It has been announced that Shenmue the Animation will premiere on Adult Swim and Crunchyroll on February 5 at 12:30 AM EST. The English dub will air on Adult Swim as part of Toonami while the subtitled version will stream on Crunchyroll. Adapted from the Sega Dreamcast video game of the same name created by Yu Suzuki, Shenmue tells the story of Ryo Hazuki, who studies Hazuki Style Jujitsu under his beloved father. When his father is murdered, Ryo is called upon a journey that will change him forever.
The official trailer begins with showcasing Ryo's talents in the art of Jujitsu as he wins a match against a pupil. Ryo rejects the offers of his friends to celebrate his win in order to train with his father, but when he arrives at the Hazuki Dojo, he witnesses his father's murder. He decides he needs to find out why his father was killed, and meets a handful of colorful characters while facing harsh truths. As the trailer progresses, viewers are treated to plenty of action and exciting fight scenes.
Chikara Sakurai, who was behind the second season of One Punch Man, will direct the 13-episode series. The voice cast of the English dub includes Austin Tindle as Ryu, Scott Gibbs as Lan Di, Natalie Rial as Shenhua, Cat Thomas as Nozomi Harasaki, and Jeremy Gee as Guizhang Chen. The series is animated by Telecom Animation Film with Kensuke Ishikawa as the Chief Animation Director. The scripts for the episodes are written by Kento Shimoyama and the show features original character design from Udaka.
The cult favorite Shenmue video game first debuted in 1999, making this adaptation over 20 years in the making. Shenmue the Animation also serves as one of multiple collaborative projects between Crunchyroll and Adult Swim, with other titles including Blade Runner: Black Lotus and Fena: Pirate Princess. Since the Shenmue video game has a strong following, it should be safe to say that Shenmue the Animation should be just as popular. Check out the official trailer and synopsis below:
"1986, Yokosuka. Ryo Hazuki has trained to master the Hazuki Style Jujitsu under his strict father in the Hazuki Dojo from his childhood. However, one day a mysterious man named Lan Di murders his father and takes the “mirror” his father was protecting. Ryo is determined to find the truth behind his father’s murder, but soon finds himself getting stuck in a war between the underground organizations…. Traveling from Yokosuka to Hong Kong, Ryo’s long journey begins!"