Garo (franchise)

**Garo** (牙狼〈GARO〉（ガロ）, *Garo*?) is a Japanese midnight tokusatsu horror-action/fantasy series created by film director, Keita Amemiya, in 2005 and continues until today.

## The series

* *Garo*: The first installment of the series, also known as the *Chapter of the Black Wolf*. It focuses on the life of Makai Knight, Kouga Saezima, who is the inheritor of the title of "Golden Knight Garo", his battle against monsters known as Horrors and his relationship with a girl named Kaoru Mitsuki. He later meets another Makai Knight named Rei Suzumura, also known as "Silver Fanged Knight Zero".
* *Garo Special: Byakuya no Maju*: It is a two-part mini-series that premiered at the end of 2006. The movie concludes the events of *Garo*.
* *Garo: Red Requiem*: In July 2009, Tohokushinsha Film announced that the film will be released in the fall of 2010. It was theatrically released on October 30, 2010. The story is a sequel to the original TV series, with Keita Amemiya directing once again. Ryosei Konishi and Hironobu Kageyama reprise their roles as Kouga/Garo and voice of Zaruba. *Red Requiem* will use 3D image technology developed by the Tohokushinsha group company, Omnibus Japan. Makoto Yokoyama will also be returning to choreograph the action sequences.
* *Kiba Gaiden*: It is a spin-off V-Cinema featuring the story of Barago and Kiba the Dark Knight, released on September 7, 2011.
* *Garo: Makai Senki*: The second installment of the series. It premiered in select theaters on September 24, 2011, before beginning broadcast in syndication on October 6, 2011.
* *Garo: Soukoku no Maryu*: It was released in theaters on February 23, 2013, serving as an epilogue to *Makai Senki*, depicting Kouga Saezima's journey to the Promised Land to retrieve Gajari's body. Ryosei Konishi was initially the only confirmed member of the cast, but Ray Fujita, Shouma Yamamoto, Ozuno Nakamura, Yukijiro Hotaru, Hironobu Kageyama, and Hiroyuki Watanabe have also been confirmed to appear in the film. The guest stars in the film are Yuki Kubota as Kakashi, Anna Aoi as Meru, Tetsuya Yanagihara as Esaruto, and Keiko Matsuzaka as Judam.
* *Garo: Yami o Terasu Mono*: The third installment of the series. It was broadcast on April 5, 2013. The series is set in the near future and features an entire new story with a new Garo named Ryuga Dougai venturing into the Horror-plagued, Vol City. The series also presents a brand new main cast that includes Wataru Kuriyama, Tsunenori Aoki, Junya Ikeda and fashion model, Miki Nanri.
* *Garo Gaiden: Tougen no Fue*: In March 2013, the *Garo* team announced the film which was released on July 20 of that year. Set during the time of *Soukoku no Maryu*, *Tougen no Fue* follows Makai Priestesses, Jabi and Rekka, as they travel to the northern forests to protect the mystical and titular flute. Yasue Sato, Mary Matsuyama, Masahiro Kuranuki, and Kanji Tsuda reprise their roles from the franchise as Makai Priestess Jabi, Makai Priestess Rekka, Makai Priest Shiguto, and Makai Knight Kengi, respectively, and also stated to appear in the film are Kumi Takiuchi and Mirai Ono.
* *Zero: Black Blood*: It is a spin-off six-episode miniseries starring Ray Fujita as his character, Rei Suzumura, from the original TV series. Rounding out the cast are Riria as Yuna, Naoki Takeshi as Cain, and Thane Camus as Ring. Keita Amemiya serves as executive director, with Ryu Kaneda directing and Yasuko Kobayashi writing. It was broadcast in March 2014 and shown in theaters in a limited release. JAM Project performed the opening theme "ZERO -BLACK BLOOD-" and Fujita's band, DUSTZ, performs the ending "S#0 (Scene Number Zero)".
* *Garo: Makai no Hana*: The fourth installment of the series which was broadcast in April 2014, takes place between *Makai Senki* and *Yami o Terasu Mono*. With the exception of Yukijiro Hotaru reprising his portrayal of Gonza, it features a new cast consisting of Masei Nakayama as Raiga Saezima, the son of Kouga and Kaoru who inherited his father's title as Garo, Atomu Mizuishi as Crow the Phantom Knight, and Natsumi Ishibashi as Mayuri, a mysterious tool with mystical powers that takes the form of a young woman.
* *Garo: Honoo no Kokuin*: An anime adaptation of *Garo* that was released in October 2014. It is produced by Studio MAPPA and directed by Yuichiro Hayashi. Taking place in the fictional country of Valiante in the Middle Ages, head writer, Yasuko Kobayashi, explained that, with the exception of Zaruba, it is unrelated to any characters or stories in the rest of the *Garo* continuity. The series has been licensed by Funimation as *Garo: The Animation*, making it the first *Garo* installment to see a North American release.
* *Garo: Gold Storm Sho*: It is both a film and a television series that serve as sequels to *Yami o Terasu Mono*. Wataru Kuriyama and Miki Nanri reprise their roles and are joined by new cast members (among them is Masahiro Inoue as the series antagonist, Jinga). The film adaptation was released in theaters on March 28, 2015 while the television series was broadcast from April 3, 2015.
* *Biku*: It is a film starring Sayaka Akimoto reprising her role as Biku from *Makai no Hana*. It was released in theaters on November 14, 2015.
* *Garo: Guren no Tsuki*: The second animated series, which takes place in Japan's Heian period, that was announced to be released in 2015 alongside a film to coincide with the *Garo* tenth anniversary.
* *Garo: Makai Retsuden*: It is an omnibus television series which features the cast of the previous live-action series. It celebrated the tenth anniversary of the *Garo* franchise and began broadcast on April 9, 2016.
* *Garo: Divine Flame*: The film version of *Honoo no Kokuin* that was released on May 21, 2016. The movie takes place four years after the series' conclusion.
* *Zero: Dragon Blood*: It is a television series starring Ray Fujita (as Rei Suzumura). It aired on July 2016.

