Androids Poppy and Punkun roam a devastated world in The Missing 8, a new sci-fi anime-inspired by concept art and electronic music.
Based on the popular music videos for 0verf1ow and 0ptimi2er, a collaboration from the artist FUZI and electronic J-rock project Neru. The Missing 8 is an original web anime now released on FUZI’s YouTube channel. The first episode, “Welcome To Our Life,” is 13 minutes long and, while it is at times sparse on actual animation, makes for a gorgeous look into a unique sci-fi world. That the characters and world have been given even this much detail feels like an indulgence, giving us more time in the world of what could have easily remained compelling concept art.
Series director Naoki Yoshibe and WIT Studio are bringing the world to life. Yoshibe was a unit director and animator on Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure, among other shows. It’s their first credit as lead director. WIT Studio is best known for their work on Attack on Titan seasons one through three and The Ancient Magus’ Bride. WIT is also producing fall 2022’s most popular new show, Ranking of Kings.
In addition to Neru’s music, The Missing 8 also features music by Yamato Kasai, the composer for the classical indie group Mili. There’s a full Japanese voice cast, with English subtitles available via closed captioning. Hikaru Tohno (Assault Lily Bouquet, BanG Dream!) voices Poppy while Makoto Koichi (Brotherhood: Final Fantasy XV) voices Punkun.
Episode two, “The Middle,” is already up with episode three, “Coming soon…”
You can watch The Missing 8 on YouTube.