LIVE / 日出 / 04·18·26
BREAKING Studio MAPPA greenlights CHAINSAW MAN Part 2 theatrical · Announced at Anime Japan 26BREAKING FRIEREN S2 confirms 24-episode order · New PV drops Friday 04:00 JSTBOX OFFICE Shinkai's new film WEATHER CHILDREN crosses ¥18.4B domestic · Second weekend hold: −12%LEAK Ufotable TGS panel lineup surfaces · Demon Slayer movie trilogy scheduleBREAKING Studio MAPPA greenlights CHAINSAW MAN Part 2 theatrical · Announced at Anime Japan 26BREAKING FRIEREN S2 confirms 24-episode order · New PV drops Friday 04:00 JSTBOX OFFICE Shinkai's new film WEATHER CHILDREN crosses ¥18.4B domestic · Second weekend hold: −12%LEAK Ufotable TGS panel lineup surfaces · Demon Slayer movie trilogy schedule
JP 東京 03:41 / EN 19:41
＋ REG · C/M/Y/K
＋ AS–012 / SPRING 26
VOL. 4
ISSUE 012
SPRING ARC
PRINT RUN
040,000
DIGITAL: ∞
ANIME
SUNRISE
日出 ／ NEO TOKYO EDITORIAL WEEKLY
N°012
WK 16 / 26 · APR 18
WHERE TO WATCH // SPRING 2026FEATURE · 04·18·26 · 18 MIN READ

Where to Watch Frieren: Beyond Journey's End in 2026

Three years after its original airing, Madhouse's melancholic masterpiece is still the gold standard for quiet fantasy. Here's every legitimate way to stream it in 2026.

BYLINEK. NAKAJIMAPHOTOSTUDIO MADHOUSEFILEDTOKYO 02:14 JSTPAGECOV / 048–063
[ COVER IMAGE · PORTRAIT / FRIEREN · 3:4 ]
フリーレン第二期
SUNRISE ISSUE 012
012
NEXT UP
The studios betting on slow anime →
READ COVER →
§01 / NEWS

What broke this week

UPDATED 02:41 JST
12 STORIES · 4 EXCLUSIVES
＋ REG / FIG 01
続編だけ・四年
04
MAPPA HQ / NAKANOPH. R.S.
STUDIO · 04·17 · 8 MIN

MAPPA announces a four‑year slate. Every title on it is a sequel.

04YR
続編だけ
FIG 01 / MAPPA ROADMAP

No new originals. Eight announced continuations over 48 months — a bet against the studio's own “burnout discourse” and a sharp pivot from the post-Jujutsu era. We read the fine print.

BY T. HAYAMI→ CONTINUED ON PG 14
＋ REG / LEAK 04·14
内部資料
38
UFOTABLE / DECKOBTAINED
EXCLUSIVE · 04·18 · 5 MIN

Ufotable's new pipeline cuts compositing time by 38%.

INTERNAL MEMO / OBTAINED 04·14
38%

Leaked internal deck shows a custom Nuke toolchain for the Demon Slayer film trilogy. Production leads call it “invisible work”.

BY R. OKADAPG 22
＋ REG / AJ 26
アニメジャパン
26
BIG SIGHT / TOKYODAY 01
FESTIVAL · 04·16 · 3 MIN
26
アニメジャパン
ANIME JAPAN / TOKYO BIG SIGHT

Anime Japan '26: the five panels that actually mattered.

BY M. INUE5 HRS AGO
＋ REG / WAGES
給与
¥
ANIMATOR DATA2018–26
INDUSTRY · 04·16 · 6 MIN
CHART / ANIMATOR WAGES 2018–2026

Animator wages climb, but not where you'd expect.

BY K. YOSHIDAPG 28
＋ REG / MG 26
魔法少女
★
SUBCULTURE DESK04·15
CULTURE · 04·15 · 9 MIN
POP
SUBCULTURE / TOKYO 2026

The soft return of the magical girl — minus the magic.

BY A. TAMURAPG 34
＋ EDITORIAL
傑作
!?
THE DESKPG 07
OP‑ED

Stop calling every 2‑cour show a “masterpiece” by episode 3.

