To commemorate the 20th anniversary of Rilakkuma and his adorable friends, the Rilakkuma 20th Anniversary Cafe will open in Omotesando, Tokyo from March 9 until April 16, 2023. You’ll want to come and spend a peaceful time looking back at two decades of everyone’s favorite lazy bear!

The menu features colorful and festive dishes inspired by Rilakkuma, Korilakkuma, Kiiroitori, and Chairoikoguma. The characters express their thanks for 20 successful years, and fans can enjoy floats topped with Rilakkuma and friends wearing ribbons and topped with ice cream, a jelly soda inspired by Chairoikoguma and his friends in the honey forest, and a hot drink inspired by Rilakkuma’s favorite pudding.

Menu

Rilakkuma’s Honey Mustard Hamburger

コリラックマのクリームパスタ

Korilakkuma’s Cream Pasta

Kiiroitori’s Egg Burger

Chairoikoguma’s Cheese Curry　

Rilakkuma and Friend’s Celebratory Cake

Congratulatory Flower Parfait

You Can Choose♪ Rilakkuma and Friends Mini Ice Cream

You Can Choose♪ Rilakkuma and Friends Floats　

Honey Forest Jelly Soda

Relaxing Pudding Drink

Take-Out Drink Bottle

Original Merch

Acrylic Clip (7 varieties, random)

Acrylic Keychain (5 varieties, random)

Mini-Bottle / Muddler with Charm (4 varieties)

Lunch Tote / Drawstring Bag

Acrylic Stand with Clip / Cork Coaster

Stuffed Animal

In addition, the cafe will offer original goods, special offers, and a Twitter campaign to celebrate Rilakkuma’s 20th anniversary.

Come enjoy the elaborate original menu and goods while sharing memories at this limited time themed cafe!

©2023 San-X Co., Ltd. All Rights Reserved.

Netflix will begin streaming the sci-fi anime series Make My Day on February 2, 2023. The series is an adaptation of an original story by manga author Yasuo Ohtagaki, known for Moonlight Mile and Mobile Suit Gundam Thunderbolt. Shoji Kawamori, the mechanical designer on the Macross series, and Kiyotaka Oshiyama, known for his work on DEVILMAN Crybaby and Chainsaw Man, are acting as mechanical designers for the series.

The sci-fi action series follows a collection of characters on a tough mission across an icy planet where terrifying creatures suddenly appear to attack humans.

A gripping trailer and collection of screenshots have been revealed ahead of the series premiere. Fans can anticipate voicework by Masaomi Yamahashi (Jim), Ayahi Takagaki (Marnine), Kazuhiro Yamaji (Walter), and Akio Ohtsuka (Commander Bark).

Netflix has also announced that Atsuko Tanaka, known for her role as Motoko Kusanagi in the Ghost in the Shell series, will be playing the role of Cathy Beck, a government officer on the planet Coldfoot.

The writer of the series, Yasuo Ohtagaki, has stated that James Cameron’s Aliens was his inspiration for the work, remaking that the horror film challenged the 80s industry standard of splatter movies.

The snowy, ice-covered planet Coldfoot is home to a precious energy-rich ore called “Sig.” On the surface, the planet seems to be a crime-free utopia, but in reality, prisoners are used for back-breaking Sig mining. Jim, a young prison guard, rushes to the site of a sudden mining accident to find a mysterious creature attacking the humans.

In the trailer, Cathy explains that the planet’s atmosphere is poisonous and the surface is completely frozen. “This is a white hell that rejects living beings,” she continues. “Only those who are suicidal should consider escaping.”

When the swarm begins attacking with abandon, viewers are left asking one question: can people survive such a desperate situation? Walter claims that their actions have “opened up the cauldron of Hell,” and it’s hard to imagine so many different people coming together to combat something so terrifying and unknown.

“When crafting a story around the sudden appearance of monsters, I was constantly thinking about Aliens 2,” Ohtagaki commented. “It challenged the expectation that every sci-fi horror film in the 80s needed to be a splatter-fest.”

