''Beastars'' (stylized in

all caps In typography, text or font in all caps (short for "all capitals") contains capital letters without any lowercase letters. For example: All-caps text can be seen in legal documents, advertisements, newspaper headlines, and the titles on book co ...

) is a Japanese

manga are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long history in earlier Japanese art. The term is used in Japan to refer to both comics ...

series written and illustrated by Paru Itagaki. It was serialized in

Akita Shoten is a Japanese publishing company headquartered in Chiyoda, Tokyo. It was founded by Teio Akita in 1948. As of May 2023, the company's president is Shigeru Higuchi. The company is known for publishing the manga magazine '' Weekly Shōnen Champ ...

's manga magazine ''

Weekly Shōnen Champion is a Japanese Shōnen manga, ''shōnen'' manga magazine published by Akita Shoten. History ''Shōnen Champion'' was first published on July 15, 1969. It has had numerous popular series by manga artists such as Osamu Tezuka, Go Nagai, Shinji Miz ...

'' from September 2016 to October 2020, with its chapters collected in 22 volumes. The manga is licensed for English release in North America by

Viz Media Viz Media, LLC is an American entertainment company headquartered in San Francisco, California, focused on publishing manga, and distribution and licensing Japanese anime, films, and television series. The company was founded in 1986 as Viz, ...

. The story takes place in a modern world of civilized, anthropomorphic animals with a cultural divide between

carnivore A carnivore , or meat-eater (Latin, ''caro'', genitive ''carnis'', meaning meat or "flesh" and ''vorare'' meaning "to devour"), is an animal or plant Plants are the eukaryotes that form the Kingdom (biology), kingdom Plantae; they ar ...

s and

herbivore A herbivore is an animal anatomically and physiologically evolved to feed on plants, especially upon vascular tissues such as foliage, fruits or seeds, as the main component of its diet. These more broadly also encompass animals that eat ...

s, and where eating meat (which always comes from other anthropomorphic animals) is strictly illegal. ''Beastars'' is set in the same universe as '' Beast Complex'', another manga of Itagaki that originally served as ''Beastars predecessor. An

anime is a Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, , in Japan and in Ja ...

television series adaptation produced by Orange aired from October to December 2019 on

Fuji TV JOCX-DTV (channel 8), branded as or , is a Japanese television station that serves the Kantō region as the flagship (broadcasting), flagship station of the Fuji News Network (FNN) and the Fuji Network System (FNS). The station is owned-and- ...

's +Ultra programming block. A second season aired from January to March 2021. The first half of the third and final season premiered in December 2024. The anime series is licensed by

Netflix Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...

. The first season premiered outside of Japan in March 2020, and the second in July 2021. By October 2021, the manga had over 7.5 million copies in circulation. ''Beastars'' won multiple awards in 2018, including the 11th

Manga Taishō The is a Japanese List of comics awards, comics award recognizing achievement in manga. It is awarded annually to a manga series published in the previous calendar year of eight or fewer Tankōbon, collected volumes in length. The Manga Taish� ...

, being the first Akita Shoten title to receive it, the New Creator Prize at the 22nd

Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize Named after Osamu Tezuka, the is a yearly manga prize awarded to manga artists or their works that follow the Osamu Tezuka manga approach founded and sponsored by Asahi Shimbun. The prize has been awarded since 1997, in Tokyo, Japan. Current ...

, the 42nd Kodansha Manga Award in the category, and the New Face Award at the 21st Japan Media Arts Festival.

Plot

In a modern and civilized world populated by anthropomorphic animals, there is a cultural divide between the herbivorous animals and the carnivorous animals. Legoshi, a large

gray wolf The wolf (''Canis lupus''; : wolves), also known as the grey wolf or gray wolf, is a canine native to Eurasia and North America. More than thirty subspecies of ''Canis lupus'' have been recognized, including the dog and dingo, though gr ...

, is a timid and quiet student of Cherryton Academy where he lives in a dorm with several other carnivorous students including his outgoing

Labrador Labrador () is a geographic and cultural region within the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. It is the primarily continental portion of the province and constitutes 71% of the province's area but is home to only 6% of its populatio ...

friend, Jack. As a member of the school's drama club, Legoshi works as a stagehand and supports the actors of the club headed by the star pupil Louis, a

red deer The red deer (''Cervus elaphus'') is one of the largest deer species. A male red deer is called a stag or Hart (deer), hart, and a female is called a doe or hind. The red deer inhabits most of Europe, the Caucasus Mountains region, Anatolia, Ir ...

. Out of nowhere, Tem the

alpaca The alpaca (''Lama pacos'') is a species of South American camelid mammal. Traditionally, alpacas were kept in herds that grazed on the level heights of the Andes of Southern Peru, Western Bolivia, Ecuador, and Northern Chile. More recentl ...

is brutally murdered and devoured in the night, setting off a wave of unease and distrust between the herbivore and carnivore students. At the same time, Legoshi has a fateful encounter with Haru, a dwarf rabbit who has been in love with Louis, and begins developing complex feelings for her.

Media

Manga

''Beastars'', written and illustrated by Paru Itagaki, was serialized for 196 chapters in

's manga magazine ''

'' from September 8, 2016, to October 8, 2020. Its chapters were collected in 22 individual volumes, released from January 6, 2017, to January 8, 2021. During their panel at

Anime NYC Anime NYC is an annual four-day anime convention held during August at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center in New York City. Programming The convention typically offers arcade games, an artist alley, concerts, manga library (Carolina Manga Li ...

2018,

announced that they have licensed the manga. The first volume was released on July 16, 2019, and the last on January 17, 2023.

