In this post, we take a closer look at the current status of the series “Drifters”, also known by the following titles:
- Drifters: Battle in a Brand-new World War
Status#
Based on our analysis, the series is NOT FINISHED. ❌
Here’s how we reached that conclusion:
- Some related entries are still listed as ongoing on MyAnimeList
- The series is listed as ended on Trakt
- The original source material has not been fully adapted, according to MangaUpdates
Taken together, these points indicate that Drifters is still ongoing in some form.
Watch order#
Drifters ↗ ↖
Summary
At the start of the Edo period, samurai Toyohisa Shimazu is in the midst of a bloody battle against the legendary Tokugawa clan to ensure the successful retreat of the Shimazu clan forces.After his entire unit is massacred, Toyohisa manages to single-handedly force the enemy to withdraw—at the cost of being mortally wounded. Walking out of the battlefield dejected, he mysteriously finds himself in a white hallway, where he is immediately thrown into a door. He awakens in a different world, and there, he encounters Drifters, other legendary warriors who died and ended up in the same realm. Together, they use the knowledge and experience from their past lives in order to take over an empire and fight against an unknown force of evil that intends to crush all humanity.
[Written by MAL Rewrite]
Background
Drifters was nominated for the third and fourth Manga Taisho Awards and placed 10th and sixth in the final rankings in 2011 and 2012, respectively. The series has been published in English by Dark Horse Comics since August 24, 2011, and as omnibus volumes since March 11, 2025. It has also been released in Spanish by Norma Editorial since April 14, 2011; in Italian by J-POP since April 21, 2012; in Brazilian Portuguese by Nova Sampa since June 2014; and in Polish by Japonica Polonica Fantastica since June 2, 2016.
Drifters: Special Edition ↗ ↖
Summary
Bundled with the fifth manga volume.Background
It contains edited footage from the first two episodes of the television series.
Drifters ↗ ↖
Summary
At the Battle of Sekigahara in 1600, Toyohisa Shimazu is the rearguard for his retreating troops, and is critically wounded when he suddenly finds himself in a modern, gleaming white hallway. Faced with only a stoic man named Murasaki and hundreds of doors on both sides, Toyohisa is pulled into the nearest door and into a world completely unlike his own.The strange land is populated by all manner of fantastical creatures, as well as warriors from different eras of Toyohisa’s world who were thought to be dead. Quickly befriending the infamous warlord Nobunaga Oda and the ancient archer Yoichi Suketaka Nasu, Toyohisa learns of the political unrest tearing through the continent. Furthermore, they have been summoned as “Drifters” to fight against the “Ends,” people who are responsible for the creation of the Orte Empire and are trying to annihilate the Drifters. As the Ends grow more powerful, so does the Empire’s persecution of elves and other demihumans. It is up to Toyohisa and his group of unconventional heroes to battle in a brand-new world war to help the Empire’s subjects, while challenging the Ends protecting the land to claim it for themselves.
[Written by MAL Rewrite]
Drifters: Kokuou-sama Goranshin ↗ ↖
Drifters: The Black King Show
Summary
Short parody special released with Blu-ray BOX.
Drifters (OVA): Kokuou-sama Goranshin ↗ ↖
Drifters: The Black King Show
Summary
Final episode of Kokuou-sama Goranshin released with the new Drifters episodes 13-14 Blu-ray disc.
Drifters (OVA) ↗ ↖
Drifters: Battle in a Brand-new World War
Summary
Despite the Ends’ attack on Verlina being successfully repelled, the war has not yet ended. With the monster armies regrouping, the Black King tightens his grasp on the already conquered territory. New conflicts erupt all across Orte, as its remaining forces struggle to retain control over long-oppressed demi-human races.While Ends grow more potent each day, Toyohisa Shimazu remains unconscious after heavy injuries suffered during the Battle of Verlina. Facing enemies on every side, humanity’s fate is still on a knife’s edge.
[Written by MAL Rewrite]
Drifters: The Outlandish Knight ↗ ↖
Summary
In the Orte Empire, Count Saint-Germi succeeds in his negotiations with the merchants of Gu-Binnen, putting an end to a decades-long war and securing the resources Orte desperately needs. Meanwhile, Naoshi Kanno bolsters his beastman forces with the addition of the cat tribe. After receiving an unexpected envoy from Rear Admiral Tamon Yamaguchi—a fellow Imperial Japanese Armed Forces member—Kanno, along with Scipio Africanus, sets out to meet a man he thought to be dead.As his enemies prepare for war, the Black King mobilizes his army, giving command to a certain Drifter’s sworn enemy.
[Written by MAL Rewrite]