‘Inuyashiki’ Season 2 Possible For Anime? ‘Inuyashiki: Last Hero’ Live-Action Movie In 2018, But Manga Ended


After waiting for the pitched aerial battle between Hiro Shishigami and Ichiro Inu-Yashiki, most anime fans probably desire to watch Inuyashiki Season 2 in the future. Unfortunately, the Inuyashiki: Last Hero anime adaptation is based on the Inuyashiki manga, which has already reached an ending. But is there enough source material still left for the second season of Inuyashiki?

Manga creator Hiroyo Oku first began serializing the Inuyashiki manga back in January of 2014. The manga ending is contained in Chapter 85, and the final book, Volume 10, was released in September of 2017.

As of Episode 9 of the anime, the story has caught up with manga Chapter 58: Plane Crash, which is contained in Volume 7. The anime is scheduled to end with Inuyashiki Episode 11, which will cover the events of the last three volumes.

The mangaka is best known for the Gantz manga, which had an anime adaptation that deviated completely away from the source material. Fortunately, that’s not the case with the Inuyashiki anime adaptation by studio MAPPA, which has been manga-accurate. (It will be interesting to see if American President Donald Trump makes a guest appearance like in the manga.)

The only problem with following the Inuyashiki manga so closely is that Oku wrote an ending that makes it very difficult to create Inuyashiki Season 2 unless they finish Episode 11 with an anime original ending. (See the ending of this article for spoilers and discussion on potential stories for the anime sequel.)

Inuyashiki Manga Volumes Have An English Translation

The anime for Inuyashiki is currently only available for international online streaming via Amazon Anime Strike. Besides signing up, the only other option is to read the English translation of the manga. Thankfully, Crunchyroll Premium provides all of the chapters.

It’s also possible to buy the complete manga collection in paperback format. All of the volumes are currently available for sale, except for Inuyashiki Volume 10, which comes out on December 19, 2017.

A live-action ‘Inuyashiki’ poster released in 2015 was intended to advertise the manga, but it gives an example of what to expect from the 2018 film.

Inuyashiki Live Action Movie Scheduled For 2018

According to the official website for the Inuyashiki series, a live-action Inuyashiki movie will be coming out in 2018, although an exact release date has not yet been announced. This article will be updated once the premiere date is officially confirmed.

In March of 2017, the Inuyashiki cast was listed.

  • Noritake Kinashi as Ichiro Inu-Yashiki, the titular character
  • Takeru Satoh as Hiro Shishigami, the main antagonist
  • Mari Hamada as Marie Inu-Yashiki, Ichiro’s wife
  • Yuki Saito as Yuko Shishigami, Hiro’s mother
  • Nayuta Fukuzaki as Takeshi Inu-Yashiki, Ichiro’s son
  • Ayaka Miyoshi as Mari Inu-Yashiki, Ichiro’s daughter
  • Kanata Hongou as Naoyuki And?, Hiro’s school friend
  • Fumi Nikaid? as Shion Watanabe, Hiro’s girlfriend

The live-action Inuyashiki movie will apparently change the story slightly. As part of the casting, a new character called Detective Hagiwara was introduced and he will be investigating the murders by Hiro. Hagiwara will be played by actor Yusuke Iseya.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n0Up2hZgJpY

Inuyashiki Season 2 Release Date: Is An Anime Sequel Possible For Hiro?

As of this publishing, anime production company MAPPA has not announced anything official about the Inuyashiki Season 2 release date, although this article will be updated as soon as the anime sequel’s premiere is confirmed. However, there can be reasonable speculation about when, or if, the Inuyashiki Season 2 air date may occur.

Warning: The following contains major spoilers for those who have not finished the manga or Inuyashiki Episode 11.

Everyone who has read Oku’s manga knows that he is well known for killing off characters. In this case, some manga fans feel like Oku stopped the story in an anticlimactic manner by having both Ichiro and Hiro self-destruct to stop the incoming asteroid. The absurdity of the plot device was highlighted by how Mari remarked, “What is this, Deep Impact?”

The ending was actually foreshadowed early on in both the anime and manga when the incoming asteroid was announced on TV news, but some believe Ichiro Inu-Yashiki should have survived to become a hero with new trials to face. Other readers felt the ending was a good fit for the series since the emotional journey for Hiro and Ichiro was largely about their humanity, or lack thereof, and their motivations for their actions.

The asteroid may have been a plot device, but it allowed both main characters to confront the main conflict raging in their minds. Ichiro saved lives because it made him feel alive, while Hiro killed for the same reason. It could be argued that Ichiro grew beyond self-affirmation of his humanity, with the asteroid being the driving catalyst for this change. Ichiro did not sacrifice himself for fame or the desire to prove to himself he was still human instead of a mere killing machine. Ichiro ended his life like a hero because that was the right thing to do. He even said the reason for his existence was that moment.

Realistically, the Inuyashiki anime is unlikely to get a second season, although an Inuyashiki OVA episode would probably be more appropriate. The manga already gave a brief look at what happened to Ichiro’s family after he self-destructed to save the Earth, but the story never provided any answers to the identity or motivations of the aliens. But having a sequel where humanity is fighting aliens will break the concept and would come off as a forced extension of the story.

It also does not make sense to continue the story with another set of humans-turned-war machines. Besides having another alien UFO accidentally run over humans again, is it possible to bring one of the main characters back to life? Hiro was able to use his alien body to its full extent while Ichiro struggled to figure out the technology. While Hiro did sacrifice this body, Oku (or MAPPA’s writers) could justifiably resurrect the character.

Based on his selfish nature, it would make sense for Hiro to not tell Ichiro his full plan. It’s conceivable that Hiro uploaded his mind onto the internet before self-destructing. Having saved his mind, he takes control of automated factories and builds himself a new body.

From there, Hiro can find true redemption beyond the selfish desire to save his friends. His sacrifice was only for Shion and Naoyuki, but he never tried to truly redeem himself of his horrible actions. Instead, after his mother died, he wanted to be loved by Shion and only saved others to fit her expectations. Hiro can only become a real hero once he learns to care for others.

Unfortunately, speculating about how MAPPA could justify creating Inuyashiki Season 2 will not make it happen. But at least fans can look forward to the 2018 Inuyashiki movie.

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