Anime

In February 2019, it was announced that ''Beastars'' would get an

television series adaptation animated by CG studio Orange. Shin'ichi Matsumi directed the series, with Nanami Higuchi handling series composition, Nao Ootsu designing the characters, and Satoru Kōsaki composing the series' music. The series aired from October 10 to December 26, 2019, and aired on

's +Ultra anime programming block and other channels. At the conclusion of the TV broadcast, a second season was announced. Animation studio Orange returned to produce the second season, which aired from January 7 to March 25, 2021. On July 20, 2021, studio Orange and Netflix Japan announced that the anime series would be receiving a third season. On December 7, 2021, Studio Orange announced that the continuation would be the final season. The final season will be split into two cours, with the first part premiered worldwide on December 5, 2024. The opening song for the first season is " Wild Side", performed by ALI, while the ending theme songs, performed by Yurika are "Le zoo" (episodes 2, 5, 8 and 9), "Sleeping instinct" (episodes 3, 7 and 10), "Marble" (episodes 4, 6 and 11) and "Floating Story on the Moon" (episodes 12). The opening song for the second season is and the ending theme song is ; both songs are performed by

Yoasobi Yoasobi is a Japanese pop duo formed in 2019. It consists of musician and record producer Ayase (music producer), Ayase and singer-songwriter Lilas Ikuta, under the moniker Ikura. With the slogan "novel into music", the duo originally released Y ...

. The opening theme for the first part of the third season is "Into the World", performed by Satoru Kōsaki and Issei, while the ending theme is "Feel Like This" by . Season 1 of ''Beastars'' was released on March 13, 2020, on

outside of Japan. Its second season was released on the streaming service on July 15, 2021.

Stage play

On December 4, 2019, the first 2020 magazine issue of ''Weekly Shōnen Champion'' announced that a stage

play Play most commonly refers to: * Play (activity), an activity done for enjoyment * Play (theatre), a work of drama Play may refer also to: Computers and technology * Google Play, a digital content service * Play Framework, a Java framework * P ...

based on the manga was in development. It was originally scheduled for an April 2020 debut running through May in

Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...

and

Osaka is a Cities designated by government ordinance of Japan, designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the List of cities in Japan, third-most populous city in J ...

. In late March 2020, it was announced that the play has been cancelled due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

. A stage reading musical adaptation was held in September 2024.

Reception

Manga

By October 2021, ''Beastars'' had over 7.5 million copies in circulation. In December 2017, the series placed second in the list of top male-targeted manga for 2018 in the ''

Kono Manga ga Sugoi! is an annual reference mook series published by Takarajimasha since 2005 featuring yearly rankings and reviews of manga. The rankings are compiled by surveying professionals in the manga and publishing industry. The first two years saw two s ...

'' guidebook, placing after '' The Promised Neverland''. The series won the 11th annual

in March 2018, the first time a series from

took the award. In April 2018, it won the New Creator Prize at the 22nd

s. In May 2018, it won the 42nd annual Kodansha Manga Awards in the category. It also won a New Face Award at the 21st Japan Media Arts Festival Awards in March 2018. The series won the "Shōnen Tournament 2019" by the editorial staff of the French website ''Manga-News''. It was nominated for the Best U.S. Edition of International Material—Asia at the 2020

Eisner Award The Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards, commonly shortened to the Eisner Awards, are awards for creative achievement in American comic books. They are regarded as the most prestigious and significant awards in the comic industry and often referred ...

. ''Beastars'' won the Best Graphic Story and Best Dramatic Series in the Ursa Major Award. The Ursa Major awards are given in the field of

furry fandom The furry fandom is a subculture interested in Anthropomorphism, anthropomorphic animal characters. Some examples of anthropomorphic attributes include exhibiting human intelligence and facial expressions, speaking, walking on two legs, and weari ...

works and are the main awards in the field of

anthropomorphism Anthropomorphism is the attribution of human traits, emotions, or intentions to non-human entities. It is considered to be an innate tendency of human psychology. Personification is the related attribution of human form and characteristics t ...

. The manga was chosen as one of the Best Manga at the

Comic-Con International San Diego Comic-Con is a comic book convention and multi-genre entertainment event held annually in San Diego, California, at the San Diego Convention Center. Founded in 1970, originally showcasing primarily comic books and science fiction/fant ...

Best & Worst Manga of 2019. It was one of the Jury Recommended Works for the French 13th ACBD's Prix Asie de la Critique 2019. ''Beastars'' was nominated for the 53rd

Seiun Award The is a Japanese speculative fiction award given each year for the best science fiction works and achievements during the previous calendar year. Organized and overseen by , the awards are given at the annual Nihon SF Taikai, Japan Science Fic ...

in the Best Comic category in 2022.

Anime

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review aggregator, review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee ...

, the show holds an approval rating of 94%, based on 18 reviews, with an average rating of 8.1/10. The website's critical consensus reads: "Well-made and beautifully animated, ''Beastars'' is a solid new anime for anyone looking to get a little wild." In 2020, the series was part of the Jury Selections at the 23rd Japan Media Arts Festival in the Animation category. ''Beastars'' won a CGWORLD Award in the Computer Animation category. It won the 26th Spanish Manga Barcelona award for the Best Anime category in 2020. The anime series was awarded the "Best Opening Sequence" and was nominated in 8 other categories including " Anime of the Year" in the 5th Crunchyroll Anime Awards, while the second season was nominated in three categories in the 6th Crunchyroll Anime Awards in 2022.

Notes

References

External links

* * * at

* at

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