Akira Toriyama might be best know for creating Goku and the Z-Fighters in the Dragon Ball franchise, but the mangaka has weaved other universe in his career. One of the biggest manga from the shonen creator remains Sand Land, originally a manga one-shot that has yet to receive an anime adaptation. The story of Beelzebub is coming to theaters in Japan next month, as this year’s San Diego Comic-Con premiered the movie in the West for the first time, with the anime movie revealing when we can expect Sand Land to hit North America.
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While Sand Land has never had an animated series to accompany its original manga, the series recently revealed that on top of the upcoming film, it is also creating an action RPG in the future. Surprisingly, the series began and ended in the year 2000, as Toriyama never revisited the supernatural story. With the upcoming arrival of the movie, perhaps that will change.
Sand Land: North American Release Window
At San Diego Comic-Con 2023, Bandai Namco Filmworks revealed that Sand Land would be coming to North America, though the company was tight-lipped when it came to how it will arrive. Sand Land isn’t confirmed for a theatrical release at the moment, though considering anime’s growing popularity in North America, it’s definitely a possibility.
The current cast for Sand Land’s Japanese version includes Mutsumi Tamura as Beelzebub, Kazuhiro Yamaji as Rao, Cho as Thief, Satoshi Tsuruoka as General Are, Nobuo Tobita as General Zau, Akio Otsuka as Satan, Chafurin as the King, Tomokazu Sugita as Swimmer’s Papa, Koji Yusa as Pike, Hiroyuki Yoshino as Shark, and Masafumi Kobatake as Guppy. At present, no word has been shared as to whether an English Dub will run alongside the North American theatrical release.
If you wanted to check out the Sand Land manga, Viz Media has licensed it for an English-language release. They tease Sand Land‘s story as such, “In the far future, war has destroyed the entire Earth, leaving only a barren wasteland where the supply of water is controlled by the greedy king. In search of a long-lost lake, Sheriff Rao asked the king of the demons for help…and got the king’s son, Beelzebub, and his assistant, Thief. Together the unlikely trio sets off across the desert, facing dragons, bandits and the deadliest foe of all… the King’s army itself! It’s travel adventure and tank action in this new story from Akira Toriyama, the creator of Dragon Ball Z!”
