Shenmue the Animation

Shenmue the Animation Delisted From Adult Swim, Season 2 Likely Cancelled

It seems like Ryo Hazuki’s search for his father’s killer may never be resolved – at least not in animated form. The first season of Shenmue the Animation is no longer available on HBO Max or Adult Swim, delisted in the wake of parent company Warner Bros’ merger with Discovery. Toonami co-creator Jason DeMarco took to his official Twitter account on Wednesday to comment on a list of cut shows posted by the account @CNschedules. In his comment, DeMarco confirmed that the Shenmue anime might not get a second season. This is in spite of preparations being underway to begin production after the success of the first season.

Recommended Videos

DeMarco did confirm, though, that Shenmue the Animation, along with titles like Blade Runner: Black Lotus and Fena: Pirate Princess, would still be viewable via Crunchyroll. As Crunchyroll co-produced the three series, it retains streaming rights. The content cuts are mainly coming as a way for Warner Bros and Discovery to reduce costs and tax burdens following the merger. As such, they mainly affect presences on HBO and related channels. The losses also don’t affect download releases, though the possibility remains that the company could change its mind later and scrub the show away more completely. After all, Final Space, another show on Adult Swim, was “written off” so thoroughly that streaming, physical, and digital releases were stopped outright.

Further comments by DeMarco noted that while the losses affect current shows, planned and in-progress productions remain on track. Adult Swim is producing and co-producing new anime, like Housing Complex C, an adaptation of Junji Ito’s Uzumaki, and further works connected to FLCL.

Shenmue the Animation Season One is viewable on Crunchyroll. The first two Shenmue games are available on PS4, Xbox One, and PC as remasters. Shenmue III is available on PS4 and PC.


Siliconera is supported by our audience. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn a small affiliate commission. Learn more about our Affiliate Policy
Author
Image of Josh Tolentino
Josh Tolentino
Josh Tolentino is Senior Staff Writer at Siliconera. He previously helped run Japanator, prior to its merger with Siliconera. He's also got bylines at Destructoid, GameCritics, The Escapist, and far too many posts on Twitter.