BLAME! creator Tsutomu Nihei‘s Tower Dungeon series, which sees a farmboy forced into joining an expedition to rescue a princess from a necromancer’s tower, hit the six volume count earlier this month. To commemorate the new volume’s release, the YouTube channel for Kodansha’s Monthly Shonen Sirius magazine has released a trailer that’s part-motion comic, part-proper animation.
The anime section of the Tower Dungeon trailer primarily consists of a slightly claustrophobic battle within the tower, which contrasts with a vertigo-inducing outdoor shot of some unsafe-looking “stairs” attached to the structure’s exterior. Later sequences include an encounter with a bizarre-looking creature and an escape from a dragon.
The anime bits were storyboarded, directed, and unit directed by Toshiyuki Kono at studio keel. Some of the other staff include Asuka Suzuki as character designer, E&H production’s Tetsuro Moronuki (Shy action director) as creature designer, and studio pablo’s Kentaro Akiyama (Revue Starlight co-background art director) as background art director.
The overall direction and the editing were handled by maxilla’s eita, whose past credits include handling the direction, graphic design, and motion graphics for ano’s “Happy Lucky Chappi” music video.
Tower Dungeon debuted in 2023. The manga is available in English on the K Manga service, and also has physical volumes from Vertical Comics and digital volumes from Kodansha USA. Volume 1’s synopsis reads:
An evil necromancer slays the king and carries off his daughter, secreting her in the legendary Dragon Tower. To save the princess, her steadfast Royal Guard assays the stronghold, but the way is blocked by powerful eldritch creatures… So, to supplement their forces in the face of mounting casualties, they press ordinary folks from the surrounding villages into service—including Yuva, a sturdy young farmboy with a strong back but no experience in battle, and only a battered old helm and wooden shield to protect him.
Source: Monthly Shonen Sirius YouTube channel
