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God Eater Anime's 1st Episode Delayed, Replaced with Special

The official website for the God Eater television anime series announced on Wednesday that ufotable has postponed the planned broadcast of the first episode on Tokyo MX TV. The first episode was originally scheduled to air on the channel on July 5. The notice stated that a special program titled "God Eater Extra" will air instead. The staff noted that it will reveal the broadcast time for "God Eater Extra" on the official website and on the official Twitter account in the near future.

The announcement stated that the first episode of God Eater will air during the following week. The staff apologized to fans, and noted that they decided with the project members to delay the first episode in order to "deliver a work with a quality level that fans can approve of."

The official website for the series had revealed on June 24 that ufotable cancelled the preview screening of the anime's first episode in Tokyo's Akihabara UDX Theater that had been scheduled for June 28. The website stated at the time that the screening was cancelled due to "production-related circumstances."

The series will star Ryūichi Kijima (Beast Saga's Argyllo, Beyblade Shogun Steel's Torimaki B) as the protagonist Lenka Utsugi. Lenka, who is an original character, is a new "God Arc" (Jin-ki) weapon user. The staff chose Kijima for the role after auditioning more than 100 people.

Returning cast members from the game series include (with name spellings from the anime's website):

Anime Constortium Japan's Daisuki service will stream the series as it airs in Japan. The show will be available on Daisuki worldwide except for China and Japan.

Daisuki describes the series as follows:

The Far East, 2071.
The domain of the mad gods.

In the early 2050s, unknown life forms called “Oracle cells” begin their uncontrolled consumption of all life on Earth.
Their ravenous appetite and remarkable adaptability earn them first dread, then awe, and finally the name “aragami”.
In the face of an enemy completely immune to conventional weapons, urban civilization collapses, and each day humanity is driven further and further toward extinction.

One single ray of hope remains for humanity.
Following the development of “God Arcs”—living weapons which incorporate Oracle cells—their wielders are organized into an elite force.
In a world ravaged by mad gods, these “God Eaters” fight a desperate war...

Takayuki Hirao will direct the anime at ufotable with character designs by Keita Shimizu (Tales of Phantasia, ToHeart2 key animation) and music by Go Shiina (Kyousogiga, God Eater games). Hirao also was the director for the anime promotional video for the first game in 2010. ufotable will use hand-drawn animation to animate the God Arc weapons instead of CG.

Additional staff members are as follows:

Sound Director: Takayuki Hirao
Art Director: Masaru Yanaka (Captain Earth)
Color Key: Emi Chiba (Fate/Zero)
Director of Photography: Kentarō Waki (Valvrave the Liberator), Seiji Matsuda (The Garden of Sinners)
CG Director: Masato Takizawa (Fate/Zero, Doraemon: Shin Nobita no Uchū Kaitakushi)
Editing: Tsuyoshi Imai (Kino's Journey, Ghost in the Shell)

Oldcodex (Free!, Kuroko's Basketball) will perform the opening theme song.

The series will air on Tokyo MX TV, BS 11, and other stations. Bandai Namco Entertainment announced the anime adaptation during the Tokyo Game Show 2014 event last September.

[Via 0takomu]