Casshern Sins

Casshern Sins (キャシャーン SINS) is a reboot of the classic anime series Neo Human Casshern, produced by Tatsunoko and animated by Madhouse. It premiered in Japan on October 1, 2008, following a sneak preview of the first episode at Otakon 2008 in Baltimore, Maryland.

The series completely discards the continuity presented in the original Neo-Human Casshern anime series, in which Casshern was a cybernetic superhero battling the evil robotic forces of Braiking Boss in a post-apocalyptic Earth. In Casshern Sins, Casshern is presented as a cyborg subordinate of Braiking Boss who was ordered to assassinate the savior of mankind, and has thus doomed the Earth to ruin.

A manga adaptation had been announced recently and it was published in Jive's Monthly Comic Rush Magazine.

Story
Created as a reboot of the Casshern franchise, Casshern Sins tells the story of a world where robots subjugated humanity after becoming self-aware. Their leader, Braiking Boss, ruled over the world with an iron fist. One day, a mysterious girl named Luna is summoned by the people, in order to bring the salvation of mankind. Fearing her as a potential threat, Braiking sent three of his most powerful cyborg warriors to dispose of Luna: Casshern, Dio and Leda. Casshern, the strongest warrior, manages to track down and kill Luna. However, this triggers a cataclysmic event which sets into motion the end of the world. Hundreds of years later, the world's atmosphere is filled with poison, and, due to the inability of most remaining humans to reproduce, as well as the constant threat posed by the robots, humanity is on the brink of extinction.

Robots fare little better, fearing death as much as humans do: the poisonous environment quickly causes their mechanical bodies to rust and corrode, forcing them to constantly replace their damaged parts, if spare parts in good condition can even be found. In this wretched time and place, Casshern, who had disappeared following the assassination of Luna, returns with no memory of who he is or what he had done. As he embarks on a journey to find out the truth about himself, Casshern will discover his true purpose and destiny.

Main characters

 * Casshern (キャシャーン):

The protagonist of the series. In this latest incarnation, he was originally a subordinate of Braiking Boss and the strongest warrior in his robot army; with an advanced cybernetic body and quick reflexes, he can destroy any opponent he comes across. Casshern was ordered by Braiking Boss to assassinate Luna. However, this act triggered a cataclysmic event and he disappeared. Returning hundreds of years later with no memory of who he was, he somehow holds the ability to painfully regenerate from any injury, and goes violently berserk when incited.

While he travels to discover what has happened, and to redeem himself, he encounters people who have been affected by the cataclysm, as well as many others who attempt to kill him, under the belief that devouring him will save them from ruination. Near the end of the anime, he was extremely saddened by the deaths of Lyuze and Oji. He decided to return to Luna once more and defeat the robots and Braiking Boss. He faced Luna and reminded her that she is salvation to the people who wants to find her, and he is death. Before he left to wander the world, he warns her that if she and her followers ever forget death, even once, he will come back.


 * Lyuze (リューズ):

A female robot, she pursues Casshern out of revenge for her sister and her vindication that Casshern is a calamity. Before the cataclysm, her sister Liza was injured by Casshern while trying to protect Luna, and eventually died a slow death from corrosion.

However, she hesitates when Casshern willingly allows her the chance to kill him, and is unable to do so, after he goes berserk. Instead, she begins to follow and accompany Casshern on his journey, eventually developing feelings for him. She finally finds Luna with the help of Casshern and the others, but lost respect and interest for Luna as soon as she knew the true meaning of Luna's "salvation". She decides to live with Casshern, Ringo, Oji, and Friender, only to end her last days with them, dying from the ruin.


 * Ringo (リンゴ):

A young girl who befriends Casshern, she manages to maintain her innocence despite growing up in a destroyed world. Despite witnessing Casshern mercilessly destroying a robot in order to save her, she continues to have faith in him. Being cared by Ohji, the two come across Casshern regularly, and witness his endeavors. Near the end of the anime, everyone except herself, Friender, and Casshern died. Ringo was devastated, but still grew up into a young woman, knowing and accepting death, waiting for Casshern's return.


 * Ohji (オージ):

A robot technician who spends his time maintaining robots, he is Ringo's guardian. Originally a scientist working under Braiking Boss, he is the creator of Casshern, Dio, and Leda. Stricken by guilt of what he had caused, he attempts to kill himself, but finds Ringo as a baby, and continues to live for her. After finding Casshern, he follows and watches over him. Near the end of the anime, he also seems to lose interest in Luna's "salvation" and decided to live with the others, trying to make Ringo happy with anything he can do, until his ruin came, devastating Ringo.


