Kadokawa announced two more cast members for the Matsurika Kanriden television anime on Thursday. Takuya Sato plays Akatsuki, emperor of Sekiso, and Hiyori Kono plays his empress, Lian Lo. The series stars Rie Takahashi as Matsurika Ko and Nobunaga Shimazaki as Emperor Hakuyo, and debuts in January 2027 on Tokyo MX, MBS, TV Aichi, and BS11.
Asahara Giken's AI VTuber Izumi Asahara is at CEATEC 2026 through October 16 at Makuhari Messe, in the QD Laser booth in Hall 8. Visitors speak to her on a monitor and the nearby stage and blue laser move without an operator, scanning a coin-sized disc to build 3D point cloud data on screen. QD Laser, Taiwan's Ultimems, and Asahara Giken hold the exhibit jointly.
The anime adaptation of Biyori Harunohi and Yu Hitaki's light novel series The Otome Heroine's Fight for Survival revealed an English-subtitled teaser video and visual on Tuesday. The teaser names Fuka Izumi as protagonist Alicia and confirms a July 2027 television premiere. Noriyoshi Sasaki directs at Studio Clutch and Seven. Toko Machida handles series scripts, Hiroyuki Miseki designs characters, and Kohta Yamamoto, Shun Narita, and Yuki Furuhashi compose the music. J-Novel Club publishes the light novels and the manga adaptation by Kobato Wakasa in English. The 11th novel volume shipped in Japan on June 15, and the manga's ninth compiled volume is set for October 15. J-Novel Club released the sixth novel volume on March 13 and the seventh manga volume on August 12. The story follows Alicia, an orphan who gains knowledge from a crystal and rejects her fate as an otome game heroine.
The anime of Kotoko and Kaname Hanamiya's The Final-Boss Prince is Somehow Obsessed with the Chubby Villainess: Reincarnated Me will premiere in January 2027, with a first promotional video, key visual, and new staff. Shunichi Toki plays Lewis and Fuka Izumi plays Adele, joining Haruka Shiraishi as Celine and Takeo Otsuka as Wilfred. Naoyuki Kuzuya directs at Studio Lings.
The television anime of Umikaze Minamino's Nia Liston: The Merciless Maiden light novels has an ending theme. Magic Vision Girls Party, the in-story unit of Nia Liston (Honoka Inoue), Hildetora Altoir (Rina Honnizumi) and Reliared Silver (Rina Hidaka), performs "Tokimeki Un・Deux・Trois♪". The staff also released a new visual of the unit. The anime premieres on October 6 on Tokyo MX, BS NTV and MBS, runs two consecutive cours, and streams on HIDIVE, ABEMA, d Anime Store and U-NEXT.
BookWalker Global is partnering with Mahjong Pros Publishing, the imprint of mahjong set company Mahjong Pros, and added four titles on the same day: Senba Kurono's 136 Ready-to-Use Mahjong Strategies and Tactics, volumes 1 and 2 of Hideki Ohwada's Reform with No Wasted Draws - The Legend of Koizumi, Crybaby Mermaid - Illustrated Memoir of Yuumi Uotani by Mio Junta and Suda Yoshiki, and volume 1 of Ayato Sasakura's Vermilion Stella - Illustrated Memoir of Arisa Date. The imprint licenses, localizes, and distributes mahjong-themed manga and textbooks.
TV Asahi announced that Kotaro Koizumi and Dori Sakurada will guest star in the annual Doraemon Birthday Special on September 6. Koizumi plays Howard Richie, a 22nd-century billionaire whose gem is stolen, and Sakurada plays Konrobo, a fox robot officer trying to catch the wanted Doraemon.
Niche Gamer's Waifu Wednesday column spotlights Noa Izumi from Mobile Police Patlabor. Noa is a main protagonist of the mecha anime, a young pilot who joins the police force after her athletic ambitions dissolve. The column describes her as tomboyish and energetic, a primary love interest for Asuma Shinohara, and one of the most iconic tomboys in anime.
The television anime of Ezogingitune and DeeCHA's light novel series I Became a Legend After My 10 Year-Long Last Stand has cast Rina Honnizumi as Philly, the fifth daughter of the Mastafon noble family. The character debuted in the anime's seventh episode on Monday.
