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Manga Anime, News

Ghost in the Shell Returns on Prime Video This July 7

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For the first time since the franchise became an anime in 1995, a studio other than Production I.G. is animating Ghost in the Shell. That studio is Science Saru — the house behind Dandadan, Scott Pilgrim Takes Off, and Tatami Time Machine Blues — and THE GHOST IN THE SHELL premieres on Amazon Prime Video in over 240 countries this Tuesday, 7 July 2026, Singapore included.

THE GHOST IN THE SHELL 2026 key visual poster featuring Major Motoko Kusanagi
Image courtesy of THE GHOST IN THE SHELL COMMITTEE

Science Saru Takes Over — and Why That Is a Big Deal

Production I.G. has been synonymous with Ghost in the Shell animation since Mamoru Oshii’s landmark 1995 film. The studio went on to direct Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence, both seasons of Stand Alone Complex, and the theatrical Arise series. Production I.G. remains in the production committee for this 2026 series — alongside Bandai Namco Filmworks and Kodansha — but the animation itself now belongs to Science Saru.

Science Saru was co-founded by Masaaki Yuasa and has built its reputation on visually expressive, high-fluidity work that stands apart from conventional TV-anime house styles. Directing the new series is Mokochan, making his feature directorial debut after working as assistant director on Dandadan. Character design and chief animation direction is handled by Shuhei Handa, whose credits include Dandadan, Scott Pilgrim Takes Off, and Spriggan. Series composition comes from sci-fi novelist EnJoe Toh, known for the metafictional Self-Reference ENGINE — a choice that hints at a grittier, more literary approach.

Official Japanese trailer for THE GHOST IN THE SHELL — via Ghost in the Shell Official Channel on YouTube

A Straight Line Back to Masamune Shirow’s Manga

Rather than continuing any existing anime continuity, the 2026 series returns to Masamune Shirow’s original Ghost in the Shell manga, first serialised in Young Magazine from 1989 to 1991. The story follows Major Motoko Kusanagi leading Public Security Section 9 through cybercrimes and a conspiracy surrounding a spectral hacker known as the Puppet Master — the same premise as Oshii’s 1995 film, but adapted from the source material rather than from the film’s more abstract interpretation.

The creative team describe the aim as being closer to the manga’s own tonal blend of hard sci-fi, dry humour, and political thriller, rather than the heavy philosophical weight of Oshii’s take. Given EnJoe Toh’s background in literary science fiction, that ambition seems credible.

THE GHOST IN THE SHELL 2026 promotional image from Science Saru
Image courtesy of THE GHOST IN THE SHELL COMMITTEE

English Dub Cast and Global Availability

Amazon Prime Video is rolling out the series with a full English dub across its global release. Suzie Yeung (Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End, Overtake!) voices Major Kusanagi; Bill Butts plays Batou; SungWon Cho voices Chief Aramaki; and Nick Apostolides takes on Togusa. The English dub cast was confirmed by Anime News Network. In total the series launches in eight dubbed languages alongside the Japanese original.

THE GHOST IN THE SHELL 2026 key visual showing Section 9
Image courtesy of THE GHOST IN THE SHELL COMMITTEE

When and Where to Watch in Singapore

THE GHOST IN THE SHELL is available on Amazon Prime Video in Singapore from 7 July 2026. An active Prime or Prime Video subscription is all you need. New episodes drop weekly — in Japan they broadcast on Fuji TV and Kansai TV every Tuesday at 23:00 JST (midnight SGT on Wednesday), with the Prime Video stream expected around the same time. The July 7 premiere date was confirmed via Anime News Network in June.

If you want to revisit the original mythology ahead of Tuesday, Oshii’s 1995 film and Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex are available across multiple platforms. Find more anime season previews and news on GameTrader as the summer 2026 lineup gets into gear.

The Ending Theme: MILLENNIUM PARADE, Saya Gray and Daniel Caesar

The ending theme, titled “Blue”, is performed by MILLENNIUM PARADE featuring Saya Gray and Daniel Caesar. MILLENNIUM PARADE is the avant-pop project led by Daiki Tsuneta, the frontman of King Gnu — whose music has previously appeared across anime soundtracks. Saya Gray is a Japanese-American indie singer-songwriter; Daniel Caesar is a Grammy-winning Canadian R&B artist. The pairing feels deliberately trans-Pacific, which suits a franchise that has always occupied the intersection of Japanese cyberpunk and Western science-fiction imagination.

