A new The Ancient Magus’ Bride OVA episodes series has been announced. Titled Nishi no Shounen to Seiran no Kishi (Boy from the West and Knight of the Blue Storm), the new story will be a three-part series that’s released as an Original Anime Disc (OAD).
On September 28, 2021, Crunchyroll confirmed that it will be internationally streaming The Ancient Magus’ Bride: The Boy from the West and the Knight of the Blue Storm starting in December 2021. The new OAD will be available to watch in the USA, Canada, Central America, South America, Europe, Africa, Oceania, the Middle East, and the Commonwealth of Independent States.
The first season of The Ancient Magus’ Bride anime TV series was produced by WIT Studio, which is famous for producing the first three seasons of Attack On Titan. The Mahoutsukai no Yome OVA episodes will be produced by Japanese animation company Studio KAFKA, which was newly established by ex-WIT Studio staff.
The new studio has been describing the new OAD series as the “first part” of the new anime project, which implies that The Ancient Magus’ Bride Season 2 anime TV series or perhaps even a Mahoutsukai no Yome movie could be next.
It’s been confirmed by the studio that the first draft for the story was created by the original manga creator Kore Yamazaki. Here is the story summary for Boy from the West and Knight of the Blue Storm:
“The story takes place shortly before Cartaphilus took a nap and Chise became an auditor at the College. While Elias and his friends help Chise prepare for the College, the Faerie Guardian Spriggan visits the mansion on a spooky horse. ‘The appearance of the ghost hunting association is unusual this time,’ Spriggan proclaimed, revealing a new Wild Hunt.
The story also focuses on Gabriel, an ordinary boy who just moved from London. Gabriel is tired of being parted with friends and moving to unfamiliar locations and circumstances. Sitting by the window and glancing beyond, he spotted a purple smoke and decided to chase after it, looking to escape his boredom. The world of the boy begins to converge with the wizards, who live in a world of magic beyond a thick veil.”
Based on the description, the story for Boy from the West and Knight of the Blue Storm apparently takes place in a time gap in the manga series. Since it’s set before Cartaphilus’ sleep that means it’s set in-between scenes in manga Chapter 45, which is coincidentally the ending of the anime’s first season.
A new trailer revealed that Japanese voice actor Hiromi Igarashi will voice Gabriel, while Aoi Ichikawa will play the role of the Mysterious Boy.
The new 2021 The Ancient Magus’ Bride OVA project will be helmed by director Kazuaki Terasawa. Returning staff from the first season includes writer Aya Takaha, who will write the script alongside Yoko Yonaiyama (Uma Musume Pretty Derby). Character designer Hirotaka Kato and composer Junichi Matsumoto are also returning.
Here is the other main staff for the project:
- Chief Animation Director: Kouhei Tokuoka
- Color Design: Yuko Kobari
- Art Design: Seiki Tamura
- Director of Photography: Mayo Suzuki
- CGI Director: Katsuaki Miyaji
- Editing: Daisuke Imai
- Music Production Flying Dog
- Audio Director: Shouji Hata
- Sound Effects: Noriko Izumo
- Audio Production: Sound Team Don Juan
- Updated March 10, 2022: Added OAD 3 key visual and new modified release date.
- Updated June 4, 2021: Added more details about The Ancient Magus’ Bride OVA episodes.
The Ancient Magus’ Bride: Boy from the West and Knight of the Blue Storm release date
The release schedule for the new OVA episodes is similar to The Ancient Magus’ Bride: Those Awaiting a Star, which was originally released by WIT Studio as a three-part story that was released with manga Volume 6, 7, and 8 from 2016 through 2017.
In this case, they will also be released as Blu-Ray discs. The first episode of Boy from the West and Knight of the Blue Storm will be bundled with The Ancient Magus’ Bride Volume 16, which releases on September 10, 2021.
Historically, new volumes are released only twice a year. So, Part 2/Volume 17 came out in Japan on March 10, 2022, while Part 3/Volume 18 was released on September 9, 2022.
How Studio KAFKA was created
Studio KAFKA was literally created for this project by production company Twin Engine. In a way, the situation is similar to Studio Bind, which was created by production company EGG FIRM to develop the Mushoku Tensei anime TV series. Both Bind and KAFKA intend on using their first projects as launchpads for creating many “masterpieces” as they put it on Twitter.
But why isn’t this new project being developed by WIT Studio?While WIT Studio has partnered with Twin Engine in the past, WIT Studio is a subsidiary of IG Port, not Twin Engine. But WIT Studio’s influence will still be indirectly felt in the new project.
Studio KAFKA is being established by WIT Studio’s former production staff Kouichi Naruse, who will serve as Studio KAFKA’s representative director. He’ll be joined by animators Takahiko Abiru (Vinland Saga) and Kazuaki Terasawa (Overlord Season 2).
In an interview with Crunchyroll, the three men explained that Naruse and Terasawa have been friends since college. Since being a teenager, Naruse always wanted to start an anime studio and be a producer while Terasawa wanted to be a director.
“When the new project for The Ancient Magus’ Bride started last year, Studio Kafka was established because I wanted to create a studio that was dedicated to it. I’ve always wanted to have my own production company, so the timing was perfect. When I first started working in this field, I had such a great time working on a project with Mr. Abiru and Mr. Terasawa. I had always wanted to create something with them again, so I asked them if they would join me,” Naruse explained. “By combining the new staff with the staff from the first season, we are creating animation that’s different and has its own charm.”
Director Terasawa also explained that one of the things they paid attention to was to make sure that anime fans can remember the story of The Ancient Magus’ Bride after three years. They didn’t want to bombard audiences with a brand new version but rather wanted them to build up their excitement for the new project by remembering the first season.
Studio KAFKA has been working hard to carefully craft this process during the composition and storyboard creation. The other thing was to recreate the atmosphere and setting of the original manga into the animation. The preview trailer is centered around the school for magicians, and it has a bit of a dark feel and features relationships among teenagers. To show this in the animation, KAFKA carefully chose the colors and expressions of the characters.
Terasawa also spoke about the process he goes through when adapting a manga into an anime.
” I think it’s important that I, as a creator, understand the original manga a little deeper than when I’m just reading it as an audience,” he said. “The more I read, the more I understand the details Kore Yamazaki wants to express in the original, such as the psychological states behind each character’s actions. By working on this project for a period of time, I’ve started to feel like I have a deeper understanding of her perspectives.”
Hopefully, this OAD project will just be the lead up to The Ancient Magus’ Bride Season 2. Stay tuned!