The series is a love letter to the science fiction genre. Cameron’s Aliens was far from his last mega-hit, with the current Avatar sequel making headlines around the world.

“When I was developing the story, I focused on not taking the viewer’s perspective off of Jim, the main character,” Ohtagaki continued. “I wanted people to become emotionally involved in this story by experiencing it through his eyes and ears. I was influenced by first-person action RPGs.”

To combat the swarm of monsters, humanity must rely on science and technology.

The eye-catching design of the mecha seen in the trailer is reminiscent of Mobile Suit Gundam Thunderbolt and Macross while also being more modern and realistic.

“Logical and realistic mecha design is my forte, and that’s the direction I wanted to take in this work,” said Ohtagaki. “In Mobile Suit Gundam Thunderbolt, we set the stage and carefully went through a creative process to find out what kind of human drama could evolve on that stage. We did the same thing here, creating Coldfoot and imagining what kinds of people might live there. That process makes things more realistic.” Will the mecha in this series be a help or a hindrance to humanity?

“Although this is a sci-fi monster tale, Make My Day is also about Jim’s growth as a person. In the process of battling through this terrible situation, he learns about friendship and love. He becomes stronger, he takes on more responsibility, and he creates his own family-like bonds,” Ohtagaki concludes.

Tune in to Make My Day when it premieres on Netflix early next month!

The popular Netflix animated series Aggretsuko will return to Netflix for Season 5 on February 16, 2023. Ahead of the show’s premiere, a new visual and trailer have been released.

Official Trailer

Aggretsuko follows a 25-year-old red panda named Retsuko who hates her job and is easily stressed. She only feels true peace while singing karaoke, where she transforms into a death metal star. The series originally launched on Netflix in 2018 and quickly became a global sensation.

Season 5 will be the final season of the series and will focus on the relationship between Retsuko and Haida following the events of the fourth season. Haida is now living a reclusive life and spending his free time playing games and hanging out online. On the other hand, Retsuko is trying to deal with her newfound fame and the many expectations people have of her. One day, a suspicious man who claims to be a member of the Diet comes to recruit Retsuko.

Be sure to tune in for the exciting conclusion!

To celebrate the release of the final season, the OTMGirls girls will perform at Sanrio Puroland.

The Seven Deadly Sins: Grudge of Edinburgh Part 1 will air on Netflix worldwide in December 2022. The new animated film was penned by the original series creator Nakaba Suzuki. The story will focus on Tristan, the son of the protagonist Meliodas, and his mother Elizabeth, and follows the previous two films The Seven Deadly Sins the Movie: Prisoners of the Sky in 2018 and The Seven Deadly Sins: Cursed By Light in 2021. 

The new main visual shows Tristan and his sidekicks as they prepare to take on their toughest enemies yet.

“I wanted to depict the story of King Arthur in my own way,” said original author Nakaba Suzuki. “This story couldn’t be told without the original The Seven Deadly Sins series.”

The Seven Deadly Sins takes place in an ancient time when humans, demons, goddesses, fairies, and giants all lived together. The original series was a prelude to an overarching story that Suzuki planned over many long years.

“I always wanted to create fantasy works, even back when I was a rookie,” Suzuki said. “I finally started The Seven Deadly Sins when I was finally at the level to do so, and this important piece of the story will fill the gap between the previous series and the currently-running Four Knights of the Apocalypse.” The creator also commented on the key visual for the film. “I wanted something cool, first and foremost. I’m happy with the finished product!”

The new film takes place 14 years after the events of the original series. Prince Tristan is tormented by his inability to control two great powers: the Demon Clan power of his father, Meliodas, and the Goddess Clan power of his mother, Elizabeth. When his mother’s life is threatened, Tristan flees the kingdom and heads toward Edinburgh, where Deathpierce,  once a member of a group of the kingdom’s Holy Knights, the Pleiades of the Azure Sky, maintains his castle.