Manga Anime

Witch Hat Atelier Season 2 Confirmed — Coco’s Story Continues

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Right as Witch Hat Atelier Season 1’s thirteenth and final episode “Forbidden Magic” began streaming on 29 June 2026, the official anime account delivered the announcement Singapore fans had been waiting for: Season 2 is confirmed and in production. Studio BUG FILMS and the full returning creative team are on board, and Crunchyroll has once again acquired the rights — with one important caveat for viewers in our region.

Coco from Witch Hat Atelier smiling in a sunlit meadow, wearing her signature white pointed hat
Image courtesy of BUG FILMS / Kodansha

What We Know About Witch Hat Atelier Season 2

Studio BUG FILMS — the team responsible for Season 1’s exceptional animation — is returning for Season 2. Director Ayumu Watanabe, series composer Hiroshi Seko, and music composer Yuka Kitamura are all back. The returning crew brings full continuity of vision, which matters enormously for a story as layered as this one.

Crunchyroll confirmed the acquisition alongside the Season 1 finale, and production is now formally underway. No premiere date has been set, and no teaser or trailer has been released at this stage — this is a greenlight announcement, not a launch window. More details are expected via the official website and social channels in the months ahead.

The Story Picks Up at Serpentback Cave

Coco surrounded by swirling golden magic energy in an intense scene from Witch Hat Atelier
Image courtesy of BUG FILMS / Kodansha

Season 2 picks up directly from where Season 1 left off: the fallout from the Brimmed Caps’ attack on the apprentices in Serpentback Cave. The central thread — Coco’s mission to reverse the forbidden magic that petrified her mother, without resorting to the very spells that started the tragedy — remains the heart of the series. Antagonist Iguin and the mysteries surrounding her forbidden grimoire are expected to take centre stage as the story deepens.

If you have not watched Season 1 yet, now is the ideal moment. The 13 episodes are tightly plotted, and the finale earns this renewal immediately. Season 1 of Witch Hat Atelier is widely regarded as one of the best anime productions of 2025, with Anime News Network noting that production for episode 5 alone required approximately 20,000 drawings — roughly four to six times the typical episode workload.

About the Manga

Witch Hat Atelier Season 1 official anime poster showing Coco and the apprentice cast in their iconic green robes
Image courtesy of BUG FILMS / Kodansha

Witch Hat Atelier (Tongari Boshi no Atelier) is a manga by Kamome Shirahama, serialised in Kodansha’s Morning Two magazine since July 2016. With over 7 million copies in circulation and now 16 volumes in print (as of April 2026), it has won the Harvey Award for Best Manga (2020) and the Eisner Award for Best U.S. Edition of International Material — Asia. Shirahama marked the Season 2 greenlight by releasing a special commemorative illustration shared across the anime’s official channels.

Singapore Fans: The Streaming Situation

Here is the catch. Crunchyroll has acquired Witch Hat Atelier Season 2 for worldwide streaming excluding Asian territories — the same arrangement that applied to Season 1. That means a Singapore Crunchyroll subscription will not carry the new season when it arrives.

No Singapore or Southeast Asian distribution partner has been confirmed yet for Season 2. We will update this post when a locally accessible platform is announced. For now, keep an eye on regional streaming services that carried Season 1 in your area. Check our manga and anime news section for updates as more Season 2 details come in.

Game News

Persona Live-Action Series in Development at Netflix

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Netflix is developing a live-action adaptation of the Persona video game franchise, according to a Variety report relayed by Gematsu. The project marks the first live-action screen adaptation of Atlus’s beloved JRPG series — and with Netflix available across Singapore and Southeast Asia, local fans of the Phantom Thieves and the Investigation Team would be able to watch it from day one whenever it does arrive.

