Casshern Sins

Casshern Sins is a 24 episode reboot of the classic anime series Casshan, produced by Tatsunoko and animated by Madhouse. Casshern Sins, produced by Tatsunoko and directed by Shiyasu Yamauchi, was first announced at the Tokyo International Anime Fair 2008. Soon after, an official trailer was posted online on its official Japanese website. The series premiered in Japan on October 1, 2008.

The series completely discards the continuity presented in the original Casshan anime series, in which Casshern was a cybernetic superhero battling the evil robotic forces of Braiking Boss. 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.

Casshern Sins was licensed by Funimation in 2009 and made its english broadcast premiere on the Funimation channel in 2010. The series later aired alongside Deadman Wonderland on Adult Swim's newly revived Toonami in 2012. The series was rated TV-PG-LV and TV-14-LSV on Adult Swim.

Plot
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 Boss 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, will Casshern discover his true purpose and destiny?

Characters
Casshern — The protagonist of the series, 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 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. He is also confronted by many others who attempt to kill him under the belief that devouring him will save them from ruination.

Lyuze — A female robot, she pursues Casshern out of revenge for her sister. 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 unwilling to do so. Instead, she begins to follow and accompany Casshern on his journey, eventually developing feelings for him.

Ringo — 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 and hurting her feelings, she continues to have faith in him. Being cared for by Ohji, the two come across Casshern regularly, and witness his endeavors.

Ohji — A robot technician who spends his time maintaining robots, he is Ringo's guardian. Originally a scientist working under Braiking Boss, he created Casshern, Dio, and Leda as an experiment in recreating robotic life in a manner similar to humanity's reproductive method, however Braiking Boss utilized the trio as an advanced hunter/killer team and ultimately assigned them the duty of assassinating Luna. Stricken by guilt of what he has 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.

Friender — A robot dog who originally stayed with a robot community that peacefully accepted the idea of death. Friender himself does not display any signs of deterioration. After a berserked Casshern destroys the entire community, Friender cautiously follows him, eventually trusting him. He primarily intervenes to stop Casshern whenever he goes berserk. It is speculated that Friender is not affected by the Ruin along side Casshern due to the fact that Friender ripped off a portion of Casshern's skin and ate it.

Luna — A mysterious girl summoned by the human race for salvation, Luna was known as "the sun that was named moon," and has been dubbed the "Source of Life" — a living embodiment for the world. Deeming her a threat, Braiking Boss sent Casshern, Dio, and Leda to assassinate her. Casshern successfully did so, triggering the destruction of the world. Amid hints that she continues to exist in some form, Casshern searches for her to find the cause of the state of the world, and the reason behind his apparent immortality.

After Casshern killed her, she mysteriously became disgusted and terrified of death and dying. She instead granted immortality to both humans and robots that she deemed to not be "reeking of death" or to those not too far into the suffering of the Ruin, as discovered when she refused to heal Dune. Luna sought to create a world free of death until all those dying of the Ruin will perish, leaving those that are immortal.

Braiking Boss — 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.

Dio — 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. Influenced by Leda, he plots to halt the ruination by exposing Casshern's secret and to 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 refuses to receive Luna's "salvation" as he discovers his real desire is to defeat Casshern.

Leda — A female robot 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 wellbeing. Aggressively seeking Luna, she reveals that she, not Dio, is the one with ambition.

Dune — A heavily deteriorated robot in tattered cloth, he is a powerful robot formerly assigned as Luna's bodyguard labelled the "God of Death." Unable to stop Casshern from killing Luna, he wanders the wasteland solely to find her and seek revenge on Casshern, despite his severe debilitation.

Episodes
Casshern Sins is licensed and distributed in Oceania by Siren Visual with the Japanese dub intact and having English subtitles in 2 DVDs, one with episodes 1-12 and the second with episodes 13-24 for its release in Australia and New Zealand.

Funimation Entertainment picked up the rights for the North American release and licensing of the series and produced the english dub. Casshern Sins was released in North America on DVD and Blu Ray in 2010 in two volumes each containing 12 episodes. In 2013, the series was also released as a complete collection containing all 24 episodes.

Broadcast History
The series originally aired on Japan's Chiba TV, TV Aichi, MBS, TV Kanagawa, & TV Saitama stations. The show aired in Japan from October 1, 2008 to March 18, 2009. Casshern Sins also aired on Singapore's Arts Central channel beginning on October 8, 2010. The series premiered in North American on December 14, 2010, on the Funimation Channel. On May 26, 2012, the series began airing on Adult Swim.
 * Japan (Chiba TV, TV Aichi, MBS, TV Kanagawa, TV Saitama) — October 1, 2008 - March 18, 2009
 * Singapore (Arts Central) — October 8, 2008 - 2009
 * United States (Funimation Channel) — December 14, 2010 - 2011
 * United States (Adult Swim) — May 26, 2012 - November 3, 2012

Toonami Broadcast History
The series aired on Adult Swim's newly revived Toonami block from May 26, 2012 to November 3, 2012.
 * Toonami (Adult Swim) — May 26, 2012 - November 3, 2012