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Shinichirou Watanabe, MAPPA, Adult Swim Produce 'Lazarus' Original Anime [Update 7/22]

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Jul 20, 2023 8:30 AM
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Adult Swim announced a new sci-fi original anime by Shinichirou Watanabe (Cowboy Bebop, Zankyou no Terror) and animation studio MAPPA titled Lazarus on Thursday.

Chad Stahelski (John Wick director) is credited for the action sequence designs. Jazz saxophonist Kamasi Washington, electronic music producer Floating Points, and music producer Bonobo will compose the music. The Adult Swim Festival in San Diego will feature a first-look at Lazarus on July 22.

Synopsis
The year is 2052—an era of unprecedented peace and prosperity prevails across the globe. The reason for this: mankind has been freed from sickness and pain. Nobel Prize winning neuroscientist Dr. Skinner has developed a miracle cure-all drug with no apparent drawbacks called Hapuna. Hapuna soon becomes ubiquitous... and essential. However, soon after Hapuna is officially introduced, Dr. Skinner vanishes.

Three years later, the world has moved on. But Dr. Skinner has returned—this time, as a harbinger of doom. Skinner announces that Hapuna has a short half-life. Everyone who has taken it will die approximately three years later. Death is coming for this sinful world—and coming soon.

As a response to this threat, a special task force of 5 agents is gathered from across the world to save humanity from Skinner's plan. This group is called "Lazarus." Can they find Skinner and develop a vaccine before time runs out? (Source: Adult Swim, edited)

Source: Deadline


Update July 22
The Adult Swim Festival at San Diego Comic-Con unveiled the first promotional video for the Lazarus anime on Saturday. The anime will run for 13 episodes.

PV


Source: Official Twitter

Lazarus on MAL
VindstotJul 22, 2023 6:40 PM
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Jul 20, 2023 8:38 AM
#2

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From the creator of Resonance in Terror and actions sequences are being made by John Wick's director.
That's enough for me to begin my watch.
Remember what Master Oogway told us:

Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, but today is a gift. That is why it is called the present.
Jul 20, 2023 8:41 AM
#3

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sounds promising

inb4 its an antivaxxer story
degJul 22, 2023 11:11 PM
Jul 20, 2023 8:44 AM
#4
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not gonna lie this sounds dumb as fuck
Jul 20, 2023 8:48 AM
#5

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Well, this was a long time coming, rumors of this started even before productions like Jigokuraku were announced. Didn't expect this to be Adult Swim though, makes sense it wasn't present in the anniversary event. I think we still don't have any proper release date of Watanabe's short film at Mappa.

13 eps confirmed https://twitter.com/Clarknova1/status/1682043826528047105
Etherius_ZSJul 20, 2023 9:17 AM
Jul 20, 2023 8:50 AM
#6
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Rip mappa animators
Jul 20, 2023 9:03 AM
#7

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Shinichirou Watanabe x Chad Stahelski

Holy shit this gonna be a masterpiece 🤩
ZXEANJul 20, 2023 9:17 AM
Jul 20, 2023 9:04 AM
#8
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MishaPY said:
Rip mappa animators
I wonder if they are ever gonna tackle more small-scale projects again. 
Jul 20, 2023 9:14 AM
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robotman12 said:
MishaPY said:
Rip mappa animators
I wonder if they are ever gonna tackle more small-scale projects again. 

they've been really thirsty for making more anime lately so yes
Jul 20, 2023 9:20 AM

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Kllamk said:
Bard_Eren said:
From the creator of Resonance in Terror and actions sequences are being made by John Wick's director.
That's enough for me to begin my watch.