Persona 5 Royal school scene featuring counsellor Maruki in the classroom with students
Image courtesy of Atlus

The Creative Team Behind the Persona Netflix Live-Action Series

Christopher Monfette is attached as writer, executive producer, and showrunner. Alongside him are Shawn Levy and Robert Atwood of 21 Laps Entertainment — the production outfit behind Deadpool & Wolverine, Stranger Things, and Free Guy. Three more executive producers come from Story Kitchen: Dmitri M. Johnson, Michael Lawrence Goldberg, and Timothy I. Stevenson, a company with a growing track record of adapting video game IP for the screen. Rounding out the team is Toru Nakahara of SEGA as executive producer — meaning the franchise’s publisher has a direct seat at the table rather than simply licensing out the property.

Netflix declined to comment when contacted by Variety, so the series has not yet received a formal greenlight. It remains in active development at this stage, but attaching a producer of Shawn Levy’s calibre — one of the architects of both Deadpool & Wolverine and Stranger Things — is a meaningful signal that Atlus and SEGA are serious about finding this adaptation the production it deserves.

Persona 4 Revival Broadcast — via Official ATLUS West on YouTube

Which Persona Game Will It Adapt?

Variety’s report does not specify a source game, leaving the question open. The Persona franchise spans several standalone numbered entries, each with a distinct cast, setting, and tone. Persona 5 is the obvious frontrunner — it is comfortably the series’ most commercially successful title, praised for its stylised visuals, strategic combat, and a story about high schoolers exposing corrupt adults that reads almost like a ready-made episodic premise. Its existing anime adaptations demonstrate how well that story translates outside the game.

That said, Atlus has not confirmed a source game, and a creative team adapting a multi-entry franchise sometimes opts for an original story set within the established universe rather than a straight remake of any single title. A live-action take on Persona 4‘s small-town murder mystery — with a fresh cast, real locations, and none of the anime’s constraints — could go in a direction the existing adaptations have not.

Persona 4 Revival Broadcast key art showing Yu Narukami and the Investigation Team on a vibrant yellow background
Image courtesy of Atlus

The Persona Franchise Is in Full Momentum Right Now

The Netflix development news arrives at a moment when Atlus is pushing the Persona brand harder than it has in years. Persona 4 Revival — a rebuilt, modernised take on the beloved 2008 RPG — launches for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC on 18 February 2027, with day-one access via Game Pass. Beyond that, Persona 6 has been confirmed for PS5, Xbox Series, and PC. Meanwhile, Persona 3 Reload recently crossed three million in combined shipments and digital sales, a milestone that speaks to how much broader the series’ audience has grown beyond its cult JRPG roots.

Persona 5 Royal cutscene featuring Ann Takamaki, Ryuji Sakamoto and Joker in school uniforms at a shopping centre
Image courtesy of Atlus

For Singapore fans, the Netflix angle is clean: the platform is widely subscribed here, and barring unexpected regional issues, any series that gets made would land globally on release day. Persona 5 Royal has been a consistent JRPG recommendation at local game shops and a regular talking point across SG gaming communities online — there is a real local audience primed for this. The bigger question is timelines: with the series still in development and no greenlight confirmed, a premiere could be years away. But Shawn Levy’s production machine has a track record of moving projects from concept to screen with serious momentum, and the Persona franchise is in the best commercial shape it has ever been. More game news here.

Manga Anime

One Piece Chapter 1186: Luffy Punches Imu for the First Time — Full Spoilers

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⚠️ This post contains full spoilers for One Piece Chapter 1186, out now on Manga Plus, Viz Media, and the Shonen Jump app. Stop here if you haven’t read it yet.

One Piece Chapter 1186 dropped on Sunday, 28 June — and it delivered two moments that the fandom has been building towards for years. Luffy finally throws a punch at Imu. And Brook’s long-suppressed memory of the Esperia Kingdom is laid bare at last.

Elbaph Arc Official Trailer | April 5, 2026 | ONE PIECE — via ONE PIECE Official – ENG on YouTube

Luffy vs. Imu — A Punch Eight Years in the Making

Luffy charges forward in his Elbaf arc outfit in the One Piece anime
Image courtesy of Toei Animation

Imu has loomed over the final saga since their silent debut in Chapter 908 back in 2018 — the shadowy ruler of the World Government who even the Five Elders bow before. For eight years of publication, no one in the crew had come close to touching them. Chapter 1186 changes that.

