A very misguided narrative was (and somewhat still is, even in 2025, but certainly not to the same extent as in 2018) rampant on social media when Crybaby introduced a new generation to the world of Devilman as part of Go Nagai’s 50th anniversary as a creator (and pioneer of manga as a whole): how this OVA is not worth your time, or one should only watch it for the cheese/B-tier English dub, because it borders on being “so bad it’s good,” something you can watch and laugh at with your buddies during a Friday night. All of these claims are such a dishonest and, quite frankly, immature reaction to this OVA’s achievements and legacy.

The Birth covers the very first volume of Go Nagai’s Devilman, which most certainly shocked the world of manga readers in 1972. It’s still incredulous to think back on how such a hyper-violent manga was part of Weekly Shonen Magazine’s selection at the time, which certainly explains why Nagai and Dynamic Pro had to rush the final batch of chapters.

The short runtime still allows one to experience the epic and tragic beginning of Akira Fudo’s descent into an inevitable war between humans and demons. A gentle soul who gets possessed by the bloodthirsty Amon to combat said demons after his old friend, Ryo Asuka, exposes him to the harsh reality that their world is most certainly not as normal as they thought it was before.

All of the key scenes from Volume 1 are here, bursting with beautiful, vivid, bubblegum-like colors, and animators casually flexing their skills with superb animation. Can’t forget about the hyperviolent action scenes either, the foot-tapping music that is either suspenseful, heroic, or blood-pumping when the situation demands it, nor the nasty-looking demons beyond human comprehension that eventually get disemboweled by the titular Devilman. This is quite honestly the most “me-core,” or as they say, my "go-to" look for any OVA ever.

One aspect that I genuinely appreciate is how the general plot was brought seamlessly over to the 1980s. The technology, the infrastructure, the popular fashion design at the time, and the general look of the era reflect the year this OVA was made in, but funnily enough, it doesn’t feel disrespectful towards the source material. You can still feel the soul of the 1970s but modernized, if that makes sense.

So a general recommendation is to ignore whatever popular anime YouTuber or their audience tries to falsely parrot and just kick back and enjoy this almost “Ghibli-like” take on Devilman. Strictly with Japanese dubs, please don’t ruin your first experience with the OVA by going for “the memes.” Outside of the original manga, this is quite possibly my favorite adaptation, and I have seen the horrid live-action movie, and yes, I have a few rewatches of Crybaby under my belt too. I do believe that one will get a degrading reevaluation over the years, and the general consensus on this OVA will make a complete 180.