Black Torch Review: 100Studio Digs Up a Shonen Worth Reviving

Most anime adaptations chase whatever is hot on the manga charts right now. Black Torch did the opposite. It reached back to a series that ran in Jump Square from 2016 to 2018, got cut short after just five volumes, and then sat dormant for eight years. In 2026, 100Studio pulled it off the shelf, dusted it off, and turned it into one of the more purely enjoyable surprises of the summer season. That backstory alone makes it worth talking about, but the show earns your time on its own merits too.

Here is why Black Torch clicks, and why its second-chance origin makes it more interesting than a typical shonen debut.

What is Black Torch about?

Jiro Azuma is a teenage punk with an unusual gift: he can talk to animals. As a kid it made him a target, so he grew up finding more comfort with his dog Nachi than with other people. One day a flock of birds leads him into the woods, where he finds a gravely wounded cat and nurses it back to health. The cat, stunned that Jiro can understand him, turns out to be Rago, a legendary and immensely powerful mononoke known as the Black Star of Doom.

When enemies come hunting for Rago's power, the two fuse, and Jiro is pulled into a hidden war between humans and hostile spirits. He gets recruited by the Bureau of Espionage, a secret organization that polices the mononoke threat, and the story settles into a familiar but satisfying groove: reluctant hothead hero, powerful non-human partner, shadowy agency, and a steady stream of things to punch.

It is a classic setup executed with real energy. The premise stacks a lot on top of Jiro, he is a delinquent, a trained ninja, an animal whisperer, and now the vessel for a demon cat, but the show seeds each element well enough that none of it feels like it comes out of nowhere.

Does the source manga's history matter?

It does, and it is the most fascinating thing about this project. Black Torch is written and illustrated by Tsuyoshi Takaki, and it was never a runaway hit. It ran a little over a year before wrapping in 2018 at five volumes, the kind of quiet cancellation that usually means a series fades into memory. Takaki went on to bigger success afterward, which is likely part of why the property got a fresh look.

The manga did leave a mark, though. Rebecca Silverman's original review at Anime News Network gave the first volume a B, praising the character dynamics while flagging a rushed opening. She also noted that Takaki's art carries echoes of Tite Kubo's Bleach without ever feeling like an imitation, which is high praise for a debut author. In 2019 the series even landed on a Young Adult Library Services Association list of top graphic novels for teens. It was never a phenomenon, but it was good, and "good but overlooked" is exactly the kind of thing that deserves a second shot.

How is the adaptation?

Solid and confident. 100Studio, with Kei Umabiki directing, character designs by Go Suzuki, and music from Yutaka Yamada, gives the show a clean, punchy look that suits its scrappy tone. The action is quick and readable, the mononoke designs have personality, and the whole thing moves at a pace that respects your time.

The audio package deserves a shout too. The opening theme, "Freeze Me Up" by SiM, sets exactly the right rowdy tone, and the ending, "Groooovy" by I Don't Like Mondays, is a fun palate cleanser. Ryota Suzuki voices Jiro with the right mix of attitude and heart, and Yoji Ueda gives Rago a gruff charisma that makes the odd-couple dynamic sing.

Crunchyroll also leaned into the release, streaming a same-day English dub produced by Studiopolis with A.J. Beckles as Jiro. Same-day dubs used to be reserved for guaranteed heavy hitters, so seeing one for a revived cult title is a small sign of confidence in the show's appeal.

The heart underneath the action

What keeps Black Torch from being disposable is the relationship at its center. Jiro spent his childhood isolated because of the very ability that now defines his purpose, and Rago is a creature that everyone else only sees as a weapon to exploit. Two outsiders, each misunderstood, finding a genuine partner in each other, that is the emotional engine, and it gives the fights stakes beyond spectacle.

It is not a deep, thematically dense series, and it does not pretend to be. But it understands the fundamentals of a good buddy shonen: make the pair likeable, make their bond believable, and let everything else build from there. On that count it delivers.

Where the show stumbles

The honest caveat is that Black Torch is not reinventing anything. If you have watched a lot of supernatural action shonen, you will recognize every beat, the secret organization, the power-up fusion, the grandfather who shows up to bark about the family bloodline and the ancestral sword before vanishing from the episode. That exposition can be clunky, and the early going leans on setup you have seen before.

The bigger open question is longer-term: with only five volumes of source material, the anime will either need to pace itself carefully or find a way to expand the story. How that plays out will decide whether Black Torch becomes a lasting favorite or a fun one-season curio.

Should you watch Black Torch?

Yes, if you want comfort-food shonen done well. This is not the show that will top your year-end list or spark think-pieces, and it does not need to be. It is fast, funny, well-animated, and anchored by a partnership you actually care about. Sometimes that is exactly what you want.

There is also something quietly satisfying about watching a cancelled series get the adaptation it never got to earn the first time around. Black Torch is proof that a manga does not have to be a bestseller to deserve a second life, and that with the right studio behind it, an overlooked gem can shine brighter than it ever did on the page.

Frequently Asked Questions

What studio animates Black Torch?

Black Torch is animated by 100Studio, directed by Kei Umabiki, and premiered on July 4, 2026, adapting Tsuyoshi Takaki's manga. Crunchyroll streams it with a same-day English dub.

Is Black Torch based on a completed manga?

Yes. The manga ran in Jump Square and Shonen Jump+ from 2016 to 2018 and ended after five volumes, making it a relatively short source that the anime is now bringing back years later.

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