Resonance in Terror was a disappinting for most people, including me, and that plot sounds cliche and stupid. We will see how this goes.
Majority loves terror of resonance. It has 8.09 mal rating.
Jul 20, 2023 9:20 AM

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omg, we WILL be watching!!! hope Chad cooked fr
Jul 20, 2023 9:29 AM

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Another investor money laundering project.
Jul 20, 2023 9:37 AM
ranked 54 in FAL
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as much as watanabe's legacy is appreciated, he hasn't exactly delivered as of late and a mappa production doesn't inspire much hope for me either, will keep an eye on this for sure, but won't expect much.
betaweebJul 20, 2023 12:27 PM
Jul 20, 2023 9:49 AM

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I hope the fight choreography would be amazing especially Mappa would produce it. If they nail it, they might surpass the fight choreography of demon slayer.



“Once you've been loved once and have loved once, you cannot forget it.”
― Natsume Takashi
Jul 20, 2023 9:54 AM

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Hope this doesn't see the same fate as that one parkour movie which had all the big names behind it and still sucked.. came out last year I guess.

But still looking forward.
Jul 20, 2023 10:01 AM

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Natsuki_SanJuan said:
I hope the fight choreography would be amazing especially Mappa would produce it. If they nail it, they might surpass the fight choreography of demon slayer.
Demon Slayer doesn't have good fighting choreography. It's just flashy light. Cowboy bebob and Mappa's God of highschool have much better fighting choreography lol.

If you want to watch peak fighting choreography I recommend you to watch this.https://myanimelist.net/anime/37936/Wu_Shan_Wu_Xing_2020
Jul 20, 2023 10:14 AM
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>Adult Swim
John Wick director or not, into the trash it goes.

betaweeb said:
as much as watanabe's legacy is appreciated, he hasn't exactly delivered as of late and a mappa production doesn't inspire much hope for me either, will keep and eye on this for sure, but won't expect much.


Frankly I think Watanabe is waaaaay too overrated as a director. His early shows are good but everything post-Space Dandy has been misfire after misfire.
Also he's pandering way too much to coastal blue-state Americans and kinda forgot that his rendition of American media cliches through a Japanese point of view is what actually made his shows enjoyable in the first place.
TheMechaManiacJul 20, 2023 10:17 AM
Hot Blood saves lives.
Jul 20, 2023 10:15 AM
Ero Ojisan

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Looking forward to seeing this one.
Jul 20, 2023 10:16 AM
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I don’t know how anyone can already be negative on this when fucking Watanabe is making it, he’s literally never missed 
Jul 20, 2023 10:19 AM
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OvergrownRover said:
I don’t know how anyone can already be negative on this when fucking Watanabe is making it, he’s literally never missed 


>never missed
Have to ask: What is Carole and Tuesday?
Hot Blood saves lives.
Jul 20, 2023 10:29 AM

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Oh here comes Adult Swim again, who can't forget their last masterpiece "C Danchi"
Jul 20, 2023 10:39 AM

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Are we on the verge of another stealth spin-off to Bebop, which will be promoted in the US by paying tribute to Western culture?
Jul 20, 2023 10:40 AM

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TheMechaManiac said:
OvergrownRover said:
I don’t know how anyone can already be negative on this when fucking Watanabe is making it, he’s literally never missed 


>never missed
Have to ask: What is Carole and Tuesday?
It just seemed average to me. It had a good chance of becoming a G-Witch before the release of G-Witch, but despite the Martian Trump, Watanabe managed to hold his own at the last moment.
Jul 20, 2023 10:42 AM
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MadanielFL said:
Oh here comes Adult Swim again, who can't forget their last masterpiece "C Danchi"
ah yes a random ass 4-episode anime by a small studio that has barely even animated a series before with a mostly no-name staff is definitely the same as a new Watanabe x MAPPA collab

Now if you had pointed out that Fena pirate anime yeah that would be more fair, that anime was a massive disappointement
Jul 20, 2023 10:56 AM

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DatRandomDude said:
MadanielFL said:
Oh here comes Adult Swim again, who can't forget their last masterpiece "C Danchi"
ah yes a random ass 4-episode anime by a small studio that has barely even animated a series before with a mostly no-name staff is definitely the same as a new Watanabe x MAPPA collab