## References

1. ↑ "【速報】「牙狼＜GARO＞～蒼哭ノ魔竜～」出演者追加情報！！". GARO-Project. June 2, 2012. http://ameblo.jp/garo-project/entry-11310007074.html. Retrieved July 30, 2012.
2. ↑ "GARO TV3 COMING SOON". GARO-Project. http://garo-project.jp/TV3/. Retrieved December 12, 2012.
3. ↑ "劇場版「牙狼外伝 桃幻の笛」2013年7月ロードショー". Garo-project.jp. http://garo-project.jp/TOUGEN/. Retrieved 2013-03-23.
4. ↑ "絶狼＜ZERO＞-bLACK BLOOD-". Garo-project.jp. http://garo-project.jp/ZERO/. Retrieved 2013-11-25.
5. ↑ トピックス (2013-11-25). "「牙狼」新シリーズに劇場版、そしてアニメ！新作ラインナップが連続発表！- 最新ニュース｜MSN トピックス". Topics.jp.msn.com. http://topics.jp.msn.com/entertainment/movie/article.aspx?articleid=2353363. Retrieved 2013-11-25.
6. ↑ ""銀牙騎士・ゼロ"が主人公の「牙狼」新シリーズ、来年3月劇場公開！ - シネマトゥデイ". Cinematoday.jp. 2013-10-25. http://www.cinematoday.jp/page/N0057581. Retrieved 2013-11-25.
7. ↑ "「牙狼」新シリーズに劇場版、そしてアニメ！新作ラインナップが連続発表！ - シネマトゥデイ". Cinematoday.jp. 2013-11-25. http://www.cinematoday.jp/page/N0058260. Retrieved 2013-11-25.
8. ↑ "「牙狼〈GARO〉-魔戒ノ花-」2014年4月 放送スタート". Garo-project.jp. http://garo-project.jp/TV4/. Retrieved 2013-11-25.
9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 "「牙狼＜GARO＞」アニメ化決定 劇場映画、TVシリーズなど新作企画続々発表 | アニメ！アニメ！". Animeanime.jp. 2013-11-24. http://animeanime.jp/article/2013/11/24/16444.html. Retrieved 2013-11-25.
10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 "人気特撮シリーズ『牙狼＜GARO＞』2014年以降の新ラインアップ発表！ - CNET Japan". Japan.cnet.com. 2013-11-25. http://japan.cnet.com/release/30058319/. Retrieved 2013-11-25.
11. ↑ "Funimation Streams Gonna be the Twin-Tails!!, Ushinawareta Mirai o Motomete, Daitoshokan no Hitsujikai, Garo, Bahamut, Donten ni Warau, Lord Marksman & Vanadis". Anime News Network. 2014-10-17. http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2014-10-03/funimation-streams-gonna-be-the-twin-tails-ushinawareta-mirai-o-motomete-daitoshokan-no-hitsujikai-garo-bahamut-donten-ni-warau-lord-marksman-and-vanadis/.79536.
12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 "Garo Gets 3 New Live-Action Films & Show, New TV Anime & Film, Stage Musical". Anime News Network. 2014-11-23. http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2014-11-23/garo-gets-3-new-live-action-films-and-show-new-tv-anime-and-film-stage-musical/.81355.
13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 "【イベント情報】金狼感謝祭 2015／GARO PROJECT［公式］". Garo-project.jp. http://garo-project.jp/event/kinrou2015/. Retrieved 2015-12-02.

## External links

* *Garo* at Wikipedia

 Films/Spin-offs
 Anime
 Other media