Aniplex is teasing the announcement of a new project, seemingly related to donghua Dragon Raja (Long Zu). Aniplex recently posted a link to the live stream through its official YouTube channel, teasing: “You have been selected as a nominated student. Please accept your invitation.” The live stream then links to the Aniplex website, which features a synopsis of the unnamed anime series. This livestream will launch on January 26 at 6pm JST/1am PST with an official announcement at midnight on January 27 (JST). You can check out a recap of the new trailer and screenshots of the livestream below:
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You have been selected as a nominated student. Thanks to a rigorous selection process, your talent has been recognized and you have been selected as a nominated student at our academy. Studying at our academy will be an opportunity for you to discover the ‘truths’” hidden within yourself and in this mundane world. Why not take the first step and join us? We are waiting for you here at 0:00 on Saturday, January 27.
The image above from Aniplex’s livestream appears to resemble Dragon Raja donghua’s frame, like some User Twitter/X was quick to point out:
The trailer synopsis also corresponds to Dragon Raja’s synopsis (per IMDb):
One day, an ordinary high school student, Lu Mingfei, received an admission letter from Kassel College, a foreign private university. After hesitating and hesitating, Lu Mingfei decided to find out.
This would confirm reports from 2023 that Dragon Raja producer Tencent and Aniplex had reached a deal to distribute the anime worldwide. Aniplex continues its work distributing Chinese anime internationally, with the popular Heaven Official’s Blessing (produced by Bilibili) getting a Japanese dub starting January 7, 2024. Dragon Raja joins Aniplex’s other recent announcements include Monogatari’s Off Season and Monster Season. Given the mixed reception to Dragon Raja in China, this may not be just a worldwide distribution, as the release of the second season has been delayed since its late 2022 announcement.
Dragon Raja is adapted from the best-selling novel of the same name by Chinese author Jiang Nan, first released in 2010. The first part of studio Garden Culture’s donghua series premiered in August 2022, with The music was composed by Kohta Yamamoto, with the opening song featuring the collaboration of composer Hiroyuki Sawano and director Shingo Yamashita.
Source: Aniplex on YouTube
© Jiang Nan, Shenzhen Tencent Computer System Co., Ltd.