Now if you had pointed out that Fena pirate anime yeah that would be more fair, that anime was a massive disappointement
The greatest masterpiece that Adult Swim has ever produced, has to be Blade Runner: Black Lotus

And Shinichirou Watanabe was involved in that one too
Jul 20, 2023 10:58 AM

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I wonder how well Stahelski's fight choreography would translate into animation because some of the stuff he does seem very hard to animate.
Maybe 3D + mocap.
MEA·MENTVLA·INGENS·EST
Jul 20, 2023 11:06 AM
ᴛʜʀᴇᴀᴅ★ʀᴇᴀᴘᴇʀ

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More cyberpunk anime sounds interesting, but am I going nuts or did I just read John Wick? lolol
Jul 20, 2023 11:30 AM

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Theo1899 said:
I wonder how well Stahelski's fight choreography would translate into animation because some of the stuff he does seem very hard to animate.
Maybe 3D + mocap.
Fario-P said:
More cyberpunk anime sounds interesting, but am I going nuts or did I just read John Wick? lolol
A really interesting question is what exactly it will be if a person specializing in martial arts is responsible for the action.
Jul 20, 2023 12:12 PM

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Companies to go to any other studio except MAPPA challenge (impossible)

Jul 20, 2023 1:12 PM

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StarPebblit said:
Companies to go to any other studio except MAPPA challenge (impossible)

TMS, Toei, Sunrise, MADHOUSE, J.C.Staff, Production I.G, Studio DEEN and many others.
Jul 20, 2023 2:15 PM
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StarPebblit said:
Companies to go to any other studio except MAPPA challenge (impossible)

I'd say Sunrise is far more qualified for sci-fi than MAPPA ever will be. They're the only ones still training dedicated mecha-animators which is a feat in and of itself.
Early 2010s Bones and Madhouse would've pulled this off far better than Mappa too.
Hot Blood saves lives.
Jul 20, 2023 2:24 PM

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MadanielFL said:
DatRandomDude said:
ah yes a random ass 4-episode anime by a small studio that has barely even animated a series before with a mostly no-name staff is definitely the same as a new Watanabe x MAPPA collab

Now if you had pointed out that Fena pirate anime yeah that would be more fair, that anime was a massive disappointement
The greatest masterpiece that Adult Swim has ever produced, has to be Blade Runner: Black Lotus

And Shinichirou Watanabe was involved in that one too
I know you are being sarcastic here, but Black Lotus had at least two positives: great action choreography and good soundtrack.

Though, Watanabe himself had just a bit more credit there when with Beebop live-action (which is almost zero).
Jul 20, 2023 6:27 PM

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ZXEAN said:
Natsuki_SanJuan said:
I hope the fight choreography would be amazing especially Mappa would produce it. If they nail it, they might surpass the fight choreography of demon slayer.
Demon Slayer doesn't have good fighting choreography. It's just flashy light. Cowboy bebob and Mappa's God of highschool have much better fighting choreography lol.

If you want to watch peak fighting choreography I recommend you to watch this.https://myanimelist.net/anime/37936/Wu_Shan_Wu_Xing_2020
I mean uzui vs gentaro fight was the only one that I was left impressed. But you are right, GOH and Bebop have better fight choreography. Even in Space Dandy. But thanks for the recomm.



“Once you've been loved once and have loved once, you cannot forget it.”
― Natsume Takashi
Jul 20, 2023 6:51 PM

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TheMechaManiac said:
>Adult Swim
John Wick director or not, into the trash it goes.

betaweeb said:
as much as watanabe's legacy is appreciated, he hasn't exactly delivered as of late and a mappa production doesn't inspire much hope for me either, will keep and eye on this for sure, but won't expect much.


