Looking to capitalize on the resurgence of the mech anime genre it originally helped create, Cowboy Bebop's production studio, Sunrise, announced the return of its cult classic series ZEGAPAIN.
As revealed in an August 31, 2023, post to the official site for the ZEGAPAIN Project Reunion, work has begun on a sequel series to the original ZEGAPAIN series that ran in 2006. The new show, titled Alto Moda, will follow a new force operating in the ZEGAPAIN universe. No further information in regard to the story was announced in the post, nor were any details of the release date, and number of episodes.
The House Cowboy Bebop Helped Build
Sunrise Studio helped introduce anime to the world with its jazzy cool, Peter Gunn-esque Cowboy Bebop. The iconic series, which has gone on to influence a generation of anime, television series, and movies, firmly established Sunrise as one of the top anime studios in the world. It also helped make it the go-to studio for producing cutting-edge shows that defy traditional anime tropes.
Despite its avant garde reputation, however, Sunrise "cut its teeth" on producing mech anime, and has remained one of the most productive studios for the genre. It could be argued that without Sunrise and the mech anime with a creative twist is exactly on point with its culture, history, and tradition.
ZEGAPAIN Is a Mech Anime With a Twist
ZEGAPAIN follows the adventures of student Kyo Sogoru and his friend Ryoko Kaminagi as they deal with schoolwork, friends, and family. Kyo, an avid swimmer, one day meets a girl at the pool whom he's never seen before. Interested in her, he strikes up a conversation and learns her name is Shizuno Misaka. However, when she jumps in the pool and never resurfaces, Kyo begins to wonder what's going on. He continues meeting Misaka at the pool and eventually befriends her. Soon after, he learns that she's from another dimension.
Misaka tells Kyo that her dimension is in danger of being destroyed by aliens. After meeting and learning about Kyo, she believes he has the ability to help her lead an army of mechsto defeat the aliens. Kyo reluctantly agrees to help Shizuno, and in the process drags Ryoko into the plot. Thus begins a fantastical split-world adventure that ultimately leads Kyo to question his experiences, and wonder which reality is true.
In addition to the announcement of the Alto Mode sequel anime, the ZEGAPAIN Project Reunion also announced several side projects leading up to the new anime's premier. First, beginning on October 1, 2023, and running every Sunday thereafter, the original 2006 ZEGAPAIN anime series will be rebroadcast on Japan's Tokyo MX station ZEGAPAIN ADP, the 2016 animated film that serves as a prequel to the anime will also be re-released. Indeed, it seems that studio Sunrise is pulling all the stops to ensure that the new ZEGAPAIN series is a rousing success.
Source: ZEGAPAIN Project Reunion
