'Ultraman' Anime Announced: Production I.G. and Sola Digital Arts Collaborate for Upcoming 3DCG Series; Ken Kamiyama, Shinji Aramaki to Direct
The "Ultra" series is all set to conquer the anime scene with the release of an "Ultraman" anime series in 2019.
The unlabeled countdown that mysteriously took over the entry page of the official "ULTRAMAN" manga site recently, has apparently been counting down the hours to the announcement of this exciting new milestone in the long-running franchise.
The announcement was made via the January 2018 issue of Shogakukan's monthly "HERO'S" manga magazine, which was released in Japan on Friday, Dec. 1.
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Moreover, Kenji Kamiyama, who previously worked on "Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex," and Shinji Aramaki, known for his work in "Appleseed Alpha," announced on the first day of the Tokyo Comic Con 2017 that they will be directing the animated series under Production I.G. and Sola Digital Arts.
The upcoming anime will be based on the popular "ULTRAMAN" manga series by Eiichi Shimizu and Tomohiro Shiguchi, which is hailed as an official sequel to the 1966 "Ultraman" television series. It made its debut on "HERO's" in 2011 and was licensed by Viz Media for an English language release in 2015, during which it placed fifth in the "Best New Manga for Kids/Teens" ranking.
It follows the continuing legacy of the Ultraman Factor, which has now been passed to a high school student named Shinjiro Hayata, who happens to be the son of the original Ultraman, Shin Hayata.
What makes this series different from its predecessor is that instead of featuring Ultraman as the usual gigantic metal hero, Shinjiro's version of it is a human-sized representation of the older Ultraman. His enemies are also human-sized versions of the various kaiju, or alien monsters, seen in previous live-action installments to the franchise.
The "Ultraman" anime series is expected to premiere sometime in 2019. The teaser video that accompanied the announcement shows the popular metal hero in action in a 3DCG animation format.
Further details about the upcoming series will be revealed at a later time.
