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.
Sorry guys. This happened. You can still watch all of the anime on Crunchyroll and it will still be available as digital downloads. And yes, it’s looking like no S2 of Shenmue, even though sadly- it did well enough that we were gearing up for S2. Maybe one day… https://t.co/WpM3O6NcSC
— SPIRAL CURSE DEMARCO (@Clarknova1) September 28, 2022
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.
