Anime Expo 2024: The Ultimate Celebration of Anime and Manga

This year's Anime Expo, held from July 4th to July 7th at the Los Angeles Convention Center, proved once again why it’s the ultimate event for anime and manga enthusiasts worldwide. Anime Expo 2024 was a four-day extravaganza packed with exciting announcements, exclusive premieres, and a vibrant community of fans.

There were, of course, more screenings and panels than anyone could see on their own, but here are some of the highlights:

ytv animation, the new offshoot of Yomiuri Telecasting Corporation, premiered the first episode of Blue Miburo–their adaptation of the manga The Blue Wolves of Mibu. Their description of the story:

In the final days of the Shogunate in Kyoto, there is a boy named Nio who loves his grandmother and never stops smiling.

His fate is set in motion when he meets Toshizo Hijikata and Soji Okita of a group of sinister swordsmen known as the Mibu Roshigumi, or Miburo for short.

“I want to be strong, too. I want to change the world.”

Joining Miburo at the same as Nio are the boys Taro and Hajime.

In the brutal city of Kyoto, the three boys passionately dedicate their lives to creating a better world alongside the tough, skilled ruffians of Miburo!

“I fight for my justice!” Despite different upbringings and aspirations, they charge through their tumultuous youth in this new Shinsengumi tale for a new era.

In the first episode, we get to see one of the main characters of the series as he suffers through the violence of the Bakumatsu period and ultimately joins up with the Miburo–the group that is the precursor to the infamous Shinsengumi group. It’s a fresh look at an era that doesn’t get as much play in the US as, say, the Sengoku period, particularly as it is seen through the viewpoint of a child.

In a following panel, the show’s creator and producer talked briefly about the care they took to find voice talent that could handle the swings from comedy to drama in the series, and that was reflected in both the wonderful voice acting and the slightly uneven tone of the script. The character design and the animation are a little rough at times but the setting gives a convincing impression of 1860s Kyoto, showing the attention the creators took to make it look historically accurate. How will a young boy survive the tough life in an unpopular armed force? Who is the elderly narrator recounting the tale in the beginning framework? We will have to wait until the show’s broadcast premiere in October to find out.

In the evening, HIDIVE premiered one of its upcoming shows Plus-Sized Elf. Their synopsis:

Naoe-kun, a massage therapist, is about to head home for the day when he's saddled with a rather strange patient. This lovely lady has emerald eyes, pointy ears, and grew up in the forest—everything about her screams "elf," except for one thing: her bodacious body. It turns out she left her world but loves junk food in this one, and now her obsession has caught up with her. Can Naoe-kun help this loveable elf girl lose the weight—and keep it off?

This was a slightly odd one–the story of the rotund elf who suffers from a french fry addition was a trifle risque as periodically her girth overcame the tensile strength of her clothing, but then the second half was basically an exercise video with the massage therapist demonstrating various movements with the complaining elf. The slapstick-y voyeur nature of the comedy isn’t going to give it universal appeal, but if you’re looking for a new workout routine, this could be something to check out.

Frontier Works (who earlier in the convention brought us the UtaPri concert) premiered the first episodes of two new series: Dahlia in Bloom: Crafting a Fresh Start with Magical Tools and Haigakura.

After a workaholic life in Japan, Dahlia is reborn as a magical maven in a new world, but her afterlife takes an unexpected turn. Engaged, betrayed, and orphaned—all before the honeymoon? Talk about a plot twist! Watch as Dahlia turns heartbreak into wand-making brilliance and declares her independence. In this story, the real magic is self-discovery, and Dahlia’s the sorceress of her own destiny.

This one was a little hard to evaluate as the first episode serves as more of a prologue to the actual storyline. The crux of the series appears to be Dahlia’s recovery from a near-miss of a crappy engagement, but the episode we saw largely shows us the child Dahlia is reincarnated into, and her burgeoning passion for making magical tools. The animation could be smoother and visually there isn’t a lot to distinguish this one from the vast numbers of fantasy anime out there, but the concept of a repressed, overworked salarywoman overcoming the same pressures of conformity in a new situation is certainly a welcome one, and worth checking out further episodes for on Crunchyroll.

The world of the immortals.
The world where the gods and humans live was on the verge of collapse.
The singer Ichiyo, who uses a technique called purification to capture the gods scattered all over the world,
searches for the four evil gods, who hold the key to the collapse of the immortal world, together with his attendant god Tenkou.

Based on the popular comic by Takayama Shinobu, which has been read for a long time, this
is an action fantasy that depicts the battle of singers who save the immortal world from a crisis!

This show I thought was a lot of fun–there’s a great deal of world-building that takes place here, but the the story of a band of guys rounding up derelict gods with singing is surprisingly comedic as well as action-packed. With art design that is both detailed and distinctive, this series looks worth seeking out when it airs this Fall.

HIDIVE and AX Cinema Nights presented a classic anime, Ninja Scroll as part of its 30th anniversary theatrical release coming up this September 11, 12, and 15th.