 * Friender (フレンダー)

A robot dog who stayed with a robot community that peacefully accepted the idea of death, Friender himself does not display any signs of deterioration. After Casshern destroys the entire community after going berserk, he cautiously follows him, eventually trusting him. He primarily intervenes to stop Casshern whenever he goes berserk. Near the end of the anime, only he stayed alive, playing with Ringo.

Recurring characters

 * Luna (ルナ):

A mysterious girl who was summoned by the human race for salvation, Luna was known as "the sun which is named the moon", and has been dubbed the "Source of Life" — a living embodiment for the world. Deemed as a threat, Braiking Boss sends Casshern, Dio, and Leda to assassinate her. Casshern successfully does so, and triggers the destruction of the world. There are hints that she continues to exist in some form, and some humans and robots have begun to seek her, hoping for salvation. Casshern searches for her to find the cause of the state of the world, and the reason behind his apparent immortality. Apparently the Luna they find is real. However, she dislikes death and wishes to kill anyone who reeks of death.


 * Braiking Boss (ブライキング・ボス):

Braiking Boss was the leader and commander of the robot army. Having dominated over humanity for ages, Luna was summoned to stop him. As the one who ordered the assassination of Luna, he was the true cause of the world's destruction. Dismissing the rumors of the effects of devouring Casshern, he spends his time following him from afar, watching his actions. At the end of the anime, he and his army found salvation from Luna. As Casshern returned, destroying his army, he fought 1 on 1 with Casshern, and only ended up losing. His last words were about killing Luna to "atone" for his sins he regretted that he did on the world.


 * Dio (ディオ):

A robot built identical to Casshern, he, along with Casshern and Leda, were sent to kill Luna, but Dio failed to reach her before Casshern. He plots to halt the ruination by exposing Casshern's secret and rule the world, taking the place of Braiking Boss. As such, he attempts to organize a robot army. He holds animosity towards Casshern, as they were both created with identical specifications, but Casshern was slightly ahead of him in reaching Luna. Dio refused to receive Luna's "salvation" as he was surprised by Casshern's actions when he refused to fight. He took Casshern somewhere else, and fought with him, revealing that he was about to be ruined. Unable to deny this fight, Casshern fought with him until the end. Dio won the battle because of the strength of will that resulted from his mortality, but he succumbed to the ruin as he landed the final blow. He asked for Casshern to help him get Leda back.


 * Leda (レダ):

A female model created alongside Casshern and Dio, she assists Dio in restoring the robot army, and states that she is affectionate toward him. She intervenes and helps Dio retreat, whenever he begins to step over the boundaries of his well being. She aggressively found Luna and was abusive to Luna as she was, and received her "salvation". However, the blood from Luna was apparently too weak, and she came back for more, ending up in her demise of a deformed robot. Before she could do anything further, Casshern intervened, telling her that Dio wanted to save her, letting it end in her hasty leave to Dio's side. There, they both stayed together, and ruined together.


 * Dune (ドゥーン):

A heavily deteriorated robot in tattered cloth, he is a powerful robot formerly assigned as Luna’s bodyguard, and was labelled the "God of Death" in that time. Unable to stop Casshern when he killed Luna, he wanders the wasteland solely to find her, and seek revenge on Casshern, despite his severe debilitation.

Anime
Casshern Sins was first announced at the Tokyo International Anime Fair 2008, where it was announced that Madhouse would be in charge of the animation. Soon after, an official trailer was posted online, on its official Japanese website. It was announced at Otakon 2009 that Funimation Entertainment will produce and distribute the series for release in 2010, following a subtitled-only release on their video service in late 2009.

The show had previously aired on Japan's Chiba TV, TV Aichi, MBS, TV Kanagawa & TV Saitama stations. Casshern Sins had also aired on Singapore's Arts Central channel. According to the Strait Times, the show aired simultaneously with Japan in order to cut down illegal downloading in Singapore. TV5 airs Casshern SINS in the Philippines.

Casshern Sins is distributed in Oceania by Siren Entertainment with an Australian distribution by Gryphon Entertainment and the New Zealand distribution by Vendetta Films.

Manga
A manga adaptation was announced in the September 26, 2008 issue of Jive's Monthly Comic Rush Magazine, and it begin serialization in the December issue when it was first published on October 25, 2008.