Armored Trooper VOTOMS Returns With First All New Anime in 15 Years, “Die Graue Hexe” Directed by Mamoru Oshii

Armored Trooper VOTOMS marks its first all new animated project in 15 years with the announcement of Armored Trooper VOTOMS: Die Graue Hexe (JP: 装甲騎兵ボトムズ 灰色の魔女), scheduled to be released in 2026. The project will be directed by Mamoru Oshii, with animation production handled by Sunrise and production cooperation provided by Production I.G. A newly revealed visual and video were also unveiled alongside the announcement.

A Real Robot Classic Returns After 15 Years

Armored Trooper VOTOMS is a real robot anime series set in the Astragius Galaxy, where relentless warfare and political conspiracies collide. The story follows a lone protagonist who continues to fight and flee while uncovering the mystery surrounding his own origins.

The series is known for its depiction of humanoid bipedal combat machines called Armored Troopers. Due to their extremely low survival rate, the soldiers who pilot these machines refer to them with derision as VOTOMS, a term meaning the worst kind of men, also playing on the word bottoms to emphasize their expendable nature. The series portrays robots not as heroic icons but strictly as consumable weapons of war, establishing its reputation as a defining work of the real robot genre produced by Sunrise.

Sunrise 50th Anniversary Project

Since the television series first aired between 1983 and 1984, Armored Trooper VOTOMS has expanded through original video animations, side stories, theatrical films, special event screenings, and published works. The newly announced project is being produced as part of Sunrise’s 50th anniversary commemorative lineup.

In addition, the Sunrise 50th Anniversary project has officially begun. The initiative commemorates the 50th anniversary of Sunrise’s first television series, Invincible Superman Zambot 3, which premiered in October 1977 and reaches its milestone in 2027. To express gratitude to fans who have supported the studio’s works and to honor the creators behind them, Sunrise has designated the three year period from 2026 to 2028 as the official anniversary term, during which a wide range of commemorative projects will be developed.

Source : ORICON NEWS