Calling all sports anime fans, prepare yourselves to get hyped and motivated this year as Hyakuemu is coming to theaters this Fall. The popularity of sports anime continues to grow with hits like Haikyu!! becoming major, international phenomena. Fans have already been treated to great volleyball (Haikyu!!), boxing (Hajime no Ippo), badminton (Blue Box), basketball (Slam Dunk), and soccer (Blue Lock) anime. Now it’s time for a modern track and field anime to get the attention it deserves.
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Hyakuemu (which translates to “100 meters”) is based on the debut manga by Uoto, who also wrote Orb: On the Movements of the Earth. The relatively short manga was first published in Kodansha’s Magazine Pocket app and website in November 2018, and ran for just under a year until August 2019. Ardent ComicBook.com readers may remember we recently covered the first trailer for the movie. But, Hyakuemu has just been given its US theatrical release date.
Hyakuemu Sprints Into Theaters This Fall
When Hyakuemu‘s poster, trailer, and key staff and cast were first revealed, all US fans had to go off was the Japanese release date — September 19th. GKIDS will be distributing the movie in Western countries like the US and the UK, and we won’t have to wait long after Japan until we can see the intense action and drama of Hyakuemu on the big screen.
Per GKIDS’ official website, Hyakuemu will release in US theaters in October. However, an exact release date has not yet been confirmed. Hopefully, the film will release at the start of October, so we won’t have to avoid spoilers online for too long after the Japanese release date.
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What is Hyakuemu About?
Hyakuemu, as the translated title suggests, is about athletics; more specifically the 100m sprint. The manga follows two teenagers who develop a strong friendship through their love of sprinting. But, when their lives diverge, they meet again years later on the track as bitter rivals.
Expect the drama and the scenes depicting the athletics to be intense. But, as we learned from the first trailer, the true star of the film will be the stunning animation. Studio Rock ‘n’ Roll Mountain will be animating the movie under director Kenji Iwaisawa. The animation in the trailer feels unique and very unlike most sports anime. That’s because the studio used a technique called rotoscoping (where animators trace over live-action footage) for the races.
The official synopsis for the movie reads, “100 METERS follows Togashi, a track star who is born to run. As a kid, he is naturally gifted and wins every 100-meter race without effort. But in sixth grade, he meets Komiya, a transfer student who is full of determination but lacks technique. In teaching him, Togashi gives Komiya a new purpose: to win no matter what. Years pass by, and Togashi and Komiya meet again as rivals on the track and reveal their true selves.”
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