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Shojo is one of the most popular anime demographics, targeted particularly at the young female audience. Even outside of its target demographic, shojo anime has garnered a solid fandom and continues to revolutionize itself according to every era. The demographic typically catered to the “magical girl” anime in its initial days but quickly gained traction as it embraced other genres and sub-genres.

Romance is one of the major sub-genres of shojo that has given fans some of the greatest anime love stories of all time. Fans have grown up with classics like Sailor Moon and Fruits Basket that have gone on to be remade for modern audiences. From incorporating dramatic high school stories to fantasies that go far and beyond the realm of possibility, these shojo series have each left an impact on anime history in their own ways.

Updated on December 12, 2024 by Lauren Younkin: Though not as many shojo...

Life is a series of journeys, and after more than two years of step-by-step progress since our departure , we've finally arrived at a Natsume's Book of Friends English dub simulcast! Season 7 begins streaming on Crunchyroll from Saturday, October 19 with the below cast and crew: Natsume's Book of Friends Season 7 English Dub Cast Takashi Natsume voiced by Adam Gibbs Madara voiced by Christopher Wehkamp Tanuma voiced by Tyson Rinehart Toko voiced by Jennifer AuBuchon Chukyu A voiced by Brian Mathis Chukyu B voiced by Greg Dulcie Kappa voiced by Danielle Phillips Priest voiced by Kim Titus Shibuzura voiced by Kenny Green Shidahime voiced by Elise Baughman Boy A voiced by Luci Christian Boy B voiced by Izzi Raine Natsume's Book of Friends Season 7 English Dub Crew Voice Director: Jad Saxton Producer: Susie Nixon Adaptation: Jessica Sluys Mixer: William Dewell Engineer: Noah Whitehead Related: Natsume's Book of Friends English Dub Continues...

To help us get back into the spirit of things after a seven-year wait, the official accounts for the Natsume's Book of Friends anime followed up the long-awaited premiere of Season 7 by releasing creditless versions of the series' latest opening and ending song sequences, which feature "Alca" by Hinata Kashiwagi" and "Komariwarai" by Toshiki Kondo, respectively. Natsume's Book of Friends Season 7 Opening Video Natsume's Book of Friends Season 7 Ending Video Related: Puniru is a Kawaii Slime Anime Oozes Cuteness in Creditless Opening, Ending Videos Based on the manga by Yuki Midorikawa, Hideki Ito takes over as director for Natsume's Book of Friends Season 7 from Takahiro Omori, who steps into a chief director role, at studio Shuka, with series composition by Sadayuki Mura, character designs by Akira Takada and music by Makoto Yoshimori. Crunchyroll is simulcasting the latest series and describes the overall story: Takashi Natsume has been able to see youkai,...

It's been a little over two years we opened the book on Natsume and Madara in English dub, but our spiritual journey is just beginning! Crunchyroll will begin streaming the entirety of Natsume's Book of Friends Season 6, along with its two special episodes, in English dub on Monday, September 30 to bring us up to speed before the long-awaited seventh season makes its debut on October 7. Here's the stacked cast and crew for the latest season: Natsume's Book of Friends Season 6 English Dub Cast Takashi Natsume voiced by Adam Gibbs Madara voiced by Christopher Wehkamp Aiko voiced by Leah Clark Aimiya voiced by Brian Witkowicz Aoi voiced by Aaron Dismuke Aoi (Young) voiced by Ciaran Strange Atsushi voiced by Mike Haimoto Azuma voiced by Courtney Stringer Benihimo voiced by Laura Wetsel Beniko voiced by Maganda Marie Chobihige voiced by Barry Yandell Days Eater voiced by Sean Hennigan Ginro voiced by Denise...

Anime fans are being well-fed with their favorite dishes, as the 2024 Fall menu is full of great series that are returning for their new seasons. Being served up are the sequels of highly acclaimed shows like Bleach: Thousand Year Blood War and nostalgic releases such as Dragon Ball Daima. And there are other long-running series that studios like Shuka and Voln are dishing out this October.

A lot of excitement has been brewing for the comeback of fan-favorite characters and the stories that surround them, and considering that many of them are released just days apart, anime fans will have difficulty deciding what to put on their plate first. The only thing that is for certain is that, with so much to look forward to, the anime community will exit this Fall with full bellies.

Related Japan's "Television of the Future" Ranks Its Top 5 New Anime of 2024 So Far

Streaming service Abema,...

The official X account of Natsume’s Book Of Friends unveiled a new trailer and key visual for the upcoming seventh season of the anime on Aug 30, 2024.

The trailer previews the theme songs for the seventh season.

Hinata Kashiwagi performs the opening theme, “Alca,” while the ending theme, “Komariwarai,” is performed by Toshiki Kondo.

Natsume’s Book Of Friends season 7 will start airing on Oct 7, 2024, in Japan.

Crunchyroll will stream the new season in North America, Central America, South America, Europe, Africa, Oceania, the Middle East, Cis, and India.

Takahiro Omori is returning as chief director at Shuka, with Hideki Ito is returning to direct the new season. Sadayuki Murai will be in charge of overseeing the script. Akira Takata will serve as the character designer, and Makoto Yoshimori will compose the music.

Natsume’s Book of Friends is a Japanese manga series by Yuki Midorikawa. It started in Hakusensha’s shojo...

