Following the premiere episode of Shaman King (2021) on TV Tokyo on Thursday, the Japanese official website has been updated with the entire episode count for the series and information about the upcoming Blu-ray releases for the series in Japan.
The entire Shaman King (2021) anime series will be 52 episodes long and will cover the key points from the original manga series currently published by Kodansha. Within these 52 episodes it will cover to the final chapter from the manga, chapter 300.
In a recent Magmix article written by Hiroyuki Takei’s longtime friend, Tashiro Hayato, he recalls about the decision making process when creating this new anime. He notes that the overall “tempo” of the show has been increased which more closely aligns with today’s more fast-paced lifestyle.
Looking ahead at future episode titles, and the structure of the first episode, portions of the original manga were being cut for this adaptation. For example, a couple of the earlier stories of Yoh in Tokyo solving issues by partnering with various spirits will not be animated.
As part of the original planning, they created an “episode composition” which would list out the major story points of each episode. They then took the constraint of 52 episodes and determined what would need to be covered in each episode for the entire story. This reduction then was tempo the entire series would need to be to keep at this pace to cover the entire series. Tashiro Hayato was part of these original meetings and commented that there was many debates on what should be covered within the anime and still has the intentions that Hiroyuki Takei had within the original manga. He also notes that being able to plan a 52-episode anime series all at once in 2020 was very unique and will be a heavy burden on the production team to be able to complete.
The anime series will be running on weekly TV Tokyo on Thursdays at 5:55pm for all 52 episodes.
Blu-ray Box Sets
The entire series will be coming out on Blu-Rays in Japan in a total of 4 boxsets that will contain all 52 episodes. Within each of these boxsets is 12 to 13 episodes from the series plus a bunch of new extras that will be created for each release. Additionally, depending on which store you purchase the Blu-ray boxsets from in Japan there may be additional benefits added. There are a limited number of sets available per retailer and will be available via pre-order.
Blu-ray Box 1
Release Date: August 25th, 2021
Pre-Order Deadline: June 20th, 2021
Discs: 2 Blu-rays & 2 CDs
Episodes: Episodes 1-13
Price: 27,500 yen (tax included)
Product Number: KIZX-90455-8
POS: 4988003-869281
Contents:
- Framed-design character portraits (based on new illustrations)
- Original Soundtrack Collection 1 by Yuki Hayashi (2 CD set)
- Booklet
- Storage box
- Digi-pack storage cases
Blu-ray Box 2
Release Date: November 24th, 2021
Pre-Order Deadline: September 20th, 2021
Discs: 2 Blu-rays & 1 CD
Episodes: Episodes 14-27
Price: 27,500 yen (tax included)
Product Number: KIZX-90459-61
POS: 4988003-869298
Contents:
- Framed-design character portraits (based on new illustrations)
- Special Drama CD 1
- Booklet
- Storage box
- Digi-pack storage cases
Blu-ray Box 3
Release Date: February 23rd, 2022
Pre-Order Deadline: December 19th, 2021
Discs: 2 Blu-rays & 1 CD
Episodes: Episodes 28-39
Price: 27,500 yen (tax included)
Product Number: KIZX-90462
POS: 4988003-869304
Contents:
- Framed-design character portraits (based on new illustrations)
- Special Drama CD 2
- Booklet
- Storage box
- Digi-pack storage cases
Blu-ray Box 4
Release Date: May 25th, 2022
Pre-Order Deadline: March 21st, 2021
Discs: 2 Blu-rays & 1 CD
Episodes: Episodes 40-52
Price: 27,500 yen (tax included)
Product Number: KIZX-90465-9
POS: 4988003-869311
Contents:
- Framed-design character portraits (based on new illustrations)
- Original Soundtrack Collection 1 by Yuki Hayashi and new Character Song Collection (3 CD set)
- Booklet
- Storage box
- Digi-pack storage cases
It is not clear if the new content of the original soundtracks and Drama CDs included in these boxsets will be released separately. The benefits listed for these box sets are for the “First Production Limited Edition” which could potentially lead to future re-releases without these benefits. The CDs were noted as “Special CD” potentially meaning that these will be a special edition that may differ from a standard editions that may release in the future. The design of the boxset and any of the extras have not been released and only have placeholder artwork. This information can be found on the individual retailers and on the official website.
Additional Store Extras
The following are the benefits when you purchase the Blu-ray box set from each retailer in Japan:
Animate: Newly drawn Japanese-style clear file and a set of 2 can badges (56mm in size).
Amazon Japan: A set of 5 original drawings
AmiAmi: Acrylic character plate
Gamers: B2-sized tapestry and a large bromide
Seven Net Shopping: A6-sized acrylic plate
Kinkuri-do: Newly drawn A5 acrylic plate
Animate will have their own special edition of these limited editions for the cost 29,150 yen which in addition to the standard benefits they will also have a set of 2 acrylic stands (while supplies last). When pre-ordering the first boxset at any Animate store (including online), at the time of the pre-order you will also receive a B2-sized poster with the design shown on the right.
For the goods listed above, it is unclear if the designs will be different for each box set released, but is very likely that it will be.
If you purchase both box sets 1 and 2 from Rakuten Books you will get a cloth wallscroll with Yoh on it. If you purchase box sets 3 and 4, then it will be a cloth wallscroll of Anna. The design of both of these can form a single when hung side-by-side.
Finally, if you purchase all 4 box sets from Animate, they will have a storage folder for all of the clear files and can badges that were acquired with each box set purchase.
The original Shaman King (2001) anime was previously only released on VHS tapes and DVDs. The first printing of the DVDs was on single-DVD format (with about 4 episode per DVD). Later a re-release of the DVDs were combined into 3 boxset designs with new artwork drawn by Hiroyuki Takei. The original anime series is still out of print and never received a Blu-ray release anywhere in the world.
