The anime adapts Tsuyoshi Takaki’s manga.
It was announced in December 2025 that Viz Media’s new anime adaptation of the “BLACK TORCH” manga will air in July 2026. Crunchyroll has now confirmed that the series will stream on their platform when it airs. However, the series will only stream on Crunchyroll in North America, Central America, South America, Europe, Africa, Oceania, the Middle East and CIS.
BLACK TORCH anime details
The anime will debut in July, but we still don’t know all the global streaming details. The cast of the series includes:
- Ryōta Suzuki as Jiro Azuma
- Yōji Ueda as Rago
- Sayaka Senbongi as Ichika Kishimojin
- Junya Enoki as Reiji Kirihara
- Reina Ueda as Hana Usami
- Junichi Suwabe as Ryosuke Shiba
Kei Umabiki directs the anime at 100 Studio, with Gō Suzuki as the character designer. Gigaemon Ichikawa is the script writer and supervisor, while Yutaka Yamada composes the music.
The BLACK TORCH anime is based on Tsuyoshi Takaki’s manga which began publishing in Shueisha’s Jump Square manga in 2016 and was cancelled after 5 volumes in 2018. Fans were understandably surprised and delighted when the anime adaptation was first announced last March. Viz Media publishes the manga in English and describes the story as:
Although he may appear rough-and-tumble, Jiro Azuma’s compassionate side emerges when it comes to the furry critters he can communicate with. But Jiro's soft spot for animals gets him in major trouble when a suspicious stray cat fuses with him, granting him exceptional power but also dragging him into humanity's hidden battle against powerful Japanese spirits, mononoke.