This is a list of episodes for the anime Wolf's Rain. The series was created by Keiko Nobumoto and Bones and directed by Tensai Okamura. Originally broadcast across Japan on Fuji TV and the anime CS television network, Animax, between January 6, 2003 and July 29, 2003, it ran for a full season of 26 episodes, with four more OVA episodes being released on DVD in Japan, in January and February 2004, completing the story. Wolf’s Rain was also seen in American TV broadcast on Cartoon Network’s Adult Swim late-night programming block in 2004.
All of the music used in Wolf's Rain soundtrack was composed and arranged by Yoko Kanno, with vocals provided by various artists, including Maaya Sakamoto, Ilaria Graziano, Steve Conte, and Joyce.[1] While most anime series use primarily Japanese language themes, both the opening and ending themes for this series are performed in English. Written by Tim Jensen and performed by Steve Conte, the song "Stray" is used as the opening theme for the first 25 episodes and the second OVA episode. The other three OVA episodes do not have any opening sequences at all. "Gravity", written by Troy and performed by Maaya Sakamoto, is used as the closing theme for the first 25 episodes and the first three OVA episodes. The 26th episode uses a different ending theme, the song "Tell Me What the Rain Knows", written by Chris Mosdell and performed by Sakamoto. For the final OVA episode, the original opening, "Stray" is used to close the series.
In another variation from most anime series, the title screens for each episode appear at the end of the episode rather than near the beginning. As the episode ends, but before the ending theme is played, the title is displayed in white kanji on a black screen. In the Bandai Region 1 release, the English title is added to the top center of the screen, also in white.
In Region 1, the series was released to DVD by Bandai Entertainment. The series was originally released as seven individual volumes, with the first volume having a regular and a limited edition option. The limited edition came with the Wolf's Rain Original Soundtrack CD, a Kiba wolf plushie, and an art box.[3] A few months after the final volume was released, Bandai released a seven disk limited edition box set that contained the entire series.[4] In 2006, the series as re-releases as a two volume collection under as part of Bandai's economy Anime Legends label.[5]
Each volume included Japanese and English language audio tracks and English subtitles. The volume covers use the original artwork from the Japanese DVD releases. For the first five volumes, the artwork from the corresponding original release was used, resulting in the art work relating more to episodes from the previous volume than the ones for the previous one. The 6th volume uses the cover from the 7th volume of the Japanese release, while the 7th volume uses the cover from the 10th volume of the Japanese releases.
After Bandai Entertainment went out of business, Funimation secured the rights to Wolf's Rain, and released the anime under their rights on February 7, 2017 on DVD and for the first time on Blu-ray. The anime has yet to see a release in the latter format in Japan.[6]
| Title | Release Date | Eps | Extras | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wolf's Rain, Volume 1: Leader of the Pack | July 6, 2004 | 5 | cast interview with four of the wolf actors, textless opening and ending, 3promotional films | |
| Wolf's Rain, Volume 1: Leader of the Pack (Limited Edition) | July 6, 2004 | 5 | cast interview with four of the wolf actors, textless opening and ending, 3promotional films, Kiba wolf plushie, Wolf's Rain Soundtrack, art box | |
| Wolf's Rain, Volume 2: Blood and Flowers | August 24, 2004 | 5 | cast interview, staff interview, 3 alternative textless endings | |
| Wolf's Rain, Volume 3: Loss | October 12, 2004 | 4 | textless ending collection | |
| Wolf's Rain, Volume 4: Recollections | December 14, 2004 | 4 | textless ending collection | |
| Wolf's Rain, Volume 5: War for the Soul | January 4, 2005 | 4 | textless ending collection | |
| Wolf's Rain, Volume 6: Paradise and Poison | March 22, 2005 | 4 | textless ending collection | |
| Wolf's Rain, Volume 7: Final Encounters | May 24, 2005 | 4 | none | |
| Wolf's Rain Complete Collection Limited Edition Box Set | November 22, 2005 | 30 | art box with stand | |
| Wolf's Rain Anime Legends Complete Collection I | July 25, 2006 | 18 | textless opening and ending, cast interviews | |
| Wolf's Rain Anime Legends Complete Collection II | September 26, 2006 | 12 | textless opening and ending, cast interviews | |
| Wolf's Rain Anime Legends Perfect Collection | May 5, 2009 | 30 | Textless openings, textless endings, Cast interviews | |
| Wolf's Rain: The Complete Series (Combo-Pack with Blu-ray) | February 7, 2017 | 30 | Cast interviews, staff interview, pilot film, promo films, fifteen-second promos, textless openings, textless endings, trailers |
Wolf's Rain was released in Japan by Bandai Visual across 8 volumes, with each volume having 3-4 episodes on a single disc with a Japanese language track and no subtitles. The first volume was released on June 23, 2003.[7] The first pressing of the first volume included an A-2 sized cloth poster. The final four OVA episodes of the series were released in two additional volumes, each containing two episodes.
