The 'VISIONS 2027 ILLUSTRATORS BOOK,' supervised by pixiv and published by KADOKAWA, will release on September 26. It includes works from 170 illustrators, with a cover by LAM. Of the 170, 169 are first-time participants in the series. The series has cumulative circulation over 410,000 copies worldwide.
Salamander Pictures and Nippon Animation will premiere their nearly eight-minute anime short 20001 An Earth Odyssey in competition at the Fantasia International Film Festival on July 18. The festival runs in Montreal from July 16 to August 2. The short is the first original project from Taiki Sakurai's Tokyo-based studio Salamander Pictures. Sakurai, who previously worked at Production I.G. and spent seven years building Netflix's anime business in Japan, left the streamer to focus on riskier original work. The sci-fi comedy follows three aliens who arrive on Earth 20,000 years after humanity vanishes and misinterpret every artifact they find, treating a playground as a sacred site and an umbrella as advanced technology. Sakurai describes the short as a family-friendly comedy with a meditation on history and archaeology. The production involved art director Jessie Liu from Los Angeles, animators from Korea and France, and Maru Animation. Sakurai plans to expand the concept into a series of five-minute episodes and is seeking partners after the festival premiere.
The new trailer for Denis Villeneuve's Dune: Part Three, the final chapter of the sci-fi series, was released worldwide on July 9. It shows Paul Atreides as Emperor facing assassination plots, his promise to Chani to end the war, the return of Duncan Idaho, and a full appearance by Alia. Robert Pattinson appears as a mysterious new character. The film opens December 18 simultaneously in Japan and the US.
Viz Media unveiled the final English-subtitled trailer for Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War - The Calamity at Anime Expo on Saturday. The video previews the opening theme "I-BULL" by jo0ji and the ending theme "Rasen" by 9Lana. The fourth and final part premieres July 25 on TV Tokyo.
Four KAMITSUBAKI STUDIO affiliated artists-RIM, KOKO, KAKYOIN, and HINAGESHI-participated in the U.S. charity event VTuber Summer Slam 2026, raising 1 million yen in donations through special streams. The funds go to Gamers Outreach to provide gaming experiences to hospitalized children.
The screening of the first three episodes of Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War - The Calamity, the fourth and final part of the anime, grossed US$3,000,000 in the U.S. box office and ranked #8. The episodes screened in 943 theaters from June 25-29, with both subtitled and dubbed versions, plus a behind-the-scenes conversation with creator Tite Kubo and directors Tomohisa Taguchi and Hikaru Murata. The full series premieres on TV Tokyo on July 25.
The fourth and final cour of the BLEACH anime, titled Thousand-Year Blood War Arc - The Calamity, begins airing on TV Tokyo network and others from July 25 at 23:00. Streaming follows from July 26 on Prime Video, Netflix, and DMM TV. The cour opens with episode 41, God of Thunder. The opening theme is I-BULL by jo0ji, and the ending theme is Spiral by 9Lana.
KAMITSUBAKI STUDIO will participate in VTuber Summer Slam 2026, a 10-day charity marathon organized by U.S. nonprofit Gamers Outreach. Four members-RIM, KOKO, KAKYOIN, and HINAGESHI-will stream Overcooked! 2 on the studio's YouTube channel June 25 from 23:00 to 1:00 JST. Donations support GO Kart mobile game kiosks for hospitalized children.
Kotobukiya announced a plastic model kit of the ZOIDS Republic Air Force Salamander F2 Fighting Falcon in its HMM series. The Kotobukiya Shop exclusive kit features gold-plated Falcon Wing parts, two gold-plated pilot figures, clear parts, and a removable Zoid core. It is scheduled for November 2026 release at 32,780 yen.
The Slam Dunk Scholarship program by Takehiko Inoue and Shueisha is collaborating again with the B.League's B.DUNK KIDS PROJECT for a fourth annual basketball clinic series. The free clinics for elementary school students nationwide will feature scholarship recipients with overseas experience and active B.League players. A special clinic on August 9 includes watching a Japan national team match.
