Quick Links
Lazarus’ long-awaited premiere was just as great as fans could have hoped for, and it left plenty to be excited about for episode #2 and beyond. The series is looking to be another major hit from Shinichiro Watanabe ofCowboy Bebopfame, and with how stellar its premiere was, it will be great to watch it all play out.
Shinichiro Watanabe’sLazarustakes place three years after a miracle drug called Hapna has been used to cure all diseases, at which time Dr. Skinner, the creator of Hapna, reveals that Hapna will kill anyone who takes it. The first wave of deaths will start in 30 days, so now,the government must assemble a secret task force called Lazarus to track down Dr. Skinner and force him to make a cure for Hapna before humanity is wiped out. It’s the exact kind of story one would expect from Watanabe, and there’s plenty to look forward to with episode #2.
What Time Lazarus Episode 2 Releases
Lazarus Episode 2’s Release Schedule
Lazarusis aToonami original anime, meaning that cable or other forms of TV service are required for watching new episodes live, although new episodes will be streamed the next day on Max. Assuming there are no delays,Lazarusepisode #2 will premiere on Saturday, April 12 at 9:00 PM Pacific Standard Time (PST), 12:00 AM Eastern Standard Time (EST), and 5:00 AM British Summer Time (BST), and it should be available on Max relatively early the following day.
What Happened In Lazarus Episode 1?
Produced By MAPPA; Directed By Shinichiro Watanabe
InLazarusepisode #1, “Goodbye Cruel World”, the enigmatic Dr. Skinner shocked the world with the announcement that his miracle drug Hapna kills anyone who takes it after three years, with the first wave of deaths starting in 30 days and continuing until humanity is destroyed. Following that, a mysterious government agent named Hersch goes to a prison to visit a man named Axel Gilberto and told him she could help get him out of prison if he helped her track down Skinner, but instead,Axel decided to use the situation to launch a jailbreak, which was ultimately successful.
Axel, free from prison, entered Babylonia City to try and get away from everyone as quickly as possible, but it wasn’t long before his escape was reported to the entire city. Both the police and Hersch’s group went after Axel, but with his impeccable and borderline superhuman parkour skills and his refusal to surrender, no matter the situation, he managed to avoid his pursuers at every turn and was on his way to freedom. Unfortunately,one of Hersch’s subordinates, Christine, caught Axel off guard and knock him out with a specialized taser, thus ending the chase in Axel’s loss.
Axel awoke hours later with a mysterious band around his wrist, likely designed to keep him from running, and being confronted by the members of Hersch’s group: Doug, Christine, Leland, and Eleina.With no way of escaping, Axel was now forcibly conscripted into Lazarus, the secret task force designed to track down Dr. Skinner and make him surrender the cure for Hapna, and the episode ended with a note saying that there were only 29 days left before people started dying.
Lazarus Might Have Already Given Away A Major Plot Twist
We Might Already Know How Lazarus' Story Will Play Out
There isn’t much known about howLazarus’ story will play out, but it may have already given away a major plot twist.Lazarus’ ending theme shows countless people lying dead on the ground, likely in reference to what will happen if Lazarus doesn’t find Dr. Skinner, and at the end of it, Axel is the only one to stand up while everyone else remains lifeless. That could just be highlighting his role as the protagonist, but at the same time,Lazarus’ ending theme could be foreshadowing a twist where Axel is revealed to have not taken Hapna.
If Axel is one of the few people who won’t be killed by Hapna, then he has no reason to help take down Dr. Skinner, especially since he can just wait for his captors to die and regain his freedom that way, but Axel will inevitably bond with the group on some level, soAxel possibly not having taken Hapna could work for drama by forcing him to choose between helping others and helping himself. All of that is hypothetical, of course, but it would be great to see things play out like that, nonetheless.
Lazarus’ Premiere Is Great, Despite A Few Issues In Its Presentation
Lazarus Is Good, But It Could Be Better
Overall, there’s very little not to love aboutLazarus’ premiere. In addition to having an engaging and surprising timely story, the action, animation, and overall visual style are all great to look at and a perfect evolution of everything Shinichiro Watanabe has done withCowboy Bebopand other works in the past.Lazarusis already proving to have the best combination of writing and animation of any of Shinichiro Watanabe’s works in recent years, and it will be great to see how it lives up to its hype as one of themost hotly-anticipated anime of spring 2025.
The music, of course, deserves the biggest amount of praise. With a soundtrack made in collaboration with Bonobo, Floating Points, and Kamasi Washington, it was easy to assume that the soundtrack would be one of the biggest highlights of the show, and sure enough,Lazarusepisode #1 featured an amazing mixture of vocal and instrumental tracks that always perfectly complemented the mood of each scene. The fact that the soundtrack is primarily jazz-based makes it even better, as it truly feels like Shinichiro Watanabe has returned to his musical roots withLazarus.
If there’s one place whereLazarusis falling short, however, it would have to be with its voice acting. While the English dub isn’t terrible, there’s a very notable stiffness in the dialogue with awkward delivery finding its way into almost every scene, and when compared to the usually phenomenal dubs of Shinichiro Watanabe’s anime,Lazarus, as it stands, has the worst English dub of any Shinichiro Watanabe anime for how awkward the voice acting is more often than not.Lazarushas the potential to be thebest anime of 2025, so hopefully, such lackluster dubbing will improve over time.
Be sure to watchLazarusepisode #2 when it releases on Saturday, April 12.
