Kristal Blankinship
web coordinator
Remake of the 2001 “Shaman King” brings in some of the original voice cast for the English and Japanese dubs. The remake’s first episode premiered Aug. 9.
The 2021 “Shaman King” remake is a chance for fans of the series to dive headfirst into a childhood classic and rediscover their inner nerd.
Netflix released the first season of “Shaman King” Aug. 9, nearly 20 years after the original series aired in 2001.
The series — based on Hiroyuki Takei’s manga of the same name — follows Yoh Asakura, a 13-year-old boy who can see ghosts and aspires to become the Shaman king through a tournament that happens once every 500 years. Alongside his samurai spirit, Amidamaru, Yoh enters the long-awaited battle to earn the title and become the shaman who connects with the great spirit and helps reshape the world.
There are some similarities between Shaman King’s 2021 and 2001 adaptations. The first season of both adaptations follow Yoh in the early stages of the battle to become Shaman king. He befriends classmate Manta Oyamada and during the tournament in Tokyo he fights with Ren Tao, Horohoro and Faust VII.
The events of the 2021 edition of the show are the same as its 2001 counterpart, namely both are accurate depictions of the manga in their early stages. The 2001 anime series did diverge from its source material in its second half and featured a completely different ending that was written specifically for the anime as it was made before the manga had finished.
A number of the Japanese and English voice cast that was featured in the 2001 version of the anime return to the 2021 remake. Oliver Wyman returned as the voice of Manta, though his character was called Morty in the 2001 version. Tara Jayne also reprises her role as Yoh’s fiancé Anna Kyoyama. In the Japanese voice cast, Minami Taykayama returns as Hao, Inuko inuyama voices Manta, Megumi Hayashiba reprises her role as Anna, Romi Park is back as Ren and Katsuyuki Konishi plays Amidamaru in both series.
While the remake features the same storyline, it is different from the original because it does dwell on a subject in an episode for a shorter amount of time. This is because the battles between Yoh and his opponents in the remake last for an entire episode, whereas in the original series battles were drawn out over multiple episodes to add to the show’s heart-pounding intensity. The remake takes advantage of the modern animation technology with smoother, detailed fight scenes in an updated look.
There is a high chance that the 2021 “Shaman King” remake will be the perfect adaptation of Hiroyuki Takei’s story.
