Crunchyroll Adds 2021 Hakuōki Original Video Anime

Crunchyroll announced on Monday that it has added the first two episodes of the Hakuōki franchise's new original video anime (OVA) project. The OVA is available for users in North America, Central America, South America, Europe, Africa, Oceania, the Middle East, and the CIS.

The OVA will have three episodes that will stream exclusively on the U-NEXT service in Japan. The first and second episode debuted on November 13 and December 11, respecitvely, with the third episode debuting on January 29. The three parts will also ship on Blu-ray Disc and DVD on December 24, 2021, January 28, 2022, and February 25, 2022.

The cast includes:

• Houko Kuwashima as Chizuru Yukimura
• Shinichiro Miki as Toshizō Hijikata
• Showtaro Morikubo as Sōji Okita
• Kousuke Toriumi as Hajime Saitō
• Hiroyuki Yoshino as Heisuke Tōdō
• Koji Yusa as Sanosuke Harada
• Kenjiro Tsuda as Chikage Kazama
• Shōta Aoi as Hyōgo Sakai

Osamu Yamasaki is returning as director at Studio DEEN. Atsuko Nakajima is once again serving as animation character designer for Yone Kazuki's original character designs. Kou Otani also returns to compose the music, with Yoshikazu Iwanami similarly back as audio director.

Aiko Yoshioka is performing the opening theme song "Setsuna no Kodō" (Split-Second Heartbeat), while Maon Kurosaki is performing the ending theme song "Kenran -I'll never forget you-."

The previous anime project for Hakuōki is the two-part film project Hakuoki: Demon of the Fleeting Blossom, consisting of Hakuoki: Demon of the Fleeting Blossom: Wild Dance of Kyoto in 2013, and Hakuoki: Demon of the Fleeting Blossom: Warrior Spirit of the Blue Sky in 2014. Sentai Filmworks released both films on Blu-ray Disc and DVD.

The story of the game franchise and its various adaptations centers around the historical Shinsengumi samurai group in Kyoto during the 19th century. A girl named Chizuru Yukimura arrives in Kyoto from Edo to search for her missing father. She finds herself embroiled in the conflict between the frightening Rasetsu and the Shinsengumi (led by Hijikata and others), thanks to a fateful connection with her missing father.

Idea Factory released the first Hakuōki game in 2008. Hakuōki: Kyoto Winds (Hakuōki Shinkai: Kaze no Shō) debuted for the PlayStation Vita in Japan in September 2015. Idea Factory International released the game in North America and Europe in May 2017. The company later released the game for PC via Steam in August 2017.

The sequel game, Hakuōki: Edo Blossoms (Hakuōki Shinkai: Hana no Shō), launched in Japan on the PS Vita in June 2016. Idea Factory International released the game in March 2018 in North America and Europe for PS Vita and Steam. The game also launched for the PC via Steam in the same month.

Idea Factory released the two games together for the Nintendo Switch under the title Hakuōki Shinkai: Fūkaden in September 2018. Hakuōki Shinkai: Tsukikage no Shō and Hakuōki Shinkai: Ginsei no Shō are new games for the Switch in the franchise. The first game shipped in Japan on September 2019, and the second game shipped in July 2020.

The franchise inspired the Hakuoki: Demon of the Fleeting Blossom television anime in 2010, followed by Hakuōki: Record of the Jade Blood in the same year, 2012's Hakuoki: Demon of the Fleeting Blossom - Dawn of the Shinsengumi, and 2016's Hakuōki: Otogisōshi. The franchise also spawned several films and original video anime releases.

The first Hakuōki stage musical debuted in 2012, and the latest musical, Musical "Hakuōki Shinkai" Sōma Kazue-hen, ran in Tokyo and Kyoto in July earlier this year after a one-year delay due to the new coronavirus disease (COVID-19).

The franchise's Hakuōki SSL ~sweet school life~ high school spinoff game has also inspired a live-action TV series, a musical, and a live-action film.

Source: Crunchyroll