The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel – Northern War[b] is a 2023 Japanese anime miniseries based on the Trails video game series by Nihon Falcom.[1][2] The series follows a conflict between the Erebonian Empire and the North Ambria State and is set during the ellipsis between the video games Trails of Cold Steel II and III. It follows Lavian Winslet, who leads a small platoon of Martin Robinson, Iseria Frost, and Talion Drake within the Northern Jaegers mercenary corps.
| The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel – Northern War | |
 Promotional poster | |
| The Legend of Heroes 閃の軌跡 Northern War (The Legend of Heroes: Sen no Kiseki Northern War) | |
|---|---|
| Anime television series | |
| Directed by | Hidekazu Sato |
| Written by |
|
| Music by | Tsubasa Ito |
| Studio | Tatsunoko Production |
| Licensed by | Crunchyroll[a] |
| Original network | DMM TV, Tokyo MX, AT-X, BS12 |
| Original run | January 6, 2023 – March 24, 2023 |
| Episodes | 12 |
| Video game | |
| Developer | UserJoy Technology |
| Publisher | Nihon Falcom |
| Genre | Role-playing |
| Platform | Android, iOS |
| Released |
|
Northern War was produced by Tatsunoko Production and had twelve episodes aired weekly from early January to late March 2023.[3][4][5] The series was licensed and dubbed in English by Crunchyroll.[6][7] A spin-off mobile gacha game by UserJoy Technology was released in Japan in December 2023 and worldwide in May 2024.[8][9]
Premise
editThe Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel – Northern War depicts the Northern War, a conflict between the Erebonian Empire and the North Ambria State, and placed during the ellipsis between the video games Trails of Cold Steel II and III. It follows Lavian Winslet, a girl born in North Ambria, a poor country in the northwest of Zemurian continent. She enlists in the Northern Jaegers, the largest mercenary corps in Zemuria to protect her hometown, while distinguishing herself from her grandfather, Vlad, the renounced hero who betrayed their country. Prior to the start of the anime, Lavian assembles a platoon with Martin S. Robinson, Iseria Frost and Talion Drake for a secret mission to Erebonia, an imperialistic country to the south, to gather information about an Erebonian hero that spells a threat to their country.
Characters
edit| Character | English actor | Japanese actor | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lavian Winslet | Sarah Roach | Makoto Koichi | [3][7] |
| Martin S. Robinson | Ben Balmaceda | Yuichi Nakamura | [3][7] |
| Iseria Frost | Anjali Kunapaneni | Sarah Emi Bridcutt | [3][7] |
| Talion Drake | Chris Niosi | Yūki Ono | [3][7] |
| Grak Gromash | Unknown | Haruhiko Jō | [4] |
| Jeina Storm | Unknown | Mie Sonozaki | [4] |
| Logan Mugart | Unknown | Takayuki Kondo | [4] |
| Rean Schwarzer[c] | Unknown[d] | Koki Uchiyama | [4] |
| Valimar[e] | Unknown | Unknown | [11] |
| Altina Orion | Unknown[f] | Inori Minase | [4] |
| Ivano | Ryan Colt Levy | Jun Fukushima | [4][7] |
| Tack | Nazeeh Tarsha | Ryuichi Kijima | [4][7] |
| Millium Orion | Unknown[g] | Unknown | [7] |
| Lechter Arundel | Matt Shipman[h] | Unknown | [7][14] |
| Giliath Osborne | Michael Sorich | Unknown | [7] |
| Rufus Albarea | D. C. Douglas | Unknown | [7] |
| Wallace Bardias | Alan Lee | Unknown | [7] |
| Aurelia Le Guin | Valerie Arem | Unknown | [7] |
| Campanella | Zach Aguilar | Unknown | [7] |
| Sara Valestein | Unknown[i] | Unknown | [7] |
Episode list
edit| No. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Appears He… the Hero in Twilight" (Japanese: 誰そ彼は...... 黄昏の英雄) | Yusaku Saotome | Chika Suzumura | January 6, 2023 |
| 2 | "Gathers the Unpleasant Darkness" (Japanese: 集いし不快な漆黒) | Kazuki Yokouchi | Chika Suzumura | January 13, 2023 |
| 3 | "An Invitation to the Port City Engulfed In Darkness" (Japanese: 闇に覆われた紺碧への招待) | Fumihiro Ueno | Shinsuke Ohnishi | January 20, 2023 |
| 4 | "Breaking the Blue Crystal Ice" (Japanese: 青い結晶の打ち解け) | Makoto Sokuza | Masaki Hiramatsu | January 27, 2023 |
| 5 | "At the End of an Ashen Journey" (Japanese: 灰色の旅の果てに) | Yusaku Saotome | Chika Shizumura | February 3, 2023 |
| 6 | "Memories Burning Crimson" (Japanese: 紅蓮に燃えさかりし記憶) | Kazuki Yokouchi | Shinsuke Ohnishi | February 10, 2023 |
| 7 | "The Truth Coated in Lead" (Japanese: 重ね塗られた鉛色の真実) | Hidehiko Kadota | Masaki Hiramatsu | February 17, 2023 |
| 8 | "Pale White Castle at a Crossroads" (Japanese: 決意の間、白茶けた城下) | Shigeki Awai | Mao Emura | February 24, 2023 |
| 9 | "The Ashy Curse Continues Past a Sealed Fate" (Japanese: 命運尽きて尚果てぬ蒼白な呪い) | Hidekazu Sato, Yano Takanori | Shinsuke Ohnishi | March 3, 2023 |
| 10 | "The Scent of Wheat Ears and the Silver of Revival" (Japanese: 穗の香が導く再起の銀) | Fumihiro Ueno | Masaki Hiramatsu | March 10, 2023 |
| 11 | "The Divine Knight Arrives at the Gray" (Japanese: 騎神、鈍色へ降り立つ) | Yusaku Saotome | Mao Emura | March 17, 2023 |
| 12 | "Dyed in Pure White" (Japanese: 真白に染まる) | Ken Ando | Mao Emura | March 24, 2023 |
Notes
edit- ^ The series is distributed in North America, Latin America, United Kingdom through Crunchyroll UK and Ireland, Australia through Madman Anime, and Europe/Middle East/Africa through Crunchyroll EMEA.
