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Netflix prepares a year of treats for anime lovers
A trove of 16 anime shows will add to the diverse catalog of stories created in their home in Japan.
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Screen darlings: Netflix has revealed five original anime shows in collaboration with Japanese creators. Anime has become a favorite show on the major streaming platform. (Courtesy of Netflix/-)
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ajor streaming platform Netflix revealed on Tuesday five brand new original anime shows and 11 other series now in different stages of production heading into 2021 and beyond.
It’s an eclectic mix of stories that promises something for everyone; from an adventure in a theme park to the communal bathing culture shared by the Romans and Japanese, and a former gangster who takes a new role as a stay-at-home husband -- created by all-Japanese influential manga artists and movie producers.
The announcement was live-streamed from the streamer’s Tokyo headquarters with anime-loving news anchor Hisanori “Yoppi” Yoshida and model-actress Rio Uchida as emcees, showcasing the first looks of each anime show.
Anime has successfully cut through various content categories on Netflix since 2018 and has seen a 50 percent growth year-on-year, sitting in the Top 10 lists in almost 100 countries this year.
“In just four short years since launching our creative team in Tokyo, Netflix has expanded the reach and overall audience for anime – a category [which is] conventionally seen as niche,” said Taiki Sakurai, Netflix’s anime chief producer, during the event.
“Given the success of shows such as Seven Deadly Sins and Baki, we are excited now more than ever to challenge ourselves to expand our aspirational anime programming for fans around the world.”
Besides the Netflix Original projects, the streamer also updated the upcoming anime titles. They are Trese, a Philippine production whose line-up of producers includes Indonesian Shanty Harmayn of Base Entertainment; Japan sci-fi fantasy EDEN; and the survival horror games adaption RESIDENT EVIL: Infinite Darkness.
The list also includes Japanese production Vampire in the Garden, the full-action Yasuke, the thrilling B: The Beginning Succession and Baki Hanma, as well as Spriggan -- a high-speed action series based on a manga of the same name popular in the 1990s.
New series Godzilla Singular Point, Pacific Rim: The Black, and the second chapter of the Transformers: War of the Cybertron trilogy, Earthrise, would also be heading to the streaming platform next year.
Below is the list of the Netflix Original projects:
Rilakkuma’s Theme Park Adventure (Date TBA)
Following the success of Rilakkuma and Kaoru, the stop-motion animation returns with incidents and meetings that take place when Rilakkuma, Korilakkuma, Kiiroitori and Kaoru go play in an amusement park that is about to close.
netflix.com/RilakkumasThemeParkAdventure
Thermae Romae Novae (Date TBA)
The very popular manga by Mari Yamazaki has been brought back to life in the present day in a new way, with new episodes created for the commission work. The comedy revolves around Lucius, a bath designer in the Roman Empire, who accidentally slips ahead in time to present-day Japan and learns about Japanese bath culture.
netflix.com/ThermaeRomaeNovae
High-Rise Invasion (Feb 2021)
Based on the manga by Miura Tsuina (Ajin) and Takahiro Oba (Box!), this is an unpredictable and frightening survival story set in high-rise buildings that don’t reach the ground. The protagonist, Yuri, decides to survive in order to destroy this illogical world and kill the enemy wearing the "mask", but what will she do?
Thus Spoke Kishibe Rohan (2021)
This series consists of four strange episodes that Kishibe Rohan, the manga artist from JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Diamond is Unbreakable, saw and heard in a destination he visited to collect material for the manga.
The Way of the Househusband (2021)
Based on a story by Kosuke Oono and directed by Chiaki Kon (Nodame Cantabile, Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon Eternal: The Movie), it follows Tatsu, a legend in the underworld. He chooses to walk away from being the Yakuza's most evil boss to become a full-time househusband.(ste)