— Editorial desk

OPINIONPG 07
＋ PORTRAIT
柴上 花菜
404
SHIBUE / PORTRAITPH. K.K.
COVER Q&A · 12 MIN · READ

“We stopped designing for the clip economy.” — Kana Shibue on writing Apartment 404.

APARTMENT 404 / PV STILL — CROPPED

A slow-burn apartment-complex drama built around 12 strangers and one hallway camera. We talked episodic structure, silence, and what TikTok did to pacing.

BY N. ABEPG 42
＋ TGS 26
東京ゲームショウ
07
MAKUHARI MESSE04·25
COUNTDOWN
07d
Until TGS anime showcase opens
TGS · MAKUHARI · 04·25
東京ゲームショウ
LIVE COVERAGERSVP →
TRENDING // FRIEREN S2 // APOTHECARY DIARIES // DAN DA DAN // SAKAMOTO DAYS // ONE PIECE 1130 //TRENDING // FRIEREN S2 // APOTHECARY DIARIES // DAN DA DAN // SAKAMOTO DAYS // ONE PIECE 1130 //
§02 / RANKINGS

The week in numbers

WK 16 · METHODOLOGY PG 02
SAMPLE N=48,210

EDITORS' TOP 10 POWER RANKING

01
Frieren: Beyond Journey's End — S2
MADHOUSE · EP 04 · SPRING 26
—
9.4
02
The Apothecary Diaries — S2 Cour 2
OLM · EP 17 · CARRYOVER
▲ 3
9.2
03
Apartment 404
SCIENCE SARU · EP 03 · NEW
NEW
9.1
04
Sakamoto Days
TMS · EP 15 · SPLIT COUR
▼ 2
8.8
05
Dan Da Dan — S3
SCIENCE SARU · EP 06
▲ 1
8.7
06
Oshi No Ko — Final Act
DOGA KOBO · EP 02
▼ 1
8.5

READERS' WATCHLIST LIVE · 48,210 VOTES

01
Dan Da Dan — S3
84% WATCHING · 6.2K NOTES
▲ 4
91%
02
Frieren S2
78% WATCHING · 5.8K NOTES
—
89%
03
Solo Leveling — Arise
71% WATCHING · 4.9K NOTES
▲ 2
84%
04
Apartment 404
64% WATCHING · 4.1K NOTES
NEW
82%
05
Apothecary Diaries S2
59% WATCHING · 3.7K NOTES
▼ 3
79%
06
Kaiju No. 8 — S2
51% WATCHING · 2.9K NOTES
▲ 6
76%
QUOTE OF THE WEEK
K. ShibueAPARTMENT 404 / SHOWRUNNER
“We stopped designing for the clip economy.
If a scene can't survive twelve seconds of silence, it doesn't belong on the page.”
PG 42 / Q&A
Issue 012AS·2026·APR·W3
LONG READ · 04·18 · 24 MIN

The quiet boom in anime scoring studios.

From Hiroyuki Sawano's Tokyo loft to Kensuke Ushio's modular rigs in Kichijōji — the new composers aren't writing soundtracks, they're designing rooms. An illustrated tour of seven rooms, seven methods, and one very good year for Japanese film scoring.

WORDSH. KIMURAILLUS.S. KIMDURATION24 MIN READ
音の部屋
[ 7-ROOM ILLUS. / S. KIM ]
07
SEASONAL TRACKER / 春 2026
春
CURRENT SEASONSPRING 2026
W16OF 26
旅
F
Frieren: Beyond Journey's End
MADHOUSE · FRI 23:30 JST
● LIVE3/24
薬
A
The Apothecary Diaries S2
OLM · TOHO · SAT 23:30 JST
EP 1716/24
号
4
Apartment 404
SCIENCE SARU · THU 00:30 JST
EP 32/12
ダン
D
Dan Da Dan S3
SCIENCE SARU · SAT 23:56 JST
✓ EP 66/12
坂本
S
Sakamoto Days Part 2
TMS ENT. · SUN 17:30 JST
SOON14/22
怪
8
Kaiju No. 8 S2
PRODUCTION I.G · SAT 23:00 JST
✓ EP 88/13
独
S
Solo Leveling — Arise
A-1 PICTURES · SAT 00:00 JST
SOON3/13