Pacific Rim: The Black is a Japanese-American[1][2][3][4] adult animated[5] original net animation (ONA) series based on and a continuation of the Pacific Rim films. The third installment overall of the titular franchise,[6] the series was developed and co-written by Greg Johnson and Craig Kyle for Netflix. Season 1 debuted on March 4, 2021,[7] while the second and final season was released on April 19, 2022.
Set in the same universe as the original film, a race of monsters called Kaiju arise from the Pacific Rim and overrun the continent of Australia. Humans build gigantic armed robots, Jaegers, to fight back, but fail and the continent is abandoned, leaving only isolated pockets of survivors. Teenage siblings Taylor and Hayley Travis are left behind by their parents, who leave to combat the Kaiju but never return. Five years later, Hayley stumbles across a long-abandoned training Jaeger called Atlas Destroyer which she and Taylor activate, and they set out on a quest to find their parents. They not only have to deal with marauding Kaiju, but other survivors who are also fighting for survival and attempt to seize Atlas Destroyer for themselves.
In November 2018, Netflix announced that an anime series adaptation based on the films was in the works.[11] It was originally set for a 2020 release.[12] During their virtual "Anime Festival" livestream event in October 2020, its title Pacific Rim: The Black and a 2021 release window was revealed.[13] A second season was also greenlit.[14]
The series is produced by American company Legendary Television,[6] and animated by Japanese studio Polygon Pictures.[15][16][17] Greg Johnson and Marvel Comics writer Craig Kyle serve as showrunners,[15] and Brandon Campbell is composing the series' music.[18] The series is directed by Jae-hong Kim and Hiroyuki Hayashi, with episodic direction by Takeshi Iwata, Susumu Sugai, and Masayuki Uemoto, and art direction by Yūki Moriyama.
Several creators pitched ideas to Legendary, and it was ultimately the concept by showrunners Greg Johnson and Craig Kyle that ended up moving forward to be pitched to Netflix. Before production on the series itself began, Johnson and Kyle had thought about making the series in either 2D or 3D animation, but hadn't decided which to go with. The more they thought about the cost of the 2D animation, and the limits 2D animation would have on certain aspects of the series, such as how the camera would move in a highly detailed 2D environment, the more they leaned towards using 3D animation. Ultimately, it was decided that they would produce the series in 3D animation, but they wanted to keep the 2D aesthetics, which led them to Polygon Pictures, because they were the "masters at this approach." Polygon Pictures representative director Shūzō John Shiota (who served as an executive producer on the series) and producer Jack Liang expressed excitement over the idea of producing a work within the Pacific Rim universe, and decided to take on the job. Polygon Pictures staff handled a majority of the series' design work, with some assistance by the western team's supervising director Jae-hong Kim, and both teams convened in Tokyo to discuss these designs.[19]
Pacific Rim: The Black was released on Netflix on March 4, 2021.[7] A teaser trailer was released on February 1,[21] followed by a full trailer on February 5.[22] A final trailer was released on February 26.[23]
The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported an 71% approval rating, based on 14 reviews, with an average rating of 7.10/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "While The Black carries over all the grit but little of the humor that distinguishes the Pacific Rim film franchise, its striking visuals and expansion of series lore will likely please Kaiju fans."[24]
On February 22, 2022, a prequel graphic novel was released for the show. Entitled Pacific Rim: Blackout, it was written by Cavan Scott and illustrated by Nelson Daniel.[25]
