At the Emerald City Comic-Con, Viz Media revealed that it will adapt Tsuyoshi Takaki’s 2016 shonen manga Black Torch into an anime. The series, produced by 100studio and directed by Kei Umabiki (known for Quality Assurance in Another World), follows Jiro Azuma, a teenage ninja with the ability to communicate with animals.
After saving a cat named Rago, who turns out to be an evil spirit (mononoke) known as the Black Star of Doom, Jiro is killed by Rago’s enemies. In a twist, the cat merges their souls to bring Jiro back to life. The duo is then recruited by the Bureau of Espionage to hunt down other mononoke terrorizing the city.
What makes this announcement particularly interesting is that Black Torch ended in 2018, after only 19 chapters spread across five volumes. This isn’t typical for shonen adaptations, where popular ongoing series or works from well-known creators usually make the jump to anime. The adaptation of Black Torch breaks this trend, potentially bringing attention to the short-lived series and opening the door for other brief stories to be adapted in the future.
Although no official release date has been set, Takaki celebrated the announcement by drawing an illustration of Jiro and Rago together.
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