Bastard! - Heavy Metal, Dark Fantasy - will make its premiere on June 30.
As reported by Comic Natalie, Netflix announced that it will release the new anime revival in two parts, with the first 13-episodes debuting in June. The remaining 11 episodes will be added to the streaming service sometime before the end of 2022. The streaming company also announced several new additions to the show's cast, including Yoshitsugu Matsuoka (Demon Slayer: Kimetsu No Yaiba), Ari Ozawa (Monthly Girls' Nozaki-kun), Shizuka Itou (Sailor Moon Eternal), and Takehito Koyasu (Attack on Titan: The Final Season).
The new cast join Kisho Taniyama, who portrays the series' abrasive protagonist, Dark Schneider, and Tomori Kusunoki as Tia Noto Yoko, the priestess who resurrects Schneider and accompanies him on his journey. Anime fans may recognize Taniyama the voice of Jean Kirschstein in Attack on Titan, while Kusunoki is best known for portraying the character of Neiru Aonuma in CloverWorks' original anime Wonder Egg Priority.
The Bastard!! reboot was first unveiled by Netflix in early February. The series is being produced by Warner Bros. Animation Japan, which Netflix previously partnered with to bring Jojo's Bizarre Adventure: Stone Ocean to its streaming service as an exclusive. The new show is being helmed by director Takaharu Ozaki, who also headed up the production of the controversial Goblin Slayer anime. The new show's animation is being handled by Liden Films, the studio behind the anime adaptations of The Heroic Legend of Arslan and one of 2021's biggest hits, Tokyo Revengers.
The new show is based on a manga of the same name, which was created by Kazushi Hagiwara in 1988. The series was one of the biggest shonen manga of the '80s and early '90s, selling over 30 million copies before going on hiatus in 2009. Set in a dark fantasy dystopia inspired by Hagiwara's love of heavy metal music and Dungeons and Dragons, Bastard!! tells the story of Dark Schneider, a powerful wizard whose soul was sealed away after he attempted to take over the world. When a destructive war breaks out, Schneider is reluctantly released from his prison by the priestess Tia Noto Yoko, who wants to use the evil wizard's power to stop an even more dangerous new threat.
The new episode will be the second animated adaptation of Hagiwara's manga; the original series premiered in 1992 as a direct-to-video release and has been out of print for some time. The original manga is available in English from publisher VIZ Media.
Source: Comic Natalie
