Over the weekend, it was announced that season 2 of the Kaiju No. 8 anime will premiere on July 19th. New episodes of the anime will drop every Saturday at 23:00 JST.
Just like last season, new episodes will also stream worldwide and will be available to watch on X (formerly Twitter).
The broadcast and release date announcements were accompanied by a new key visual featuring main protagonist Kafka Hibino in his kaiju form. He's surrounded by other Defense Force members, including Kikoru Shinomiya and Reno Ichikawa. In the background is the powerful Gen Narumi.
An adaptation of the popular manga series written and illustrated by Naoya Matsumoto, Kaiju No. 8 is a sci-fi action anime in which humanity battles for survival against destructive monsters. The story follows Kafka Hibino, an average man working as part of the kaiju cleanup crew who gains superhuman strength and powers when a small Kaiju burrows itself inside of him. The official synopsis reads:
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.
Drawing comparisons to other popular series like Attack on Titan, Chainsaw Man, and One-Punch Man, the Kaiju No. 8 manga, and now anime, blends action, comedy, and adventure. The manga, which began serialization in July 2020, surpassed 30 million copies in circulation by 2024, quickly becoming one of the fastest-growing manga in Shonen Jump+ history.
Produced by Production I.G, the first season of Kaiju No. 8 was met with positive reception from critics and fans who praised the series for its dynamic action and faithfulness to the source material. The kaiju designs, in particular, have been particularly noteworthy.
With Season 2 on the way next month, you can catch up with the entire first season on Crunchyroll.