The Orbital Children: Netflix Announces New Anime Series From the Director of ‘Evangelion’

Watch as the visionary Mitsuo Iso takes us on a futuristic emotional ride again with The Orbital Children

Netflix has just released the trailer and key visual for The Orbital Children, an original anime series by director Mitsuo Ito. The streamer has brought in big anime announcements this week, with shows and movies on Gundam, Aggretsuko, Yu Yu Hakusho, and JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure.

First look

The Orbital Children
Netflix

We see some of the usual elements we see in futuristic movies – creatures that seem abstract, androids living among humans, advanced technology, and even what looks like superpowers. The year is 2045, and is centred around a group of children who are looking for a place to belong. Space travel is no longer a big deal, and the children stay at a space hotel reserved for underage children who weren’t born on Earth. At first notice, the trailer looks upbeat because we see the kids having fun and discovering things, but the sentence “you can’t escape the future” shows that there is darkness looming in the horizon.

It will only be surprising if there isn’t sadness and misery included in the story. After all, Mitsuo Iso is part of projects like Neon Genesis Evangelion, Ghost in the Shell, Cowboy Bebop, and Digimon Adventure. He also created, wrote, and directed Coil – A Circle of Children in 2007. The movie is an emotional rollercoaster that takes place in the future.

The animators

The Orbital Children
Netflix

The creators for The Orbital Children are known for their dystopian works. The character design is done by Kenichi Yoshida, who was the key animator on Attack on Titan, Cowboy Bebop (2001), and Whisper of the Heart by Studio Ghibli. Main animation is by Toshiyuki Inoue, who had worked with Mitsuo on Coil, and did cult classics like Paprika, Steamboy, and Akira.

Season one of The Orbital Children will stream exclusively on Netflix on January 28.

Also read: KAKEGURUI: NETFLIX ANNOUNCES SPIN-OFF FOR THE GAMBLING ANIME WITH A PREQUEL STORY