2026 is already looking like one of those years where your queue becomes a full-time job. January alone drops sequels for Jujutsu Kaisen and Frieren: Beyond Journey's End, plus a Fate entry and the final stretch of Fire Force. And that is just winter. The catch: anime dates love to move around without warning, and big titles can appear out of thin air or quietly vanish from a schedule. So I pulled everything together into one clean list and flagged what is actually dated, what is seasonal, and what is simply circling the runway for later in the year.
Quick lay of the land: like usual, Japan splits the calendar into four seasons — winter (Jan-Mar), spring (Apr-Jun), summer (Jul-Sep), and fall (Oct-Dec). The winter slate is stuffed, spring has some heavy hitters (One Piece slows down, more on that below), summer warms up with new adaptations, and fall brings back The Apothecary Diaries and sets up its first movie. There are also some big question marks waiting in the wings: JoJo's Steel Ball Run, a new Ghost in the Shell, and a hand-drawn Sekiro series among them.
What is coming when
- [Ongoing] Case Closed: Detective Conan - ongoing
- [Winter] Fate/strange Fake - January 3, 2026
- [Winter] Sentenced to Be a Hero - January 3, 2026
- [Winter] Golden Kamuy Final Season - January 4, 2026
- [Winter] My Hero Academia: Vigilantes season 2 - January 5, 2026
- [Winter] Jujutsu Kaisen season 3 - January 8, 2026
- [Winter] Fire Force season 3, part 2 - January 9, 2026
- [Winter] Trigun Stargaze - January 10, 2026
- [Winter] Hell's Paradise season 2 - January 11, 2026
- [Winter] Oshi no Ko season 3 - January 14, 2026
- [Winter] Frieren: Beyond Journey's End season 2 - January 16, 2026
- [Spring] One Piece: Elbaph Arc - April 2026
- [Spring] Re:Zero - Starting Life in Another World season 4 - April 2026
- [Spring] The Beginning After the End season 2 - April 2026
- [Spring] Wistoria: Wand and Sword season 2 - April 2026
- [Spring] Witch Hat Atelier - April 2026
- [Spring] Devil May Cry season 2 - May 12, 2026
- [Summer] Black Torch - July 2026
- [Summer] The Detective is Already Dead season 2 - July 2026
- [Fall] The Apothecary Diaries season 3 - October 2026
- [Fall] Blue Box season 2 - Fall 2026
- [Fall] The Apothecary Diaries movie - December 2026
- [TBA 2026] Beastars season 3, part 2 - TBA 2026
- [TBA 2026] Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War: The Calamity - TBA 2026
- [TBA 2026] Dr. Stone Science Future part 3 - TBA 2026
- [TBA 2026] JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Steel Ball Run - TBA 2026
- [TBA 2026] Sekiro: No Defeat - TBA 2026
- [TBA 2026] The Ghost in the Shell - TBA 2026
- [TBA 2026] Tokyo Revengers: War of the Three Titans - TBA 2026
- [TBA] Cyberpunk: Edgerunners season 2 - TBA
- [TBA] Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle 2 - TBA
- [TBA] Haikyuu VS The Little Giant - TBA
- [TBA] Vinland Saga season 3 - TBA
The fun stuff worth calling out
Winter comes in hot
January is borderline ridiculous. Jujutsu Kaisen season 3 launches the Culling Game arc on January 8 — think battle royale with sorcerers and the kind of gnarly body count that made the Shibuya Incident so stressful. There is even a compilation movie, 'Jujutsu Kaisen: Execution', that has already teased what is coming. The same window gives you Frieren: Beyond Journey's End season 2 on January 16. Season 1 climbed to the top of MyAnimeList for a reason, and the new arc keeps Frieren, Fern, and Stark trekking north toward Himmel's resting place. If the manga is any indication, we might finally get clarity on how Frieren's party took down the Demon King.
