At long last, Kaiju No. 8 is upon us. Today marks the highly anticipated premiere of the anime series adaptation of the Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Naoya Matsumoto.
As previously announced, Crunchyroll is streaming Kaiju No. 8 alongside its Japanese broadcast, with the English dubs debuting the same day as well.
The first episode of Kaiju No. 8 will premiere on Crunchyroll on Saturday, April 13 at 7:00 a.m. PT / 10:00 a.m. ET for premium subscribers. For those who can't tune in for the live premiere, it will also be available later today at 11:30 a.m. ET/ 8:30 a.m. PT. New episodes will stream weekly worldwide every Saturday at 7:00 a.m. PT.
Additionally, dubbed versions of the newest episodes will be available on release day every week starting at 8:30 a.m. PT / 11:30 a.m. ET in the following languages: English, Latin American Spanish, Portuguese, German, French, Italian, Castilian Spanish, Hindi, Tamil and Telugu.
The Kaiju No. 8 manga first debuted in 2020, and has quickly grown to become one of the most popular serialized manga published on Shonen Jump+. The series has drawn comparisons to other popular mangas/animes like Attack on Titan, Chainsaw Man, and One-Punch Man, but its tone (blending action, comedy and adventure) along with its art style and unique characters have helped set it apart from others.
In its first six months, over 550,000 copies were in circulation. That number grew to a whopping 11 million-plus by March 2023, and 13 million-plus as of April 2024.
The anime series is directed by Shigeyuki Miya at animation studio Production I.G. The series features series composition and scripts written by Ichiro Okouchi, character designs and chief animation direction from Tetsuya Nishio, kaiju design by Mahiro Maeda, art direction by Shinji Kimura, and music composed by Yuta Bandoh.
Here's the full description of Kaiju No. 8, courtesy of Crunchyroll:
The story revolves around Kafka Hibino, a 32-year-old longing to join The Defense Force and make good on his promise to a childhood friend, Mina Ashiro. He befriends Reno Ichikawa, a new coworker, while cleaning up Kaiju remains. Reno’s determination to join The Defense Force inspires Kafka to fulfill his childhood promise to pass the entrance exam and join Mina to protect humanity. When a small Kaiju burrows itself inside Kafka, he gains superhuman strength and powers fit for fighting Kaiju. He works to earn the trust of his human teammates, defeat increasingly powerful Kaiju, and keep the world safe. Part human and part Kaiju, Kafka recognizes the creature beginning to take over more frequently, and he must fight to hold on to what makes him human.
For those looking to watch Kaiju No. 8, Crunchyroll offers multiple-tiered premium plans that range in cost from $7.99 to $14.99 per month. The cheapest plan for $7.99 allows you to stream the entire Crunchyroll library ad-free and watch new episodes shortly after Japan, with streaming capable on one device at a time.