Frankly I think Watanabe is waaaaay too overrated as a director. His early shows are good but everything post-Space Dandy has been misfire after misfire.
Also he's pandering way too much to coastal blue-state Americans and kinda forgot that his rendition of American media cliches through a Japanese point of view is what actually made his shows enjoyable in the first place.


How the hell is Carole & Tuesday a misfire?
Jul 20, 2023 6:57 PM

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OMG IT'S LIKE A GLOBAL PANDEMIC WHERE AND HUMANITY MUST FIND THE VACCINE IT'S JUST LIKE REAL LIFE SO EXCITING

"Chimp in state of nature never jerks off, but in captivity he does, wat does this mean? In state of nature he’s too busy, to put plainly. He is concerned with mastering space: solving problem of life in and under trees, mastering what tools he can, mastering social relations in the jockeying for power and status. Deprived of this drive to development and self-increase he devolves to pointless masturbation, in captivity, where he senses he is in owned space and therefore the futility of all his efforts and all his actions."
Jul 20, 2023 9:23 PM

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Comments seem more rslurred than usual but anyway.

This doesn’t sound bad to me.
Jul 20, 2023 10:19 PM
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Oongbuh said:
TheMechaManiac said:
>Adult Swim
John Wick director or not, into the trash it goes.



Frankly I think Watanabe is waaaaay too overrated as a director. His early shows are good but everything post-Space Dandy has been misfire after misfire.
Also he's pandering way too much to coastal blue-state Americans and kinda forgot that his rendition of American media cliches through a Japanese point of view is what actually made his shows enjoyable in the first place.


How the hell is Carole & Tuesday a misfire?


It panders way too much towards certain IRL groups active in America, on which I will not elaborate. Thought anime was above the problems of American media... I was wrong. Very, very wrong.
Hot Blood saves lives.
Jul 21, 2023 1:47 AM

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TheMechaManiac said:
Oongbuh said:


How the hell is Carole & Tuesday a misfire?


It panders way too much towards certain IRL groups active in America, on which I will not elaborate. Thought anime was above the problems of American media... I was wrong. Very, very wrong.
While US is extream in both of their politic spectrums, and C&T certanly has a lot of issues with its plot, being one of that anons who drool over certain Eastern dictators is not a healthy thing.  
Nachtwandler_21Jul 21, 2023 2:32 AM
Jul 21, 2023 2:02 AM

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Can't wait until the usual people on Twitter will cry about it being "Canon propaganda" LMAO

Jul 21, 2023 4:30 AM

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RobertBobert said:
Theo1899 said:
I wonder how well Stahelski's fight choreography would translate into animation because some of the stuff he does seem very hard to animate.
Maybe 3D + mocap.
Fario-P said:
More cyberpunk anime sounds interesting, but am I going nuts or did I just read John Wick? lolol
A really interesting question is what exactly it will be if a person specializing in martial arts is responsible for the action.

The synopsis doesn't sound very action heavy. Maybe this evil doctor guy and his big pharma company have an army of bio enhanced super soldiers that our task force must defeat.
MEA·MENTVLA·INGENS·EST
Jul 21, 2023 4:33 AM

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Theo1899 said:
RobertBobert said:
A really interesting question is what exactly it will be if a person specializing in martial arts is responsible for the action.

The synopsis doesn't sound very action heavy. Maybe this evil doctor guy and his big pharma company have an army of bio enhanced super soldiers that our task force must defeat.
For some reason it seems to me that this could be something like a sci-fi action movie of the early 90s. You know, with these elements of cyber and biopunk, as well as heavy influences from Hong Kong cinema. Also, if my memory serves me right, the action in Bebop was just focused on shooting and fighting in the style of John Woo.
Jul 21, 2023 4:36 AM

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RobertBobert said:
Theo1899 said:

The synopsis doesn't sound very action heavy. Maybe this evil doctor guy and his big pharma company have an army of bio enhanced super soldiers that our task force must defeat.
For some reason it seems to me that this could be something like a sci-fi action movie of the early 90s. You know, with these elements of cyber and biopunk, as well as heavy influences from Hong Kong cinema. Also, if my memory serves me right, the action in Bebop was just focused on shooting and fighting in the style of John Woo.

