Toonami has begun their celebration of 25 years of bringing you a better cartoon show with the debut of Cosmo Samurai 2 this week. And while there wasn’t much else to report with the block, fans should take solace in that. Long past are the days when fans felt restless due to unforeseen circumstances plaguing the latter half of 2021. Toonami feels incredibly strong, and it’s fun to see all the fanfare with the series that are currently airing. But there’s still some news to look into, so make sure you check out everything in the latest installment of This Week From Toonami!
Attack on Titan fans received unfortunate news where episode 87 would be delayed a week in Japan. Due to special programming, the series will have to wait a week for the second season to continue on captivating anime fans. According to the official Twitter account of Attack on Titan, the following episode (88) will also be delayed, but only by 10 minutes. Unless FUNimation also decided to hold back on dubbing the series (for time), Toonami fans will be able to inch a tad closer to those watching the series subtitled.
IGN Fan Fest occurred this weekend, and Shenmue the Animation had a panel for fans to check out! Creator of the game Yu Suzuki joined the event and introduced a sneak peek of the series, as he has been excited seeing how the anime has looked. The clip shows Ryu and Fukuhara sparring in what Suzuki hopes to give a taste of Japan to those around the world. This scene is part of episode three (which aired on Toonami), where Ryu learns about his family crest before finding the Phoenix Mirror and realizes what two objects he needs to unlock the door in the dojo. It’s pretty cool to see the game’s creator introduce the anime at the IGN Fan Fest, and hope that more people can check out the anime as it airs on Adult Swim.
Fans won’t have to wait long on who will be voicing their favorite characters on the second season of Demon Slayer. Many have anticipated the English dub for the beloved Entertainment District arc, as FUNimation and Crunchyroll announced that starting Sunday’s all-new dubbed episodes would debut. Fans can expect one English dub episode for the special series on both streaming websites beginning this week at 11 a.m. While it is a shame that Toonami won’t be the place to debut this English dub, there might be a chance for the series to still find a way on Adult Swim, much like how Yashahime: Princess Half-Demon did before. It’s exciting for Demon Slayer fans who have been watching the dub, so be on the lookout for any announcements as the series is streamed!
And that wasn’t the only news Demon Slayer made this week. VIZ Media announced on Twitter that the company plans to publish three more Demon Slayer novels in the fall of this year! The books titled The Flower of Happiness, One-Winged Butterfly, and Signs from the Wind will all finally be available for those living in the U.S. who need more Demon Slayer content. If you’re curious about these new novels, make sure you follow The Demon Slayer Podcast, which will likely break down all you need to know about these new books that are on the way!
This weekend, Toei Animation revealed more information about the latest Dragon Ball Super film. During the Dragon Ball Games Battle Hour 2022 event, Toei Animation confirmed that in the summer, fans in the U.S. will be able to see the movie titled Dragon Ball Super: Super Heroes. Everyone also got the chance to see a new visual that has fans excited after seeing Goten and Trunks a bit old than they were in the original series. More footage of the film was also shown at the event, creating more buzz for the project. Considering how well anime films have been doing lately (thanks to Mugen Train), many should have their eyes on Dragon Ball Super to see how it performs when it premieres.
Were you interested in playing My Hero One’s Justice 2 but weren’t able to? Well, there are even more ways to play the game as Bandai Namco Entertainment announced that those who use Google Stadia can finally join the fray! Below is a trailer for the announcement released by the company, as the player base has even more room to expand for what seems to be a growing following of the game. For those who use Google Stadia My Hero One’s Justice 2 is available now to download!
Sword Art Online fans will not want to miss this. Sony announced that their “Sword Art Online: Ex-Chronicle Online Edition” virtual reality exhibit would open globally from Feb. 21 till March 10. The show will be open to those in the U.S., the United Kingdom, Japan, Hong Kong, Germany, Thailand, South Korea, Macau, Taiwan, and Singapore. Fans should be on the lookout for a concert by ReoNa, which will occur on March 6, behind-the-scene stuff for the anime, and a co-op VR game called “The Skull Reaper.” If you are interested in taking part in the exhibit, tickets are on sale for around $28 for visitors on smartphones or PC. For those who will access the event on a VR device or gaming PC app, the cost of your tickets will be around $33. And once you buy a ticket, you’ll be able to access the event as many times as you during the duration of the entire exhibit.
Have Hunter x Hunter fans ever wanted to play gungi? Despite not having any official rules written by Yoshihiro Togashi, Universal Music Japan has recreated the iconic game board and brought along rules of its own for fans to play! In the video below, the company released a four-minute explanation of the game’s rules as the product has become available for fans to purchase. Sadly, the gungi game board is already out of stock, but it’s still pretty cool to see, and hopefully, someone might stream the game for many to learn how to play!
The Fullmetal Alchemist manga is celebrating its twentieth anniversary, and Square Enix launched a new website titled vengeance-scar.jp. With a countdown on the righthand side, Square Enix has plans to release further information on projects to help commemorate the occasion. The countdown is set to expire on March 2, so it won’t be long before fans find out what is happening with this new website.
On the latest Toonami Faithful Podcast episode, Andrew “Sketch” Hingson is joined by Varun “VLordGTZ” Gupta, Happy Kuro Kitty, and special guest Grant the Thief! Grant reviewed Blade Runner: Black Lotus for Anime News Network and graciously joined our crew to discuss the final two episodes and the series as a whole. The group discusses Joseph’s character growth (or lack thereof), more context on characters’ motivations in the early parts of the story, and dive into how Blade Runner: Black Lotus fits in the overall picture of the franchise. This conversation with our panelists isn’t something fans will want to miss, as listeners will be hit with a wildly entertaining discussion about the series!
Staff member Junior finished his playthrough of the first Shenmue game on his stream. But if you weren’t able to catch it, don’t worry! Junior has his stream VOD’s on his Twitch page, where you can see the game that inspired the anime series that’s debuting on Toonami! Find out what made people cherish this game and why so many were excited about the anime adaptation when it was first announced.
You can follow us on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. You can listen to the Toonami Faithful Podcast on Soundcloud, iTunes, Spotify, etc. for interviews, discussions, and breaking news updates. Listen at the link below or on your podcast platform of choice:
C.J Maffris is the Editor-in-Chief at Toonamifaithful.com. He also produced and directed the Toonami documentary, What Toonami Means To Me. Feel free to follow CJ on Twitter @SeaJayMaffris