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Kenichi HIRAI (editor)

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Given name (in kanji): 健一

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review

7 comments

My Gift Lvl 9999 Unlimited Gacha Anime Series Review

Feb 6, 12:00

7 comments

anime

This is an anti-hero story so lacking in proper hamminess that there’s hardly a single bit of pork on the bone here. ― There's a part of me that feels there's a much better comedy buried underneath this tale of fantasy melodrama. We have a klutzy warrior girl who doesn't know her own strength and a weird girl who thinks she's a cat. A leading maid's underlings try to trollishly and absurdly seize pow...

column

11 comments

This Week in Games - Living the Tomodachi Life

Feb 6, 11:00

11 comments

games

Jean-Karlo looks at Tomodachi Life's new lease on...well, life. Plus, those "quality of life" changes to DQVII Reimagined. ― Welcome back, folks! Major news: I finally did it. Seven years. Two consoles. Three games and expansions. Over 443 hours. Four Welsh catgirls. I have finally finished the mainline Xenoblade Chronicles trilogy. Sure, I still have Xenoblade Chronicles X waiting in the wings, but ...

feature

17 comments

Going for the Gold! Our Favorite Sports Anime

Feb 6, 09:00

17 comments

anime manga

The 2026 Winter Olympics are underway in beautiful Italy, but it's not just pro athletes racing for the finishing line; anime has its own sports stars, too. ― The 2026 Winter Olympics are underway in beautiful Italy, but it's not just pro athletes racing for the finishing line; anime has its own sports stars, too. We asked Anime News Network's critics to highlight their favorite sports stories: the ...

news

4 comments

The Laid-Off Cheat-Granting Mage Enjoys a New Life Novels Get TV Anime

Feb 5, 22:36

4 comments

anime

P.A. Works animates Asa Rokushima's fantasy novels ― Shochiku announced on Friday that Asa Rokushima's Tsuihō Sareta Cheat Fuyo Majutsushi wa Kimamana Second Life o Ōka Suru (The Laid-Off Cheat-Granting Mage Enjoys a New Life or Chi-Fuyo for short) novels are inspiring a television anime from the studio P.A. Works. The anime's website revealed the below visual, but did not reveal any other details ab...

column

4 comments

This Week in Anime - Even Princess Kaguya Livestreams Nowadays!

Feb 5, 13:10

4 comments

anime

Coop and Sylvia check out the many iterations of the classic Japanese folktale, "The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter," from Isao Takahata's final film to Netflix's new tech-flavored Cosmic Princess Kaguya! ― Coop and Sylvia check out the many iterations of the classic Japanese folktale, "The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter," from Isao Takahata's final film to Netflix's new tech-flavored Cosmic Princess Kaguya. ...

review

4 comments

Pokémon Horizons: Season 3 - Rising Hope Part 1 Anime Review

Feb 5, 12:00

4 comments

anime

Pokémon Horizons does the unthinkable and actually lets the characters age! ― Pokémon Horizons was already doing a lot to break the unspoken rules of the original Pokémon anime. Rising Hope continues that trend by doing the unthinkable and actually integrating a time skip as the catalyst for a new arc. Unlike other anime that might just use a time skip for the sake of changing your character's design...

review

The Many Worlds of Takahata Isao Book Review

Feb 4, 12:00 criticism

At last, Anglophone readers have an in-depth academic study of the director Isao Takahata, taking us through the depth and breadth of his work. ― This is the first English-language book-length academic study of Isao Takahata, spanning nearly fifty years of his work, from Horus, Prince of the Sun in 1968 to The Tale of the Princess Kaguya in 2013. It's an anthology, with most of the writers taking one...

game review

1 comment

Nioh 3 Video Game Review

Feb 4, 09:00

1 comment

games

For a lot of folks, Nioh 3 might sound like some form of divine punishment. For sickos who crave a truly hardcore descent into bloody hell, though, Nioh 3 is just plain divine. ― I am a hardcore fan of the Dark Souls games and their legion of siblings, cousins, and imitators, but even I have to regard the Nioh franchise with a certain amount of dark reverence. The Dark Souls games have become legend...

interview

2 comments

The Evolution of Shōjo Manga in the 1970s with Curator Rei Yoshimura

Feb 4, 09:00

2 comments

manga

The manga studies specialist talks about the diversity of shojo and its reflection of girls' and women's lives across decades. ― This January, the Japan House London in Kensington hosted a talk by manga curator Rei Yoshimura. Yoshimura, pictured right, has worked as a curator for more than a decade, first at the Kawasaki City Museum and since 2017 at the National Arts Centre in Tokyo (NACT). A specia...

news

1 comment

Thunder 3 Parallel-World TV Anime Confirmed for July Debut

Feb 4, 04:55

1 comment

anime

Sayumi Suzushiro, Natsumi Kawaida, Eri Akiyama, Honoka Mitsubachi star in anime ― A website for the television anime of Yuki Ikeda's Thunder 3 manga opened on Wednesday, confirming the adaptation listed on the March issue of Kodansha's Monthly Shonen Magazine. The website revealed the anime's main cast, staff, teaser promotional video, teaser visual, and July premiere on the +Ultra programming block ...

news

4 comments

Welcome to Demon School! Iruma-kun: IruMafia Edition Manga Gets TV Anime Next January

Feb 4, 04:16

4 comments

anime

hiroja's spinoff of Osamu Nishi's Welcome to Demon School! Iruma-kun manga launched in 2023 ― NHK announced on Wednesday that Welcome to Demon School! Iruma-kun: IruMafia Edition (Mairimashita! Iruma-kun if Episode of Mafia), hiroja's spinoff manga from Osamu Nishi's Welcome to Demon School! Iruma-kun series, will also receive a television anime adaptation which will premiere in January 2027. (NHK di...

feature

4 comments

Can Nintendo's Biggest Flop Find New Life on the Switch 2?

Feb 3, 15:00

4 comments

games

ANN writer Bolts tests out the Virtual Boy to see if the oft-maligned console finally works in 2026. Plus, first impressions of Meetup in Bellabel Park, Mario Tennis Fever, Resident Evil Requiem, and PRAGMATA. ― Nintendo has many fun games, products, and expansions planned for the coming months. With Mario Tennis Fever, Resident Evil Requiem, Super Mario Bros. Wonder – Nintendo Switch 2 Edition + Mee...

review

Wandance Volume 6-7 Manga Review

Feb 3, 12:00 manga

Is it enough to feel the beat and dance, or does everything need words, too? ― Since Ichirin won their first team competition, by the rules of manga, it is time for a humbling loss. Once again, Wandance bucks the trend. The Ichirin dance team, led by On-chan and the only other male member, Iori, who has a lot of experience in dance battles, shows up and does surprisingly well. Iori takes the individu...

column

20 comments

This Week in Anime - Bygone With The Wind

Feb 3, 10:00

20 comments

anime

From anime ending songs starting in the few final seconds of the episode to the rise and fall of the Yandere archtype, Lucas and Chris take a look at the anime trends of yesteryear. ― From anime ending songs starting in the few final seconds of the episode to the rise and fall of the Yandere archtype, Lucas and Chris take a look at the anime trends of yesteryear. Disclaimer: The views and opinions e...

Kenichi HIRAI (editor)

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