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Torch
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2h ago
Torch announced on Wednesday that its Mazenchu character brand will receive a TV anime airing as the first original anime within Kansai TV's morning news and lifestyle program Yoidon!, starting October 7. Mazenchu is set in a school where all kinds of food live out their youth and form friendships, rivalries, and bittersweet romances. Obara Rea plays Sume, a sushi rice girl, Sakura Hayashi plays Abo, an avocado girl, Uki Nashiki plays Akami, a tuna boy, and Kokoro Kikuchi plays Shinko, a pickled vegetable boy. Ebi created the Mazenchu characters.
4d ago
The staff of the Black Torch television anime released a final promotional video on Friday, previewing episodes 11 and 12 and what the video calls the final battle. The finale is set for September 19 on Crunchyroll, which streams the series in North America, Central America, South America, Europe, Africa, Oceania, the Middle East, and CIS, and also carries a same-day English dub. Kei Umabiki directs at 100Studio. Gou Suzuki designs characters, Gigaemon Ichikawa writes and supervises series scripts, and Yutaka Yamada composes music. SiM performs the opening theme "Freeze Me Up" and I Don't Like Mondays. performs the ending theme "Groooovy." The anime adapts Tsuyoshi Takaki's manga about Jiro Azuma, who can talk to animals and gains power after a stray cat fuses with him. Ryota Suzuki voices Jiro and Yoji Ueda voices Rago. The anime debuted on July 4. Viz Media publishes the manga in English.
Aug 9
Anime and manga accounts celebrated International Cat Day on August 8 with cat-themed art and messages. Participants included Cyberpunk 2077, Pragmata, Inherit the Winds, Black Torch, Akira Failing in Love, Kodansha, and Kojima Productions, among others.
Jul 15
Crunchyroll has announced a major expansion of its Indian-language dub offerings, adding Hindi, Tamil, and Telugu audio for a slate of catalog titles and summer 2026 premieres. Naruto Shippuden is now available in all four languages, while Haikyu!! To the Top season four and Haikyu!! Land vs Air debut their dubs on July 16. Arifureta: From Commonplace to World's Strongest season two arrives July 15 and season three on August 5. Tokyo Ghoul begins its regional rollout with season one on July 22, followed by season two on August 12 and season three on September 2. New summer series include I Became a Legend after My 10-Year-Long Last Stand (July 24, Hindi weekly), Tomb Raider King and Trapped in a Dating Sim season two (July 29, all three languages), The Elusive Samurai season two (August 7, Hindi), Black Torch (August 29, Hindi), and Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation season three (August 30, Hindi). Re:Zero -Starting Life in Another World- season four part two launches in Hindi on October 7. Ongoing simuldub Clevatess season two is already rolling out weekly in all three languages. The streamer is doubling down on India's growing anime market by making hit titles available in multiple regional languages alongside their global releases.
Jul 7
Anime Feminist reviews the premiere of Black Torch, finding a protagonist defined mainly by his love for animals and a plot that follows standard shonen beats. The review notes forced fanservice, a limited source material (five volumes, cancelled), and questions whether the adaptation can deliver a satisfying conclusion.
Jul 4
The summer 2026 anime Black Torch, based on Takaki Tsuyoshi's Jump SQ. manga, released the synopsis and advance scene cuts for its first episode ahead of its July 4 broadcast. The episode introduces Jiro Azuma, a high school student and ninja descendant who can talk to animals, and his encounter with the mononoke Ragou.
Jul 1
Crunchyroll announced a same-day English dub for the Black Torch television anime, starting Saturday. The English cast includes A.J. Beckles as Jiro Azuma, Ben Balmaceda as Toshimasa Azuma, Ben Diskin as Amagi/Crow, and Erin Yvette as Ichika Kishimojin, among others. STUDIOPOLIS, Inc. handles ADR production.