The 1993 animated music video "X," a collaboration between the manga group CLAMP and the band X JAPAN, is now available on YouTube for a limited time. The video is part of the visual work "X2" (Double X), which was directed by Rintaro with production assistance from Madhouse. For years, the piece was considered a "phantom work" because it had not been released on home media or streamed. On June 10, 2026, a remastered version appeared on the US streaming service Crunchyroll. Now, the video is viewable on the official Aniplex YouTube channel until July 31, 2026, at 23:59 JST. Fans have reacted with excitement, praising the cel animation and calling for the long-hiatus manga "X" to resume serialization. The manga, which began in 1992, remains unfinished. Alongside this release, X JAPAN's 1991 music video "Say Anything" has also been made available.
Good Smile Company and Max Factory are adding Rei Ayanami and Asuka Langley Shikinami from the "Rebuild of Evangelion" films to their PLAMATEA line of movable plastic model kits. Both figures stand approximately 170mm tall and are scheduled for release in December 2026 at 7,700 yen each. The Rei Ayanami kit includes three expression parts-serious, smiling, and glaring-with decals for eye direction, plus a glasses case accessory. The Asuka Langley Shikinami kit includes smiling, embarrassed, and "Are you stupid?" faces, along with a puppet accessory. Both models feature movable joints, pre-painted parts, and color-separated molding. They come with a base that has a movable support arm and can hold weapons from the separately sold MODEROID Evangelion Unit-01 kit. Prototype production is by SELECT D.
The staff for Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War - The Calamity, the fourth and final part of the anime, announced the July 25 premiere date, a new key visual, and the theme song artists. Singer jo0ji performs the opening theme "I-BULL," and 9Lana performs the ending theme "Rasen." The first three episodes will screen in U.S. theaters June 25-29.
Good Smile Company's Cutie Honey Nova PLAMATEA Black Honey plastic model kit took first place in Amazon Japan's Hobby Bestseller Ranking as of June 18, 2026. The ranking also featured returning favorites like Hot Wheels Ferrari Testarossa and a Pokémon Re-Ment set, plus restocked items such as the 30MM Full Armor Portanova and 30MP Bocchi the Rock! Hitori Gotoh.
Good Smile Company announced a PLAMATEA plastic model of Black Honey, the mysterious warrior from the joint project Cutie Honey Nova. The model stands 170mm tall, includes multiple weapons and expression parts, and is scheduled for release in December 2026 for 8,800 yen.
The 29th issue of Kodansha's Young Magazine teased on Monday that Watanuki, the protagonist of CLAMP's xxxHOLiC: Rei manga, is planning a strategy for the "final battle." The sequel manga launched in 2013, has been serialized irregularly, and resumed in April 2025 after a delay. Kodansha released the fifth compiled volume on November 29, 2025.
Massive Monster's cult management action game Cult of the Lamb is 50% off on Steam until June 26, reducing its price to 1,285 yen. The January 2026 DLC Woolhaven is also 20% off at 1,520 yen during the same period. The game lets players lead a cult, recruit followers, and explore procedurally generated fields.
Viz Media announced a slate of manga and novel print releases for spring 2027, led by the physical English debut of Jujutsu Kaisen Modulo, the sequel to Gege Akutami's Jujutsu Kaisen. The series, set 68 years after the Culling Game, follows siblings Yuka and Tsurugi Okkotsu as an alien race arrives on Earth. It features a story by Akutami and art by Yuji Iwasaki. The three-volume series concluded in Japan in May 2026. Other spring 2027 releases include a Detective Conan 3-in-1 edition with original Japanese names, a Slam Dunk Deluxe Edition with reordered story arcs and new covers, Takemitsu Zamurai by Taiyo Matsumoto and Issei Eifuku, Junji Ito: Dissection, a hardcover career retrospective, and the yuri romantic comedy #Gal x Gal Yuri. Shuzo Oshimi's autobiographical work Sins is scheduled for fall 2027. The Ichinose Family's Deadly Sins will receive a digital release in spring 2027. The announcements were made via Viz Media's X/Twitter account on June 12.
Max Factory has begun accepting orders for the PLAMAX PX-20 VF-1J Super Fighter Valkyrie Max & Milia Galaxy Strongest Set, a 1/72 scale plastic model kit of the VF-1J Fighter Valkyrie piloted by Maximilian Jenius and Milia Fallyna Jenius from Super Dimension Fortress Macross. The set includes the Super Pack, reaction missiles, seated pilot figures in extra-atmospheric suits, and a bonus decal folder for Good Smile Company orders. The kit is priced at 11,000 yen, with orders open until July 22 and shipping scheduled for December 2026.
