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Viz Media Licenses Berserk Film Trilogy (Updated)
posted on by Crystalyn Hodgkins
Viz Media announced at its panel at Sakura-Con on Saturday that it has licensed the Berserk: The Golden Age Arc film trilogy. Viz Media plans to release the first film, Berserk: The Golden Age Arc - The Egg of the King (Berserk Ōgon Jidai-Hen I: Haō no Tamago), this fall. The film trilogy is Studio 4°C's theatrical adaptation of Kentarō Miura's Berserk manga.
The trilogy stars Hiroaki Iwanaga (Tomica Hero Rescue Force, Moyashimon, Kamen Rider OOO) as Guts, Takahiro Sakurai (Toriko, Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion, anohana) as Griffith, and Toa Yukinari (Grey's Anatomy dubbing, Naruto Shippūden) as Casca. Toshiyuki Kubooka (Batman: Gotham Knight episode 5) is directing the films and Ichirō Ōkouchi (Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion) is handling the screenplay.
Berserk Ōgon Jidai-Hen I: Haō no Tamago opened in Japan on February 4. The film will be released on Blu-ray and DVD in Japan on May 23.
The second film in the series, Berserk Ōgon Jidai-Hen II: Doldrey Kōryaku (Berserk Golden Age Arc II: The Battle for Doldrey), is slated to be released in theaters in Japan on June 23. That film is scheduled to run for about 100 minutes and will focus on the epic battle by the Kingdom of Midland to retake Doldrey Castle from the Chuder Empire. Berserk Ōgon Jidai-Hen III: Kōrin (Berserk Golden Age Arc III: Descent) will open later in 2012 and run for about 110 minutes. In this film, the story "delves nonstop into the abyss of dark fantasy."
Kentarō Miura's Berserk fantasy manga began in 1989 and is still ongoing. Dark Horse Comics released the manga's 35th volume last September. The manga was adapted into a television anime series in 1997, and Media Blasters originally released the series in North America in 2002.
Viz Media also revealed that it will simulcast the Rock Lee & His Ninja Pals (Naruto SD: Rock Lee no Seishun Full-Power Ninden) spinoff television anime series. Crunchyroll previously announced that it is streaming the series worldwide outside of Japan starting on April 3. Viz Media will also release a Manga Box set for Ouran High School Host Club in October with a memo pad with character art.
Update: Viz Media confirmed at the panel that it will release InuYasha: The Final Act on DVD and Blu-ray Disc in Fall 2012.
Image © Kentarō Miura, Hakusensha/BERSERK FILM PARTNERS
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