The chapter’s closing beat shows Luffy arriving mid-battle in Elbaf and going straight for Imu, landing a direct punch with both Conqueror’s Haki and Armament Haki fused — the same combination Luffy has used against only his most powerful opponents. Early translations suggest the line he delivers is characteristically blunt, demanding Imu get out of Elbaf. No speech about the Dawn of the World. Just the punch.

The online reaction has already drawn comparisons to the Charlos punch from Chapter 502 — possibly the single most celebrated panel in the manga’s 28-year run. What’s different here is the weight of who Imu is. Charlos was a reprehensible side character. Imu is the hidden axis the entire World Government rotates around. Luffy doesn’t know any of that context. He sees an enemy. He swings.

Luffy smiles in his Elbaf arc Viking outfit in the One Piece anime
Image courtesy of Toei Animation

Brook’s Buried Truth: The Esperia Kingdom Revealed

The other half of the chapter is the payoff to Brook’s extended Esperia Kingdom flashback — and it is a heavy one. The chapter confirms what many readers suspected: Princess Shuri (known to us as Gunko) is not the biological daughter of King Reuven of Esperia. She is a Celestial Dragon from the Manmayer family, her biological father believed to be Manmayer Growlo, one of the God’s Knights.

The control Imu has been exerting over her — through an ability early translations are calling “Domi Reversi” — is now explicit rather than hinted at. King Reuven, it is revealed, had been lying to protect her: the World Government was never coming for a thousand slaves. They were coming for Shuri herself.

Most devastating is what the flashback reveals about Brook specifically. Before leaving Esperia, Gunko drove her blade through Brook’s skull. He survived — he is already dead, after all — but the psychological trauma was enough to bury the entire memory for decades. That single detail recontextualises years of Brook’s characterisation and ties him directly into the larger revelation that the World Government has been hunting people of celestial lineage for far longer than any living character realised.

Where the Elbaf Arc Stands Now

One Piece Elbaf arc teaser visual showing Luffy small between giant footprints in snow
Image courtesy of Toei Animation

The Elbaf arc is running on multiple fronts simultaneously. Zoro and Sanji are engaged with Holy Knights Sommers and Killingham. Loki — voiced in the anime by Yuichi Nakamura, familiar to Singapore fans as Satoru Gojo in Jujutsu Kaisen — and giant warrior Ragnir remain at the centre of the island’s politics. Now Luffy has opened a direct line to Imu.

One Piece Volume 115, subtitled The Strongest Thing in the World and featuring cover art of Gear 5 Luffy, Loki, Ragnir, and Gunko-as-Imu, releases in Japan on 3 July. Its scope confirms just how dense this arc has become.

The anime adaptation began airing the Elbaf arc on 5 April 2026, meaning Singapore fans following the anime are still a significant number of episodes behind where the manga sits today — but the pace is faster than any previous arc, Toei having shifted One Piece to a seasonal format for the first time in the series’ history.

How Singapore Readers Can Access Chapter 1186

Chapter 1186 is available free right now on Manga Plus — Shueisha’s official platform, fully accessible in Singapore — as well as on Viz Media and the Shonen Jump app, both of which also carry simultaneous English releases on the same day as Japan. No reason to turn to unofficial scans when the official translation is already up.

Game News

NIKKE x Persona 3, 4 and 5 Crossover Confirmed for Summer 2026

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Singapore commanders, clear your schedule — Goddess of Victory: NIKKE has just confirmed a crossover with Atlus’ Persona series, and it’s covering not one but three games: Persona 3, Persona 4, and Persona 5. The reveal dropped during the official NIKKE Summer Special Livestream on 27 June 2026, and it sent the game’s community into overdrive.

Goddess of Victory: Nikke x Persona – Official Collaboration Teaser Trailer — via GameTrailers on YouTube

Three Persona Games at Once — And a Mystery Fourth

NIKKE x Persona official mystery teaser
Image courtesy of Level Infinite

The official teaser trailer, released on the Goddess of Victory: NIKKE YouTube channel, showed emblems from each of the three modern Persona titles — the Phantom Thieves’ burning-hat symbol from Persona 5, alongside imagery from Persona 4 and Persona 3. As Persona Central reported, the trailer ends on a fourth slide with nothing but a question mark — leaving the door open for an additional Atlus IP, whether that means earlier Persona entries, Catherine, or Metaphor: ReFantazio.

