Toonami Exec Addresses Shenmue Season 2 Possibilities
The Warner Bros and Discovery merger has seen quite a few casualties over recent months, with series including Infinity Train, OK K.O., and even the live-action Batgirl film being stricken as a result. Unfortunately, it seems as though Adult Swim has been hit hard as well as Toonami's co-creator, Jason DeMarco, recently announced that Shenmue The Animation, a major Adult Swim original anime, wouldn't be returning for a second season to continue the story following Ryo and his quest for revenge.
Shenmue first debuted on the Sega Dreamcast video game console in 1999, with the series making a surprising return in 2019 thanks to the release of Shenmue III. While a fourth installment of the Sega series might not take place, the series remains a popular franchise in the world of video games, so it came as no surprise that an anime adaptation was created to explore the life of protagonist Ryo Hazuki. Unfortunately, the first season ended on something of a cliffhanger, meaning that most likely, Shenmue the Animation won't be able to tell the entire martial arts-based story.
Jason DeMarco took to his Official Twitter Account to not only confirm that Shenmue The Animation was being stricken from HBO Max, but also that the second season wouldn't be coming to Toonami in the future, despite previous reports that there was a strong possibility that Ryo Hazuki would return to the small screen:
Sorry guys. This happened. You can still watch all of the anime on Crunchyroll and it will still be available as digital downloads. And yes, it’s looking like no S2 of Shenmue, even though sadly- it did well enough that we were gearing up for S2. Maybe one day… https://t.co/WpM3O6NcSC
— SPIRAL CURSE DEMARCO (@Clarknova1) September 28, 2022
Despite these cuts, Adult Swim is still working on new originals including Junji Ito's Uzumaki, Housing Complex C, and FLCL, though the status of these projects has yet to be confirmed following the latest updates.
The official description of Shenmue The Animation reads as such:
"1986, Yokosuka. Ryo Hazuki has trained to master the Hazuki Style Jujitsu under his strict father in the Hazuki Dojo from his childhood. However, one day a mysterious man named Lan Di murders his father and takes the "mirror" his father was protecting. Ryo is determined to find the truth behind his father's murder, but soon finds himself getting stuck in a war between the underground organizations…. Traveling from Yokosuka to Hong Kong, Ryo's long journey begins!"
Are you sad to see that Ryo Hazuki won't be returning to Adult Swim? Feel free to let us know in the comments or hit me up directly on Twitter @EVComedy to talk all things comics, anime, and the world of Toonami.