Crunchyroll has announced it will be celebrating with anime fans across the globe throughout May—via retail, digital platforms and streaming.
The third annual Ani-May celebration kicked off this week, presented by Crunchyroll. Festivities are taking place worldwide through global retail, digital and streaming partners featuring some of the biggest names in anime. Titles include Solo Leveling, Kaiju No. 8, Bananya, Toilet-bound Hanako-kun and more. Multiple regional and store-based partnerships and events have been announced in collaboration with the orange-branded anime streamer. Retailers such as UNIQLO and Hot Topic are on the list, while the Crunchyroll Store and Game Vault will also host their own dedicated festivities.
Various events and collaborations with Crunchyroll will take place across North America, including a major partnership with clothing retailer UNIQLO. As part of the celebration, UNIQLO will offer Crunchyroll 30-day free trial codes with eligible online UT purchases, as well as special UTme! collection designs from manga artist Remi Yamamoto, available at their New York City flagship locations. Yamamoto will also create live manga portraits on May 18 at the Fifth Avenue store.
Additionally, Hot Topic will launch special promotions, exclusive anime merchandise and more throughout May in its U.S. and Canadian locations, as well as on its website. Barnes & Noble stores in the U.S. will spotlight anime home video deals (DVD and Blu-ray), while Best Buy is offering an exclusive Spy x Family pin with qualifying purchases both online and in-store. Planet Hollywood has also partnered with Crunchyroll to feature themed experiences, cocktails, menu items, and merchandise inspired by anime that was showcased during Ani-May.
One of the coolest events is with Funko, which sells the iconic Funko Pop! figures that everyone recognizes for celebrating their favourite pop culture characters in a chibi-fied version. Funko is hosting an autograph signing with the English voice cast of Jujutsu Kaisen on May 3, in celebration of the new Funko Pop! collection.
In the digital space, Fall Guys will be featuring a collection of skins from Bananya, including Bananya and Droopy Eared Bananya from May 1 to May 8. In theatres this month, Demon Slayer fans can check out the re-release of Demon Slayer -Kimetsu no Yaiba- The Movie: Mugen Train ahead of September’s Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Infinity Castle release.
The Crunchyroll Store is introducing a new product: the SteelNook. The SteelNook is an open display case made from premium SteelBook material designed to fit four standard SteelBooks. Pre-orders already began earlier this week. The Game Vault will continue to drop new games each week for Ani-May all month long.
Starting May 1, Crunchyroll will be rolling out 20 hit anime series to stream for free with ads. Here is a list of the free anime to stream with ads on the platform:
- Cowboy Bebop
- Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba
- Haikyu!!
- JUJUTSU KAISEN
- Shangri-La Frontier
- Solo Leveling Season 1
- The Apothecary Diaries Season 1
- And more!
The Crunchyroll site will also post some “special quizzes” to help users decide the perfect merch for them to show off their favourite series. Other countries and regions also have fun events, meet-ups, and partnerships. All of which can be seen in the full release on the official news page.
