Studio White Fox has genuinely earned their whimsical and enchanting name by working on the upcoming anime adaptation of Sengoku Youko (Warring States Youko). Yes, White Fox is animating a series that stars a white fox. Puns aside, this particular white fox is exceptional and teams up with other warriors to stop an incredible plot. We’ll see White Fox’s white fox go to war sometime in January 2024. Until then, we can enjoy the new trailer.
White Fox has set up a promotional home page for Sengoku Youko and an official Twitter page. Fans of the series, and potential fans of white foxes, can find behind-the-scenes information and the key visual on those sites.
A World Divided by Humans and Demons
Sengoku Youko presents a very precarious world. Two factions govern the world: humans and monsters, referred to as katawara. Amid such divisions of humans and demons alike causing trouble everywhere, two stepsiblings appear. Tama Youko is a many hundred-year-old fox demon who actually quite likes humans. Her mostly human stepbrother Jinka Yamato hates them but is willing to follow Tama around.
Joining them is the cowardly traveling ronin, who is nowhere near the quintessential rurouni, Shinsuke Hyoudou. He wishes to become stronger and learn more about humans and demons. Numerous conspiracies and powerful foes lie ahead for this band of unlikely heroes, including those who would transform humans into those demons.
This world, torn apart by humans and demons alike, was first formed in the mind of manga author Satoshi Mizukami. He had written and illustrated this series from December 28th, 2007, to May 20th, 2016. Mag Garden has published all seventeen volumes in the Blade Comics imprint.
The Voices of Sengoku Youko
Yuki Takada will be voicing potential Best Girl Tama Youko. She has previously played other possible Best Girls, such as Rin Onigawara in Armed Girl’s Machiavellism, Elma in Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid, and Aoba Suzukaze in New Game!.
Soma Saito, voicing White Fox’s new white fox demon Jinka Yamato, is also the current voice of Himura Kenshin in 2023’s Rurouni Kenshin. I prefer Masami Suzuki’s version of the character from 1996, but I digress. He has also provided the voices of Aizetsu in Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba – Swordsmith Village Arc and Lie Ren in RWBY: Ice Queendom.
Ryohei Kimura doesn’t always voice cowardly ronin like Shinsuke Hyoudou. He has previously given voice to Romero Fujimi in My Hero Academia and Arata Tsuruki in My Happy Marriage. He had one suave samurai-like character as Kohaku in Yashahime: Princess Half-Demon.
White Fox Delivers the Divine Message
White Fox likely takes its name from the legend of the kitsune as a messenger of Inari Okami. In the Shinto faith, Inari Okami, one of the principal kami, acts as the kami of foxes, fertility, rice, tea, and sake, among others. Inari Okami’s messengers are white kitsune and may not be tricksters like their brethren.
Shinto religion aside, White Fox (the studio) has delivered some stellar anime in its time. They have worked on the isekai series Re:Zero − Starting Life in Another World, where the main character learns from each death (and chooses the wrong girl), to the worldline bending Steins;Gate, where super science is both the problem and solution.
It’s not all doom and gloom with them, however. They have animated SoniAni: Super Sonico The Animation, an anime starring a cute pink-haired girl who rocks her heart out. Not Bocchi, the other one, the waifu created by Tsuji Santa for Nitroplus.
If all the talk of foxes got some people in the mood, the J-List shop has a nice fox girl available. Fox Girl, The Rose Blooming in Midwinter 1/6 Figure Illustrated by TACCO is now open for pre-orders. A very cultured artist got their work in the 3D space.
Are you looking forward to the upcoming Sengoku Youko anime adaptation? Do you like fox characters? Which one of White Fox’s works do you like best? Let us know in the comments below.