Hulu Heats Up Summer for Anime Fans With Animayhem-Exclusive Premieres & Returning Favorites (2024)

CBR Anime Week is brought to you by HULU ANIMAYHEM

July 3 marked the beginning of Hulu's "Animayhem" campaign -- an event featuring exciting premieres for dozens of new and returning anime series. Now, Hulu has unveiled which additional works will soon be available on the popular streaming platform.

Per Animation Magazine, the latest round of titles features several works from the popular isekai genre, including Season 2 of The Eminence in Shadow and the debut season of Reincarnated as a Sword. Until recently, the latter series was available exclusively via the anime-focused streaming platform HIDIVE. Non-isekai fantasy fans are also in luck, as Ya Boy Kongming and I'm Quitting Heroing are likewise on the Animayhem slate. For horror enthusiasts, there is Dark Gathering, the hit supernatural anime produced by Studio OLM of Pokémon fame. Finally, romance lovers can wind down from Animayhem's more chaotic fare with the poignant girls' love series, Bloom Into You.

Isekai and Fantasy Headline Hulu's New Anime Streaming Lineup

Based on Daisuke Aizawa and Tozai's titular light novel series, The Eminence in Shadow Season 2 continues the adventures of Cid, an unambitious hero who jokingly decides to create an imaginary organization to take down an evil cult -- only to later discover that the cult is actually real. Having angered the group's leaders, Cid becomes their #1 target, prompting him to assume the hero role that he never wanted to have. Reincarnated as a Sword, which is likewise based on a light novel series, revolves around Fran, a young girl on the run from those who wish to sell her into slavery. Along the way, she encounters a sentient sword that teaches her how to "liberate those in need and exact justice on the cruel of heart." I'm Quitting Heroing stars Leo Demonhart -- a similarly unfortunate protagonist who is hated and despised by his people, despite having rescued them from an invading demon army. Now in need of work, he is left with no other option but to seek employment from the very group he fought against.

Based on Kenichi Kondo's hit manga series, Dark Gathering revolves around Keitaro Gentoga, a college student who despises ghosts but also attracts them. After taking on a private tutoring gig, he meets Yayoi Hozuki -- a child genius with a similar connection to the spiritual world. He later learns that Yayoi wishes to use her powers to track down her dead mother's soul, which has supposedly been abducted by a mysterious force. In contrast, Ya Boy Kongming tells the story of its titular hero -- a strategist from ancient China. One day, he is mysteriously transported from his era to modern Japan. Here, he meets Eiko, a wannabe music star who uses Kongming's strategies to become Shibuya's hottest music icon.

Bloom Into You Has Become a Girls' Love Anime Staple

For more drama and romance-oriented anime fans, Bloom Into You revolves around high school freshman Yuu Koito, who sincerely believes that she is incapable of falling in love. Everything changes when she meets Touko Nanami, an ambitious upperclassman who professes her love for Yuu. The series follows the pair as they form a tentative friendship, with Yuu gradually discovering that love might not be as straightforward or simple as she once believed. Along the way, she also helps Touko cope with her latent insecurities, several of which are related to her deceased older sister, Mio.

Dark Gathering, Reincarnated as a Sword and The Eminence in Shadow Season 2 are now available to stream on Hulu. Ya Boy Kongming, Bloom Into You and I'm Quitting Heroing will begin streaming on July 15.

Source: Hulu, Animation Magazine