An eighth new kaiju showcase visual has been unveiled for the Kaiju No. 8 TV anime series, spotlighting the annual Setsubun holiday marking the day before the beginning of spring.
The new visual features Soshiro Hoshina, wearing a red kaiju mask, being pelted with beans by Iharu Furuhashi and Reno Ichikawa, as is tradition in every Setsubun.
The second season of Kaiju No.8 is expected to begin airing in Japan sometime in July 2025. A compilation film of the series’ first season will debut in Japanese theaters on March 28, 2025 in a limited 3-week, 32-theater release period. The screening will also include the “Hoshina’s Day Off” OVA episode.
Several staff members are returning to direct season two, which include Shigeyuki Miya (Afterlost, The Kawai Complex Guide to Manors and Hostel Behavior) as director, Yuichiro Kido (Dr. Stone New World) as screenwriter and scriptwriter, Tetsuya Nishio (Naruto, Vampire in the Garden) as character designer and chief animation director, Mahiro Maeda (SSSS.GRIDMAN, Evangelion 3.0+1.0 co-director and concept art director et al.) as kaiju designer, and Yuta Bando (Belle co-composer) as music composer.
Other staff include Studio Khara as kaiju supervisor (design and artwork), Izumi Hirose (Tengoku-Daimakyo) as color designer, and Shinji Kimura (Children of the Sea, Blood Blockade Battlefront) as art director. Production I.G is in charge of the animation production.
The first season of Kaiju No. 8 was streamed weekly on Crunchyroll, Twitter/X , and iQIYI outside of Japan in select territories. Crunchyroll streamed new episodes of the anime live weekly in more than 200 countries and territories worldwide, simultaneously with the Japanese broadcasts.
Naoya Matsumoto’s original action manga first debuted in Shueisha’s Shonen Jump+ online website on July 3, 2020. Fourteen tankobon volumes have been released as of November 2024, with a 15th volume set for release on March 4, 2025. VIZ Media licensed the manga series for release in English.
The manga has also inspired spinoffs titles such as Kaiju No.8: B-Side and Kaiju No. 8 Relax. A four-chapter side-story light novel written by Keiji Ando was also released on November 4, 2022.
VIZ Media describes the main synopsis of Kaiju No. 8 as:
Kafka hopes to one day keep his pact with his childhood friend Mina to join the Japan Defense Force and fight by her side. But while she’s out neutralizing kaiju as Third Division captain, Kafka is stuck cleaning up the aftermath of her battles. When a sudden rule change makes Kafka eligible for the Defense Force, he decides to try out for the squad once more. There’s just one problem — he’s made the Defense Force’s neutralization list under the code name Kaiju No. 8.