The video was briefly published on the official NIKKE channel before being taken down, but the collaboration is confirmed: multiple outlets captured it, and the emblems shown are unmistakably real.

Perfect Timing: Persona Turns 30 This Year

NIKKE Summer Special Livestream 2026 promotional art
Image courtesy of Level Infinite

2026 is Persona’s 30th anniversary year — the original Revelations: Persona launched in Japan in September 1996. Atlus has been marking the milestone all year, and NIKKE is clearly part of that plan. The collab teaser carried the hashtag #NIKKEsummer2026, placing it in the game’s upcoming summer window.

That window kicks off with the “Wave to You” summer update on 2 July 2026 — a major patch bringing new characters Marciana: Marine Study and Cinderella: Crystal Wave, a fully voiced beach-island narrative event, and the Island Breaker mini-game. Whether the Persona collab arrives on launch day or later in the summer has not been confirmed, but the groundwork is clearly laid.

What Singapore Commanders Can Expect

NIKKE Wave to You summer 2026 key art
Image courtesy of Level Infinite

NIKKE has delivered some of the most ambitious collaborations in mobile gaming — past crossovers with NieR: Automata, Evangelion, and Chainsaw Man each brought entirely original playable units, dedicated story events, and limited-time cosmetics. A Persona collab spanning three games simultaneously is likely NIKKE’s biggest to date.

The expected format: limited-time banner pulls for guest characters, a crossover event with original writing, and exclusive costumes. Which specific Persona characters land in NIKKE is still to be confirmed — though Joker from Persona 5 is the obvious headliner — and the “?” slide suggests at least one more surprise. Singapore players get the update at the same time as the rest of the world: NIKKE is published by Level Infinite (operating under Singapore-registered Proxima Beta Pte. Ltd.), so there’s no regional delay to worry about.

NIKKE is free to play on Android, iOS, and PC. Keep an eye on the official NIKKE website for the full reveal, and check our game news section for updates as they drop.

Manga Anime

LONA: WIT Studio Assembles a Dream Team for Spring 2027

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WIT Studio dropped a major announcement on June 28: LONA, an original TV anime slated for Spring 2027 — and the creative team they’ve assembled is one of the most exciting in recent anime memory. The combination of names alone is enough to put this on every list, long before a single episode airs.

LONA — official key visual showing the chaotic Neural Optical Analysis Laboratory and its eccentric research team
Image courtesy of WIT Studio

What LONA Is About

LONA stands for Laboratory of Optics and Neural Analysis. Set in the near future, the series follows researchers at this facility who analyze the brains of deceased people using synchrotron light — a real technology inspired by the SPring-8 synchrotron radiation facility operated by RIKEN in Harima Science Garden City, Hyogo, Japan. Their mission: uncover the truth behind a disturbing new phenomenon in which people believed dead are suddenly reappearing and attacking the living.

Think the institutional precision of Unnatural — cold case meets cutting-edge science — but transplanted into a world where the stakes have gone fully apocalyptic. The confirmed voice cast leading the lab is Minako Kotobuki as head researcher Ao, Anna Nagase as trainee researcher Sango, and Fuka Izumi as Mugen, the facility’s unconventional mascot. The ensemble key visual already signals the tone: a gloriously chaotic lab — equipment everywhere, staff in various states of crisis — suggesting a show that can be funny and frightening in the same scene.

LONA — second key visual showing a character reaching toward a glowing orb inside the synchrotron facility
Image courtesy of WIT Studio

The People Behind It

Every credit here is a genuine reason for excitement.

Original concept and screenplay: Akiko Nogi. Her breakthrough came writing Unnatural (2018), a forensic mystery series celebrated for its meticulous plotting and deep empathy. She then wrote Last Mile (2024), a logistics-thriller film that earned widespread acclaim for its tight structure and humane core. LONA is her first anime original. Nogi’s instinct is to build genre tension out of institutional truth — the way real systems handle (and mishandle) death — and a premise involving brain-scanning the dead lands squarely in that territory.

