Columns - June 2025

Senpai is an Otokonoko: My Crossdressing Classmate Volume 1 Manga Review

Jun 28, 12:00

manga

This is the sort of series I fully expect to see evolve over its ten-volume run. It’s as much about learning comfort levels and respect as it is about learning who it is you are or want to be. ― Note: I will be using he/him pronouns in this review, since as of this volume, that's what Makoto uses. Gender can be a performance. Because of socially mandated gender norms, that's true even if you identify...

news

1st Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle Film's New Trailer Reveals Theme Song Artists Aimer, LiSA

Jun 28, 10:06

anime

Aimer performs "Taiyō ga Noboranai Sekai," LiSA performs "Zankoku no Yoru ni Kagayake" ― The Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba - The Movie: Mugen Train anime film aired again on Fuji TV in Japan on Saturday, and it ended with the full trailer for the first film in the Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Infinity Castle trilogy. The trailer announces that both Aimer and LiSA are contributing theme songs for t...

your score

Your Anime Rankings - Best of Spring 2025, Jun 17-23

Jun 27, 12:00 anime

Thanks to another #1 spot in the weekly ranking, Apocalypse Hotel bumps down Kowloon Generic Romance to grab #3 in the cumulative. Will it stay like that for the final ranking next week? ― Let's have a look at what ANN readers consider the best (and worst) of the season, based on the polls you can find in our Daily Streaming Reviews and on the Your Score page with the latest simulcasts. Keep in mind...

review

Unaware Atelier Meister Anime Series Review

Jun 27, 12:00

anime

The potential The Unaware Atelier Meister had makes it all the more disappointing that it turned out to be such a letdown. ― Overpowered anime protagonists are always in vogue and usually find themselves front and center of the anime zeitgeist. And yet, perhaps in part because of that, they've become dime-a-dozen, and it's a lot harder than it used to be for them to stand out, to say nothing of the e...

column

This Week in Games - Switch 2 Breakdown

Jun 27, 10:00

games

Jean-Karlo got his hands on the newest console and is ready to give it a test drive. ― Welcome back, folks! I gave myself a much-needed five-day weekend last week, after having missed my chance to have one during December. I visited a local card shop for some Digimon, saw The Phoenician Scheme and Kpop Demon Hunters, even got some progress in on a Tekkaman Blade model kit I had been waiting for since...

interview

ODDTAXI's Baku Kinoshita Wants to Take His Time in The Last Blossom

Jun 27, 09:00

anime

For his follow-up, The Last Blossom, Baku Kinoshita has crafted a feature film that's both strikingly different than ODDTAXI while being recognizably from the same creative mind. ― ODDTAXI was a singular piece of TV animation, a character drama that is crushingly sad but with enough magical realism to give it a sense of whimsy. It created a unique world filled with memorable and complex side characte...

interview

Deconstructing Villainesses and Heroines: An Interview with I'll Become a Villainess Who Goes Down in History's Author, Izumi Okido

Jun 27, 09:00

novels

Author Izumi Ōkido shares how her story twists the standard villainess sub-genre formula, her impressions of the anime adaptation, and why she decided to write a villainess story in the first place. ― To say there is an ongoing “villainess” boom in light novels, manga, and anime would be an understatement. One such story is I'll Become a Villainess Who Goes Down in History, which got an anime adaptat...

review

7 comments

Watari-kun's ***** is About to Collapse Volume 1 Manga Review

Jun 26, 12:00

7 comments

manga

This book felt like watching somebody slowly wind a guitar string. Are they tuning the instrument, or do they want the wire to snap? ― Have you ever finished reading a volume of a manga where you just feel unnerved by the end? When I first picked up Watari-kun's ****** Is About to Collapse, I was expecting a semi-tragic story about two siblings trying to persevere in a new environment after losing th...

