This season, we were treated to an anime adaptation of the new hotness in the world of mobile games about real-life warships being turned into hot anime girls, Azur Lane. It’s been a delight for fans of the series to see their favorite boat ladies in action on the screen, but with the anime getting ready to wrap up soon, things have hit a bit of a snag. Fans won’t be able to finish the journey for quite a while, as it’s been announced that episodes 11 and 12 of the Azur Lane anime have been delayed all the way to March of next year.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XGTQORx91ng
Announced via the official website for the Azur Lane anime, which is based on the original smartphone game of the same name by Shanghai Manjuu and Xiamen Yongshi, episodes 11 and 12 of the animation have been moved from their original airing dates and are now delayed until March 13 and 20, respectively. Their original broadcast dates were set to be December 19 and 26 before this delay was announced. In the announcement, it was stated that the staff of the show have the desire to improve the quality of the Azur Lane anime.
To lead into the delayed finale of the series, the Azur Lane anime will have a rebroadcast of the entire series early next year. The rebroadcast begins on January 3, airing at 10PM JST on Tokyo MX. Afterward, the rebroadcast will also appear on Sun TV, BS11, KBS Kyoto and AT-X.
The original premiere of the Azur Lane anime was handled similarly, premiering simultaneously on Tokyo MX, Sun TV, KBS Kyoto and BS11 on October 3. It hit AT-X a day later, on October 4. Funimation is currently streaming the series with English subtitles as it airs, and their English dub of the series is also currently streaming weekly.
The anime is being handled by Bibury Animation Studio, which was founded back in 2017 by Tensho. Tensho is also the director of the Azur Lane anime. He previously worked on Grisaia, Kinmoza!, and Rewrite. Jin Haganeya is in charge of the scripts for the series, and previously wrote the Demonbane game scenario, as well as scripts for Kamen Rider Gaim and Guilty Crown. The opening theme song of the anime, “graphite/diamond,” is performed by May’n while the ending theme song for the series, “Hikari no Michishirube” (Guiding Light), is performed by Kano.
Just this past Monday, an official spinoff manga adaptation of the Azur Lane anime launched in Nihonbungeisha’s Comic Heaven magazine in Japan. An official localization of the manga has yet to be announced.
The original smartphone game, which can be played on both iOS and Android, sees players crafting and collecting various early 20th century warships from a variety of different countries. These warships happen to look, act, and sound like cute anime girls, but don’t worry about it. Shanghai Manjuu and Xiamen Yongshi developed the game, and in May of 2017, they secured a release in China thanks to bilibili. Shanghai Yostar then released the game in Japan in September of 2017. Just this year, Yostar finally brought the game overseas with an English release on May 20.
Yostar describes the game:
Azur Lane features an interactive combat system that combines the best of strategy and 2D shooter games. Players must command a flotilla, divided into two parts: the Vanguard Fleet and the Main Fleet. While the Vanguard is responsible for striking and clearing operations, the Main Fleet must focus on fire support and dealing damage to enemy ships. Strategy is key, and players must build their fleets carefully to succeed on the high seas. Players can strengthen their fleets from the base via the Academy and Dorms, where they can earn experience points, buy items from the shop, or improve their skills in the Classroom.