- ^ Japanese: The Legend of Heroes 閃の軌跡 Northern War, Hepburn: The Legend of Heroes: Sen no Kiseki Northern War
- ^ Protagonist of the Trails of Cold Steel video games.
- ^ Sean Chiplock was originally announced to reprise his role from the video games before being replaced.[7][10]
- ^ Rean's Divine Knight, his sentient personal mecha, of which only seven exist.
- ^ Xanthe Huynh was originally announced to reprise her role from the video games before being replaced.[7][12]
- ^ Michelle Marie was originally announced to reprise her role from the video games before being replaced.[7][13]
- ^ Max Mittelman voiced the character in episode 5.
- ^ Carrie Keranen was originally announced to reprise her role from the video games before being replaced.[7][15]
References
edit- ^ Mateo, Alex (March 9, 2021). "The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel Game Series Gets TV Anime". Anime News Network. Retrieved October 3, 2022.
- ^ Hodgkins, Crystalyn (January 31, 2022). "Tatsunoko Pro Animates The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel TV Anime". Anime News Network. Retrieved October 3, 2022.
- ^ a b c d e Mateo, Alex (September 21, 2022). "The Legend of Heroes: Sen no Kiseki Northern War Anime's 1st Promo Video Reveals Cast". Anime News Network. Retrieved September 21, 2022.
- ^ a b c d e f g h Cayanan, Joanna (November 17, 2022). "The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel Northern War Anime Reveals More Cast, January 2023 Debut". Anime News Network. Retrieved November 17, 2022.
- ^ Loo, Egan (December 3, 2022). "The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel Northern War Anime's 2nd Video Unveils Opening Song, January 6 Debut". Anime News Network. Retrieved December 4, 2022.
- ^ Hodgkins, Crystalyn (December 3, 2022). "Crunchyroll Reveals 7 New Anime Licenses for 2023 Including Legend of Heroes, Handyman Saitō in Another World". Anime News Network. Retrieved December 3, 2022.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s Dempsey, Liam (January 18, 2023). "The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel - Northern War English Dub Reveals Cast & Crew, Release Date". Crunchyroll. Retrieved January 18, 2023.
- ^ "The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel Northern War Mobile Game Slated for December 6". Anime News Network. December 25, 2023. Retrieved December 26, 2023.
- ^ Vitale, Adam. "Trails of Cold Steel: Northern War mobile RPG launches on May 29 worldwide". RPG Site. Retrieved April 29, 2024.
- ^ Those of you watching the next few upcoming episodes of Trails of Cold Steel: #TheNorthernWar may notice that at least one character credit doesn't match the original cast announcements. In my case, I ended up unable to reprise as Rean. I don't know if this also affected others.
- ^ "Gematsu: "The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel – Northern War begins airing January 8, 2023"". December 3, 2022. Archived from the original on December 4, 2022. Retrieved December 4, 2022.
- ^ Xanthe Huynh @ItsXanthor "If you've been keeping up with the Trails of Cold Steel: The Northern War English dub, I was unable to reprise as Altina this time. I know I was officially announced and I was super excited because I love voicing her, but it unfortunately didn't work out."
- ^ Hey there everyone. For those watching Trails of Cold Steel: Northern War, I wanted to let you know I was unable to reprise my role as Millium Orion in the anime. I know I was already announced, and I was looking forward to voicing her but unfortunately, it didn't work out.
- ^ ENGLISH DUB REVIEW: THE LEGEND OF HEROES: TRAILS OF COLD STEEL – NORTHERN WAR "MEMORIES BURNING CRIMSON" Even more baffling is that Lechter Arundel had his dub voice actor, Max Mittelman, in his last appearance but is now voiced by Matt Shipman for some reason.
- ^ ENGLISH DUB REVIEW: THE LEGEND OF HEROES: TRAILS OF COLD STEEL – NORTHERN WAR "THE TRUTH COATED IN LEAD" Another week another batch of recasts, this time it's Sara Valestein and Elliot Craig
External links
edit- Crunchyroll website
- Official website (in Japanese)
- The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel – Northern War (anime) at Anime News Network's encyclopedia