WIT Studio is back with another exciting project, this time a brand new anime adaptation Yaba.
While it’s a newer studio compared to some of the other more well-known studios, WIT Studio has really proven itself with some bigger projects like Spy x Family and Suicide Squad: Another World. Not to mention the opening and 2D cutscenes of Persona 3 reload. Now they’re back with another classic, Yaiba, a series about the eponymous character Yaiba Kurogane, a young samurai inspired by the real-world samurai Miyamoto Musashi. If you watched the trailer below and thought “Hmm, I vaguely recognize this style”, that’s because the anime is based on a manga by Gosho Aoyama, who is known for his long-running Cased Closed series (and generally known as “Detective”).
The first trailer is short, about 30 seconds long, but honestly, it looks very interesting and expressive in the short amount of time it takes. Takahiro Hasui, who previously served as series director on Mob Psycho 100 and Bungou Stray Dogs , is the series’ director, with Dog King chief animation director Kameda Yoshimichi serving as character designer and chief animation director.
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This is actually not the first time that comics have been adapted into animation. It first returned in 1993 and ran for 52 episodes, with Kunnihiko Yuyama, the director of nearly every Pokémon movie, directing this version. In terms of casting, the voice of Edogawa Conan is actually the voice of the main character Yaba, continuing the character from the original (she was also married to Aoyama for a few years, although they apparently had a good relationship after the divorce). Aika Iwami (Son of Shinobu) will play Sayaka Mine in this version, and Yoshimasa Hosotani (My Hero Academia, Mob Psycho 100) will play Takeshi Onimaru.
Currently, there is no release date for the new version of Yaiba, so keep an eye out if you’re interested.
This isn’t the only anime remake WIT Studio is working on either, as it’s also working on one of the iconic series Pirate King.