The third annual Crunchyroll Expo is in the books! Crunchyroll has offered up a summary of what went down at this year’s convention for those who were unable to attend!
- Thirty guests including Junji Ito’s first-ever U.S. convention appearance, actors and creators from “The Rising of the Shield Hero,” “Mob Psycho 100,” “Zombie Land Saga,” and “Food Wars! Shokugeki no Soma,” along with 22/7 (nanabun no nijyuuni), Miho Okasaki (“That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime”), Rian Tachiban (the voice of Crunchyroll-Hime in “Grand Summoners”), and Ryo Horikawa (“Dragon Ball Z”), among many others.
- Huge programming announcements including two new seasons of “The Rising of the Shield Hero” and “Uzumaki,” a new anime mini-series based on Junji Ito’s iconic horror manga coming to Toonami on Adult Swim in 2020.
- World and U.S. premieres including “BLACKFOX,” a Crunchyroll co-production, the OVA for “Mob Psycho 100 II,” an OVA from “JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure,” “The Wonderland,” from Eleven Arts, the season three premiere of “Chihayafuru,” and upcoming series coming to Crunchyroll including “Somali and the Forest Spirit,” “In/Spectre,” “High School Prodigies Have It Easy Even In Another World,” “Ascendance of a Bookworm” and “Didn’t I Say to Make My Abilities Average in the Next Life,” among others.
- More than 40 CRX exclusive items, including a streetwear line inspired by CRX exclusive artwork from Junji Ito and a destination line inspired by New Crunchy City, alongside a range of sold-out products including a never-before-seen “Dr. STONE” tee, Junji Ito art prints and sticker sets featuring the CRX-exclusive designs, and a “Bananya” mochibi plush.
- More than 70 panels including Find Your Phobia and Anime’s Best Cats with horror master Junji Ito, and in depth discussions with FLOW, creators and talent from MAPPA and “Zombie Land Saga,” “Food Wars! Shokugeki no Soma,” “Mob Psycho 100” and more.
- Sold out experiences including the Crunchyroll-Hime Cafe and FLOW concert.
- Immersive experiences including “The Rising of the Shield Hero” Training Room, a lounge from “That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime,” a set from Reigen’s office from “Mob Psycho 100,” a “Black Clover” photo op, living statues from “Dr. STONE,” and the New Crunchy City tattoo parlor featuring temporary versions of iconic anime characters.
- A Crunchyroll Games demo station with playable previews of “NARUTO X BORUTO NINJA TRIBES,” “Mob Psycho 100: Psychic Battle,” and “Attack on Titan TACTICS” before the games are released later this year, alongside “RWBY: Crystal Match” and “Grand Summoners” featuring Crunchyroll-Hime.
- Continued community support for Kyoto Animation, including messages, artwork and paper cranes to be delivered to the studio at a later date.
- Three days of focus groups conducted by the Crunchyroll User Research team to ensure Crunchyroll Expo evolves alongside and remains authentic to the anime community.
In addition to all of the above, Crunchyroll announced information for next year’s Crunchyroll Expo! The event will be returning to the San Jose McEnry Convention Center on September 4 through September 6, 2020!
Here’s a few photographic highlights from this year’s event! (All Photos courtesy of Crunchyroll)
Junji Ito
The Team Behind Food Wars: Shokugeki no Soma
The Team Behind Mob Psycho 100
The Crunchyroll Team in Celebration at their Industry Panel