Also in January: Fire Force season 3, part 2 wraps up the series, Fate jumps back in with 'Fate/strange Fake' on January 3, and Trigun returns with 'Trigun Stargaze'. Vigilantes is back too — My Hero Academia's spin-off kicks off season 2 on January 5 — plus Hell's Paradise season 2, Oshi no Ko season 3, Golden Kamuy's final lap, and yes, Detective Conan keeps trucking along as always.
One Piece is changing its pace
The Elbaph Arc lands in April, but the bigger story is the release strategy: in 2026, One Piece caps at a maximum of 26 episodes, split into two cours. Translation: fewer episodes overall this year, in two batches, with less filler and less wheel-spinning between big moments. Honestly, that sounds like the right call.
Apothecary Diaries doubles up
The little court-intrigue series that could turned into a mini-sensation last season, and it is back fast: The Apothecary Diaries season 3 arrives in October with an original movie following in December. Where to watch is still TBA, but if you are in on Maomao's palace problems, your fall is booked.
Devil May Cry keeps the momentum
Dante returns May 12 with Devil May Cry season 2. Consider this the year's early summer action snack between the spring and summer waves.
JoJo's Steel Ball Run is the big wild card
No date yet beyond 2026, but Steel Ball Run is the next JoJo's saga and it is... a lot, even for JoJo's. Picture a 19th-century cross-country horse race, a paraplegic jockey named Johnny Joestar, and Gyro Zepelli, a former executioner, teaming up to chase a 50 million dollar prize. Then layer in a conspiracy reaching the President of the United States and a relic with links to Jesus Christ. Stone Ocean reset the universe; this one might try to outdo it.
Sekiro goes fully hand-drawn
Sekiro: No Defeat is a series take on FromSoftware's stealth-action classic and it is being billed as fully hand-drawn. The creators also addressed the elephant in the room: no AI shortcuts here. Director Kenichi Kutsuna put it like this when the show was announced in August 2025:
"The final product is being crafted to be a truly memorable experience, one that will leave a lasting impression on both dedicated fans of the game and those who are discovering the world of Sekiro for the very first time."
Between this and the Death Stranding anime, game adaptations are having a moment. Emotionally, I am already bracing to face the Guardian Ape again. Physically, I am not ready.
Ghost in the Shell is back with a new studio
Announced last April and easy to miss if you blinked, a new Ghost in the Shell series is on the way in 2026. Science Saru is handling it, and early word suggests it is based on the original manga. That combo alone is enough to keep expectations high.
Other notables around the calendar
Spring is stacked even beyond One Piece: Re:Zero - Starting Life in Another World season 4, Witch Hat Atelier finally steps out of the concept art and into the real thing, Wistoria: Wand and Sword returns, and The Beginning After the End season 2 joins the party. Summer brings new adaptation Black Torch and The Detective is Already Dead season 2. Fall stays busy with Blue Box season 2 alongside Apothecary Diaries.
Where to watch (what we know right now)
- Frieren: Beyond Journey's End season 2 streams on Crunchyroll starting January 16
- Jujutsu Kaisen season 3 streams on Crunchyroll starting January 8
- My Hero Academia: Vigilantes season 2 streams on Crunchyroll starting January 5
- One Piece: Elbaph Arc streams on Crunchyroll and Netflix starting April 2026
- JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Steel Ball Run is set for Netflix (date TBA)
- The Apothecary Diaries season 3 and movie: platforms TBA
- Sekiro: No Defeat: platform TBA
- The Ghost in the Shell: platform TBA
Heads up on streaming
Crunchyroll makes it pretty painless to jump in wherever you live, and new users still get a 14-day free trial. If you are sampling winter shows or catching up before spring, that trial window goes a long way.
One last note
Schedules shift. Windows change. Shows get delayed. It happens every year. I will keep this updated as dates firm up, but if something drops early or slides a month, do not be shocked — that is just how anime likes to roll.