The story is as bland and unimaginative as they come, without much of anything to give it any much-needed oomph. ― Pretense is king in the realm of romance—especially harem anime. By Arceus, there must be an excuse, no matter how canned or flimsy, for love interests to, say, share an indirect kiss, fall on top of each other, or for one of them to need to give the other mouth-to-mouth. That's simply h...

column

5 comments

Answerman - The Crunchyroll Anime Awards

May 4, 10:00

5 comments

events

Are the Crunchyroll Anime Awards legitimate or just a self-congratulatory effort by a platform seeking to dominate the market? Jerome digs in. ― A Reader asks: Dear Answerman, with the Crunchyroll Anime Awards hitting their 10th anniversary this May, I keep seeing people call it "the Oscars of anime," but that never quite rings true to me. The Oscars are voted on by the people who make films. The An...

column

1 comment

This Week in Mobile Games - Shady Business and Summertime Stick Figure Smash/Growth

May 4, 09:00

1 comment

games

A new game seems to have marked similarities to Blue Archive, while blue armor is the order of the day over in DragonQuest. Plus a red-hot summer update for Love and Deep Space! ― It's time again, and I find myself wondering, "What the heck's going on with all my hotbars?" Yep, I've gotten back into Final Fantasy XIV, hyped up on the prospect of the just-announced Evercold expansion, coming next year...

feature

Spring 2026 K-Comics Guide

May 4, 09:00 korean

It's the Spring K-Comics Guide! Come get your fill of mostly full-color vertical scroll books and maybe find your next obsession! ― Welcome to Anime News Network's Spring 2026 K-Comics Guide, the companion to our manga guide! Every included manhwa was published in March or April, although some are ongoing titles without a physical release. This guide focuses exclusively on series premieres, i.e., on...

interview

How to Compose an Anime Soundtrack: An Interview with Haikyu!! and My Hero Academia's Yuki Hayashi

May 4, 09:00 anime music

"With anime, you've got 40 or 50 pieces all for a single season. If you compose without thinking first, there's no balance to it." ― Music is an important part of any anime—and in some cases can make or break the show entirely. To find out a bit more about how anime soundtracks are made, we sat down with Yuki Hayashi, the composer of anime like Haikyu!!, Kiznaiver, and My Hero Academia—including the ...

review

5 comments

Jack-of-All-Trades, Party of None Season 1 Anime Series Review

May 3, 12:00

5 comments

anime

Jack-of-All-Trades, Party of None is hampered by its own premise as much as it is helped. ― Jack-of-All-Trades, Party of None is far from the first “banished from the heroes' party” fantasy story in recent years. In fact, it hits many of the key tropes of this sub-genre. Orhun is looked down upon by his party members for being weak—yet he's actually both the logistical linchpin and the strongest memb...

review

4 comments

Summer Pockets Anime Series Review

May 2, 12:00

4 comments

anime

For better or for worse, Summer Pockets is a quintessential Key anime. ― If you like your anime despair in “but surrounded by romanceable girls” flavor, there's a pretty good chance that you're already familiar with Key—or at least, familiar with their works, whether it's their visual novel source material or the anime adaptations that several of them have. But if you're not, Key is a visual novel st...

feature

20 comments

Spring 2026 Manga Guide

May 2, 09:04

20 comments

manga

It's the final update for the Spring Manga Guide, and we're closing out with a new series by Yuu Toyota of Cherry Magic fame: A Starlit Darkness! Plus a series about veterinarians, some zombies, and a contender for longest title! ― Welcome to Anime News Network's Spring 2026 Manga Guide! You may have seen one of our seasonal Anime Preview Guides, where a team of critics writes up each new anime tele...

news

12 comments

The Quintessential Quintuplets Franchise Gets New TV Anime, New Original Video Anime

May 2, 07:27

12 comments

anime

TV anime of sequel novel, OVA of previously unanimated manga chapters ― “The Quintessential Quintuplets Special Event 2026 in Toyota Arena Tokyo” announced on Saturday both a new television anime based on the Gotōbun no Hanayome: Shunkashūtō (The Quintessential Quintuplets: The Four Seasons) sequel novel series, and a new original video anime based on the manga chapters that have yet to be animated. ...