Jun 27
The upcoming anime adaptation of Tsuyoshi Takaki's manga "Black Torch" has released its opening video, featuring the theme song "FREEZE ME UP" by the band SiM. The video was streamed ahead of the series' premiere on July 4, 2026. The anime will be available on Crunchyroll in multiple regions including North America, Central and South America, Europe, Africa, Oceania, the Middle East, and the CIS. The series is produced by studio One Double-0 (100studio), with Kei Umabiki directing, Gigaemon Ichikawa handling series composition and screenplay, Gou Suzuki on character designs, and Yutaka Yamada composing the music. The Japanese voice cast includes Ryota Suzuki as Jiro Azuma, Yoji Ueda as Rago, Sayaka Senbongi as Ichika Kishimojin, Junya Enoki as Reiji Kirihara, Junichi Suwabe as Ryosuke Shiba, and Reina Ueda as Usami. The English dub cast includes A.J. Beckles as Jiro Azuma and Erin Yvette as Ichika Kishimojin. The ending theme is "Groooovy" by I Don't Like Mondays. The manga originally ran in Jump Square from 2017 to 2018, spanning five volumes.
Jun 17
Crunchyroll announced its Summer 2026 simulcast lineup on June 17, covering more than 50 new and returning series. The season kicks off on June 24 with Heroine? Saint? No, I'm an All-Works Maid (And Proud of It)! and runs through August. Major new adaptations include Black Torch, an action series about a shinobi who bonds with a mononoke cat, and Jaadugar: A Witch in Mongolia, a historical fantasy from Science SARU set during the Mongol Empire's expansion. Returning sequels dominate the slate: Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation Season 3, Hana-Kimi Season 2, Saga of Tanya the Evil Season 2, Clevatess Season 2, and Trapped in a Dating Sim: The World of Otome Games is Tough for Mobs Season 2 all premiere in July. Re:Zero -Starting Life in Another World- Season 4 Part 2 arrives on August 12. The Elusive Samurai Season 2 and Oh Boy, Was I Wrong About Her are confirmed for later in the season without exact dates. Twelve series continuing from Spring 2026, including One Piece's Elbaph Arc Part 2 and That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime Season 4, will also stream through the summer. English dub languages were listed for many titles.
Jun 5
The staff for the television anime adaptation of Tsuyoshi Takaki's manga Black Torch revealed a second promotional video on Friday, June 5, along with the show's theme song information and a new key visual. SiM performs the opening theme song "Freeze Me Up," and I Don't Like Mondays. performs the ending theme song "Groooovy." The new video previews both songs and showcases battle scenes. The anime will debut on July 4 on TOKYO MX and other stations. Crunchyroll will stream the series in North America, Central America, South America, Europe, Africa, Oceania, the Middle East, and CIS. The world premiere will screen at Anime Expo 2026. Kei Umabiki directs the series at 100Studio, with character designs by Gō Suzuki, series composition and scripts by Gigaemon Ichikawa, and music by Yutaka Yamada. The cast includes Ryōta Suzuki as Jiro Azuma, Yōji Ueda as Rago, Sayaka Senbongi as Ichika Kishimojin, and Junya Enoki as Reiji Kirihara. Viz Media publishes the original manga in English, which ran in Jump Square from 2016 to 2018 across five volumes.
May 31
Anime Expo 2026 will host the world premieres of the Black Torch television anime and a new Magic Knight Rayearth anime, with guest Rie Takahashi. The event also features Master Detective Archives: RAIN CODE producer Shohei Sakakibara and scenario writer Kazutaka Kodaka, a first look at Cyberpunk: Edgerunners 2 from Studio Trigger, and U.S. premieres for Jaadugar: A Witch in Mongolia and Sparks of Tomorrow.
May 19
The staff for the television anime adaptation of Tsuyoshi Takaki's manga Black Torch announced three additional cast members and several new staff positions on May 15. Shinpachi Tsuji will voice Toshimasa Azuma, Yuko Kaida will play Toko Kusumi, and Hochu Otsuka will portray Banjuro Tokieda. The newly revealed staff include sub-character designers Yumi Nakamura, Masahiko Suzuki, and Mariko Kinoshita, design works by Shunya Kikuchi, art directors Sachi Takahashi and Shoko Imaizumi, color designer Haruko Nobori, CG director Hirotaka Naito, director of photography Satoshi Yamamoto, editor Masato Yoshitake, sound director Takeshi Takadera, and sound effects by Naoto Yamatani. The anime is directed by Kei Umabiki at 100studio, with character designs by Go Suzuki, series composition and scripts by Gigaemon Ichikawa, and music by Yutaka Yamada. Black Torch will premiere on July 4 on TOKYO MX and other channels. Crunchyroll will stream the series in multiple regions including North America, Europe, and Oceania. The manga, which ran in Shueisha's Jump Square and later on Shonen Jump+, spans five volumes and is published in English by Viz Media.