''Shenmue: The Animation'', also known simply as ''Shenmue'', is a Japanese

anime is Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside of Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, in Japan and in Japane ...

television series based on the ''

Shenmue is an action-adventure game series created, produced and directed by Yu Suzuki. '' Shenmue'' (1999) and ''Shenmue II'' (2001) were developed by Sega AM2 and published by Sega for Dreamcast. '' Shenmue III,'' developed by Suzuki's company Y ...

'' video game series by

Yu Suzuki is a Japanese game designer, producer, programmer, and engineer, who headed Sega's AM2 team for 18 years. Considered one of the first auteurs of video games, he has been responsible for a number of Sega's arcade hits, including three-dimensional ...

and published by

Sega is a Japanese multinational corporation, multinational video game and entertainment company headquartered in Shinagawa, Tokyo. Its international branches, Sega of America and Sega Europe, are headquartered in Irvine, California and London, r ...

. A co-production between

Crunchyroll Crunchyroll is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service owned by Sony through a joint venture between Sony Pictures and Sony Music Entertainment Japan's Aniplex. The service primarily distributes films and tel ...

and

Adult Swim Adult Swim (AS; stylized as

dult swim Dult is a village in Batala in Gurdaspur district of Punjab State, India. It is located from sub district headquarter, from district headquarter and from Sri Hargobindpur. The village is administrated by Sarpanch an elected representati ...

and often abbreviated as s is an American adult-oriented night-time cable television Television channel, channel that shares channel space with the basic cable network Cartoon Network and is programme ...

, the series aired from February to May 2022. A Japanese streaming release followed in April 2022. Shortly after its streaming debut in Japan, it was decided that a televised broadcast of the series would commence a month later on

Tokyo MX JOMX-DTV, branded as Tokyo MX (officially stylized as TOKYO MX), is an independent television station in Tokyo, Japan, owned by the . It is the only television station that exclusively serves the city. It competes with Nippon TV, TV Asahi, NH ...

in May 2022. The anime series adapts the storyline of the first two games, ''

'' (1999) and ''

Shenmue II ''Shenmue II'' is a 2001 action-adventure game developed by Sega AM2 and published by Sega for the Dreamcast. It was directed, produced and written by Yu Suzuki. Like the original Shenmue (video game), ''Shenmue'' (1999), ''Shenmue II'' consists ...

'' (2001).

Plot

After he witnesses his father's murder at the family dojo, Ryo Hazuki dedicates his life to finding the man responsible – a mission that takes him from the streets of

Yokosuka is a city in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. , the city has a population of 409,478, and a population density of . The total area is . Yokosuka is the 11th most populous city in the Greater Tokyo Area, and the 12th in the Kantō region. The city ...

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

, to the sprawling metropolis of

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...

and beyond. Ryo will learn that larger, mystical forces are at play as he trains to become the ultimate martial artist in his quest for revenge.

Characters

; : : An 18-year-old Japanese teenager who goes on a journey to avenge his father. ; : : A high-ranking member of the Chi You Men. ; : : A mysterious teenager who becomes Ryo's traveling companion. ; : : Ryo's close friend. ; : : Master Chen's son. ; : : A low-ranking member of the Chi You Men. ; : : The youngest member of Wuying Ren's gang, the Heavens. ; : : A young Chinese woman who can most often be seen around Aberdeen. ; Xiuying Hong / Lishao Tao : : A Tai Chi martial artist and master of the Man Mo Temple. ; : : The leader of the notorious gang, the Heavens. ; : : The leader of the Yellow Heads.

Production and release

The series was announced on September 4, 2020, at the virtual

Crunchyroll Expo Crunchyroll Expo (CRX) is an annual three-day anime convention held during August/September at the San Jose McEnery Convention Center in San Jose, California over Labor Day weekend. The convention is organized by anime licensor Crunchyroll and L ...

. The series was directed by Chikara Sakurai, best known for directing the second season of ''

One-Punch Man is a Japanese superhero manga series created by One. It tells the story of Saitama, a superhero who, because he can defeat any opponent with a single punch, grows bored from a lack of challenge. One wrote the original webcomic manga v ...

''. ''Shenmue'' creator

was an executive producer on the series. Kento Shimoyama wrote the series' scripts, Kensuke Ishikawa designed the characters, and Kana Shibue composed the music. The series was animated by

Telecom Animation Film is a Japanese animation studio founded on May 19, 1975 and currently affiliated with TMS Entertainment. The company produces television series, films, and original video animations (OVA). Works Television series and original video animations ...

with production management by Sola Entertainment. The opening theme is "UNDEAD-NOID" performed by Kashitarō Itō, while the ending theme is "Sympathy" performed by Narudora. The series consists of 13 episodes and it aired on

Adult Swim Adult Swim (AS; stylized as

Toonami Toonami ( ) is an American late night television programming block that primarily broadcasts Japanese animation and occasionally American action animation. It was created by Sean Akins and Jason DeMarco and produced by Williams Street, a divis ...

programming block and was streamed on

from February 6 to May 1, 2022. The English dubbing of the series was provided by

Sentai Filmworks Sentai Filmworks, LLC or just Sentai, is an American entertainment company owned by AMC Networks. Located in Houston, the company specializes in the dubbing and distribution of Japanese animation and Asian cinema. Its post-production arm is S ...

. The series premiered in Japan on multiple streaming services on April 7, 2022. Shortly after its streaming launch in Japan, it was announced that

would begin broadcasting the series a month later starting on May 3, 2022. According to the producer Yuu Kiyozono, the anime was in development for around two to three years during the time ''

Shenmue III is a 2019 action-adventure game developed by Ys Net, published by Deep Silver for PlayStation 4, and Windows and produced by Shibuya Productions. Like the previous ''Shenmue'' games, it consists of open-world environments interspersed with br ...

'' was produced and released. Kiyozono said that the production crew went to Yokosuka to get an accurate feel of the city's streets and atmosphere. Most of the core Japanese voice actors returned from the video games, although some of the cast included new voice actors to appeal to the game's younger fanbase. Producer Joseph Chou said that Suzuki was heavily involved in the production to plan out the narrative with backstory information that was never implemented in the games. Sakurai added that some free roaming aspects were included with Ryo talking to people in the streets. On October 8, 2021, ''Shenmue''s first official trailer was revealed at New York Comic Con. On September 28, 2022, Jason DeMarco confirmed that the series was written off by

Warner Bros. Discovery Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. (WBD) is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at 230 Park Avenue South in New York City. It was formed after the spin-off of WarnerMedia by AT&T, and its merger with D ...

and would not be renewed for a second season after it was removed from Adult Swim's website.

Episodes

Notes

References

External links

* * * {{Toonami Adult Swim 2022 anime television series debuts Adult Swim original programming Anime and manga about revenge Anime television series based on video games Crunchyroll anime Crunchyroll Originals Martial arts anime and manga Shenmue Television series set in 1986 Television series set in 1987 TMS Entertainment Tokyo MX original programming Toonami Works based on Sega video games ja:シェンムー#Webアニメ