Humanoid Monster Bem (妖怪人間ベム) is a 26-episode Japanese anime television series, which first aired on Fuji TV between October 7, 1968 and March 31, 1969, on its 19:30–20:00 timeslot. The series was later remade into a second anime television series, which premiered in April 2006 in Japan on Animax, featuring a new cast, with a total of 26 episodes also produced. A live-action television drama adaptation premiered on NTV on October 22, 2011. A film was released on December 15, 2012. For the series' 50th anniversary, a third anime television series adaptation titled BEM was confirmed to be in production. The third series aired from July 14 to October 13, 2019. A new film titled BEM: Become Human, was released on October 2, 2020. It streamed on Funimation's website on October 29, 2020. A spin-off live-action film Yokai Ningen Bela was released on September 11, 2020.

Plot

The plot of the series revolves around three yokai (supernatural creatures), Bem, Bela and Belo, who arrive at a large coastal city and come across an evil atmosphere, which was brought about by immoral behavior by humans and mischief caused by monsters and yokai. They therefore decide to stay in the city, fighting against other monsters and yokai which attack humans, making a few friends along the way. Even though the three yokai are often abused and discriminated against by other human beings due to their appearance, they still strive in protecting the human populace of the city from other monsters, one day hoping to become human beings in return for their good actions.

Characters

Staff

Original series

Cast

Theme songs

2006 remake

Cast

Theme songs

2019 anime

Cast

Theme songs

2020 film

Cast

Anime

Funimation has licensed the 2019 series for a simuldub. Due to the Kyoto Animation arson attack on July 18, 2019, Episode 4, which was originally scheduled to air on August 4, 2019, was postponed to August 18, 2019.

Reception

The live-action film grossed US$11.5 million in Japan.