Blade & Soul
Sentai Filmworks recently acquired the spring 2014 anime series Blade & Soul and promised that in addition to a home video release later on that they’d add more digital distribution for the series. That’s hit today as the first episode has gone live on Hulu through their partnership with The Anime Network. The first episode is the only one available with new ones coming every week thereafter and Hulu Plus members can watch this show on TV and mobile devices. The series is adapted from the NCSoft MMORPG of the same name and is co-directed by Hiroshi Takeuchi (The Big O, Bodacious Space Pirates) and Hiroshi Hamasaki (Steins;Gate, Ironman: Rise of Technovore), with original character designs by world renowned Korean manwha artist Hyung-tae Kim, art direction by Ken’ichi Tatefuji (Squid Girl, Supernatural
Plot concept: In a world where stunning beauty is menaced by evil, the up-and-coming empire struggles to defeat the empire of old and unite all races together in the dawning of a new age. Enter: Alka, a buxom assassin looking to exact revenge for the death of her teacher, Hon. She’s on the hunt for his killer, Jin Valel, a demonic dame that kills without remorse. Nevertheless, they are a part of the same “Blade Clan,” and Alka feels conflicted and sympathetic, as they are essentially one-in-the-same.