Director: Takashi Katagiri, whose work on SPY×FAMILY CODE: White demonstrated a sure hand with large ensemble casts and tonal range. Character design: Posuka Demizu — the artist behind The Promised Neverland manga — whose work gives even mundane expressions an uncanny interior quality, perfectly matched to a show about reading what people leave behind. The teaser poster alone, a hyper-stylized eye close-up bathed in neon purple, shows Demizu operating in full Promised Neverland mode.

Studio: WIT Studio (Attack on Titan Seasons 1–3, SPY×FAMILY, Vinland Saga). Animation producer Kazuki Yamanaka (SPY×FAMILY, Bubble) and composer Yūko Sébu complete the lineup. Director Katagiri’s words in the announcement, as reported by Anime Corner, capture the energy well: “Something that happens only once in a lifetime happened to me. I got to create an anime from a script written by Akiko Nogi.”

Watch the Teaser PV

TVアニメ 『LONA』 Teaser PV — via WIT STUDIO on YouTube
Ao, head researcher at LONA, grinning in the lab — animation still from the teaser PV
Image courtesy of WIT Studio

For Singapore Fans: What to Watch For

No streaming arrangements for Southeast Asia have been announced — Spring 2027 is still months away and rights deals typically follow closer to air date. But WIT’s recent original projects have landed in Singapore without issue: SPY×FAMILY on Crunchyroll, Vinland Saga on Netflix, Bubble on Netflix. A WIT original with this profile and this creative team is likely to attract strong platform interest, and a deal covering the region would be the expected outcome — though nothing is confirmed yet.

Singapore fans who have followed Nogi Akiko’s live-action work will have the clearest sense of what tone to expect: character-driven, procedurally exact, and willing to get dark. Combined with Demizu’s instinctively unsettling character design and WIT’s production quality, LONA is looking like the most anticipated original anime of early 2027. Follow our anime coverage as more details emerge.

Manga Anime

Madoka Magica: Walpurgisnacht Rising — Main Trailer Out, Opens Japan August 28

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The main theatrical trailer for Puella Magi Madoka Magica: The Witch’s Rondo — Walpurgisnacht Rising (劇場版 魔法少女まどか☆マギカ〈ワルプルギスの廻天〉) dropped in the early hours of Monday morning, and it brings two headline announcements in one: a confirmed Japan theatrical opening on August 28, 2026, and the reveal that the film’s theme song — “彼方” (Kanata) — will be performed by FictionJunction, the vocal unit led by composer Yuki Kajiura. For fans who have been waiting since 2013’s Rebellion Story ended on one of anime’s most divisive cliffhangers, the wait is down to two months.

A magical girl stands beneath a starry sky in Madoka Magica Walpurgisnacht Rising
Image courtesy of Aniplex

Homura’s World, Cracking at the Edges

Walpurgisnacht Rising picks up inside the false reality that Homura Akemi built at the end of Rebellion — a world where Madoka lives as an ordinary student, shielded from the fate she accepted when she wished every witch in every timeline out of existence and became the “Law of Cycles,” a transcendent cosmic force. Homura achieved this by tearing a fragment of that power away and rewriting reality itself, a choice that cost her everything except Madoka’s presence.

The new trailer makes clear that the seams of that world are showing. A mysterious girl without a Soul Gem has been hunting Mazoku — the magical beasts that replaced witches in Homura’s version of reality — which should be impossible. Then two magical girls arrive from outside the constructed world, seeking to restore the Law of Cycles and carrying a message: “We will not forgive Homura Akemi.”

『劇場版 魔法少女まどか☆マギカ〈ワルプルギスの廻天〉』本予告 — via Aniplex Channel on YouTube
A lone figure stands before a massive statue-like entity in an impossible labyrinthine space
Image courtesy of Aniplex

The threat they carry with them is named in the synopsis as 名塚底根 (Nadzuka Sokone) — described as the “beginning of all witches,” a collective entity formed from multiple witches that tortured Homura across her many timeline loops. It is, in other words, the original Walpurgisnacht made into something even larger. The title 廻天 — roughly “the heavens revolve” — signals that the circular logic of the Madoka universe is completing another terrible turn.

