barakamon season 2

Barakamon Season 2: Release Date, Still Can Happen?

Barakamon is a beloved anime series in the slice of life and comedy genre. We know that the slice-of-life genre has a special place in Japanese anime culture. The Barakamon manga series, one of the beloved works of this genre, began to be written by Satsuki Yoshino in 2009. The manga series was adapted into anime in 2014 by successful studio Kinema Citrus. Kinema Citrus is a really successful studio because it is the creator of famous anime such as Made in Abyss and The Rising of The Shield Hero, which aired during the same period as Barakamon. The spin-off series, “Handa-kun”, was also written by Satsuki Yoshino and adapted for TV by Diomedéa. Those who have not watched the spin-off series should not miss this additional taste. However, fans are mostly looking for a second season. The Funimation licensed anime originally aired on Japanese local networks from July 6, 2014, to September 27, 2014. So, although seven years have passed, could the anime have a second season?

What is the plotline of the anime?

Our story begins with the 23-year-old calligraphy artist Handa punching the exhibition manager. Unable to bear the principal’s heavy criticism of his award-winning job, such as ordinary, monotonous, and unoriginal, Handa loses himself and punches the principal. After this incident, at his father’s insistence, he is hurriedly sent to Goto Island. On this island, far outside the city, where the means of transport stops once a day, life is spent fishing and doing things related to the sea. Handa wants to work quietly and draw his path in his art here. But the inhabitants of the island, especially their children and youth, show so much interest in him that he has few moments of loneliness. But there are so many moments when he enjoys life as well.

Barakamon, which tells about the time Handa spent on the island in general, is an anime that does not seem to say anything but usually has entertaining scenes. As we are used to in the slice of life genres, it is a cute and warm anime, a production that you will watch little by little so that it does not end, and you will love each of the characters. The Naru character is the golden ball of the anime. I guess it doesn’t have a scene that doesn’t make the audience laugh. Naru’s admiration for Handa, with its childlike purity, is the kind that will touch the heart of people. Handa is a classic tsundere character. The message “You have to find your own way”, told through Handa’s career, is the subtext of the series that does not tire and is very enjoyable to watch.

barakamon
© Funimation

Will there be a second season of Barakamon?

The anime’s first season was released in 2014. A spin-off anime has delighted fans after two years, but it is not enough for them. As of September 4, 2022, at the time of writing, studio Cinema Citrus, manga publisher Square Enix or any related company with the anime has not yet renewed the series for a second season. Waiting for a new season of anime sometimes takes years; sometimes, the end of this waiting can be positive and sometimes unanswered. There is no official announcement for a second season of the anime yet, and we do not know if we can see it soon. However, whether the anime will have a new season can be evaluated with some key factors. As there is no official announcement yet, we will speculate about the second season of Barakamon. The key factors we mentioned are; manga source material adequacy, disc sales, popularity, and others…

Factor 1: Manga status

As we mentioned at the beginning of the article, the original manga of the series was written and illustrated by Satsuki Yoshino. Square Enix published the series in Gangan Online magazine between February 21, 2009 – December 12, 2018, and Yen Press publishes it in English in NA. As the Manga series becomes popular, it seems to have exceeded the cumulative circulation of 4 million copies. However, what really matters is whether the anime provides enough resources for a second season.

The manga series with the same name as the anime consists of 18 volumes in total, and we will not see a new volume anymore because the series is completed. In the first season of the anime, the first 6 volumes were adapted. Each volume of the manga contains almost an equal number of chapters, so we can call it an adaptation rate of 1/3. There seems to be enough stock material available for two more seasons.

33%
Manga adaptation rate

Factor 2: Disc sales

Disc sales are invaluable for new season decisions. When anime disc sales average less than 4,000 units, we usually don’t see a second season. There are always exceptions, but disc sales are also important data to see popularity in Japan. Barakamon has sold 7,000 discs after aired. Looking at disc sales, a second season is very likely.

Factor 3: The animation studio

Kinema Citrus has had a capital tie-up with “KADOKAWA Bushiroad” since 2019. However, since “Square Enix” and “KADOKAWA Bushiroad” are rival companies, it may not be possible to produce “Barakamon” published by Square Enix. Even though Kinema Citrus is not, a different studio can take over a second season of the anime, as in the spin-off series. But this confusion is one of the details that makes the anime less likely to have a second season.

Factor 4: Popularity

Disc sales mostly show the local popularity of the period when it was released. When we look at it today, anime is listed as the 271st most popular anime in Myanimelist. Since Barakamon is an old anime that came out in 2014, it is advantageous in Myanimelist’s popularity list. But we can look at more recent metrics like Google search volume to see current popularity. To be honest, we can say that the searches for anime have decreased a lot lately, and it is no longer as popular as it used to be. Advertising work no longer continues on Twitter, and it has only 24k followers. We see that the animes that have been approved for the new season have much more than that.

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When is the second season of Barakamon?

The anime has not yet been renewed for a second season, but we think it could be a new season with a 10% possibility as a result of our evaluation. Disc sales and manga source material adequacy give hope for the second season. However, this probability is quite low because the manga series is no longer in progress, and it has been quite some time since the last season of the anime, and it is not as popular as it used to be. We’ll share it with you when the second season of Barakamon is officially announced, but for now. If a new season is confirmed, the production period will take about one year. There is no rumor yet in preparation for a new season. We hope to see a new season in 2023 – 2024. Until then, we recommend the popular slice of life animes such as Gakuen Babysitters and Senryu Girl.