A main trailer for the two-part Armored Trooper Votoms: Die Graue Hexe theatrical anime has been released. It’s the longest look at the new Mamoru Oshii title yet, and showcases the show’s 2D-animated humans and premise.
Set towards the end of a 100-year conflict between the two powers Gilgamesh and Balarant, Armored Trooper Votoms: Die Graue Hexe (Sokokihei Votoms: Haiiro no Hexe) sees the officer Maki Stauffenberg (Mabuki Ando) being sent to a frontline base. There, she is assigned to investigate penal soldier Ash Vamps (Miyuki Sawashiro), who is called the “Witch” due to her record of returning as the sole survivor no matter what harsh strategy is employed.
“Below our feet is hell,” remarks Ash towards the end of the trailer, where a mech drops from a damaged transport craft that explodes soon after.
Maki and Ash are also featured in a character visual drawn by original character designer Kazuchika Kise (xxxHOLIC, Made in Abyss, and Ghost in the Shell: Arise character designer), whose role was revealed with several other staff credits. Some of those include:
• Character designer: Tetsuya Nishio (Naruto, The Sky Crawlers)
• Character designer: Takashi Kojima (One Piece Heroines, The Colors Within)
• Character designer: Shingo Ogiso (Blade of the Immortal, The Heroic Legend of Arslan chief character designer)
Other cast members were also revealed, among them Shinichiro Miki, Yuki Kaji, and Yuichi Nakamura.
The original Armored Trooper Votoms TV anime, created and directed by Ryosuke Takahashi (MUTEKING THE Dancing HERO chief director, Gasaraki director, Young Black Jack series composer and supervisor), debuted in April 1983 and ran for 52 episodes. Armored Trooper Votoms: Die Graue Hexe was revealed in January and serves as a 50th anniversary commemoration project for Sunrise, which is producing the new anime with assistance from Production I.G.
The TV series’ premise saw the soldier Chirico Cuvie going on the run after a mission targeting his side’s allies leads to a betrayal and the discovery that one of the objectives was a woman. A number of OVAs came after the TV anime, including 2011’s Armored Trooper Votoms: Chirico’s Return. Armored Trooper Votoms is considered as a visual influence on the Heavy Gear universe from Canadian company Dream Pod 9.
The first part of Armored Trooper Votoms: Die Graue Hexe will hit Japanese theaters on November 20.
Production credits
• Director: Mamoru Oshii (Ghost in the Shell, Patlabor the Movie, Urusei Yatsura 2: Beautiful Dreamer)
• Original character designer Kazuchika Kise
• Character designer: Tetsuya Nishio
• Character designer: Takashi Kojima
• Character designer: Shingo Ogiso
• Original mechanical designer: Kunio Okawara (Armored Trooper Votoms mechanical designer)
• Mechanical designer: Shinobu Tsuneki (Tengoku Daimakyo)
• Mechanical designer: Yoshihiro Sono (Urusei Yatsura remake co-mechanical designer)
• Music composer: Kenji Kawai (Ghost in the Shell)
• Planning and production: Sunrise
• Production assistance: Production I.G
