Netflix and Wit Studio are resurrecting an old anime favorite. The companies are working on a fresh adaptation of Yaiba, a classic shonen manga from the late '80s by Gosho Aoyama, and it’s due to premiere in a matter of days.
In Yaiba, a young boy training to become a samurai winds up moving from his first home with his father to the big city, where he learns he’s destined to protect the world from great evil in arch-rival, Takeshi Onimaru. What follows is a charming coming-of-age narrative full of typically memorable characters, cool fights and more than a few laughs.
It has something of a cult following among shonen readers, and clearly some people at Wit Studio are among the fanbase. The outfit responsible for the first three seasons of Attack of Titan and Ranking of Kings has made a new anime based on Yaiba, called Yaiba: Samurai Legend.
The production is directed by Takahiro Hasui, who's overseen episodes of Mob Psysho 100 and My Hero Academia, while scripts are being handled by Touko Machida, who's written for dozens of properties and for whom it’ll be the biggest international release. The latest trailer reveals a gorgeous, lively screen translation befitting of such talent.
You can see elements of the set up, with Yaiba's background as someone living a rural lifestyle before being plunged into an urban environment, and then the introduction of more fantastical elements. Naturally, it all climaxes in some big moves from our young master sword-wielder, but we’ll have to wait and see how those fights go down.
This is the second adaptation, after a show in the early '90s known as Legendary Brave Swordsman Yaiba, which ran for 52 episodes. Sadly, that version is tricky to find these days, so Netflix handling this latest production allows more people than ever to enjoy Yaiba’s roving adventures.
Yaiba: Samurai Legend premieres on Netflix and Hulu in the US on April 5, 2025, with episodes coming out weekly. We'll keep you updated on the UK release. We have a list of the best anime on Netflix for more hits on the streaming service.
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