BANDAI SPIRITS is releasing a Toru Hagakure prize figure from My Hero Academia as part of the GLITTER&GLAMOURS line. The figure, available exclusively at GiGO stores from June 25, stands 23 cm tall and comes in a normal version and a transparent version.
Microids and Ocellus Studio announced Marsupilami 2 - Salsa Palombia, a 2D platformer sequel, during the Future Games Show: Summer Showcase 2026. The game features cooperative multiplayer, tail-based stage traversal, and launches September 3, 2026 on PC, PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and Switch. A demo is available now on Steam.
The official X account for the new Magic Knight Rayearth TV anime posted an image on June 4 showing only a date and time: June 5, 2026 at 17:00 JST. No further details were given. Social media speculation suggests the announcement could reveal additional cast members or theme song information. The anime is set to premiere in October 2026 on TV Asahi.
The main promotional video for BLEACH: Thousand-Year Blood War - The Calamity, the fourth and final cour of the anime adaptation, has been released. The trailer opens with an intense battle between Ichigo Kurosaki and Yhwach, and features combat sequences involving Kisuke Urahara, Yoruichi Shihouin, the Gotei 13, and Uryu Ishida. The final cour is scheduled to begin airing on Japanese television in July 2026. Ahead of the broadcast, episodes 1 through 3 will be screened in theaters for one day only on June 21. Screenings will take place at six venues across Japan, including Tokyo, Sapporo, Nagoya, Osaka, and Fukuoka. A premium stage greeting event at United Cinema Aqua City Odaiba in Tokyo will feature voice actors Masakazu Morita, Noriaki Sugiyama, Shinichiro Miki, Yuichiro Umehara, and Shunsuke Takeuchi. Attendees at the member-exclusive screening will receive a limited sticker drawn by original creator Tite Kubo. The film will also debut in U.S. theaters from June 25 to June 29. Kubo has confirmed that this final part will include additional original material expanding on the manga's ending.
The staff for Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War - The Calamity, the fourth and final part of the Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War anime, released the main trailer on Tuesday. The trailer debuted on the anime's official YouTube channel. Viz Media and Fathom Entertainment will screen the first three episodes in U.S. theaters from June 25 to June 29, with both subtitled and English-dubbed versions, plus an exclusive behind-the-scenes conversation with creator Tite Kubo, chief series director Tomohisa Taguchi, and series director Hikaru Murata. In Japan, the first three episodes will screen in theaters on June 21 for one day only, ahead of the TV premiere in July 2026. Attendees at the Japanese screening will receive a set of three key animation prints. A premium stage greeting event at United Cinema Aqua City Odaiba will feature voice actors Masakazu Morita (Ichigo), Noriaki Sugiyama (Uryu), Shinichiro Miki (Urahara), Yuichiro Umehara (Jugram), and Shunsuke Takeuchi (Askin). The third part, The Conflict, premiered in October 2024 and concluded in December 2024. The anime covers the final arc of the manga, volumes 55 through 74.
A main trailer for Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War Part 4 - The Calamity is now public. The video shows parts of the remaining confrontations between the Soul Reapers and their allies and the forces of Quincy King Yhwach. It opens with Ichigo Kurosaki fighting Yhwach and then moves through action sequences with Kisuke Urahara, Yoruichi Shihoin, Gotei 13 members, and Uryu Ishida. The final installment adapts the last story arc of Tite Kubo's manga and will premiere in July 2026. Before the broadcast, a one-day advance theatrical screening of the first three episodes will be held in Japan on June 21. The event will run in select theaters in Hokkaido, Tokyo, Aichi, Osaka, and Fukuoka. Stage greetings at the United Cinemas Aqua City Odaiba will include cast members Masakazu Morita, Noriaki Sugiyama, Shinichiro Miki, Yuichiro Umehara, and Shunsuke Takeuchi. Attendees receive exclusive illustration card bonuses, and Klub Outside members at the evening screening get a special sticker drawn by Kubo. A limited theatrical premiere in the United States was previously set for June 25 to June 29 through Fathom Entertainment and VIZ Media.
Anime! Anime!'s annual reader survey for Words Day ranked Kyojuro Rengoku's 'Burn your heart' from Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba as the most famous anime quote. Bungo Stray Dogs' 'There won't be a second time!' took second, and a tie between Slam Dunk and Haikyu!! quotes placed third.