The official Fire Force Twitter account announced that the third season is now under production and has released the whole first season for free on YouTube.
Everyone’s favourite firefighting crew is back in town! No, not Chicago Fire or 9-1-1: Lone Star, despite being great live-action firefighting shows. Fire Force Season 3 is finally in production after a three-year hiatus, according to a tweet from the official anime series’ Twitter handle on Friday, May 5, @FireForce_PR. They also announced that they have made the whole first season of Fire Force available to watch on the official Shonen Magazine YouTube channel.
While the tweet was short and sweet, it did not reveal any planned release date, plot, or returning cast or crew. The first season is free for viewers, but unfortunately, it lacks subtitles, which is disappointing for English or Japanese viewers who may rely on them. Although there was nothing of considerable substance in this tweet, it is a great sign to hear that the show will be getting a third season.
A lot of sources have been speculating what Fire Force Season 3 could be about. The anime is based on the manga of the same name, written and illustrated by Atsushi Ohkubuo—the same creator of the Soul Eater series. The manga began serialization in Kondansha’s Weekly Shonen Magazine from September 2015 to February 2022, released in 34 complete volumes.
David Production animated the series, which originally aired from July 2019 to December 2019. The second season of the anime aired from July 2020 to December 2020, and Season 3 of the anime was confirmed by the same company in May 2022. And boy, oh boy, this animation studio knows precisely what it is doing, tailoring the style to the story it is trying to adapt from the manga.
Their other notable works include the two seasons of Cells At Work, Urusei Yatsura, Spriggan, and a little series on Netflix called JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: The Animation that currently has five seasons. The animation style of Fire Force caught my eye, but the sound design was what had my full attention. Each punch, kick, and explosion felt like it was hitting me in the gut or scorching my eyebrows in a Michael Bay Transformers film kind of way.
Fire Force is an anime series that takes place in Tokyo, Japan, “where citizens are mysteriously suffering from spontaneous human combustion all throughout the city!” And the Fire Force is like a firefighting organization specifically trained to snuff out these incidences. The main protagonist Shinra is a new recruit who joins Company 8 of the Fire Force and hopes his special power, “Devil’s Footprints,” can help save the city from being engulfed in an inferno. However, he has a dark past that is waiting to catch ablaze, which could pose a blazing risk to those around him.
Now to delve into season 2, which means spoilers will ensue now.
While Shinra bonded with all the Company 8 members, including his academy nemesis Arthur, he learned more about the truth behind his past incident. Shinra was accused of starting the fire that killed his mother and younger brother Sho because it was the day he awakened his power to ignite his feet and move faster in midair or on the ground.
Surprisingly, his past incident was a cover-up for the White Clad—a doomsday cult that aims to revive an ancient being through the Great Cataclysm. This special catastrophic event was said could be triggered by gathering eight special individuals like Shinra and Sho. The brothers had a heartbreaking reunion as the White Clad brainwashed Sho. Unfortunately, Shinra’s attempt to persuade his brother to leave fails, breaking the bond between them (RIP brotherly love).
Shinra and Company 8 also learned there were some hidden agents of the White Clad within Company 1 to 7. The finale teased that the White Clad was getting close to their goals while more schemes within the Fire Force were revealed. These schemes led to Company 8’s captain’s death and unveiled more special people like Shinra. With Company 8 in tatters, season 3 could be expanding on who will step up next as they continue to attempt to put out the physical and political fires everywhere.
Fire Force seasons 1 and 2 are currently streaming on Hulu, Crunchyroll and Funimation.
