Crunchyroll has brought about a new series to their spring simulcast season with the pickup of Blade & Soul today. The series, based on the MMORPG game, will be simulcast every Thursday at 3:46pm ET on a weekly basis, but the first episode that goes live won’t be ready until midnight tonight. Premium users get them after it premieres in Japan but free users will wait a week until they can access it.
The series has decent coverage as it will be available to viewers in the USA, Canada, UK, Ireland, South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, France, Latin America, Netherlands & Scandinavia, and Turkey.
Plot concept: Based on the popular Korean MMORPG, Blade and Soul is an original anime that revolves around a female assassin named Alka. Alka, a sword-woman with proficient skills, defeats foes by a single stroke. She travels with an aim to avenge her master, Hong’s death, of which vendetta was required by the rules of the tribe she belongs to.
Her target is Jin Varrel, an evil woman, who controls a mysterious power called “Dakki” and cruelly kills people. Alka has grown up as a member of an assassin group called “Tsurugi” and assassinates her targets without any hesitation. In a sense, Alka and Jin have a resembling character.
During her travel, Alka comes across with three brave women; Karen, a master of the traditional dance and martial arts, Hazuki, a drink-loving gun mania, and Roana, a head of robbers. Those four women were destined to encounter each another. Traveling with them, Alka recalls her master Hong‘s teachings.
Hong was invited as Alka’s mentor by the tribe , but on the other hand, he wanted her to escape and get discharged from the rules of the tribe and her destiny binding her since her birth. Alka gradually realizes the real meanings of Hong‘s teachings, and something in her mind begins to change.