New Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha 20th Anniversary Anime Cast and Trailer Unveiled
The official website for the Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha franchise has unveiled a new visual, a promotional video, and crucial story details for the upcoming Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha EXCEEDS Gun Blaze Vengeance, the franchise’s highly anticipated 20th-anniversary anime.
The new series is slated to debut in July, and its promotional video features Nana Mizuki’s song “Never Surrender.”
The series introduces several new key characters.
Azusa Tachibana voices Shiina Kuze, a high school student residing on a remote island in the far eastern country of Mizuho.
She works as a hunter, tasked with eradicating an invasive alien species, and lives with her younger sister, Setsuna Kuze, voiced by Rina Hidaka.
Setsuna, an outstanding elementary school student, manages the household and tends a vegetable garden, seeking a quiet life with her sister despite the world’s dangers.
Asaki Yuikawa joins the cast as Towa Yorumi, a mysterious young woman operating as a “Majin” or “Demon” in the shadows of society.
Towa is supported by four backers: Chiharu as Shiori Aizawa, Aika Kobayashi as Yuuna Kitamori, Ayasa Itō as Aoi Niina, and Hina Aoki as Yuzu Kodera.
Loyal viewers will also see the return of established protagonists, with Yukari Tamura, Nana Mizuki, and Kana Ueda reprising their roles as Nanoha Takamachi, Fate T. Harlaown, and Hayate Yagami, respectively.
The show’s premise is set three decades after an unknown “invasive alien species” first appeared, pushing the world to the brink of ruin.
Although humanity has managed to secure its current safety, the threat of global collapse is ever-present.
Most people live in terror of death while attempting to ignore the surrounding peril.
In this high-stakes environment, the United Nations Investigation Agency EXCEEDS is the organization dedicated to fighting the invasive species and other disasters.
The new anime is being produced at Seven Arcs, the studio behind the original series.
Franchise co-creator Masaki Tsuzuki is credited with the original story concept and scriptwriting.
Takayuki Hamana returns to direct, having previously directed the franchise’s films Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha Reflection and Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha Detonation.
Issei Aragaki, also a veteran of Detonation, is serving as both character designer and chief animation director, with Shūichi Kawakami credited for the original character designs.
The new anime is just one facet of the franchise’s 20th-anniversary celebration.
The Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha EXCEEDS manga also launched last year on Kodansha’s Suiyōbi no Sirius service, featuring Tsuzuki on the original story concept and Kawakami providing the art.
Other anniversary projects include the Lyrical Selection television edit version of the anime films Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha The MOVIE 1st and Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha the Movie 2nd A’s, which began airing last year.
The Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha franchise first launched with a 13-episode television anime in 2004, created by writer Masaki Tsuzuki, director Akiyuki Simbo, and Seven Arcs, and has since expanded to include four subsequent television series, two pairs of films, numerous manga, novels, and drama CDs.
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