Yuki Kajiura Composes the Full Score

Dark atmospheric imagery from the film — a witch-like entity against a textured orange sky
Image courtesy of Aniplex

The return of Yuki Kajiura — whose compositions for the original 2011 series are among the most celebrated in the medium — is confirmed for the complete BGM, not just the theme song. In her own words, as published alongside the trailer reveal (Dengeki Online, in Japanese): “I did not want it to be a song that simply provides the ‘answer.’ As a devoted fan of this work who has been by these girls’ sides for a long time, I wanted to send them off brilliantly.” A fragment of FictionJunction’s “Kanata” (彼方, meaning the other side or beyond) plays in the final moments of the trailer.

Kajiura’s involvement signals a full-circle return for the franchise’s sonic identity. Her earlier Madoka work introduced sounds — choral Latin fragments, baroque counterpoint over TV-static noise — that influenced scores across anime for years afterward.

August 28 in Japan — Singapore Dates Yet to Be Confirmed

Two Madoka Magica characters face each other in a golden sunset scene
Image courtesy of Aniplex

Walpurgisnacht Rising opens theatrically in Japan on August 28, 2026. No Singapore or Southeast Asia release date has been announced at the time of writing. Major Aniplex theatrical productions in recent years have generally received regional rollouts, but timelines and distribution vary — watch announcements from local cinema chains and anime distributors for confirmation. The trailer’s release this close to the Japan opening date suggests the wider rollout information may not be far behind.

Manga Anime

Thunder 3 Anime Hits Netflix 8 July — What to Expect

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If your Netflix queue needs a fresh weekly obsession this July, Thunder 3 (サンダー3) might be exactly that. The isekai mystery series — based on Yuki Ikeda’s manga from Monthly Shōnen Magazine — debuts globally on Netflix on 8 July 2026, with Singapore subscribers able to stream from day one.

What Is Thunder 3? The Manga That Just Ended

Thunder 3 ran in Kodansha’s Monthly Shōnen Magazine from May 2022 to June 2026, wrapping up its complete 8-volume run literally weeks before the anime adaptation premieres. Written and illustrated by Yuki Ikeda, the series sits at the intersection of isekai, mystery, and science fantasy — a more interesting combination than it might first sound.

Panel from the Thunder 3 manga showing Pyontaro and Hiroshi
Image courtesy of Yuki Ikeda / Kodansha

The story follows three inseparable middle schoolers — Pyontaro Tezuka, Hiroshi Ochanomizu, and Tsubame Azuma, nicknamed the “Small Three” — who stumble upon a mysterious disc belonging to their teacher, Dr. Doc. Playing it unleashes an alien dragonfly from their TV screen, and in the chaos Pyontaro’s younger sister Futaba and the family pet are dragged into a parallel world and captured by its extraterrestrial inhabitants. What starts as ordinary boyhood friendship turns into an interdimensional rescue mission.

Netflix, Fuji TV, and a Surprising Director

Thunder 3 | Official Trailer — via Netflix Anime on YouTube

The TV anime premieres on Fuji TV’s +Ultra block from 8 July 2026, broadcasting every Wednesday night, with Netflix handling global streaming from the same date. Singapore viewers can jump straight in on launch day — no region restrictions.

The creative team is worth noting. Per the Anime Expo 2026 press release coverage, Hiroyuki Seshita directs — the same filmmaker behind the bleak, atmospheric sci-fi of Blame! (2017) and Ajin: Demi-Human on Netflix. Series composition is handled by Hiroshi Seko (Witch Hat Atelier, Rooster Fighter), with studio UNEDN producing the animation. That pairing of a hard-sci-fi director with a chibi-inflected adventure story is one of the more unexpected creative decisions of the summer anime season.

The Small Three — Pyontaro, Hiroshi, and Tsubame — in the Netflix Official Trailer for Thunder 3
Image courtesy of Thunder 3 Production Committee

North American Premiere at Anime Expo 2026

Thunder 3 gets its North American premiere at Anime Expo 2026 on 4 July — Room 408AB at the Los Angeles Convention Center, 3:15 PM PDT — with Seshita and Seko present for the panel. For Singapore fans weighing up a new seasonal watch, that screening lands just four days before the Netflix global drop, so any buzz coming out of LA will be very fresh when the series goes live on 8 July.

