If October wasn't looking to be a big enough month for you anime fans with both One Piece and BLEACH having their big time skip episodes airing. News has recently broken that should get all the Whiskey Media members excited. Sentai Filmworks, the people who released Highschool of the Dead earlier this year, has licensed Persona 4 The Animation.
Persona 4 has had a unique history with Whiskey Media ever since Giant Bomb did their 100 hourEndurance Run of this ATLUS murder mystery RPG. Many users have been excited about the news of the anime and have wondered if and how this series will be coming to the U.S. audience. No more staring into the TV at midnight on a rainy day. We now have an answer. The Anime Networkannounced Thursday it will be streaming Persona 4 The Animation(P4:A) online for free through their official website. They plan on simulcasting each episode every Thursday at 3PM EST starting from October 6th. Your streaming options aren't just limited to The Anime Network (AN). After 24 hours of being posted on AN's site, it will be added to both HULU and HULU Plus. Hard to say they aren't providing options.
The series directed by Seiji Kishi (Angel Beats! and My Bride is a Mermaid) is expected to run for 25 episodes, but currently the schedule has only been announced for the first twelve. The entire main cast from the video game will be returning to reprise their roles. In addition, Sentai Filmworks has announced that P4:A will released on DVD and Blu-ray some time in 2012.
Cast:
- Yu Narukami (Daisuke Namikawa)
- Yōsuke Hanamura (Showtaro Morikubo)
- Chie Satonaka (Yui Horie)
- Yukiko Amagi (Ami Koshimizu)
- Kanji Tatsumi (Tomokazu Seki)
- Teddie/Kuma (Kappei Yamaguchi)
- Rise Kujikawa (Rie Kugimiya)
- Naoto Shirogane (Romi Park)
- Ryōtarō Dōjima (Unshou Ishizuka)
- Nanako Dōjima (Akemi Kanda)
- Tōru Adachi (Mitsuaki Madono)
Anyone planning on watching the adventures of the Investigation Team this October with us? Bring steak for Chie.
Source: ANN HERE & Anime Network HERE
-Kristoffer Remmell (FoxxFireArt) is a freelance graphic artist, writer, and over all mystery geek.- Follow for news updates: @ animevice / @ FoxxFireArt
I was starting to get worried it wouldn't be simulcast at all, but now it's going up on ANN and Hulu? Nice.
This is the only anime I'm considering waiting for some kind of English dub instead of watching the Japanese version, just because I'm way too used to those voices after playing the game way too many times.
Still can't wait for this!
@Newten:
Not ANN, That's the Anime News Network. The series is being simulcated on The Anime Network. Two separate organizations. I'm really excited about this news.
We need to try and spread the link to this articles as much as we can over Whiskey Media. This could be a great project for all of us.
What a hell of a birthday month that I'm gonna have! :D
@FoxxFireArt: We have a P4 anime thread going on in Giant bomb if you want to put it up there.
Also I like to say that I'll be covering the whole series, from beginning to end, every week. So look forward to that.
*SIGH*
I'll probably catch a fandub, if I can find one.
Is this going to be available to stream in the UK? or am I going to get the usual 'this is not available in your geographic region'
@adz117 said:
I know, this is what I fear too.
Otherwise good news!
Now that is some gooooooood news.
So is the DVD/Blu-ray release going to be an English dub?
@TehFlan said:
At the rate Senti is going, yes. Will it involve the original English cast a 100% absolutely not, oh well!
@CrazyCanuck: Really? That wouldn't even be worth watching in English without the original cast.
Oh man, this is freaking fantastic. The P4 Endurance Run is what pulled me to GB and AV, so I've been looking forward to seeing this eventually, but I never expected to see this get a simulcast.
Hee! I haven't been this excited for an anime since Brotherhood!
@TehFlan:
Sentai Filmworks, the company who's licensing this for the US did dub Highschool of the Dead for DVD/Blu-ray. Sadly, it was one of the worst dubs I've ever heard. Hopefully, they will learn from that and never do that again.
@CrackedOnyx:
I was worried that this might be too obscure to not get simulcasted. I was so excited about this that I had to write this article. I watched the entire GB Endurance Run.
ok going to show my ignorance here of this whole persona thing....can I watch this having never played the game (it has never been put into english has it?) and never having done anything with persona 1, 2, and 3?
I admit HOD wasn't shakespear but I've heard worse. I hope it dozen't turn out to be another Xenosaga.
@zaldar:
Each Persona game was a story to itself. Much in the same way Final Fantasy games almost never take place in the same world.
If you go to Giant Bomb's video section and look into Endurance Run. Vinny and Jeff played the entire game from beginning to end. They played it with the English dub voice. The anime will be following the story of the game. You should be able to follow the anime alone just fine.
Now I don't have to watch this on shady websites.
My body is ready.
hell yes