Netflix Announces New December Anime Titles

Netflix started out the year strong with the intention of strengthen its anime library with originally produced series and popular licenses, and it's seeking to end the year just as strong with one final push of big shows.

Netflix recently announced the full line-up of additions coming to the service in December, and this includes several major anime projects with both original, and much-anticipated adaptations.

• December 1 - Astro Boy
• December 3 - Hero Mask
• December 7 - Neo Yokio Pink Christmas
• December 12 - Back Street Girls: Gokudols
• December 14 - Voltron: Legendary Defender Season 8
• December 18 - Baki
• December 21 - Sirius the Jaeger
• December 21 - Last Hope Part 2
• December 24 - Hi Score Girl

Netflix is hoping to end the year just as strong as it had begun with their original anime series, and the project with the most mystery behind it is definitely Hero Mask. Produced by Netflix and the studio behind series such as Naruto and Yu Yu Hakusho, Hero Mask will run for 15 episodes and follows a detective who is trying to solve a string of grisly crimes all involving a mysterious mask.

The series is officially described as such, "Now there's a mysterious Mask before James Blood, and the man behind it is one that shouldn't exist. What is the mystery surrounding this mask...? So begins an action-packed crime story set in a beautiful city!"

Hiroyasu Aoki (No Game No Life, Hunter x Hunter 2011) will be directing and writing the series for Pierrot with Takahisa Katagiri (FLCL Progressive) designing the characters, Hisaki Kato composing the music for the series, and Yuki Sonoda and Takashi Nakamura serving as art directors.

The Japanese voice cast for the series includes Yasuyuki Kase as James Blood, Yuko Kaida as Sarah Sinclair, Junpei Morita as Lennox Gallagher, Kentaro Takano as Edmond Chandler, Kouki Uchiyama as Harry Crieghton, Yuzuru Aoyama as Geffrey Connor, Takayuki Sugo as Steven Martland, Yutaka Nakano as Richard Burner, Haruka Shibuya as Monica Campbell, Tomoyuki Shimura as Fred Faraday, Yūichi Karasuma as Grimm, Yukiyo Fujii as Eve Palmer, and Tomoko Miyadera as Anna Winehouse.

Another major series garnering attention is Baki, that currently is two-cours long in Japan. Readying for its United States debut, Netflix describes Baki as such:

"The protagonist, Baki Hanma, trains with an intense focus to become strong enough to surpass his father, Yujiro Hanma, the strongest fighter in the world. Five of the world's most violent and brutal death row inmates are gathering to face Baki. Their objective is to taste defeat -- their unmatched strength and skill have led them to grow bored of life itself, and they now seek out Baki in the hopes that he can overwhelm and utterly crush them. In this crisis, other underground martial art warriors gather to fight by Baki's side: Kaoru Hanayama, Gouki Shibukawa, Retsu Kaioh, and Doppo Orochi. An epic showdown between violent death row inmates and Baki and his friends begins!"