Ask John: Any Lone Wolf And Cub Dubbed?

Question:
Do you know if AnimEigo are ever planning on releasing the Lone Wolf and Cub series in a “dubbed” version?

Answer:
AnimEigo has announced their plans to release these films on DVD, but has not yet announced any plans to dub any of their Lone Wolf & Cub films. You may be interested to know that there are dubbed versions of some of the Toho series available, although they are rather difficult to find. Shogun Assassin was an edited version of the second movie that removed some footage and added in footage from the first movie to provide background information while still maintaining much of the excessive bloodshed that characterizes this series. This is the film that introduced many “baby-cart” fans to the Tomisabura Wakayama series. The third film in the Toho series was also dubbed and released several years ago, virtually uncut, under the title Lupine Wolf. I continue to specify “Toho” series because there have been numerous different theatrical and television series based on the Kozure Ookami manga.