review

Glasses With a Chance of Delinquent Volumes 1-3 Manga Review

May 1, 12:00 manga

If there’s one thing that these volumes have going for them, it’s that both Ichikura and Momose earnestly want to change. ― The high school debut or glow-up has become a staple of shoujo and shounen romances in recent decades. You know the story: a kid who was bullied or ignored or perhaps bad in middle school decides that since high school is a chance to start over, they're going to make some seriou...

column

19 comments

This Week in Games - Final Fantasy Readers Digest

May 1, 10:00

19 comments

games

Jean-Karlo dives into the latest FF14 announcements, from a new expansion to a campaign at Jollibees! Plus, the pros and cons of the Steam Deck. ― Welcome back, folks! I had a spectacular weekend where I was able to enjoy seeing The Labyrinth on the big screen. Having originally seen it on the Disney Channel decades ago, I missed a lot of the visual flourishes. I especially liked a set of stones arra...

interview

3 comments

Interview: Creator Masamune Shirow Trusts Science SARU Team with The Ghost in the Shell Anime

May 1, 09:00

3 comments

anime

Science SARU's productions hit a high with The Heike Story and haven't come down. The studio has curried favor with mainstream and niche hits, but more so than that, they've gained the trust of Ghost in the Shell creator Masamune Shirow. ― First announced nearly two years ago, Masamune Shirow's iconic Ghost in the Shell manga series is getting a new television anime adaptation from the team at Scienc...

news

Dinners with My Darling Fantasy Romance Manga Has Anime in the Works

May 1, 03:55 anime

Anime adapts Toi Ishino's manga based on Mugi Mameta's novel series ― Futabasha's Gaugau Monster manga service announced on Thursday that Toi Ishino's manga adaptation of Mugi Mameta's Dinners with My Darling - How the Former Monster King Ate Her Way to Happiness (Aisanai to Iwaremashite mo: Moto Maō no Hakushaku Reijō wa Kimajime Gunjin ni Edzuke o Sarete Shiawase ni Naru) light novel series has an ...

Answerman - July 2001

2026 [10]

May 2026 [1]

April 2026 [2]

March 2026 [3]

February 2026 [2]

January 2026 [2]

2025 [22]

December 2025 [1]

November 2025 [2]

October 2025 [2]

September 2025 [2]

August 2025 [3]

July 2025 [1]

June 2025 [1]

May 2025 [2]

April 2025 [2]

March 2025 [3]

February 2025 [2]

January 2025 [1]

2024 [7]

December 2024 [3]

November 2024 [3]

October 2024 [1]

2023 [7]

June 2023 [1]

May 2023 [2]

March 2023 [1]

February 2023 [1]

January 2023 [2]

2022 [7]

December 2022 [2]

November 2022 [2]

October 2022 [2]

September 2022 [1]

2019 [53]

August 2019 [5]

July 2019 [6]

June 2019 [6]

May 2019 [6]

April 2019 [6]

March 2019 [6]

February 2019 [8]

January 2019 [10]

2018 [147]

December 2018 [11]

November 2018 [12]

October 2018 [13]

September 2018 [11]

August 2018 [14]

July 2018 [11]

June 2018 [13]

May 2018 [11]

April 2018 [13]

March 2018 [13]

February 2018 [12]

January 2018 [13]

2017 [148]

December 2017 [12]

November 2017 [13]

October 2017 [13]

September 2017 [12]

August 2017 [13]

July 2017 [12]

June 2017 [13]

May 2017 [14]

April 2017 [11]

March 2017 [13]

February 2017 [12]

January 2017 [10]

2016 [149]

December 2016 [12]

November 2016 [11]

October 2016 [11]

September 2016 [13]

August 2016 [14]

July 2016 [11]

June 2016 [13]

May 2016 [13]

April 2016 [13]