youmei, who seeks to exploit Computer Aided Thinking for his own sinister schemes.

Thirteen researchers attempted to unlock genetic potentials and engineered human-beast hybrids. Decades later, their thirteen children are caught up in a struggle to undo that legacy. Meanwhile, Shinichi, born to one of those scientists, allies with powerful Christian entities to defend the planet.

Summary for the Gosenzosama Banbanzai! OVA.

After a spacecraft malfunction, human astronaut Ryu and the AI MOS crash-land on the mysterious planet Gdleen. There, Ryu meets Fana, a captivating Euradonian fairy. The planet is in chaos due to a conflict over a supposedly enchanted temple. The self-proclaimed deity Gavana abducts Fana with the intent to sacrifice her, leaving Ryu as her only hope. Can they manage to escape this perilous situation? Moreover, what—or who—is the true Gavana?

Following countless conflicts, the members of the Jyusenki-tai have each taken different roads. However, a single person will reunite them: Shapiro Keats. The one who once allied with Muge Zarbados still lives. A former comrade who became an enemy now prepares to confront the Jyusenki-tai once more, laying the groundwork for their ultimate battle.

This OVA release in the Sonic Soldier Borgman series acts as a follow-up to the 1980s television program, which revolved around a crack team of bio-enhanced human crime fighters known as Borgmen. Taking place a number of years after the original Borgman unit was disbanded, this installment brings back the three surviving members—rocket scientist Ryo, his girlfriend Anise, and police officer Chuck Sweager—for the emotionally driven episode "Lover`s Rain," which sees them up against an army of the undead hell-bent on a spree of murder and destruction.

This is the fourth and final OVA in the Machine Robo: Revenge of Chronos spin-off/sequel centered on Leina. Rather than continuing the story from the earlier Wolf Sword Legend continuity, Lightning Trap unfolds in a different universe. In modern-day Tokyo, air travel has never been more luxurious than on the Lightning L808, Japan's new top-tier passenger plane. One day, during what appeared to be a normal flight, Haruka Leina and the other passengers had no knowledge of the secret, highly classified cargo that had been loaded onto the aircraft—cargo that drew the interest of international terrorists determined to seize it. Faced with a perilous hostage crisis, only special agent Laika Strange and the courageous Leina may be able to rescue the passengers and prevent the dangerous cargo from ending up in the wrong hands.

A 2-episode OVA sequel from 1990, created by Sunrise, continuing the events of the Mado King Granzort TV series. One year after the original story, the three Mado Warriors—Daichi, Rabi, and Gus—reunite when the Jado Empire once again attacks Rabiluna, conquering Holy Luna and taking V-Mei and Sayuri captive. Even the combined power of Super Granzort, Winzart, and Aquabeat cannot overcome the enemy, until a mysterious girl rescues the warriors—a girl whose past holds the key to the magical conflict between the two clans.

A special 30-minute finale to the TV series.