| Volume | Date | Eps | Extras | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | May 23, 2003 | 3 | trailers, textless intro, promo footage, television ads | |
| 2 | June 27, 2003 | 3 | unbroadcast episode trailers, ADR documentary | |
| 3 | July 25, 2003 | 3 | episode trailers, ADR documentary | |
| 4 | August 22, 2003 | 3 | episode trailers, ADR documentary | |
| 5 | September 26, 2003 | 4 | episode trailers | |
| 6 | October 24, 2003 | 4 | episode trailers | |
| 7 | November 28, 2003 | 3 | episode trailers, a karaoke track that includes English subtitles | |
| 8 | December 21, 2003 | 3 | episode trailers | |
| 9 | January 23, 2004 | 2 | none — first OVA | |
| 10 | February 25, 2004 | 2 | none — second OVA |
In Europe (Region 2), the series was released as in seven volumes by Beez Entertainment. Each volume included Japanese, English, and French language audio tracks and English, French, Dutch, and Polish subtitle options. While the volume DVD covers have the same art work as their Region 1 equivalents, the Region 2 volumes have different volume names, different episode counts, and different extras. Most of the volumes include character bios and textless opening and ending sequences.
| Title | Release Date | Eps | Length | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wolf's Rain, Volume 1: In the Company of Wolves | November 21, 2005 | 4 | 100 minutes | |
| Wolf's Rain, Volume 2: Pact of the Wolves | December 12, 2005 | 4 | 100 minutes | |
| Wolf's Rain, Volume 3: Between Dogs And Wolves | January 6, 2006 | 4 | 100 minutes | |
| Wolf's Rain, Volume 4: The Midnight of the Wolves | February 13, 2006 | 4 | 100 minutes | |
| Wolf's Rain, Volume 5: The Kingdom Of The Wolves | March 6, 2006 | 5 | 125 minutes | |
| Wolf's Rain, Volume 6: Amongst Wolves | April 10, 2006 | 5 | 125 minutes | |
| Wolf's Rain, Volume 7: The Miracle Of The Wolves | May 1, 2006 | 4 | 100 minutes |
In Region 4, Madman Entertainment released Wolf's Rain in six individual volumes, followed by a single complete collection containing the entire series.[8] Each volume included Japanese and English language audio tracks and English subtitles.
| width=275 | Title | width=125 | Release Date | width=20 | Eps | Extras |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wolf's Rain, Volume 1: Leader of the Pack | September 22, 2004 | 5 | textless opening and ending | |||
| Wolf's Rain, Volume 2: Blood and Flowers | November 19, 2004 | 5 | voice cast interview, textless opening and ending | |||
| Wolf's Rain, Volume 3: Loss | January 12, 2005 | 4 | creator interview, textless ending collection | |||
| Wolf's Rain, Volume 4: Recollections | March 16, 2005 | 6 | textless ending collection | |||
| Wolf's Rain, Volume 5: War for the Soul | June 15, 2005 | 5 | textless ending collection | |||
| Wolf's Rain, Volume 6: Final Encounters | August 31, 2005 | 5 | textless ending collection | |||
| Wolf's Rain Complete Collection | September 6, 2006 | 30 | textless opening and ending collections, voice cast interviews, creator interview |