Follow up on the rest of the DROP 01 announcements in part two (Tomb Raider: The Legend of Lara Croft series announcement, plus Scott Pilgrim Takes Off, Masters of the Universe: Revolution and Pluto) and the online debut of the first seven minutes of Castlevania: Nocturne.
Kicking off today’s DROP 01 event — a virtual showcase of Netflix‘s hottest genre animation titles, featuring a triple episode premiere of Castlevania: Nocturne — the streamer has announced a new anime adaptation of a hit video game property: Devil May Cry. During the stream, a first-look teaser was revealed for the eight-episode project.
The Devil May Cry series is being produced by Netflix, Capcom and Korean animation shop Studio Mir (DOTA: Dragon’s Blood, The Witcher: Nightmare of the Wolf). Adi Shankar (Castlevania) is creator, executive producer and showrunner for the show, which is written by Alex Larsen (Yasuke). Capcom’s Hideaki Itsuno and Mir’s Seung Wook Lee are also executive producers.
“I’m honored that Netflix and Capcom have entrusted me to shepherd the Devil May Cry franchise,” said Shankar. “Alex Larsen and I love these characters, we are part of the fandom, and vow to surpass the exceptionally high bar we set for ourselves.”
Logline: In this animated adaptation of the popular Capcom game, sinister forces are at play to open the portal between the human and demon realms. In the middle of it all is Dante, an orphaned demon-hunter-for-hire, unaware that the fate of both worlds hangs around his neck.
The stylish Devil May Cry action-adventure games have won fans and critical plaudits for its diverse cast of characters and thrilling gameplay. First released in 2001 and created by Hideki Kamiya, the franchise has kept up with the latest in graphics and home video game technology. The latest full release, Devil May Cry 5, launched in 2019.
Another eagerly awaited title got the first-look treatment, as Netflix dropped new images and a teaser trailer for Blue Eye Samurai — a provocative and visually stunning cel-shaded CG series combining adult animation with a razor sharp, blood-spattered historical drama edge.
Set in Edo-period Japan, Blue Eye Samurai follows Mizu (voiced by Maya Erskine), a mixed-race master of the sword who lives a life in disguise seeking the deliverance of revenge.
The voice cast also features George Takei (Seki), Masi Oka (Ringo), Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa (The Swordmaker), Brenda Song (Akemi), Darren Barnet (Taigen), Randall Park (Heiji Shindo) and Kenneth Branagh (Abijah Fowler). Supporting voice cast includes Stephanie Hsu (Ise), Ming-Na Wen (Madame Kaji), Harry Shum Jr. (Takayoshi) and Mark Dacascos (Chiaki), among others.
Blue Eye Samurai is created by Amber Noizumi and Michael Green (Logan, Blade Runner 2049), who also serve as executive producers and writers. Erwin Stoff is executive producer. Jane Wu is supervising director and producer. France- and Quebec-based Blue Spirit is the animation studio.
Read more about Blue Eye Samurai in the December ’23 issue of Animation Magazine, available soon.
Taking a turn for the totally radical, the neon-lit ’90s action extravaganza Captain Laserhawk: A Blood Dragon Remix — a mix ’em up of characters from the Ubisoft games library — dropped its official trailer and release date announcement. Also from exec producer Adi Shankar (you can read an interview with the creator about making Captain Laserhawk in the November ’23 issue of Animation Magazine, available now), the 2D adult animated series will premiere October 19.
Several new cast members were also announced: Caroline Ford as The Warden, David Menkin as Rayman, Courtney Mae-Briggs as Jade, Glenn Wrage as Pay’J and Daniel York Loh as Pagan Min. Netflix further revealed the vaporwave-inspired show will feature music by Oscillian.
Synopsis: The year is 1992. The country formerly known as the USA is now called Eden, a technocracy ruled by propaganda and corruption. Super-soldier Dolph Laserhawk has just been betrayed by the love of his life, his boyfriend Alex Taylor, and locked up in Eden’s off-the-grid maximum security prison, Supermaxx. Dolph is forced to lead a team of rebel outcasts on risky undercover missions under the order of the prison’s shadowy Warden.
Captain Laserhawk is an original animated series mixing alternative Ubisoft characters from beloved franchises such as Assassin’s Creed, Rayman and Far Cry in a highly referenced homage to the early ’90s.
The early sessions also saw the launch of a new teaser for another hit video game franchise adaptation: Sonic Prime. DROP 01 debuted the preview for Chapter 3, continuing the adventures of SEGA’s beloved blue hedgehog and his various furry friends in their quest to save the shattered universe. In the next season, Tails Nine takes control with visions of a new world.
Series Synopsis: It’s the Sonic you know and love until an incredible twist thrusts Sonic into a new adventure featuring a reinvented cast and Sonic like you’ve never seen him before, where the fate of the multiverse rests in his gloved hands. Sonic’s adventure is about more than a race to save the universe from the evil machinations of his longtime nemesis Dr. Eggman and his army of badnik robots, it’s a race to save his friends, friends that he took for granted.