Character close-up from the Thunder 3 anime promotional video 2
Image courtesy of Thunder 3 Production Committee

How to Watch Thunder 3 in Singapore

Thunder 3 is a Netflix exclusive in Singapore from 8 July 2026, with new episodes dropping weekly. The manga source is fully concluded at 8 volumes — available digitally through Kodansha USA’s Azuki platform for anyone who wants to read ahead or revisit the story after the credits roll. Browse more anime picks on GameTrader as the summer season gets underway.

Manga Anime

Young Ladies Don’t Play Fighting Games Premieres July 7 on Crunchyroll

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With EVO 2026 closing out its final day in Las Vegas, the timing could not be better for the FGC to get its own anime. Young Ladies Don’t Play Fighting Games (Japanese title: Taiari: Ojōsama wa Kakūtō Game Nante Shinai) premieres on Crunchyroll on 7 July 2026 — and it comes with an official Street Fighter 6 collaboration baked right into the adaptation.

Aya and Mio face off in a dramatic fighting game rivalry scene from Young Ladies Don't Play Fighting Games
Image courtesy of Diomedéa / Crunchyroll

Secret Arcade Sticks in an Elite Academy

The premise: Aya Mitsuki earns a scholarship to Kuromi Girls’ Academy, a prestigious institution where gaming is quietly understood to be beneath the student body. She soon discovers that Mio Yorue — the school’s universally admired “White Lily,” a student who seems almost too composed to be real — has been secretly destroying opponents in a competitive fighting game in an empty classroom after hours.

Neither girl can quite let go of what she saw. What unfolds is a rivalry, an unlikely friendship, and an underground tournament scene that the academy’s image managers would strongly prefer to remain invisible. The original manga by Eri Ejima has been running in KADOKAWA’s Monthly Comic Flapper since January 2020 and now spans 11 volumes — Seven Seas Entertainment holds the English-language rights for anyone who wants to read ahead before the simulcast.

A character from Young Ladies Don't Play Fighting Games in a cinematic close-up with glowing amber eyes
Image courtesy of Diomedéa / Crunchyroll

Street Fighter 6 Is Literally in the Show

Here is the detail that sets this adaptation apart. In the source manga, the girls compete in a fictional game called Iron Senpai 4. For the anime, Diomedéa struck an official licensing deal with Capcom and replaced that entirely with real Street Fighter 6 gameplay footage — actual character-select screens, actual match UI, actual move animations. Each of the four main characters has a specific SF6 main: Aya plays Luke, Mio plays Ryu, Yū plays Ken, and Tamaki plays Juri. It is a level of integration that goes well beyond a casual cameo or a logo on a cabinet.

HORI and Mad Catz are both listed as cooperation partners on the production, which suggests exactly the kind of peripheral close-ups that FGC fans will recognise from their own setups.

Young Ladies Don’t Play Fighting Games | Official Trailer — via Crunchyroll on YouTube

Cast and Crew

A character in a school uniform reacting emotionally in Young Ladies Don't Play Fighting Games
Image courtesy of Diomedéa / Crunchyroll

The adaptation is produced by Diomedéa (Himouto! Umaru-chan) and directed by Shōta Ihata, with series composition by Wataru Watari — the same writer behind My Teen Romantic Comedy SNAFU. Main cast:

  • Aya Mitsuki — Ikumi Hasegawa
  • Mio Yorue — Kana Ichinose
  • Yū Inui — Sayaka Senbongi
  • Tamaki Ichinose — Shino Shimoji

Crunchyroll screened a sneak-peek episode as part of its Anime Nights theatrical programme in June, ahead of the simulcast launch. Early viewer response has been largely positive, with advance coverage noting that the premiere episode delivers on its premise without overselling the drama.

On Crunchyroll from 7 July

An extreme amber-eye close-up from Young Ladies Don't Play Fighting Games conveying competitive intensity
Image courtesy of Diomedéa / Crunchyroll

Young Ladies Don’t Play Fighting Games begins simulcasting on Crunchyroll on 7 July 2026, day-and-date with the Japanese broadcast on AT-X, Tokyo MX, MBS, BS NTV, and NBC. Singapore Crunchyroll subscribers can watch on day one. It joins a strong summer 2026 anime lineup — and as the only show this season where actual competitive fighting game matches are woven into the main drama, it is a natural follow-on watch for anyone who has spent the past few days glued to EVO 2026.