In case you didn’t know, the recently announced Shaman King anime is a reboot. The franchise already got an anime adaptation back in 2001 and it ran for 64 episodes. However, the manga was still ongoing, and the anime ended up cutting a lot of stuff out and having a different ending. Seiji Mizushima, the first Shaman King director, tweeted about why it strayed from the source in the second half. Although he didn’t go into much detail, he did say that it wasn’t because he wanted to do it. Rather, he said that it was a decision made by Shueisha, and that there was nothing he could change by himself.
In addition, he said that the same thing happened with Fullmetal Alchemist. He directed the 2003 version, and it also had to end despite the manga being ongoing. That’s why, similarly to Shaman King, it had a very different ending as compared to the source. It also got a remake in 2011, titled Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood.
The remake will be animated by Studio Bridge and Joji Furuta will be the new Shaman King director. You can check out the latest trailer below:
A teaser visual was also released.
The reboot will adapt all 35 volumes of the now completed manga. Its author and illustrator, Hiroyuki Takei, said there was already an offer for a remake back in 2017. However, it wasn’t possible to bring back the original voice actors and soundtrack, so he refused it and hoped another chance would come by in the future. It obviously did come by, and it is now set to premiere in April 2021!
[Sources: Seiji Mizushima Twitter, “KING AMUSEMENT CREATIVE” YoutTube, Hiroyuki Takei Twitter, Shaman King 2021 website]
[Thumbnail: Visual from the the first Shaman King anime]