Stahelski was also influenced by Hong Kong action cinema so maybe that's the reason why Adult Swim brought them together.
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Jul 21, 2023 4:45 AM

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Theo1899 said:
RobertBobert said:
For some reason it seems to me that this could be something like a sci-fi action movie of the early 90s. You know, with these elements of cyber and biopunk, as well as heavy influences from Hong Kong cinema. Also, if my memory serves me right, the action in Bebop was just focused on shooting and fighting in the style of John Woo.

Stahelski was also influenced by Hong Kong action cinema so maybe that's the reason why Adult Swim brought them together.
MAPPA loves this too, so I hope we end up with something really nicely animated.
Jul 21, 2023 4:49 AM
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TheMechaManiac said:


Frankly I think Watanabe is waaaaay too overrated as a director.

Edgelord hates Watanabe so much it wasn't enough to say " waaaaay" but he had to add "too",  lol.  Like him or not, there is no denying his talent as a visionary director.
Jul 21, 2023 4:53 AM

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RobertBobert said:
Theo1899 said:

Stahelski was also influenced by Hong Kong action cinema so maybe that's the reason why Adult Swim brought them together.
MAPPA loves this too, so I hope we end up with something really nicely animated.

This is where some of the doubts I expeessed in my original post come in. Stahelski likes to put A LOT of people on screen with complex fight choreography, dynamic camera and minimum cuts. Sounds hard to animate and seeing as the previous Watanabe/Adult Swim colaboration was 3D, I have a feeling that, at least the fights, are gonna utilize a lot of 3D + mocap.
MEA·MENTVLA·INGENS·EST
Jul 21, 2023 4:57 AM
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Theo1899 said:
RobertBobert said:
MAPPA loves this too, so I hope we end up with something really nicely animated.

This is where some of the doubts I expeessed in my original post come in. Stahelski likes to put A LOT of people on screen with complex fight choreography, dynamic camera and minimum cuts. Sounds hard to animate and seeing as the previous Watanabe/Adult Swim colaboration was 3D, I have a feeling that, at least the fights, are gonna utilize a lot of 3D + mocap.

Story is not its strong point that's for sure, so this will sink or swim depending on the action scenes.
Jul 21, 2023 5:17 AM

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Theo1899 said:
RobertBobert said:
MAPPA loves this too, so I hope we end up with something really nicely animated.

This is where some of the doubts I expeessed in my original post come in. Stahelski likes to put A LOT of people on screen with complex fight choreography, dynamic camera and minimum cuts. Sounds hard to animate and seeing as the previous Watanabe/Adult Swim colaboration was 3D, I have a feeling that, at least the fights, are gonna utilize a lot of 3D + mocap.
It all depends on who will dominate the project and set the main style. For example, Jackie Chan in his Western films either retrains Western stuntmen or brings his own troupe even for stunts involving foreigners. For example, in Dragons Forever, all the most difficult tricks for Urquidez were duplicated by the Chinese.
Jul 21, 2023 5:46 AM

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I like Cowboy Bebop so yeah definitely planning to watch this, I'm more curious about the John Wick's Director debut on this one lol 
Jul 21, 2023 6:29 AM
The Komori

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This is going to be peak fiction and my body is ready
Jul 21, 2023 7:00 AM
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Dokktr said:
TheMechaManiac said:


Frankly I think Watanabe is waaaaay too overrated as a director.

Edgelord hates Watanabe so much it wasn't enough to say " waaaaay" but he had to add "too",  lol.  Like him or not, there is no denying his talent as a visionary director.

Lel, "edgelord".
Edgelords love Watanabe because it makes them think they're smart.
Hot Blood saves lives.
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