When Jubei saves a young ninja woman from the unthinkable, he assumes that’s the end of it. To his surprise, it’s only just the beginning. Together, the two investigate the mysterious deaths of an entire village which uncovers a conspiracy of demonic proportions! Getting closer to the truth, the demonic forces will stop at nothing to silence Jubei and his companion for good!

This fantasy samurai movie, although an important piece of anime filmmaking, is definitely an adult film and not for those sensitive to violence or nudity. Relatively unavailable through legitimate means in recent years, AX Cinema Nights gives a new generation a chance to revel in the sophisticated gore of this influential film.

While not a new franchise by any means, My Hero Academia had a special event panel with voice actors Daiki Yamashita (Deku) and Kenta Miyake (All Might and Dark Might) discussing the latest film in the long-running series, My Hero Academia: You’re Next.

After showing the trailer, additional voice actors Mamoru Miyano (Giulio) and Meru Nukumi (Anna) were introduced as new characters in the film and discussed their appreciation for becoming part of this world-wide phenomenon.

Daiki Yamashita

Kenta Miyake

Mamoru Miyano

Meru Nukumi

In a Crunchyroll panel for the Yana Toboso (Twisted Wonderland) series Black Butler, Producer Yoshito Ito, Director Kenjiro Okada, and voice of Sebastian Michaelis, Daisuke Ono announced the plans for a new Black Butler arc–”The Emerald Witch”–to stream on Crunchyroll in 2025.

Over on the Entertainment floor, Hulu had their usual large-scale area where they offered games and photo-ops, and free boba tea if you lined up early enough (I never did.)

One of their other giveaways was a pin set promoting their show Hit Monkey, now in its 2nd season.

Beyond anime, the printed page was well-represented by TOKYOPOP in their “Manga for Everyone” panel, where they announced an abundance of new titles. From their Disney manga collection, they have Stitch! ¡AMIGOS POR SIEMPRE! Coming out in September in Spanish.

Also arriving in September is Kilala Princess: The Collection. Kilala Princess is a manga series sometimes described as “Kingdom Hearts, but with a high school girl.” In it, Kilala travels to different Disney worlds to meet different Disney Princesses as she has adventures and works for her happily ever after.

Then in October, Nightmare Before Christmas fans can look forward to the full-color manga version of both the classic film and the adventures of everyone’s favorite ghost dog in Zero’s Journey.

Looking back…

Anime Expo 2024 in many ways was a huge improvement over the slightly chaotic 2023 version. Expanded entrance times and increased entry points largely eliminated the huge wait times required to enter the building from previous years. Updated security scanners replaced hand bag checks for the most part (unless you were carrying a camera, as I was) which also sped up the process considerably. By and large, there seemed to be a lot more room to maneuver around on both the Exhibit and Entertainment floors which made it much easier to stop and see what each booth had to offer. The exception was Artist’s Alley which is still down in the parking garage and was so compacted it was difficult to tolerate wading around in there for long stretches before the crowding and the marginal ventilation mandated a quick retreat.

The flip side of this was that in many ways it seemed as though the increased space may have also been due to the absence of some of the companies that perhaps usually would have had more of a presence but couldn’t afford to make the trip over, with the yen as depreciated as it currently stands. Noticeably, booths that in previous years would have just had fan activities and giveaways, now all sold merchandise, and giveaways in general were greatly reduced. One general marker of this phenomenon was that of the tote bags that were normally given out for free in past years, which now required a minimum purchase of $20-100 to obtain. Screening too seemed fewer than in past years–concert films that used to be free were now paid ticketed events, and whereas films used to be shown for free at the nearby Regal LA Live cinema, this year QR codes were distributed that just led to the regular theater ticketing purchase page for them.

Inflated prices didn’t stop at merchandise however–a new addition this year was “AX Crossing: “ an enlarged food court with multiple booths featuring different types of Japanese food. The theming of the area was very appealing and the live entertainment contributed a lot to the atmosphere, but the pricing was pretty high–generally around $24 for a bowl of ramen and $12-15 for one handroll. Again, this probably hit those coming from Japan the hardest through the currency exchange.

Amongst all the more commercial aspects of the Expo however, some of the most charming parts are always the aspects that, for the most part, just seek to display different parts of Japan and Japanese culture to a wide audience.

As the Expo came to a close, complete with Obon dancing and the traditional filling in of the second eye of the Daruma, fans were left with some exhaustion after four days of convention-going, but a definite sense of excitement for all that’s to come in the world of anime and manga. It showcased, as it does each year, some of the best of what the anime and manga world has to offer, from exciting new series and films to famous guest appearances and cosplay.

If you’re looking to join in the fun for next year, Anime Expo will return to the Los Angeles Convention Center on July 3 – 6, 2025 and badges for the event will go on sale in early 2025. anime expo chibi will take place on the weekend of November 9-10, 2024 at the Ontario Convention Center, and fans interested in an early bird special can purchase tickets here.