This Week in Anime [Week 41, 2021]

Date Published: Thurs, 14th Oct, 2021

It's almost the middle of October and the things seem to have come to a relative standstill in the animeverse. Aside from developments in titles which have already been released, new releases and announcements are nowhere to be found. Some pivotal milestones, however, set the theme for this week's anime news. Join us as we enter the Rapid Rundown to find out what we mean by these landmarks!

1. Demon Slayer Season 2 Is Here!

2. Attack on Titan Season 2 Trailer Out!

3. Guilty Crown Celebrates 10th Anniversary!


1. Demon Slayer Season 2 Is Here!

Much interest and discussion was sparked earlier this year following controversy surrounding the possible adaptation of mature elements in the Entertainment District Arc of the franchise, but the staff behind the anime were quick to reassure fans that the adaptation of the manga would remain faithful to the source material and would make no changes whatsoever to the storyline. This certainly seems to have been the case as Season 2 of the anime finally reached our TV screens. Closer scrutiny of the season's breakdown has revealed that the second season will last for 18 episodes and will cover two arcs in the manga: the Mugen Train Arc and the Entertainment District Arc. This split will not be even, as the first 7 episodes will go to the first arc and the remaining 11 will cover the controversial Entertainment District Arc.

The synopses for these arcs (as taken from the manga summaries) are as follows:

Mugen Train Arc
"After dealing with several demonic enemies aboard the Infinity Train, Tanjiro, Zenitsu and Inosuke must face the demon spirit of the train itself! Even if they can stop the demon train, the minions of Muzan Kibutsuji are still out there and Tanjiro must continue to improve his strength and skills. Learning the secret of the Hikonami Kagura and Flame Breathing will give him a powerful new advantage."

Entertainment District Arc
"Tanjiro and his friends accompany the Hashira Tengen Uzui to an entertainment district where Tengen’s female ninja agents were gathering information on a demon before they suddenly disappeared. In order to investigate, Tanjiro and the others disguise themselves as women to sneak in!" 

The Entertainment District Arc will premiere on the 5th of December. If you haven't already seen it, you can check out the season 2 trailer for the anime right here.



2. Attack on Titan Season 2 Trailer Out!

"I’m very excited that the second part of the final season is finally starting. I’m very sorry that I drew scenes that the assistants at MAPPA have to struggle with. (…) I really am looking forward to those “difficult” scenes the most!"
These are the words left by Hajime Ishiyama on the official AOT websites following the release of the trailer for the second part of the last season! MAPPA also posted a special illustration on their Twitter account to accompany the announcement (pictured above).

Anime-only watchers won't be able to make head nor tail of what Ishiyama's claim refers to, but for those of us who have read the legendary scripts (the manga), we know of the suffering that we must live through yet again... Set for release on January the 9th, 2022, the day the anime breaks the internet is nearly upon us... a journey 2000 years in the making! For those who've managed to live under a rock for almost a decade, the following is the synopsis for Attack on Titan:

"A century ago, the grotesque giants known as Titans appeared and consumed all but a few thousand humans. The survivors took refuge behind giant walls. Today, the threat of the Titans is a distant memory, and a boy named Eren yearns to explore the world beyond Wall Maria. But what began as a childish dream will become an all-too-real nightmare when the Titans return and humanity is once again on the brink of extinction…"
(from Kodansha USA)

You can check out the trailer here!


3. Guilty Crown Celebrates 10th Anniversary!

Now a decade old, the Guilty Crown anime recently celebrated its 10th anniversary via a series of commemorative events across social media. It all started with the official announcement made on the Twitter account for the series and was followed up with an amazing rendition being posted by none other than Hiroyuki Sawano himself on his official YouTube channel! The animator, director, character designer and cheif animation director all joined in on the celebration and left their own posts and illustrations in acknowledgement of the milestone.

Now 10 years old, Guilty Crown can be regarded as a modern classic, running in tandem with big names like Fairy Tail, Hunter x Hunter and Bleach in its original run from October 2011 to winter of 2012. If the recent celebrations have convinced you to explore the anime further, the synopsis as given by WIT Studio is as follows:

"In the near future, the outbreak of a terrible disease called the Apocolypse Virus places Japan under the military rule of a global organization called the GHQ – a group tasked with checking the spread of the virus and administering vaccinations. Apathetic high school student Shuu Ouma lives in Tokyo, spending his days editing videos and trying to be left alone. But things change when he meets the beautiful pop idol, Inori, who is on the run from GHQ soldiers.

While trying to save her from her captors, he acquires a mysterious power called the Void Gene that allows him to pull items or weapons from anyone under the age of seventeen. Now, Shuu must decide whether to join the efforts of the well-funded radical terrorist group “Funeral Parlor” and fight against the GHQ, or shrug off his newfound power and resume his normal life – assuming that either the GHQ or Funeral Parlor’s charismatic leader, Gai, will let him."



And that's a wrap for this week in Anime! Catch us every week on Thursday and Friday for more exciting updates on everything anime!