Just finished Saint Seiya: The Hades Chapter ~Sanctuary~. I doubted the show but it proved me wrong: Dragon Shiryu’s Master absolutely lived up the hype. He is the dumb shonen fighting manga BS I like to see.
This OVA is a mirror to the Sanctuary Arc and the run through the 12 temples, except this time it’s ostensibly about villains making the exact same run the heroes did so long ago. It’s a neat inversion and it made me reflect back on the old arc and appreciate how well this story handled the 12 Gold Saints.
Fighting manga/anime almost always have a power creep as the heroes get stronger to fight enemies who are getting stronger and stronger. But although Saint Seiya does follow this in a general sense, the heroes really only get a burst of power in brief moments when the plot needs it. Most of the time the power relationship between the cast has not changed- the 12 Gold Saints are still just as awe inspiringly powerful as they were when they were introduced. Their base fighting prowess is far beyond the Bronze Saints, as is their wisdom in battle.
And thinking back on, most of the victories in the Sanctuary Arc were by winning over a Gold Saint with the heroes’ endless determination, winning on a technicality, or winning by double K.O. By and large the Gold Saints as a whole were not bested by the Bronze Saints. So when the Gold Saints appear in the story it’s not like a “oh I remember that guy”, it’s “oh snap, Gold Saints are getting involved?” Their status isn’t really degraded in the same way side characters can be in fighting manga.
I also really liked how this OVA really was a story about the Gold Saints, their relationships with each other, and their relationship with Athena. With this arc I think Saint Seiya genuinely does a better job of respecting its side cast in many ways than lots of other fighting manga have. The Gold Saints are still individual characters with their own dynamic in the story, separate from the Bronze Saints the show mostly follows.