Black Torch Anime Premieres July 4 on Crunchyroll

The Black Torch anime premieres on July 4, 2026, the series' official accounts have confirmed, airing at 22:00 on Tokyo MX and other Japanese networks and streaming on Crunchyroll. The adaptation brings Tsuyoshi Takaki's supernatural action manga to screen years after the original series ended.

A manga returns as an anime

Black Torch began as a manga written and illustrated by Tsuyoshi Takaki, who is credited on the series in our catalog. According to Wikipedia, it was serialized in Shueisha's Jump Square from late 2016 before moving to the digital Shonen Jump+ platform and concluding in 2018 across five volumes. The series later earned recognition abroad, ranking on the Young Adult Library Services Association's Top 10 Graphic Novels for Teens in 2019. Viz Media, which announced the adaptation, has licensed the series in English.

What it's about

The story follows Jiro Azuma, a young man who can communicate with animals and whose life changes after he merges with a mysterious stray cat named Rago. As reported by Wikipedia and Final Weapon, the fusion grants Jiro new power and draws him into a hidden war between humanity and supernatural spirits known as mononoke.

The production

According to Final Weapon, the anime is produced by 100studio and directed by Kei Umabiki, with series composition by Gigaemon Ichikawa, character designs by Go Suzuki, and music by Yutaka Yamada. The Japanese cast revealed by the official anime account includes Ryota Suzuki as Jiro Azuma, Yoji Ueda as Rago, Saya Senbongi as Ichika Kishimojin, and Junya Enoki as Reiji Kirihara. The opening theme "Freeze Me Up" is performed by SiM and the ending theme "Groooovy" by I Don't Like Mondays, per Wikipedia.

Where to watch

The official English account confirmed the July 4 Crunchyroll release, and AJ Beckles is set to voice Jiro Azuma in the English dub. Final Weapon reports that Crunchyroll will stream the series worldwide excluding Asia, where Muse Communication holds the license for South and Southeast Asia.