feature

22 comments

The Most Anticipated Anime of Summer 2025

Jun 26, 11:00

22 comments

anime

There's no getting around it: Summer 2025 is one of the biggest anime seasons we've ever seen. Find out which anime our reviewers can't wait to watch! ― There's no getting around it: Summer 2025 is one of the biggest anime seasons we've ever seen. While preparing for the Summer Anime Trailer Watch Party, I counted no less than 70 trailers between TV anime and Netflix originals premiering between lat...

column

24 comments

This Week in Anime - Rocking Out to Anime Music Videos

Jun 26, 10:00

24 comments

anime

Lucas and Chris dive into the long history of AMVs and their evolution from the early days of the internet through to today. ― This week in anime, Lucas and Chris dive into the long history of AMVs (anime music videos) and their evolution from the early days of the internet through to today. Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by the participants in this chatlog are not the views of Anime N...

interview

2 comments

The Summer Hikaru Died Director Ryohei Takeshita on Crafting a Sense of Dread

Jun 26, 09:00

2 comments

anime

We spoke with the director of one of the most anticipated anime of the summer about how to make horror work in an animated series. ― The upcoming The Summer Hikaru Died anime series has big shoes to fill. The anime series, written and directed by Ryohei Takeshita (Jellyfish Can't Swim in the Night), is based on Mokumokuren's best-selling manga series. With over three million copies in print, the ser...

news

13 comments

2nd Gundam Hathaway Film's Teaser Announces Staff, Title, Winter Debut

Jun 26, 08:32

13 comments

anime

Circe no Majo previously had tentative title of "Son/Sun of Bright" ― The official website for the Mobile Suit Gundam: Hathaway (Kidō Senshi Gundam: Senkō no Hathaway) anime project posted a teaser for the second film on Thursday. The teaser announces the film's staff, Kidō Senshi Gundam: Senkō no Hathaway - Circe no Majo (Mobile Suit Gundam Hathaway: The Sorcery of Nymph Circe, or literally, "The Wi...

giveaway

The Great Dr. STONE Battle Craft X Giveaway Week 1 Winners

Jun 25, 17:35 games

Announcing our first 3 winners of the $100 Dr. Stone prizes! Did you win? ― Dr. STONE Needs you! We are calling on all Dr. STONE fans to mobilize and support the official Dr. STONE Battlecraft X account (@dsbc_staff_en). 18 people who heed this call to arms will be rewarded with their choice of one US$100 prize package from the list below. Every week Dr. STONE Battlecraft will send out a new X post t...

news

N LITE Announces Chiure: Child of the Sea Animated Film

Jun 25, 13:15 animation

MFINDA unveils new film inspired by Mozambican folklore ― Multimedia company N LITE announced on Wednesday that it is producing a new animated film titled Chiure: Child of the Sea at its studio in Japan in collaboration with South African animation studio LUCAN. The company unveiled a visual: The company describes the story: Inspired by Mozambican folklore, CHIURE: CHILD OF THE SEA tells the story of...

news

8 comments

Moonbug Entertainment Partners with Sanrio for Crossover Series Featuring Hello Kitty, CoComelon Characters

Jun 25, 12:15

8 comments

animation

Moonbug to distribute series globally in 2026 ― Moonbug Entertainment announced on Wednesday that it is partnering with Sanrio to produce a crossover series featuring characters from CoComelon and Sanrio franchises, such as Hello Kitty and Cinamoroll. Moonbug will distribute the series globally in 2026. Candle Media, parent company of Moonbug, previewed the multi-year deal for co-branded content at t...

review

4 comments

Super Dimensional Fortress Macross II: The Movie Anime Review

Jun 25, 12:00

4 comments

anime

In many ways, Macross II is a product of its time—for better and for worse. ― Often regarded by fans as the red-headed stepchild of the Macross franchise, 1992's six-episode Macross II OVA series was rights holder Big West's attempt to make a sequel to seminal 1984 movie Macross: Do You Remember Love (DYRL) without the involvement of original creators Studio Nue. As a result, this is the only Macross...

news

Rock Band TOKIO Announce Disbandment

Jun 25, 11:00