Ayumu Murase and Mikako Komatsu will play the roles of Tristan as a young man and boy, respectively. Additional cast members include Yuuki Kaji as Meliodas, Sora Amamiya as Elizabeth, and Yohei Azakami as Deathpierce.

The Keio Plaza Hotel in Tokyo is celebrating Rilakkuma’s birthday in the sweetest way! The Strawberry Collection with Rilakkuma sweets buffet will be available from January 7 until March 31, 2023 at All-Day Dining Jurin on the hotel’s second floor. 

The most popular strawberry buffet will be back and better than ever in 2023. Sweets featuring Rilakkuma and his friends will be on full display, including strawberry tarts, tiramisu, and other strawberry-filled sweets. The lazy bear’s favorite pudding and pancakes will also be available along with soothing hot tea for the cold winter months. This will mark the first time that Rilakkuma’s sweets buffet will appear at a hotel.

Small tartlets featuring Korilakkuma and Kiiroitori will be too cute to eat, and Chairoikoguma will appear on cookie sandwiches.

The dessert plate will include gorgeous fondant chocolate with images of Rilakkuma and each of his friends to set the mood for the opening of the event.

The location itself will also be decked out in sweet decorations, with guests being welcomed at the door. Taking pictures is encouraged, so make a reservation today if you’re looking to impress on Instagram!

 ©2022 San-X Co., Ltd. All Rights Reserved.　

Fans of Gamera won’t want to miss this newly-produced film coming to Netflix worldwide! GAMERA -Rebirth- will be coming to the streaming service in 2023. The fictional monster first debuted in the 1965 film Gamera.

To commemorate the return of the mighty beast, two teaser visuals have been released ahead of the film.

Gamera stomped onto the scene in the 60s to compete with Godzilla and this new film looks incredibly promising. Will you be tuning in?

©2023 KADOKAWA/ GAMERA Rebirth Production committee

The Seven Deadly Sins: Grudge of Edinburgh Part 1 will air on Netflix worldwide on December 20, 2022. The new animated film was penned by the original series creator Nakaba Suzuki.

The story will focus on Tristan, the son of the protagonist Meliodas, and his mother Elizabeth. Cast members include Yuuki Kaji as Meliodas, Mikako Komatsu as young Tristan, and Ayumu Murase as teenage Tristan. Sora Amamiya will portray Elizabeth and Yohei Azakami will play Deathpierce.

The new trailer shows off the exciting new story and previews SawanoHiroyuki[nZk]:XAI’s theme song Lemonade. The Seven Deadly Sins takes place in an ancient time when humans, demons, goddesses, fairies, and giants all lived together.

In the new film, Tristan inherits the power of the Goddess Clan and with it, the ability to heal people’s wounds, but he often ends up hurting others due to his inability to control his Demon Clan power. To protect his family, Tristan heads to Edinburgh Castle and meets a ton of new friends along the way. The movie takes place 14 years after Meliodas restores peace to the world in the anime series.

The Seven Deadly Sins: Grunge of Edinburgh Part 1 Trailer

http://youtu.be/gH_VSILse-0

The theme song Lemonade is both peppy and emotional. Hiroyuki Sawano created the song as part of his vocal project SawanoHiroyuki[nZk], teaming up with up-and-coming artist XAI.

This song will be included in the first SawanoHiroyuki[nZk] album coming out on January 18, 2023, the first in two years. XAI’s incredible voice has previously been featured in the GODZILLA animated trilogy of films.

|The upcoming film will connect The Seven Deadly Sins and the currently running sequel Four Knights of the Apocalypse currently running in Weekly Shonen Magazine.

Comment from Hiroyuki Sawano

“I’ve been involved with The Seven Deadly Sins since the anime began in 2014, through all of the movies and sequels. I’m so happy to be able to create the theme song for Grunge of Edinburgh as SawanoHiroyuki[nZk].

This time, I worked with the vocalist XAI. Her expressive, emotional, and powerful voice took the song to another level. It was something beyond my imagination! I hope that you’ll enjoy the track along with this new story from the world of The Seven Deadly Sins.”

