Amuse
Creative Studio confirmed
that the anime Oedo Fire Slayer -The Legend of Phoenix-, an
adaptation of the historical novel Hikuidori by Shōgo
Imamura, will premiere in January 2026. Along with the
announcement, a new promotional image and the names of the main actors who will
give voice to the story were also revealed.
The main
cast
The members
of the Boro Tobi Gumi brigade will be played by:
- Yūichirō Umehara as Gengo
Matsunaga, a former firefighter samurai who assumes leadership of the
group to rebuild it.
- Shūichirō Umeda as Shinnosuke Torigoe, the brigade's charismatic vice president.
- Subaru Kimura as Torajiro,
a good-natured former sumo wrestler.
- Nobunaga Shimazaki as Hikoya, a
light craftsman who is very popular among the women of Edo.
- Kenshō Ono as Kaji Seijuro,
a strategist with extensive knowledge in astronomy and psychology.
History
of heroes against fire
The plot
centers on Matsunaga Gengo, known in his time as the "Fire-Eating
Bird", the best firefighter samurai in Edo. After leaving the brigade,
he receives an unexpected invitation to serve the Shinjo clan,
whose firefighting unit lacks resources and personnel. With the support of his
wife Miyuki, Gengo decides to rebuild this decaying group and lead
the Boro Tobi Gumi.
Together
with a team of allies as eccentric as they are brave, he will face a wave of
mysterious fires known as the "Fox Fires". Thus begins an
exciting story of action and drama where firefighters fight to save lives in
the face of impending catastrophe.
Production
and original material
The
animation will be in charge of the Synergy SP studio. The
novel Hikuidori was published in 2017 as part of the Ushūboro
Tobigumi series, which currently has 12 volumes and an anthology of
short stories. The work won the prestigious Yoshikawa Eiji Bunko Award in
2021.
Additional
Accommodations
The manga
based on the novel, also titled Oedo Fire Slayer -The Legend of
Phoenix- and drawn by Shinobu Seguchi, began serialization
on April 24 in Akita Shoten's Weekly Shōnen Champion magazine.
In addition, it will have an English-language digital release in North America
this summer.
Author Shōgo
Imamura is also known for his novel Ikusagami (Last Samurai
Standing), published in 2022, which received a manga adaptation in
Kodansha's Morning magazine and will feature a live-action
version produced by Netflix, scheduled for release in November
2025.