A new trailer and key visual released for the long-awaited seventh season of the Natsume's Book of Friends anime today revealed an October 7 at 24:00 Jst (effectively October 8 at 0:00) release date in Japan. It was also announced that Hinata Kashiwagi performs "Alca" for the series' opening song and Toshiki Kondo performs "Komariwarai" for the ending song, both of which are previewed in the trailer below. Key Visual Related: Natsume's Book of Friends English Dub Continues on Crunchyroll with Season 5 Based on the manga by Yuki Midorikawa, Hideki Ito takes over as director for Natsume's Book of Friends Season 7 from Takahiro Omori, who steps into a chief director role, at studio Shuka, with series composition by Sadayuki Mura, character designs by Akira Takada and music by Makoto Yoshimori. Crunchyroll announced at Anime Expo 2024 that it will simulcast the latest sequel, expanding the current series catalog that describes the overall story...

New chapter, same ol' stories. The English dub of Natsume's Book of Friends ( Natsume Yujin-cho ) enters its fifth season with a weekly release beginning Wednesday, May 8 on Crunchyroll with the below cast and crew! Natsume's Book of Friends Season 5 Episode 1 English Dub Cast Natsume voiced by Adam Gibbs Madara voiced by Christopher Wehkamp Atsushi voiced by Mike Haimoto Reiko voiced by Alexis Tipton Sasada voiced by Marisa Duran Satoru voiced by Matthew Elkins Shigeru voiced by Seth Magill Tanuma voiced by Tyson Rinehart Toko voiced by Jennifer AuBuchon Additional Voices: Madeleine Morris, Trina Nishimura, Sally Vahle, Jalitza Delgado, Sara Ragsdale, Bryn Apprill, Ray Hurd, Sonny Strait, Katelyn Barr, Chasity Conner, Kiane King Natsume's Book of Friends Season 5 Episode 1 English Dub Crew Voice Director: Jad Saxton Producer: Susie Nixon Adaptation: Jessica Sluys Mixer: William Dewell Engineer: Noah Whitehead Related: Natsume's Book of Friends English Dub Continues on Crunchyroll with Season...

A stage event held at AnimeJapan 2024 today revealed that the previously announced seventh season of Natsume Yujin-cho ( Natsume's Book of Friends ) will begin airing in Fall 2024 . A teaser visual and trailer (which is region-locked at the time of writing) were also unveiled. Teaser Visual Production staff members at returning studio Shuka were confirmed per the trailer's description, as follows: Chief Director: Takahiro Omori Director: Hideki Ito Series Composer: Sadayuki Murai Character Designer: Akira Takada Creature Designer/Action Animation Director: Tatsuo Yamada Chief Animation Directors: Akira Takada, Orie Tanaka Art: Yukihiro Shibutani, Mao Miyake Color Design: Hiromi MIyawaki Screen Designer: Hitoshi Tamura Photography: Eiko Hiramoto Editor: Kazuhiko Seki Music Composer: Makoto Yoshimori Related: Natsume's Book of Friends English Dub Continues on Crunchyroll with Season 4 The TV anime adaptation of Yuki Midorikawa's supernatural mystery shojo manga series aired for six seasons from 2008 to 2017, and a feature film Natsume Yujin-cho the Movie:...

Supernatural anime Natsume's Book of Friends is a serious page-turner, so it's lucky for us that there's still plenty for the ongoing English dub to pore over and that the next chapter arrives on Crunchyroll on Monday, February 19 ! Check out the cast and crew for the first episode of Season 4 below! Natsume's Book of Friends Season 4 English Dub Cast Natsume voiced by Adam Gibbs Madara voiced by Christopher Wehkamp Atsushi voiced by Mike Haimoto Matoba voiced by Reagan Murdock Misuzu voiced by Chris Ryan Nanase voiced by Laurie Steele Sasada voiced by Marisa Duran Satoru voiced by Matthew Elkins Taki voiced by Megan Shipman Tanuma voiced by Tyson Rinehart Toko voiced by Jennifer AuBuchon Additional Voices: Andy Mullins, Irwin Daye, Dio Garner, Kenny James, Randy Pearlman, Travis Mullenix, Bryan Massey, Jeff Swearingen, David Novinski, Paige Guillory Natsume's Book of Friends Season 4 English Dub Crew Voice Director: Jad Saxton Producer: Colleen Clinkenbeard...

By Aaron Hinojosa

Sumikko Gurashi began life as a brand of kawaii characters (think Hello Kitty and other Sanrio mascots). However, in 2019, the little guys made the jump from plush dolls to the silver screen in “Sumikko Gurashi The Movie – The Pop-up Book and the Secret Child”. With a third film on the way later this year, it is fair to say these creatures made a successful leap to the big screen. However, this review will examine the sequel “Sumikko Gurashi: The Little Wizard In The Blue Moonlight”, featuring Takahiro Omori directing and screenplay by Reiko Yoshida

“Sumikko Gurashi: The Little Wizard In The Blue Moonlight“ is screening at Nippon Connection

Set in a land of soft, round creatures known as sumikko, members of a friend group each aspire for a dream. Gathered around the campfire, the band of hopefuls discuss the legend of the Blue Supermoon. Supposedly on such...

Coming to Japanese theaters in September is animated feature Hotarubi No Mori E, a picture that feels like a gentle fairy tale of sort from director Takahiro Omori and production house Brains Base.The story of Hotarubi no Mori e centers around Hotaru, a little girl who gets lost in an enchanted forest where apparitions reside. A young boy, Gin, appears before Hotaru, but she cannot touch him for fear of making him disappear.A quartet of teasers - three fifteen second efforts and a longer thirty second offering - appeared on the film's official website this week and one of those - the thirty second version - has just arrived in embeddable form. Take a look below for a taste of what looks to be...