It’s Monday, that here which means a new dose of the latest and hottest anime news for fans! While it grows increasingly apparent that the Spring anime season is coming to a close, with hot series like Demon Slayer and Vinland Saga wrapping up their arcs, there’s plenty to look forward to. The latest news from the past weekend includes Rurouni Kenshin updates, more Demon Slayer announcements, and Vinland Saga updates!
Rurouni Kenshin — New 2023 Adaptation Teases Release Date, 2 Cours, Opening Song, and Cast
Rurouni Kenshin was a gorgeous manga series from the Weekly Shonen Jump that at one point received an anime treatment that was more or less just fine. It had strong moments but overall it shows its age when viewed again. This time, however, we are being treated to a re-adaptation of the manga source material with Liden Films at the helm, as in the studio behind recent hits like Tokyo Revengers and Goblin Slayer.
Related: Most Anticipated Anime of 2023
Additionally, we recently learned that the series’ release date will be on July 7, 2023 (but time zone magic makes it July 6 in the West!) It’ll first air on Fuji Television Network at 12:55 AM JST, and air weekly on Thursdays. For those eager to stream this series, it’ll go to Crunchyroll every Friday from July 7, 2023, at noon JST. Finally, other services including Netflix will have the series available on Mondays after July 10, 2023, at noon JST. We will update what this means for prospective Western viewers.
The opening song is “Hiten” by Ayase and R-Shitei, a suitably catchy beat for this popular and stylish anime brought so lovingly to life. Finally, the cast list includes the following:
- Sōma Saitō as Kenshin Himura
- Rie Takahashi as Kaoru Kamiya
- Taku Yashiro as Sanosuke Sagara
- Makoto Koichi as Yahiko Myojin
- Yūma Uchida as Shinomori Aoshi
- Saori Ōnishi as Takani Megumi
There is plenty to be excited about in this voice cast lineup, from the prolific body of work done by Sōma Saitō including his recent work in Demon Slayer, to Rie Takahashi, who played Ai Hoshino (!!!) in Oshi no Ko. Finally, Reol will perform the series’ first ending song, “Kissaki.”
This anime adaptation looks like it could be something truly special, and it’s really exciting to see a new take on this classic series similar to how Shaman King got a recent shiny coat of paint. Lastly, the prospect of 2 back-to-back cours, meaning approximately 24 episodes like with Jujutsu Kaisen season 2? That’s just plain good news.
Source: Rurouni Kenshin Official Website Airtime Listings
Demon Slayer Season 3 Finale Airs Despite Crunchyroll Outage, But the Hashira Training Arc Announcement Keeps the Hype Train Going
Demon Slayer Season 3 blew up on social media yesterday, for some good and some bad reasons. Our reservations about the pacing and quality of the story aside, it was a satisfying conclusion to the arc and a very pretty adaptation. But its finale airtime on Crunchyroll was turned into a bit of a state of limbo when the streaming service was down for about 2 hours yesterday.
You can truly gauge just how much people still watch a series when you see how quickly it’ll trend on Twitter when its finale is unavailable on its planned release time. But despite this, around the same time, we also got treated to an announcement that, while unsurprising, reassured us that it’ll likely be sooner rather than later.
The Hashira Training Arc, albeit a small portion of the series, is next in the timeline and is in production. This was announced just yesterday as some of the latest trending anime news, so be sure to read up and get ready!
Source: Demon Slayer Official Website Update
Vinland Saga Season 2 Finale Released Today, But 2 Massive Arcs Remain Unadapted
Vinland Saga has been an emotionally devastating ride this season. It was Thorfinn’s altruistic awakening where he found his reason to live, and truly took on the brighter qualities of his beloved late father. It was a fabulously-animated 24-episode season by MAPPA, and we can only hope for more content because at best, this has only covered half of the manga’s run so far.
The Eastern Expedition Arc and Vinland Arc are substantial portions of the story where we see Thorfinn embark on his quest to build a new home in Vinland and recruit others to his cause. We see new confrontations with the victims of his previous transgressions. It also introduces some of the best supporting characters yet, and brings back other beloved fan favorites including Thorkell, the combination of friendliest and scariest giant in recent years.
What this means, and whether Vinland Saga gets a Season 3, is up in the air for now. It’s a developing story but with how Season 2 concludes, fans will be sure to want more, especially seeing Thorfinn’s slick new cut.