Comment from XAI

“I’m so happy to perform the theme song for The Seven Deadly Sins, a series that is loved by so many people.

The characters in the series are so incredible. No matter what sins we carry, as long as we have friends by our side, we can’t give up and we can always better ourselves. Lemonade is sure to fuel your sense of adventure, so I hope you’ll enjoy it!”

The anime adaptation of the Romantic Killer manga series will begin streaming on Netflix worldwide on October 27, 2022. The hyped series follows Anzu Hoshino, played by Rie Takahashi, a high school girl who just wants to play video games and who doesn’t care about fashion or love.

Main voice actress Rie Takahashi sat down to discuss the series and Anzu’s appeal in a new in-depth interview available to watch on YouTube.

Anzu’s facial expressions vary wildly in the series, giving Takahashi a tough time. “Having been a voice actress for years now, I reached into my bag of tricks to try to find the best tone for each of her wild expressions,” she said. Despite the character’s hardships, she proves herself to be a dependable heroine as well. “Even in the worst situations, she says what she needs to say when she needs to say it. I love that about her!” 

Takahashi is known for having played a number of high-profile roles in anime, such as Emilia in Re:Zero, Ena Saitou in Laid Back Camp, and Megumin in KonoSuba. “I thought this was going to be a cutesy love story since the word ‘Romantic’ is in the title, but it turned out to be way funnier than I could have expected,” she said. “Anzu knows what she wants and doesn’t back down. That’s such a cool characteristic to have.” 

“We recorded lines early in the morning, so Gakuto Kajiwara and I would get coffee. We needed it to do our best,” Takahashi explained. The actor plays Anzu’s childhood friend who gets caught up in the love story. 

“Mikako Komatsu plays the wizard Riri, and she and I had so many difficult lines together, but we made it work,” Takahashi said with a laugh.

Anzu’s appeal lies in the bonds she creates with those around her. This is something that Takahashi noticed when she read the original manga series. “I was trying to read the entire thing and I just started crying…that’s what the ending will do to you! I didn’t expect it, and I absolutely loved what the manga emphasizes. I was happy to understand Anzu’s personality on a deeper level.”

“I did my best to express the emotion found in the original manga series through my voice,” said Takahashi. Be sure to tune into this slapstick coming-of-age romantic comedy, streaming now on Netflix worldwide!

(C) 百世渡／集英社 (C)Netflix

The anime adaptation of the Romantic Killer manga series will begin streaming on Netflix worldwide on October 27, 2022. The series follows Anzu Hoshino, played by Rie Takahashi, a high school girl who just wants to play video games and who doesn’t care about fashion or love. A wizard named Riri, played by Mikako Komatsu, suddenly appears to force Anzu to fall in love.

Anzu then meets three handsome guys: Tsukasa Kazuki (played by Yuichiro Umehara), the most handsome guy at school, Junta Hayami (played by Gakuto Kajiwara), a baseball ace and Anzu’s childhood friend, and Hijiri Koganei (played by Natsuki Hanae), a rich dreamboat. A new clip from the series has just been released, showing Kyoko’s attempt to avoid anything lovey-dovey at every turn.

The first person Anzu meets is Tsukasa, played by Yuichiro Umehara, who is fed up with love after being pursued by countless girls since he was young. The actor is also known for his work as Weather Report in JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Stone Ocean. As it begins to rain, the handsome gentleman holds out an umbrella for Anzu, who obviously refuses. 

Next is Junta, played by Gakuto Kajiwara, known for his work as Asta in Black Clover. Anzu’s childhood friend, he looks completely different as an adult, totally taking the heroine off guard. 

Finally, Anzu meets Hijiri Koganei. Fans will recognize the voice actor as Natsuki Hanae, who previously played Tanjiro Kamado in Demon Slayer. As he and Anzu enjoy ice cream from the convenience store, Hijiri smiles, noting that although the snack is cheap, it doesn’t taste bad. Saying it in such a sweet way, Anzu almost lets her guard down–but quickly smacks herself to stop any romantic feelings from welling up. 

