It was March 2023 when the Naruto anime remake was first introduced as a part of the collection’ twentieth anniversary. The mission consisted of 4 particular episodes, re-animated with trendy expertise. We even obtained a spectacular teaser of what this might appear like, within the type of a 10-minute trailer displaying a number of the most iconic scenes of the anime, up to date with a contemporary look. After which, nothing.
After being initially scheduled for September 2023, an official assertion in August of that yr introduced a delay to enhance the standard of the episodes. Since then, the mission has been extra silent than a talented shinobi. Animation studio Pierrot has been busy with Bleach: Thousand-Yr Blood Warfare, leaving followers to marvel simply what occurred to the 4 new episodes of Naruto. Some speculated that, after the extremely constructive reception of the trailer, the powers-that-be determined that 4 episodes simply weren’t sufficient, and secretly greenlit a full remake. Regardless of the fact could also be, it is going to most likely come to mild quickly, at New York Comedian Con 2026.
As introduced by Viz Media and Shueisha, the Naruto franchise may have a panel at New York Comedian Con on Oct. 10. This would not be notably thrilling information by itself, however the announcement got here with the specification {that a} “new mission” will probably be revealed. Furthermore, Viz added the tagline “May this be the beginning of one thing massive? Keep tuned for extra!”
Naruto followers have been “staying tuned” for greater than three years at this level. The preliminary feeling of pleasure sparked by the “Street of Naruto” trailer was slowly changed by considered one of disappointment. For a lot of, the notion was the franchise was not handled as a precedence by its house owners, regardless of its indeniable recognition. Moreover, the brand new initiatives introduced over the previous few years turned out to be comparatively secondary initiatives, akin to video video games or exhibitions. Whereas any fan could be completely happy to see their beloved collection stored alive, the hype generated by the twentieth anniversary announcement ended up having a detrimental impact on the group because of the fixed delays.
Nevertheless, the celebrities are lining up once more now. October 2027 will mark the twenty fifth anniversary of the Naruto anime, so it is fully potential {that a} remake will probably be introduced at New York Comedian Con, with a launch date scheduled for 2027. Earlier this yr, in Could, a TV Tokyo buyers’ Q&A revealed that the broadcaster has “a number of initiatives deliberate” for the anniversary, which is seen as “the start of a brand new stage.” TV Tokyo is the place Naruto initially aired in Japan, so there’s an opportunity {that a} massive return to the channel is within the works.
Nonetheless, the anime business has modified dramatically because the days when Naruto was airing. The weekly episode mannequin, which put vital pressure on the producers and animators, and led to fluctuating high quality and an abundance of filler episodes, has been virtually fully changed by a seasonal mannequin. Trendy anime collection should ship by way of visible high quality to appease more and more demanding followers. Fortunately, Pierrot has proven it is greater than as much as the duty with its work on Bleach: Thousand-Yr Blood Warfare.
Hopefully, Naruto followers will probably be rewarded for his or her endurance on Oct. 10. Curiously, with Dragon Ball Tremendous additionally returning this fall, and a teased new Bleach mission that could possibly be introduced after the tip of Thousand-Yr Blood Warfare, 2027 could possibly be the yr of the return of all 4 of the collection that contributed to creating anime the leisure juggernaut it’s right now (One Piece by no means went away, and it is even launching an anime remake). Let’s simply pray that the New York Comedian Con announcement will not find yourself being one other exhibition.