AnimeJapan is an anime exhibition event held at Tokyo Big Sight in Tokyo, Japan nearly every year since 2014. Despite its cancellation in 2020 and 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the event has drawn crowds internationally every year since. AnimeJapan 2025 opened to the public on the morning of Friday, March 22, as eager anime fans piled in to experience the exhibits.
AnimeJapan always aims to bring the best of anime goods, news, events, and cosplay. This year there was heavy advertising for upcoming 2025 anime such as Witch Watch, CITY THE ANIMATION, and Summer Pockets, as well as showcases for current running anime like Re:Zero – Starting Life in Another World, and Oshi no Ko. Anime Corner had the honor of working as press at this year’s AnimeJapan.
Our personal goal of the day was to take as many pictures as possible and visit every booth to see what new anime are in store for the rest of the year.
The first exhibit we visited was the Bushiroad booth dedicated to BanG Dream! Ave Mujica, which has gained international popularity since its debut in January 2025. Bushiroad displayed standees of Ave Mujica characters, and in the center of their booth stood a large statue of Mortis. The booth also advertised the release of the BanG Dream! Ave Mujica TV anime Blu-ray to be released this year on May 28th.
The Toho Animation booth had a vast display of various anime, from Kaiju No.8 to SPYxFAMILY, and The Apothecary Diaries, which seemed extra popular and many lined up to take pictures of a Maomao mascot at the booth. The Toho Animation exhibit was also heavily advertising the upcoming anime My Hero Academia: Vigilantes, a spin-off of the massively successful My Hero Academia, which is set to air this April.
Anime Corner had the opportunity to meet with a representative from Pony Canyon Inc., who kindly showed us around their booth. As we toured their display, voice actresses from the recent Sorairo Utility took the stage to talk about their experiences working on the show. Unfortunately, photos of these kinds of stages are strictly prohibited, but it was fun to hear about their love for the anime. Pony Canyon’s booth this year was a stylish bar theme called “Bar Pony Canyon”, and the announcer for the stage was even dressed in classic bartender attire.
Other anime featured at Pony Canyon’s booth included Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid, and the upcoming bowling anime, Turkey!. At scheduled times throughout the day, a Kanna mascot would appear for photos, advertising the upcoming movie Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid – The Lonely Dragon Wants to Be Loved slated for June 27th of this year.
Kadokawa also had a huge booth that drew in massive crowds. The booth displayed standees of B-Komachi from Oshi no Ko at the very front, which was very popular with attendees. Inside their booth, there were displays for Re: Zero – Starting Life in Another World, and Chitose is in The Ramune Bottle. One of their biggest displays featured The Summer Hikaru Died, which is set to premiere this year on Netflix. The first official trailer was dropped today as well, and you can watch it below.
Exclusive goods were on sale throughout the day, which attracted long lines. Most notably, merchandise from Nintama Rantaro, which premiered back in 1993, sold out of most stock by mid-Friday. Disney’s Twisted-Wonderland not only had a brilliant display, but many fans lined up for its sales booth. AnimeJapan also sells its own exclusive merchandise such as tin badges and acrylic stands, bearing the AnimeJapan logo.
Cosplay may not be as prominent at AnimeJapan compared to events such as Comic Market or Acosta, but there were two areas where cosplayers could stand for photos – one indoor and one outdoor area. Professional cosplayers are also commonly found in the exhibition hall working with various companies. NBC Universal’s booth featured several cosplayers to advertise their anime such as From Old Country Bumkin to Master Swordsman, set to air in April this year. There was also a cosplayer modeling for Watari-kun; ‘s ****** Is about to Collapse, premiering in July.
Anime Corner will continue to report on AnimeJapan, as the final public day is tomorrow, Sunday, March 23rd, with two business days to follow on Monday and Tuesday. More announcements are expected, so keep track of them on our live updates page on AnimeJapan 2025.