On November 12, Rie Takahashi and Yuichiro Umehara will appear at a stage event to commemorate the start of the series and to talk about its setting and characters in-depth.

Be sure to tune into this slapstick coming-of-age romantic comedy when it airs globally later this month!

(C) 百世渡／集英社 (C)Netflix

The Seven Deadly Sins: Grudge of Edinburgh Part 1 will air on Netflix worldwide in December 2022. The new animated film was penned by the original series creator Nakaba Suzuki.

The story will focus on Tristan, the son of the protagonist Meliodas, and his mother Elizabeth. This third film follows The Seven Deadly Sins the Movie: Prisoners of the Sky in 2018 and The Seven Deadly Sins: Cursed By Light in 2021. 

Recently, it was announced that Ayumu Murase and Mikako Komatsu would play the roles of Tristan as a young man and boy, respectively. Familiar members of the cast, including Yuki Kaji as Meliodas, will also appear!

The new cast will also include Koki Uchiyama as Fairy and Kazuyuki Okitsu as Priest. Yohei Azakami will return as Deathpierce, while Shinnosuke Tokudome will play Tyrone, Shino Shimoji will play Kurumiru, and Makoto Koichi will play Minika. Be sure to tune in this December!

Maholova Minds Miura, a hot spring resort on the Miura Peninsula in Kanagawa Prefecture, celebrated its 30th anniversary in June 2022. Royal Salon Yamato, a popular spot for coffee and parties since its opening, was transformed into the Rita Cafe this summer.

On September 23, Rita Cafe will begin selling its own original cream soda!

Rilakkuma’s Miura Ocean Cream Soda / Korilakkuma’s Watermelon Cream Soda

Rilakkuma Room (Bedroom/Living Room)

To celebrate the special Rilakkuma room and Korilakkuma room, guests can enjoy two new drinks: Rilakkuma’s Miura Ocean Cream Soda and Korilakkuma’s Watermelon Cream Soda. The rooms aren’t too easy to book, but even if you can’t, at least you can see plenty of adorable pictures on social media!

The anime adaptation of the Romantic Killer manga series will begin streaming on Netflix worldwide on October 27, 2022. The series follows Anzu Hoshino, played by Rie Takahashi, a high school girl who just wants to play video games and who doesn’t care about fashion or love. A wizard named Riri, played by Mikako Komatsu, suddenly appears to force Anzu to fall in love. 

Anzu then meets three handsome guys: Tsukasa Kazuki, the most handsome guy at school, Junta Hayami, a baseball ace and Anzu’s childhood friend, and Hijiri Koganei, a rich dreamboat. Check out the trailer for the upcoming series below.

Official Goods

In the new trailer, we see the three men approaching Anzu, who declares her lack of interest in dating and romance. At first glance, the series seems like a simple genderswap of typical shojo tropes, but Romantic Killer offers more than that, with more hilarious secrets in store for viewers. Will Anzu be able to regain her lazy life, or will she really find herself smitten by one of these suitable bachelors?

When Riri tries to force Anzu into a romantic relationship, things don’t go smoothly. The first person Anzu meets is Tsukasa, played by Yuichiro Umehara, who is fed up with love after being pursued by countless girls since he was young.

Next, she meets Junta Hayami, a star baseball ace and childhood friend played by Gakuto Kajiwara.

Finally, Anzu meets Hijiri Koganei, a wealthy scion who thinks that every woman is in love with him. Fans will recognize his voice actor as Natsuki Hanae, who previously played Tanjiro Kamado in Demon Slayer.

Other voice talents appearing in the series include Kenjiro Tsuda as Tsuchiya, Hijiri’s butler, Manaka Iwami as Saki, Anzu’s best friend, and Hiro Shimono as Manato, Tsukasa’s closest buddy.

The ending theme is titled Romantic Love ~Won’t You Fall in Love?☆~, and is performed by Riri’s voice actress Mikako Komatsu.

Be sure to tune in to this slapstick romantic comedy next month!

(C) 百世渡／集英社 (C)Netflix