Bungo Stray Dogs Season 4 - What We Know So Far
"Bungo Stray Dogs" was added to HBO Max's streaming library in July 2020. The series bolstered what was then and still remains a slowly-but-steadily burgeoning selection of anime available on the streaming service, joining the likes of "Hunter X Hunter," "Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood," and a number of other series.
A young man named Atsushi Nakajima is the protagonist of "Bungo Stray Dogs." Early on in the series' run, he finds out that he unconsciously transforms into a monstrous white tiger when exposed to moonlight, like a sort of bizzaro werewolf. A detective named Osamu Dazai recruits Atsushi into an organization called the Armed Detective Agency to best make use of his unique ability. Almost all of the agency's members are capable of using magic, which they use to solve crimes that are supernatural in nature and thus outside the purview of non-magical humans.
Currently, three seasons of "Bungo Stray Dogs" are available on HBO Max, which comprise the totality of the series thus far. Whether or not a fourth season is forthcoming has yet to be announced in an official capacity, although certain signs point toward its eventual release.
What's the release date for Bungo Stray Dogs Season 4?
There is not yet any official word about the making of a "Bungo Stray Dogs" Season 4. That said, the TV show is based on a comic book series serialized in the monthly Young Ace magazine (via the Bungo Stray Dogs Wiki). Thus, not only is there additional material that could be adapted into new episodes but new material is continually released on a monthly basis.
"Bungo Stray Dogs" Season 3 leaves off at a story beat adapted from Chapter 53 of the original manga series. The total number of chapters of "Bungo Stray Dogs" currently numbers in the 90s (via the Bungo Stray Dogs Wiki). Given that Seasons 1-3 contained an average of 17-18 chapters of material each, enough of an existing storyline already exists for a hypothetical Season 4 should the series' adaptation continue at the same rate.
Users on the "Bungo Stray Dogs" subreddit have theorized that a new season is unlikely to debut until 2022 at the earliest. Some users have theorized that Season 4's announcement, however, could come later this year.
Who's in the cast of Bungo Stray Dogs Season 4?
Yūto Uemura provides the voice of series protagonist Atsushi Nakajima. Uemura is an experienced anime voice actor with credits in a number of other popular series (via IMDb). For example, he voices shape-shifting senior student Tamaki Amajiki in "My Hero Academia" and Motoya Komori, one of Kageyama's fellow students at the All-Japan Youth Camp in "Haikyuu!!"
Mamoru Miyano is the voice of Osamu Dazai. Some of his most notable past credits include the voice of "Death Note" protagonist Light Yagami as well as twin brother Atsumu Miya in "Haikyuu!" In the video game world, Miyano is perhaps most recognizable as the voice of "Persona 5" hero Ryuji Sakamoto (via IMDb).
Rounding out the voice cast of "Bungo Stray Dogs" are Kensho Ono as the villainous Ryunosuke Akutagawa, Yoshimasa Hosoya as detective Doppo Kunikida, Hiroshi Kamiya as detective Ranpo Edogawa, Yu Shimamura as detective Akiko Yosano, Toshiyuki Toyonaga as detective Junichiro Tanizaki and Kisho Taniyama as mobster Chuya Nakahara.
Without the confirmation of "Bungo Stray Dogs" Season 4, it's impossible to who exactly will return to reprise their roles. That said, given their centrality to the series' ongoing story, most if not all of the primary voice cast can be expected to return upon the series' renewal.
What's the plot of Bungo Stray Dogs Season 4?
The final five episodes of Season 3 of "Bungo Stray Dogs" are an adaptation a portion of the series' ongoing story known as the Cannibalism Arc (via the Bungo Stray Dogs Wiki). Perhaps most notably, the arc introduces Rats in the House of the Dead, a criminal organization led by a man named (after a famous author, like the rest of the series' central cast) Fyodor Dostoevsky, and nicknamed "Demon" by Osamu Dazai. Dostoevsky has an ongoing role in the manga series as it continues past the Cannibalism Arc, so fans can expect his return as the anime progresses.
The subsequent story arc of "Bungo Stray Dogs" is titled the Decay of Angels Arc (via the Bungo Stray Dogs Wiki). At its heart is, fittingly, yet another criminal organization called Decay of Angels. Dostoevsky, in fact, is one of its members. The rest of the group includes villains named Nikolai Gogol, Bram Stoker, Ochi Fukuchi, and Sigma.
As of April 2021, the Decay of Angels Arc is still ongoing, so it's likely to serve as the basis for the entirety of "Bungo Stray Dogs" Season 4.