07-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Geek Culture
'Daemons of the Shadow Realm' Anime Reunites 'Fullmetal Alchemist' Creator And Studio Bones
15 years after Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood went down in anime history as a beloved classic, creator Hiromu Arakawa and animation studio Bones are back for a surprise dream reunion. An anime adaptation of the illustrator's 2021 manga, Daemons of the Shadow Realm , is confirmed to be in the works, with the Crunchyroll panel at Anime Expo 2025 unveiling an accompanying teaser visual and trailer.
From the creator of Fullmetal Alchemist: Daemons of the Shadow Realm, an original story from Hiromu Arakawa, is coming soon to Crunchyroll. — Crunchyroll (@Crunchyroll) July 6, 2025
Masahiro Ando ( Cowboy Bebop: The Movie ) serves as director on the project, while Golden Kamuy 's Noboru Takagi is handling the script. Nobuhiro Arai ( Bungo Stray Dogs ) and Kenichiro Suehiro ( Golden Kamuy ) will contribute character designs and music compositions, respectively. Other details, including a release date and voice cast, have yet to be announced, but the series is described as 'an otherworldly fantasy where mystery and the uncanny intertwine.'
Daemons of the Shadow Realm was first launched in Square Enix's Monthly Shonen Gangan magazine in December 2021, and currently has nine volumes released in Japan to date. The synopsis for it reads:
'In a remote mountain village under the watchful eyes of two stone guardians, the young Yuru contentedly lives off the land while staying close to the only family he has left—Asa, his precious twin sister. Asa, meanwhile, carries out a mysterious 'duty' on behalf of the village while locked in a cage. Why is Asa a prisoner? And what other secrets does Yuru's otherwise idyllic home hide?'
Alongside the Fullmetal Alchemist series, Arakawa is also known for her work on Silver Spoon . The former was adapted into an anime by Bones in 2003 and 2009, following the journey of two alchemist brothers, Edward and Alphonse Elric, as they search for the philosopher's stone to restore their bodies after a failed attempt to bring their mother back to life using alchemy.
The manga has sold over 80 million copies worldwide, making it one of the best-selling manga series of all time. Where the first strayed away from the source material, 2009's Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood proved to be a faithful adaptation that directly followed the original storyline, and is widely regarded as one of the best anime series of all time.
Si Jia is a casual geek at heart – or as casual as someone with Sephiroth's theme on her Spotify playlist can get. A fan of movies, games, and Japanese culture, Si Jia's greatest weakness is the Steam Summer Sale. Or any Steam sale, really.