The television anime adaptation of Umikaze Minamino's Nia Liston: The Merciless Maiden light novel series will premiere on October 6 at 9:25 p.m. JST on Tokyo MX, followed by broadcasts on BS NTV and MBS. The announcement came with the first promotional video, a key visual, and three new cast members. Fūka Izumi joins as Rinokis Funk, Rina Honnizumi as Hildetora Altoir, and Rina Hidaka as Reliared Silver. Honoka Inoue stars as the titular Nia Liston. Motoki Nakanishi directs at KONAMI animation, with Haruta Segi as assistant director. Gigaemon Ichikawa handles series scripts, Yūki Itō and Kana Tosaoka design the characters, Naoki Endō composes the music, and Hiromi Kikuta directs the sound. The anime will hold an advance screening of its first three episodes on September 22 at esports TOKYO BAY studio. The light novel series launched on the Shōsetsuka ni Narō website in 2019 and ended there in 2021, with Hobby Japan publishing the novels from September 2022. The 11th volume was released on June 1.
Bandai Namco Entertainment released an overview trailer for the upcoming mobile game Bleach Mirrors High on July 18, revealing three new characters designed by series creator Tite Kubo. The characters are Naru Jurinna, voiced by Fuka Izumi; Giro Hando, voiced by Shogo Batori; and Maiko Tokishima, voiced by Yu Sasahara. The trailer shows card-based battles, avatar and Zanpakuto customization, and a cooperative move called Soul Drive. The game is set after the Thousand-Year Blood War arc and follows an original story where players become a Soul Reaper protagonist. A closed beta test will run from July 22 to 29. The game is scheduled for release on iOS and Android via App Store and Google Play.
Solafune CEO Ren Uechi participated in a roundtable with Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi and other officials at the IVS2026 startup conference in Kyoto on July 1. The meeting, which Koizumi also posted about on social media, involved discussions on the company's AI-driven geospatial intelligence platform. Solafune focuses on integrating GEOINT, OSINT, and SIGINT for policy support and business development.
Fiok Lee's fantasy romantic comedy manga Seven Sleeping Beauties (Shichinin no Nemuri-hime) is receiving a television anime adaptation scheduled for a 2027 debut. The announcement was made on July 7, 2026, via a new website that also released an ultra teaser visual and a commemorative illustration by Lee. The anime will be produced by Studio Gokumi and AXsiZ SMASH, with Mankyu directing. Keiichiro Ochi is handling series composition and scripts, and Masaru Koseki is designing the characters. The main cast features seven voice actresses portraying the sleeping princesses: Aya Yamane as Flora, Yoshino Aoyama as Kiara, Miku Itō as Claire, Ayasa Itō as Mia, Kana Ichinose as Charlotte, Fūka Izumi as Yūka, and Rina Kawaguchi as Eliza. The story follows Alec, the third prince of the Kingdom of Rudbeckia, who travels to the small kingdom of Amaryllis after a witch's curse puts its people to sleep. He must awaken the seven princesses with a kiss, but when they all wake up, the rest of the kingdom remains asleep, forcing the prince and princesses to live together while searching for a way to break the curse. The manga began serialization in Kodansha's Monthly Afternoon magazine in March 2023, and its 12th compiled volume is set for release on July 16, 2026.
The OPALIS talent discovery project, a collaboration between Ten Carat and Music Ray'n, has launched its second-phase nationwide audition. Film director Rikiya Imaizumi and animation artist Kohei Kadokawa will judge the final round. Successful candidates receive free training in acting, voice, dance, and more, plus observation opportunities at productions involving the agencies' talents.
Hasegawa announced its September 2026 lineup via its official X account and website, featuring plastic model kits, resin figure kits, and other products. Highlights include a 'You're Under Arrest!' Suzuki GSX-R750 White Bike Version, a 'Patlabor' Noa Izumi resin figure, and a reissue of the VR-747 Temjin from 'Cyber Troopers Virtual-On' for the series' 30th anniversary.
Palude has opened pre-orders for the second Haikyu!! loungewear collection, featuring Toru Oikawa, Hajime Iwaizumi, Keiji Akaashi, Atsumu Miya, and Osamu Miya in designs themed around their favorite foods. Items include pullovers, pants, hair bands, socks, keychains, cushions, acrylic stands, and can badges, available from June 22 to July 20, 2026.
The television anime adaptation of Tsutomu's manga Ojisan wa Kawaii Mono ga Osuki. has revealed its cast, staff, and October premiere date in a new promotional video. Kazuyuki Okitsu leads the cast as Mitsutaka Oji, with Tomoe Makino directing at LIDEN FILMS.
The Chainsmoker Cat anime has cast Rina Honnizumi as Imoko, the little sister of protagonist Yani Neko. The comedy series, set in a world of humans and catgirls, premieres on July 2 on Tokyo MX and BS11, with additional staff and theme song performers also announced.
The original TV anime Mebius Dust, based on Hajime Shinagawa's story and produced by Dōga Kōbō, announced six new cast members on Thursday. The series will premiere on Tokyo MX and BS Fuji on July 9, followed by MBS on July 10, and run for one cour.