3 sources 2h ago
Meiji Milk Chocolate 100th Anniversary Exhibition Lines Up 40 Manga Artists
Meiji will hold the Meiji Milk Chocolate 100th Anniversary Exhibition at Tokyo International Forum Hall E2 from December 23 to December 30, 2026, running 11:00 to 20:00 with last admission at 19:30.
Reporting from 3 sources: KAI-YOU, Nijimen, Anime Anime.
Why it matters
The lineup is ordered by serialization start, so the roster doubles as a timeline of Japanese manga readership across Showa, Heisei, and Reiwa, which is why the exhibition can market nostalgia to several generations of the same household.
Key Facts
- The Meiji Milk Chocolate 100th Anniversary Exhibition runs from December 23 to December 30, 2026 at Tokyo International Forum Hall E2.
- The exhibition displays newly drawn illustrations and messages from 40 manga artists in its manga corner.
- Tickets are 500 yen in advance and 700 yen on the day, with one Meiji Milk Chocolate bar given per ticket.
- Ticket sales begin at 10:00 on October 29, 2026 at Lawson Ticket and e+.
- Meiji launched Meiji Milk Chocolate on September 13, 1926.
The manga corner carries newly drawn celebratory illustrations and messages from 40 manga artists, among them Mitsuru Adachi of Touch, Tsukasa Hojo of City Hunter, Yoko Kamio of Boys Over Flowers, Ai Yazawa of NANA, and Kanehito Yamada and Tsukasa Abe of Frieren: Beyond Journey's End. A separate artist corner gathers 21 creators, and the venue holds more than 60 contributors in total across manga, art, and prose. Advance tickets are 500 yen, same-day tickets 700 yen, preschool children enter free, and each ticket comes with one Meiji Milk Chocolate bar. Sales open at 10:00 on October 29 at Lawson Ticket and e+. The exhibition also traces the product's history from its launch on September 13, 1926.
The exhibition is not the first under this name. Meiji ran a same-titled exhibition at the meiji gallery on the first floor of the Meiji Kyobashi Building in Kyobashi, Tokyo, from August 31 to October 23, covering related books and people, packaging changes, and past promotions. The Tokyo International Forum run is a separate event with a different venue and period.
At the entrance, a giant Milch block wall printed with an image of a chocolate block will be installed. Inside, a timeline traces the product's 100 years alongside past package designs and advertising visuals from Showa through Reiwa, including transit advertisements and campaigns with celebrities of each era. The exhibition also introduces people and books tied to the brand, among them Takashi Izumi, who wrote the lyrics and music for the Meiji Chocolate Theme, known for the line "Chocolate wa Meiji."
Junior titles sit in the same lineup as long-running series. The 40-work list runs from Chieko Hosokawa and Fumin's Crest of the Royal Family to Yuki Fujimoto's Suzuki-kun's Polite Life, and includes Captain Tsubasa, Kimi ni Todoke, Black Butler, Chihayafuru, Yowamushi Pedal, Blue Period, and The Dangers in My Heart. The 21 artists include Takeru Amano, Yukino Omura, and Hisashi Tenmyouya, working in painting, three-dimensional pieces, and other media. A photo spot, a merchandise corner, and talk events with guests are planned, with dates and performers to be announced on official social media.
- Crest of the Royal Family (Chieko Hosokawa and Fumin): First in the lineup, ordered by serialization start
- Alien Street (Minako Narita)
- Captain Tsubasa (Yoichi Takahashi)
- Touch (Mitsuru Adachi)
- City Hunter (Tsukasa Hojo)
- Look at Me! Miiko (Eriko Ono)
- Baki Rahen (Keisuke Itagaki)
- Boys Over Flowers (Yoko Kamio)
- Marmalade Boy (Wataru Yoshizumi)
- Angel Sanctuary (Kaori Yuki)
- MAJOR (Takuya Mitsuda)
- The Solitary Gourmet (Masayuki Kusumi)
- The Tea Prince (Nanpei Yamada)
- Himitsu - Top Secret - (Reiko Shimizu)
- NANA (Ai Yazawa)
- Nodame Cantabile (Tomoko Ninomiya)
- Mirmo de Pon! (Hiromu Shinozuka)
- Skip Beat! (Yoshiki Nakamura)
- We Were There (Yuki Obata)
- Big Windup! (Asa Higuchi)
- Kirarin Revolution (An Nakahara)
- Sakura, Saku (Aya Ikue)
- Ace of Diamond (Yuji Terajima)
- Kimi ni Todoke (Karuho Shiina)
- Black Butler (Yana Toboso)
- Chihayafuru (Yuki Suetsugu)
- Yowamushi Pedal (Wataru Watanabe)
- Chocolat no Maho (Rino Mizuho)
- The Liar and His Lover (Kotomi Aoki)
- Yona of the Dawn (Mizuho Kusanagi)
- 12-Sai. (Nao Maita)
- BLUE GIANT MOMENTUM (Shinichi Ishizuka)
- Aoashi (Yugo Kobayashi)
- Blue Period (Tsubasa Yamaguchi)
- MF Ghost (Shuichi Shigeno)
- The Dangers in My Heart (Norio Sakurai)
- A Sign of Affection (suu Morishita)
- Frieren: Beyond Journey's End (Kanehito Yamada and Tsukasa Abe)
- Tamon-kun Ima Docchi!? (Yuki Shiwasu)
- Suzuki-kun's Polite Life (Yuki Fujimoto): Last in the lineup
Written with AI by Yomimono from the 3 cited sources below, including Japanese-language reporting where cited. See our editorial policy.
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