In the last three years, Chinese anime studio Motion Magic (Shanghai Motion Magic Digital Entertainment Inc.) had produced some of the best donghua (Chinese anime) that we had ever seen. It became a powerhouse on its own just by animating the latter seasons of Battle Through The Heavens which had been the new face of Chinese 3D anime among fans and viewers of Chinese animation.
Shanghai Motion Magic is one of China’s leading digital content providers and producers. Aside from donghua, the company and studio are also involved in productions in other industries such as the culture and entertainment industry, multimedia, and many more.
Let’s talk about CG Animation and take a look at the best Chinese anime from Motion Magic. As time goes by, Battle Through The Heavens is no longer the sole face of the studio and it slowly growing as it takes on new projects each year.
Shanghai Motion Magic Anime Best Works
Nonetheless, we still have a handful of titles under the belt of Motion Magic right now, and let’s check which of these donghua should we add next to your watchlist.
Battle Through The Heavens
Doupo Cangqiong | Shanghai Motion Magic took over the Battle Through The Heavens donghua adaptation since the special episode of its 1st season began. The series had been a signature work of the studio then until its most recent seasons.
Since Battle Through The Heavens have multiple seasons and special episodes, which of these had been the masterpieces of Motion Magic? To be honest, that is easy to answer since Motion Magic had only missed the 1st season of the series which was originally handled by Shanghai Foch Film. However, in 2021; Tencent Penguin Pictures unveiled that the first season of the series is getting a reboot called Battle Through The Heavens: The Origin, and finally, Motion Magic got its hand into it.
Of all the works of Motion Magic in Battle Through The Heavens, my favorites must have been the most recent one – Dou Po Cangqiong: San Nian Zhi Yue (Battle Through The Heavens: The Three-Year Agreement) which highlights the first climax of the story in the donghua adaptation, the highly anticipated battle of Xiao Yan and Nalan Yanran, and the shaking of Jia Ma Empire balance of power as Dou Ancestors finally appeared in the donghua namely Yun Shan and Queen Medusa.
So, the following is the ranking of my favorite seasons of Battle Through The Heavens based on the production quality made by Motion Magic:
- Dou Po Cangqiong: San Nian Zhi Yue
- Dou Po Cangqiong 4
- Dou Po Cangqiong Tebie Pian 2: Sha Zhi Lan Ge
- Dou Po Cangqiong 3
- Dou Po Cangqiong Specials
- Dou Po Cangqiong 2
Furthermore, Motion Magic is also animating the upcoming sequels of the donghua:
Thousand Autumns
Shanhe Jian Xin | Coming in second place as the best Motion Magic donghua is Thousand Autumns, a masterpiece in its own right and had been among my top Chinese anime of 2021.
Thousand Autumns follows an exciting journey of finding the light through the darkest of times, being uptight with one’s principles despite the temptations, and being resilient and stubbornly righteous. This is a story of brotherhood developed unexpectedly and sometimes, can be intimate between two individuals from different worlds and with different beliefs. But fate plays a vital role in their encounter and together they’ll shake the Jianghu.
There are plenty of reasons to love Thousand Autumns, first, it is a subtle BL, a boys-love donghua with a wholesome plot and interesting characters. Furthermore, Motion Magic’s strength in doing great animated fight scenes was highlighted in this donghua. The wuxia elements are spot on, making Thousand Autumns one of the best donghua sets in the lower fantasy realm (wuxia) that features martial heroes that are very human.
Related Post: Top Donghua & Anime Like Thousand Autumns (Shan He Jianxin)
Martial Universe
Wu Dong Qian Kun | Here are my early favorites from Motion Magic. The first season of Martial Universe truly captured my attention. As a donghua that has been adapted from another novel by Heavenly Silkworm Potato (the author of Battle Through The Heavens), I had been optimistic about Martial Universe and all the antics that it has brought to the table.
In the beginning, Martial Universe truly excels in fight scenes and that is when I think that Motion Magic has potential. The donghua was first released in 2019 and at that time, there was only a handful of series with such quality of animation and production. Thus, it really stood out.
Motion Magic also returns to animating Martial Universe Season 2 which premiered in 2020 with the same quality as the first season, albeit, the story had been quite rushed. However, in favor of Battle Through The Heavens, Martial Universe’s production had been transferred to another studio, however, there’s no doubt that its 1st and 2nd seasons are among the best works of Shanghai Motion Magic.
Related Post: Top 10 Donghua Like Martial Universe (Wu Dong Qian Kun)
Upcoming Projects
Battle Through The Heavens, Thousand Autumns, and Martial Universe are the series that Motion Magic has worked for thus far. Thankfully, each of them runs for multiple seasons, and we are also getting new projects for the studio soon. Some of them are as follows:
The Great Ruler (Da Zhuzai (2022)
Finally, the novel trilogy of Heavenly Silkworm Potato will be animated by Motion Magic, the last of the 3 novels, and is scheduled for release in 2022 from iQIYI. This is the 2nd donghua adaptation of the novel. The first adaptation was in 2019 and it is in 2D. Now, it will be released in 3D and with a new set of the team behind it. We’re actually excited for this since The Great Ruler shares the same universe as Battle Through The Heavens and Martial Universe.
Dragon Prince Yuan (Yuan Zun)
Adapted from another novel of Heavenly Silkworm Potato, Dragon Prince Yuan is one of Tencent’s upcoming donghua lineup. It also promises to share the same antics as the other works of Motion Magic and we can all expect exciting fights from this upcoming donghua.
Legend of Soldier (Xiao Bing Chuanqi)
Adapted from a novel by author Xuan Yu, this is the first sci-fi donghua by Motion Magic and in collaboration with Tencent Penguin Pictures.
Last Updated on November 9, 2022 by Yu Alexius
