Not too long ago, anime was somewhat dismissively viewed by a lot of folks as an artform designed to appeal to a niche audience, but in recent years, the stylized form of animation has exploded in popularity across the world, and won over a whole new legion of fans.
Netflix have been rapidly expanding their anime lineup over the last little while, and in order to draw in even more viewers, the streaming service is relying on big name brands with a built-in fanbase. In the last few months alone, the company has given the green light to shows based on Assassin’s Creed, Tomb Raider, Kong: Skull Island and most recently The Terminator, but first out of the gate is Pacific Rim: The Black, which arrives on Thursday.
A spinoff from the giant robots vs. giant monsters franchise that had far too much potential to peter out after just two big budget live-action installments, The Black takes place following the events of Pacific Rim and sequel Uprising, and is set in a futuristic Australia where the kaiju have overrun the population, forcing main characters and siblings Taylor and Hayley to head out in search of their missing parents, teaching themselves to pilot a broken down Jaeger along the way.
Based on the massive success of the Godzilla vs. Kong trailer, people are clearly in the mood to see giant monsters kicking the crap out of each other and leaving a trail of destruction in their wake, which puts Pacific Rim: The Black in with a great shout of capturing the imagination of Netflix’s 200 million subscribers when it stomps into the content library later this week.
