The dark fantasy light novel series The Unwanted Undead Adventurer is soon getting an anime adaptation, and fans finally have their first look at the series with an animated trailer.
Debuted via the "10th Anniversary Memorial Overlap Bunko All-Star Assemble Special" live stream, the trailer shows titular adventurer Rentt Faina fighting off monsters before he is swallowed by a dragon, kicking off his origin story. The series premiered in 2016 as a light novel by Yū Okano and was published online before receiving a print version with full illustrations the following year and a manga adaptation by Haiji Nakasone in 2017. An English adaptation of both the light novel and manga came shortly after from localization company J-Novel Club, which publishes a variety of English-translated manga and light novels often overlooked by bigger publishers.
Now, in its official animated debut, The Unwanted Undead Adventurer is set to receive a complete anime adaptation from animation studio CONNECT starting in January 2024, although no specific release date has yet been provided. The series will reportedly see Bakuman's Noriaki Akitaya direct the episodes, with Overlord scriptwriter Yukie Sugawara in charge of the script and Restaurant to Another World's Takao Sano in charge of character designs. Japanese DJ and music producer JUVENILE previewed a new original song called "Immortal" that serves as the anime's opening theme song alongside an ending theme by Mao Abe, which has yet to receive an official title.
The story follows adventurer and struggling monster slayer Rentt Faina as he faces his own mortality after a mysterious force magically resurrects him in skeleton form following his demise in the mouth of a dragon. From there, Rentt encounters numerous monsters and a new quest to recover his own humanity as he fights against the mysterious Labyrinth of the Moon's Reflection that led to his curse in the first place.
Described as a dark fantasy novel, Okano's story gained popularity thanks to online publications and translations via J-Novel Club and Japan's Comic Gardo website before receiving an official anime adaptation; a common pipeline for light novels and manga franchises. The series' anime debut is set to premiere in January 2024, although CONNECT has not yet revealed further details such as where it will air or how many episodes the series will be given.
Source: YouTube