For the past five decades, Ultraman has been one of Japan’s most iconic heroes. Now, the next generation of Ultraman is coming to Netflix with a brand new anime series.
Via Anime News Network, the latest volume of Eiichi Shimizu and Tomohiro Shimoguchi’s Ultraman manga included an announcement that the new Ultraman anime adaptation will have a worldwide launch on Netflix in 2019. The series will be animated in CGI by Production I.G., the company known for Blood: The Last Vampire, The End of Evangelion, Patlabor, and xxHolic. Kenji Kamiyama of Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex and Shinji Aramaki of Appleseed Alpha are on board to direct the new Ultraman series.
The latest Ultraman series will adapt the manga by Eiichi Shimizu and Tomohiro Shiguchi, which is a sequel to the classic Ultraman live-action TV show. It features Shinjiro Hayata, the son of Shin Hayata (the original Ultraman) and takes place several decades after Shin defeated his enemies and saved the world from alien invaders. When a new alien threat emerges, Shinjiro will discover that he inherited his father’s powers and responsibilities as he takes up the Ultraman mantle in defense of the Earth.
Viz Media publishes the Ultraman manga in the United States, and the 12th volume was recently released in Japan. So there will be a lot of potential stories to tell in the new anime series when it debuts next year.
Are you excited about the new Ultraman anime? Which monster battles from the manga do you want to see on the show? Let us know in the comment section below!
Images: Shogakukan/Netflix
