Upcoming new CloverWorks anime Elusive Samurai got a new trailer today, along with a July 6th premiere in Japan.
New episodes will release every Saturday.
The new Elusive Samurai trailer (watch below) shows Tokiyuki Houjou, as he spends all of his time playing hide and seek rather than working on the skills he will need as the next successor of the Kamakura shogunate.
The trailer then switches to the overthrow of the Kamakura reign, and Tokiyuki quickly being thrust into the real world as his clan is killed, and he is forced to flee.
The trailer also features the voices of rookie actress Asaki Yuikawa as protagonist Tokiyuki Houjou, Yūichi Nakamura (Hajime in Wind Breaker) who plays Shinto priest and Tokiyuki’s savior Yorishige Suwa, and Hinaki Yano (Sara in A Salad Bowl of Eccentrics) who is voicing Shizuku.
The Elusive Samurai manga and anime staff
The new anime is based on the Japanese historical manga by Yusei Matsui.
The manga has 15 volumes out in Japanese, with Volume 16 coming out in July. Thus, proving just how prolific the mangaka is considering it has only been published since January, 2021.
Outside Japan, Viz Media publishes the samurai series in English, with 11 volumes already out and Volume 12 up for pre-order and a release date of August 6th.
With that much material as well, and with the manga still ongoing, should the first season of the Elusive Samurai anime series turn out to be a hit, it is likely we could get several seasons coming after it.
As for the Elusive Samurai‘s plot, it looks like this:
In 1333 A.D., the Kamakura Shogunate, which had laid the foundations of samurai rule in Japan, is destroyed by the rebellion of Ashikaga Takauji, a trusted retainer of the shogunate.
Having lost everything and thrown into the depths of despair, the shogunate’s legitimate successor, Tokiyuki Houjou, escapes from the burning city of Kamakura under the guidance of the priest Yorishige Suwa, who claims to be a deity. ……
In Suwa, where he arrives after fleeing, Tokiyuki meets trusted companions and builds up the strength to retake Kamakura.
He overcomes the great swell of the changing times by ‘fleeing’ and ‘living’, in contrast to the way of life of the samurai who ‘fight’ and ‘die’. Tokiyuki’s game of tag to regain control of the country unfolds in a turbulent world crowded with heroes.
The samurai adventure anime is being directed by Yuuta Yamazaki (Love Kome: We Love Rice), with Yasushi Nishiya (chief animation director for Pokémon the Movie: Secrets of the Jungle) as character designer, and Yoriko Tomita (My Dress-Up Darling) in charge of series composition and scripts.
CloverWorks is in charge of anime production.
Watch the new Elusive Samurai trailer below, as the anime does look fun and that art style is beautiful.
RELATED: The Elusive Samurai also has an English dub on its way